CITY COUNCIL HEARS REPORTS ON PROJECTS
The Brenham City Council heard two reports during its meeting today (Thursday) .
Public Works Director Dane Rau reviewed the city’s street reconstruction program. Beginning next year, the council appropriated $225,000 from the sale of the Chappell Hill Property to go towards street reconstruction. That will more than double the normally budgeted amount for street projects. Rau said his crews plan on reconstructing 9.4 miles of city streets over the next 4 years. Roughly 20 percent of the 85 miles of Brenham streets are currently rated as “Poor” and Rau said they will begin with those in the poorest condition. A report on the planned sections of streets to be reconstructed over the next 4 years is available here: street-reconstruction-projects
City Engineer Lori Lakatos reviewed to the council repair projects resulting from the May flooding. If approved, FEMA will refund 75 percent of the repair or mitigation costs. 47 different projects were identified by the city. Of those, 21 have been submitted to FEMA and 26 are still in process. Lakatos explained that the total for all the projects is 8 million dollars, with about half of that being mitigation of the erosion of the creek banks around the waste water treatment plant on Old Chappell Hill Road. One of the projects that has recently been completed is the trail around Hohlt Park. A presentation of the various projects is available here: may-storm-damages
In other action, the council approved a bid for $357,400 for the rehabilitation of the water treatment plant. They also approved 58 thousand dollars in emergency repairs to the raw water intake pump at Lake Somerville. Council also passed a resolution to reimburse the costs involved in the water treatment plant rehabilitation. This was necessary because the certificates of obligation for the project won’t be issued until 2017, but work will begin in 6 to 8 weeks.
In other business, the council approved the automatic updating of the service credits and increases in retirement annuities in the Texas Municipal Retirement System. In the past, council had to pass and ordinance each year to enact the update. The council also approved the street closure for this year’s Christmas Stroll and Lighted Parade on Saturday, December 3rd.
City Council joined the other taxing bodies in the county by approving the request for reappraisal of properties damaged in the May flooding. Tax Appraiser Willy Dilworth explained that 135 properties inside the city limits have requested the reappraisal.
