CITY OF SULPHUR SPRINGS, TEXAS
REGULAR MEETING OF THE
CITY COUNCIL
JULY 2, 2013
7:00 p.m.
Mayor John Sellers called the regular meeting of the Sulphur Springs City Council to
order at 7:00 p.m. The following council members and staff were present:
Mayor John Sellers
Mayor Pro Tem Freddie Taylor
Councilman Craig Johnson
Councilman Clay Walker
Councilman Oscar Aguilar
Councilwoman Emily Glass
Councilwoman Kayla Price
Absent:
Staff:
Marc Maxwell, City Manager
Gale Roberts, City Secretary
Jim McLeroy, City Attorney
Peter Karstens, Director of Finance
Shane Shepard, Director Community Development
James Bayuk, Police Chief
Robert Lee, Utilities Director
Russell Ham, Water Plant Superintendent
PLEDGE AND INVOCATION
Mayor Sellers led in the pledge of allegiance to the United States Flag and the Pledge to
the Texas Flag. Mayor Pro Tem Taylor led in the invocation.
PRESENTATIONS, ANNOUNCEMENTS AND PROCLAMATIONS
Tommy Allison, Jim Perez, and Gary Hall presented the City Council with a Certificate
of Appreciation for Loyalty and Patriotism to Our Country by publicly and proudly
displaying the United States flag.
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Mayor Sellers recognized Sgt. Matt Glenn and Officers Eddie Moon, Derrick Williams,
and Seth McDaniel by presenting each of them with a silver coin for their quick and
decisive response to the Best Western Trail Dust Inn fire which occurred June 8, 2013.
Mayor Sellers also presented Officer Eddie Moon with a proclamation for his life saving
heroics by rescuing an elderly gentleman from the fire without any hesitation.
Chief Bayuk also recognized Dispatchers Sarah Anderson and Kimberly Williams for
their hard work during the Best Western Trail Dust Inn fire. They performed their jobs
effectively and efficiently during a very difficult and arduous situation.
MANAGER’S REPORT
THE SQUARE – Work on Jefferson Street is completed. Work will begin on the
Jefferson/Church intersection on Monday. The Capital Construction Division will work
6 days per week, 10 to 12 hours per day to expedite the job. Expect the job to last 6
weeks.
NEW CITY HALL – Progress continues on the addition and the main building. Steel
framing on the addition is moving quickly along. On the main building the new
limestone blocks have been placed around the base where broken stones were removed.
Work continues on the interior of the new building as KBL Restoration plasters and
paints walls, sands wooden floors and installs new windows.
SUMMER PAVING PROGRAM – Here is a list of summer paving projects for this
year.
 Freeman, from Como to Carter.
 Live Oak, west of Helm Lane.
 Davis Street N., from Atkins to Houston.
 Kyle, from Davis to Gilmer.
 Spence, from Fisher to Gilmer.
 Vonda, from Wright to concrete.
 Terry, from Azalea to dead end.
 Soft spot repair, various locations.
INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION – Kudos to the Hopkins County Symphony
League. Last weekend’s celebration was a smashing success by any standard. The music
was fantastic, the fireworks were beautiful, and the weather was perfect. I believe that
was the most crowded I have ever seen the square.
THE BATTLE OF THE BOWLS – The glass restrooms have been nominated for a
national contest for best bathrooms sponsored by Cintas Corporation. You can learn
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more about the contest by visiting http://www.bestrestroom.com/us/. You can also watch
a video about the contest at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EC4F2LsJK-8. In
August, Cintas will announce 10 finalists, and then the internet public can begin voting
on them. I bet we make it into the top 10.
CLAIMS – The City had two minor Workers’ Compensation claims in June. Both were
treated and released to duty.
Two liability claims were sent to TML last month. A driver struck a dip a little too fast
and tried to collect damages. That claim was denied. A resident is claiming damages
from a sewer blockage that resulted on a flooded bathroom and bedroom. That claim will
be likely be denied unless we actively did something to cause the overflow.
REVENUES AND EXPENDITURES – Finance Director, Peter Karstens will present a
year-to-date review of revenues and expenditures.
MISCELLANEOUS – Elsewhere around the City, employees:
 Sold 4,000 gallons of JetA fuel and 1,442 gallons of AvGas.
 Assisted with the planning, setup, and take-down of the Independence Day
celebration.
 Treated 143 million gallons of drinking water.
 Checked out $3,576 materials from the library and served 1,789 computer users,
and saw monthly Saturday attendance of 215.
 Served 1,135 patrons with programed library activities like summer reading.
 Responded to 39 accidents, made 72 arrests, wrote 644 traffic citations and
recorded 62 offences.
 Said “farewell” to retiring police lieutenant Buddy Williams.
 Hired 2 dispatchers.
 Received training in arrest, search and seizure, use of force, crime scene
investigation, S.W.A.T. and Spanish. Promoted Pat Leber to Lieutenant, and
promoted Lonnie Taylor to Sergeant.
 Responded to 244 animal control calls, and achieved a 76% adoption rate.
 Repaired 25 water line ruptures and replaced 23 water meters.
 Unstopped 13 sewer mains.
 Washed 79,000 feet of sewer mains and camera inspected 3,442 feet of sewer
mains.
 Made 13 sewer repairs resulting from previous camera inspections.
 Processed 559 tickets through municipal court.
 Responded to 111 fire/rescue calls including 2 structure fires.
 Conducted 60 fire inspections.
 Performed preventative maintenance on 72 fire hydrants.
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 Wrote 5 weed tickets.
 Aerated and fertilized athletic fields.
 Achieved a daily average total suspended solids reading of 14.86 mg/L, above our
permit limit of 12 mg/L. This is the third month we have blown our permit. One
more month and we will come under enforcement.
 Began adding hydrogen peroxide and installed blowers to address severe problems
at wastewater treatment plant brought on by changes to the pre-treatment
operation at Saputo. The new apparatuses are produced by Blue Frog Systems and
are pictured below as taken from sales literature. So far, it is not working as the
sales literature suggests.
Before
After???
 Put up temporary fence for t-ball tournament this weekend.
 Installed a fountain at the Municipal Airport’s pond.
 Turned off school zone lights.
CONSENT AGENDA
The following items on the Consent Agenda were reviewed: Consider for approval the
City Council meeting minutes of June 4, 2013; Special City Council minutes of June 20,
2013; the Downtown Revitalization Board meeting minutes of June 18, 2013; and the
Economic Development Corporation meeting minutes of May 28, 2013. There was no
one to speak to the issue. Councilwoman Price moved to approve the consent agenda as
presented. Mayor Pro Tem Taylor seconded and the vote was unanimous.
The motion carried.
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DISCUSSION/ACTION ON PUBLIC HEARING FOR SECOND AND FINAL
READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 2634 APPROVING AND ADOPTING RATE
SCHEDULE RRM – RATE REVIEW MECHANISM FOR ATMOS ENERGY
CORPORATION, MID-TEX DIVISION, TO BE IN FORCE IN THE CITY FOR A
PERIOD OF TIME AS SPECIFIED IN THE RATE SCHEDULE; ADOPTING A
SAVINGS CLAUSE; DETERMINING THAT THIS ORDINANCE WAS PASSED
IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE TEXAS OPEN MEETINGS ACT; DECLARING
AN EFFECTIVE DATE; AND REQUIRING DELIVERY OF THIS ORDINANCE
TO THE COMPANY AND ACSC LEGAL COUNSEL
ACSC and Atmos renewed discussions to develop revisions to the RRM tariff, and have
reached a tentative agreement on the form of the RRM to be in effect for a four-year
period from 2013 – 2017. If the RRM process is to continue to function as a substitute
for the GRIP process, cities that exercise original jurisdiction must adopt a tariff that
authorizes the process. There was no one to speak to the issue. Councilwoman Price
moved to adopt the ordinance on the second and final reading. Mayor Pro Tem Taylor
seconded and the vote was unanimous.
The motion carried.
DISCUSSION/ACTION ON FIRST READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 2635
AMENDING THE BUDGET FOR FY2012 – 2013
Finance Director Peter Karstens presented the staff report. He stated the budget
amendment increases the overall expenditure limit by $250,000. The source of the funds
is the additional sales tax that the city is collecting which is in excess of the $260,000
being recognized by this amendment. Those line items receiving additional funds include
Professional Services in Administration which is the result of increased legal fees;
Professional Services and Community Promotion in the Community Development as a
result of all the activity the department is doing downtown; Salaries, ERE, Health
Insurance and Street repair material in the Street Department, and finally, Hospital Gas in
Department 30 (which has a corresponding revenue increase). $70,000 is transferred
from the General Fund to the Capital Fund to add funds for the Downtown Façade Grant
Program. $10,000 is transferred from the General Fund to the Airport Fund to partially
replace revenue lost when GSC sold its plane. Most of the other revenue shortage is
being dealt with through budget cuts at the Airport. The difference between the $250,000
increase of the expenditure limitation and the $260,000 increase in Revenue is the
$10,000 transferred to the Airport to replace revenue lost. There were a couple of
questions asked of Mr. Karstens. There was no one else to speak to the issue. Mayor
Pro Tem Taylor moved to approve the ordinance on the first reading. Councilwoman
Price seconded and vote was unanimous.
The motion carried.
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DISCUSSION/ACTION ON BIDS AND AWARD OF CONTRACT FOR
CHEMICALS AT THE WATER TREATMENT AND WASTEWATER
TREATMENT PLANTS
The City advertised for bids on the following chemicals to be used at the Water and
Waste Water Treatment Plants:
Aluminum Hydroxide
Aluminum Hydroxide Copper Sulfate Blend
Liquid Chlorine
Sulphur Dioxide
Caustic Soda
Chlorine Dioxide (sodium chlorite solution)
Liquid Ammonium Sulfate
Ortho Poly Phosphate
The low bid received on June 19, 2013 for each chemical is as follows:
New Price
Aluminum Hydroxide
Aluminum Hydroxide Copper Sulfate Blend
Aluminum Hydroxide Copper Sulfate Blend
Liquid Chlorine
Sulphur Dioxide
Caustic Soda
Chlorine Dioxide
Liquid Ammonium Sulfate
Ortho Poly Phosphate
1%
2%
197.18 ton
236.16 ton
276.16 ton
512.00 ton
725.00 ton
574.00 ton
0.733 per lb.
0.093 per lb.
0.675 per lb.
Old Price
199.60 ton
260.00 ton
285.00 ton
723.00 ton
723.00 ton
568.00 ton
0.715 per lb.
0.095 per lb.
0.860 per lb.
There was no one to speak to the issue. Councilwoman Price moved to accept the low
bids as presented. Mayor Pro Tem Taylor seconded and the vote was unanimous.
The motion carried.
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CONDUCT A PUBLIC HEARING FOR CITIZEN COMMENT REGARDING
GRANT THROUGH THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE TEXAS
CAPITAL FUND DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION PROGRAM
Mayor Sellers opened the Public Hearing at 7:31 p.m.
There was no one to speak to the issue.
Mayor Sellers closed the Public Hearing at 7:31 p.m.
DISCUSSION/ACTION ON RESOLUTION NO. 1054 APPROVING AN
APPLICATION FOR FUNDING THROUGH THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF
AGRICULTURE TEXAS CAPITAL FUND DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION
PROGRAM; MAKING OTHER FINDINGS AND PROVISIONS RELATED TO
THE SUBJECT; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE
City Manager Maxwell presented the staff report. Kim Lacey, Municipal Development
Services, was also available to answer any questions. With approval of this resolution
staff would submit an application for grant funding to the Texas Department of
Agriculture’s Downtown Revitalization Program for grant funding for $150,000. If
approved the City would provide a required match of $45,000. After subtracting $15,000
for grant administration we would have $180,000 to construct new downtown sidewalks.
There was no one to speak to the issue. Councilwoman Price moved to approve the
resolution as presented. Councilman Aguilar seconded and the vote was unanimous.
The motion carried.
PRESENTATION TO THE CITY COUNCIL REGARDING WATER BY MARC
MAXWELL
City Manager Maxwell presented a power point regarding water issues. Cooper Lake is
about 8’ low and this is about as bad as we have seen it this early in the season. The
North Texas Municipal Water District and the City of Irving each own 36.9% of the
storage rights which is not the same as diversion. The City of Sulphur Springs along with
the cities of Commerce and Cooper are members of the Sulphur River Municipal Water
District. Sulphur Springs owns 12.4%, Commerce has about 11.1% and Cooper has 3%.
The City of Commerce has sold their water for the next several years, though not their
water rights. The City of Cooper has sold almost all of its water rights. We have 33,750
acre/feet for storage but only 18,128 acre/feet for diversion due to evaporation and
percolation. There have been many discussions about dredging the lake and projections
made to determine availability. Because Irving and the NTMWD using their legal right
of diversion the lake level went below 418 feet the months of October, November, and
December, 2012. If the City of Sulphur Springs had wanted to divert water at that time it
would have been below the silt barrier line. Now there is a silt barrier build-up between
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our water inlet tower and the main body of the lake. The encouraging news is that the U.
S. Seasonal Drought Outlook for June 20 – September 30, 2013 shows that drought
removal is likely. If we were to dredge to the original bottom of the lake it would allow
us to pump our conservation storage and sediment reserve barrier which is very
important. It would cost an estimated $5 - $6 million with our part being approximately
$619,000 to $804,000, but wording in the contract allows us to be a non-agreeing party
with no obligation to reimburse the agreeing parties. There have been some emails back
and forth about dredging but none lately. This presentation is to inform the City Council
of the situation. It would cost $125,000 a year to pump into Lake Sulphur Springs from
Cooper Lake and we couldn’t even keep up with the loss of evaporation. On average we
evaporate 7,000,000 gallons a day out of Lake Sulphur Springs and even more during the
summer months.
Councilwoman Price thanked City Manager Maxwell for keeping an eye on the water
issues. She also stated he had done a great job in keeping the City Council informed
which keeps them focused on what may lay ahead unlike what happens in other cities.
Councilman Aguilar asked about the last slide which contained a picture of the zebra
mussel. City Manager Maxwell said there had been sightings at Lake Lavon and
believes the zebra mussel will come since it only takes one infected boat to start it all.
The zebra mussels can take a 30” pipeline and take it to 6” in just a few short years.
They are very invasive and the lines would eventually have to be reamed. Hopefully, it
will not happen here.
PRESENTATION TO THE CITY COUNCIL REGARDING DISC GOLF BY
TODD McCOY
Todd McCoy is a local resident, an Algebra II teacher for the Sulphur Springs
Independent School District and a disc golf enthusiast. He introduced himself and passed
out materials such as a map of the proposed course, a costs analysis for various pieces of
equipment and the estimated total cost for the course. He explained the game of disc golf
and even brought a basket and disc. There are several courses in the metroplex and a few
in surrounding areas. Each hole will have two tee boxes, one for beginners and one for
intermediate players. Mr. McCoy has been soliciting sponsorship for each of the tees and
has been met with great enthusiasm. Twenty-nine (29) of the thirty-six (36) tees available
for sponsorship are pledged. The course will not interfere with the current activities
occurring day-to-day in Coleman Park but will actually enhance those areas that are
underutilized. Mr. Bell has stated he would provide 10 cubic yards of concrete at no cost
and any more than that would be greatly discounted to $90 per yard – delivery fee free.
There was a general discussion among the City Council and Mr. McCoy.
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DISCUSSION/ACTION ON HIRING ROGER BROOKS TO DEVELOP THE
BRAND FOR THE CITY OF SULPHUR SPRINGS
Roger Brooks made a presentation to the City Council on June 20th about the art of
branding. Councilman Johnson moved to hire Roger Brooks in the amount of $65,000 to
develop a brand for the City of Sulphur Springs in the new budget year. Mayor Pro Tem
Taylor seconded and the vote was unanimous.
The motion carried.
VISITORS AND PUBLIC FORUM
Wilfred Pobursky addressed the City Council about several items.
Keith Bland addressed the City Council about the west side of the wall of his business at
214 Main Street and the portion of his building that faces Tomlinson Street..
Mayor Sellers thanked everyone, the City Council, citizens and friends, for their support
during the loss of his mother. He wanted to publicly thank everyone for their thoughts
and prayers as they have sustained him these past two weeks.
ADJOURN
With all business complete the meeting was adjourned at 8:14 p.m.
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