Council selects member; approves pool repairs
By DAVID LOWE Staff Writer

Evan Stubbs

The Lampasas City Council on Monday night approved repairs to the Hanna Springs Swimming Pool filter, but the city still needs a contract change order to finish renovations at the pool.

The council voted 6-0 to select Hines Pool and Spa of Austin to remove and replace filter media, inspect filter screens and replace damaged valves. The council approved spending as much as $12,500.

"It's a vital part of the swimming pool operation, and we do need to get it fixed," Interim Parks and Recreation Director Micky Tower said of the filter.

The council took no action on a contract change order.

In other business, council members voted 5-0, with Mayor Pro Tem John Cole abstaining, to grant a 90-day filing deadline extension for Whitetail Crossing, KOBO Inc.'s planned townhouse development on the west side of town.

The City Council approved a final plat, subject to several changes, on April 14. The city's subdivision ordinance allows the council to grant successive 90-day extensions, for as much as one year, if developers submit written requests for additional time to file final plats with the required changes.

KOBO developers said they are committed to the project but want to proceed cautiously because of tight credit and slow sales in the national real estate market.

After meeting in executive session, the City Council unanimously selected Evan Stubbs to fill the seat left vacant by former council member Debbie Fuller.

In another agenda item, an animal control ordinance that sets several fees passed on second reading by a 6-0 vote. City licenses will cost $3 per animal, with veterinary clinics keeping $1.50 per animal and the city of Lampasas retaining the remaining $1.50.

A license tag remains valid as long as the pet has a current rabies vaccination.

In addition, the council voted 6-0 to extend for one year Kempner Water Supply Corp.'s use of 1.06 million gallons per day of Lampasas' water allotment.

The extension ends Dec. 31, 2009, although Lampasas' 2006 Wholesale Water Supply Contract allows the city and KWSC to agree to as many as three one-year extensions until Dec. 31, 2011.

KWSC expects to relinquish the 1.06 million gallons per day when the Cliff and Eldine Poe Regional Treatment Plant begins distribution service. Construction is expected to take about 18 months.

City Manager Michael Stoldt said Lampasas has plenty of water to meet its own needs through the end of 2009 and may be able to grant another extension for 2010.

In other business, the City Council voted 6-0 to approve an interlocal agreement authorizing county septic system inspector F.A. Taylor to permit and inspect private on-site sewage treatment facilities within Lampasas city limits and to collect fees for those services.

The council took no action on a proposal by Vision Downtown Lampasas! to place pole banners along Key Avenue to advertise the downtown area. The council will take an official vote when representatives from the group submit a final design for the signs.

City Council members indicated they support such banners, as long as they follow the rules set forth in the city's sign ordinance.

Banners can be placed only on poles owned by the city, and only one banner can go on each pole. Banners may advertise only an area of town, not a business or group.

When the Texas Department of Transportation begins widening Key Avenue, poles likely will have to be moved, Building Official Lance Carlson added.

"[Citizens] need to realize that these poles may go away when the Key Avenue project begins," Carlson said. "We don't know what will happen with these poles."

In addition, TxDOT officials, citing safety concerns, have announced they will not allow the Spring Ho Grand Parade to use U.S. Highways 183, 190 or 281 during or after construction on the Key Avenue project. The 2009 Spring Ho Festival will mark the last time the parade may proceed down Key Avenue, Stoldt said.