From the Office of CITY OF MASON – JOHN PALACIO

The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) and the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) have been closely working together with numerous state health agencies to provide the public with educational materials on how to stay safe with regard to COVID-19.  

At this time, there is no vaccine to prevent COVID-19, however, there are precautionary measure that will help to minimize or even avoid the contraction of the coronavirus:

·       Frequently wash hands with soap for a duration of at least 20 seconds;

·       Cover mouth with a clean tissue or inside of elbow when coughing or sneezing;

·       Avoid close contact with people who are sick;

·       Stay home if flu-like symptoms are present, as well as, drink plenty of fluids;

·       Visit local clinic as necessary.

For more information about the prevention and treatment programs, please visit the Center of Disease Control website – www.cdc.gov – or the Texas Department of State Health Services website – www.dshs.texas.gov/coronavirus . 

It is critical that we AVOID panic!  Please continue to check this website for local updates, should there be a need for Mason County and City of Mason to take further action. 

     The new landfill is certainly beginning to take shape, and with the digging complete for the first cell this past week the liner will be laid starting this week and the other parts of the overall project will begin to take shape.  It is anticipated that the entire landfill project will be completed by sometime in October and after inspection by TCEQ we will be ready to start accepting trash there in November.  As with any construction there may be some delays, but we are already ahead of schedule so it should be ready on time.  The Water Treatment project to reduce the radionuclides in our water is all approved and the contract awarded by the City, and now we are awaiting the final approval from the Texas Water Development Board so that we can move ahead on that project as well.  With these two major projects underway, the City Commission is turning our attention to future planning and projects that will continue the progress and improvements that have been done to upgrade our town and our infrastructure.  We are currently focusing on the final draft of the City Budget for the coming year and I expect that we will have that job completed by mid-August, and we are also advertising for engineering services to design and construct a replacement for the outdated waste water lift station located on Smith Street. 

     The City is also working with a grant administration firm to apply for two grants this fall from the Texas Department of Agriculture.  These type of grants were not as readily available for the past few years, but there is now a renewed program and a few of the types of grants offered specifically would benefit our City as we look forward to the future.  One is a planning grant that would provide long-range planning for our community as we try to manage the growth and meet the needs of our growing region.  We have been discussing goals and long term projects for many years, but this grant would allow us to prioritize and formalize our planning process, it would enhance our land use planning for the City, and it would provide significantly improved mapping and documentation to meet future needs. 

     The second grant that the City is expecting to apply for is a Downtown Revitalization Grant, through the Texas Community Development Block Grant program.  This grant, if we are funded, would provide for several areas of improvement in the area directly around the Square and for a part of the area beyond the Square.  The City is looking to include some new valves on the major water distribution lines in this area to avoid having to disrupt water supply in the case of a leak or other repair to the system, and we are also looking to improve the storm water drainage structures and the inlets as well as the outlet into Gamel’s Branch on the south side of the square.  There is provision for some sidewalk improvements, however knowing the costs and limitations of dealing with all of the sidewalks around the square, we understand that we will have to be selective and careful in determining which sections might be improved or extended, and which will need to be left for another project or grant.  There are a few other areas such as lighting and elimination of barriers for handicap accessibility that are being discussed, but no firm plans have been made at this time.  This is the reason that I am writing about this planning today, we are just in the planning stage for this project and we need any suggestions, ideas or other input that you would like to provide as we try to become more specific in our application.  It is not necessary to be fully detailed at this stage, but since this project would impact the very center of our town and many residents as well as businesses might be affected, it is important that you provide us with your thoughts about improving our downtown area now so that they can be worked into the project, or avoided if certain portions would create problems.  You can share your thoughts with any City elected official and they will let the City staff know, or you can email me at brent.hinckley@cityofmason.us and I will be sure and pass your thoughts on.  This is not the final design stage, but it is important that we get a good idea of public interests at this preliminary stage so that we can be sure that the final designs reflect what we as a community want to be improved.