By Colin Killian, Public Communications Director
Welcome to our live blog from the College Station City Council meeting on Thursday, June 22. It’s not the official minutes.
The meeting starts after 6 p.m. and is streamed live on Optimum Channel 19 and cstx.gov/cstv19. You can participate online through Microsoft Teams by entering Meeting ID: 223 427 023 174 and Passcode: MvPmTr. You can also call 833-240-7855 and enter Conference: 952 310 468#.
6:01 p.m.
The meeting has started. The council took no action after its executive session.
6:08 p.m.
Smart Irrigation Month
Mayor John Nichols proclaimed July as Smart Irrigation Month. July is a peak month for irrigation, and College Station Water Services encourages residents to sign up for landscape watering recommendations through the Brazos Valley WaterSmart program.
Pictured below are Water Services Director Gary Mechler, Mayor Nichols, and Water Resource Coordinator Jennifer Nations.
6:13 p.m.
Southside’s 100th Anniversary
Mayor Nichols presented a proclamation celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the Southside Historic Neighborhood.
6:25 p.m.
Hear Visitors
Three people spoke during Hear Visitors, when citizens may address the council on any item that does not appear on the posted agenda.
• Phillip McAughan spoke in favor of city-initiated middle housing zoning districts.
• Craig Regan spoke in favor of “fiscal irrigation.”
• Scott Hickle spoke against the Northeast trunkline project going down Rosemary Drive.
6:28 p.m.
Consent Agenda
The council voted unanimously to approve the entire consent agenda:
• A $75,641 deductive change order to the city hall project contract with Core Construction.
• A retainer contract not to exceed $600,000 with McCord Engineering.
• A $625,674.12 contract with Routeware for solid waste route management hardware, software, and implementation services.
• The purchase of a $320,695 rescue vehicle (armored tactical vehicle) from Lenco Industries.
• A $233,724 contract with Elliott Construction for replacing water lines on Ashburn Avenue.
6:33 p.m.
CSU Text Notifications
The council heard an update about College Station Utilities’ new customer text notification system for electric outages. TextPower integrates with outage management software to inform customers of planned and unplanned outages and status updates.
The system is scheduled to launch this fall.
7:37 p.m.
Code Enforcement Update
The council received an update about the city’s code enforcement activities.
7:44 p.m.
Lick Creek Bird Blinds
The council voted 5-2 to approve a $112,490 contract with Quality Works Construction to develop two bird blind structures in Lick Creek Park. Councilwoman Elizabeth Cunha and Councilman Bob Yancy voted against the motion.
7:53 p.m.
Mayor Nichols adjourned the meeting after the council discussed its calendar, items of community interest, committee and board reports, and future agenda items.
The council meets again for a special meeting to introduce the city’s proposed FY 24 budget on Tuesday, July 11. The next regular meeting is Thursday, July 14.
About the Blogger
Colin Killian has been with the City of College Station since 2010 after serving 23 years as the associate media relations director for the Texas A&M Athletics Department. He has also worked as a reporter and editor for the Corpus Christi Caller-Times and Lewisville News. A native of Hobbs, N.M., Killian graduated from Texas Tech with a bachelor’s degree in journalism/political science.
If you liked this post, share it with the buttons below!
