L-R: Susan Garry, Barbara Piper, Jack Piper, Karen Marosko,
Eldridge Tidwell, Susan Schmidt (September 12, 2013)

This month’s City Council meeting was very short and sparsely attended but a few important matters were on the agenda. Two citizens attended the meeting. Susan Garry and Karen Marosko were unable  to attend the meeting but the Mayor and three Aldermen constituted a quorum. Here are the highlights of the meeting:

• Mayor Piper presented a financial report showing income and expenses for the period ending October 31, 2013. He noted that the City has begun to receive ad valorem tax revenue as a result of miscellaneous property tax payments to the County. The general fund ending balance was $2,900.
• The Council discussed road maintenance issues. The Mayor said that he had visited recently with the County Judge. According to the Mayor, Judge Gattis is seeking a legal opinion regarding whether or not the County can take on the maintenance of Coupland roads until the City has sufficient funds to take on that responsibility. The Mayor said he would follow up if there is no response from the County after a reasonable period.
• The Council passed an ordinance canvassing the returns and declaring the results of the election on November 5. The two sales tax issues on the ballot were passed by Coupland voters. The ordinance will be sent to the State Comptroller’s office and they will eventually adjust the collection of the sales tax within Coupland to increase it by 1.25 percent.
• There was a discussion of an application for a new subdivision in Coupland. The County forwarded an application from Howard Prinz, who is subdividing his acreage along Highway 95. Approximately 7 acres of land will be platted as “Prinz Estates.” Patrick Hughes of the County Engineer’s Office says it conforms to the County’s requirements for a preliminary plat. Because the City is not yet set up to process subdivision applications, the Mayor proposed a resolution authorizing the County to process this application. He noted that the City’s new subdivision ordinance would still be applicable. Barbara Piper made a motion to adopt the resolution, which was seconded and unanimously approved by the Aldermen.
• There was a discussion regarding the establishment of an inter-local agreement with Williamson County for the review of subdivision applications within Coupland’s Extra-Territorial Jurisdiction (ETJ). Mayor Piper reported that Patrick Hughes told him he would be willing to attend a future council meeting to explain the issues involved.
• The Council acknowledged local events. Ms. Piper mentioned the beginning of the renovation of the historic caboose by the Coupland Civic Organization, of which she is the president.
• No citizens signed up to speak to the Council but the Mayor addressed a few questions to Tim & Barbara Worthy, owners of the Coupland Inn and Dancehall, regarding the sales tax implementation process. Mr. Worthy mentioned that the alcohol tax will be going up to 15 percent in January. He added that most of their customers are from Austin so the increase in the sales and liquor taxes will be paid primarily by non-residents. Mayor Piper said that he had been told by someone with the County that Coupland would be getting a portion of that increase. He noted that liquor tax payments come in to the City on a quarterly basis.

The next regular meeting of the City Council will be on December 12.

L-R: Susan Garry, Barbara Piper, Jack Piper, Karen Marosko, Eldridge Tidwell, Susan Schmidt (September 12, 2013)

In the only meeting scheduled for this month, the Coupland City Council had a light agenda. Three citizens attended the meeting. Eldridge Tidwell was out of town. Here are the highlights:

• Instead of acquiring a credit card for certain city expenses, Mayor Piper recommended changing the resolution to acquire a prepaid credit card with no more than a $500 balance. This will be used to pay for the city’s website and other occasional, minor expenses. This revised resolution was unanimously approved.
• There was a discussion regarding the process of making amendments to established city ordinances such as the subdivision ordinance. The Council decided to set a policy of considering amendments to existing ordinances on a quarterly basis beginning with the January meeting. Suggested amendments will be transmitted to the Mayor by the Aldermen. [Publisher’s Note: Presumably, any citizen wanting to suggest an amendment could either bring it up during the Citizen’s Communication portion of the regular Council meetings or persuade one of the Aldermen to submit it to the Mayor.]
• The Council engaged in a discussion about the possibility of official recognition of local citizens and local events. No formal action was taken but it is likely that you will see some things addressed in the form of the Mayor’s article in the Coupland Herald as well as official proclamations just prior to City Council meetings, probably to include the presentation of special certificates.
• During the citizen’s communications portion of the meeting, this reporter addressed the Council on the matter of road maintenance. He suggested that the Council put some pressure on the county to finally decide to take care of some road maintenance before leaving it up to the city to take full responsibility. He especially pointed out the deterioration on North Commerce Street caused by the encroachment of vegetation. He also mentioned potholes on Pflugerville-Berkman Road. He suggested making a formal, written request to the county and suggested that if the county did not address the issues in a timely manner, the city would have to take care of the problem areas as soon as possible, before they turn into more costly repairs.

The next meeting will be on Thursday, November 14 at 7 PM at the fire station.