CITY& COUNTY
News from Schertz, Cibolo, Garden Ridge & Comal County
Schertz City Council will meet April 12 and 26, and May 3 at 6 p.m. 1400 Schertz Parkway, Bldg. 4, Schertz. 201-619-1030. www.schertz.com 6:30 p.m. 200 S. Main St., Cibolo. 210-658-9900. www.cibolo.gov Universal City City Council will meet April 19 and May 4 at 6:30 p.m. 2150 Universal City Blvd., Universal City. 210-659-0333. www.universalcitytexas.com Garden Ridge City Council will meet May 5 at 6 p.m. 9400 Municipal Parkway, Garden Ridge. 210-651-6632. www.ci.garden-ridge.tx.us Live Oak City Council will meet April 12 and 26 at 7 p.m. 8001 Shin Oak Drive, Live Oak. 210-653-9140. www.liveoaktx.net Selma City Council will meet April 14 at 6:30 p.m. 9375 Corporate Drive, Selma. 210-651-6661. www.ci.selma.tx.us Cibolo City Council will meet April 12 and 26, and May 3 at MEETINGSWE COVER SCHERTZ On March 2, Schertz announced the approval of an ordinance to participate in the Texas Enterprise Zone Program. Under this ordinance, cities can nominate businesses to be eligible for state sales and use tax refunds. City o cials nominated Sysco as the rst company to participate. NUMBER TOKNOW On April 5, Comal County reported 11 new cases of COVID-19, bringing to total 30,700 since the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020. The county also reported zero hospitalizations and a total of 546 coronavirus-related deaths. Also, 64.16% of Comal County residents are vaccinated. 11 CITY HIGHLIGHTS SCHERTZ City Council on March 22 held a workshop discussing the Main Street vision and its challenges, including parking that does not abide by city ordinances. More discussion on Main Street will be brought back in future meetings. CIBOLO City Council on March 22 gave direction to sta regarding the comprehensive master plan. Council direction allows sta to perform Requests for Quali cations for committee applicants. Public engagement for the comprehensive master plan is estimated to begin in August. GARDEN RIDGE City Council on March 2 held a discussion to update the city logo. The new logo will be used on city documents and merchandise to recreate the Garden Ridge brand.
GreenValley Special UtilityDistrict increaseswater rates
RISINGWATER RATES From 2018 to 2022, Green Valley Special Utility District has raised rates to assist in project funding and infrastructure maintenance. The 2022 increase of 5.5% results in a charge of about $51.09 for 6,200 gallons of water per month.
BY JARRETT WHITENER
rate for water will be $31.41, which includes up to 2,000 gallons. Usage above 2,000 gallons will be an additional $4.33 per thousand gallons between 2,001 and 5,000 gal- lons, and $5.59 per thousand gallons between 5,001 and 10,000 gallons. An average single-family residence uses about 6,200 gallons of water per month, at a cost of $51.09 under the new rates, GVSUD reported. Also, GVSUD sewer customers within the Santa Clara sewershed, which runs along I-10 and Santa Clara Road, will see an increase in their sewer charges with the new monthly base rate of $23.18 and an additional cost of $5.98 per thousand gallons.
CIBOLO According to a March 22 release, the Green Valley Special Utility District board of directors approved a rate increase of 5.5% for water and sewer customers at the January meeting. Green Valley serves customers in Cibolo, Schertz and Garden Ridge among other small cities. The increased rates—driven by ris- ing operating and maintenance costs, expansion of water sources, sewer treatment and capital improvement projects— are slated to begin May 1 and will be re ected on water bills due June 10, GVSUD o cials said. Under the new rates, the base
+5% +5.5%
$5 0 $10 $15 $20 $25 $30
2018
2020
2022
SOURCE: GREEN VALLEY SPECIAL UTILITY DISTRICT COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
Schertz o cials approve $570K adjustment for land purchase
CityManagerMark Browne to retire after 3 yearswith Schertz
BY JARRETT WHITENER
BY JARRETT WHITENER
SCHERTZ City Council on March 8 approved an adjustment of $570,000 to the scal year 2021-22 budget to provide funding to buy a piece of property o of I-35 North, o cials said. The property, owned by the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority, could be used to accommodate growth needs for other city facilities, Public Works Director Suzanne Williams said. “We intend to use that to accommodate growth in undeveloped areas in North Schertz,” Williams said.
SCHERTZ During the March 22 City Council meeting, City Manager Mark Browne announced his retirement. Browne has served 17 years in municipal government, serving as Schertz city manager since January 2019. His last day will be Nov. 23. During Browne’s time in Schertz, he oversaw the construction and opening
Mark Browne
of Fire Station No. 3, the renovation of a new eet facil- ity, increases in sta wages and led the team through the COVID-19 pandemic, o cials said. Mayor Ralph Gutierrez expressed gratitude for Browne and his service. “His dedication and passion have been evident in everything he has done,” he said. “I wish him and his family the best of luck in their future endeavors.”
CIBOLO XING
35
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Lower COVID 19 counts prompt Comal County to shift toweekly reports
BY LAUREN CANTERBERRY
COMAL COUNTY On March 25, Comal County hospitals reported zero cases of COVID-19 among patients for the second day in a row. No patients with COVID-19 have been in a local intensive care unit or required the use of a ventilator since March 17. As area hospitalizations and case totals continue to decline, the county announced March 24 that the public health department would begin
cases reported by medical facili- ties, we feel a weekly report gives a more accurate snapshot of the COVID-19 activity in our county,” said Cheryl Fraser, public health director for Comal County, in a press release. “Should there be a new strain or outbreak that a ects our residents, we can always go back to a daily report for as long as it’s necessary.”
releasing weekly coronavirus-related reports on April 1. The weekly reports will include the number of new cases, number of deaths, total number of cases reported since the beginning of the pandemic, hospitalizations and the percentage of county residents who are vaccinated. “With the rise in home adminis- tered testing and lower number of
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NORTHEAST SAN ANTONIO METROCOM EDITION • APRIL 2022
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