New sheriff sworn in for Hays County
Sheriff-Elect Gary Cutler will take office on Monday, Nov. 15, several weeks ahead of the other victors in last week’s election.
On Nov. 2, Cutler bested former Texas Ranger Tommy Ratliff with 21,569 votes (55.7 percent) to 17,137 votes (44.3 percent) to fill the last two years of the late Allen Bridge’s term.
Bridges, who the commissioners court appointed to take over after Don Montague’s resignation, died in December 2008 after being elected to a full term in his own right but before being sworn to it. The commissioners court then appointed Ratliff to serve as sheriff until the next general election.
The Texas Elections Code states, “If any portion of the unexpired current term remains after the date the final canvass of the special election for the full term is completed, the person elected to the full term, if eligible to hold the unexpired current term, is considered to be elected to the remainder of the unexpired current term also and is entitled to qualify and assume office for the unexpired current term and the succeeding full term immediately on receiving a certificate of election.”
The commissioners court is expected to certify the election on Monday. Cutler will be sworn in at a 2 p.m. ceremony at the San Marcos Activity Center.
Kyle City Manager search pared down to four
The Kyle City Council on Tuesday night named four finalists for its city manager position including interim city manager James Earp.
In addition to Earp, the candidates are Palestine City Manager Dale Brown, who has served in the job since 2005; Wharton City Manager Andres Garza Jr., who has served in that position since 1994; and Leon Valley City Manager Lanny Lambert, who has served in that position since 2007.
Earp, a former Kyle assistant city manager, has served as interim city manager since Tom Mattis resigned in April. City officials received 74 applications for the municipal government’s top job.
The finalists will tour the city on Monday, Nov. 15 and attend a meet-and-greet session at City Hall that evening at 7 p.m. The city council will interview finalists on Tuesday, Nov. 16.
Kyle hires new finance director
The City of Kyle named Perwez Moheet as its new finance director last week, city officials said.
Moheet, who has served in various capacities for the City of Austin for 30 years, retired as deputy director of the Austin Water Utility in April 2010, officials say.
More than 100 applicants vied for the job after Charles Cunningham announced his resignation earlier this year.
Moheet, a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin where he received a bachelor of business accounting degree and has been a licensed certified public accountant since 1985.
As the finance director, Moheet will be responsible for maintenance of all financial records including planning, development and implementation of systems and operations.
He will also be handling the city’s outstanding debt, which stands at more than $68.7 million.
Kyle has been one of the fastest growing cities in Texas since 2000, seeing the population grow from just under 5,000 to approximately 30,000 residents. The budget for the city’s current fiscal year is $54.6 million, up from $10.7 million in the 2003-2004 fiscal year, officials say.
Woman found lying on side of Kyle road
Kyle Police are investigating the case of a 31-year-old woman found lying on the side of the IH-35 eastside access road near Seton Hospital, police say.
Police were called out to the scene Oct. 23 at 9:30 p.m. following a welfare concern call. An officer reported seeing the woman on the ground with major bruising around her eyes, a Kyle Police spokesman said.
The woman was either pushed or jumped out of a moving Toyota Tundra truck and hit the ground face first. She was later transported to Brackenridge Hospital with non-life threatening injuries, the spokesman says.
No charges have been filed yet and the case is still under investigation.
Sexual assault charges filed against Kyle man
A 35-year-old Kyle man was arrested Tuesday for the alleged aggravated sexual assault of a 14-year-old girl, police say.
An arrest warrant for Federico Gonzales was carried out Tuesday after police responded to a home on the 500 block of Sheep Trail in relation to the charge on Oct. 18, a Kyle Police spokesman said.
The girl is a family member of Gonzales’ and the undisclosed sexual act is deemed to be non-consensual, the spokesman said.
What does it mean to be Buda?
The city of Buda is looking for residents who want to share their vision of what it means to be Buda.
Earlier this year, councilmembers awarded the $25,000 branding contract to Dallas-based firm Ariamedia.
Over the course of about five months, Ariamedia will research and design a branding campaign for the city, including logos, taglines and a marketing communications plan.
To research ideas, the firm will create two in-depth focus groups, one made up of established professionals and community leaders, and another for the younger, “up and coming” city residents.
“The focus group is intended to provide us with a clear sense of who the city is,” said Ariamedia partner Jordan Wollman. “Our job is to take those intangibles and create a visual representation of those values.”
The company will also put a survey on the city website, and will try to garner participation from as many local residents as possible.
The company will begin conducting focus groups next week, and will put the survey on the website later this month. Residents interested in participating should contact the city Tourism Department at 312-0084.
