I didn't want to go home. They're like we don't want to go. We don't want to
go. And and so we had to make them go because one of them had a doctor's
appointment to get ready for school this year.
Well, she was like well I'm not taking my
stuff.
But you need to because you might get Okay, where where is town? Uh
at the time it was in Keene by Cleveland.
It's a trip. And um
she goes well I'm leaving my stuff. I'm like no you need to take it because if
something could happen that where you know you might change your mind. I'm
like where are you going to go to your friend's?
Nope, I'm coming back. Talked him into taking it. Sure enough
they got home and then his friends called, his cousin called and he was
like okay grandma I think I may be I'll stay here.
They were good though. They were good boys. Both of them.
Very good boys. They kept us on our toes.
No it's not. There's nobody here. Oh yeah.
Well, thank you Mark and and Barbara for
attending our meeting tonight. We appreciate that.
Uh let's let let's get Doug to offer our
invocation and open our meeting the normal way.
» Heavenly Father God we come to you giving thanks and giving praise.
We thank you for all you do for us God. We ask that you be with us our men are
out there today keep the heat
from getting to them and keep the fire at bay.
Lord we just lift these things up to you that our council do your will tonight
in Jesus' name. Amen. >> Amen.
Please join me in the pledge. >> I pledge allegiance to the flag of the
United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation
under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
» All right.
Tonight um
on our agenda, we have items of community interest other than the fact
that it looks like everything around us is burning to the ground.
Um and the temperature was 108 last time I
looked at my truck. I don't Do you guys, Stephanie, do y'all have anything coming
up you'd like the public to know about? >> Uh not in town soon.
» Okay, then anybody else? All right, let's move on past community
interest and open the meeting with our city manager report.
» Uh we're now in the process of putting together a hazard mitigation plan
courtesy of a North Central Texas Regional Planning
Commission grant. Kurt Kiggins has taken the lead on this project. The hazard
mitigation plan is a plan put together by our staff citing problem areas in the
city and the plan has remedies to fix the
problem. By naming the problem, having a plan to
mitigate the problem, we will be able to get grants to repair the problems if
they are available. Uh without the plan, we cannot get the
grant. As we work on the plan, I will bring copies of it for you, the council,
to review. We will have to approve of or you will.
Uh last Thursday, we met with Matthews West and Huffhines, our auditors for the
first part of our 2025-2026 audit. Austin Henderson,
Dawson, and I went over what will be required from the auditors in order to
get a good audit. The state of Texas requires us to have our audit done by
the 1st of March 2027. So, we're starting early this year in
order to meet the state deadline. Basically, without the audit, we cannot
do anything with the state or federal governments that require financial
assistance. Uh the reason we're starting so early is
not necessarily us, but it's uh Matthews West and Huffhines.
They had to really rush last year to get the audit done in time and so, they
they're getting They were here uh last week and went over a lot of stuff and
gathered a lot of information that I don't usually get until like, you know,
in December or January. So, they're three or four months ahead of
time. We hadn't even finished the year and they're already here. So, that's a
good thing. On the agenda tonight, we're finally
awarding the bid for the Rock and Pillar Street Drainage Project. Construction
should begin in the next month or so after we have awarded the contract. I
will have a timeline for completion of the project. Fortunately, the bids were
such that we we should be able to totally complete the project with the
including the alternate items which will enhance the finished product.
Uh we finally finished the budget yesterday. Robert and I met with Rodney
Dryden of Hub International, our insurance advisors, to discuss our
employees health plan. We came up with a plan that the city can
afford and we will allow the city to continue paying for employees health
insurance. Rodney will be at our next meeting to
explain you the plan to you and the reason for the difficulty of getting a
plan. We will continue to insure with Blue Cross Blue Shield, but the plans
will not be exactly the same as last year or any previous plan. If you have
any questions about insurance, I will ask that you wait till Rodney is here.
Robert and I can answer some questions and Robert can do a better job than I
can because they have a lot more experience
with the insurance. Uh but we might have to um might leave
you confused, so it would be better to wait and get an accurate description
from Rodney. Uh
when I'm in Carter Lake level gets to 917
ft mean sea level, which is 3 ft below normal pool of 920 mean sea level,
we will automatically go into voluntary water conservation.
This is where we ask the water customers to voluntarily limit non-essential water
usage and voluntarily uh limit irrigation usage. Last time I checked
today, the lake level is at 917.02. So, we're only 200
uh above 917. So, we're about to there. Uh
we'll be using social media and our website to announce the voluntary
conservation plan. Any questions?
» No, but I have something to say. Rocking Pillar
yay. >> Yay.
» Yeah. It has not been closed nearly nearly a fifth of the time that the
other street was closed. And I'm hoping that this project goes even smoother
than the last one. And we're back up and running.
» I might read uh the letter I got from Blake Baldwin, who's with the corporate
project board, who did the engineers uh corporate project board had reviewed
the bids submitted, references, and verified the lowest
responsible bidder's work history. Wall Contractors LLC has successfully
performed similar projects ranging from $650,000
to $3 million in and around the Metroplex. I can recommend awarding this
project to Wall Contractors. Uh depending on the city's budget, I would
recommend awarding the base bid and either or both the
uh additive alternative bid items. They come with glowing
recommendations. So, >> Yay.
Somebody tell Rex that we're about to start on this project.
Cuz every time he runs into Market, the grocery store, he asks him, "Are we Are
we going to fix it? Are we going to fix it?"
Yes.
That's awesome. >> Yes.
» excellent. >> We don't always hear that about a
contractor, so that's absolutely awesome.
» That's good. >> Wonderful.
All right. Well, as you know, the public hearing is on the agenda tonight, so
I've got to close this meeting at 6:06
and reopen for a public hearing on at 6:06
for the 2026 tax rate. So, let me read this to you.
You you guys in the audience all pay close attention.
The public hearing is to inform the public of the proposed tax rate of .5750
per $100 of property value. The meeting in which the tax rate will be adopted
will be the September 8th City Council meeting at 6:00 p.m. here in the Council
Chambers. Do you have any questions from the public?
» Mark, you good?
» If we have no ques- If we have no questions, I'm going to
close the I can't do it at 6:06. I'm sorry. You're going to have to wait.
You're going to have to wait. 6:07. Close it at 6:07.
» All right. Let's move on. Public comment. Do you have any public comments
from the audience? This is probably the
slimmest meeting I think we've ever had. All right. We're going to move on.
» DJ, I'm good. >> You're good.
All right. Consent agenda items for the um August the 11th regular meeting
minutes. They are in your packet, but also um is the utility and the library
write-offs. If you've had a chance to review them
all, I would entertain a motion to accept as presented.
» So moved. >> Thank you, Ms. Post.
» Second.
» All those in favor, say aye.
» I feel like I should move this. Uh Sproles.
» I. >> Post.
» I. >> McEwen.
» I. >> And Holstein.
» I. >> Thank you very much.
Sorry, I got to get I got to get on down here.
All right. Next item on the agenda is the resolution 2026-27,
a resolution setting a date for an adoption of the fiscal year 26-27
proposed City of Bowie operating budget.
I know. I'm I'm I'm trying to give my chance to take a look
at it. So, it's not an ordinance, it's a
resolution just setting the public date. So, I'd entertain a motion to accept the
resolution as presented. >> So moved.
» McEwen. Do I have a second? >> Second.
» Post. Sproles.
» I. >> Holstein.
» I. >> McEwen.
» I. >> And Post.
» I.
» Next item on the agenda is that ordinance 2026-29, an ordinance adopting
an annual budget for the City of Bowie for the fiscal year beginning October 1,
2026 and ending September 30, 2027. Adopting a referenced document as said
budget and establishing appropriations for the various activities and functions
of the city, establishing an effective date and repealing all ordinances and
regulations in conflict herewith. That was also in your packet.
I'll entertain a motion to accept as presented.
» I. >> Okay, second.
» Holstein. Motion. Sproles on the second.
Uh Post. >> I.
» McEwen >> Aye.
» Sprouls >> Aye.
» and Holston >> Aye.
» Thank you very much.
All right, our next item is ordinance 2026-10
an ordinance levying an annual ad valorem tax rate
for the city of Bowie, Texas for the tax year 2026.
» Plan to say it just like this here wants to make
» Yeah, whoever wants to make the motion has to re-
has to recite here. She wants to >> to accept ordinance number 2026-10.
» Okay, well, let's see if it was read exactly like she just did.
» I make a motion. I move that the property tax rate be increased by the
adoption of a tax rate of 0.57 50, which is effectively a 5.89%
increase in the tax rate. Thank you.
» So, she made the motion and Holston seconded it.
Sprouls >> Aye.
» Holston >> Aye.
» McEwen >> Aye.
» and Post >> Aye.
» Thank you.
Our next item on item on the agenda is to award the bid to Wall Contractors for
the Rock and Pillar Drainage Project.
I'd entertain a motion to offer to award the bid.
» So moved. >> Sprouls, do I have a second?
» Second. >> TJ
» Is there an amount that's mentioned? >> 1.3 million
I don't have the number exact number in front of me.
» We don't have the exact number at all or I haven't been
» I it it's but I have it back in my office.
» Okay. All right, we'll get it after Thank you.
» Sprouls >> Aye.
» Holston >> Aye.
» Post >> Aye.
» McEwen >> Aye.
» Our next item on the agenda is ordinance 2026-11,
an ordinance of the City Council of the City of Bowie, Texas, amending chapter
10, traffic control, article 10.2, stop signs established by adding D,
regulating traffic flow around Kingdom Construction subdivision in Bowie,
Texas, establishing stop sign traffic control devices, repealing any
conflicting clause, providing for a severability clause, and establishing an
effective date.
» I'm sorry, where are those again? >> Kingdom Construction is the new
subdivision that's being built over behind the elementary school.
» Okay.
» And some of these are actually in phase two and phase three, but we decided just
to go ahead and do them all, and that way when they go into those phases,
they'll already be in place. >> Yeah.
» Absolutely. >> So, I'd entertain a motion to accept
ordinance 2026-11. >> So moved.
» Post, do I have a second? >> Second.
» Whichever one you choose. >> T.J.
» Sprouls. >> Aye.
» Post. >> Aye.
» Holstein. >> Aye.
» And McEwen. >> Aye.
» Thank you. All right, the last item on the agenda
is to cast votes for the Texas Municipal League Intergovernmental Risk Pool Board
of Trustees election. Um, you want to go over that?
» No. Did you happen to bring that with you?
» I did. >> I have some recommendations that I
marked on the ballot. I hope you agree with me
because I've been most of the people that I recommended or marked,
I would recommend, uh, place one is Carrie D. Neil, city
manager of Seagoville. Place two, Emily Crawford, and I know
Emily very well. She's the city manager of Abilene. She went to Abilene from
Brownwood. I've known her several years. She's a sharp lady.
Uh excellent is Andy Joslin, city manager
of the city of uh Beeville. Uh
I don't know Andy Bagley, but I do. He's a good guy.
And the other one
or the other two, I don't know which it is,
is James Houghtop. He's the city manager of Weatherford. I know him uh through
Texas Public Power Association. He'll be a
a good member, too. So, that's who I recommend.
» So, I would entertain a motion to cast the votes as presented by the city
manager. >> I'm
so moved. I don't know any of them, so
I'll take your recommendation. >> That's me.
Holston, Sproles. >> Second.
» Post. >> I.
» Ewing. >> I.
» Holston. >> I.
» Sproles. >> For your understanding,
intergovernmental risk pool is TMLIRP, which is our insurance carrier.
» And >> They're the controlling board.
» Houghtop is going to be a great addition to that. I know him personally, too. I
think he'll be a great great addition. All right. So, at this point, at 6:14,
I'm going to adjourn. Amen.
» Okay, since we're adjourned, do we have uh
information on who's actually running for city council?
» Okay. Yes. Yeah.
Um Precinct 1 is Levi Bailey and uh Valerie Thompson.
» Is there anyone running