On Tuesday, May 7, the City Council approved City Administrator Julie Arrington to enter into contracts for the purpose of a Founder’s Day celebration for Whitesboro.
Arrington said she has met with an event planner to help coordinate the celebration, an event meant to follow a similar style of celebration as Whitesboro’s sesquicentennial held last year. Aldermen John Moore and Carla Woolsey opposed during the vote; all other council members were in favor and the authorization was approved.
Arrington said it will be a great time for the community to come together in celebration of when the town was founded. She mentioned a line-up of activities for the day of the event, including the burial of the city’s time capsule, a DJ on the Main Stage, free stagecoach rides, staged gunfight shows, a roaming musician and historic gun showcase from Past & Blast.
Live entertainment will include bluegrass band Riley Gilbreath and headliner The Tejas Brothers. Arrington also said this celebration is aimed to drive tourism to town and be a celebration that welcomes all.
Also at this council meeting, after a public hearing and discussion, a request for a re-zone classification change from industrial to residential was approved. This will allow for the construction of residential homes at a lot generally located on Kelly Street between Church and S. Union Streets. This is for improvements only.
After a second public hearing and discussion, a request for a re-plat classification change was approved. This is also allowing for the construction of residential homes located at that same area and would also be for improvements only. A third and final public hearing was held during the City Council meeting. After a discussion, the council approved the request for a classification change from R-2 to R-4 at a property located at Whitesboro Town Company Add, block B lot 25 and 26 with .1722 acres located at 313 Church Street. This is to allow for the correct street frontage per the zoning ordinance.
Moving forward, Woolsey motioned to table several items on the agenda with long-term implications. She (and other members of the council) felt these should fall to the newly appointed City Council members. Next, after much discussion, the City Council approved the new budget amendment with Alderman Moore in opposition. Arrington discussed with the council the items and discrepancies in the budget amendment that were found upon her review. Arrington informed all in attendance that specific numbers discussed during the meeting concerning the budget amendment, including changes made, are all available to the public on the city’s website.
Regarding current, ongoing city projects, the city is moving forward with the water tower project (the project is currently in the hands of the engineer). As for the Texoma Street Project, the construction start date can be anywhere between June 1 and July 1 of this year. There were no expenditures exceeding the City Administrator’s authority.