The Whitney City Council reviewed a road study recently conducted by Westwood Engineering during a regular meeting held Thursday evening, August 21.
The firm found that many streets in Whitney are in poor enough condition that they will require full reconstruction, while others could be improved with less costly repairs, such as resurfacing or seal coating.
The report cited widespread base failures beneath the asphalt caused by poor compaction, inadequate drainage and a lack of routine maintenance following construction. Those issues have led to potholes, cracking and erosion along pavement edges.
The study recommended grouping road projects together for future bids and prioritizing repairs based on road condition, traffic use and estimated costs.
Roads were categorized into four recommended repair categories: full reconstruction, milling and base rework, seal coat and pothole filling, and project maintenance. If all projects were completed, the total estimated cost came to $28,945,489.
With the full list of Whitney’s roads and their conditions, Westwood broke the projects down into three phases based on prioritized streets and other streets that need repair in close proximity to prioritized projects.
The top six streets in need of full reconstruction and prioritized in phase one were San Marcus, Trinity (south of Jefferson), West Roosevelt, Cleveland (from Pecos to San Marcus), San Antonio (from Cleveland to Roosevelt) and Bush Drive.
Other streets in phase one include (in order): Polk (from Colorado to San Jacinto), Washington (from Trinity to Neches), West Lincoln, Center, Peverly, Cleveland (from Colorado to San Jacinto), Trinity (north of Jefferson), San Jacinto (from Wilson to Lincoln), Jefferson (from Center to Colorado), Neches (from Wilson to Jefferson), North Pecos, Washington (from San Marcus to San Jacinto), Lavaca, Railroad (from Colorado to San Jacinto), Polk (from San Antonio to Colorado), Jefferson (from Pecos to Center) and Brazos (from Polk to Cleveland).
The cost of completing all projects in phase one would be an estimated $12,013,349.
The firm stressed the importance of improving drainage and establishing consistent maintenance funding to extend the life of Whitney’s roads and reduce the need for costly rebuilds.
City Operations Director Billy Pribble said that there are a lot of pots of money available for water and wastewater projects, but not for road projects. He said that the council will have to have some hard conversations about how to proceed with road work due to the expense of projects.
The full road study is available in the public council packet at cityofwhitneytx.org under the council agendas tab.
Future of Historic
Downtown Building
The council continued its discussion about the historic building the city now owns at 117 West Washington in downtown Whitney, which was most recently Mustard Seed Marketplace but historically operated as Cato Drug.
Pribble said that the previous bid the council approved for asbestos abatement was just for air quality monitoring during the project. The cost of actual abatement will be $20,639. If the city chose not to repair the building and repurpose it for public use, the cost of demolition, with the required asbestos abatement, would be $75,729.
He reiterated that the project would require an investment of money if the council chooses to move forward, and he said it would be appropriate for the council to decide the purpose of the building before committing to big expenditures.
Council member Vicki Wilson said that she would hate to see the historic building demolished, and she would like to see the name Cato continue to be used at the site in some fashion.
Mayor Janice Sanders said that the property does have issues, but it has a lot of potential to serve the public as a site for a community center, convention center, farmers markets and other events.
Council member Amy Teal agreed that the property has potential, but she said that she does not believe the city should be funding the property and it should be left to the free market.
Council member Cheryl Taylor-West said that she was in favor of keeping the property, pointing out that she moved to Whitney in part because of its history.
Council member Jason Ince said that he would also like to save the building, but he believes the council needs to reach out to residents and find out what course of action they want.
The council discussed the possibility of accepting donations for a project at the site if it falls under parks and recreation. That is one of the few categories of projects for which the city can legally accept donations.
Council members agreed to reach out to the public and invite input on the future of the property. A public meeting is also expected to be called to accept input.
Proposed Tax Rate
A public hearing was set for September 11 to gather public input on the city’s proposed budget and tax rate. The council proposed the no-new-revenue rate of $0.5764 per $100 valuation. That is a decrease from last year’s rate of $0.6505 and will result in a decrease in revenue from last year’s levy of $3,732. Pribble said that because the city is proposing the no-new-revenue rate, a public hearing is not required, but one will be scheduled anyway in the interest of transparency.
Council member Teal asked how much revenue would be available for the city if the tax rate was set at zero. Pribble said that the only other source of funding is sales tax, which is projected to be under $1 million in the budget. Teal said that she opposes property taxes on principle and would not be voting. The council voted to propose the rate, with Teal voting no.
Pioneer Days Expenses
The council discussed expenses incurred by the city related to the Lake Whitney Chamber of Commerce’s annual Pioneer Days festival. Teal said that the issue has been brought up and she wanted to discuss it in the open.
Pribble presented estimated costs provided by department heads. The police department’s expenses were estimated to be between $529 and $1,140, EMS estimated $240, Public Works estimated $500, and electricity costs were estimated at $100.
He said that most of the cost comes from parade expenses, and parades are always a joint effort with the city.
Teal pointed out that the festival is a chamber fundraiser, and she made a motion for the chamber to cover the costs. The motion passed with Teal, Valery Peacock and Wilson voting yes and Ince and Taylor-West abstaining.
Parks Board
The council discussed activating a parks board. Teal said that there has been a lot of interest in parks, with fundraising ongoing for park projects. With different people and groups working on and maintaining parks, having a board that meets monthly on a regular basis will help everyone collaborate.
The city’s previous ordinance regarding the parks board will need to be updated, and council members expressed a desire to reserve spots for certain parties that have a stake in parks, such as representatives from organizations like WWFL, the Lions Club, Operation Greater Love and the Lake Whitney Garden Club.
An updated ordinance will be drafted and brought back for a vote at the next regular meeting.
TNMP Project
Council member Teal brought a topic discussed last month back before the council regarding the Trinity Street substation upgrades Texas New Mexico Power is performing and how it is impacting neighboring properties and infrastructure.
The council voted to send a request to TNMP to repair Trinity Street from Polk to Jefferson, repair any crushed tin horns, repair culverts and ditches, and add a screen at least 8 feet tall around the substation.
Fire Department Grant
Whitney Fire Rescue announced a Texas Forest Service grant of $25,000 to help the department purchase new extrication equipment. The department’s equipment needs to be upgraded to be able to cut into certain vehicles.
The department asked the city to make the initial upfront payment of $37,527 for the equipment, and the Forest Service will reimburse the city for the grant amount.
The additional $12,527 would be split between the city and fire department, with each entity paying $6,263.
City Attorney Jennifer Richie said that a formal agreement needs to be drawn up that clearly outlines the payment situation. That document is expected to be back before the council in September for a vote.
Health Insurance
The council selected Curative as its new health insurance provider for employees after reviewing bids. Rates will increase in the coming year from $680 for an employee-only plan to $748. Teal abstained, and all other council members voted in favor of the proposal.
Departmental Reports
In her report to the council, Mayor Sanders recognized two city employees. Whitney Police Officer Alex Tillman was recognized with the Life Saving Award for actions he took in Whitney while working as a Hill County sheriff’s deputy in January. Tillman performed CPR and continued lifesaving measures on a man having a medical emergency at Brookshire’s until medical units arrived.
Sanders also recognized City Secretary Kristi Woellert for 29 years of dedication to the city. She began working as a water clerk in August 1996 and worked her way up to city secretary. She was recognized for her knowledge, professionalism and dedication.
The EMS report showed that there were 68 calls in July, with 57 in the city and 11 in the county as mutual aid for CareFlite. The average response time in the city was 5 minutes, and it was 10 minutes in the county.
The fire department ran 114 calls in July, with five fire calls in the city, 11 fire calls in the county, 50 first responder calls in the city and 48 first responder calls in the county.
The July police report showed that the department responded to 381 incidents, made two arrests, conducted 186 traffic stops and issued 236 citations or warnings.
The animal control/code enforcement report showed that there were four calls for animal control, six code enforcement calls for service and 25 self-initiated code enforcement responses.
Public Works repaired two water leaks in July, installed two water taps and installed two sewer taps. Two staff members were hired, and the department responded to seven water calls and 10 sewer calls.
The library issued 31 new library cards in July and served a total of 1,456 visitors. There were 29 unique programs at the library in July, with 240 visitors attending the programs. The Lake Whitney Public Library Foundation recently funded a major outdoor upgrade at the library, including cleaning up the library property, painting and power washing, installing fencing and building a pavilion.
The Lakelander 