Editor: Shannon Cottongame
August 17, 2023
Road use agreement adds new requirements…
The Hill County Commissioners Court approved a tax abatement agreement with Ash Creek Solar for its solar project near Abbott at a regular meeting held Tuesday, August 8.
Documents filed with the county show the company planning to lease about 2,800 acres for solar energy storage and transmission equipment. The estimated taxable value of the project is $477,700,000.
Under the county’s tax abatement guidelines for projects with a capital investment of over $200 million, the project was eligible for a 10-year abatement starting at 60% in the first year and decreasing 5% each year. In the tenth and final year of the agreement, the abatement is 15%.
The county does not negotiate on the FM lateral portion of the tax rate, which funds roads and bridges, so the company will pay the full amount due to the county on that side of the rate.
The contract also includes a more robust road use agreement after the court previously discussed the need to add more teeth to the documents.
The company will be required to send their trucks down designated roads only, and will face a fine of $1,000 if non-designated roads are used.
They are also required to repair any road damage that they cause, perform pre-construction and post-construction surveys, and secure the roads with a $100,000 bond to cover damages.
There were no comments during a public hearing on the tax abatement agreement, but Hill County Emergency Management Coordinator Tom Hemrick questioned an Ash Creek representative about plans for maintaining grass to reduce fire risk. The representative said that the plan is to keep grass mowed fairly short in the project area.
The court voted to approve the tax abatement agreement. Commissioner Jim Holcomb was not present to vote due to a scheduled surgery.
In other action, the court formally approved a compensatory time buyout policy after the issue was discussed at recent meetings. In the new fiscal year that begins October 1, the county will switch to overtime pay to reduce its increasing comp time liability. For budgetary purposes, county employees will stop accruing comp time as of 11:59 p.m. September 30, with the buyout to follow.
The court is also expected to vote on a policy to allow new employees to begin accruing and using paid time off hours immediately, eliminating the current waiting period. The request was made by the sheriff’s office to help recruit new employees. The policy is expected to include a specified time period that an employee must work for the county before they can quit and receive payment for accrued paid time off. As with the comp time issue, County Judge Justin Lewis said that the goal is to avoid creating an incentive for employees to leave and get a large payout.
A change order was approved for the construction project at the Covington Street annex. This will allow the structure that the county purchased at 212 West Walnut to be demolished to create additional parking for the annex.
The court also approved issuing a request for proposals for “Design-Build Contracting for High Performance Facilities.” Lewis said that the county needs to start figuring out budget numbers to address needs, such as more administrative offices at the sheriff’s office and space for precinct offices. Obtaining numbers for the projects will help the county budget for them moving forward.
Hill County Chief Juvenile Probation Officer Tina Lincoln presented a list of residential, non-residential and interagency contracts to the court for approval. The department contracts with a number of providers to find beds and services for youth.
Lincoln said that it continues to be difficult to find beds for youth offenders at residential facilities, and she plans to submit a proposed agreement to prepay for two beds at a future meeting. The court approved the presented list of agreements.
The court rescheduled public hearings on previously discussed proposals, including placing traffic control devices and implementing a 35 mile-per-hour speed limit on HCR 2124, placing a yield sign at the intersection of HCR 1439 and HCR 1432, and implementing a 30 mile-per-hour speed limit along HCR 1104 Loop. The proposals were not properly submitted for publication, and Lewis said that his office will be handling the publications in the future to prevent confusion. The new public hearings were set during the court’s meeting on Tuesday, September 12.
Commissioners also approved adding a general laborer position in Precinct 1 to address the need for an additional worker as one is out with health issues and another plans to resign in January.
In other action, the final accounting of public donations for road work on HCR 1414 was entered into the court record, and the court tabled a lease-purchase agreement for a mini excavator in Precinct 1 to get clarification on language in the contract.
Other discussion at the meeting involved the recent fires that have occurred in the county. A burn ban remains in place, and Lewis and Hemrick pleaded with the public to exercise caution to avoid starting fires. Hemrick said that plenty of water has been donated, but sports drinks like Gatorade are still needed and can be donated at 505 North Waco Street in Hillsboro for distribution to departments. The public was also encouraged to support their departments by donating funds, if possible.
The court was scheduled to hold budget hearings Thursday, August 10, and Friday, August 11 as the annual process of setting the county budget continues. Details will be printed in an upcoming edition.
The Lakelander 