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Saint Jo Council rescinds investigation; appoints new member to fill vacancy after resignation

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By BARBARA GREEN
editor@bowienewsonline.com
It appears the Saint Jo City Council was able to hammer out its problems stemming from a recent anger-filled meeting where the mayor abruptly resigned.
In a called meeting March 30, the council rescinded its planned investigation into possible misconduct by the mayor, as well as accepted the resignation of its mayor pro tem, appointed a new alderman and retained the city secretary who had submitted her resignation.
The original controversy reportedly began at the March 9 council meeting where questions about the 4B Economic Development Board were raised, along with questions about a city lease with Coppell Construction. Those topics were also fueled by reportedly “misinformation” spread on social media about the 4B board which lead to five of them resigning, as well as the mayor walking out that same night.
In a follow-up session despite Mayor Tom Weger apologizing for his outburst and the council members going through a timeline of how they got to the point where the agenda stated the removal of the mayor was being considered, the group voted to hire an investigator to begin an examination of possible misconduct by Weger.
The mid-week meeting opened with public comments followed by a 90-minute executive session as the council consulted with its attorney Andy Messer. The agenda item listed the resignations of Mayor Pro Tem Carla Hennessey and City Secretary Teresa Fangman, the appointment of a new council member.

Read the full story in the weekend Bowie News.

Guy Hubler reads the oath of office as he was sworn into a seat on the Saint Jo City Council Wednesday night. He takes the seat of Carla Hennessey who resigned. (News photo by Barbara Green)
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Amon Carter Lake Board to meet

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Members of the Amon Carter Lake Water Supply Corporation will meet at 6 p.m. on May 26 in the office at 607A Lindsey for a monthly meeting.
Items on the agenda include a consent agenda and minutes and financials. Possible discussion/action may be considered on the following topics: Treasurer’s report, review of finance and current loans; president’s report as to the written agreements with contractual employees; consider current water rates and a possible increase; and review of expenses and areas that need amendment.
An executive session may be entered to discuss personnel issues.

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Saint Jo City Council hires fire marshal

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The City of Saint Jo has a new fire marshal as the city council made the appointment during its May 13 meeting.
Gary Hines, a retired professional firefighter and certified fire investigator, will take the position. City Secretary Debbie Dennis said the post is required by ordinance but has not been filled for a long period.
The council set dates for a budget workshop for 2 p.m. on June 14 and 2 p.m. on June 28 for the ordinance workshop, as the council works to update its rules.

Aldermen gave their support to a proposition by Councilman Jack Dunn who is asking the Legislature to allow Texas’ smallest cities, those with 2,500 or few in population, to receive an additional share of sales and use tax. He would like to see the funds used in these communities to repair and replace aging infrastructure without new taxes or reliance on state grants.
In letter to State Rep. David Spiller, whom Dunn will meet with on June 1, the alderman explains much of the state’s 6.25% share generated locally flows into general funds and is spent on other priorities. He would like Spiller to author this legislation. Dunn gave the letter to the council along with a powerpoint on the plan.
“A single water treatment plant upgrade or sewer rehab carries massive, fixed costs that do not shrink with population size. These communities, often with only a few hundred or a couple thousands residents, simply cannot spread those costs across enough ratepayers or a broad tax based,” the letter states.
Dunn suggests a “graduated sales tax retention policy:” 1% additional share for cities with 2,500 or fewer residents; .75% for those 2,500 and 5,000; and .50% for cities between 5,001 and 10,000. It would be dedicated to infrastructure. Dunn says the overall statewide fiscal impact would be negligible, but could help sustain small, rural cities.

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City of Nocona buys water storage tank, review dam repair

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The Nocona City Council approved a bid for a new 203,000 gallon capacity tank for potable water at the water plant and learned a slide repair to the lake dam is going to be pretty costly.
At its May 12 session the council received three bids on the tank and went with one from Tank Depot of Cleburne for $193,923. It is for a a 217,600 gallon tank usable for 203,000 gallons. The price could change slightly since it was based on estimate freight costs.

Read the full story in the Thursday Bowie News.

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