House of DIGS, a family-owned re-commerce business, was started in Kyle earlier this year to keep usable goods out of landfills by selling curated secondhand apparel with a real focus on extended sizes — a gap that owners Andrea Candia and Geoffrey Candia found in the resale market.

“It grew out of something I'd already been exploring personally: a concept I call ‘Mining Mentality,’ the idea that you dig inward for the tools you need — self-awareness, discipline [and] courage — rather than waiting for circumstances outside yourself to change,” Geoffrey said. “I wanted to build something that put that idea into practice: a business that combined a real environmental mission with something Andrea and I could build together as a family, using the strengths we each already had — she has an eye for photography and merchandising and I like building systems and sourcing.”

Most recently, the duo launched its community clothing donation program, called Porch-to-Podium, where neighbors and school communities are asked to donate gently-used clothing, apparel and household goods to go toward House of DIGS’ inventory. The business then handles the cleaning, sorting, photographing, listing and selling the items through its resale channels.

This comes on the heels of Hays CISD implementing a sliding scale student athletic participation fee, beginning with the 2026-27 school year. The current fee schedule, according to the district’s website, is as follows:

High school

• Standard: $175 first sport, $90 second sport, $50 third sport and $315 family maximum

• Free lunch: $18 first sport, $9 second sport, $5 third sport and $32 family maximum

• Reduced lunch: $88 first sport, $45 second sport, $25 third sport and $158 family maximum

Middle school

• Standard: $100 first sport, $50 second sport, $25 third sport and $175 family maximum

• Free lunch: $10 first sport, $5 second sport, $3 third sport and $18 family maximum

• Reduced lunch: $50 first sport, $25 second sport, $13 third sport and $88 family maximum

Due to this, House of DIGS is in an active, good-faith partnership in progress with the Hays CISD Education Foundation, who will receive 10% of net resale proceeds — rising to 18% when the foundation contributes assets — from the Porch-to-Podium program and choose how to allocate the funding, whether that is for athletic fees or other initiatives, Geoffrey said.

“Recognizing that these foundations have comprehensive plans to support the entire district, we agreed to allow them to allocate the funds as they see fit. While our contributions help cover direct athletic costs, they can also support broader initiatives, ensuring that students who might otherwise be priced out of extracurricular activities have the opportunity to participate,” Geoffrey said.

Knowing that help should not be limited to just one school district, what started out in July as a simple idea of weekly neighborhood porch pickups has evolved quickly since then. The Candias have built out a route model with dedicated pickup days for each area, such as Hays CISD on Thursdays.

The same model is also in the works for the Comal ISD and San Marcos CISD education foundations.

Additionally, they have added the on-campus “Bags to Bleachers” clothing drives at Hays, Johnson and Lehman high school varsity football games, which has become the main collection method.

For anyone in Hays County who wants to get involved or request a porch pickup, visit www.houseofdigs.com or text 512-636-3922.

Following introductions, the floor was opened to attendees for questions, concerns, feedback and ideas.

“Okay, so we had a massive road bond project that was approved and my understanding is we're $53 million over budget,” began one local resident. “I'm hearing that we're looking at another road bond project in order to cover this deficit. As you are aware, I am extremely skeptical of bond packages because of the lack of transparency and financial responsibility and management of our city. So, I'd like to know: Is this, in fact, something that is being looked at?”

Flores-Cale was the first to answer and clarified that the costs are closer to $55 or $56 million over budget and that the city has discussed an additional bond, which would potentially also include a minimum of $100 million for the completion of Chevo Pastrano Senior Parkway, which was formerly South Goforth Road.

“For anybody who didn't follow the 2022 bond, it was approved in August and put on the ballot in November. So, we had exactly August, September, October [and] November to put our information together,” the mayor explained. “I think only one road had the 30% schematics or it might have been further along … All the rest we had no schematics for. We didn't have 30% and they say at 30% is when you know the true cost.”

Because of this, the city plans to implement an 18- month planning process for future bonds, so that it can have more accurate numbers.

In follow up to this response, Hays County Treasurer Daphne Tenorio highlighted the importance of being considerate of the future generations that would be affected by potential bonds.

“We have issued, at the county level, hundreds of millions of dollars in bonds recently. So, when you're looking at these bonds, I would like you to be mindful of the fact that us as taxpayers have already been hit here and so, every additional bond that you're doing is creating additional debt,” Tenorio emphasized. “It's not my debt; it's the debt of our children. It’s the debt of our grandchildren and we've got to stop.”

Further along the topic of potential bonds, a local trap, neuter, return volunteer questioned the future plans for an animal shelter for the city.

“My question is for the shelter: If a [general obligation] bond is put to the community and it does not pass for the shelter, what is going to be Plan B,” she asked.

“Well, I would say if it didn't pass, it would be a conversation with the county,” Flores-Cale said. “I feel like this is a county issue, not just a city issue … So, for me, I feel like if it doesn't fall on the shoulders of the city, it should go to the county and the county can build the shelter and we can work together.”

At this point in the discussion, Hays County Judge Ruben Becerra briefly took the floor to discuss his perspective on the county’s plans, following the Hays County Commissioners Court vote to end the contract with Austin Pets Alive! for the Pet Resource Center in 2025.

“For political reasons, it was killed. We were going to turn dirt in a few weeks from the moment it came to the court — don't hear the word court and think all truth is there because court members literally lied in court,” he alleged. “They literally lied in court to make Austin Pets Alive! look like they were misrepresenting and they were lying about the work and it was not true. Austin Pets Alive! was duped erroneously, mischaracterized and lied about, simply to kill this countywide project.”

The next concern came from a resident in the Six Creeks subdivision, which is located in the city’s extra-territorial jurisdiction (ETJ), who explained the hardship her family is facing, due to their water bill being in excess of $400 each month.

As previously reported by the Hays Free Press, residents in the ETJ were subjected to a 77% increase in water rates for 2025.

In response, Tobias explained the backstory about how he found out about the rate increase last year.

“Every month last year, I would meet with our former city manager Bryan Langley and I'll never forget. It was sometime in July of last year, where I had my meeting and we began to discuss about the budget,” the council member recalled. “He came to me and he says, ‘I'm just letting you know, Tobias, that these water rates are going to go up.’ And I'm like, ‘Well, what are you talking about? They're going to go up? I mean, by how much?’”

It was at this point, Tobias said, that Langley told him city residents would have a 20% rate increase, while ETJ customers would have a 77% increase.

After gathering information from residents at a previous town hall, the council member explained that he went back to the former city manager to ask for alternative options, such as a tiered system.

“He goes, ‘Well, I'm sorry, but we're running out of time. You’re not going to get council support on that,’” Tobias said. “And I thought about, ‘Well, which council are we talking about?’”

For these reasons, he later voted against the annual budget and the water rate increase, to no avail, as he was outvoted and both items passed.

“To the Six Creeks folks that are here, we're still advocating for you. We're still working on that,” he concluded. “I know the mayor and [council member Courtney] Goza and all the others are. We want to find a solution because we know that these water rates are very high.”

Following Tobias’ story, Flores-Cale confirmed that, due to reanalyzing and reconsidering the capital improvement plans for 2026-27, there is no proposed additional increase for water rates for the upcoming year.

To watch the full video of the event, visit bit.ly/3S0ojC9.

Water and wastewater rates

According to agenda documents, the city contracted Raftelis Financial Consultants to conduct a study for the water and wastewater service. The purpose of the study is to determine the city’s cost of providing these services and the rates to cover the cost.

Interim city manager Perwez Moheet recommended no rate increases for both inside- and outside-city customers' water and wastewater services. This comes from “significant cost reduction and cost containment measures” implemented within the Water Utilities Department, which are expected to affect the cost structure and allocation of functional costs for FY 2026-27 and FY 2027-28.

Moheet explained that staff started to reexamine how the city plans its water supply needs. The city used to rely on developers for the information, but now, it’s looking at the commitment it has made and how accurate the projections were. As a result, developers are required to pay for the water reservations, whereas before, the city was footing the bill. With this, Moheet estimated that the fund balance at the end of 2027 for water utility would be $23.96 million and $30.86 million for wastewater utility.

This recommendation was also made by Raftelis vice president Angie Flores for FY 2026-27 and FY 2027-28, though residents may see a small increase for the years 2029-31.

“We were headed down a very scary road of spending a lot of money that we didn’t have and, as a homeowner and a taxpayer, I appreciate the council and our staff reevaluating all this,” said Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale.

Council member Courtney Goza was concerned, due to the 1952 city of Texarkana vs Wiggins case, which she states determined that a geographical line, such as a city limit, cannot be a factor that determines what it costs to provide service to someone.

“That seems to be exactly what we’re doing,” claimed Goza. “They could be side-by-side customers and one of them will still pay significantly more because they are past the geographic line and that to me does not seem to fall in line with that 1952 case, nor with the reaffirmation in the Supreme Court in 2021.”

However, council member Claudia Zapata stated that the case is contextually different than Kyle, as it was based on the fact that Texarkana passed an ordinance with no documentation as to why it was creating separate rates.

Raftelis uses the industry standard methodology when determining what outside city limit customers would pay, said Angie Flores, who added that she was not familiar with the case.

Goza also stated that there have been home developers outside of the city limits using water for irrigation, as well, so the study included them, which, ultimately, negatively affected the customers.

“Even though the utility basis for outside customers is acceptable methodolgy by the American Water Works Association, we will be looking at perhaps changing that methodology to a cash basis. I’ve also — in my head — thinking long term, ‘Do we need to have an inside/outside city separation?’ So, we’ll look at all those options. We’ll bring it back to council for your consideration [in the future],” said Moheet.

Zapata also suggested looking into lifeline rate structures, which provide discounted rates for baseline consumption. Moheet did state that this cannot be done in two weeks, which is when approval is needed, so it will not be presented to council right now.

Council had no opposition to the water and wastewater rates staying the same. It will come back to be voted on at a September council meeting.

Tax rates

The current tax rate sits at $0.5957, which is composed of $0.3212 of maintenance and operations (M&O) and $0.2745 interest and sinking (I&S). This makes Kyle have the second-highest tax rate amongst 10 peer cities, including Austin, Buda and San Antonio, sitting behind San Marcos., according to agenda documents.

Regarding the upcoming tax rates, Moheet first explained that tax increment reinvestment zone (TIRZ) #4 affects all tax rate calculations. Moheet clarified that this is because there was a change to the TIRZ in 2024 that changed the boundaries, added revenue increment participation and added county participation, but the base value was incorrect, as all participants had different estimates. The Hays Central Appraisal District was able to give the final determination, which sits at $154 million.

Additionally, the no-new revenue rate is usually lower than voter-approval rates, but because of council approving bond debt defeasance this year, it is the opposite.

Moheet presented the following tax rates:

• Current tax rate: $0.5957

• No-new revenue tax rate: $0.6322

• Voter-approval tax rate: $0.5650

• Proposed tax rate #1: $0.5600

• Proposed tax rate #2: $0.5340

“In [option #1], what I did was I looked at a midpoint because when we were talking about the budget presentation on Aug. 1, some council members were interested in perhaps providing for some wage adjustment for our employees,” said Moheet. “So, when I heard that conversation when I was working on the tax rate, I said, ‘Okay. What tax rate will help us, if council was to decide to implement that option?’ I think for all of our employees, 1% is about $500,000 … So, if you were to adopt a tax rate of $0.5600, it’s lower than the voter-approval tax rate, it will give us the money we need for our debt obligations, but it will also give us about $1.8 million cushion in general fund.”

For option #2, he looked at what tax rate would generate as close to the budget necessities as they could get, which was $0.5340.

The average resident home is valued at $301,530, which is a decrease of approximately 5% from last year. So, for option #1, an average resident would pay $1,688.57 or, with the homestead reduction, $1,464,57. This is a 11.44% reduction.

For option #2, an average homeowner would pay $1,610.17 or $1,396.57, after the homestead reduction — a decrease of 15.55%.

Council made no decision regarding which tax rate will be adopted, but it did vote 6-0 to approve a maximum tax rate of $0.5650. Council member Lauralee Harris was absent.

Council will discuss budget, fees, utility rates and property taxes for its first reading Saturday, Sept. 5, followed by a second reading Tuesday, Sept. 15.

To listen to the full discussion, visit bit.ly/45rX6eM.

Council members Courtney Goza and Melisa Medina and Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale brought forward the item to name the facility after Adell Hurst.

“I’m so proud to present this item,” said Goza, prior to diving into the history of the honoree.

Hurst was a community member who aided the creation of the nonprofit Kyle Area Senior Zone (KASZ) in the early 2000s. She also worked to preserve the Krug Activity Center, formerly Kyle’s city hall, which later became the home of the organization.

Council has acknowledged Hurst’s work throughout the years, even naming the main ballroom at the Krug Activity Center after her.

“The Krug Activity Center became a symbol of community partnership and the importance of preserving Kyle’s history, while creating opportunities for residents,” said Goza. “Through KASZ, seniors were provided access to programs, activities, educational opportunities, social events, health and wellness resources and other services that strengthened the community.”

“Naming the facility the Adell Hurst Senior Activity Center recognizes the individual whose vision and dedication helped create senior programming opportunities in Kyle and honor the history of partnership between the city, Kyle Area Senior Zone and the community,” said Medina.

The rest of council shared the sentiment that Hurst earned the dedication, but council member Marc McKinney hesitated on the word “senior” in the title, fearing that it may deter youth organizations from using the building, since it was designed to be a community center.

Suggesting “Adell Hurst Senior and Community Center,” was offered as a suggestion by council member Lauralee Harris.

Flores-Cale stated that she was concerned that this would lead to community members stopping by for what they assume is a recreation center, when in reality, the space is available for rent by the community, but it is first and foremost for the older adults.

Additionally, Goza noted that leaving “senior” in the name overall was important to receive grant opportunities.

Harris’ suggested name was praised by KASZ communication and grants director Ellen Ermis, who felt there would be no issue in the adjustment.

After Ermis’ comments, council designated the building as the Adell Hurst Senior and Community Center in a 6-1 vote, with Goza dissenting.

The facility is aiming for a September opening, said Ermis, and will include a commercial kitchen, a designated front desk with two part-time Parks and Recreation staff members, space to begin intergenerational programming and more.

Kyle City Council will meet next at 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 13, for a special meeting.

The pre-kindergarten and childcare learning center was built for love from the beginning. Terrell shared that the idea sparked after both her daughters were pregnant and she wanted an opportunity to see her grandchildren everyday, while still being a working woman. So, she retired from a career of teaching in Austin ISD to build, design and open Rocking Horse Academy in 2002.

“I built this school for my grandchildren, [but] Emily and Nicholas are now 26; both have graduated from college. Caitlin is 22; she’s graduated from college,” said Terrell. “I’ve literally got to be with my family, my grandchildren and now, I have two great-grandchildren here that are now 1 year old. I get to see them everyday and I am a very vital part of their lives and that’s what I wanted.”

This endeavor has been such an important part of her life, she said, so it was easy to ignore the various emails over the years inquiring about purchasing the company, until last year when, at age 77, Terrell simply asked, “What would that look like?”

From there, she sent the requested documentation to KinderCare, a childcare and early childhood education company operating throughout the nation, and received an offer that, for the first time in 24 years, made Terrell pause and ask herself what she wanted.

“I’m [now] 78 years old and I’m not dying, but reality is, when you look at the calendar, 78’s kind of up there. I just don’t want to spend the rest of my life working,” she said.

But the choice wasn’t easy. Tearing up, Terrell emphasized that choosing to be “selfish” for the first time was difficult.

“It’s been extremely hard. My family works here. My four grandchildren grew up here; that’s all they’ve ever known is the family owning Rocking Horse Academy. Sydney was 2 weeks old [and] Emily and Nicholas were only 2 years old when they started here. They all got their first job here and I now have two great-grandchildren … [that] have four more years of childcare that they need and I am taking all that away,” Terrell said. “I would sit at home at night going, ‘This is such a selfish decision,’ but I also have to say — I’ve worked 62 years. I deserve the opportunity to enjoy the fruits of my labor and to enjoy the freedom that I’ve earned by operating a business. I put a lot at risk and I put in a lot of time and a lot of hard work. So, I do want to reap those benefits and enjoy [life].”

Retirement for the business owner looks like art classes, international traveling — including a trip to Finland this fall — volunteering to stay involved in the community and having a glass of wine at lunch with her girlfriends.

Although excited for her new adventure, she recalled fond memories, like the days of her grandchildren stopping by for a snack from her famous snack drawer or the connections she’s formed with teachers, some of whom have been with her for 15 years.

The effort and care these teachers put into their students is why Terrell was assured that KinderCare has no intention to affect staff during the transition, which will happen over a weekend in September. The concept of Rocking Horse Academy will stay the same, with the age groups served, but some basics, such as procedures, menus and curriculum, may change, she explained.

“I’ve had so many people that have gone on Facebook, people who used to work here, but don't anymore or students who came here or parents have stopped me and said, ‘My kids came here’ and now their kids are coming here,” Terrell said. “I’m so proud of so many of my students that have graduated and who come back and remember Rocking Horse Academy. And for me, I feel fulfilled that I've been successful, but that we have played such an important role in the development of Kyle and all of these children that went to Rocking Horse Academy. There are thousands of them in the world and they, so many of them, have reached out kindly with support and you know how much they loved us and that just means the world to me.”

Rocking Horse Academy will continue to serve its families until Friday, Sept. 18, when KinderCare will begin the transition and reopen Monday, Sept. 21.

To learn more, visit Rocking Horse Academy at rockinghorseacademy.com or KinderCare at www.kindercare.com.

GFiber began bringing its internet service to Kyle in 2025 and has since had crews installing the necessary infrastructure to neighborhoods throughout the city. Recently, the first residents in Waterleaf, Cool Springs and Silverado subdivisions  were able to join the service, which was celebrated with a ribbon cutting, pictured, Thursday, July 30 at Kyle City Hall, with the Kyle Area Chamber of Commerce.

“We’re celebrating more than a new internet provider; we’re celebrating investment in our community,” said Kyle Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale at the ribbon cutting. GFiber offers several plans to customers, including Core 1 Gig, Home 3 Gig and Edge 8 Gig, according to the city of Kyle. To learn more, visit www.gfiber.com.

“I am recommending a balanced budget for fiscal year 2026-27. While that statement may appear straight forward, the work required to reach this point has been anything but easy and straight forward. As you all may know, the city entered this budget cycle facing significant and many financial challenges. Prior to developing the proposed budget for next fiscal year, it was critical that we address the projected $14.2 million budget deficit in the city’s general fund for the current fiscal year '25-’26 operating budget,” explained Moheet. “This required methodical review of operating and capital expenditures, organizational priorities and practices, financial assumptions and line-by-line item expenditure trend analysis of every single department, every single city fund [and] every single capital improvements project.”

These efforts have been ongoing since May, he continued, resulting in significant sacrifices, including the suspension of pay increases and cost of living adjustments for all civilian employees, the leave buyback program, tuition reimbursement program, cash contributions for health reimbursement arrangement account and the city-paid 12-week parental leave program. Furthermore, there are 460 full-time equivalent positions proposed — a result of 11 positions eliminated or $1.88 million in annual cost savings — and 24 positions, or $2.45 million, frozen or unfunded positions.

“As the interim city manager, I fully recognize the impact of these actions on our workforce. Our employees are the city’s most valuable asset. They are the individuals who deliver services, respond to emergencies, maintain our infrastructure, support our residents and business and help move this organization forward every single day. Despite these financial challenges, our employees stepped up and have continued to demonstrate exceptional professionalism, resilience and commitment to public service,” said Moheet.

He shared that he hopes to restore structural balance, strengthen the city’s financial foundation and to position the city for long-term financial stability with this budget.

The proposed budget for FY 2026-27 is $416,966,023, consisting of:

• Capital improvement projects (CIP): $288,466,975

• General fund: $69,227,849

• Water utility: $27,755,490

• Debt service: $14,542,101

• Wastewater utility: $9,656,310

• Other: $5,759,272

• Storm drainage: $1,558,026

Additionally, the estimated general fund balance for the end of the budget cycle is $20.37 million, which will exceed the city charter's minimum reserve requirement by $2.5 million, and no rate increase is projected for the water service or storm drainage rates.

Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale asked Moheet what the difference between the current $603 million approved budget and the proposed $417 million budget is.

“In a nutshell, the cost estimates were higher,” Moheet said. “They thought they could do all those projects in one year, but it was unrealistic. So, the budget reflected that unrealistic estimate. We are scaling back, based on reviewing thoroughly what our cash flow requirements will be [and] how many of those projects we can actually lift off the ground.”

Items that are present in the budget include:

• Santa Claus and the Grinch plans

• City parks to be fully funded and maintained

• 4% pay increase for all sworn police officers

• 2% peer city-based pay increase for all corporal ranked positions in the police department

• All road bond program projects are continuing

Items not included in the budget are as follows:

• Non-essential travel

• Federal/state lobbyists

• Annual banquet for city boards and commissions

• Dinner service for council meetings

• Pride celebrations or Pride special events program

• Undergrounding of existing overhead utilities

In response to council member Claudia Zapata’s question regarding forensic audit funding, Moheet noted that there is an allotted amount included, but he did not specify it, as it would put the city at a disadvantage when submitting requests for proposals (RFP). For example, the interim city manager said if he publicly claimed that the budget for the forensic audit was $50 million, he would then receive RFPs at $49.9 million. So, he is not revealing the number at this time, but stated that he could email the council members privately.

As part of the review in preparing for the budget, staff looked at organizational structure for each department. Specifically, it was decided that the Transportation & Public Works Department would be divided into two departments: Transportation & Public Works and Capital Improvement Projects & Engineering. The first will focus on day-to-day operations, while the latter will focus exclusively on planning, design, engineering, project management and construction of CIPs and the 2022 Road Bond Program.

The CIP & Engineering Department was formally a division that answered to the director of Transportation & Public Works, but staff believes that efficiency and cost savings will come from this separation. Those working in this department already had funding in the general fund, said Andy Alejandro, interim deputy director of Finance.

The following restructures were also made:

• Reorganize the Beautification Division into the Right-of-Way Maintenance Division; it will maintain streetlights, mowing, permitting and inspections, traffic control and right-of-way maintenance, as well as save $40,000 per year by eliminating landscaping contracts and using the division to maintain city facilities.

• Appoint Leon Barba as director of CIP & Engineering, while retaining the title of city engineer.

• Elimination of the Parks and Recreation deputy director and business and strategic planning manager; overall the department downsized from 64 to 45 positions.

• Created a new Parks and Recreation operations manager to oversee division managers.

• Recreation and special event employees report to one division manager.

• Parks and Recreation planning and project manager moved to the Development Services Department.

• Aquatics maintenance technician reports to the Parks Maintenance Division.

Alejandro then touched on the city’s property tax rate. Kyle holds the second highest property rate, behind San Marcos, in comparison to its 10 peer cities of Georgetown, Buda, Cedar Park, Round Rock, New Braunfels, Leander, Pflugerville, San Antonio and Austin at $0.5957. The city is at the opposite end for the assessed valuation per capita, sitting in the second lowest position at $107,871, just above San Antonio and below Austin. This number is 1.28% less than 2025 and is determined by taking the certified assessed values from the Hays Central Appraisal District, then dividing it by the city’s population, said Alejandro.

“Based on our assessed valuation, the average home value in 2026 is $298,621,” said Moheet. “Looking at average home values in 2025 at $315,017 and looking at our current tax rate of $0.5957, the gross tax levy was $1,638.28. That’s before applying the homestead reduction. Assuming that the tax rate stayed the same … the tax levy and the average net tax bill will be less than what it was in 2025.”

Flores-Cale asked whether the tax rate can even be increased, due to the voter-approved tax rate being $0.59, but Moheet shared that this was an estimate on the bond itself, though there are other factors, such as debt services for other projects and operating expenses, that could create a tax increase above $0.59. However, he doesn’t believe the need is there to do so.

“In the current tax rate of $0.5957, there is embedded a debt defeasance that council approved. Next year, we’re not doing a debt defeasance, so that goes away. So, we should see a tax rate reduction, [but] I’m just generally speaking; I’m not guaranteeing anything until I see the tax rate calculations,” he said.

Although there was discussion about how the current tax rate might be impacted this year, Moheet noted that property tax rates will be discussed in detail at the Aug. 13 meeting.

There are three meetings left in the 2026-27 budget discussion, to be held at 6 p.m. Thursday Aug. 13, 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, and 6 p.m Tuesday, Sept. 15, according to the presentation.

To listen to the full discussion, visit bit.ly/4xlrFyx.

Facility use agreement

KASZ has called the Krug Activity Center in downtown Kyle its home for years, but as the new Dacy Lane Senior Community Center prepares to open, a new agreement is needed between the city and nonprofit since the original in 2007.

“This agreement has been in the works with Parks and Recreation and KASZ for over a year. It’s been a long time. There’s been a lot of back and forth and, recently, with leadership changes and the moves we’ve made, we’ve reexamined the agreement itself. [It was] not necessarily a bad agreement, but when we started looking at it from a view of more of a partnership with KASZ, we realized there was probably a lot of maybe heavy-handed things in there,” said assistant city manager Jesse Elizondo, adding that once this perspective changed, it came together quickly.

The main highlights of the agreement, according to Elizondo, include:

• Allows for continued and enhanced city partnership with KASZ

• Supports older adult programming

• Clearly defines shared use of the facility between KASZ and the city

• City maintains the building and oversees scheduling and facility operations

• KASZ has priority scheduling and manages its own programming

• Better defined responsibilities

• Clearly establishes insurance and liability provisions

• Includes annual review and renewal provisions

• Shared scheduling provides more opportunities for city programming or use when available

• Monthly coordination meetings will support ongoing communication and efficient operations

“I think it’s a really good agreement, [but] I did want to make a comment that I think that it would be in the best interest of KASZ to have an outlined agreement with any other 501(c)(3)s or any entities that are operating within that building under the KASZ umbrella,” said council member Courtney Goza. “I also want to comment just on all of the things KASZ does for our community; it is not just for the seniors. They work with a lot of other nonprofits to provide support to a large section of our community, so I’m very excited to see this.”

“We’re going from 2,000 square feet to 7,500 square feet. We’re going to have a party. That’s all I have to say — we’re going to have a party and the whole city’s invited,” said KASZ president Betty Conley, after noting that the future plans for the facility include more dining opportunities and bridging gaps between generations.

Because the item was to obtain council feedback, a formal approval will be completed at a later meeting.

Animal shelter

Since the announcement in 2024 from the San Marcos Regional Animal Shelter (SMRAS) that it will no longer serve as the county’s intake facility come October 2026, the city of Kyle has been working to create its own center.

The city of Buda and Hays County joined in this endeavor through an interlocal agreement to create a new regional animal care facility, which noted that Kyle would retain full ownership and operational control, while the county and Buda would contribute to funding and operation costs in January 2026.

Kyle City Council approved a $1.6 million design contract for the facility in January, as well, though the proposed location — the Kyle Vista property off of Dacy Lane and Bebee Road in Kyle, which was also considered for the Hays County Eastside Campus — later caused uproar from community members, after many cited that it was slated to be parkland. Kyle staff confirmed this through discussions at the July 7 meeting.

Because of this, council asked staff to bring back information regarding the Kyle Vista property. The design contract has since been paused, prior to the schematic design kickoff, said Elizondo.

According to agenda documents from the July 30 meeting, the property comprises three tracts: 8.622 acres acquired from Nester Development in 2008; 7.98 acres from Alfonso and Hope Martinez in 2008; and 13.22 acres from The Meadows at Kyle II in 2008. The latter was dedicated to the city under a development agreement as parkland.

Each of the properties contain the same deed restrictions, including no commercial operations — specifically that “[n]o fowls or animals shall be kept on the premises in such numbers of manner to create a nuisance” — restrictions on types of residences constructed, annual assessment per tract and roadway to the property must remain open and unobstructed.

The presentation also detailed that the city charter contained two provisions that limit the sale or lease of parks and other city facilities and would require an election prior. This meant that the city could have been in violation of the city charter if council had completed the approval to lease land to the county for the Hays County Eastside Campus earlier this year, before the county terminated the contract plans after delays, due to legality concerns of Kyle Vista Park.

Regarding the animal shelter, Elizondo noted that the city was discussing a location in the 7.98-acre tract, not the 13.22 acres, which were considered dedicated parkland.

Staff presented four options for the future of the shelter.

Option 1: $21.7 million (Kyle would pay 32.7%)

• Continue partnership with Hays County and Buda through the ILA

• Approximately 31,000 square feet

• Located on the Kyle Vista property

• Seven acres

• Challenges would include intergovernmental coordination, funding in either a certificate of obligation or general obligation (GO) bonds in 2027/28, a large intake area and municipal coordination

Option 2: $21.7 million (Kyle would pay 32.7%)

• Same details as Option 1, but located at a new undetermined site

• Challenges would include a potential price increase, due to site evaluations, and funding in either a certificate of obligation or GO bonds in 2027/28

Option 3: $8 million

• City of Kyle develops, owns and operates its own animal shelter facility

• Reduced facility footprint at 20,000 square feet

• Reduced facility amenities

• Possible renovation or retrofit of facilities

• Located at Kyle Recreation Fields, though other sites could be identified

• Six to seven acres

• Challenges would be location and funding in either a certificate of obligation or GO bonds in 2027/28

Option 4:

• City does not construct an animal shelter

• Animal shelter services are provided by Hays County and/or another third-party provider through contractual agreements

• Texas law authorizes counties and municipalities to enter into agreements for animal control and shelter services

• Challenges would include finding and negotiating with outside partners, having little control over operations and potential unexpected changes.

Beginning discussion was Goza, who shared her hesitation of partnering with the county, after hearing that collecting payment from the county is “difficult” and that it is a “big risk.” She, personally, would want to put out the operation to bid with services in mind.

Animal Control Division supervisor Briana Geddes noted that Option 4 does have a lack of control, since these organizations have their own dynamics and sometimes begin turning away animals.

“I think we can all agree that the need is there; we’re just trying to find the best way to try to solve that need,” said council member Marc McKinney, suggesting looking at other sites. “I feel like partnering with the county and Buda is the best and most efficient way to go about providing that service, especially considering how many would be coming from outside the city of Kyle. If we just did our own thing, those animals would still come to our facility. There’s no geofencing that we can put around saying, ‘No. No. No, that’s not our animal.’ We would still have to take care of those animals. This way, at least we get the funding from the regions that are responsible for it.”

Council member Michael Tobias felt comfortable putting it out to a GO bond, in order to hear directly from the voters whether or not they want it.

The earliest this bond could be placed on the ballot is November 2027, said interim city manager Perwez Moheet, but “it would have to be on a high speed track,” meaning that the following would need to be completed: 30% design to ensure an accurate cost estimate, the formation of a Bond Committee, a tax impact analysis, determination of location and partnerships and more.

To meet this timeline, council member Lauralee Harris asked whether SMRAS would be willing to be patient with the city, as it is undergoing this process, to which Elizondo stated that this would have to be determined through meeting with leadership at a later date.

Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale stated that, if the partnership with the county and city continues, the city should build an exit strategy into the contract. Additionally, she wanted to discuss with Buda leadership to know where they stand, while noting that the Hays County Commissioners Court unanimously voted Tuesday, July 28, to obtain an appraisal on former PAWS of Central Texas’ shelter, after the closure of its Kyle location.

She then motioned to remove Option 1, due to the location on Kyle Vista property. The motion passed 5-0, as council members Melisa Medina and Claudia Zapata were not in attendance.

“I’d like to make a motion that we accept [Option] 2, with the conditions that all the parties are still on board with it and that we can get a satisfactory agreement, as we continue forward with the costing,” said Harris.

Flores-Cale wanted to know the cost difference between Option 2, partnering with the municipalities, and Option 3, the city on its own, since she doesn’t understand why the city has to pick up the county’s "slack" for not doing anything.

“Before y’all vote, let’s say, it’s a three-party deal and we opt for a GO bond and the voters decide, ‘No.’ Now what happens with Buda and the county or vice versa,” prompted Moheet, as state law notes that certificates of obligation bonds could not be issued for at least three years, if the election bond fails.

According to city attorney Aimee Alcorn-Reed, there is a provision in the ILA that if there is no appropriated funding in the budget, that they can back out of the contract.

“This is not set in stone, but they are three very different directions to go into and so, we can bring back — obviously we would, many times — more detail, more conversation, more numbers, more analytics behind it. But each one of these is one completely different direction than the other and that’s where staff is [asking for direction],” said Elizondo.

After calling the question, Harris’ motion to pass Option 2 failed 3-2, with Flores-Cale, Tobias and Goza dissenting.

Flores-Cale motioned to direct Moheet to bring back cost estimates for Option 2 and Option 3, with programming. The motion passed 5-0.

To listen to the full discussions, visit bit.ly/4g37u2q.

On Monday, June 29, at approximately 9:30 p.m., the juvenile followed a teen to his home in the 400 block of Philomena Drive, where he allegedly fired multiple rounds at the victim, said a Kyle Police Department news release. Although no injuries were reported, bullets were later found in both occupied and unoccupied homes in the surrounding area.

Conducting a thorough investigation, detectives utilized automated license plate reader technology to identify the suspect vehicle, as well as witness statements and video evidence to identify the juvenile suspect.

KPD stated that it remains committed to holding violent offenders accountable. Incidents involving firearms place innocent lives at risk and the department will continue working diligently to protect the safety of our community, concluded the release. 

Emergency audible outdoor warning system

After council direction and approved funding for a design element, staff recommended a $411,103 installation plan for eight outdoor warning systems. These “provide an essential redundant notification methodology in the event of an emergency,” according to agenda documents, which the city currently does not have.

The following city-owned properties are proposed: 208/246 Republic Drive; the Public Safety Center at 1700 Kohlers Crossing; La Verde Park or water tower; Goforth Road and Foster Place; Plum Creek water facility; Lehman water facility; Public Works at 520 RM 150; and Wastewater Treatment Plant at 941 New Bridge.

Kyle Senior Community Center driveway

The existing driveway has limited sight distance, which has created safety concerns; therefore, staff proposed two new location options to council: north side and south side.

The north side option was estimated to cost $154,409, had a minimal amount of pavement removal along Dacy Loop, required two to three Pedernales Electric Cooperative utility pole relocations and removed the existing area inlet.

The south option only required one utility pole relocation, but patterns indicate a drainage structure may be required to run underneath the proposed driveway and six parking spaces will be impacted. The estimated cost is $189,412.

Staff ultimately recommended the south option, due to the reduced number of complex utility pole relocations and better circulatory pattern within the parking lot for vehicles.

The current driveway will remain until construction is completed. A final design of the driveway will be finished in September, said Ravali Kosaraju, assistant director of traffic & transportation.

Safe routes to school

The Safe Routes to School program was developed with the goal to encourage children to walk, bike or roll to arrive and leave school, while prioritizing safety, read agenda documents. As a step toward pedestrian safety, the Transportation and Public Works Department, Kyle Police Department and Hays CISD conducted walk audits at Fuentes, Science Hall, Tobias, Negley, Hemphill, Kyle and Ramage elementary schools.

During these audits, it was observed that:

• Sidewalks were not wide enough

• There were no tactile ground surface indicators for vision-impaired pedestrians

• No shade was available

• No crosswalks were available

• No streetlights were installed

• Crosswalks were not visible or clearly marked

• No dedicated bike lanes, pedestrian crossing signage or signals or audible prompts were present

The next steps for the program include establishing a solutions implementation plan to be presented to council and incorporating necessary projects into the upcoming fiscal year budget, as well as completing audits for the middle and high schools.

More information on the projects can be found in the meeting’s agenda packet, located at bit.ly/4gPBxLX.

He has 25 years of experience as a union electrician, 10 in elective office and 10 in emergency management, with his current role as Emergency Management Program coordinator for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Approximately 10 years ago, while serving as an AmeriCorps Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA), Hildreth had the opportunity to read books to children between the ages of 4 and 6 at a Houston low-income daycare center.

Eventually, they had run out of books to read, but the children wanted to hear another story.

Hildreth said he embraced what every other storyteller would do and took what he knew to create his own story about a little gray tabby kitten, named Franklin, who had a dream of becoming a Ranger.

“Franklin's my cat and he loves chasing a laser. I've always thought that was kind of cute and I know kids love it. I just made up a story, Franklin and the Red Dot Ranger, and it's evolved quite a bit over the last 10 years,” he said. “But about four years ago, my wife, who has since passed away, mentioned, ‘You need to write this down. This is a cute story.’ She finally got me to write it down.”

The seed for the idea was planted in that Houston classroom, Hildreth said, but has evolved the last few years to what is now a 12-book series: “Franklin’s Red Dot Adventures.”

Each book in the series focuses on a different value that not only Rangers carry, but that parents want to see in their children, the author shared. These include the following:

1. “Franklin and the Red Dot Ranger” — Identity and purpose

2. “Franklin and the Grackle’s Cackle” — Integrity

3. “Franklin and the Kittens of a Different Color” — Respect and acceptance

4. “Franklin Goes to School” — Education and learning

5. “Franklin and the Mystery at Midnight” — Courage

6. “Franklin and the Truth That Got Away” — Honesty

7. “Franklin Takes Charge” — Leadership and service

8. “Franklin and the Rumble in the Sky” — Preparedness and courage

9. “Franklin and the Big Secret” — Trust and speaking up

10. “Franklin and the Runaway Kitten” — Responsibility and protecting others

11. “Franklin and the Quiet Place” — Compassion and grief

12. “Franklin and the Next Big Adventure” — Growing up and wisdom

“When I was growing up, we had ‘Cat in the Hat’ and some of the other books that taught us values and I want to kind of do that with these to help the children that are growing up now,” Hildreth said.

The author’s favorite thing about being able to create these books is seeing the smile on the child’s face: “I actually took one of the mockups of the first book and I gave it to a six-year-old girl and her and her dad were both just absolutely over the moon. Seeing that smile on her face, that's what I really really look forward to.”

Families can get involved in the adventure by participating in the Franklin’s Red Dot Ranger Contest, where they can share a story of 200 words or less about how their child lives by the Red Dot Ranger Code and how they have shown respect, kindness, courage, honesty, leadership and compassion.

Parents are asked to submit their story by email at Rich@Richhildreth.com or on Facebook Messenger @FranklinandtheRedDotRanger. With their entry, parents should include the following: child’s first name, age, state/country, parent or guardian name and their contact information.

Monthly winners will receive an official certificate, stickers and a thank you letter from Franklin and the runner-up winner will earn an autographed book. Lastly, the grand prize winner will receive an autographed book, as well as, with their parent’s permission, have their story featured in a special edition of a “Franklin’s Red Dot Adventures” story that will be published next spring.

The first three books in the series are published and available on Amazon.

To stay up to date on Franklin and his next adventure, visit www.richhildreth.com.

A forensic audit is an investigative examination of financial records designed to find evidence of fraud, embezzlement, theft, corruption or financial and other serious misconduct, according to agenda documents. It also looks for intentional wrongdoing and gathers legally admissible evidence to support litigation or criminal prosecution. This was requested by council at its June 2 meeting.

Prior to releasing a request for proposals, interim city manager Perwez Moheet provided council with seven items he identified to be audited:

“I believe this scope of work will put an end to that and put it to rest for good,” said Moheet.

The list, as follows, is presented in order of council priority, along with the votes:

1. Allegations of mismanagement, with specific focus on determining the causes, timeline and decision-making that resulted in the significant decline of the city’s general fund reserves from $34.2 million in fiscal year 2022-23 to a projected low of $10.3 million in fiscal year 2025-26: 6-1, with council member Lauralee Harris dissenting

2. Alleged overpayments by the city for properties, including five located downtown, three properties located on Veterans Drive, two properties located on Republic Drive and two properties located on Dacy Lane: 5-2, with council members Claudia Zapata and Harris dissenting

3. Alleged waste, abuse and improper use of city credit cards between 2021-2025: 5-2, with Zapata and Harris dissenting

4. Allegations of misconduct of official authority by a city official to influence and extort a business owner, including an alleged offer of $1 million and other city resources in exchange for favorable action by the business owner: 4-3, with council member Marc McKinney, Zapata and Harris dissenting

5. Allegations of fraud, corruption and improper personal enrichment by city officials in connection with the planning, development, data management and data utilization for the city’s public Uber transportation program: 5-2, with Zapata and Harris dissenting

Council also voted 7-0 to table the following areas: alleged corruption and misconduct reported by a city official to the Kyle Police Department; and allegations of misconduct, undue influence, conflict of interest and procurement process irregularities by city officials in the selection and contract award to American Structurepoint Inc.

Zapata shared that her opposition for the vote regarding the alleged offer of $1 million and the transportation program was because the Attorney General should be handling these cases, as the city does not have the authority to do so. Additionally, she and Harris stated that they felt as though the forensic audit was unnecessary because other solutions have already been presented and that they were told that the point of the audit was not to prosecute, though it seems this is the case.

“I’m looking at what’s going to gain us the most amount of potential dollars back or head off dollar losses. That’s my ranking,” explained council member Courtney Goza.

Moheet noted that the audits will be completed in phases, adding that a placeholder cost will be presented during the budget, until final numbers are confirmed through the request for proposals.

The first audit results will likely come back to council spring of 2027, read the presentation.

For more information on Kyle City Council, visit bit.ly/3RA2qZU.

This item follows a previous council vote June 27, which resulted in reducing Kyle Market Days from eight to two events. This meant that specialized days, such as Pride in June and Hispanic Heritage in September were removed.

It was at this meeting that council member Claudia Zapata stated keeping a Pride event for LGBTQIA+ community members was imperative, though others, such as council member Marc McKinney and Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale, stated that, despite their support, they feel as though Market Days should be an event without themes.

The motion to reduce Market Days to two events, in the spring and fall, was approved 5-2, with Zapata and council member Lauralee Harris dissenting.

Since then, Zapata has taken to social media to advocate for the event and explain her reasoning behind the decision, resulting in both she and Harris bringing forward the item to consider and discuss staff to bring back options for a Pride event in 2027 at the July 21 meeting.

“During that discussion, it was said by members of this council that we cannot support a Pride event because we must think about everyone, that a government should remain neutral and that the city should not promote an agenda. Those statements are reckless at best and homophobic at worst,” began Zapata. “LGBTQ+ residents are not separate from everyone; they are part of this city … This agenda item does not mandate a large event. It does not establish a fixed budget or prescribe one format. It simply asks staff to develop reasonable options.”

Some of these options could include a small event similar to Market Days, a small parade or a sponsored- or partnership-based event that could be budget-neutral, said Zapata. She also noted that by having the event hosted by the city, it would prevent it from becoming bipartisan, as some of the groups that offered to host are political.

Harris said that she agreed with her co-sponsor’s statements and criticized the hateful comments Zapata received for her advocacy.

“I think that having Market Days has been a great asset to our city. It recognizes a great variety of people and a variety of cultures and that’s a good thing; that is not a bad thing,” said Harris.

McKinney noted that when he suggested separating Pride and Market Days, it was to never get rid of the celebration, but instead provide an opportunity to have a designated event: “The LGBTQ community is not a standalone entity. They encompass every kind of demographic that there is. They are a much bigger part of this community than you would like to believe.”

In opposition to the event was council member Melisa Medina, who emphasized that this is not because of homophobia, but because of fiscal responsibility. She noted that council member Courtney Goza shared on social media that she discussed a plan with a resident for a Pride event, in which she pledged $150 and offered to connect others with an individual to organize the event. The reception was positive, said Medina, and an opportunity to host the event without using taxpayer dollars.

The idea was presented by community member Dawn Conley for a Be You, Be Proud event, which would: collaborate with the Arts and Cultural Board for an art exhibit; ask the city’s Communication Department to create a Dialogue for Peace and Progress; and bring resources and fun for families.

Multiple residents supported the idea of a Pride event during public comment, one of whom was Heather Idella, who stated that she has seen the positive impact it had on those in this community.

“We had community members of Kyle express relief and appreciation for being able to be themselves fully at an event that was supported here. It also allowed them to learn about resources and build connections, which creates safety for all of our citizens,” said Idella.

Recalling a time when the city of Kyle didn’t host any events to recognize veterans, council member Michael Tobias stated that he went to the city multiple times searching for ways to celebrate them, until, ultimately, the community came together to form their own parade.

“I appreciate the story that you shared because I think it genuinely illustrates the failure of city government at that time to actually properly recognize and support veterans. Because the city failed, because the government failed, residents had to step up and do it themselves. Even after that, you continued going back to the city. Why? Because it means something. It means something for the city to recognize and put any sort of backing behind an event like this,” responded Zapata.

Regarding the city hosting the event, Goza noted that having an event specific to one marginalized group begs the question of how to determine which other groups also receive this treatment. So, a community-ran event would be better.

The mayor also shared support for a separate event, stating that she received emails from members of nonprofit Round Rock Pride, which offered to aid the community in creating its own Pride event.

Although there were multiple residents in support of Pride, several took to public comment to voice their objection for the item, including resident Alicia Hill.

“At a time when our city is facing significant budget challenges, I question whether asking staff to spend additional time researching options, estimating costs, preparing presentations and bringing back the issue is [the] best use of taxpayer resources,” said Hill. “[A] government’s main role is to keep us safe and our government recognizes every resident by providing equal protection under the law … not by sponsoring celebrations for particular identities or viewpoints.”

Ultimately, Tobias made a motion for the staff to work with nonprofits, community organizations and Zapata to bring an event for next year. This proposal would have event options, including budget requirements, and will be brought back to council at a later date for a vote. The item passed 5-2, with Medina and Goza dissenting.

To listen to the full discussion, visit bit.ly/4fO3t1D.

The district has always offered what director of Curriculum and Instruction Emily Herrin describes as “à la carte” online classes. These were opportunities for students to take select courses, such as Health or Speech, in the evening or over the summer. Students would often sign up for these as a junior or senior, when both their independence was higher and a two-period class block was needed for an extracurricular activity or a Career and Technical Education course, said Herrin.

“À la carte” options were strictly outside of school hours, due to the way school funding was determined by the state legislature, which is through in-person attendance. However, Herrin noted that in the most recent legislative session, minutes could now be counted toward attendance, opening the opportunity for the district to begin considering virtual learning options, without losing the minimal funding received by the state.

“What we learned during COVID-19 was that the structure of the four walls brought a lot of consistency for [some] students, [but] the students who were successful in COVID didn’t need to come to school. They were the ones that have the skills that you need to time manage, stay on top of things, communicate and advocate for themselves,” explained the director.

Those high school students and families who feel as though online learning would be a good option can fill out an application, which considers grade history, attendance, career and personal goals and whether there are any extenuating circumstances that contribute to this request.

If the district agrees with the notion that the applicant would thrive in this environment, two options are available:

• A hybrid schedule that allows students to come to school for half the day and participate in extracurricular activities, while completing core classes virtually. Though, Herrin stated that the district will need to fit each of the extracurriculars into the same portion of the day, which is not always possible.

• A fully virtual experience, with students having complete control over the pace and time in which classes are completed.

Though, this could bring a potential barrier for families, Herrin noted, as students could ride the bus in the morning or in the evening, but would need to be picked up or dropped off midway through the day, to ensure security and safety.

The courses are completely online and instructed by the same teachers as Live Oak Academy. These professionals would check in regularly to ensure students are performing well and offer additional instruction, if needed. At the same time, a virtual teacher facilitator will check in with the students at the end of each week to keep students on track with the timeline of the courses, similar to a counselor.

“We tried to model the system around what we already have in place with our à la carte model and then, model what Live Oak does and find the happy medium. System wise, it’s definitely a team approach. So, everybody has a little role in it,” she said, adding that each student would still be tied to the high school in which they are zoned to, even if they are virtual. “The counselors, they’re at the point in their scheduling of students, where they’re hand-scheduling students now.”

Although the district is not prioritizing any grade level, Herrin did share that the majority of those requesting the program are juniors and seniors, but the reasoning for applying is vast. One student noted that they needed to get a job to support their family and this would provide flexibility, while another wanted to take on an apprenticeship. As of July 22, 30 students have completed the application, while another 100 are in the process.

The director did state that the legislation requires that no more than approximately 30% of a school’s population can be virtual.

In reviewing these applications, Herrin stated that staff has also able to find students that may succeed more at Live Oak than the virtual option, such as those who may not have the best grades or attendance and are looking for an alternative.

“Live Oak Academy fits the needs of a lot of students [because] it's a small environment. They do traditionally have to come in person a little bit, but we're talking much smaller class sizes and you get to know your teachers very well. That in-person environment is such a different experience than a traditional high school [and] that's where we capture students who are kind of in between,” she explained. “We're going through the applications and saying, ‘Okay, this student missed a lot of school. [It] might not be a hybrid opportunity for this student, but this student sounds like a really good Live Oak student because maybe they just need that support’ … It really is looking at this at the individual student level.”

Some families that previously switched to homeschooling have also applied, seeing this as another chance for their student to receive an education that works for them.

The application and registration for virtual learning will be open until the first day of school, which is Aug. 13. Herrin did state that the students must be committed to complete at least one semester in the virtual option chosen, but can reevaluate at the spring mark, if a change is needed.

“I know that COVID opened our eyes to the flexibility that virtual learning offers students … Every family knows their children best and probably within their family has a student who would do really well [online] and a student who would not,” she said. “I know we have groups of students who this would be helpful for and so, that's where it's nice to be able to offer this because now we can meet the needs of more children.”

For more information on Hays CISD’s virtual learning program, visit bit.ly/4wcffJ2.

From July 18 through Aug. 3, KPD officers will increase traffic enforcement efforts with a focus on speeding violations. The campaign supports TxDOT's "Drive Like a Texan: Kind. Courteous. Safe." campaign, which encourages drivers to make safe choices behind the wheel.

During Operation Slowdown, officers will focus on identifying drivers who exceed the speed limit or fail to adjust their speed for traffic, weather, construction zones or other roadway conditions. While enforcement is an important part of the campaign, the ultimate goal is to prevent crashes before they happen, a KPD news release stated.

KPD encourages drivers to:

• Follow all posted speed limits and adjust speed for traffic and weather conditions.

• Leave early to avoid the temptation to speed.

• Increase following distance, especially during heavy traffic or wet road conditions.

• Watch for changing speed limits in school and construction zones.

• Avoid distractions to stay focused on the road.

Every driver plays a role in making Texas roads safer. By following these simple steps, motorists can help protect themselves, their passengers and everyone else on the road, the release continued.

KPD reminds motorists that traffic laws are enforced year-round, but during Operation Slowdown, officers will place additional emphasis on identifying and stopping dangerous speeding behaviors.

For more information about Operation Slowdown and traffic safety, visit www.txdot.gov/drivelikeatexan.

This follows interim city manager Perwez Moheet revealing the projected general fund deficit — driven by rising costs and lower-than-expected revenues — to council at another special meeting, held May 16, as previously reported by the Hays Free Press. It was during that workshop that council requested increased financial transparency and more frequent reporting regarding the city's fiscal condition, including regular updates on revenues, expenditures, fund balances and budget performance.

In response, staff brought forward a presentation July 16 to review the cost-containment measures that have been implemented by the interim city manager.

Originally, FY 2025-26 was expected to began with an adopted general fund balance of $19,244,259 and, based on the audited ending position from the prior fiscal year, the actual beginning fund balance was $14,977,707, stated assistant director of Finance Holly Holt-Torres. This is a reduction of approximately $4.3 million from what was assumed during budget adoption and immediately reduced the available resources entering the fiscal year.

Total general fund revenues are estimated at approximately $59.38 million, compared to the adopted $63.47 million; after included transfers in, that number equals approximately $74.51, which is about $4.1 million below expenditures.

Current year expenditures for FY 2025-26 are projected at $77.08 million, which is “essentially flat” with the adopted budget of $77.13 million, Holt-Torres said.

She emphasized that this is the current year estimate before significant cost containment efforts department-wide that included freezing non-essential spending, careful review of operating expenditures, delaying discretionary purchases where possible and strategically reducing unnecessary encumbrances through the purchase order review process.

“These actions helped prevent expenditures from increasing, despite ongoing operational pressures,” Holt-Torres said.

The estimated ending fund balance is projected at approximately $10.3 million, compared with the adopted estimated amount of $18.61 million. According to Holt-Torres, city policy requires maintaining a minimum unrestricted fund balance equal to 25% of annual operating expenditures. For the current year, that is approximately $19.8 million and, based on the current projection, the general fund is expected to finish the year approximately $9.5 million below the city's minimal policy requirement.

“When combined with the projected $4.68 million operating deficit, the general fund reflects a total gap requiring balancing of approximately $14.17 million,” the assistant director said. “This estimate underscores why staff implemented FY 2026 cost-containment initiatives and continues to closely monitor revenues and expenditures. These actions are intended to stabilize the general fund, while preserving essential city services and developing long-term structural solutions.”

Cost-containment measures included the elimination of six full-time equivalent “redundancy-based” positions, such as the following: chief communications officer, executive director of Strategic Development, chief development officer, assistant Finance director, deputy Parks and Recreation director and business and strategic planning manager. The elimination of these, according to Holt-Torres, results in $242,723 in savings for FY 2026.

Noting some concerns from the public, Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale stated that it would be helpful to know the job descriptions and responsibilities of the different positions to avoid any confusion.

“...When I was serving previously, things like executive director of Strategic Development, chief development officer and business and strategic planning, they were the same as economic development,” Flores-Cale recalled. “So, when I had lunch with economic development this year, I didn't quite understand the different positions. I knew names, but I didn't really know positions.”

Council member Claudia Zapata asked for clarification on how staff determined which redundancy-based positions were eliminated.

Holt-Torres explained that they met with each department to ask questions about its organizational chart and structure to get a broad comprehensive understanding of what each job did, along with going through general ledger lines for reductions and where it was appropriate to reduce and find savings.

Then, Moheet stated that he, as the interim city manager, takes full responsibility, as it was ultimately his decision to select the redundant positions. He said that there were “three positions doing identically the same thing,” with the planning director, chief development officer and executive director of Strategic Development.

“We haven't skipped a beat since these folks have been let go. So, council, if council can point out what we have missed, I would be glad to reconsider these positions in the next budget,” he said. “But, in the current budget, these were clearly redundant. The titles did not go with what they were doing. The titles were created to set the salary.”

Moheet later added that the chief communications officer was a position created by the former city manager and, while the city of Kyle has always had a communications director, he also reclassified the assistant director to public information officer.

“That's all we need for a city this size … We don't need another assistant director. We don't need a chief communications officer,” he emphasized. “They're doing just fine. They're doing press releases. We haven't missed a beat. They're doing everything we've done before.”

As another cost-saving measure, the following positions have been placed on a temporary freeze, saving the city $846,782:

• Director of animal services

• Building inspector

• Code enforcement officer

• Procurement specialist

• Budget analyst

• Human Resources business partner

• Assistant director of library services

• Two part-time circulation assistants

• Parks aquatic maintenance technician

• Senior parks technician

• Emergency planner

• Two records specialists

• Engineering technician

• Engineering associate

• Two street technicians

• City manager

• Assistant Parks director

• Recreation coordinator

• Director of Transportation and Public Works

• Recreation divisional manager

Council member Lauralee Harris questioned why the director of Parks and Recreation was not also included on the list as, to her understanding, the city was having a temporary freeze on all positions.

However, Moheet responded that “those that are needed are not frozen,” to which Harris argued that she feels like the director of Transportation and Public Works is a more critical position than Parks and Recreation.

“We are examining the Public Works structure. Until that is completed, we will not have a decision whether to post that job as is or is going to be modified to some degree," Moheet said, adding that the city is also reorganizing the Parks and Recreation department, so a director is critical to go through that recruitment process.

Continuing her presentation, Holt-Torres said that two additional factors helped come to the total FY 2025-26 estimated savings of $5,195,972.

These include support cost containment, where departments completed an extensive line-by-line review of operating budgets, reduced discretionary spending, deferred non-essential purchases, etc.

City staff also conducted a comprehensive review of outstanding purchase orders across every department to see if reserved funds still represent actual future obligations, Holt-Torres said. It was found in many cases that projects concluded, purchases were completed and contracts had expired or operational priorities had changed, bringing those funds back into available resources.

“While cost containment alone is not a long-term financial strategy, these actions represent meaningful progress towards preserving fund balance, improving structural budget alignment and strengthening the city's financial position,” she noted.

Some members on the dais also spoke to clear up some misconceptions that have been circulating on social media and amongst the community.

Council member Melisa Medina shared that council discussed whoever it would bring on as interim city manager — even before Moheet was selected — would be in the position temporarily to help get through the budget and holiday season.

“... we're not freezing this position because you want to stay here. We know you want to go back to what you're doing because you, as well, love what you're doing in the Finance department,” Medina said.

It is not council’s responsibility to terminate employees and it’s also against the city of Kyle’s charter for members to be involved in those decisions beyond its responsibility, which is the hiring of the city attorney and city manager, council member Courtney Goza clarified.

“I want to make it abundantly clear that this process has been in accordance to the charter, that it is the city manager that has made those decisions in consortium with his executive team and that there has been no involvement from council on who to hire, who to lay off [or] force anybody out,” she emphasized.

The mayor also stated to city staff: “I do appreciate you guys bringing this. I do want to say on behalf of, for me, for sure, is you are not going to see this kind of transparency in any other city. I'm very proud of where we are at this very moment and if I only get one term to bring that and to lead a city through transparency, then I thank God every day that I had the ability to do it with the team that we have.”

To listen to the full discussion, visit bit.ly/4fJE9Ki.

A presentation of the FY 2027 budget is slated to be held Saturday, Aug. 1.

PAWS has been operating in Kyle since 1986, serving as a no-kill shelter for Hays County, and opened its second campus in Dripping Springs in 2019.

The most recent news of the shelter closing the Kyle location also follows a similar announcement made last year, when PAWS took to social media to state that it would be temporarily shutting its doors Oct. 31, 2025, due to financial challenges. However, the community banded together at that time to raise more than $66,000 of the nonprofit’s $200,000 goal, as previously reported by the Hays Free Press, allowing the facility to stay open for a few additional months.

Now, according to shelter manager Kristen Weathers, the leadership team has made the decision to wind down day-to-day operations at the Kyle campus, for the same reason.

“It takes a lot to fund both campuses and the amount of monthly donations does not equal the amount of monthly costs,” Weathers said. “We kept it rolling as long as we could and we did as much fundraising and whatnot as we could, but we're just not covering it.”

With the staffing, medical expenses, keeping the surgery suite ready to go and ensuring that the animals have everything they need, it can cost approximately $100,000 to $110,000 per month to operate the campus, said the shelter manager.

To save the mission and remain a shelter for the community, PAWS is transitioning its full focus to the Dripping Springs location at this time. All of the cats have been transferred to the campus or to offsite locations and, as of July 20, there are 11 dogs still remaining in Kyle, but PAWS is slowly transferring them where they need to be, Weathers said.

“I think, overall, it will help us streamline a little bit. There are a lot of logistics bouncing between two shelters, whether getting foster animals dropped off, so they can make transport to come over for surgery and then, vice versa,” the shelter manager explained. “I think it will help us organize a bit more; hopefully, that'll help us be a bit more efficient.”

Weathers continued that she thinks the staff can still grow the adoptions program, as well as help with the feral cat community in offering spay and neuter.

Weathers shared that while they have “so many amazing donors on a recurring basis,” and knowing that it’s a big ask, PAWS would need to tap into some type of corporate sponsorship or individual donors who are capable of providing larger amounts for the Kyle campus to reopen again in the future.

“It’s not what we wanted to do. We tried. We did our best. We did a lot of work in Kyle, getting [the campus] cleaned up, revamped,” she concluded. “A lot of maintenance things were handled. A lot of infrastructure types of things. We really had the intent to keep everything going status quo, but it just didn't shake out that way.”

An effective date on when operations will close at PAWS’ Kyle campus is to be determined. The Dripping Springs campus is located at 2965 Farm to Market 165.

Those looking for more information on fostering, volunteering or donating to support the transition, can visit www.pawsshelter.org.

At approximately 12:30 p.m. Sunday, July 12, a victim reported a brazen robbery at gunpoint in broad daylight in the 3700 block of Dacy Lane in Kyle. The suspects fled the scene in a vehicle before officers arrived.

During the investigation, the Kyle Police Department used automated license plate reader technology to quickly identify the getaway car and subsequently the suspects. With assistance from the Hays County Sheriff’s Office Fugitive Apprehension Unit and the Texas Department of Public Safety, both suspects were located and taken into custody. 

Kasen Priestly, 19, of Buda, was arrested July 15, and Timothy Boyd, 19, of Kyle, was arrested July 16. Both were charged with aggravated robbery and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

San Marcos-based muralist Michelle Wilson has been embracing her creativity through art since the third grade, but did not begin her career until 2020. While it allows her to provide for her family, Wilson’s art also helps people smile across the community through painted murals for cities, nonprofit organizations and public spaces, she said.

Most recently, after a military seal project last year, Wilson was contacted by Ascension Seton Hays Hospital to paint parking spots awarded to those who won the following awards.

• DAISY Award: An international award that celebrates nurses who provide extraordinary care. Anyone, including patients, visitors and peers, can nominate a nurse for the award by submitting a story detailing how the nurse’s empathy and clinical skill made a meaningful difference.

• Being Exceptional Everyday (BEE) Award — a companion to the DAISY Award: a healthcare recognition program designed to honor non-nursing staff and medical support professionals. Associates are nominated by their peers, patients or visitors.

Additionally, those who donate to the hospital foundation through the annual We Give to Give Campaign — given through a payroll dedication that supports patients, families and associations — were also recognized by way of a painted parking space.

“We wanted a more visible way to celebrate our staff who win awards for going above and beyond or those so dedicated to our mission that they participate in We Give to Give and donate part of their paycheck to the foundation,” said Alli Reaves, Ascension Seton Hays associate administrator. “It is a small and fun way to celebrate and show appreciation for the amazing staff who work here. Our staff always enjoys being able to have a designated parking spot.”

Given creative liberty, Wilson was able to use the branding for the national BEE and DAISY awards, as well as that of the foundation-specific We Give to Give Campaign for the designs, while still ensuring that the spaces will withstand the test of time.

“You have to design based on what's going to withstand foot traffic, weather and dirt. I have to design something that's not super detailed and then, operating on the ground is extremely difficult and needs to be something that I'm going to be able to do it in a good amount of time, but also just hoping it's going to wear well over time,” the artist said.

Recognizing that the hospital staff works to provide high-quality and compassionate care to patients and visitors, Reaves shared that the hospital wants to celebrate those “who go above and beyond, live out our culture and mission both within the hospital and outside of it. These parking spots are a visible marker to our visitors and the community of the amazing work our associates do day in and day out.”

For Wilson, she hopes that the staff members and patients who see these parking spaces will feel a sense of community; she also noted that it’s a great way to reward the nurses, specifically, who are at the heart of the medical field.

Reaves echoed Wilson’s sentiment, adding that the spaces should bring people joy, as well as serve as a reminder that the kindness, compassion and excellence given by the hospital staff is seen.

“If the artwork can make someone smile or remind an award recipient how valued they are, then it has done exactly what we hoped it would,” Reaves said.

The artist is looking forward to working with nonprofits in the future and hopes that the parking spaces project opens the door to do the same for other hospitals.

“It’s definitely not a want; it is a need,” began Laura Raven, chief appraiser. “Bottom line, it’s [to] better serve the property owners, so that we can not just attend to their needs here in the office, but also by the continued production of a timely and accurate appraisal roll for all the taxing units, which then, gets the property owners their tax bills on time and in an accurate way. We have outgrown our space.”

The current structure, located at 21001 IH-35 in Kyle, was built in 1994, when the county was at a population of approximately 71,000, said Raven, and only needed 20 employees. Now, there are 49 budgeted employees, with an estimated population of 310,000, resulting in the CAD running out of space for both staff and the Appraisal Review Board (ARB).

The ARB provides property owners the ability to protest the appraised value of their land or determination of an exemption. This year alone, there have been more than 55,000 protests, each of which is handled by staff that pull, code and send the materials required for them. According to a letter sent by Hays CAD, this is an increase from the 22,000 protests in 2019.

Raven also stated that, while there are 49 employees, there are only 45 parking spaces.

With the hope to create a new facility in Kyle that can fit its staff, along with the ability to expand to 80 employees, Hays CAD conducted a feasibility study and created design plans for a more than 20,000 square-foot building, with an estimated total cost of $15 million across 25 years.

This cost will be funded through the various taxing entities in the county, if approved. Raven explained that each entity in the county that collects taxes is responsible for a percentage allocation that funds Hays CAD. The percentages change each year and are determined through a calculated rate and value, which results in a levy that is then compared to the total levy of all taxing entities.

For example, the city of Kyle is responsible for 4.34642% for the 2026 budget year. Therefore, Kyle would pay an estimated $47,735, which is 4.34642% of the $1.1 million bill for the first year, beginning in 2027. This number may change, since the allocation percentage is recalculated each year.

The tax code states that Hays CAD must receive approval from three-fourths of the entities entitled to vote on the appointment,  in order to move forward with the project. The chief appraiser noted that, although there are more than 60 taxing entities that take part in the levy, there are only 20 voting entities including municipalities and school districts.

The approval is not connected to the allocation percentage of tax levy, said Raven; it is reached by receiving approval from 15 out of the 20 of voting taxing entities, which include: city of Austin; Austin Community College; Blanco ISD; city of Buda; Comal ISD; city of Dripping Springs; Dripping Springs ISD; Hays CISD; city of Hays; Hays County; Johnson City ISD; city of Kyle; city of Mountain City; city of Niederwald; city of San Marcos; San Marcos CISD; city of Uhland; Village of Bear Creek; Wimberley ISD; and city of Woodcreek.

She also explained that the letters to each entity are being sent out periodically to coincide with their public meetings, while offering time to decide. A unit must deny or approve the request, though a lack of action within the required 30 days is still considered an approval, said Raven.

The last 30-day limit for an approval or denial is Sept. 2, she said; however, if the district receives either enough approvals or denials, a decision could be made sooner.

As of July 10, the chief appraiser stated that the district has received one approval and two denials, which were from Kyle City Council and the Hays County Commissioners Court. After discussing the request in their respective meetings, both bodies determined that there was not enough information in the request and voted unanimously to deny the resolution, but added that Hays CAD should bring it back at a later date with more information for potential approval.

Raven stated that if the required amount of approvals are received, next steps would include looking for a company to create a construction timeline. If Hays CAD is ultimately denied by the voting tax entities, the plans will go back to the board of directors to determine next steps.

This item follows legal concerns when discussing the potential for the Hays County Eastside Campus, as council was unsure whether the suggested landsite was dedicated parkland, meaning commercial infrastructure could not be built on it. The hesitation from the city caused the Hays County Commissioners Court to terminate the memorandum of understanding for the proposed Eastside Campus, providing “the city an opportunity for the city to revisit actions taken in support of that project … For that reason, we believe it is appropriate to begin the process of rescinding the resolution, which was adopted in September 2025, and restoring the full dedication of Kyle Vista Park as parkland.”

This now-terminated resolution detailed that the city of Kyle would be moving forward with a multi-agency partnership for 29.822 acres of land in the Kyle Vista Property.

According to council member Michael Tobias, this land has been a long-term conversation. So much so that interim city manager Perwez Moheet noted that when he joined the city in 2010, he asked the Parks and Recreation director at the time what he could do to support the vision. Moheet recalled the director stating, “Find the money that I can build a recreation center on Kyle Vista Park land.”

“His dream never came through [as he passed earlier this year], but he was super protective of that property. He was very clear to everyone, including me that day, that that property was dedicated park land,” stressed Moheet.

Tobias shared a similar story, sharing how a resident told him that she had been waiting for a playground for her children that never came and she is still waiting, only now, for her grandchildren.

Several citizens spoke during public comment, having the same experiences as city leadership. One of whom was Robert Hunter, who spoke of his support during public comment, also stating that there is an online petition with 114 signatures advocating moving the proposed animal shelter and Eastside Campus to a different location.

“This historical record matters and so does the legal standing of this land. The plats development documents [and] agreements dating back to 2006 consistently identified this land as parkland. Families purchased homes and made life decisions based on those representations. The expectation was simple and clear: this land would serve the people of Kyle as a park,” said Hunter.

Additionally, resident Eddie Clark noted that he lives in Sunset Hills, built his house from the ground up, as many others have, and was told that there would be a park: “When families chose to live in this neighborhood, they [did] so with the understanding that this park exists to provide open green space, recreation and a safe place for children, families and neighbors to gather … As our city continues to grow, parks become even more valuable, not less.”

Prior to discussion, Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale addressed concerns that this item was an effort to prevent the construction of the Kyle Animal Shelter, stating that it “is simply not the case.” She emphasized that the concern is not whether or not a shelter should be built, but that currently proposed land may not be the appropriate location.

Council member Courtney Goza built on this statement, adding that there are restrictions on certain animals and other deed restrictions that could lead to a lawsuit, if not followed.

“We understand that there is a crisis at the San Marcos [Regional] Animal Shelter. We understand that there is a need for an animal shelter,” said Tobias. “But I need for people to understand when it comes to this specific project, we are not slowing down. What we’re doing now is, again, going back to the original conversation of getting a resolution adopted for this Kyle Vista property.”

Hays County commissioner Walt Smith was also present during the meeting and spoke on the animal shelter, stating that Hays County made a commitment with Kyle for the animal shelter, not the location. So, he is in support of the item, as the interlocal agreement isn’t specific to one property, meaning the shelter can still move forward.

Flores-Cale explained that the vote that night would not repeal the ordinance. It instead asks staff to bring a resolution at the Tuesday, Aug. 18, meeting to repeal the ordinance. This will be after the full comprehensive review of the park, which is slated for the Saturday, July 30, meeting, allowing council to determine whether to begin the repeal of the ordinance after the presentation.

“I’m not understanding the reason for the rush,” said council member Marc McKinney, which was echoed by council members Lauralee Harris and Claudia Zapata.

Zapata stated that Kyle Vista is composed of three different tracts, of which the animal shelter is on the smallest. This would leave 85% open for parkland, so she doesn’t understand why the city cannot have both, though Flores-Cale stated that the deed and development agreement states that it was dedicated for park use.

After council member Melisa Medina asked whether the strict dedication would mean the denial of any and all buildings, city attorney Aimee Alcorn-Reed noted that as long as the building was for Parks and Recreation, it would be allowed.

McKinney, again, shared that he felt this was rushed, to which the mayor stated that it’s a problem that should have been looked at in September, when it was originally approved, but that council at the time didn’t do their due diligence.

She then motioned to approve the item, asking staff to bring back a resolution at the Aug. 18 meeting to repeal Resolution No. 1909. It was seconded by Tobias and passed 4-3, with Harris, McKinney and Zapata dissenting, to an applause from the audience.

HAM operators, or amateur radio operators, are licensed individuals that can aid local agencies in emergency disasters through radio frequency communication, explained club repeater Brian Barker. The radio type has a rich history, he noted, stating that it was used in World War II, when military scientists sent information to operatives, where it was much clearer, after decoding, and more difficult to intercept, rather than voice communication. This type of work is what inspired the origin of the club in 2018, he continued.

“We provide education; we provide information; we provide training and we connect and co-op with other club organizations to provide licensure [training],” said Barker. “Once they pass their exams, we will help them get established in amateur radio by advising them on what kinds of communications equipment to buy, based on what they want to do and how far they want to go.”

These federal licenses have several variations, ranging from the lowest rank at technician to general and then, amateur extra, all of which provide individual privileges to communicate within certain radio bands, shared Barker. The tests demand a lot of practice, as they consist of a 35 question test, pulled from 500 questions, requiring a passing grade of 70% or more. So, studying and ensuring the material is learned can be quite challenging, said the club member. Though, after deciding what license to strive for, the club helps its members study for tests through testing materials and providing equipment free of charge.

The real effort begins once licensed, said Barker, as this is when members can begin aiding law enforcement and other entities during a time of crisis.

“A lot of today’s world is based on the internet and if the internet goes down, somebody cuts a fiber optic cable, [communication is limited], which actually happened in Southeast Texas on the Gulf Coast day before yesterday. [So,] the club activated their people and they went to their stations and they provided emergency communication across certain districts, so that police, fire and emergency services could at least get some minimal information,” Barker shared.

The information transferred is not individualized, he said, as it is more organization to organization, rather than to specific officers or firemen. For instance, if the Kyle Fire Department needed mutual aid, the radio club could request and send this to another fire station in the area.

“If we have an internet breakage or outage between here and Austin and between here and San Antonio, we can actually communicate by radio transmission to Austin to the state emergency operations center and also to the south, toward San Antonio through Seguin … We have the capability to go north and south and east and west,” he said.

This ability to help is why those that feel drawn to contributing to their community should consider HAM, Baker offered.

“We’re not limited to being in a county. We are called the Hays-Caldwell [Radio Club] and have people in Hays County and Caldwell County. The reason it was designed for Hays-Caldwell is because when they put the repeater up, they had to pick a name and they engineered the information and figured they can cover most of Hays County and most of Caldwell County … That also promotes that the individual — or we encourage that individual — to work in their own area, their own county or part of the county, to also service some of these locations that we have with our radio in emergency times.”

Currently, the organization provides emergency backup communication for emergency management departments in Hays County, such as the Kyle Police Department, Ascension Seton Hays Hospital, Baylor Scott & White Medical Center - Buda and CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Hospital. It is working on beginning services in Wimberley and in Dripping Springs, as well.

Community members are not required to have any skills or equipment prior to joining as an associate and will be upgraded to a member after earning a license and paying a $20 fee to keep up with equipment for the emergency radio services. They can also be paired up with a mentor, titled Elmers, who can aid new members on HAM radio.

To learn more about the Hays-Caldwell Radio Club, visit www.hchams.com or attend a monthly meeting, held at the Kyle Public Safety Center, 1700 Kohlers Crossing, at 10 a.m. the third Saturday of each month.

Jason Lutz, interim director of planning, began the presentation by noting that the ordinance draft is a result of council direction to look at water quality and riparians, or land bordering water sources, for the Edwards Aquifer recharge zones.

So, staff began by looking at several cities and the Save Our Springs Ordinance and reviewed the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality regulations.

“We were looking at San Antonio and Dripping Springs, as those will be the best templates for us, mostly because of the way they were laid out. They had good definitions, good processes [and] good penalties,” said Lutz. “We did want to take a base ordinance, so we didn’t have to recreate the wheel. We started adding regulations to address Kyle’s specific needs.”

These regulations include additions regarding Plum Creek and the Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone. Initially, staff was also going to consider the requirements to be within the city limits, but Lutz stated that it would not make sense to be pollution cognizant within the city, only to have it come in the city from upstream.

“If you’re a citizen in the [extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ)], you generally don’t have a lot of conversations with the city of Kyle, unless you’re subdividing your land. Now, we would be asking you to submit a site plan outlining your water quality measures,” he explained.

Next, he discussed repairing the city’s corridor and stream buffers, where the changes would be based on stream type — major, intermediate and minor — and zones — managed, transition and protected; labels will be determined by the watershed. The protected zone would have no improvements, Lutz said. Additionally, utility crossings would be allowed, but may increase costs for city projects and developments.

The interim director stated that the city would include a no adverse impact demonstration, which means that there would be no increase in erosion potential, degradation of water quality and riparian habitat function, all of which would align with Kyle’s existing floodplain management framework.

Buffers would be around critical environment features, such as karst features, springs, sinkholes, caves, significant fractures, recharge features and wetlands. Because recreation areas are often in these locations, council member Marc McKinney requested flexibility or reviewing development on a case-by-case basis, to which Lutz stated that staff would suggest only allowing city parks, so council could review.

The interim director then shared that San Antonio had the “best practical model” when it came to aquifer protection and recharge features. Therefore, staff is looking into feasible language to implement into Kyle’s ordinance, including impervious cover limits of 40% for single-family homes, 55% for multi-family buildings and 65% for commercial facilities.

“We are [also] looking at water quality treatment for the first 1.5 inches [and] spill containment for fuel storage. Hazardous management plans would be something that would be submitted and then, there would be recurring inspections per the city stormwater maintenance program. Now, again, the reason I bring this up is because, originally, we were looking at just the city, but we felt that it’d be important to extend this to the ETJ. So, we have two staff in that department that may get a little cumbersome with yearly inspections; I just wanted to throw all of the issues out there,” he said.

Council member Lauralee Harris emphasized that she would like to include as much of the ETJ as possible, since “sometimes developers or businesses prefer to be in the ETJ because some of the regulations don’t apply and our ETJ areas are our most sensitive areas right now.”

“The people who don’t want to follow the city rules or engage in a development agreement, they can just be asked to be annexed out of the ETJ. That’s where I would see somebody who has a problem going is … they would just disengage altogether and asked to be taken out of the ETJ,” said Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale. “I’m afraid if we do [include the ETJ] then people are going to just leave and then, they’re going to have to use the county … As far as buffers and the regulations, I believe we don’t have very stringent regulations and theirs are less restrictive.”

Continuing on the topic of water quality, San Antonio and Dripping Springs have approaches consistent with the best management practices and low impact development standards using bioswales, sand filters, constructed wetlands, bioretention and more, according to the presentation. They also incentivize developments to use these, Lutz noted, adding that Kyle could do this, as well.

Council member Courtney Goza asked whether there would be availability of a waiver for property owners developing land. In response, Lutz stated that because the ordinance is still being drafted, a waiver could be added for specific criteria.

“I definitely do not want to impose anything that is so restrictive that there is no way around it, where pieces of property become unusable to the person who owns it because that is not being friendly to property owners. So, that is a concern to me,” she said, adding that she is in favor of having caps for impervious cover and requests can be considered.

“I have seen this ordinance in action, actually, in Dripping Springs, and it can become a little burdensome to council if y’all are having to review site plan variances once a meeting. I’m not sure that y’all want to do that. So, that was going to be my next question: Would you like the variance to come to you guys or are you okay with Planning and Zoning calling that and then, appeals go to you,” asked Lutz.

Goza stated that if it’s done in Dripping Springs and it’s working, then it’s a good process to follow.

A question regarding the water quality review fee came from council member Melisa Medina, who asked whether it will be a flat fee or based on acreage. According to the interim director, the fee already required for site development would be increased and then, additional fees for each acre. But he did state that a different fee or exception may need to be made for single-family homes, due to the possibly high cost.

“The goal is to protect our water, but the single-family, individual home is not the one that’s deteriorating the water quality, so we do want to keep that in mind,” said Lutz.

Next steps include: redlining the existing water quality ordinance template and modifying it to match Kyle needs and council direction; implement ing a fee for water quality review and amending fee schedule; and adding workflows, application checklists and processing procedures into the city’s plan review software process. The full drafted ordinance will appear in front of council in August.

To listen to the discussion, visit bit.ly/4f2JgUw.

The club started two years ago as a branch off the already-established Kyle Youth Football Association, also known as the Kyle Invaders, that focuses on providing an affordable sports program for the youth in the community, which is a continuation of the values that were set by founder Nolan Speir.

The program offers both tackle and flag football, along with cheerleading, but now, under the direction of Oscar Silguero, the Kyle Youth Track and Field Club was also created to “get kids active, give them opportunities to learn about track and field and give them opportunities to be able to compete in the sport,” he said.

Competitions look a little different than those of traditional programs in school districts. The club — which is currently made up of 40 kids ages six to 18 years — competes under AAU-licensed events, such as the district and regional meets, hosted by other track clubs in surrounding areas, including Austin, San Marcos and Seguin.

The largest event, however, is the AAU Junior Olympics that will take place July 29-Aug. 8 in Des Moines, Iowa. Four athletes from the Kyle Youth Track and Field Club will be competing in the 4x100-meter relay and, while another will compete in the 80-meter hurdle, after earning their seats in the top 16 at regionals.

This marks the second season of the club being in operation, but the first season of it qualifying for the Junior Olympics and for some of the kids, it’s their first year running track and field, Silguero said.

“Of those five kids, four of them, it's their first year running track and field, as well as being their first year with our club, so it's a big deal for them to come in first year, learn the sport, condition for it and make it all the way to the Junior Olympics, as young as they are, which they are 11 and 12 years of age,” he explained.

Team member Hunter Lewison shared that he joined the club last year, where he was one spot from qualifying for the national meet. Through his determination and hard work, he will be competing in the hurdles event at the Junior Olympics this year.

“I thought [hurdles] would be something new to do and I thought it would be fun to do,” Hunter said.

Brothers Alpha Lyra-Carr and Omega Lyra-Carr are in their first season with the Kyle Youth Track and Field Club, as well, and they will be competing on the relay team in the Junior Olympics.

“I felt excited and grateful that we get to run in the Junior Olympics this year,” Omega said.

They knew they wanted to join the club, so that they could “run together,” the two said, adding that they enjoy being able to conquer their goals as a team.

Josh Duron, who is also on the relay team, joined the track and field club this year in a pursuit to condition and prepare for his football season. According to him, what he loves most about being on the team is making friends and being a good sport to everyone.

Through prayer and practice, he said, Duron was able to help his relay team qualify for the next level.

“It feels really good. It was really surprising because my whole relay team was just football players,” Duron said. “They are dedicated to conditioning, so it feels really good to be able to go to the Junior Olympics.”

The coach expressed how proud he is of the team’s accomplishments this year: “To have that kind of achievement as young as they are, I would just tell them how proud I am of them. Seeing their growth and their improvement all season long is just encouraging for me as the director of the club and I hope that their opportunity now will encourage other kids to take a step in the track and field world and try to go for the same thing.”

Following the Junior Olympics, the club will enter into its off season to prepare the athletes — who all stated they will be returning — for the next outdoor season, which is held early March through July.

This update follows a recommendation made as part of the adoption of the 2025 Water Master Plan, according to agenda documents. Since 2024, staff has worked with STV Engineering to provide updates to both the city’s Water Conservation — last adopted in 2024 — and Drought Contingency — last adopted in 2009 — plans, resulting in significant changes being recommended.

“The proposed Water Conservation Plan updates the city’s long-term strategy for promoting efficient water use, reducing water loss and ensuring sustainable water supplies to support continued growth. The plan has been developed in accordance with Texas Water Development Board and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality requirements and reflects current utility operations, conservation programs and projected water demands,” read the documents. “To address future water demands, the plan establishes five-year and ten-year conservation goals, including municipal water use targets of 100 gallons per capita per day (GPCD) by 2030 and 95 GPCD by 2035, while maintaining water loss below 15% annually.”

The updated Drought Contingency Plan establishes procedures for managing the city’s water during emergencies affecting the water system and is designed to ensure reliable water service, while protecting public health, safety and welfare, read the documents. It also creates enforcement provisions, such as fines for violations, and a process for customers to request variances when compliance would create hardship or other conservation methods would achieve equivalent water savings.

Currently, there are three defined stages, but the proposed plan offers five, with a trigger threshold for each one — something that is not available in the present plan. The stages are triggered when any of the following criteria are met:

Voluntary Stage 1: Water consumption reaches 60% of daily maximum production capacity; Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority (GBRA) declares Stage 1; Edwards Aquifer Authority (EAA) declares Stage 1; Barton Springs-Edwards Aquifer Conservation District (BSEACD) declares Stage 1; or emergency as determined by city manager. Automatic irrigation would be two days a week.

Mandatory Stage 2: Water consumption reaches 70% of daily maximum production capacity; GBRA declares Stage 2; EAA declares Stage 2; BSEACD declares Stage 1; or emergency as determined by city manager. Automatic irrigation would be two days a week.

Mandatory Stage 3: Water consumption reaches 75% of daily maximum production capacity; GBRA declares Stage 3; EAA declares Stage 3; BSEACD declares Stage 2; or emergency as determined by city manager. Automatic irrigation would be one day a week.

Mandatory Stage 4: Water consumption reaches 80% of daily maximum production capacity; GBRA declares Stage 4; EAA declares Stage 4; BSEACD declares Stage 3; or emergency as determined by city manager. Automatic irrigation would be one day every other week.

Mandatory Stage 5: Water consumption reaches 85% of daily maximum production capacity; GBRA declares Stage 5; EAA declares Stage 5; BSEACD declares Stage 4; or emergency as determined by city manager. Automatic irrigation and all nonessential water use is prohibited.

Mike Van Winkle, division manager of treatment operations, confirmed that Alliance Regional Water Authority was considered when determining the production capacity. Additionally, he stated that any concerns regarding watering can be submitted through Kyle 311.

“I’ll go ahead and answer a question that may be on someone’s mind: If we were to operate under this Drought Contingency Plan today, where would we be? Staff did evaluate that internally and we would currently recommend under current conditions to operate in Stage 3,” said Van Winkle. “That being said, it sounds a little more restrictive than where we’re at now because we’re in an amended Stage 2, but because of those expanded drought stages, if you look at the reductions, it would actually be a little bit more lenient on that outdoor automatic irritation.”

If adopted, the plan will apply to all city of Kyle water customers, including residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural and governmental.

Regarding this, Tim Sanford, assistant director for Utilities, discussed the processes that would go into finding individuals who violate terms. First, he noted that the initial conversations are always an opportunity for education.

“That is first and foremost what our approach is: very soft-handed. Now, if you’re a repeat offender, this plan does have some monetary value to it, if we need to penalize you,” explained Sanford. “Before we take that type of action, we would have conversations with the city manager. I assume the conversation would also be had with city council. The values of what that would look like is first offense [is] $100-$500 and $500-$2,000 for subsequent offenses thereafter.”

The decision to have fees is the result of diligent patrols to have regulations met in 2023, he shared.

Council member Courtney Goza asked how the tiers will work for commercial businesses, to which Sanford suggested council come up with examples for staff to explain at a later meeting, since it is more complex.

“What I would like to see is as people log in to pay their bill or log in to look at their [advanced metering infrastructure] dashboard — hopefully, eventually, one day that’ll be one login — that it would populate what stage we’re at,” said council member Marc McKinney. “I think for the most part, everybody wants to be a willing participant in our water consideration; they just don’t understand, more often than not, exactly what the requirements are. I mean, I’m a city councilman [and], sometimes, I have a hard time remembering and I have to look it up … So, I think if we can simplify that a little bit, it would help with participation on a voluntary basis.”

He also suggested having a reward for those who are extremely conservative and using less than a certain amount.

After Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale questioned whether or not construction sites are using potable water, Sanford stated that they are not, unless it is a capital improvement project, due to demands on the city’s system. However, he did note that there is flexibility within the Drought Contingency Plan that allows staff and city leadership to determine whether or not to sell potable water for construction purposes.

“I just want to say thank you because this is much needed information not just for the council, but for the residents because I think there was this kind of confusion, like, ‘Where are we at and how do we know we’re going to change?’ So, I wanted to say thank you to your team, whoever brought this forward, because this is such important information that we should have had years ago,” said Flores-Cale.

There was no action taken, as this was a presentation item, though, the plans will have a reading come to council in August, followed by a second reading at a later date.

Unforgettable Families and Friends partnered with the Kyle Area Senior Zone and the Nu Sigma Sigma Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho San Marcos for CeCe’s Treasure Chest, an opportunity for local nonprofits to gather items, free of charge, for its clients.

The nonprofits were able to visit the Krug Activity Center Thursday, June 25, to receive items. The clothes and items for the fourth annual event were donated by Walmart, Kohl’s and community members.

Prior to the vote, Chief Financial Officer Deborah Ottmers presented the item at the June 22 meeting, first beginning by noting the demographics of the district. Currently, there are 25,400 students enrolled in 28 campuses, with more than 3,000 employees across 221 miles.

The three budgets required to be adopted by the board, which will reflect the $12.2 million cuts, as previously reported by the Hays Free Press, are:

• General fund:

- Revenue: $281,575,000

- Expenditures: $275,423,724

• School nutrition fund:

- Revenue: $$13,727,900

- Expenditures: $13,727,000

• Debt service fund:

- Revenue: $112,100,000

- Expenditures: $112,100,000

These total to $407,402,900 in revenue and $401,253,724 in expenditures.

“Even though the [general fund] budget has changed — revenues increased, expenditures increased — the anticipation is still that we’re going to keep that $25 million fund balance. When actuals happen, after we go through the audit, it’s going to change some because those are real numbers that are going to be hitting all the accounts, but it looks like it's on track to be very close to keeping that fund balance, which is ultra important,” said Ottmers.

This balance — which will rise to $37,387,051, due to the $12.2 million in cuts — she continued, is recommended to sit at 90 days worth of operating expenses, but is instead only at 33 days. The full 90-day amount would be estimated at $68 million, Ottmers said.

She also noted that at the end of the year, approximately 10 days will be added, potentially more, getting the district to its goal of reaching the 90-day balance in three to five years.

Regarding the funding amount provided by the state, the CFO stated that, if the district was able to be funded based on student enrollment of 25,400, it would receive more money: “The revenue and the expenditures per enrolled [student are] about $60 per student per day and so, when a student doesn’t come to school, we don’t get the $60, but we [still] spend the $60. So, for a financial standpoint, that's important. That’s why we would prefer to be paid on enrollment, not on attendance.”

The proposed 2026-27 tax rate is the same as 2025-26 at $1.1546 per $100 valuation, consisting of $0.6669 for maintenance and operations and $0.4877 in interest and sinking.

Trustee Raul Vela Jr. asked whether homestead exemptions affect the district when it comes to receiving these taxes, since they lower the amount of taxable property. “Yes and no,” responded Ottmers, explaining that the general fund nearly makes up the differences, but it could slightly affect the debt service fund.

“One of our largest challenges that we’ve been having the last several years [is] one of the changes in the law was refunds that are made to taxpayers and when those are made. So, they used to make them only at certain times of the year and those would be the times when cash flow was up, but, now, it’s whenever they have to make that refund. The tax office doesn’t have enough cash, [so] we actually send them money to make those refunds. That’s a time where our cash flow is lowest,” she shared.

Prior to the vote, trustee Byron Severance stated, "I know this is not the budget we'd like to do, but I think it's the one we have to do, based on our circumstances. I think we're all just committed to making it work to keep our focus on the true education of kids."

Severance motioned to adopt the general, debt service and school nutrition funds at the June 29 meeting, with trustee Esperanza Orosco seconding. The item passed 7-0.

The Hays CISD Board of Trustees will meet next Monday, July 27.

Beginning with the history of the Public Transportation Program, senior planner Kaela Sharp noted that the Uber Kyle $3.14 Voucher Program was established in October 2020, with the intention to replace an underutilized bus service and expand transportation options in the area. An expansion to include airport and Veterans Affairs (VA) vouchers occurred in October 2021, followed by Maruti Transportation (MT) Connect for wheelchair accessible rides in 2022.

The program runs by issuing three voucher types monthly, which are downloaded by users from the City of Kyle mobile app and linked to the Uber account. The first is Uber Kyle — valid on rides within the city’s boundaries and some areas of the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) — which has 2,000 sets of vouchers, each valid for 10 rides per month. When a ride that meets the criteria is requested, a base cost of $3.14 is charged; Kyle then covers the next $10, leaving the residents to pay any remainder cost above $13.14.

Other vouchers are as follows:

Uber VA

• 400 sets of vouchers, each set for two rides per month

• Valid on rides to and from the Austin VA clinic

• Base cost is $3.14

• City covers the remainder, up to $60

Uber Kyle Airport

• 1,000 sets of vouchers, each set valid for two rides per month

• Valid on rides to and from the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport

• Cost-share is 50% of the total cost; though, previously, it was 31.4% for the resident and 68.6% to the city, until September 2025

• City’s maximum contribution is $50

MT Connect

• Same boundaries as those in the aforementioned vouchers

• Cost to rider is $3.14

• The city pays a monthly fixed rate of $14,500, plus $25 per ride

Although the program was in budget the initial two years, since fiscal year 2022-23, it has consistently gone over budget, in amounts ranging from $99,000 to $430,000 per year. Staff estimates that by the end of the current fiscal year, it will be over $324,868.

Sharp stated that staff is looking into a resident verification process, along with grant opportunities and other wheelchair accessible options. Despite this, recommendations to modify the locations served, to raise the base price to $7, reduce service hours or eliminate the airport vouchers, which would save approximately $200,000 annually, were presented.

Council member Claudia Zapata requested that staff provide information on unique riders, the times the services and specific vouchers are used and where, as this would aid the council in determining what direction to move forward with for public transportation.

Sharing concerns with the price increases was council member Lauralee Harris, who stated that older adults may use the service to receive a $6 lunch at KASZ, but that by potentially raising the prices to $7, they could be priced out.

“I share council member Harris’ concern that $7 might price people out of the ability to use it, especially our most income-restricted residents. I know there’s a lot of fixed-income seniors that use this program, a lot of disabled people that use this program [and] a lot of youth that don’t have significant income that use this program to get back and forth to work,” said council member Marc McKinney. “In my mind, I wish there was a way we could have some sort of income-based tiered structure, but implementing that would cost us more than what we would end up saving in the long run. I have a hard time agreeing to go all the way to $7.”

McKinney also stated that he feels as though those who can afford to fly can afford to find transportation to get to the airport, so he was in favor of eliminating these vouchers.

“Five for the ride” was what council member Michael Tobias suggested.

All three noted that cutting the hours is concerning, whether that be for older adults, preventing drunk-driving or students using it for extracurricular activities.

“I think we just need to do a better job [of] how we monitor these accounts because it does seem kind of fishy that you have all these vouchers that are going out and we could have somebody that’s applying for multiple accounts just to get those vouchers,” said Tobias.

Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale agreed with an idea that Zapata brought forward about setting a limit each month, such as $50,000, and stopping the services once the city pays this amount.

Near the end of the discussion, council member Courtney Goza shared that she discovered that the VA covers and reimburses ride shares for veterans anyway, so the city does not need to pay for these vouchers.

“I don’t want to touch the VA program because I think it just provides such essential services and, if anything, I’m trying to find ways to beef it up,” said Zapata.

The following motions were approved unanimously by council:

• Updating the service area to only Kyle city limits

• Changing the base cost to $5

• Eliminating the airport vouchers

Council voted 6-1, with McKinney dissenting, on reducing the hours to 6 a.m. to midnight.

Moving onto the public events portion of the presentation, assistant city manager Jesse Elizondo noted that there are 43 events and series hosted annually, with programming designed for all ages. These serve 35,000 participants and more than 850 vendors, with a current annual operation budget of $795,500.

The behind the scenes of these events have varying timeliness, according to the presentation — with smaller gatherings taking three to six months to plan, while large and destination experiences are from eight months to a year — and budget, ranging from $8,000 for Center Street Trick-or-Treat to $25,000 for City Fest. However, some events, like Kyle Fair, do have a stream of revenue. For example, although there was a direct cost of $310,000 for the Kyle Fair, it generated $22,000.

After reviewing the many events, council was asked to determine the future of them moving forward.

Goza stated that she was in favor of reducing the number of Market Days. She has also gotten feedback from visitors that the music is so loud that it is difficult to communicate with others or for vendors to do business. This could be remedied by removing the large band stage, said Goza, for something more acoustic, which Harris agreed.

“If we go from eight to four, I think it’ll be better attended because they’re more sparse, and then, also the vendors will get more out of them because there’s more people there,” said Elizondo.

With the recent decision to remove the Hispanic Heritage Market Day, Zapata requested staff look into having an international market day to celebrate various cultures, perhaps aligned with Hays CISD’s designated heritage days throughout the year.

The Pride event was also cancelled: “I will firmly say that Pride is exceptionally important,” said Zapata. “I remember the first time I was called a dyke; I was 11 years old and that does not leave you — ever. So, if it costs $3,500 a month for the city to put on an event that would help a child feel welcomed and loved and appreciated and not feel so alone, it is more than worth it.”

Harris agreed with Zapata, but opted to advocate for six dates, instead of four. A spring and fall event, said Tobias, would be better, as this would allow more vendors to sign up, with a bigger turnout.

“I think keeping it simple is the way it should be. Not to say that I don’t support the cultural aspect of what we were trying to merge, but I don’t think a market day is necessarily the right venue for those things,” said McKinney.

Although Flores-Cale stated that she supports the representation and the educational aspect, she agreed with McKinney about keeping the market days simple. Organizations that provide support and services can be at any event, not just specific themes, she said.

“Regardless of what my personal opinion is and that is, I do support the [LGBTQIA+] community … I represent a city of 60,000 people and I have to take everybody into consideration,” said the mayor. “I cannot sit up here and make votes based on what I want because I have 60,000 people I have to think about and as much as I do support the community in other ways, I also have to think about other people.”

Flores-Cale made a motion to hold market days twice a year in the spring and fall, with a second from Tobias. The item passed 5-2, with Harris and Zapata dissenting. Elizondo clarified that this included removing the large stage and, instead, looking for a smaller musical aspect and finding new ways to incorporate cultural events.

Regarding other events, council voted 7-0 to:

• July 4th: reduce to just fireworks

• Kyle Fair: reduce to a day-an- a-half event, with a 6 p.m. start time on Friday

• Center Street Trick-or-Treat: restructure

• City Fest: eliminate and have further conversations of how to provide residents with a State of the City address at a later date

• 25 Days of Christmas: reduce the number of events and number of parks with lights

• Santa’s Arrival: remove and merge with Santa Rides

• Santa Rides: restructure and combine with Santa’s Arrival for tree lighting

• Jams on the Green: reducing to four times a year and move the event to Saturday instead of Thursday

• Movie in the Parks: reducing from 11 to four events a year

• Texas Recreation and Park Society Unplug: eliminate the event

Originally, staff shared that Grinch on the Green is a growing, successful event, so no changes were recommended, but Goza stated that with the other Christmas event and the load it puts on employees, she recommended removing it.

Zapata considered an option for reducing the five-hour event, as she feels as though the Grinch having a full day to himself is “very Grinch-like.” Though, staff shared that this was to ensure as many community members were able to meet him as much as possible, since last year, some were turned away, due to time constraints.

“I think it is a super unique event,” said Harris. “I think that it has become a part of Kyle; it’s looked forward to and people from all around come for that. I love the lighting [and] turning La Verde green just makes sense. It’s beautiful. I would suggest leaving it how it is.”

Both McKinney and Tobias agreed, stating that it’s a “Kyle original” and well-attended and well-received.

Ultimately, council chose to continue with the event, but shorten it from five hours to three hours. It passed 5-1, with Goza dissenting. Zapata was not in the room for the vote.

The following events were unchanged: National First Responders Day, Easter Eggstravaganza, Founders’ Day Parade, Veterans Day Parade, Memorial Day, 9/11 Ceremony, Flag Day and Storytime in the Park.

To listen to the discussions, visit bit.ly/4oVmna0.