Official Website of the City of Horseshoe Bay, Texas

PRESS RELEASE – 7-26-06

HEADLINE:  Horseshoe Bay Mayor and Council….Moving Forward

 

            Monday, July 24^th was a busy day for the Council.  A budget workshop was conducted in the morning followed in the afternoon by a workshop to develop the Subdivision Ordinance.

            General Manager Mike Thuss, Police Chief Bill Lane, Fire Chief Danny Wooten, Public Works Director Glenn Jones and Administration Manager Toni Vanderburg submitted their department’s budget proposals.  Their budget requests reflected a conservative philosophy and aggressive cost control principles long established by the M.U.D.  Continued study and tweaking, one more budget workshop (Sept. 5), presentation to the public and Council approval will complete the process.  There are inflationary pressures and also salary increases of certain employee groups.  However, there will be no increases in taxes.

            Alderman Wood led a discussion regarding utility costs and rate philosophy.  He discussed policy alternatives.  Since inception of the Lake LBJ MUD, substantial utility costs have been paid by property taxes.  For fiscal years 2006 and 2007 this is estimated to be approximately $1.4 million each year.  Three years ago the Directors of the District decided to reduce this use of tax money for utility operations and began a program of increasing utility rates by 4% per year.  The Council discussed the desirability of, over several years, significantly reducing the tax money used in the utility operations.  Alternatives discussed by the Council included an impact fee for new customers, including a set amount of water (say 5,000 gallons) as a part of the minimum bill and making the present tiered rate structure more sharply tiered.  The Council also discussed the possibility of lowering the 2007 property tax to offset the utility rate increase.  This was the Council’s first consideration of these matters, and no decisions were made.

            The afternoon workshop was devoted to structuring a plan for future growth in our E.T.J.  The Subdivision Ordinance will dictate requirements and standards to assure quality growth to the areas that will ultimately be annexed into the City.  We studied and discussed thirty issues and the list is not complete.  Population density, requirements for street construction, adequate parks, esplanades and greenbelts, thoroughfares and traffic flow are a few examples of necessary requirements to continue the level of quality that we desire for our City of the future.

            The City Council held its regular meeting July 25, 2006.  There were twenty-six interested citizens in attendance to hear and provide input to the Mayor and Council as they acted on and discussed twenty-nine agenda items.

            There are three Council members that are presently serving one year terms:  Wood, Babcock and Schrader.  Wood and Schrader have chosen not to run for re-election.  They both expressed the hope that a number of qualified and talented citizens will volunteer to serve the community.  Babcock is seeking a second term.  He has been and hopes to continue to be deeply involved in a number of projects he would like to help complete.

            An agenda item was the formation of a committee to study a possible sales tax.  The overwhelming opinion of the Council is that a sales tax will be considered only if the revenue generated by such a tax would be offset by a reduction in the property tax.  This would insure that visitors contribute to the cost of running the City.  We agreed to move forward with this study.

            Another agenda item was a discussion of forming a committee to assist in formulating ordinances related to lifestyle issues.  Some examples are fireworks regulation, noise nuisance, sign and banner regulation, contractor obligations, and deer feeding to name a few.  Our City will provide a safe and pleasant environment by enforcing the lifestyle ordinances that benefit the majority.

Log on to the City’s website at www.horseshoe-bay-tx.gov for other information.

 

                                                                                                    Respectfully submitted,

                                                                                                    Buddy Schrader

                                                                                                    Public Information Officer

 

 

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