Tiger boys golf finishes at state tourney
Congressional, state candidates ready for election
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News-Dispatch Volume XXXVIII No. 34
Serving Western Hays County, Texas since 1982
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75¢ Thursday, May 31, 2018
Water district recommends phasing EP permit BY EXSAR ARGUELLO
Phasing in how much water a Houston-based firm could obtain from the Trinity Aquifer was the recommendation handed down by local water entity officials. The Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer Conservation District’s (BSEACD) general manager and staff recommended a plan for
“We felt like the large amount of groundwater requested could not be granted just as a single phase due to the high probability to unreasonable impact within a two-mile radius of pumping.”
WATER PUMPING ALLOWANCE BY PHASE Phase I would allow for .5 million gallons a day Phase II would allow for 1 million gallons a day Phase III would allow for 1.5 million gallon a day Phase IV would allow for 2.5 million gallons a day
–Kirk Holland, BSEACD General Manager
Electro Purification’s (EP) pumping permit, which originally called for 2.5 million gallons per day of water to be pumped from the Trinity Aquifer.
The report, which is a mix of scientific data evaluation and proposed recommendations, calls for phased permitting, compliance monitoring
plans, impact avoidance plans and a mitigation plan. BSEACD’s report calls
EP PUMPING PERMIT, 2
Electro Purification (EP) will be allowed to pump .5 million gallons a day until the BSEACD can determine if pumping that amount has any adverse effects on the aquifer. If unreasonable adverse effects are not observed, EP can re-apply to the district to move on to the next phase.
Burns takes JP4 seat in a landslide
Missing man found dead in Dripping Springs
BY MOSES LEOS III
BY MOSES LEOS III Authorities have identified a body found in a wooded area in Dripping Springs May 14 as that of a man who went missing earlier in the month. ALCARAZ Domingo Alcaraz, 45, of Spring, was discovered in a heavily wooded area in the 3400 block of McGregor Lane in Dripping Springs. According to a Hays County Sheriff’s Office press release, authorities were dispatched at approximate 2 p.m. May 14 in reference to a badly decomposed body. A subsequent autopsy identified the deceased as Alcaraz, who was reported as a missing person May 8. According to officials, Alcaraz was visiting the area when he fell and sustained injuries to his forehead and tongue. Alcaraz was last seen May 5 in the 6800 block of Fitzhugh Road. A cause of death has not yet been determined and an investigation is ongoing. However, authorities do not suspect foul play. Anyone who may have information regarding the case is asked to contact Detective Mike Andrews or the Criminal Investigations Division at 512.393.7814 or 512-393-7787.
PHOTO BY EXSAR ARGUELLO.
Remembering the price of freedom Members of the Lehman High JROTC presented the colors and raised the flags at a Memorial Day service at the Wimeberley Veterans Memorial. Above, a veteran pays his respects for fallen service members. The ceremony was one of a handful of events held in honor of fallen Hays County servicemen and women, as well as those across the country who made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom.
US 290 intersection upgrade receives federal dollars BY MOSES LEOS III
Just over $1 million in federal funds is projected to help Hays County front the cost of proposed improvements at the U.S. 290 and Trautwein Road intersection in Dripping Springs. Those monies were allocated May 7 by the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization’s (CAMPO) Transportation Policy Board, which included the intersection in a list of area projects recommended for funding. Originally, Hays County had planned to finance improvements at U.S. 290 and Trautwein Road through Proposition 2 of its $250 million bond package, which was approved by voters in November 2016. Mark Jones, Hays County Pct. 2 Commissioner and a member of the CAMPO TPB, said the county could be able to use federal dollars to pay for the majority of the $1.5 million intersection improvement project. Jones said the current intersection is “under designed” and is
Pct. 2 Commissioner Mark Jones said the current intersection (US 290 and Trautwein Road) is “under designed” and is not able to handle the amount of traffic that goes through the area.
not able to handle the amount of traffic that goes through the area. The county plans to conduct a study on the intersection, which will measure traffic counts and other factors, before recommending improvements. “Whatever they recommend when they do the study, then we’ll see what the best option is to make it more efficient and safer,” Jones said. “It could be more turn lanes, or wider shoulders.” Jones said it could also allow the county to avoid selling the bonds entirely, or utilize those bond dollars toward another county road project. However, Hays County could only utilize dollars from U.S. 290 and Trautwein Road on another project included in the 2016 bond. While the county wouldn’t have to go back to voters, Jones
said officials plan to discuss any use of cost savings from the U.S. 290 project with its bond counsel before moving forward. “They’ll be giving guidance on when we can sell and the best time to do that,” Jones said. County officials are also keeping an eye on two Travis County projects, which also were approved for federal dollars, that could have an impact on area residents. One project includes the widening of FM 1826 from the Travis County line to U.S. 290 west near Oak Hill. That project calls for widening the road to a four-lane, divided arterial with bike lane and pedestrian facilities. CAMPO approved $4.32 million in federal monies for the project, which has a proposed price tag of $49.2 million.
Officials are also looking at Travis County’s proposed improvements of FM 1626 from Brodie Lane to Manchaca Road. Those improvements, which have a projected cost of $16.8 million, would turn the current two-lane road into five lanes with a continuous turn lane. Those improvements would mirror Hays County’s improvements to FM 1626, which stretch from FM 967 to Brodie Lane. CAMPO allocated roughly $11.2 million for the FM 1626 north improvements. Jones said Travis County is also eyeing possibly improving FM 1626 from Manchaca Road to Interstate 35, which would create a loop through Hays County. Jones said Hays County residents use FM 1626 and FM 1826 “a lot more than Travis County does.”
While it took two tries, Dripping Springs area residents May 22 elected a new Pct. 4 Justice of the Peace into office for the first time in over a decade. John BURNS Burns, a Navy veteran and practicing attorney, claimed a landslide victory over attorney Robert Avera in a runoff for the JP4 seat by capturing more than 60 percent of the vote. Results from the May 22 runoff were officially canvassed at Tuesday’s Commissioners Court meeting.
NEW JP4, 2
Partisan boundaries cause of concern as election looms BY EXSAR ARGUELLO Democrats seeking office this November are looking to draw the line on how Texas shapes its electoral boundaries. Gerrymandering, the practice of drawing electoral boundaries that favor a particular audience of voters, has made its way to the United States Supreme Court. In January, the United States Supreme Court dismissed a case by Texas Democrats and other plaintiffs in their fight against gerrymandering in the state; those district lines were set in 2011. Every 10 years, when the new population census is released, the Texas Legislature redraws district lines for both state representative and for U.S. Congress, with district population depending on growth. Repubilcans currently hold a 95-to-55 seat advantage in the Texas House of Representatives. Julie Oliver, the Democratic candidate for U.S. Congressional District 25, said there is a constant battle for Democrats to win
GERRYMANDERING, 6