Tuesday evening, the Brownwood Water Improvement District met to discuss several agenda items.
Consideration of a request by Tom Hammell and Jerry O’Briant to restock and place habitats in the lake was addressed. Hammell and O’Briant reported that they had talked with Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife about the possibilities of the state restocking the lake. The TDPW in 2007 had shocked the lake and at that time came to a conclusion that the lake did not need restocking, it was a little low in numbers of bass hybrids, and they recommended placement of habitats for smaller fish. Hammell and O’Briant had investigated purchase of such habitats from Bass Pro Shops; however the habitats were very costly. The men would like to build the habitats and place them in the lake.
The board discussed safety for boaters and skiers must be considered and noted that any habitats placed have to be constructed from new materials to avoid any contamination risks. Christmas trees were also considered; however, the trees cannot be flocked or have tinsel on them which can affect the quality of the water in the lake. Mr. Spinks, General Manager of the BCWID stated, “the only benefit to the board would be the effect it will have on the local economy to put in these habitats.” The board referred specifications and installation of the habitats to Spinks.
Another agenda item was approval of the Order of Election and Notice of Director’s Election for May 8, 2010. Early voting will begin April 26 and polls will be open from 8am – 5pm at the Adams Street Community Center. The Early Lions Club will be another polling place. A contract with the Brown County Elections Office had not been received by the board. It was reported that Suzy Young had stated the agreement will be the same as last year’s; however it was not known if Early was going to have an election this year, making the entities noted on the contract the only difference to the proposed agreement. Board members unanimously passed this item subject to counsel’s approval.
The request of the leasees of Flat Rock Park, the Berrymans, to discuss the 2012 renewal of their lease in order to know how to proceed with improvement grants was addressed. The Berrymans had initially asked at a previous board meeting for BCWID to let them know if their lease would be renewed in 2012 and if the district would consider a lower lease amount due to the improvements the Berrymans have put into the park.
The real estate committee, which consists of Mark Campbell and Pierre Osburn had met prior to this meeting to discuss the Berrymans’ request. Campbell stated that the board needed to “be consistent with everyone out there.” He further explained that when a lease is about to expire with the board, there is an appraisal performed approximately 3 months prior to the lease expiration and then the lease is negotiated to 6% of the value of the current appraisal. Due to this policy, the board will have to do the appraisal and then determine the value of the lease at the time of the lease renewal.
The current value of the of Flat Rock Park is $240,000 which would make the 2012 lease, amount if unchanged, $15,600 per year. The Berrymans asked, “Can the board take into consideration the original value when we first began the lease compared to the improvements we have put into Flat Rock? We have improved your property.” They further noted, “We put everything into it where others (leasees) haven’t done anything.” They asked that the board be “fair” in consideration of a lesser lease amount. They also expressed concern of putting further improvements into the park because the improvements will increase the upcoming lease. Mr. Spinks General Manager of the BCWID explained the board’s lease policy, “Appraisals are based on the value of the land, not the improvements. We don’t want the park to go away, but we have to be consistent.”
Other items discussed:
- The board unanimously approved a fiscal year 2008-2009 audit report from Burl D. Lowry, CPA which was given by Joyce Cornelius, CPA. After a brief summary of the report, Cornelius stated, “There were no findings or questions in the financials. There is nothing bad to say about the Water Improvement District”.
- Update on the districts’ microfiltration plant project was reported. The motor for the rapid mix should be delivered in 6-8 weeks. The project should be completed by April 28, 2010 per the contractor if there are not any further rain delays. Spinks noted that the plant will still need to go through a testing period. “We may have to wait until fall to take the west plant apart due to the high summer demands”.
- Update regarding the Denton lease: Cleanup was noted to have been going well according to neighboring residents.
- Update regarding requests for purchase of Spillway Park Subdivision lots: The last two lots are being appraised in order to consider sale. A sale to Tommy David has been approved, but is still pending. Three interior lots are still unsold.
