BURTON CITY COUNCIL APPOINTS NEW MEMBER, REJECTS MOBILE HOME VARIANCE

  

The Burton City Council has its second new member in as many months.

Macey Tidwell received the oath of office from Mayor David Zajicek at Tuesday’s council meeting.

Tidwell will hold City Council Position Five, which was formerly held by Buck Oliphant.  Prior to swearing in Tidwell, the council accepted Oliphant’s resignation.

In December, Paul McLaughlin was appointed to serve as Position Four Councilmember, filling the position of Jerry Martin, who resigned in November.

Both the positions of Tidwell and McLaughlin, as well as Zajicek and Position One Councilmember Nathan Kalkhake, will be up for election on May 1^st.

Also at Tuesday’s meeting, the council unanimously rejected a mobile home ordinance variance for a brand new mobile home at either behind 610 North Colorado Street on Trinity Street, or at 12832 West Burton Street.

The council made the motion after several residents indicated their disapproval of the measure through written comments or by speaking at the meeting.  Many of the residents who spoke on the measure said allowing a mobile home in the neighborhood would decrease property values, while others felt it could lead to the town losing its charm.

All but one of the residents who spoke on the item were residents on Trinity Street, and none of those who spoke were in favor of allowing the mobile home.  The resident who brought the item before the council was not present at the meeting, but was in attendance at the council’s meeting in December when the item was tabled.

The council also removed an item calling for an amendment to the city’s animal control ordinance from the agenda.  The amendment would have potentially limited the number of cats and dogs residents could own.  The council will reconsider the amendment once the city can find someone to enforce the ordinance.

During the mayor’s report, Zajicek announced that TxDOT is currently in the process of installing street lights and caution lights at the intersection of Highway 290 and Spur 125.

The council also approved:

• Hiring Jason Jaster as a contractor for mowing, edging, and shredding of city properties.
• An order of election for May 1^st, as well as an election services contract between the city and Washington County and an interlocal election contract and agreement between the city and Burton ISD.
• An ordinance establishing policies and procedures for all electronic funds transfers.
• Applying for the Texas Department of Agriculture Community Development Block Grant 2021-22.
• Accepting the engagement letter as submitted by Medack and Oltmann, LLP to perform the annual audit of the fiscal year ending March 31^st.