Bastrop - Cedar Creek Edition | April 2025

Government

BY JACQUELYN BURRER & AMANDA CUTSHALL

Child care centers oered50%taxbreak Licensed child care facilities in the city of Bastrop can receive a 50% property tax exemption if they meet criteria set by city council during a March 11 meeting. A closer look Per the ordinance, the exemption would be based on the value of the facility’s property starting in the 2025 tax year, and does not include home-based and nonprot providers. O cials said the property owner must ensure that the rent reects the tax reduction, which can be passed through a monthly or an annual rent credit. Those interested should contact the Bastrop County Appraisal District by phone at 512-303-1930 or email at exemptions@bastropcad.org. Bastrop City Council approves 1st reading of microchipping ordinance Bastrop City Council unanimously approved the rst reading of an ordinance requiring all dogs and cats to be microchipped during its April 8 meeting. The proposed microchipping ordinance would update the city’s animal control code with the goal to reduce the number of unclaimed pets entering the city shelter. Some context Robert McBain, an o cial with Bastrop’s animal control and code enforcement department, said microchipping helps lower shelter costs and save more animals’ lives. “I returned [a] dog to a lady that was visiting her daughter ... [and she] didn’t even realize her dog had gotten out,” McBain said. “We were able to contact them, get the dog back to them in real time, saving the ... city $270 every time we pick up an animal and house it at the shelter.” McBain presented survey results regarding the ordinance, which had gathered 169 responses over two weeks:

2 judges sworn in to serve Bastrop Bastrop city o cials swore in two judges to serve the community during City Council meetings in March. Caroline McClimon will continue her appointment as the presiding judge, while newly instated Jay Caballero will assume his role supporting McClimon as associate judge. Both will serve two-year terms. The details McClimon will be paid $117,371 annually. Caballero will receive a at rate of $150 per event; $400 for each half-day of court; and $50 for each overnight warrant he processes, as outlined in their contracts.

Bastrop microchip rate

Microchip: 51% Collar with ID tag: 38% No identication: 7% GPS tracker: 4%

SOURCE: CITY OF BASTROP ANIMAL CONTROL AND CODE COMPLIANCE COMMUNITY IMPACT

Council approves 290- acre housing project At its April 8 meeting, Bastrop City Council approved development, utility, and wastewater agreements for the Ironwood project, clearing the way for the nearly 290-acre project to move forward under a unique agreement that guaran- tees eventual incorporation into the city. The Ironwood Development, located across the city’s unincorporated areas, will include single-family and multifamily housing, along with public parks and other community amenities. As part of the agreements, the developer, W Land Development Management LLC, will create a municipal utility district, Bastrop County MUD No. 5, to fund water, wastewater and drainage infrastructure. Zooming in Bastrop City Manager Sylvia Carrillo-Trevino said the development agreement is the “rst of its • 34% of respondents cited cost constraints as the reason for not having their animal microchipped • 51% of respondents said their pets are already microchipped “What we’re wanting to do is just close that gap from [51%] to 70-80%, something like that,” McBain said. McBain said it currently costs the city about $270 every time an animal is picked up and housed at the shelter. To help reduce that cost, the city is partnering with Save an Angel to o¥er microchipping services for $22 as opposed to the typical vet microchipping cost of $70-$100, McBain said. Stay tuned The ordinance returned to council for a second reading and nal approval on April 22, after press time.

Caroline McClimon was sworn in as presiding judge on March 11.

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kind” for Bastrop. “Once the MUD debt is completely paid o¥, all of that comes back into the city,” Carrillo-Trevino said. “The Colony is outside of the city’s jurisdic- tional limits ... and therefore while we may show up through shared use agreements ... we don’t collect any city taxes for that.” Carrillo-Trevino said the city’s portion of the MUD tax rate will be $0.13, and at total build-out, the agreement is projected to bring in approxi- mately $597,282 in revenue for the city—compared to zero, had the MUD remained outside city limits.

BASTROP CEDAR CREEK EDITION