The Bandera City Council approved emergency wastewater treatment plant repairs, discussed staffing vacancies and debated concerns over transparency and access to city information during its May 12 meeting.
Council members unanimously approved up to $49,000 for repairs to the city’s wastewater treatment plant, which city officials said was facing mechanical issues requiring immediate attention. The repair was not included in the city’s budget and depleted the city’s contingency fund.
The wastewater treatment plant has remained a major issue for the city as officials continue working toward relocating the facility following directives from the state.
“As you all know, we are trying to get the plant moved,” interim City Manager Jill Dickerson said. “To remove the bearing and to remove the shaft roller, they have to bring in a forklift and a boom truck to get them out of there. This is a repair we have to do or we’re going to be in bigger trouble with TCEQ (Texas Commission on Environmental Quality).”
Dickerson said the $49,000 represented the maximum estimated cost and that the work could potentially be completed in one to two weeks.
“If they can save money or they get in there and something can be fixed with something else then it won’t go over this amount,” Dickerson said.
The council also approved salary ranges for two city positions following the recent resignation of City Treasurer Allyson Wright. Council members approved a $45,000 salary for the city treasurer position and a $41,600 salary for a code enforcement position, which will be paid at an hourly rate of $20.
Dickerson addressed concerns over delays in posting the positions.
“Allison is leaving in three days,” Dickerson said. “We have bills to pay. If I weren’t the interim [city administrator], I would have done it, and I wouldn’t have needed council’s permission to post the job.”
According to Dickerson, disagreements among council members over salary levels contributed to delays in posting the jobs.
During the discussion, Council Member Debbie Breen questioned why the positions had not appeared on an earlier agenda. Council Member Jeff Flowers responded that the council could have called a special meeting.
“Council could have made that happen,” Flowers said.
Breen later acknowledged the city had not moved quickly enough on the issue.
Council members also discussed tensions between some members of the council and city administration regarding access to records and responsiveness to information requests.
In a written statement read during the meeting, Breen said she believed delays in addressing agenda requests and financial inquiries were preventing council members from effectively performing their duties.
“The citizens in this town have voted us into office,” Breen said. “It does not matter if you like the council or not.”
Breen also questioned the use of non-disclosure agreements required by City Attorney Matt Groves for council members reviewing city administrator applications.
“According to the Attorney General’s office, there is no reason to sign a confidentiality agreement for a resume to review them,” Breen said.
Council Member Deanna McCabe also expressed frustration over ongoing disputes within city leadership.
“We should be driven by systems, not personality,” McCabe said. “We should be separating policy debate from personal conflicts.”
Dickerson said responding to records requests while managing day-to-day city operations had become difficult.
“Everybody asked for stuff on top of everything else that is going on in the city every day,” Dickerson said. “So, nobody can stop and spend six hours pulling this information right now.”
Mayor Denise Griffin defended Dickerson’s handling of the requests.
“You got three members of council requesting two years’ worth of invoices and two and a half years’ worth of bank statements,” Griffin said. “Yes, that’s public information, but it has to be redacted.”
In other business, the council approved an $8,500 payment to Lisa Kellmann for longhorn rentals associated with the Labor Day Parade and agreed to coordinate a future workshop with the city’s economic development board.
.png)
