BANGS – The Bangs City Council chambers were packed with residents and the mayor, city secretary, all council members and new City Administrator Erica Berry were in attendance as a potential splash pad, the proposed tax rate for the 2022-23 fiscal year, and the possibility of adding a third police officer were among discussion items at Monday night’s meeting.
Council member Greg Parrott spoke of a proposal to approve the Municipal Development District to spend up to $75,000 for a new splash pad to be located in the downtown park area.
“We attempted a grant on a splash pad and unfortunately we were one of many communities that was not awarded a grant,” Parrott said. “We didn’t want to give up on the idea because we have very limited draw of any type of activity for our youth here in our community. We don’t have anything in the way of a swimming pool or a water park, and communities to the east and west of us do. That is taking our kids out of our community and sending them to Brownwood, which is also sending our commerce to Brownwood. We’re not keeping anything here, and we want to turn that around and be the draw of our area.”
Parrott described a unique feature of the proposed splash pad is a water tower that will fill and then dump water on people underneath.
“That’s going to be a neat thing for our kids to experience during the hot summer months when we just don’t have anything else to offer them,” Parrott said. “I think we’re missing a big opportunity if we don’t take this initial investment. Yes, $75,000 is a lot of money, but how much money are we losing from our community?”
The City Council intends to seek bids on the potential project which, if approved, would be paid from MDD funds.
Regarding the proposed tax rate for the 2022-23 fiscal year, Bangs residents could see an almost 10 cent decrease per $100 valuation.
The current tax rate is $.6692 while the proposed rate is $.5699.
Berry said, “It does lower the tax rate, but it will generate more income for the city,” due to the valuation of property increasing.
The tax rate will be approved after a hearing to approve the overall budget for the 2022-23 fiscal year.
The city council also approved sending a candidate who will first be interviewed and approved by a hiring committee to a police academy in Abilene with the purpose of becoming Bangs’ third peace officer. The cost to attend the academy is $2,100, paid by the City, and the candidate would be added to the City of Bangs payroll while attending. The council also requested the candidate sign at least a two-year contract to be employed with the City of Bangs, which City Attorney Mark Bessent and Police Chief Robert Garcia will formulate.
Rhonda Louviere addressed a concern regarding the desire to re-establishing Mayfest, with all proceeds benefiting Bangs Project Graduation. The council advised to Louviere to return to the next council meeting with a written plan to present toward the council for consideration.
In other action, Berry’s four-year contract as City Administrator was approved, with yearly evaluations included. The contract will expire in July 2026.
The Bangs varsity cheerleaders made a presentation in regard to hosting a homecoming parade. The council noted the appropriate entities required to make such a request possible, including TxDOT, for the proposed Oct. 5 event.
Also Monday:
- A report was provided on the volunteer fire department’s new rescue unit, which cost $72,540
- Action was taken to seek alternative auditors after Merritt, McLane, and Hamby requested a $2,000 pay increase, which would bump the fee to $20,000
- A new city organizational chart was approved
- The new City Administrator will be added to the signature list of TexasBank cards
- Mayor Rick Phelps requested looking into the contract of the current trash service due to unsatisfactory work stemming from a plethora of missed routes in a calendar year.
- Phelps and Kenneth Youth were appointed to the Parks and Recreation Board
- An ordinance confirming the northern and western boundaries of the city limits was adopted