City Council hears from local students
The Friona City Council met in regular session on Wednesday, April 10th at 6:30 p.m. in the City Council Chambers at 619 Main in Friona, Texas. The meeting began with a roll call, an invocation, and the Pledge of Allegiance.
The Council heard a presentation from members of the Friona Junior High Student Council concerning cross walks and traffic signage. It was deemed that more research was needed before any action could be taken. The Council thanked the students for their presentation and their interest in the community.
During the public comments period, new Atmos Energy representative Mike Gonzalez introduced himself to the Council. Next, Mayor Ricky White issued a “National Library Week” proclamation and presented certificates to the Friona Public Library and Friends of the Library.
Ricky Barnett, head of the Bond Steering Committee, made a presentation to the Council regarding the upcoming bond election on May 4th. He discussed details of the proposed construction project for each school campus and what effects the bond passage would have on the taxpayers.
Next, approval was given to establish a Visitor Impact Commission which included defining the scope of the work to be done and outlining membership guidelines for the Commission.
Debra (Cooper) Campbell gave a report to the Council concerning a block grant available to purchase fire, ambulance, and service trucks. The grant will pay up to $500,000 for the purchase of new vehicles only. The cost to the City would only be a $5000 buy in. Debra told the Council that the Friona Volunteer Fire Department needed to replace Engine 1, and that they also needed a new attack truck. A quote for $450,000 had been obtained for the new equipment. A survey would have to be performed before the grant could be submitted to make sure that Friona would meet the middle-to-low income wage requirements. The Council gave approval authorizing the grant application.
The Council heard from Noemi Perez concerning the utility bill for the Walnut Park Apartments (formerly Cottonwood). Noemi is the new manager of the property that is owned by KN Properties. Discussion centered around the new water meter that was installed and a possible software glitch concerning the billing. Both parties agreed to proceed with average monthly billing using prior water usage during the past year until the software problem could be resolved.
In other business, the Council approved the Accounts Payable and Financial Statement for March 2019. The Council also approved the 1st quarter (January thru March 2019) financial statement and the Minutes of the March 11, 2019 meeting. Also, approval was given to the annual review of the City’s investment policy and the Council heard a report from the Friona Police Department.
All meetings are open to the public. The City Council reserves the right to go into Executive session at any time. Go to cityoffriona.com to find the agendas and minutes from previous meetings. Information in this article is only a summary. Any questions concerning specific actions should be directed to the City Council.
Junior High Student Council Members who attended the council meeting included: (l-r) Andrew Husted, Vice President; Jarrett White, 7th Grade representative; Nicole Guerra, President; and Stef Ally, Secretary
