Archive for August, 2010

Bastrop police chief steps down

Tuesday, August 31st, 2010

Bastrop, Tx–David Board, city police chief since 2002, tendered his resignation from city employment and as chief of the department on Monday.

Board, 46, had been a Bastrop policeman since 1986. He will remain on leave without official duties until Nov. 1 when he will qualify for city retirement benefits, said an announcement today from Bastrop City Manager Mike Talbot. The city manager said Board’s resignation has been accepted and is irrevocable.

Board had been on leave since Aug. 18. The previous evening he was arrested in Austin on a drunk driving charge.
Talbot said Board was “allowed to resign” as part of a negotiated arrangement for his separation from city employment.

Talbot said a search for a new chief for the 25-member department will begin immediately. In the meantime, Assistant Chief Matt Wagner will direct the department.

Posted in Bastrop City, Crime | No Comments »

Groundwater export plan draws fire

Tuesday, August 24th, 2010

Bastrop, Tx–The Bastrop Economic Development Corp. didn’t bat an eye Monday when asked to adopt a measure opposing the annual export of some 30,000 acre feet of groundwater from Bastrop County for use by the Guadaloupe-Blanco River Authority near San Marcos.

“That’s a no-brainer” for the local economic development board, said Board Member Willie DeLaRosa. “We don’t need to be exporting water to New Braunfels.”

If approved the GBRA water deal “could have a negative impact on Bastrop County,” said Bastrop City Manager Mike Talbot. The fear is that current water export plan, if implemented, could leave too little groundwater available to support continued growth in Bastrop and Lee County over the next two or three decades.

Additional concerns by local economic development and water planners is that the export scheme has now been included in an official water plan by a neighboring regional water planning group which expects the $330 million project to be financed, at least in part, by the Texas Water Development Board, the state agency which must also approve regional water plans for the Lower Colorado River Basin as well as the Guadaloupe River Basin.

Talbot said he and other local officials will meet this week with State Rep. Tim Kleinschmidt to review concerns about the GBRA proposal and its likely impact on local cities and other water utilities including Aqua Water Supply Corp. In a press announcement last week Aqua officials voiced fears that the proposed export plan could impair its ability to fulfill a constract to supply water to the planned 7,400-home XS Ranch project north of Bastrop.

Posted in Bastrop City, business plans, Environmental Movements | 2 Comments »

Bastrop police chief ‘on leave’

Thursday, August 19th, 2010

Bastrop, Tx–In a statement released by City Hall today, City Manager Mike Talbot said Police Chief David Board is officially on leave from his post.

Board was charged with drunk driving in Austin Monday evening, and asked Talbot for some time off to address personal issues the next morning. Board was released from jail on $5,000 personal bond.

Wednesday afternoon Talbot said he had made no decision on Board’s request for time off.

Today’s statement, released over Talbot’s name, did not say whether the chief’s leave comes with or without pay or for how long a period. An email request for clarification did not receive an immediate response.

The chief’s duties are being handled by Assistant Chief Matt Wagner, Talbot said.

Board, 46, joined the Bastrop Police Department in 1986.

Posted in Bastrop City | No Comments »

Bastrop police chief charged, status pending

Wednesday, August 18th, 2010

Bastrop, Tx–Assistant Police Chief Matt Wagner was effectively placed in charge of the 25-member department on Tuesday, according to City Manager Michael Talbot, and the status of Police Chief David Board is under review.

Board was arrested on a drunk driving charge in Austin Monday evening, according to media reports, and released on $5,000 bail. At a meeting with Board on Tuesday morning, the chief asked for some time off to address personal issues, and Wagner was placed in charge of department operations, acccording to Talbot.

The city manager has not made a decision on Board’s request, he said i Wednesday. He declined to say when a decision might be forthcoming.

Board has been a member of the Bastrop Police Department for more than 24 years. Former Chief Ronnie Duncan promoted Board to sergeant. The late Chief Bill Anderson made Board the department’s first lieutenant.

Board assumed the chief’s role upon Anderson’s retirement.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Convention center art sought

Wednesday, August 11th, 2010

Bastrop, Tx–Following a suggestion by Council Member Kay Garcia McAnally on Tuesday, the city council agreed to form a citizen study group to look for significant local art works to embellish the convention center and new city hall now under construction on Chestnut Street.

The new city buildings should become a showcase for the wealth of local artistic talent already living and working in Bastrop, said McAnally. So far there is no budget or plan for placing art work in the new structures.

Works for public display might be purchased, borrowed for a time or acquired by gift or long term loans, said McAnally. An acquisition strategy should be one of the arts panel’s tasks, she suggested.

Mayor Terry Orr said he will appoint such a panel, with the council’s consent, if council members will first suggest a list of suitable candidates.Orr suggested a panel of possibly four to seven members as an initial working group.

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BISD ‘acceptabe,’ says TEA

Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010

Bastrop, Tx–The Bastrop school district earned an “accep0table” rating for the 2009-10 academic hear, the Texas Education Agency reported this week.

Of the 11 schools which were rated in the district, seven were listed as “recognized” and four as “acceptable.”

The “recognized” schools are Cedar Creek Middle School, Cedar Creek Intermediate, Bluebonnet Elementary, Emile Elementary, Lost Pines Elementary, Mina Elementary and Red Rock Elementary.

Bastrop High School, Bastrop Middle School, Bastrop Intermediate School and Cedar Creek Elementary were rated “acceptable.”

Posted in Bastrop School District | No Comments »

Bastrop fills 3 top vacancies

Monday, August 2nd, 2010

Bastrop, Tx–After a long search, City Manager Mike Talbot has filled three executive staff positions, including the first executive director of the new convention center and the city’s first information technology director.

On Friday Talbot also named a new planning director for the city, a post which has been open for months.

Katherine A. Danielson will be the first to market and manage the convention center, due to open for business next spring. Since 1999 she has been the top manager for the Foley, Alabama Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Foley is a city of some 12,000 residents near the Alabama Gulf Coast. From 1996-99 Danielson was special events director for the Alabama Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce.

A second new city position is an information technology director. Talbot has selected Kevin Unger, who recently moved to this area, for the job. For the past two years Unger has been a private consultant based in Dallas. Previously he worked both in private industry and public service positions, according to Talbot.

Unger’s resume lists both Perot Systems of Plano and Denton County, Tx as former employers.

Melissa M. McCollum also brings both private and government experience as Bastrop’s new director of planning and development. She replaces Stacy Snell who moved to a new job earlier this year.

McCollum most recently was chief planner for San Marcos. She previously also worked for a private consultancy in Round Rock and with the Georgetown planning department.

Posted in Bastrop City | No Comments »