WASHINGTON CO. ENGINEER PRAISES ROAD CREWS, TRAVELERS FOR WINTER STORM RESPONSE

  

Washington County Engineer Wesley Stolz on Tuesday publicly commended the work done by county crews to keep roads and bridges safe during Winter Storm Fern, as well as the public’s heeding of warnings to stay off the roads.

While presenting the Engineering and Development Services (EDS) Department’s quarterly report to county commissioners, Stolz said the county responded very well to the winter storm in late January, and that there were “pretty minimal issues all things considered.”  He said road crews were able to de-ice all of the county bridges, and citizens did great at not going out needlessly.

County Judge John Durrenberger said EDS personnel did a “fantastic job” during the storm, noting that the spot he likes to check at the Old Navasota Road bridge had no issues whatsoever. 

One particular employee, John Howard, was recognized by commissioners during Stolz’ report as the 2025 EDS Employee of the Year.

Stolz also talked about the department’s ongoing road mapping, which will provide the public with a 360° view of all county roadways through the free software, Mapillary.  He said the work done internally with computer programming and “stitching” camera views together for the 360° perspective was able to save approximately $6,900.

A separate item still involving EDS was the acceptance of a $150,784 donation from Magnolia Oil and Gas Operating, LLC for roadway improvements on Koether Road, Moye Road and Bascome Lane in Precinct 4.  Stolz said Magnolia is contributing 50 percent toward a surface improvement project spanning roughly 3.5 miles, as the county performs chip sealing on the existing flex base roadways.

Commissioner Dustin Majewski said the county focuses a lot of attention on that area with all of the oilfield activity and told Magnolia that he “can’t thank you enough.”

Also on Tuesday, commissioners adopted the three-year economic development strategic plan presented by Brenham | Washington County Economic Development. 

The plan, which has already received approval from the Brenham City Council, lays out strategic priorities for the economic development department to pursue and identifies targeted industries to attract to or expand in the county.  Washington County Chamber of Commerce President Jamie Rankin voiced the Chamber’s backing of the plan and said it is ready to support implementation efforts.

The court also agreed to conduct a county salary survey through Public Sector Personnel Consultants (PSPC), in an amount not to exceed $26,500. 

Human Resources Director Amber Skalka said the county’s last full salary survey was done in 2019.  She said the county is submitting all job descriptions to PSPC for review and placement into classes and pay grades.  She added that the county has asked the company to assemble a pay grade system specifically for public safety and to develop a plan for years of service in a particular position.  The survey is expected to take three to five months to complete.

In other business, the court:

• Approved a professional services agreement with Tyler Technologies, Inc. for Enterprise Justice implementation services for the county clerk, district clerk, county court and district court in an amount not to exceed $198,734.  County Clerk Nicholas Prenzler said this is a companion item to the Uniform Case Management System (UCMS) participation agreements approved on February 24^th with the Texas Office of Court Administration.  Prenzler said the new case management software will provide upgrades to functionality and efficiency.  The purchase will be paid for with $100,000 from the county clerk’s records management fund, $30,000 from the district clerk’s records management fund, and the remainder from contingencies. 
• Approved a budget amendment for a line item for EMS machinery and equipment from other contingency, in the amount of $67,642.  Durrenberger said the purchase is to replace a vehicle that was totaled in an accident. 
• Discussed a formal notice from Industry Communications for a new service line installation in the county right-of-way of Bascome Lane in Precinct 4.  No action was needed.

Click here to view the agenda packet for Tuesday's meeting.