Dripping Springs City Council approves Dripping Springs Ranch Park Board expansion

DRIPPING SPRINGS — There will now be a total of seven members on the Dripping Springs Ranch Park (DSRP) Board of Directors.

At its Oct. 17 meeting, the Dripping Springs City Council unanimously approved an ordinance to expand the DSRP board membership from five members to seven members.

“It will allow us ease of reaching quorums and such in those meetings,” said DSRP Manager Emily Nelson. “We currently have two members of our board that are residents of the city. So, we are asking to be able to keep that the same [for] at least two of the members.”

Nelson said that because some of the members’ terms will be expiring next September, the new members will have a term expiring Sept. 30, 2025.

The DSRP Board of Directors advises the city council on recommended policies and application of policies for the development, operation and management of the DSRP and Event Center. Policy review may be undertaken by the board member upon its own initiative, or at the direction of the city council. Board members are appointed by the city council and may be residents living within the city limits or the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction.

Because the only requirement for members to serve on the DSRP Board of Directors is that at least two members must reside in the city or the ETJ, council member Taline Manassian questioned why there aren’t any additional requirements, like there are for other boards.

“We’ve gone as far as having DSISD boundaries. We’ve gone as far as having ETJ. The [Dripping Springs] Ranch Park is such an attraction countywide that we could very easily have people from San Marcos [and] Wimberley who would have great interest in it, so we left it open to be able to have representation,” Mayor Bill Foulds responded. “If someone wanted to be on the board, we would consider them.”

The council also unanimously approved to appoint Sean Casey as a board member.

“He is a regular park patron. He mountain bikes there, which is a great perspective that isn’t currently represented on our board,” Nelson said.

Other members of the board include Todd Purcell, Terry Polk and Penny Reeves, whose terms expire on Sept. 30, 2024, along with Pam Owens and Mike Carroll, whose terms expire on Sept. 30, 2025. Owens and Carroll were reappointed at the Oct. 3 city council meeting.

There is still one vacant spot on the DSRP Board of Directors. For more information about the DSRP, visit www.drippingspringsranchpark.com or call 512-894-2390.