CITY CORNER by Mayor Brent Hinckley

     As I am writing this on Monday morning the rains continue to come down and the summer weather has definitely fled!  With the ground saturated from the rains of the past few weeks, every time that we get just a little more rain brings a threat of rising creeks and rivers, and if you have to travel about the County I hope that you are being careful and not taking any risks with flooding waters.  We anticipate that we will not have any worries about our water levels in the wells once most of this rain has percolated down into the aquifer, at least for a good while.  The rains have been a real blessing for our town, and as our crews begin to prepare for all of the holiday lighting around the Square and in Heritage Park, we know that we are moving closer to one of the best times of year to remember and celebrate our many blessings.  For the next several weeks the electric department and some of the other City employees will be spending a part of every week preparing for the many special activities and events of this busy season.  If you have a work order for something that needs doing around town, please be patient as we try to get to all of the many to-do lists with the limited employees we have. 

     The City Commission had its regular monthly meeting on Monday evening.  Although there were a number of items on the agenda that are repeats or issues that come up every year, there were a couple of issues that are of importance as we continue to work for the best of our community.  One of those was to select an engineering firm to begin work on constructing our new landfill.  We are awaiting the last steps for completing the permitting process and hope that will be done in the next few months, but we are anxious to start making plans and developing a schedule for constructing the first areas for accepting trash.  Now we will be discussing the project directly with them and working out the contract to move forward so that we can be prepared to meet the future needs as soon as possible.  There are some steps that we can take almost immediately even before the final permit is issued, and I am hoping that we can begin some of these construction projects shortly after the first of the year so that we are making progress.

      Another change that has arrived is that our long standing City Attorney, David Young has presented his letter of retirement after representing the City for the past 39 years.  In the past thirteen years that I have been Mayor, I can honestly say that I could not have functioned in a productive capacity on many levels without his advice and counsel.  As we each age it is important that we make choices to move away from some of the many jobs we have, and David will continue to serve his clients with specific real estate and personal issues but has chosen to step aside from the municipal issues.  The City has been richly blessed to have David serve our needs, and we can only say a tremendous “Thank You” for all that he has done for our community.  The City Commission is working out the details for another capable legal firm with a strong background in municipal law to work with us to provide continuing legal guidance.  Seldom will you find a professional who has continuously worked with a single client for nearly four decades, and we all have benefited from David’s commitment and help for these many years.

     There have been a few other changes that the Commission is working on, and I will share them in the next week or two through this column.  As fall comes to town there is always much for each of us to do.  At the City we are busy with a wide variety of tasks as we close this fiscal year and look at the coming months and the many projects that will need attention.  Even with all of the challenges we face, it is a real blessing to live and work in this small rural town in the heart of the Hill Country.  Last weekend I spent several days in the Metroplex at a conference, and returning to Mason just reminded me again of the blessings that we have.  Mason is a great hometown and I hope that as we work at the many jobs we each have we do not forget to be thankful for all that we have, the community that supports us and the love of friends and family in this blessed place.