[0:00] I didn't want to go home. They're like
we don't want to go. We don't want to
[0:03] go. And and so we had to make them go
because one of them had a doctor's
[0:07] appointment to get ready for school this
year.
[0:09] Well,
she was like well I'm not taking my
[0:11] stuff.
[0:14] But you need to because you might get
Okay, where where is town? Uh
[0:18] at the time it was in Keene by
Cleveland.
[0:22] It's a trip.
And um
[0:24] she goes well I'm leaving my stuff. I'm
like no you need to take it because if
[0:27] something could happen that where you
know you might change your mind. I'm
[0:30] like where are you going to go to your
friend's?
[0:31] Nope, I'm coming back.
Talked him into taking it. Sure enough
[0:35] they got home and then his friends
called, his cousin called and he was
[0:40] like okay grandma I think I may be I'll
stay here.
[0:45] They were good though. They were good
boys. Both of them.
[0:48] Very good boys. They kept us on our
toes.
[0:51] No it's not. There's nobody here. Oh
yeah.
[0:57] Well,
thank you Mark and and Barbara for
[1:01] attending our meeting tonight. We
appreciate that.
[1:07] Uh let's
let let's get Doug to offer our
[1:10] invocation and open our meeting the
normal way.
[1:13] » Heavenly Father God we come to you
giving thanks and giving praise.
[1:17] We thank you for all you do for us God.
We ask that you be with us our men are
[1:22] out there today keep the
heat
[1:25] from getting to them and keep the fire
at bay.
[1:27] Lord we just lift these things up to you
that our council do your will tonight
[1:32] in Jesus' name. Amen.
>> Amen.
[1:34] Please join me in the pledge.
>> I pledge allegiance to the flag of the
[1:39] United States of America and to the
republic for which it stands, one nation
[1:44] under God, indivisible, with liberty and
justice for all.
[1:53] » All right.
[1:56] Tonight um
[2:00] on our agenda, we have items of
community interest other than the fact
[2:04] that it looks like everything around us
is burning to the ground.
[2:08] Um
and the temperature was 108 last time I
[2:11] looked at my truck. I don't Do you guys,
Stephanie, do y'all have anything coming
[2:15] up you'd like the public to know about?
>> Uh not in town soon.
[2:19] » Okay, then anybody else?
All right, let's move on past community
[2:24] interest and open the meeting with our
city manager report.
[2:29] » Uh we're now in the process of putting
together a hazard mitigation plan
[2:34] courtesy of a
North Central Texas Regional Planning
[2:37] Commission grant. Kurt Kiggins has taken
the lead on this project. The hazard
[2:42] mitigation plan is a plan put together
by our staff citing problem areas in the
[2:46] city and
the plan has remedies to fix the
[2:49] problem.
By naming the problem, having a plan to
[2:52] mitigate the problem, we will be able to
get grants to repair the problems if
[2:56] they are available.
Uh without the plan, we cannot get the
[3:00] grant. As we work on the plan, I will
bring copies of it for you, the council,
[3:04] to review. We will have to approve of or
you will.
[3:08] Uh last Thursday, we met with Matthews
West and Huffhines, our auditors for the
[3:13] first part of our
2025-2026 audit. Austin Henderson,
[3:17] Dawson, and I went over what will be
required from the auditors in order to
[3:21] get a good audit. The state of Texas
requires us to have our audit done by
[3:26] the 1st of March 2027.
So, we're starting early this year in
[3:30] order to meet the state deadline.
Basically, without the audit, we cannot
[3:34] do anything with the state or federal
governments that require financial
[3:37] assistance.
Uh the reason we're starting so early is
[3:41] not necessarily us, but it's uh Matthews
West and Huffhines.
[3:44] They had to really rush last year to get
the audit done in time and so, they
[3:49] they're getting They were here uh last
week and went over a lot of stuff and
[3:53] gathered a lot of information that I
don't usually get until like, you know,
[3:58] in December or January. So,
they're three or four months ahead of
[4:02] time. We hadn't even finished the year
and they're already here. So, that's a
[4:05] good thing.
On the agenda tonight, we're finally
[4:08] awarding the bid for the Rock and Pillar
Street Drainage Project. Construction
[4:12] should begin in the next month or so
after we have awarded the contract. I
[4:16] will have a timeline for completion of
the project. Fortunately, the bids were
[4:21] such that we we should be able to
totally complete the project with the
[4:25] including the alternate items which will
enhance the finished product.
[4:30] Uh we finally finished the budget
yesterday. Robert and I met with Rodney
[4:36] Dryden of Hub International, our
insurance advisors, to discuss our
[4:40] employees health plan.
We came up with a plan that the city can
[4:44] afford and we will allow the city to
continue paying for employees health
[4:48] insurance.
Rodney will be at our next meeting to
[4:52] explain you the plan to you and the
reason for the difficulty of getting a
[4:57] plan. We will continue to insure with
Blue Cross Blue Shield, but the plans
[5:01] will not be exactly the same as last
year or any previous plan. If you have
[5:06] any questions about insurance, I will
ask that you wait till Rodney is here.
[5:10] Robert and I can answer some questions
and Robert can do a better job than I
[5:14] can
because they have a lot more experience
[5:16] with the insurance.
Uh but we might have to um might leave
[5:20] you confused, so it would be better to
wait and get an accurate description
[5:24] from Rodney.
Uh
[5:27] when I'm in Carter Lake level gets to
917
[5:30] ft mean sea level, which is 3 ft below
normal pool of 920 mean sea level,
[5:38] we will automatically go into voluntary
water conservation.
[5:42] This is where we ask the water customers
to voluntarily limit non-essential water
[5:47] usage and voluntarily uh limit
irrigation usage. Last time I checked
[5:52] today, the lake level is at 917.02.
So, we're only 200
[5:58] uh
above 917. So, we're about to there. Uh
[6:02] we'll be using social media and our
website to announce the voluntary
[6:07] conservation plan.
Any questions?
[6:12] » No, but I have something to say.
Rocking Pillar
[6:15] yay.
>> Yay.
[6:17] » Yeah. It has not been closed nearly
nearly a fifth of the time that the
[6:23] other street was closed. And I'm hoping
that this project goes even smoother
[6:27] than the last one. And we're back up and
running.
[6:30] » I might read uh the letter I got from
Blake Baldwin, who's with the corporate
[6:34] project board, who did the engineers
uh corporate project board had reviewed
[6:39] the bids submitted, references, and
verified the lowest
[6:42] responsible bidder's work history. Wall
Contractors LLC has successfully
[6:47] performed similar projects ranging from
$650,000
[6:51] to $3 million in and around the
Metroplex. I can recommend awarding this
[6:55] project to Wall Contractors. Uh
depending on the city's budget, I would
[7:00] recommend awarding the base bid and
either or both the
[7:03] uh additive alternative bid items.
They come with glowing
[7:09] recommendations. So,
>> Yay.
[7:12] Somebody tell Rex that we're about to
start on this project.
[7:16] Cuz every time he runs into Market, the
grocery store, he asks him, "Are we Are
[7:19] we going to fix it? Are we going to fix
it?"
[7:23] Yes.
[7:43] That's awesome.
>> Yes.
[7:45] » excellent.
>> We don't always hear that about a
[7:46] contractor, so that's absolutely
awesome.
[7:48] » That's good.
>> Wonderful.
[7:51] All right. Well, as you know, the public
hearing is on the agenda tonight, so
[7:55] I've got to close this meeting
at 6:06
[8:00] and reopen for a public hearing
on at 6:06
[8:06] for the 2026 tax rate. So, let me read
this to you.
[8:10] You you guys in the audience all pay
close attention.
[8:14] The public hearing is to inform the
public of the proposed tax rate of .5750
[8:21] per $100 of property value. The meeting
in which the tax rate will be adopted
[8:27] will be the September 8th City Council
meeting at 6:00 p.m. here in the Council
[8:31] Chambers. Do you have any questions from
the public?
[8:38] » Mark, you good?
[8:42] » If we have no ques-
If we have no questions, I'm going to
[8:46] close the I can't do it at 6:06. I'm
sorry. You're going to have to wait.
[8:49] You're going to have to wait. 6:07.
Close it at 6:07.
[8:55] » All right. Let's move on. Public
comment. Do you have any public comments
[8:59] from the audience?
This is probably the
[9:03] slimmest meeting I think we've ever had.
All right. We're going to move on.
[9:08] » DJ, I'm good.
>> You're good.
[9:12] All right. Consent agenda items for the
um August the 11th regular meeting
[9:17] minutes. They are in your packet, but
also um is the utility and the library
[9:21] write-offs.
If you've had a chance to review them
[9:25] all, I would entertain a motion
to accept as presented.
[9:31] » So moved.
>> Thank you, Ms. Post.
[9:35] » Second.
[9:38] » All those in favor, say aye.
[9:41] » I feel like I should move this.
Uh Sproles.
[9:44] » I.
>> Post.
[9:45] » I.
>> McEwen.
[9:46] » I.
>> And Holstein.
[9:47] » I.
>> Thank you very much.
[9:58] Sorry, I got to get I got to get on down
here.
[10:05] All right. Next item on the agenda
is the resolution 2026-27,
[10:12] a resolution setting a date for an
adoption of the fiscal year 26-27
[10:17] proposed City of Bowie operating budget.
[10:25] I know. I'm I'm I'm
trying to give my chance to take a look
[10:29] at it.
So, it's not an ordinance, it's a
[10:32] resolution just setting the public date.
So, I'd entertain a motion to accept the
[10:37] resolution as presented.
>> So moved.
[10:41] » McEwen. Do I have a second?
>> Second.
[10:44] » Post.
Sproles.
[10:46] » I.
>> Holstein.
[10:48] » I.
>> McEwen.
[10:50] » I.
>> And Post.
[10:51] » I.
[10:54] » Next item on the agenda is that
ordinance 2026-29, an ordinance adopting
[10:58] an annual budget for the City of Bowie
for the fiscal year beginning October 1,
[11:03] 2026 and ending September 30, 2027.
Adopting a referenced document as said
[11:09] budget and establishing appropriations
for the various activities and functions
[11:12] of the city, establishing an effective
date and repealing all ordinances and
[11:17] regulations in conflict herewith.
That was also in your packet.
[11:23] I'll entertain a motion to accept as
presented.
[11:25] » I.
>> Okay, second.
[11:28] » Holstein.
Motion. Sproles on the second.
[11:32] Uh Post.
>> I.
[11:34] » McEwen
>> Aye.
[11:36] » Sprouls
>> Aye.
[11:37] » and Holston
>> Aye.
[11:38] » Thank you very much.
[11:42] All right, our next item is ordinance
2026-10
[11:46] an ordinance
levying an annual ad valorem tax rate
[11:51] for the city of Bowie, Texas for the tax
year 2026.
[11:57] » Plan to say it just like this here wants
to make
[11:59] » Yeah, whoever wants to make the motion
has to re-
[12:02] has to recite here. She wants to
>> to accept ordinance number 2026-10.
[12:09] » Okay, well, let's see if it was read
exactly like she just did.
[12:12] » I make a motion. I move that the
property tax rate be increased by the
[12:16] adoption of a tax rate of 0.57
50, which is effectively a 5.89%
[12:25] increase in the tax rate.
Thank you.
[12:29] » So, she made the motion and Holston
seconded it.
[12:34] Sprouls
>> Aye.
[12:36] » Holston
>> Aye.
[12:37] » McEwen
>> Aye.
[12:39] » and Post
>> Aye.
[12:41] » Thank you.
[12:45] Our next item on item on the agenda is
to award the bid to Wall Contractors for
[12:51] the Rock and Pillar Drainage Project.
[12:56] I'd entertain a motion to offer to award
the bid.
[13:00] » So moved.
>> Sprouls, do I have a second?
[13:03] » Second.
>> TJ
[13:06] » Is there an amount that's mentioned?
>> 1.3 million
[13:11] I don't have the number exact number in
front of me.
[13:14] » We don't have the exact number at all or
I haven't been
[13:17] » I it it's but I have it back in my
office.
[13:20] » Okay. All right, we'll get it after
Thank you.
[13:23] » Sprouls
>> Aye.
[13:25] » Holston
>> Aye.
[13:26] » Post
>> Aye.
[13:27] » McEwen
>> Aye.
[13:32] » Our next item on the agenda is ordinance
2026-11,
[13:35] an ordinance of the City Council of the
City of Bowie, Texas, amending chapter
[13:38] 10, traffic control, article 10.2,
stop signs established by adding D,
[13:45] regulating traffic flow around Kingdom
Construction subdivision in Bowie,
[13:49] Texas, establishing stop sign traffic
control devices, repealing any
[13:54] conflicting clause, providing for a
severability clause, and establishing an
[13:59] effective date.
[14:02] » I'm sorry, where are those again?
>> Kingdom Construction is the new
[14:05] subdivision that's being built over
behind the elementary school.
[14:09] » Okay.
[14:12] » And some of these are actually in phase
two and phase three, but we decided just
[14:17] to go ahead and do them all, and that
way when they go into those phases,
[14:20] they'll already be in place.
>> Yeah.
[14:22] » Absolutely.
>> So, I'd entertain a motion to accept
[14:25] ordinance 2026-11.
>> So moved.
[14:28] » Post, do I have a second?
>> Second.
[14:32] » Whichever one you choose.
>> T.J.
[14:34] » Sprouls.
>> Aye.
[14:36] » Post.
>> Aye.
[14:37] » Holstein.
>> Aye.
[14:38] » And McEwen.
>> Aye.
[14:40] » Thank you.
All right, the last item on the agenda
[14:43] is to cast votes for the Texas Municipal
League Intergovernmental Risk Pool Board
[14:48] of Trustees election.
Um, you want to go over that?
[14:53] » No.
Did you happen to bring that with you?
[14:57] » I did.
>> I have some recommendations that I
[15:00] marked
on the ballot. I hope you agree with me
[15:03] because I've been most of the people
that I recommended or marked,
[15:08] I would recommend, uh,
place one is Carrie D. Neil, city
[15:14] manager of Seagoville.
Place two, Emily Crawford, and I know
[15:19] Emily very well. She's the city manager
of Abilene. She went to Abilene from
[15:23] Brownwood. I've known her several years.
She's a sharp lady.
[15:27] Uh
excellent is Andy Joslin, city manager
[15:29] of the city of
uh Beeville. Uh
[15:33] I don't know Andy Bagley, but I do. He's
a good guy.
[15:37] And
the other one
[15:42] or the other two, I don't know which it
is,
[15:44] is James Houghtop. He's the city manager
of Weatherford. I know him uh through
[15:50] Texas Public Power Association. He'll be
a
[15:53] a good member, too. So,
that's who I recommend.
[16:00] » So, I would entertain a motion to cast
the votes as presented by the city
[16:05] manager.
>> I'm
[16:09] so moved.
I don't know any of them, so
[16:13] I'll take your recommendation.
>> That's me.
[16:15] Holston, Sproles.
>> Second.
[16:18] » Post.
>> I.
[16:19] » Ewing.
>> I.
[16:20] » Holston.
>> I.
[16:21] » Sproles.
>> For your understanding,
[16:24] intergovernmental risk pool is TMLIRP,
which is our insurance carrier.
[16:29] » And
>> They're the controlling board.
[16:31] » Houghtop is going to be a great addition
to that. I know him personally, too. I
[16:35] think he'll be a great great addition.
All right. So, at this point, at 6:14,
[16:40] I'm going to adjourn.
Amen.
[16:43] » Okay, since we're adjourned,
do we have uh
[16:47] information on who's actually running
for city council?
[16:51] » Okay.
Yes. Yeah.
[16:55] Um Precinct 1 is Levi Bailey and uh
Valerie Thompson.
[17:00] » Is there anyone running