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Agenda Analysis  | Meeting Review  | Meeting Documents | Commentary  | Last Meeting Concrete was poured from a concrete boom at the new transportation facility in the early morning hours of August 28. Facing west; tennis courts on the left. Try as I did to discourage this location for the transportation facility, I failed. Plan on this concrete to last a half century or more. A. Agenda Analysis Meeting start is at 6:00 for the tax rate hearing. Budget, tax rate and budget amendments, items 3, 4 and 5: Read these three items together. They establish next year's budget based on whatever tax rate the Board approves. The budget amendments, item 5, are amendments to the current year, 24-25, which ends at the end of August. What are those amendments? Well, the public doesn't know until they are presented, "as presented". Again, I contend that the phrase "as presented" should never be used on an agenda because it does not give adequate notice. SB 12, item 7: I haven't yet done a dive into SB 12. Here is the text of the new law . And here is a bill analysis . One of the provisions that jumps out to me is 7.0611, which on its face requires TEA to draft rules requiring school districts to disclose square footage and acreage of its campuses. Such statistics could be used to show the advantages “wealthy” districts like IC ISD have when using public bonds to retain local tax revenue. The law also has a number of provisions about eliminating DEI. As I've said elsewhere on these pages, these laws in my opinion are all about misogyny and racism. In time there will be a blow back from the insensitivity of these laws. Note: a few days after initially posting, litigation was filed challenging SB 12 . Executive session on personnel, items 9 and possibly 11: I'll cover these below. Dump trucks were unloading all night long, and by sun up it still wasn't done. B. Meeting Review Open forum: no one spoke at the open forum for either the tax public hearing (agenda not posted) or the special meeting open forum. Adoption of the 25-26 budget a. HB 1522 , the new law that requires governmental bodies to post their proposed budget on the internet before the meeting is not yet in effect. This will make a huge difference, because, as I've expressed before, it is impossible to follow along during a budget adoption meeting like this one without access to the proposed budget during discussion. I was unable to understand key parts of the discussion, so my comments here will be limited; next year, hopefully, will be different. b. Deficit budget: The District is running a $412,000 deficit budget, which equates to a $15,000 less than the deficit budget last year. This seems like a big deal, but in reality Supt. Moore is being more transparent than previous superintendents. The District has always, in the years I have been watching closely, been running a deficit. But the administration has not called it so. Kudos to Supt. Moore for calling a spade a spade. As dire as it all sounds, the District is still in the black with around $8 million in its fund balance. There's an audit next month, so more details to follow. c. Increases in the budget are complicated. The line items seeing increases cannot be comprehensively evaluated without the proposed budget in hand. Of particular note: payroll is up $102,000 and insurance up $24,000. d. Calculating revenue is equally complicated: A witcher finding water with witchin' sticks will have an easier time explaining the science of their divining (which boils down to "I believe!") than a school administration can explain revenue from the State on Average Daily Attendance. Just say "I believe!" when the discussion in a meeting like this turns to ADA revenue, because it is mystical and magical for the CFO and Supt. as well. Taxpayers are being asked to "believe". (Side note: I inherited by Grandfather's witchin' rods, so I speak with personal knowledge of the mystery.) e. The constants should cause distress . The pots of revenue are constantly leaking. Income from home valuations are down, and will likely go down further still, because of legislative and voter mandate. Mineral development is down and moving west of the county. Income from investment interest off unspent bonds, the pot that pulled former Supt. DeSpain out of an $800,000+budget just a few years ago, is still a large factor in relief funding. f. What has been offensive, remains offensive: Don't quote me, I don't have the budget, but $7+ million is going back to the State from the mineral revenue. And, the Moak Casey calculation revenue from the 313 agreements (wind farms) remains miserably low. The District got severely burned with budget over projections under the Supt. DeSpain/CFO Robert Helms years, so the budgets going forward are only $100,000 in revenue. In the current year, the budget was helped by income of $214,000. But, even that is miserably low. For a deeper dive, do a search for "313" for my coverage, and also go to the Comptroller's site . In a nutshell, the windfarms were given a sweetheart tax abatement package from the start, so that they pay minimal local taxes. g. Things to watch : According to Joyce Gray, Tax Assessor, there's up to $8 million in value projected to be lost from oil companies glomming onto tax credits for the TCEQ pollution control program. I have my doubts that the planet is getting greener because of this incentive And, the Matterhorn Pipeline was valued at $204 million. The Saudi's are pumping a lot, so valuations are lower. h. The future M&O: When the shine begins to dull on all that was built with the 2019 and 2024 bonds, I predict there will be a financial reckoning. It is going to be very hard to pay for all these capital improvements without an oil boom in the next 5 years. Oil booms happen when there’s expanding economic growth, and that doesn’t seem likely in the near future. Tax rate adoption, item 4: M&O (maintenance and operations): .635 per $100 valuation I&S (interest and sinking): .23 per $100 value Budget amendments, item 5: Let me explain more my frustration with the "as presented" language in the agenda that I discussed above at A2. That language is especially vague, and the meeting minutes are typically as vague. In other words, unless one is present at the meeting , it is impossible to follow the money. This could be easily remedied by an agenda item that simply read, "Discover/Approve 2024/25 budget amendments relating to maintenance, technology, instruction, library, professional development and health services." That said, beginning next month the law requires audio recording of meetings, and someone interested in following the money can eventually get the specifics. Even so, the "as presented" I will continue to maintain is dead air…and rewards imprecision. Accountability, item 6: Initial presentation, no real discussion or presentation. 2024 overall B; Elementary B; High School A 2025 overall B; Elementary B; High School B But: HB 8 is about to change it all, again ! SB 12 and parent rights, item 7 . This merits an open records request. There's a lot of meat on the SB 12 bone. Stay tuned. Closed session, item 9 : There wasn't one. Ironically, the former IC ISD board member who, back in 2020, promoted the purchase of this land for use as a transportation facility is soon to experience more stormwater flooding at his business from this building. His property is in the flood zone. Through the years I have encountered a number of flood deniers, but in time they come around to my way of thinking. It all starts right here with making the soil impermeable to rainfall. Concrete. C. Commentary If nothing is done about street flooding, then the streets and alleys will continue to be used as the aqueducts they were never intended to be by those individuals and institutions with the resources to redirect the flooding off of their property onto someone else. Copyright 2025 G. Noelke

Agenda Analysis  | Meeting Review  | Meeting Documents  | Commentary  | Last Meeting Last week I saw The Fatal Loop by Charles Russell at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. See also Loops and Swift Horses are Surer than Lead at the Amon , then read the 1920 article from the Cattleman I posted below . Public Meeting Agenda A. Agenda Analysis Meeting time:  Note that the meeting time starts at 6:15 p.m. This earlier start time is to accommodate for the two public hearings at items 6 and 7. Should you wish to object to - or praise - the Council's budget and proposed tax rate, here is where you would do it. Executive Session, item 5 : This matter relates to personnel. Typically when this item appears at the same meeting as the budget and tax rate it is to address staff raises. I am not aware of the particulars this year on raises, but my bias has always been that government employees are underpaid. Given the current economy, you can be certain that our city employees are having a more difficult time making ends meet. Adoption of the budget and tax rates, items 8 and 9 : These are the annual agenda items that are required by law to set next year's budget and tax rate. Refer to my meeting analysis on this page for this same meeting for the 24-25 budget and tax rate . A 1920 Cattleman's article about Lake Tankersley and John Ruth roping a wildcat, likely a bobcat, that had killed my Great Grandfather's, W.M. "Mont" Noelke, kid goat. B. Meeting Review Here are the meeting documents for this meeting. Pages 6-11 are important because they are the adopted budget for next year. Public comments, item 4: I spoke, without prepared comments, to ask that the Council's budget include pay raises for City employees. Adoption of the budget and tax rate, items 8-9; The Council met in executive session, as set out in item 5, to discuss personnel matters. They then voted to approve the budget and tax rate without much discussion. The specifics on the tax increase can be found on page 2 of the meeting documents. Contrasting budgets : Since there was no substantive public discussion about how the budget was changing, you'll have to do some digging. I posted about last year's budget on this post , and here are the meeting documents for that meeting . The gist of these documents is that each year the Council is increasing taxes about 3.5% a year so that the City can stay up with its increased expenses. That increase is essentially mandated by law. If the City adopts a "no new revenue" approach, it loses that tax base forever. Quarter horse, 5 months pregnant C. Commentary You can do more than just voting in elections to influence government. As I've said elsewhere on these pages, the governmental body's budget is a statement of the community's values. So, one way to influence those values is to speak up before the next year's budget is adopted. It really takes very little effort. Copyright 2025 G. Noelke

Agenda Analysis | Meeting Review | Meeting Documents | Commentary | Last Meeting Commentary for this meeting: IC ISD Board Did Not Take the Prayer Bait Known as SB 11 The foundation for the new transportation maintenance building began to take shape the week before this meeting. The Parkhill and Gallagher engineers and hydrologists are facing some serious challenges with stormwater distribution at this location. Several private residences are subject to potential stormwater flooding from this new stormwater source. IC ISD meeting agenda A. Agenda Analysis Budget, items 2 and 7 : Local and state government operate on a Sept to Aug fiscal year, so this agenda shows the key 12th hour matters that must take place before August 31. There will be another meeting before the end of the month to approve the 25-26 year budget. Items 2a and 7 are connected as they do a couple things that are connected. First, the Board will start the process of setting next year's tax rate. Second, the Board will do clean up on this year's budget with budget amendments. I have long thought these kind of budget amendment postings that say only "Discuss/Approve budget amendments" like 7 does are inadequate. Taxpayers need more information on where the budget is being changed because that might be where projections fell short...or where the mistakes are found. Supt. Moore and her CFO Kandra Lakey are clearly running a tighter ship than the previous administration, but this is now a $70+ million budget, and no one in the community, other than myself, is monitoring them. More specificity on the agenda language here would clarify what is really happening. Go here to read about this part of the meeting last year. (See meeting analysis 2a ) . And see my analysis here at New budget posting requirements HB 1522, about how this process will change next year. The new laws take effect Sept. 1, so this budget is not impacted. Personal prayer/reading in relation to HB 1481 : Here is 1481 , the new law banning cell phones. I haven't caught up with this issue just yet, but for the moment I am taken back with the idea that our state leadership last session would impose billions of dollars of school security measures on Texas taxpayers to protect against school shooters, do absolutely nothing to limit gun owner rights , and then here take away the best security device ever in a shooting emergency: a cell phone that a child can use to call 911. All the fencing that has been put in place and all the (intrusive) electronic surveillance being implemented are not the end of school shooters, folks. New cafeteria prices, item 9 : My interest here is whether there is a cost increase and how much. My reading indicates we are going into a recession, so I'm sure the costs here are on the minds of lots of folks. Student handbook, item 10 : Will any students be present to say, hey, wait a second? Young people need to learn to question authority, and this matter could be a prime opportunity. Or, if there are any changes made, they may be mundane. I have no particular knowledge about these changes. B. Meeting Review Pending C. Commentary My commentary for this meeting can be found at this page, IC ISD Board did not take the prayer bait known as SB 11 . Copyright 2025 G. Noelke

Agenda Analysis  | Meeting Review  | Meeting Documents | Commentary  | Last Meeting The north end of the new IC ISD Transportation Maintenance building, shown here with a preexisting barn, is starting to take shape. By design, a cement driveway here is going to send some of its stormwater directly into W. Fleming Ave., a street owned by the City of Mertzon. The City has no ordinances against this. City of Mertzon Agenda A. Agenda Analysis Meeting time : This meeting starts at 7:00 pm, not at the usual time of 6:30 pm. 2025 tax rate, items 6-7 : This is the start of the process for the Council to set the tax rate for 2025-26. Tax Assessor Collector Joyce Gray will be present to counsel the Council on the ad valorem tax law changes made by the Texas legislature this year. Here is what I wrote about this last year; see Agenda Analysis 1 b and Meeting Review at 2 b . Tax Assessor Contract for 25 taxes, item 1 . Dr. Gray's office doesn't work for free, so this matter establishes her office is authorized as the City's assessor collector. B. Meeting Review Proposed 2025 Tax Rate, item 6: The Council approved a proposed 3% tax hike, the max it could do w/o seeking voter approval. Total tax rate will be .852020 for debt and M&O. Three percent seems a lot, doesn't it? But in this budget that is going to only add a little over $8,000 in revenue. Administrative Report, item 7: Agendas, per Open Meetings Act changes, now will posted on Wednesdays. C. Commentary If you wish to complain about your tax rate, then you would have attended this meeting, then attend this meeting and speak during the public meeting part . Copyright 2025 G. Noelke

Agenda Analysis  | Meeting Review  | Meeting Documents | Commentary  | Last Meeting Demolition of the old elementary building is pretty much done but for the cleanup. IC ISD Meeting Agenda A. Agenda Analysis Workshop...What? This agenda has been labeled "Workshop Notice/Agenda". "Workshop" is a term of art used for meetings where the governmental body is studying something in particular, but not taking up a full plate of business. It does connote that the body is conducting public business, though, and since a quorum will be present it has to be posted. The term "workshop" is not found in the Open Meetings Act. Discuss/view elementary plans and designs, item 2: I don't have any particular details here, but as you can see from the above photo the relevant portions of the school are demolished. My guess is the Board and Supt. Moore, possibly with Gallagher Construction and Parkhill present, will be tossing around design options. What else can they do? This is a great example of a 1 issue agenda. They are limited to the elementary designs and plans, and that is the sole issue. As a practical matter, boards regularly stray from their agendas and discuss other matters. They shouldn't, but they do. That's one reason why I stress that the public should be present at every public meeting. Without the public present, the agenda becomes meaningless and the governmental body fails to function for the public's interest. Lastly, it's up for debate under the wording of this agenda whether they can do a formal vote. I won't bore you with the arguments at this point. Aerial of the new transportation building. There's lots of jack hammering going on there this week. All the noise caused a flashback of just a few years ago when excavation for City Gym took weeks and weeks...and cost the District over $500,000. This building is on a much smaller scale, but it is still jackhammering into solid limestone. B. Meeting Review This meeting was for the purpose of having the Parkhill representatives advise the Board about the plans and designs already agreed upon by them and IC ISD administration and staff. While the Board perhaps could have exercised some veto power, at this stage of the process, Parkhill was clearly trying to not open up any plan or design changes. Parkhill's folks attended via zoom. This meeting verified that IC ISD has saved and will be using the 3 steles I blogged about earlier . Those steles have me stele curious, and I am finding them elsewhere. Here's a stele from the old Genetics Building on the Texas A&M campus in College Station... C. Commentary This review of the plans for the new elementary reminded me that IC ISD is about to enter the modern era in terms of state mandated safety plans and features intended to minimize the impact of a school shooter. I continue to have some reservations about these sort of safety designs because the cost statewide is literally in the billions of dollars. I don't think folks have fully realized that the vast majority of those dollars are being collected through local ad valorem taxation that wasn't put up for a vote. Moreover, these costs are going to be ongoing. All the while, the state Legislature and Governor Abbott have done nothing of substance to implement gun control. Our state should do both. We should implement both safety design changes and better gun control. ...and here is a stele from the Ag Building at the Iowa State University campus in Ames, IA. My read of the words behind the skull is "Dedicated to Education". Copyright 2025 G. Noelke

| This page is being updated. First posting August 4, 2025. | Deer fight even when resources are plentiful. Ample grass and forbs, plenty of water and unlimited acreage with low fences isn't enough to keep these two apart. I've seen such fights live and up close, and it is surprising how vicious they are. City folk feeding deer up close are risking the sharp front hooves you see here. Photo captured by my game camera. Here are some new Texas laws effective Sept. 1, 2025 , related in some way to open government. Response to the Public Information Act requestor , HB 4219 : This new law is undoubtedly one of the most significant open government protections that has come around in decades. I will be doing a deep dive on this bill, so stay tuned. In the mean time, read it - I've linked it above. School board meetings must be recorded , SB 413 : Education Code 11.0621(c) and (d) were amended to require school boards to record each regular and special board meeting. The new provision also makes the recording available under the Open Records Act. This means the recording should be available "promptly" after the meeting. Here is my suggested language for a PIA request: "Please provide me a digital copy of the recording of the ____ISD board meeting held on ______, 2025. I am not requesting any recording of the closed session part of the meeting". Recordings of closed sessions, if done, are not subject to disclosure unless a court releases it. The new law doesn't address an executive session recording, but save time by not asking for it. You won't get it. I began audio recording school board meetings - and posting them on the internet - in the early 2000's. In time, that school district began to do video streaming, and many districts, including IC ISD (briefly), followed. Making audio recordings mandatory is a real plus for open government. It is also inexpensive; a school district can send you the file in a simple email, and they really shouldn't charge for it. (Though they can if they want to.) Minutes for school board meetings, also SB 413 : The new law at 11.0621(a) and (b) provides that the minutes have to show the attendance, what was voted on, how each member voted, and they must be posted on the district's website not later than 7 days after the meeting. I'm a bit confused on the seven day timing. Minutes have to be approved by the Board to become official, and the board can't approve minutes via email after the meeting to satisfy these provisions because that would be an unposted meeting and thereby be illegal under the Open Meetings Act. Read these provisions closely as there are two 7 day requirements. Seems to me the only safe way to read it is to interpret it as meaning "unofficial" minutes, because it is otherwise illegal to vote on them, officially, within 7 days without calling another meeting. Someone will help me explain this in time, I'm sure. Time of posting, HB 1522: out with that pesky 72 hour notice, in with the much easier 3 business days. See 551.043(a ). A regular school board meeting on Monday night should be posted by the Tuesday before, by my read of the Texas Code Construction Act. New budget posting requirements, HB 1522 : The Legislature has made it easier for taxpayers to understand a governmental body’s proposed budget. See new 551.043(c) . Why you should care: I’ve said previously in these pages that understanding the budget is the best way to understand community values . So, for example, if our government leaders are comfortable with flooding citizens, then their budget will reflect that, Constitution be damned. These changes require a taxpayer impact statement and a copy of the proposed budget. More is needed, but this is a start. Personnel Matters Veto, HB 2520 : Gov. Abbott vetoed without a stated reason a bill, HB 2520 , that would have made it unlawful to discuss, in closed session, operational issues that generally impact   a class or group of employees, including changes in the duties or   compensation of a class or group of employees . This veto is a significant loss to open government. My experience is that boards rely to heavily on the personnel matters provision; more of these discussions should be public, particularly as they relate to salary. The public needs to know about these very discussions, and it is a dark day now that Gov. Abbott has vetoed this bill. More open government slaughter by veto, notice specifics, HB 2520 : The legislature passed the following provisions that were critically needed for open government: (b) The notice must include an agenda for the meeting that is the subject of the notice that: (1) is sufficiently specific to inform the public of each subject to be considered in the open portion of the meeting, including any matter: (A) that is special or unusual; or (B) in which the public may have a particular interest; and (2) describes any subject to be considered in the closed portion of the meeting, if applicable . Governor Abbott wrongly vetoed this language as well, and without a stated reason. Why you should care: current agendas are almost always too vague. I’ve seen the works, from an agenda that wasn’t clear about a school superintendent resignation (Ray DeSpain) to last month’s City of Mertzon’s posting that failed to specify they were closing an alley with an ordinance. More specificity in agendas is a must, and I can't imagine why Gov. Abbott would be so opposed to this sort of sunshine. Pending. Copyright 2025 G. Noelke

Agenda Analysis  | Meeting Review  | Meeting Documents  | Commentary  | Last Meeting The first floor of the IC ISD main building at one time housed 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th grades. The 2024 bonds will pay to convert it from a library to the Administration’s offices. Agenda for this open meeting. A. Agenda Analysis Audit presentation, item 5: The City undergoes an annual audit, and the auditor will present their findings at this meeting. Attending audit meetings gives one an unofficial license to both complain - and praise - your local government. Closing/Abandonment of Block 152 alley, item 6: I don't have a clue where this is going. Irion County ISD updates and tree trimming, item 7: I'm thinking there will be more bond construction updates here, plus a request to trim limbs down at City Park. Update on sewer/water projects, item 8: Here's the bottom line - Hibbs and Todd hasn't tended to these projects until a recent visit with Mayor Stewart. The projects are 12-18 months behind schedule, and in view of the current Trump tariffs this delay could prove costly. Here's what Mertzon and Sherwood looked like around the time the Mertzon Central School was built in 1909. This is now Hwy 67 facing south. My Great Great Grandfather Ferdinand Noelke attended the grand opening of Hargraves, which is now Hargraves Gone Wild. The First National Bank building is now the County library, named posthumously for my father, M.B. Noelke, Jr. This photo is part of a 35 postcard set featuring historical photos of Irion County available for sale by the Irion County Historical Commission. See Joyce Gray in the Tax Assessor's office. B. Meeting Review Here are the meeting documents , the audit , and the two audit letters . Closing abandonment of alleyway, Block 152: So, after 3 years or so of advocacy, the City has acknowledged that a state statute mandates that a municipal ordinance is required in order to abandon or close an alley. Here the Council passed ordinance # 4.01 ( meeting documents pages 2-4 ) that closed this alleyway. I covered this issue extensively at the last meeting here at B.3 . I will be doing a City Gym redux in the near future, as this issue is key to my longstanding argument - and wholly ignored until now - that the IC ISD gym was unlawfully placed at its location because the City of Mertzon (under different leadership) failed to legally close the alley that the building now sits upon. IC ISD (under different leadership) failed to secure the closure and abandonment of the street and alley with an ordinance. Stay tuned for more. Irion County ISD updates and tree trimming, item 7 : Dr. Jessica Parker, (identified by me as Principal Parker on my IC ISD pages) made a request to trim certain trees around the stadium. Notably, she echoed comments at the last IC ISD board meeting that ants have started to carry off the pellets at the new field. The District apparently has had to have the field sprayed to treat the ants...and will have to continue to do so or potentially lose the warranty on the new field. Watch for more on this issue in the future; I attended the IC ISD board meeting when Hellas made their pitch for the contract and they omitted disclosing anything about the pellets also being ant food. You might remember the following scene at City Park when the field was being redone a few weeks ago: Is Thermo Vegetal ant food? Update on water and sewer projects, item 8: It was readily transparent that Hibbs & Todd dropped the ball on these projects. The requests for approvals to TCEQ and the Water Development Board have not even been submitted to them yet, and those should have been done months, if not over a year, ago. Again, these delays could prove costly because of the impact of the Trump tariffs on construction materials. The economy is, if anything, uncertain at the moment. I will be watching for additional updates on these projects at future meetings. Audit presentation, item 5: Here is the audit for the 2023-24 fiscal year , and here are the two accompanying audit letters . There are problems, but the City is operating in the black. Demolition is mostly complete at IC ISD, with the old gym, pictured on the right, remaining. Abatement for asbestos has to happen even during demolition, and IC ISD paid Jupe Environmental $15,686 to remove window caulk with asbestos in it. Asbestos was used in window caulking from the 1950's through the 1970's. C. Commentary In time, I will be doing a City Gym redux page on the the significance of the new ordinance closing the alley that was passed at this meeting. (At the moment, I'm under deadline drafting PIA questions, while also trying to find a damn e clip that flew off the axle of my lawn mower into the weeds, bringing a halt to my mowing.) While you wait, here's my commentary, at C, on a new Community Center at City Park . Copyright 2025 G. Noelke

Agenda Analysis  | Meeting Review  | Meeting Documents | Commentary  | Last Meeting Aerial of the Community Center and City Park, looking northeast. Duncan Street is the street in the lower right corner. OK Wolfenbarger field is in the background. Agenda for this meeting A. Agenda Analysis 1. Community Center Area Walk Through on Duncan Street, item 7: This meeting item merits attention for two reasons. First, as covered before, any new Community Center construction is going to impact City Park significantly, not the least of which is as a possible source for more stormwater runoff and another flood source for the IC ISD football stadium. Second, the agenda is a good example of a "roaming" meeting that has to be posted under the Open Meetings Act. That is, when a meeting changes location (here starting at the Courthouse and going to Duncan Street) and a quorum of Commissioners are present and official business is being discussed, then the change in location has to be posted on the agenda. This means that the public can also attend this part of the meeting because it too is an "open" meeting. You can tag along and listen in if you wish. 2. The time of the walk through: When the Court will be at the Park isn't listed, and if I am able to find out about when they will be there I will post it here. 3. Other examples of posted roaming meetings: The IC ISD Board did one some months back when they were evaluating what campus renovations were needed. And, years ago when I represented the Texas Commission on Jail Standards, I was involved in two. One was a tour of the Harris County Jail, which was posted as an executive session because of security reasons. The second was in Laredo when the Commission met for a meeting, then crossed over the border into Neuvo Laredo to eat at a restaurant. On occasion you'll see a governmental body posting a meal, and the reason is because of the Open Meetings Act requires it. To be clear, the Act turns on whether official business is being conducted, regardless of the location, and whether a quorum is present. Sometimes a governmental body will post social gatherings like meals just to be safe in the event the members discuss public business while they eat. 4. Contrast a roaming meeting with a roaming quorum: Technically, members who meet in less than a quorum and then meet with other members deliberately to avoid a quorum violate the Act because they are conducting what is called a roaming (or walking) quorum. That is different than having a meeting that changes location. There is nothing problematic about a quorum changing locations, so long as the location is posted, in advance, as it is here. For more on the prohibition against roaming quorums, see Texas Government Code 551.143 . The Community Center is the building on the right. B. Meeting Review Below is the map the Commissioners' Court considered during their roaming meeting. Map of City Park and nearby area in Mertzon The Court met in the caliche parking lot immediately south of the current Community Center. Commissioner Nanny was absent. In brief, they held a frank and thoughtful discussion about where to locate a new Community Center. The consensus was to locate it it in the caliche parking area south of the Community Center. See the green and gray rectangle in the map below. Consensus location of new Community Center. This is my revision to the Court's map. Nothing was voted on at this point, so this is merely my guess, nothing more. Their thinking appears to be to make the western part of the current Community Center pad an outdoor pavilion, and turn an eastern part into parking. Some of my additional observations: - The County's architect is considering a size even larger than recommended by the Community Committee proposed a few weeks ago. While attending that meeting, I recall that the current building is about 6,000 sf, and the proposal from the Committee was 12 to 15,000 sf. From what I heard at this meeting, the architects are at 20-24,000 sf. This raises the question: How much does the Community really need? The Court at this meeting was rightfully trying to grasp the size of the building. My experience now with two bond issues at Irion County ISD is that the design team will definitely start with "this is more than how much you can afford" instead of "this is what you have told us that you need". - Arena : Again, heads up to those wanting to protect the arena, if you want to save the arena you are going to have to use the arena. Judge Criner favors keeping it as a cultural standard for the community, and I agree. But, here is the reality: while there was no mention of this use for it at this meeting, in time I think the arena will be used for parking . There is not enough parking in City Park as it is now during big events, so a larger events center is going to place more demand upon the local neighborhood streets. When those citizens start complaining I predict it will be pavement time for the arena. - Stormwater - I learned something during the walk - the space between the current community center and show barn is itself acting as a drainage ditch, yet another sign of drainage problems in the area. Kudos to Judge Criner for her sweat equity; she's put in the hours herself to shovel out the oak leaves in between the two buildings. This raises the question whether an outdoor pavilion with cement pad is even feasible. Adding another larger impervious structure, without taking away the current center, is already going to add even more stormwater runoff. Note - the Lions Club is already donating an outdoor pavilion at the river, so one has to wonder about how many are needed. - Water catchment - the Court seems united it conserving and using stormwater from roof runoff, but I think only Commissioner McManus understands at this point how limited that system will be. My rule of though, math aside, is that 1 inch of rainfall on 1 square foot of metal roof amounts to .60 gallons of water. (I collect rain water at the ranch to water dove and quail, and, unfortunately too many skunks and raccoons.) So, whatever the dimensions of the roof, it is going to be a LOT of water. By law the architect is required to plan the roof drainage for a 100 year flood. Here is my post for what the architect calculated for the new gym and why I am so persistent about IC ISD protecting our community from the stormwater coming from its campus . The new gym is roughly a 30,000 sf facility. So, while I can say the Court at this meeting thankfully showed some real appreciation that they are going to have to address stormwater, I don't think their design team has yet made the math clear to them. No water catchment system can be sized large enough to keep the lower elevations (football field) from being flooded in a serious storm. -Parking: another reason to continue to take this bull by the horns is the potential for folks to park in the shade in flood prone areas. The City and County need to coordinate on safe street parking for large events. Again, there are some lessons to be learned from the new gym given the stormwater flow design with parking at a lower elevation. I was the only person from the public present during the walk through. Take nothing I say above as the gospel truth. Verify for yourself by contacting a member of the Court. Be a citizen and engage. 2. Budget and salary workshop, item 6. I attended a portion of this part of the meeting. There are two things to note. a. Inmate housing. First, as I've mentioned elsewhere, one significant advantage Irion County has as compared to most other Texas counties is that its small population size has allowed it to transfer inmates to the Tom Green County jail, rather than managing and paying for its own jail. This inmate transfer is not without costs, and each year the Commissioner's Court sets the budget for the Sheriff's office, including the amount to house Irion County inmates in Tom Green County. Judge Criner stated in this meeting that Tom Green County was raising its daily fee for inmates from $8 a day to $50 dollars a day, a significant increase. During this meeting, after registering their initial shock at this increase, there was immediate consensus among the Court that even with this increase the fee was still cheaper than running their own jail . The Court is spot on correct on this point, and the community has them to thank for their fiscal prudence when it comes to inmate housing. b. Salaries. The discussion here was confusing enough that I can't provide a sentence or two on who is in line for a pay raise and for how much. In any event, nothing was finalized because this was a "workshop", and workshops are intended to air out the difficult issues. That said, I can say this much: this Court cares very much about how much to pay County employees and how to do so equitably. They also clearly understand the current cost of living pressures everyone is under. As I have said in other posts related to the City of Mertzon and IC ISD, citizens don't get good government if the leadership is too tightfisted with salaries. This workshop was a good sign that the Court cares about what folks are paid. Taxpayers should come to expect regular budget increases for salaries, with an understanding in the vast majority of situations government employees are seriously underpaid. Aerial of Community Center (tan roof), facing southwest. The caliche area is the consensus location for the new center, though no formal vote has been taken by the Court. C. Commentary Find another Location for the New Community Center Only 10 days before this meeting our state experienced the devastating Central Texas floods . That same weather disturbance visited nearby Tom Green County, only 30 miles away in San Angelo, where there was up to a foot of water overnight. What our community and all its elected leaders at Irion County, Irion County ISD and the City of Mertzon now know is that all stormwater dumps into City Park. Yet somehow we have determined that City Park is the community's "center". I think it is not financially prudent, and indeed dangerous, to continue to develop City Park for community purposes. There's every reason to believe the flooding problems are going to worsen through the years, and I don't think any of us have to be a trained hydrologist to understand this basic fact of nature: water always wins. That is a very expensive fact...if it is ignored. I recommended to the IC ISD board back in 2019 before those improvements to the football stadium were made - with taxpayer dollars - that they should find another location for the stadium. I regret that they did not take my advice then because had they done so at least half of today's problem relating to the Community Center expansion wouldn't exist. IC ISD has every reason to be concerned that a new Community Center will wipe out their improvements at the stadium. Similarly, my recommendation now is that Irion County should not build its new Community Center in City Park . The Commissioners' Court should search out higher grounds and go for where it is dry and more spacious. Our "center" should not be in a place that is known to flood, no matter how beautiful the oaks. Copyright 2025 G. Noelke

Agenda Analysis  | Meeting Review  | Meeting Documents | Commentary  | Last Meeting There is a reason the City of Mertzon has closed Fleming Ave. between 3rd and 4th streets. It floods! Here is what it looked like on the week before this meeting with only ~1" of rain. Agenda for Irion County ISD board meeting A. Agenda Analysis Meeting location: note the new location - Hornet Gym. (I sometimes refer to it as "City Gym" because I contend some of the land the gym was built on is still owned by the citizens of Mertzon because the land was unlawfully transferred to IC ISD.) Administrative reports, item 3 a- d: This is what the full house looks like when all department heads are reporting. Bond projects, item 4 : this is the stock language used each meeting. ADA football stand modifications, item 5: I always question ADA modifications, and not because I'm against inclusion. Seems to me they sometimes serve as a pretext to accomplish some discretionary renovation, without a finding of actual noncompliance from the state. I don't know whether that is the case here. Special Education MOU with Sonora, item 6: This appears to be the District's decision on choosing a Sped provider. As covered elsewhere, an "MOU" is a memorandum of understanding, meaning a written non binding agreement between government entities. Staff raises, item 7: So, this needs to be called out for the shameful hostage taking that it really was. I have railed against this in previous posts. This appears to be the end part of the quid pro quo of Gov. Abbott's demand for private school vouchers where he withheld his approval of teacher pay raises, for years , until he got the bill he wanted. If you get nothing else from this blog post, get this - this is a terrible way to treat government employees, particularly teachers, who should never have been considered pawns in a game of satisfying large campaign donors. (Yes, this is an example of why we need campaign finance reform and term limits.) To dive into the weeds, here is what TEA has written on HB 2, the recent law that is the foundation for these raises. In time, I think our state will regret this privatization of public education, and no wonder seeing how this has shamelessly come down. We all should have done more than relying on our local legislators. Closed session and action on closed session, items 10 and 12: I encourage reading about any closed session. Even if something is not listed specifically, as nothing is here, the Board can discuss matters in closed if the matter is on another part of the agenda and qualifies for an exemption. They may then be able to vote on it in during the open meeting portion. Formal votes cannot be taken in a closed meeting, of course. At one time the now raised building here housed 1st - 4th grades, principal's office that sometimes substituted as a school board meeting room (my father met there when he was school board president), and boys and girl's restrooms. Gone forever is the breezeway between Mrs. Bridges' and Mrs. Scoggins' first and second grade classrooms, where Mrs. Scoggins would paddle unruly second graders with "Ol Henry". The doors on the breezeway were left open during such teaching events, so that the rising first graders knew that Mrs. Scoggins really was as mean as she looked. Across the hall, fourth grade teacher Mrs. Wolfenbarger kept "Big Red" (her paddle) hanging from the door frame so that it was the first and last thing you would see when you entered and left the classroom. If I was ever unruly, it had passed by then. B. Meeting Review Staff raises, item 7: Clearly the most important part of this meeting was this part. The Board did a good job with their analysis. They are undoubtedly between a rock and a hard place financially because they are already running a deficit budget and the Legislature and Gov. Abbott have them out on a limb. In the end, they approved the HB 2 increases for the teachers and, though not mandated by HB 2, also gave raises to the support staff. They should be commended for this support of teachers and staff. It's impossible to drill down here on how much each position is going to get without an updated pay scale. The larger picture, though, is that the HB 2 increases will add $250,000 to $300,000 to the budget to be used for teachers , while an additional approximate $100,000 unfunded money will have to be found for the support staff pay increases. These are for certain more than cost of living raises. "Huge" raises is the way Supt. Moore described them. But, there's a hitch... As President Carlile described it, what the legislature did in HB 2 is "buy some time". The funding for the HB 2 raises is only for the next two years, and according to Supt. Moore, there's no going back to the previous pay scale. By law, the legislature can only budget two years at a time, and that's all they did here. What they failed to do is create a long term funding solution for any of this. Open forum, item 2: Emily Allen, a counselor at the school, spoke to encourage the Board to give raises to support positions at the District. She was well spoken and appropriately deferential to the Board. Bond projects, item 4 and Consent agenda, item 8. There was no bond matter to approve, and the Board approved the consent agenda. What's the connection here? See my commentary below . Administrative Reports, item 3 : a. Supt. Moore -Band field has been paved, striping goes on this week. -Corrections have been made at the new field so that it is now level. (The latest saga is that ants like the cooling beads on the field.) -Aide positions have been posted. -Newest portables are installed but not set up. -Aug. 11 is the groundbreaking for the new elementary - all demolition should be complete by then. b. Kandra Lakey - Ms. Lakey mentioned that local revenue (from ad valorem taxes) is at 103% and she appropriately credited Joyce Gray, the Tax Assessor Collector for Irion County. Dr. Gray gets very busy in August as she does presentations to all the local taxing entities to help nail down their budgets for the upcoming fiscal year. These presentations are all public and very worthwhile, if how your local government is funded is of interest. Irion County is very fortunate to consistently have a high collection rate, and Ms. Lakey's praise is well placed. c. There were no reports from either Principal Parker or AD/Asst. Principal Morrow.- MOU with Sonora ISD for special education services, item 6 : The Board approved the MOU, its first with Sonora. The cost is $21,000 per student, per year. I'll be seeking the MOU with a Public Information Act request in the near future. ADA football stand modification, item 5 : This involved approving a bid to move the ramp to one of the stands, and not the tail wagging the dog kind of deal. (ie, not new stands are needed because the ramp is in the wrong place.) Closed session, items 10 and 12 : there was no closed session. The new band marching “field” now has its tack coat before it is paved with asphalt. The completed field, really an asphalt area of 60x 40, costs $638,000 according to the documents I recently received in my PIA request. The earthwork done a few days before allowed for some of the stormwater to collect next to it. The costs for the drainage work is excluded from the marching area. C. Commentary One of the school bond reforms that I have recommended is that districts need to be required, prior to the bond election, to disclose to voters what the projected M&O (maintenance and operations) costs will be over a period of years after the new project/building is complete. It's just too easy for the district to discuss only the first half of the finance equation - that half that says "we can build all this without increasing your property taxes". The real meat and potato costs, though, come with the ongoing M&O costs. Those kind of costs are ongoing costs, unlike the bond funds. Bond funds get a special status from the legislature in that they are funds that are not considered in the recapture formula. Which is to say - bond fund money stays here. So, "wealthy" property districts, like IC ISD, can have a lot of money to build, but not necessarily enough money to maintain and operate what it builds. All this came to light at this meeting with a simple question from Board member Ashley Hill during the consent agenda portion of the meeting: Tell me about the monthly fees being paid to Anthony Mechanical for work on the new gym. So, I've been doing PIA requests for months now on these very expenses. The company is doing specialized AC repair and maintenance just on the AC's for the new gym. They have a contract with the District to do monthly maintenance and repair. Apparently the gym when built has a type of unit that most companies can't maintain, and Anthony Mechanical cornered the market. Without competition, they can charge what they want. The other part of the discussion during the consent agenda included that a local Mertzon company, Air Tech, is no longer going to be servicing the filters on the remaining units for the rest of the District. This means the District is going to have to go searching for an additional A/C company, or perhaps do it themselves. In any event, what taxpayers should know is that all this A/C maintenance and repair doesn’t come cheap. It’s a far cry from the days I recall when the 1909 building was heated with steam radiators and cooled with open windows. Now, the jury is still out on the cost savings from Supt. Moore's initiative to centralize the heating and cooling through one system app. Early indications are that savings will be significant. I'm also doing PIA requests on the District's electricity costs, which obviously increase with the added buildings. In the last 10 or so years, those electric costs have exploded from a few thousand a month to $30,000+ a month. Electricity costs, like maintenance of an AC unit, come out of the M&O side of the budget, and they last the life of the building. All this is to say that it is shortsighted to look at only half of the bond finance equation. Voters need to be told in advance about projected M&O costs as well. Otherwise, the Anthony Mechanicals in our free market system become yet another cog in the privatization of our public school finance system...and the public never thinks about it. It is just a transfer of public wealth to a private company, without which the District couldn't survive. What's next in this transfer of wealth?! Robots powered by artificial intelligence, programed by TEA, to replace classroom teachers? This door is opening, I fear, and the longer the Legislature and Gov. Abbott kicks the can down the road on financing teacher and support salaries, the wider that door will open. The Athena Owl, Lux and Veritas steles have been saved from destruction. Supt. Moore has told me they will be added to the new elementary building. Kudos to her and all those involved for preserving them. Read more about them here . The legacy building was built in 1909 (one year before my home a block away was built), and as a state historic building its exterior can't be modified. It's interior, though, has served all sorts of purposes. At one time the second floor of this northwest corner was a small chemistry lab. The lab chemicals were kept in unlocked shelves, giving students easy access. I don't recall ever being warned or disciplined when several of us played with mercury, yes mercury, Hg , on the lab table with our fingers . More than once. What things are IC ISD students doing today that decades from now might be considered horrific? Copyright 2025 G. Noelke

Agenda Analysis  | Meeting Review  | Meeting Documents  | Commentary  | Last Meeting The base for the new IC ISD storage facility is taking shape at the stadium in City Park. Is Gallagher Construction betting the farm that the new field won’t flood during construction, given the erosion fence openings around the pad? This very location is the most vulnerable location for flooding of the field. We are having an unusually rainy summer. Just ~35 miles away San Angelo in Tom Green County received 12+ inches of rain on July 4. Open Meeting Agenda A. Agenda Analysis Trimming trees by pavilion, item 5 : The trees along Spring Creek are City managed trees, so it appears that trimming is needed for this new Lions Club project. Close alley, block 152, item 6 : I'll reserve my analysis for the meeting review below. Below is my best guess of the location of the alley. It is on the north side of Mertzon. Note that the alley, approximately marked in red, is undeveloped. 4th and 5th streets on its east and west sides are also undeveloped. Block 152, Mertzon Texas The pad for the new band practice area is going in. This is E Juanita St. and 2nd St., facing east. The Irion County Courthouse is in the upper right corner. B. Meeting Review Here are the meeting documents for this meeting. Tree trimming, agenda item 5: Mr. Dolan appeared before the Council to ask permission to trim trees around the new Pavilion. Perhaps there is a bit of mission creep here because Mr. Dolan's stated reason is to put in a pad for a bbq'er, something not discussed when the initial proposal for the location was requested. Mr. Dolan agreed with the Council's request that he coordinate with City staff regarding the trimming before it occurred. Closing alley at Block 152, item 6: Apparently using only City Ordinance 93.07.02 for authority, the Council voted, apparently, to abandon the entire alley of Block 152. I say "apparently" here because from the discussion it wasn't clear whether the City was retaining a portion of the alley to access the water and sewer line that is being abandoned. City Ordinance 93.07.02 has, for so long as I have been following the issue of closing streets and alleys in Mertzon, has never been openly discussed. Because it is not on the City's online ordinance page, I am transcribing Mayor Stewart's version here: No structures or obstructions shall be erected in City alleys or streets. It is the landowner's responsibility to determine the property line. Request for opening or closing an alley and/or street right of way shall be considered on an individual basis by the City Council. " The motion, as proposed by Mayor Stewart, appeared to include a proviso that the City was abandoning or closing the alley but still retaining access to sewer and water that service Mr. Bolen's nearby residence. One problem here, of course, is that the ordinance does not include the word "abandon" as used by the motion sought by Mayor Stewart and made, seconded and approved by the Council members. Another problem is that state law governs street and alley abandonment and closure. See Texas Transportation Code 311.008 , which provides: Sec. 311.008. CLOSING OF STREET OR ALLEY BY GENERAL-LAW MUNICIPALITY. The governing body of a general-law municipality by ordinance may vacate, abandon, or close a street or alley of the municipality if a petition signed by all the owners of real property abutting the street or alley is submitted to the governing body. So, clearly what was not done in this instance was, like I argued here in 2023 at City Gym , the Council failed to pass an ordinance to abandon or close the alley. There was no hue and cry from the public at this meeting that the public interests were not being served by effectively donating City land to Mr. Bolen. (I didn't object because to do so I would have to have offered a legal opinion. That is the role of the City's attorney, Jeff Betty, who was not present at the meeting.) The rub is that time will pass, as will Mr. Bolen, and a future owner or potential purchaser of Mr. Bolen's lots will have reason to need legal certainty about the ownership of the alley, just like the Tillman's ( see B.1. on this page ) needed to have about the encroachment of their property into a city street. I think the City is being too discreet, and perhaps inconsistent, with what law it thinks applies to street and alley abandonment. When I argued that the City should not close 4th Street and the alley for the new IC ISD gym at this hearing , there was no public discussion at all of either Transportation Code 311.008 or City Ordinance 93.07.02. This lack of transparency, then and now, I think may allow Council members to think they have a degree of discretion in the "individual basis" language in 93.07.02 when, by law, 311.008 trumps 93.07.02 every time. Like it or not, the City needs to pass an ordinance in this case, just as it should have when it closed 4th Street and the alley for City Gym . And, like I said before, there's no amount of squatting that IC ISD or, in this case Mr. Bolen, can do that will change the ownership of the alley. If the transfer is not done to the letter of the law the City will always retain ownership because, as adopted from old Common Law, no one gets to squat on the King's property and claim ownership. The City of Mertzon is a sovereign when it comes to its streets and alleys, whether or not a city water or sewer line inhabits the space. Even the land under City Gym remains the property of the City of Mertzon to this day. The pad for the new transportation barn is also being developed. The runoff from this structure will be sent down the alley immediately to the right of the fence for the tennis courts. C. Commentary One thing that all levels of government, federal, state and local, ought to excel in is emergency management in times of natural disaster. At the time of this posting, over 100 lives have been claimed in the July 4 Texas floods, including one person next door in Tom Green County. Irion County, thankfully, has avoided these torrential rains that have taken lives. But, this is a wet summer, and there are citizens, young and old, living in Mertzon that are vulnerable to these kind of storms. (One reason I remain focused on localized flooding in these posts is that there are folks downhill from me that are in a far more precarious position than I am.) Lack of coordination during natural disasters among the various levels of government is nothing new in our system. What appears to be new, however, is the intentional failure on both the federal and state level to fund the kind of programs and agencies that help citizens in crisis during natural disasters. That should concern us all. That shows a lack of empathy by our elected officials for our fellow citizens, as well as a misunderstanding of what good government should remain focused on - the safety of its citizens. Batten down the hatches. Our federal and state governments are sending a clear message that they do not intend to proactively manage natural disasters. The earth work by IC ISD for their drainage project on 2nd Street and Juanita has started. One way or another, this project will impact the flow of storm water that reaches City Park, as well as all the residents between the school and City Park. Copyright 2025 G. Noelke

A double bloom on a Horse Crippler cactus on Cowboy Hill a few weeks ago. June 2025 update: the post below continues to get hits even after 2 years. Did the county step up? No, and now they are in the awkward position of wanting to increase their impermeable footprint in the park and thereby flood IC ISD’s football stadium . Here are my comments to the Irion County Commissioner's Court this morning during their open forum: George Noelke May 9, 2023 Comments to County Commissioners Court, Irion County I had the good fortune to listen to TXDOT’s City Council presentation last week. So, I am here to speak on agenda item 5 and ask you to put stormwater flooding at City Park high on your priority list with TXDOT and our community. Here’s why. The school district proves time and time again that it is willing to displace more stormwater into the basins that flood City Park. What is certain is their hydrologist has said that the barrels at the bridge by the football stadium that go under Hwy 67 are too small for the amount of floodwater that must go through them. Their hydrologist has also said that more stormwater is going into the basin after the construction of the new gym and cafeteria kitchen than before construction. Leaving aside what this means for me for my property at 4th and Fleming, what this means for the County is that with the next heavy rains the County’s property at City Park is about to experience worse flooding than before. I can’t say, just yet, how bad it is going to be, but were I in your shoes I would plan for water and erosion damage to County property. In 2019 before the bond election, I asked the school to coordinate its plans to deal with stormwater runoff with our citizens, the City and the County. The District chose to ignore my advice, and now their new impervious cover from that bond jeopardizes even more of the County’s property at City Park. You have so much at stake at the Park that I am asking you to put stormwater flooding as a top priority. The timing for your leadership on this issue is right. There’s now a leadership vacuum on flooding issues. As of Saturday, there is a new city mayor, Aubrey Stewart, and as of last night there is a new school board president, Maegin Carlile. The school is now publicly searching for a new superintendent that will replace Superintendent DeSpain in July. So, some of the folks that have created these problems are gone or are leaving. Now is a good time for the County to begin addressing its concerns about flooding. You, and more importantly, we’ve got a lot to lose. There is a very troubling leadership mentality to overcome, however. That mentality, to put it plainly, is that it is OK for our city and school to flood itself and the County. Let me be clear: it is not OK to continue to spend taxpayer dollars for our city and school to flood itself and the County. Flooding is a community wide problem, and these are self inflicted wounds. Now, I have a lot of data available to prove my points. I have three years worth of material I’ve requested under the Public Information Act from the District that supports my positions, and I’m not stopping. I’ve put up a website, Government In The Sun (.com) to more publicly address all this. One goal of the site is to create some public accountability for our leaders who, in my opinion, seem eager to waste taxpayer dollars and destroy public and private property with stormwater runoff. Even today you can go to 5th and Fayette and see that the District is putting in a new parking lot. That lot is going to increase flooding at the Park. In conclusion, please take this opportunity with TXDOT’s presence today to begin a leadership role on flooding at City Park. Thank you.

Agenda Analysis  | Meeting Review  | Meeting Documents  | Commentary  | Last Meeting This photo shows how close the Irion County Community Center, the building in the center with a tan roof, is to the IC ISD football stadium. June 24 Agenda A. Agenda Analysis Community Center Committee presentation, item 5 : As written, this item appears to be for just receiving the committee's presentation, so that no formal action (a vote) is going to be taken. For my "how to read an agenda" series, note, however, the language above the item, "DELIBERATE, CONSIDER and/or TAKE ACTION ON ANY OF THE FOLLOWING". This is the fail safe language for the Commissioners to take any action, including a vote. Why you should be interested in this agenda item: If you are a resident of Irion County (or own real property in the county), your tax dollars are or will be being used for the capital improvements at both the stadium and Community Center. Stormwater flooding inundates this area of City Park, a matter that I have extensively written about in this website. Because some, not all, of that flooding can be sourced to local government authorities (IC ISD and the City of Mertzon) I have described this situation as one where government is flooding itself . This problem has grown more complex with the possibility of expansions or improvements to the Community Center that could worsen the flooding at the football stadium. The folks that pay for flooding are local taxpayers. My goal here is not to quash whatever the Committee has found, but rather to continue to bring light to the problem of flooding so that our local governments do not make the flooding worse, at taxpayer expense. (A number of private landowners, myself included, are also experiencing flooding.) If at the same time, you get a lesson in civics, decide to attend a public meeting or learn something new about the law, all the better. Some sand piles currently in the parking lot between the Community Center and stadium conveniently show the direction of the stormwater runoff. This parking lot was a joint project in 2022 between IC ISD, who paid 60%, and Irion County, who paid 40%. The stakes for IC ISD to avoid flooding have increased since the passage of the 2024 school bonds. They are spending some of that bond money on replacing the turf and track, as well as on an extension of the field house, the building left of center. B. Meeting Review Community Center Committee Presentation, item 5 : The Committee, comprised of Ashley Hill, Nicole Hamilton, Jennifer Thorp, Michelle Rushing and Deborah __, presented these slides (.pdf) to the Commissioners. It was a well thought out presentation, and clearly the committee invested a lot of time and energy into the effort. Count this as the "thinking phase" of the project; these were Committee recommendations to the Court, not the final decision of the Court. An architect has already been hired and was present at the meeting . C. Commentary A few brief comments about the presentation: As a member of the IC ISD Board, Ashley Hill (a member of this committee) is quite aware of the flooding issues at City Park. In this committee presentation she, I'm glad to say, paid special attention to the flooding issues. I know, as well, that Judge Criner herself, and the entire Court, is also aware of these problems. This brings the local flooding issues full circle. Or, perhaps this is a circular firing squad with taxpayers in the center and Board members and County Commissioners doing the shooting. If neither the IC ISD or the Commissioner's Court can reach a truce on development in the basin (which includes how any new Community Center might flood the football field), then both are assured mutual destruction by floodwaters. Without a a reasoned approach to development in the basin, countless taxpayer dollars will be wasted by local flooding. I just don't get the previous lack of cooperation on this issue by elected government representatives. I can't be any more clear than this: without careful planning and cooperation, expansion of the Community Center will result in flooding of the football stadium . The Committee did an excellent job presenting only plans and features that preserved the existing oaks. The Committee appears to have endorsed doubling the size of the current Community Center. The amount of money to do so was not discussed, and I gather from their recommendations that their charge did not include a specific budget amount. I'm unaware of what the dollar amount the Commissioners' Court is considering. The fly in the ointment for the County I suspect will the very limited space at City Park, and in particular, limited parking. And, any increase in size of the facility is going to require more disability parking spots, per ADA requirements. That equals more paving and more impermeable areas, which means more flooding to the football field. Limited parking will also be a concern for IC ISD given their need for parking when the field is used. (IC ISD is no stranger to parking issues, as evidenced by the parking problems created with the new gym paid for with 2019 bond funds.) The Committee's maps/proposals formally did not consider taking out the arena and using its space for a new Community Center, and I was surprised there was some consensus at the end of the presentation for doing so. Rodeo and horse folks, take note. Removal of the arena has been put on the table. There was some mention of a rain catchment system and putting in underground tanks for water storage to use for watering in the park and to decrease flooding. Again, it is commendable that the Committee is sensitive to the issue of water conservation and stormwater flooding. If underground storage is cost prohibitive, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin has a well thought out and attractive above ground system, as an example of how to integrate a rain system with a garden. Who was not present at the meeting and should have been? Any representative from the City of Mertzon. (I am not privy to why the City wasn't present, but they should have been invited.) Supt. Moore was present for IC ISD, however. Like I said back in April, 2019, before that bond election, the way to solve our flooding issues is to have all 3 of our local government stakeholders - the City, IC ISD and Irion County - all working together and agreeing to limit their input of stormwater runoff into the basin. Another way to put it is...they need to mutually agree to help the other save taxpayer dollars. In the end, it will continue to be the taxpayers who are losing out if nothing is done to control the flooding. Note to any new readers, as I typically don’t cover county government: I earn no income off of this site. If anything, this site is an is an experiment in civics and the 1st Amendment. Copyright 2025 G. Noelke