The Bastrop Advertiser and County News (Bastrop, Tex.), No. 65, Ed. 1 Thursday, October 16, 1980 Page: 1 of 18
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Box 4-5Lt-36
Dallas, Texas 75235
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And Cnti irty News
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TEXAS’ OLDEST WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
THURSDAY EDITION
Established March 1,1853
Thursday, October 16, 1980
Number 65
Wilma Wiley
may try again
Precinct One County Com-
missioner Wilma Wiley said
Tuesday she’s considering
tying to hold on to her office
by a write-in vote at the
Nov. 4 election.
Bryson French Sr. defea
ted Mrs. Wiley and two
other candidates at last
May's Democratic Primary.
Mrs. Wiley said she ex
pects to decide by next
week whether to wage a
write-in campaign for the
Precinct One office which
covers Bastrop and the
I,ake Bastrop area.
“Friends have asked me
to do a write in campaign,"
she said. "The vote was so
ck)se and I had the misfor
tune of being in the hospital
and not able to answer all
the misinformation," she
said.
French is the Democratic
candidate and Jim H. Daniel
the Republican candidate on
the Nov. 4 ballot.
Vacancy filled
David Lock named councilman
Voting unanimously, the
Bastrop City Council named
pharmacist David Lock to fill
the council seat left vacant
by the resignation of James
DeBaun earlier this month.
"I told the mayor I'll try
it. I’ll do my best to try and
help” the council with pro-
blems facing the city, Lock
said Tuesday.
He will be sworn in before
next Monday’s council ses-
sion. said Mayor J. P. Sharp.
"I’m looking forward to it,
it will be a challenge," Lock
added.
David Lock
Lock. 38, has served on
the city's Planning and Zon
ing Commission since the
body was created in 1970.
Presently he is Chairman of
the board which must hear
requests for rezoning in the
city. Under his chairmanship
the zoning board recom-
mended zoning for parts of
the city south of Texas
Highway 71 annexed last
year.
The board also drafted
and recommended the city’s
Mobile Home Park Ordin
ance last year.
Hiring a new city manag
er tops Lock’s list of impor
tant jobs facing the council,
City finances are also high
on “a long list of crucial
problems” awaiting solution,
he said.
A Bastrop native, Lock
graduated from Bastrop
High School before going to
the University of Texas at
Austin where he took a
pharmacy degree.
After graduation, he wor
ked in San Antonio before
starting at Lock's Drugs on
Main Street in February,
1970. Lock also raises cattle
with relatives at Hill’s Pra-
rie. His father was elected to
the Bastrop Council in 1976
and reelected in 1978 short-
ly before his death.
DeBaun announced his in
tention to resign from the
council unexpectedly on Sep
tember 29. He was elected
to his second council term in
April. Some 18 months re
main in the term.
“I don’t know why he
resigned,” said Lock.
DeBaun has said only that
to remain on the council
African transplants
Thanks to the SmithviQe Lions Chib, a caravan of children got a close-up look at wild
game animals from three continents roaming free this week - - and they got back in time
for lunch. See the story and more pictures on page 3. Staff Photos by Davis McAuley.
would be in "conflict with
my convictions of what is
and is not best for the total
community."
1,000
more
voters
At least 1,000 potential
voters have added their
names to voter registration
lists in Bastrop County since
the party primaries in May,
figures from County Tax
Assessor-Collector Jill Turn-
er indicate.
Voters eligible to cast bal-
lots in national state and
local contests November 4
number 13,627, Turner said
Monday.
Some 12,500 were eligible
to vote on May 3.
And Wednesday (October
15) is the day set to begin
casting absentee ballots for
the General Election.
Persons who expect to be
out of town on election day
or those over 65 may vote
absentee during office hours
in the clerk's office in the
Bastrop County Courthouse
until the 31st, said County
Clerk Lucille Fraim.
Applications to cast ballots
by mail through October 31
are also available, she re-
ported.
But the clerk's office must
receive a written application
for the ballot, she said. Ap-
plication forms are available
in the County Clerk’s office.
Sewer problems cited as possible health hazard
Bv MARK HAMPTON At a public meeting to apply for federal funds from vice by “consensus in 1978 show you houses that have present to work with their explained the problem, “I’ve thrilled about this ]
Bv MARK HAMPTON
Sewer problems that ere
ate health hazards not storm
water was on the minds of
citizens who turned out Tue
sday night for a public hear
ing on getting a possible
HUD (Federal Housing K.
Urban Development) grant
for Smithville.
At a public meeting to
discuss Smithville's applica
lion for funds to update the
city's drainage system a lar
ge crowd turned out to
bring up sewer problems,
they said many Smithville
citizens suffer.
The public hearing Tues
day night was a requirment
for the city, to be able to
apply for federal funds from
HUD.
Paul S. Boedeker, consul
ting engineer for the pro
ject, opened the meeting
discussing HUD require-
ments and the proposed pro-
ject, the drainage system.
Boedeker said drainage was
chosen as the needed ser
vice by “consensus in 1978
at a public meeting."
From the audience. Cha
rles Harris brought up the
problem of sewage, “We
have a list of problems that
are a hazard to the health.
We’re talking about 10 bio
cks with no sewer system."
Dwight Harris, also from
the audience, said, “I can
show you houses that have
no septic tanks and raw
sewage Is dumped in the
yard."
Boedeker assured the
audience that sewer service
could be included into the
application in time to make
the November 17 deadline.
Boedeker encouraged those
present to work with their
mayor to assemble material
to support their need.
In previous years two
applications by Smithville
have been turned down by
HUD. When asked about
this year's chances Boedek-
er replied that the chances
are, "marginal."
Mayor Lawerence Skelley
explained the problem, 'Tve
been told that about 120 to
130 cities will be applying
and only 11 cities will be
approved.” Skelley continu
ed, "Those aren’t good odds,
but I’m going to be disap-
pointed if we don't get it."
About the citizen partici-
pation Skelley said, “I was
thrilled about this public
meeting, this is the best we
have ever had. We had
excellent participation from
the public. I’m proud that
they showed up.”
A second public meeting
will be held October 28, in
the city council chambers at
7 p.m. to finalize the Smith-
ville application.
Attorney Alice Quinn resigns after Council support dwindles
Alice Quinn Odiorne, Has
trop’s City Attorney for the
past two months, resigned
the post effective immediate
ly at Monday’s regular City
Council meeting.
In a letter she read and
delivered to the council, she
said she was acting as a
result of "sentiments" ex
pressed by a "majority of
the council" during an ex
ecutive meeting September
3(1.
Since the move leaves the
city without legal counsel,
she offered to remain on the
job until a successor Is nam-
or until November 30 if
council agreed unani
mously.
Council member
ed
the
Barbra
Turner abstained from vot
ing on a motion by Council
man John Sanders to retain
the city attorney until a
successor was named. Coun
cilman 0. E. Glenn was
absent.
hollowing the vote, Alice
Odiorne said her resignation
would be effective immedi
can’t stay, tthe
vote) needed to be unani
mous," she said.
Sanders worried out loud
about the council meeting
"without a legal represents
live."
If the council has legal
questions "we can ask Alice
or anyone we want” for
advice, said Mayor J.I’.
Sharp. “We don’t have to
Council delays rate hike
By DAVIS McAULEY
Bastrop water, sewer and
garbage customers got a
temporary reprieve Monday
from higher rates approved
by the city council last mon
th.
Council member Barbra
Turner proposed to delay
putting the rates into effect
until the water department
has replaced more of the
city's "dead" water meters
which do not record water
usage.
The vote was unanimous.
“We could wait till we're
further along (replacing me
ters) before [Hitting in the
new rates," said Mayor J. B.
Sharp.
The mayor reported that
now there are two men
doing nothing but changing
out meters" which consis
tently show only minimum
water consumption.
Higher rates foere to have
appeared first on November
utility bills. No one indicated
when the new rates could
be imposed.
But the council heard Joel
Wilkinson, consulting engin
eer, report that the city lost
$50,000 in fiscal year 1979
on its sewer operation.
Higher water rates are
also needed, he said. Wilkin
son calculated it costs the
city 54.7 cents to produce
and deliver 1,000 gallons of
water inside the city and
88.9 cents for the rurAl
water system.
OUTSIDE CITY
Almost one third ol the
city's water customers live
outside the city, he estima
ted.
Wilkinson suggested as
well a number of changes in
proposed water and sewer
charges. He suggested char
ging 60 cents per 1,000
gallons to city customers
and $1 for out-of-citv users.
Because of the amount of
water which can How unde
tected through larger water
meters, Wilkinson recom
mended sharply higher min
imum charges for meters
larger than Vi-inch. The min
imum charge for 3,000 gal
Ions delivered through a two
inch meter outside the city
should be $28, he said.
3 MONTH AVERAGE
Wilkinson also recommen-
ded basing sewer charges
on a three month average of
water consumed during the
winter months. Keep the
present $4.75 minimum
sewer fee. he urged.
The engineer praised the
city's "aggressive" action to
replace water meters which
don't work, but warned it
could easily cost $200,000 to
clean up the “dirty" water
which has plagued the city
since List summer.
The problem, he said, is
the water's iron content and
an inadequate filtering sys-
tem. He recommended an
"aeration basin" to oxydize a
great deal of the iron before
passing the water through a
system of filters.
In addition, the present
filters may be clogged and
full of “mud" from Lick of
Maintenance, he suggested.
worry about everything be-
ing legal," he added.
The letter of resignation
also set out to clarify “two
points" about which the at
torney apparently felt under
fire.
POPULARITY CONTEST?
“I did not feel I was hired
to be popular or passive and
I realize I have made legal
decisions which are neither.
I could not and cannot make
my decisions based on any
other criterion than what I
saw as the best legal inter
est of the City, again, re
gardless of who that affect
ed as individuals," she
wrote.
She did not say what
decisions might have been
unpopulir or too active.
She also defended herself
against implications of con
flict of interest as city attor-
ney in dealing with a com
puter contract between the
city and her husband, attor-
ney-accountant James T.
Odiorne.
She was not the city's
attorney when the council
voted to approve the com
puter contract, but Mayor
Sharp "wanted the new City
Attorney to approve it" aft
er she was hired, she wrote.
CHECKED OUT
could do so without giving
rise to charges of conflict of
interest on my part. I took
the contract to another at
torney who had no interest
in the computer business or
in this law firm to ask for
his opinion on the contract.
He read the contract and
gave me his opinion. I in
formed the Mayor of the
same and he then signed the
contract. A statement which
recites the above chain of
events as occurring in a
different way is a misrepre
sentation," said the letter.
She also said it is “unfor
tunate in terms of possible
bad publicity for the Coun-
cil" that her resignation
"would appear to some to
have come as a result of a
backlash on the part of the
Council for my husband’s
recent reported remarks to
them.”
Last month James Odi-
orne publicly scolded the
council for conducting the
city's business in ways they
would not tolerate in any
private business and for not
heeding the advice of the
professionals hired by the
city.
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McAuley, Davis. The Bastrop Advertiser and County News (Bastrop, Tex.), No. 65, Ed. 1 Thursday, October 16, 1980, newspaper, October 16, 1980; Bastrop, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth738634/m1/1/: accessed June 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Bastrop Public Library.