The Burnet County Historical Commission is going to jail—well, not THAT jail. Commission members on June 4 agreed to partner with the county in operating the Old Historic Jail on the courthouse square in downtown Burnet.
The commission will take over recruiting, training, and scheduling volunteers and docents to more consistently keep the jail open to the public for tours. It will also store and sell its history books from the former lockup at 109 S. Pierce St.
“We are asking to partner with the (Burnet County Historical Commission) to help with our volunteer base so we can be open on a more regular basis,” Burnet County Tourism Director Blair Manning said at the Tuesday commission meeting.
Manning has been working out of the jail but can’t always be on site or available for tours, she said.
“The jail has been under my umbrella, and I’m only one person,” she continued. “I need your help.”
The 140-year-old jail opened as a visitor center and museum in 2022 after undergoing extension renovations. It housed inmates until 1982. The renovation was funded by hotel occupancy taxes, which are charged to visitors renting temporary lodging in the county.
The proposed partnership is slated to begin July 1 and was unanimously approved at the Tuesday meeting, which was held in a third-floor room at the jail. Since the building is not ADA-compliant past the ground floor, the commission will most likely continue to hold its monthly meetings in the Herman Brown Free Library one block away.
However, the July 2 meeting will be held at The Falls on the Colorado Museum, 2001 Broadway in Marble Falls, as part of a plan to make the historical group more accessible to other parts of Burnet County.
“We are part of county government, and we represent history in the entire county,” BCHC Chair Rachel Bryson said during a discussion of future meeting places.
Meetings are held at 1 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month.
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The Marble Falls City Council authorized Mayor Dave Rhodes to execute a settlement agreement with the Fowler-Ronjaar family for a 2-acre easement on its land for the city’s proposed wastewater treatment plant. The decision was made during executive session at the council’s June 4 meeting.
The action comes on the heels of a condemnation lawsuit filed by the city against the family on May 2. The City of Marble Falls, TX v. Nancy Shefflet Fowler Trust and Estate of Nancy Jo Fowler was filed in the Burnet County Court at Law.
The agreement is subject to further negotiations and approval by City Attorney Josh Brockman-Weber.
The lawsuit seeks the acquisition of 2 acres on the Fowler-Ronjaar family’s 800-plus-acre property in Marble Falls.
The city offered the family $43,428 in February. A final offer of the same amount was sent in April. The price was based on an appraisal and final estimate of value from third-party appraiser Atrium Real Estate Services in May 2023.
The Marble Falls City Council voted to invoke eminent domain in July 2023 after failing to hear back from the landowners.
“The City provided the Property Owner Defendant with at least 14 days to respond to the final offer, but the Property Owner Defendant did not agree to the terms of the final offer,” the lawsuit reads. “Further attempts to negotiate would be futile and to no avail.”
Marble Falls City Manager Mike Hodge noted during the July 2023 meeting that the Fowler-Ronjaar family filed a request for a contested case hearing with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality regarding the wastewater plant’s permitting process.
In the lawsuit, the city is asking the court to appoint three special commissioners to assess actual damages and to “grant a final judgment or decree of condemnation” to hand the property over to the city.
Marble Falls officials provided the following statement to DailyTrib.com when asked about the details of the ongoing case.
“We appreciate the role of our local media in providing important information to residents,” Deputy City Manager Caleb Kraenzel wrote in an email. “The City continues to have discussions to find ways to resolve this matter to the mutual benefit of all parties and residents of Marble Falls, but unfortunately, at this time, we can’t provide specific comment on those discussions or provide additional information beyond what has been publicly filed.”
Hearings for the case are yet to be scheduled, according to the Office of the Burnet County Court at Law. DailyTrib.com is waiting to hear back from the TCEQ on whether a contested hearing regarding the wastewater plant permit will be granted.
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The Hill Country Humane Society is dealing with a canine distemper outbreak and has suspended all intakes and adoptions until further notice, the Buchanan Dam animal shelter announced on Monday, June 3. The highly contagious virus can be transmitted to dogs and other mammals.
Canine distemper has no cure once contracted but can be prevented by vaccination. To do its part to curb the disease and other pet viruses, the local Humane Society is holding a free vaccination clinic on Wednesday from 1-4 p.m. at ACE Hardware, 2607 RR 1431.
“Our team, in collaboration with Dr. Dan McBride and infectious disease experts, are monitoring the situation closely and implementing effective disease management strategies,” reads a media release from the Hill Country Humane Society.
The HCHS became aware of the issue after a Kingsland dog it took in tested positive for the virus. Several other animals in the facility began showing symptoms shortly after, according to the shelter.
Canine distemper attacks an animal’s immune system, making it susceptible to other infections. It also affects the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and nervous systems, causing a wide range of symptoms that can be deadly if left untreated.
Symptoms include:
discharge from the eyes and nose
fever
coughing
lethargy
reduced appetite
vomiting
diarrhea
walking in circles, unable to follow a straight path
head tilt
lack of coordination
muscle twitches
convulsions with jaw-chewing movements (“chewing gum fits”) and drooling
seizures
partial or complete paralysis
The virus can also be transmitted to and contracted from several other mammals, including foxes, coyotes, skunks, raccoons, and ferrets. Cats can also contract and transmit the virus but typically do not get sick from it.
“We strongly encourage all pet owners in the area to ensure their pets’ vaccinations are up to date,” the Highland Lakes Humane Society said in a Monday social media post. “Plans for additional free community vaccination clinics are underway.”
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Horseshoe Bay Resort is now home to the only Mouratoglou Tennis Center in the United States. It is named after world-renowned tennis coach Patrick Mouratoglou, who helped hone the skills of legendary player Serena Williams.
The facility, which opened June 1, features six clay and six hard tennis courts as well as 14 dedicated pickleball courts. It offers personalized training programs for all skill levels.
The Mouratoglou Tennis Center is only available to Horseshoe Bay Resort guests and members.
“We are thrilled to partner with Mouratoglou in the creation of the Mouratoglou Tennis Center at Horseshoe Bay Resort,” said Israel Castillo, the resort’s director of racquet sports, in a media release. “This collaboration underscores our commitment to offering unparalleled experiences and becoming a premier destination for tennis enthusiasts worldwide.”
Plans for the center include access to round-robin play sessions, specialized clinics, cardio tennis workouts, private and group lessons, weekend camps, and customized holiday and summer programs.
The center is the first expansion into the United States by the Mouratoglou Academy, a tennis school started by Patrick Mouratoglou in 1996. Other Mouratoglou centers are located in Italy, Greece, Malaysia, China, and the United Arab Emirates.
“Choosing Horseshoe Bay Resort as the location for a Mouratoglou Tennis Center in Texas is a natural fit,” Mouratoglou said in the media release. “With its incredible variety of unique experiences and amenities, Horseshoe Bay Resort provides an ideal setting to elevate tennis to its highest level.”
The center is designed to elevate players’ skills.
“By implementing our Methodology, we aim to not only enhance the tennis experience but also to amplify Texas’ strong presence in the tennis world,” Mouratoglou continued.
The Mouratoglou Tennis Center at Horseshoe Bay Resort follows announcements of additional centers planned for New York, Florida, and Melbourne, Australia.
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Granite Shoals is hosting a sunset social for residents on the balcony of City Hall on Thursday, June 6, from 7-8:30 p.m.
The city will provide light refreshments, including snacks, sodas, water, and wine. Attendees are welcome to bring their own drinks, but they must be opened on site.
“Sometimes, we are really lucky and get gorgeous sunsets (at City Hall),” said Mayor Ron Munos when the event was announced on May 28. “The first meeting I came to, when I was on Planning and Zoning (commission), I couldn’t concentrate on the meeting because the sunset was so breathtaking.”
Granite Shoals City Hall sits atop a small granite mountain at 2221 N. Phillips Ranch Road. The building’s elevation and large, open balcony offer a clear view of the west.
Sunset is 8:34 p.m. Thursday, and the current National Weather Service forecast calls for clear skies that evening.
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The annual Central Texas Electric Cooperative meeting for District 4 is Monday, June 10, at 6:30 p.m. at the Kingsland Community Center, 3451 Rose Hill Drive.
Co-op members who attend will hear a presentation and report on the status of their power provider and acknowledge the unopposed nomination of incumbent District 4 Director Fermin Ortiz for another term on the CTEC board. They will also get a $10 credit to their accounts.
District 4 covers most of Llano County, excluding Horseshoe Bay, as well as a small portion of San Saba County north of Tow. It is represented by three directors who each serve three-year terms. Current District 4 directors are Ortiz, Samuel Scott Olguin, and Wayne W. Seipp.
The District 4 meetings have traditionally been held at Llano High School, but this year’s event was moved to Kingsland to draw lake-area co-op members.
“This is an opportunity for the Kingsland, Sunrise Beach and Buchanan Dam areas to be more easily engaged,” Ortiz said in a CTEC media release announcing the meeting.
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The Lower Colorado River Authority officially reduced its drought stage from Stage 2 to Stage 1 on Monday, June 3, after recent rains replenished Highland Lakes reservoirs. With the change, LCRA customers are under more relaxed restrictions, but the authority’s leadership is asking for continued conservation through the summer.
Heavy rains in the spring and increased flows in the Colorado River watershed brought the combined storage of lakes Buchanan and Travis from 42 percent on May 1 to 56 percent as of Monday. According to the LCRA’s drought management plan, Stage 2 restrictions are lifted once the combined storage of the two reservoirs reaches 55 percent, or 1.1 million acre-feet. Stage 2 conditions have been in effect since August 2023.
“These rains were welcome, and it’s good to see our water supply reservoirs at higher levels, but the reservoirs are still stressed from years of drought,” LCRA Executive Vice President of Water John Hofmann said in a media release from the authority. “With summer right around the corner, we all need to continue using water wisely and cutting back on discretionary water use.”
Under Stage 1 restrictions, LCRA firm water customers, which are mostly cities, utility companies, and industrial customers, are asked to implement mandatory drought response measures and reduce overall water usage by 10 percent. If the combined storage of Buchanan and Travis reaches 1.2 million acre-feet, Stage 1 restrictions will be lifted, leaving no restrictions in place. The combined storage was at 1,116,634 acre-feet at 1:30 p.m. June 3, according to the LCRA’s River Operations Report.
Under the recent Stage 2 restrictions, firm water customers were subject to once-per-week outdoor watering schedules and asked to reduce water use by 20 percent.
While the drought stage has changed, Hofmann made it clear that the drought is not over.
“We encourage everyone to cut back water use when possible,” he said. “We’re heading into another hot, dry summer when the amount of water in lakes Buchanan and Travis typically drops because of increased water use and evaporation.”
According to the release, 70 percent of residential water use in the summer is due to outdoor activities.
“We can’t control how much it rains or where it rains,” Hofmann said. “The only thing we can control is how much water we use, and each of us has a say in that. We especially can control how much water we put on our yards.”
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possible action on two requests for water and wastewater impact fees that took effect April 30—one for the Legacy Crossing Development and one for the Panther Hollow Development
public hearing, discussion, and possible action on a condition use ordinance concerning a convenience store and fueling station at Gregg Ranch
public hearing, discussion, and possible action to amend a drought contingency plan ordinance
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Burnet County will draw on its tourism dollars to cover $19,908 in overtime accrued by the Sheriff’s Office in the days surrounding the April 8 total solar eclipse. The event drew tens of thousands of visitors to the area, so it was decided the extra hours could be considered a tourism-related expense.
Using the county’s hotel occupancy tax fund to pay for deputies’ overtime has been up for discussion since just after the eclipse.
About 80,000 visitors came to Burnet County on April 8, and thousands more arrived in the days leading up to the event. Deputies racked up 498 hours in overtime managing traffic and the surplus population during that time.
Hotel occupancy tax funds can legally be used for the promotion or support of local tourism that directly leads to improved business for lodging services. The county has $575,000 in HOT funds budgeted for the 2023-24 fiscal year. The money is collected as a tax from all lodging businesses in unincorporated areas.
Burnet County Attorney Eddie Arredondo told Commissioners Court members they could approve using HOT funds if they believed the Sheriff’s Office overtime met two specific standards.
The first standard was that overtime expenses directly promoted tourism in the hotel and/or convention industry.
The second was that overtime expenses met at least one of nine categories from Texas Tax Code 351.1001. Arredondo pointed to the third category, which focuses on advertising and conducting solicitations to attract tourists.
“In this situation, what we had was a unique historical event,” he told the court. “The tourism department certainly was active in promoting Burnet County as a destination to come view the (eclipse). A large number of tourists did come into Burnet County, and a large number of tourists did utilize hotels and motels for lodging.”
He alluded to an opinion issued by the Texas Hotel and Lodging Association, which set the precedent for paying law enforcement overtime if it was specifically used to facilitate tourism that benefited the local lodging industry.
The court unanimously approved the use of HOT funds to cover BCSO overtime after hearing Arredondo’s comments.
The Sheriff’s Office has $75,000 budgeted for overtime in the 2023-24 fiscal year, and the eclipse overtime would have accounted for 26 percent of that.
Chief Deputy Alan Trevino spoke at the close of the discussion, stating that the Sheriff’s Office did everything it could to keep overtime to a minimum during the eclipse.
“We definitely always have overtime, but had we not purposefully attacked it the way we did, we would have easily had double or triple the amount,” he said.
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