The Whitney City Council welcomed new and returning members during its regular monthly meeting held Thursday, May 21. Jason Sneed, who received the majority of the vote in the recent city election, received his certification of election and took his seat at the table. Vicki Wilson and Cheryl Taylor-West also started new terms on the council after their reelection, although Taylor-West was attending training and not present for the meeting.
Mayor Janice Sanders presented a plaque expressing appreciation to outgoing council member Valery Peacock, who did not seek another term this year. Peacock had served on the council since 2018.
With the new and returning council members in place, Jason Ince was selected to serve as mayor pro tem, and Wilson was selected to serve as deputy mayor pro tem. The mayor pro tem is a member of the council selected to serve as acting mayor whenever the mayor is absent, unable to serve or if the office becomes temporarily vacant.
Council member Amy Teal requested an update on the city’s wastewater treatment plant and any planned town halls or public information sessions that would precede a bond election, if one is necessary.
The city has long had compliance issues with its wastewater plant, which was built in the early 1990s and was having problems by the end of that decade. The city has been considering a new plant in recent years as it continues to struggle to meet the requirements of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).
The council has had previous discussions about the need for a new plant and how to fund it. City Administrator Billy Pribble said that he has been in contact with TCEQ, which suggested the city try a natural method to reduce the algae in its stabilization ponds.
Pribble explained that the amount of algae in the ponds has caused an issue with meeting “total suspended solids” requirements, and under the guidance of the TCEQ, the city is attempting this method to address the issue before resorting to a new plant.
“When I tell you this is a Hail Mary, it is a Hail Mary,” said Pribble. “We are diligently working and hoping beyond hope that this technical advice does not require us to spend $6 million on a new wastewater plant.”
Pribble said that it will take some time to see if the plan works.
Lieutenant Chris Jackson, Hill County Emergency Management coordinator with the sheriff’s office, spoke to the council to commend the work of the fire department. Jackson gave special recognition to Director of Emergency Services Robert Matthews and Fire Chief Wayland Price for their work to serve city residents as well as those in neighboring areas. He also commended the fire department for its response to the recent fire at Fort Graham Baptist Church.
Members of the city’s parks board were on the agenda to ask the council for direction regarding their deliberations about the use of the former Cato Drug building, which the city now owns. The city has been exploring turning the building into a community center, but it needs a substantial amount of work that would have to be funded through fundraising or grants.
Parks board members, who make recommendations to the council for possible action, indicated that they have been discussing what it would look like to create an enclosed community center, an open-air community space or possibly selling the building.
Because no designated funds are available in the city’s budget, the council informed the parks board that it could begin fundraising for the project while options are explored.
The parks board also made a recommendation to the council that the fence around the city park tennis courts be removed due to a recent incident in which EMS was unable to fit a stretcher through the opening. The council directed city staff to research the costs of fence removal based on the board’s recommendation.
The council voted to help promote a city potluck Sunday afternoon, July 5, at the Whitney City Park as part of the nationwide America250 celebration. More information is expected to be released in the coming weeks.
The council also approved waiving garage sale permit fees for the weekend of September 4-6 for a city-wide garage sale event.
The council adopted the Hill County 2026 Hazard Mitigation Action Plan, which was presented by Lieutenant Jackson. The plan identifies potential hazards in areas throughout the county, including Whitney, and mitigation efforts. Adoption of the plan is a prerequisite for the city to receive any FEMA grant funding. The public portion of the plan is available for viewing on the city’s website.
In other action, the council opted to stay with Cadence Bank for bank depository services after issuing a recent request for proposals. The council also approved posting library and park advisory board packets to the city website, generally at the same time meeting agendas are posted.
In departmental reports, Assistant City Secretary Christie Rogers reported that the city has been conducting an audit of its utility billing, including reaching out to those with high balances to arrange payment plans. Twenty-seven residential accounts were set up with payment plans that is expected to result in the collection of $15,726 over the next six months, while avoiding service interruptions for the customers. Rogers said that the city also began pursuing collection of inactive past-due accounts over many years, totaling $174,000. Staff members are also being cross-trained to better assist the public, and a new utility billing clerk has been hired.
Director of Emergency Services Robert Matthews reported that there were 249 total fire and EMS calls in April. The fire department responded to 137 calls, including five fire calls in the city, 19 fire calls in the county, 62 first responder calls in the city and 53 first responder calls in the county.
EMS responded to 69 calls, including 67 in the city and two in the county as mutual aid for CareFlite. Average EMS response time in the city was 4.9 minutes, and it was 11 minutes on calls out in the county.
Police Chief Joshua Scholes reported 256 total incidents for the police department in April, including six total arrests, 78 traffic stops and 105 citations/warnings. There were five animal control calls for service and three code enforcement calls for service in April.
Public Works Supervisor Chris Brennan reported that the department completed six water leak repairs in April and responded to five water calls and seven sewer calls.
Library Director Christie Rogers reported that 25 new library cards were issued in April, and a total of 1,097 individuals were served at the library. There were 139 library patrons who used computers in April, 91 visitors served with direct assistance and 30 unique programs and events offered with a total of 227 people in attendance.
