Check agendas to see if the following government meetings are in person, virtual, or both. Agendas are posted 72 hours before a meeting so are not always ready by the time this list is published. Check links for more information.
accept an independent audit performed and presented by Singleton, Clark, & Company, PC, Certified Public Accountants
approve bid for replacement of sashes and repairing window frames at the County Clerk’s building
authorize Riley Mountain Engineering, LLC, to proceed with phases 2 and 3 of the Llano County capital improvement projects, which include three emergency management stations and the Tax Assessor Annex
update on April 8 eclipse and approve rental of six roll-off dumpsters for debris removal if needed
approve the Llano County Library System to close at 12:30 p.m. on the first Thursday of March, June, September, and December for staff to resume quarterly staff development meetings
review and discuss committee meeting procedures and rules of decorum
discuss and review reports on current colony locations to date
acceptance of $500 donation from James Tieman
review the process recently completed to trap cats for trap-neuter-return training on Feb. 22
discussion and action on proposed trap-neuter-return program with PetPals and consider cost, scheduled date, procurement of traps, and staging for a large number of cats
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Granite Shoals Police Department K-9 Zoe, a Belgian Malinois, got a custom bulletproof vest for her birthday on Feb. 22. The $1,200 vest was paid for by donations. One donor, Darlene Oostermeyer of Marble Falls, met the police dog on Thursday at The Falls on the Colorado Museum.
“I donated because I saw the article in the paper, and I realized that she was local and she was unprotected,” said Oostermeyer, referring to a Nov. 17 DailyTrib.com story about a fundraiser for Zoe’s vest. “I just couldn’t stand the thought of her doing that kind of work without protection.”
Oostermeyer is vice chair of The Falls on the Colorado Museum Board of Directors. GSPD Sgt. Andrew Kos brought Zoe to the museum on Thursday to visit with Oostermeyer and express his thanks.
“(Getting this vest) is huge for Zoe,” he said. “She is trained in tracking people, and you never know what somebody is going to do.”
Granite Shoals Sgt. Andrew Kos plays with his partner, K-9 Zoe, at The Falls on the Colorado Museum in Marble Falls. Tom and Darlene Oostermeyer met Zoe and saw the vest that they helped pay for. Staff photo by Dakota Morrissiey
The custom vest was created by LOF Defense Systems and purchased through Brady’s K9 Fund, which featured Zoe as one of its 12 Dogs of Christmas in 2023. The vest offers the same level of protection to the one a human officer wears and can stop gunshots and knife punctures.
The vest was picked up in Austin on Wednesday. Zoe turned 2 years old on Thursday. She was born and initially trained in Poland before being brought stateside in the summer of 2023, when she underwent further training with Kos and eventually joined the Granite Shoals department in August.
GSPD got Zoe thanks to a $25,000 donation from New Jersey philanthropist Dr. Cesar DePaco, who contributes to K-9 causes nationwide.
The K-9 deploys across the Highland Lakes, not just in Granite Shoals, and has been used 46 times since August, resulting in 21 arrests.
Zoe’s training and care are largely supported by the Highland Lakes community. According to Kos, Dr. Natalie Lord of HOPE Animal Clinic provides free care and boarding when needed. The Marble Falls Police Department provides Zoe with high-quality food, and residents donate the toys she uses for training.
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Changes might be coming to the Mission Hills Drive-Mormon Mill Road intersection in Marble Falls, at least during a 60- to 90-day test period.
Following an often-heated discussion of the three-way junction during the City Council’s regular meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 20, members instructed city staff to approach The Home Depot about the suggested alterations. The big-box store owns part of the intersection.
Councilor Bryan Walker called the junction a “poorly designed intersection.”
“It’s aggravating because it’s a constant issue,” he said.
His proposal includes removing the intersection’s current three-way stop and creating a one-way-only entrance to The Home Depot, making customers exit the store down Max Copeland Drive or 12th Street instead of Mission Hills Drive.
The final piece of Walker’s plan is adding a four-way stop or stoplight at the intersection of Max Copeland Drive, Mormon Mill Road, and Dollar General at 1400 Mormon Mill Road.
“We need to visit with The Home Depot,” said Councilor Griff Morris, who was Marble Falls mayor in the late 1990s when the intersection was originally designed.
If an agreement is reached with The Home Depot, city crews will use delineators to herd the store’s exiting traffic down Max Copeland or 12th and away from Mission Hills. They will also remove or cover stop signs at the intersection’s current three-way stop.
“I say give it a shot, why not?” Walker said. “ … And if we’re wrong … we can go back.”
Marble Falls Councilor Bryan Walker presented a proposal to revamp the Mission Hills Drive-Mormon Mill Road intersection on Feb. 20. Scanned image
Councilor Lauren Haltom, who is property manager of The Homestead at Mormon Mill apartments near the intersection, vehemently opposed Walker’s proposal.
Max Copeland Drive is one of two points of entry for the complex’s tenants.
“You’d be going on my road,” she said. “We’re adding 58 more units and the (Texas Department of Public Safety office), they’re all parked in the road. You’re going to push all this (traffic) on everybody.”
Walker reminded Haltom that the development does not own Max Copeland Drive.
“I understand that your apartment complex is there, but it is a city road,” he said.
Marble Falls resident David Mason also opposed Walker’s proposed reconfiguration.
“This thing is already doing what it’s supposed to do,” he said.
Mason’s comments were met with verbal pushback from Walker.
“Does somebody need to get hurt before we decide we need anything changed?” the councilor asked.
Mayor Dave Rhodes put an end to the back-and-forth between Walker and Mason, allowing Mason to speak uninterrupted.
“Let him finish,” Rhodes told Walker.
Mason cited a study by University of Texas engineering students that was discussed during a City Council workshop in September 2022. According to the study, the current intersection has proven effective.
“Level of service, do you remember that?” Mason asked. “They gave (the intersection) a grade A.”
Police Chief Glenn Hanson reported on accidents at the intersection.
“We surprisingly have very few,” he said, attributing the lack of wrecks to the infamous nature of the intersection.
“Most people know how messed up it is,” he said. “People get in there and are very careful about it.”
Rhodes agreed with Walker that the intersection needs work but told councilors that “totally fixing it” was not a possibility.
“There’s no perfect answer,” the mayor said, adding that improved signage might help.
“There is a very small directional sign on the sidewalk,” Rhodes said. “I apologize (to Public Works crew members), but it’s worthless. It’s trash. You can’t see it.”
Rhodes, along with Mayor Pro-tem Dee Haddock and Morris, lobbied for the city to install “airport-style” signage.
“If you go to the airport, there’s a big monster (sign) out there with ‘departures, arrivals, baggage, and rental cars,’” Rhodes said. “You can’t miss it. They’re huge. I think it should span both sides (of the stoplight).”
Walker disagreed.
“I don’t think signs are going to change a single thing,” he said. “Now, I’m trying to figure out if I’m just going to be the grumpy person in the room when I come back and say the same crap is still happening.”
Further talks on new signs will be held during the next Traffic Control Committee meeting, City Manager Mike Hodge told DailyTrib.com after the council meeting.
“We always run any changes to regulatory signage through that committee before we have Public Works install,” he said.
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Pedernales Electric Cooperative’s new transmission control center in Leander will go online on March 1, General Manager Julie Parsley told the Board of Directors at its regular meeting on Feb. 16. The board also announced the departure of General Counsel Don Ballard, who is leaving to pursue a new opportunity after 10 years with the co-op.
“During his time at the cooperative, Don has been a source of wisdom and sound legal advice, providing cool-headed judgment on matters of great importance,” said board President Mark Ekrut, reading the resolution into the meeting’s record. “Don’s influence and reach have extended to the entire cooperative and beyond, and the Board of Directors is indebted to him for his unparalleled, loyal service.”
The Lower Colorado River Authority currently operates PEC’s transmission system, which the co-op maintains. The system includes more than 300 miles of lines that are interconnected to 81 substations. PEC has been working with the LCRA and the Public Utility Commission of Texas to turn over control of those lines. The co-op broke ground on its transmission center in 2022.
“This is very historic,” Parsley said at the February board meeting. “Since the inception of our transmission system, LCRA has operated our transmission. It’s been a historic partnership that we’ve had. They have been very, very cooperative in getting us up and running and helping us in what we are doing.”
The control center received its Transmission Operation Certification from the North American Electric Reliability Corp. on Feb. 8. NERC is an international regulatory authority that assures electric grid security.
“By operating our own transmission, PEC will have real-time operational data and dispatching from ERCOT, giving us visibility we haven’t previously had,” Parsley said.
ERCOT is the Electric Reliability Council of Texas.
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A Granite Shoals landowner’s proposal to build tiny homes on his property was turned down by the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission on Tuesday, Feb. 20. While the commission was intrigued by the idea, plans would have required foundational changes to single-family residential zoning requirements.
The commission discussed a written proposal from landowner Josh Dikoff during its Tuesday meeting to build five tiny homes, each with a separate septic system, on five conjoined lots he owns on Valley View Lane. Commissioners deliberated before choosing to take no action. Dikoff was not present at the meeting.
“We were all intrigued by the idea, but you still need a feasible way to do it,” said commission Chair Shannon Wilson in an interview following the meeting. “We didn’t want to do anything off the cuff.”
Dikoff requested a variance to Granite Shoals’ R-1 zoning ordinance, which governs the parameters of construction within an area designated as a single-family residential district.
According to his proposal, the tiny homes would be “affordable houses” priced at about $250,000. They would be approximately 800 square-feet, which is below the requirement of 1,200 square-feet in the zoning ordinance.
The average price of a home for sale in Granite Shoals is currently about $397,500, according to Realtor.com.
Wilson explained to DailyTib.com that the R-1 zoning ordinance is in place to protect the property values of homeowners within the district and create a cohesive aesthetic for neighbors.
R-1 construction requirements also include guidelines for garages, sheds, and external construction to match that of the home to which they’re connected. Homes in an R-1 district can be no more than two stories or 35 feet in height. Homes cannot be constructed on lots smaller than 5,000 square-feet.
Wilson acknowledged that something should be done about affordable housing within Granite Shoals, but a plan for tiny homes would have to be thoroughly fleshed out before it was approved.
The city might need to create a tiny home zoning ordinance, but that would require more work and a different proposal, Wilson continued.
“Yes, we need to combat affordable housing, but we weren’t willing to make a decision like that on the fly,” she said.
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Municipalities that buy water from the Lower Colorado River Authority must now limit outdoor watering to once a week until the ongoing drought eases and water levels in lakes Buchanan and Travis reach 1.1 million acre-feet, or about 55 percent capacity.
As of Thursday, Feb. 22, the combined storage was at 847,000 acre-feet, or 42 percent capacity.
“Our reservoirs are stressed, and we need to do everything we can to preserve our supplies through this drought,” said LCRA Executive Vice President of Water John Hofmann.
The LCRA Board of Directors approved the new watering restriction at the Feb. 21 meeting. Firm water customers will have to follow suit by passing ordinances that reflect those restrictions or face fines of up to $10,000 a day from the LCRA.
“This action is a reflection of the serious drought we’re in,” Hofmann said. “We don’t know when this drought will end, and we need to cut discretionary water use to help protect and extend our water supplies.”
Moving from twice-a-week watering to once a week is expected to reduce annual water usage by 7-12 percent.
The restriction’s trigger is when the combined storage in the two reservoir lakes goes below 900,000 acre-feet, or 45 percent of capacity.
Highland Lakes cities that must adhere to the new rule include Burnet, Cottonwood Shores, Granite Shoals, Horseshoe Bay, Marble Falls, and Sunrise Beach Village. The restriction also applies to lakeside property owners with LCRA contracts to draw water directly from the lakes.
Once-a-week watering will remain in effect until lakes Buchanan and Travis reach 1.1 million acre-feet, or about 55 percent capacity.
“We can’t make it rain, we can’t increase the amount of water flowing into the lakes, and we can’t stop evaporation, which takes more water from the Highland Lakes every year than any single customer,” Hofmann said. “What we can do is limit how much water we use, and that is what we’re doing here.”
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Marble Falls is asking for $25.8 million from the Texas Water Development Board for the city’s proposed wastewater treatment plant, which is projected to cost around $60 million to $80 million. The council voted to approve the funding request at its regular meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 20.
About 60 percent of the $25.8 million figure would come from zero-percent interest loans, while the other 40 percent would be grant-funded.
“I’m excited about this,” Mayor Dave Rhodes said.
The request follows past funding commitments by TWDB to the city that total $36 million.
“If the board awards the city the additional funding of $25.8 million, that would bring the grand total of our TWDB funds to $61.8 million for the wastewater treatment plant,” said city Finance Director Jeff Lazenby.
Rhodes said the money would lessen the impact of the project on the city’s coffers as it prepares to build the new facility.
“That $60 million in either grant, low-interest, or zero-interest money helps us a long way,” he said.
The city will find out if the funding request is approved within the next 60 days.
“We’ll proceed with the issuances of (certificates of obligation) once we hear from (the board),” said city financial advisor Andrew Friedman of SAMCO Capital Markets.
Friedman feels confident Marble Falls will get the money.
“I’m not going to say I’m 100 percent (confident), but they’ve told us we qualify,” he said. “(TWDB) typically doesn’t go back on what they’ve indicated in terms of grant funding. I expect that we will get that.”
Rhodes pointed to the proposed wastewater treatment plant’s intended direct potable reuse, also known as DPR, as a major factor in the city’s eligibility for funding. DPR is a technology that turns reclaimed water into water that is safe for consumption. It is used by the U.S. Navy, cruise ships, and many municipalities across the country.
“(TWDB) are excited about our project,” he said. “DPR is a big part of it. We’re going to set some state standards here. We’ve just got to get going with this.”
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Granite Shoals leadership is in the process of developing policy and pricing for plane parking spots at the city’s municipal airport. This recommendation came from the Granite Shoals Airport Advisory Committee after more than a year’s worth of improvements to Bob Sylvester Airport, 710 Forest Hills Drive.
The City Council is expected to discuss and possibly take action on solidifying pricing for the use of the tie-downs during its Feb. 27 meeting.
The airport has five tie-downs, which are anchor points embedded in the ground to which planes can be secured overnight to protect them from the wind. These were installed by the Airport Advisory Committee in 2023 as part of a series of upgrades to the airport that began in 2022.
The committee’s chairman, Robin Ruff, pitched the idea of charging for tie-downs to the council on Feb. 13, using pricing models based on other airports in the region.
His initial proposal was a day-use fee of $10 or a $50 monthly fee that would guarantee the pilot a spot.
“We may change this down the road if circumstances change,” Ruff said.
The council instructed City Attorney Joshua Katz to draft an ordinance that would facilitate charging for the tie-downs, which should be on the council’s Feb. 27 agenda, according to City Secretary Dawn Wright.
The committee’s written proposal to the council stated the intention to “encourage vacation rentals and visits,” attract plane owners to Granite Shoals, and make it a possible destination for pilots by offering regular use of the tie-downs.
According to Ruff, there is already one plane that consistently uses a tie-down. Other pilots are interested in permanent plane parking in Granite Shoals, he said.
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Sarah Novo accepted the city of Granite Shoals’ offer to serve as interim city manager for $145,000 a year on Wednesday, Feb. 21. The City Council is expected to make a final approval during its Feb. 27 meeting, and Novo should report to work on Feb. 28.
The council offered Novo the job after hashing out negotiations during a special meeting on Tuesday.
“We think she’s the crackerjack person,” said Mayor Ron Munos, using an informal term meaning exceptionally good. “She was interviewed by all seven councilors and all the (city) department heads, and everyone had a favorable impression.”
The council had been in negotiations with Novo since late January. She accepted the $145,000 contract at around noon on Wednesday.
She was pulled from a list of applicants for the assistant city manager position submitted before the resignation of former City Manager Peggy Smith on Jan. 9. Granite Shoals Fire Chief Tim Campbell has been acting as the interim city manager since Smith left the post.
According to Munos, Novo impressed city leadership in a series of interviews. He also explained that the nature of the interim position meant that nothing was set in stone if things don’t work out.
“It’s seldom that you have all of the council and the department heads agree on something, so we took that as a win,” he said. “We discussed (using an executive recruitment firm) during our session, but we think we found the person that we want.”
Novo is the former city manager of Flatonia, a city of about 1,300 people between San Antonio and Houston. She brings experience from managing the parks and recreation department of Rocklin, California, a city of roughly 70,000, and working in the Economic Development Department of South Africa.
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