The Hill County Commissioners Court appointed an elections administrator and Emergency Services District (ESD) board members during a meeting held Tuesday, December 23.
The Hill County Elections Commission reviewed 27 applications and unanimously selected Ada Motherspau as the next elections administrator.
The court reappointed Chad Wilson to the ESD 1 board and Jimmy Lehmann, Kevin Bragg and Alan Nisbet to the ESD 2 board. Wilson’s appointment was tabled at the court’s previous meeting pending the ESD 1 board approving his bond as treasurer. With that bond in place, the court unanimously approved his appointment.
Commissioners approved a quote from Chime Master to replace the courthouse bell system. County Judge Shane Brassell said that the county is currently using a loaner bell after the previous one stopped working. The previous bell lasted longer than it was designed to, the judge said, and the new proposal includes a more modernized system.
The new bell will include an all-digital system as opposed to the five-disk CD changer that the county had been using. It also comes with an amplifier and features that protect the most expensive pieces of equipment from lightning damage.
The total cost of the new bell system came to $10,575, which was approved by commissioners.
Commissioners also voted to increase the county’s on-site sewage facility (OSSF) permit fee to $600 per application, up from the previous fee of $475. An associated update of the OSSF permit paperwork was also approved.
In other action, the court accepted a $14,000 donation from James Deapen for a rock project on HCR 3413 South in Precinct 4 and approved a line of credit at Northern Tool for Precinct 4.
In open forum, Daniel Wilson spoke about the proposed reappointment of Chad Wilson to ESD 1, reiterating his issues with the ESD’s operations. He responded to Commissioner Jim Holcomb’s comments at the previous meeting, when the commissioner said that he asked Daniel Wilson if he wanted to serve on the board and suggested that anyone not willing to volunteer should stop “throwing rocks.”
Wilson said that he is unwilling to attach his name to conduct that violates state law, and said that commissioners would not ask a constituent to fix a road themselves if they had a concern. “I’m asking for oversight, not a job,” he said.
The court’s next regular meeting will be Tuesday, January 13, at 8:30 a.m. in the county courtroom of the courthouse.
The Lakelander 