CITY OF BRENHAM REVEALS TIMELINE TO REOPEN FACILITIES

  

City of Brenham officials have unveiled the city’s plans for when and how several of its facilities will reopen in the coming weeks.

At today’s (Thursday) Brenham City Council meeting, City Manager James Fisher discussed the city’s intentions for its facilities, a timeline for their reopening, and what programs and services they will offer as operations ramp back up.

Starting May 18^th, the Blue Bell Aquatic Center will open its indoor and therapeutic pools.  Fisher said he is hopeful that the leisure pool can reopen on June 1^st.  All pools will open to 25 percent capacity and limited hours, and reservations will be required.  Proposed hours are 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, and closed on Sunday until June 1^st, when a gradual ramp-up in hours would begin.  Restrooms will be open, but locker rooms and the concession stand would remain closed.

The Nancy Carol Roberts Memorial Library opened up this week to reservations for library materials and computer usage, but Fisher said a full reopening of the library is not quite sustainable at this point.

The Visitor Center opened back up on May 1^st, along with the downtown restrooms.  The city’s parks are still open, but their competition fields, basketball courts, kitchens, and playgrounds remain closed until further notice, as well as the carousel and the All Sports Building.

Brenham City Hall, municipal court, and animal services will reopen to the general public on June 1^st, with modified hours of noon to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.  The public can still make appointments and use the drive-thru window at City Hall from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.  The Brenham Police and Fire Departments will remain closed to the public until further notice.

More detailed breakdowns on the reopening of city facilities are available below:

City of Brenham Facilities Reopening

City of Brenham Facilities Reopening (cont.)

Also at today’s meeting, councilmembers approved:

• The annexation of roughly 52.4 acres south and west of Dixie Road. The council also moved to assign the tract Planned Development District zoning, which will allow Stylecraft Builders to extend the current Vintage Farms subdivision and allow for the development of a single-family home subdivision known as The Lakes at Vintage Farms.  A small and separate portion of the tract of land, to be referred to as The Cove at Vintage Farms, is planned to be developed with patio homes.  Development Services Director Stephanie Doland said the new subdivision will add roughly 150 new homes to the 260 currently in the Vintage Farms subdivision.
• A change in zoning of just under an acre of land at 811 West Fifth Street, to allow for an accessory off-street parking area to serve a planned student dormitory for Blinn College.
• An amendment to the system water availability agreement between the city and Brazos River Authority (BRA) for the temporary resale of water. In September, the city agreed to purchase 774 acre-feet of raw water per fiscal year from the BRA, to sustain long-term future growth for the city.  The city currently uses about 2,777 acre-feet of the 4,200 acre-feet available to it through the city’s primary water availability agreement.
• A water supply resale agreement between the city and the Dow Chemical Company related to the temporary resale of water. The city is selling 774 acre-feet of excess water on a temporary basis, through August 31^st, to the company for $61,146, or $79 per acre-foot.  Councilmember Keith Herring voted against the measure, saying he was nervous about letting the company get their “foot in the door”.  He cautioned the city to be careful come August 31^st, saying the company will likely come back before the council with another request after the current agreement ends.
• A ground space lease agreement between Aviators Plus, LLC and the city for the construction and operation of a fuel farm at the Brenham Municipal Airport.
• An amendment to the airport project participation agreement between the city and TxDOT.
• The first amendment to the interlocal agreement for managing entity by the Brazos Valley Council of Governments (BVCOG) for the Brazos Valley Wide Area Communications System (BVWACS). The council will also act on the first amendment to the second reinstatement of the interlocal agreement for the construction, acquisition, implementation, operation, and maintenance of the BVWACS. The agreement was amended to add Madison County into the system.
• A resolution related to the city’s gas fund and maintenance of cash reserves.