Sgt. Doles, Budget, Public Safety Day, Lexus and Lake Travis Honor Flight + More!

This week started out on a somber note.  Sgt. Chris Doles' funeral was held Monday July 29th at Hill Country Bible Church on RR 620.  After the service, the procession was led by officers, Fire and EMS from Lakeway and other entities from surrounding cities and counties.  Travis County was gracious enough to handle calls at Lakeway to enable fellow officers to attend the funeral - thanks to all that attended and participated in the services.  We wish all the best to Sgt. Doles family, friends and the many people he touched in his life that certainly ended too soon.

The scheduled Budget Work Session was cancelled Monday because of the services.  The next Budget Work Session will be held on Monday August 12, 2013 at 2PM in Council Chambers.  Council Members have all received their budget books and I have been pouring over the many pages full of information and numbers that will be discussed on Monday.  It appears there will not be a tax rate increase in the next fiscal budget unless something unexpected turns up!

Lakeway Police will host Public Safety Day from 9AM until 4 PM on September 7, 2013 at Lake Travis Educational Development Center, 607 RR 620 N. in Lakeway next to Lake Travis Elementary School.  Here is a link to more information.  Check this event out - it is a real learning experience!

Tuesday evening Lexus of Austin made a presentation to residents that live in the vicinity of Clara Van and 620 where they would like to locate a satellite dealership to service customers in the Lakeway area.  There were 60 residents in attendance - including Mayor DeOme and several Council Members.  The property in question is a 40 acre plot fronting on 620 starting at Clara Van on the West side of RR620 ending at the MUD property.  It is zoned C-1 and has been of interest to HEB on several occasions along with other high density commercial and residential operations.  The Lexis "Convenience Center" would be low density (42% impervious cover) and would utilize the existing tree cover and would be designed around the current topography.  This is still in the negotiations stage and will need to go through ZAPCO and Council before permits will be issued.  2 or 3 of the attendee's were somewhat unhappy about the proposition, but the majority of the citizens felt this might be a good use of the property.  Time will tell!

From Steve Jones:
Troy Anderson reported, “Our focus turned to completion of annual performance evaluations and preparation of agenda packets for next week’s Zoning Commission meeting (looks to be a long meeting with 18 items, although most are routine business).”

Staff and council members attended a meeting held by Lexus of Austin at the Activity Center.  Lexus invited residents from the area near the intersection of Clara Van and RR 620 to attend the meeting and learn about their proposal for an automobile sales and service facility.  The meeting was well attended (50+) and, following a brief presentation by Lexus, discussion continued for two hours.  Work on the proposal is ongoing, as staff continues to negotiate with Lexus regarding the standards to be included in the proposed zoning district.  If staff and the applicant are able to reach an agreement, the proposed language will eventually be presented to the Zoning and Planning Commission and then City Council for public hearings, discussion, and action.

Captain Crowder reported, “TCSO Communications personnel and TCSO Deputies took over police operations in the city so that Lakeway PD could attend the funeral services for Sgt. Doles.  The transition went smoothly and Lakeway PD resumed normal operations at midnight.  

We are still searching for a new finance director and have narrowed the search to three candidates.  We will interview the last of them in the next two weeks.  

Work continues on the budget, and our work session is scheduled for Monday, August 12.  At that meeting, we must adopt a “desired” tax rate.  The desired tax rate cannot be exceeded in the final budget, but it can be lowered as we work through the process.  


We have delayed issuing bonds for the Flint Rock Road project to avoid the debt service for as long as possible.  However, the interest rates on municipal bonds have started to climb, and the trend is expected to continue.  I have asked our financial advisors, Samco Financial Markets, to begin the process of issuing the bonds, and we expect to bring this to you for approval at our September meeting.

ZAPCO will meet in regular session August 7th at 9:10AM.  Here is a link to the agenda.  It looks like a fairly lengthy agenda!

And last but certainly not least - here is a link explaining and requesting help for the "Lake Travis Honor Flight".  This is a program that flies WWII veterans to Washington DC at no cost to the veteran, and arranges for them to visit the WWII Memorial and other service memorials.  This is a great program - please support it!

That's all for today - sorry for the late delivery!  It's been busy around here for the last few days.  Have a GREAT weekend!

Joe Bain
lakeway@bain.us