Category: Meetings

Short and sweet this week. Some charter suggestions, Flock cameras again, and a new development down by Trace. Also some great workshops, and a short note about Jim Garber.

Let’s go!

Hours 0:00 – 1:19: Literally only three items!  Charter Review suggestions, those Flock cameras, and a new development down by Trace.

Bonus! 3 pm workshops: This is where all the action is!  Bikes, e-scooters, and how much work goes into keeping our river happy.

A short tribute: Jim Garber passed away this past Monday, and I want to say a few words.  We knew each other before I started blogging, and he was probably the first person to figure out who I was on here.  And then I turned around and gave him a hard time on the blog! On more than one occasion! 

We emailed about it, and I sheepishly thanked him for being a good sport. His response was, “No problem. Healthy discussions with all viewpoints are what moves us forward. Keep up the good work!!!”

That’s the kind of lovely, good-natured person he was.  He believed in honest discourse, which is a value I deeply share.  He believed in fighting hard for what you believe, but also doing so with a light, good-natured touch.  He was on P&Z for over a decade, and knows how P&Z works probably better than anyone in town. He’s been on probably on a dozen different short-term committees. He worked hard and shaped this city, but he did it while being quick to kid around and not take himself too seriously.

I’ll miss him for sure. May his memory be a blessing. 

Cape’s Dam is BACK, baby, and we’re going to unpack it all. Also a bunch of shorter items: the budget, the SMCISD stormwater waiver, council compensation, Redwood, and the privacy policy for the SMPD license plate scanners.

Here we go!

Hours 0:00 – 2:50:  Some small zoning projects, the budget policy statement, and a bunch of follow-ups:  the SMCISD stormwater waiver, council compensation, and the septic problems in Redwood and Rancho Vista.

Hours 2:50 – 3:56:  Nothing but Cape’s Dam, coming at you 24/7, baby!  Let’s dive deep. 

Bonus! 3 pm workshops:  Downtown improvements and license plate readers.  We’ve got a new privacy policy for the latter.

See you next time!

Lots going on this week! Flooding fears in Redwood/Rancho Vista, the SMCISD budget crisis, council compensation, and a massive presentation from SMPD. There is a LOT. Enjoy?

The meeting was super long, and the workshop was also a full three hours. So I’ll do my best to be zippy, so that I don’t wear out my welcome.

Hours 0:00 – 2:16: The flooding problems of Redwood/Rancho Vista, grant money plans, Summer Fun, and maybe some speed bumps in Trace?

Hours 2:16 – 4:28: In which SMCISD is pitted against the flooding problems in town.  And also council compensation gets hammered out.

Bonus! 3 pm workshops:  One short, on Evoke Wellness.  One extremely long, on what SMPD has been up to over the past four years.

This is a big week! Malachi Williams, that weird Data Center thing you’ve heard about, and Council outlines their hopes and dreams for the next year. Like, how about a Crime Prevention office that is outside of SMPD and the incarceration system? And lots more! It’s very exciting.

Let’s do this!

Hours 0:00 – 2:03:  Citizen comments on Malachi Williams, lots of details on the new Data Center proposal, and a little on Council compensation and travel budgets.

Hours 2:03 – 2:33: Council gets to outline the coming year’s priorities, and they’re dreaming big: A tenant’s bill of rights! A non-police office of crime prevention!  And so much more. 

Bonus! 3 pm Workshops:  Fixing the city utility assistance program, and the last little bit of Covid money.

That’s all I got! Enjoy.

Is the national news making you spiral into a dark place? Come read about City Council, where things are less grim and you can make a difference. This week we’re taking on civil liberties and police license plate scanners, and some housing on Post Road, and some appointments.

Here we go!

Hours 0:00 – 2:73:  Rezoning some land on Post Road,  SMPD license plate scanners, and just a few of the many, many appointments Council made.  

Bonus! 3 pm workshops:  There was a transportation equity cabinet over the past eight months.  What does that even mean?

Have a good week, and don’t let the bastards grind you down.

Morning, everyone! This week’s meeting was only 26 minutes long. We’ve got the Blanco Gardens Area Plan, bike lanes on Sessom Drive, and we look at whether or not we have enough water for the next 50 years. That last one is the most interesting, for sure. Dive in!

The whole meeting was only 24 minutes! But the workshops were great, so those are here, too.

Hours 0:00 – 0:24: There’s literally just one topic: the Blanco Gardens Area plan. So I stretched it out and went deep. You know how I can be.

Workshop 1:  Sessom and Academy got a make-over. Let’s check in to see how it’s doing.

Workshop 2:  Do we have enough water to last us 50 years?  Smart people are thinking hard about this question. I love this topic.

One last note: the round-ups and deportations have begun. Re-posting this list of organizations who can put your time and/or money to good use:

Local to San Marcos: 

Mano Amiga is our homegrown organization. They are accepting donations, and will be able to use volunteers in mid-December. (Or they’ll send you to volunteer with a partnering organization.)

Regional Austin-San Antonio: 

American Gateways: Their mission is “To champion the dignity and human rights of immigrants, refugees, and survivors of persecution, torture, conflict, and human trafficking through exceptional immigration legal services at no or low cost, education and advocacy.”

Catholic Charities of Central Texas: Has a specific immigration services wing, “Offering affordable immigration legal assistance from experienced attorneys and staff, with a focus on family reunification.”

Statewide:

RAICES: From their website: “WE defend the rights of immigrant, refugee, and asylum-seeking people and families, empower communities, and advocate for liberty and justice.”

Texas Civil Rights Project: Has a specific Beyond Borders program, “From the banks of the Río Grande to the plains of rural Texas, we envision a border state that respects the right to migrate and supports human dignity for all people, no exceptions.”

Texas Immigration Law Council: “We work across the political spectrum to bring together diverse voices to catalyze consensus on practical immigration solutions for Texas and our nation.”

….

Final note: All of these came recommended to me. If I’ve left something off, let me know and I’ll add it on!

You did it! You’re here in this new year. So is Council, and they’re talking this week about HSAB grant money, shooting ranges, demolitions, and their wishlist for the Charter Review Commission.

Here we go:

Hours 0:00 – 2:25:  HSAB money gets allocated,  the lease with Ruben Becerra is finalized, and we buy a TOTAL BULLET CONTAINMENT TRAP.

Hours 2:25 – 4:26: Demolishing some old barracks in Dunbar, and Council’s wishlist for the Charter Review Commission.

(I didn’t write up the 3 pm workshops this week. The San Marcos Chamber of Commerce gave a presentation about their strategic goals, and answered some questions. Feel free to watch it here.)

Last meeting of the year! New flood plain maps, giving out HSAB money, the old Dixie Cream Donuts building, and we unpack that mess in September with the housing vouchers waitlist. And Lorenzo wins the run-off election! Congrats to him.

The Council Run-off Election

Well, well, well! Lorenzo Gonzalez squeaked through!  

As of Saturday, he was ahead by TWELVE VOTES.  Then 40 more votes arrived in the mail this week. (They just have to be postmarked by the 14th.  And you know how local San Marcos mail gets re-routed up to Austin and takes twice as long as it should. Why is that?!) 

Those last 40 votes were counted on Friday. Roland would have needed to win them 26-14 in order to pull ahead. But in the end, Lorenzo prevailed, winning the election by 9 votes. Wowza. Congrats to Lorenzo!

Now it comes time to closely watch and see how he actually does up there on the dais!

Onto the meeting!

Hours 0:00 – 1:56: New flood plain maps, and a deep dive into the old Dixie Cream Donuts building, next to the railroad tracks.

Hours 1:56 – 3:47: Human Services recommends how we give out $550K in grant money, and council starts chopping.  Also, what do we want the Texas Legislature to do this session?

Bonus! 3 pm workshops:  What exactly happened in September, when so many people waited for hours, hoping to get housing vouchers from the Housing Authority, and no one did?

Note: when this meeting occurred, those last 40 votes were still arriving in the mail. There was a real possibility that the council seat was still open. This matters because Roland Saucedo was actually at the meeting in person, advocating for one of the HSAB applications. Hijinks ensued.

And that’s a wrap for 2024! See you all next year!

Hoo-boy. We’ve had a big election and a little council meeting.  Let’s dig in.

The Little Meeting: It was only 50 minutes long.

Hours 0:00 – 0:50: Parking bans by the river, the new HEB, and more.

Bonus! 3 pm workshops: We’ve got $250K of Covid money left, and time is running out.

The Big Election:

Nationally: I’ve got the same grim despair as you do.  There are a lot of people whose lives will be harder, sicker, poorer, and more abused because of this shit-for-brains president-elect. 

I feel hopeless, but not helpless.  American voters have revealed what they are, but there’s still work to be done. So as shitty as it is out there, we can compartmentalize and work on San Marcos. 

Onto the local scene: 

• Mayor: As you’ve probably heard, Jane Hughson won re-election.  This will be her 4th term – she’s won in 2018, 2020, 2022, and now in 2024.  This means she’s term-limited, and the mayor will be an open seat in 2026.
  
• Place 6: Amanda Rodriguez won Place 6!  I’m so glad.  We’re starting to get a progressive bloc up there that can actually win votes.

• Place 5: Lorenzo Gonzalez and Roland Saucedo are headed to a run-off. Here’s how it shook out: 

That is extremely close. All you can conclude is:
– Lorenzo did a little better than the rest, and Atom did a little worse.
– Roland got a little lucky. and Griffin got a little unlucky.

The run-off: Saturday, December 14th.

I’m backing Lorenzo Gonzalez in the run-off election! His main message has been to be available and responsive to people, redirect more money towards mental health, and focus on housing.

Listen: After I posted my candidate write-up, people came out of the woodwork to warn me that Roland Saucedo is super problematic.  The formal documentation is limited – mostly this and this – but sufficiently many people are telling me a consistent story about his disregard for others. It’s troubling.

If you ever wanted your vote to count extra, a local runoff election is your sweet spot. Barely anyone will show up, and it can easily be decided by 50 votes. Or 15 votes. Or even 5!