Athens-Henderson County Now

Hearing Set on Petition for Fresh Water Supply District in Henderson County

Henderson County Commissioners’ Court has set a public hearing for 9:45 a.m. July 15 on a petition to create a Fresh Water Supply District in Pct. 4 off FM 1615.

Commissioners took the action during their regular meeting Tuesday morning. According to state law, the court was required to set the public hearing.

A Fresh Water Supply District is a political subdivision of the state — a government entity — meaning it has the power to levy and collect a tax, hold bond elections, build infrastructure and is run by an elected board.

The proposed water district would be the Wilson Ranch Fresh Water Supply District No. 1. The proposed district is about 1,090 acres completely inside Henderson County, with no part in the City of Athens extraterritorial jurisdiction, according to the petition. The proposed district is made up of four tracts of land. Continue reading “Hearing Set on Petition for Fresh Water Supply District in Henderson County”

Athens Man Arrested in Connection With Collins Murder

Athens Police Department press release

The Athens Police Department today announced the arrest of one person related to the murder of Cedrick Collins Sunday, June 8.

On Tuesday, June 17, Raheem Mark Miller, 18, of Athens, was arrested on a Capital Murder warrant and booked into the Henderson County Justice Center. Bond on Miller has been set at $2 million.

Collins, 23, of Malakoff, was found lying beside his vehicle in the 700 Block of Robbins Road on June 8 with what appeared to be a gunshot wound. Collins was transported to the local
hospital and died a short time later.

Based on information developed during the investigation, Collins was shot during the course of being robbed. Detective Adam Parkins obtained an arrest warrant for Miller for the offense of
Capital Murder.

Athens police detectives, with the assistance of the Henderson County District Attorney’s Office and the Texas Rangers, continue to investigate this crime. Additional arrests in the
case are expected.

Anyone with information relating to this crime is encouraged to contact Detective Parkins at 903-675-5454. Tips can also be reported to the Henderson County Crime Stoppers by calling 800-545-8477, or online at www.hccstips.com.

Don’t Miss Out on Juneteenth Parade, Festival

By James Robertson/Special to HCN

On January 1, 1863 President Abraham Lincoln delievered a speech known as the Emancipation Proclamation. In this proclamation President Lincoln declared “that all persons held as slaves, are, and henceforward shall be free.” The proclamation had little impact on Texans because of the presence of minimal Union troops within the state to enforce the new Executive Order.

On June 19, 1865, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was delivered, Union forces, led by Major General Gordon Granger landed at Galveston with news of wars end and that the enslaved were free. As General Lee surrendered Texas slave masters lost influence and Union soldiers and slaves overcame the resistance against the proclamation. Several stories try and account for the two year delay but whether or not any of them hold truth the point is that African Americans were no longer bound by slavery.

Today the ancestors of these slaves celebrate June 19th as the end of slavery in Texas and across the nation and you can see why. Although the proclamation was delievered two years earlier, the slaves in Texas toiled for another two years and thus slavery had not ended in 1863 but in 1865. Continue reading “Don’t Miss Out on Juneteenth Parade, Festival”

New Negotiations for City and AMWA

There’s a small piece of news that could end up meaning big results in the controversy between the City of Athens and the Athens Municipal Water Authority (AMWA).

After coming out of executive session last night, the Athens City Council authorized two council members to meet with two members of the AMWA board to start working on a solution.

The council did not name specific council members in case there had to be changes for schedule reasons.

In December 2013, AMWA filed a lawsuit against the city alleging the City is in breach of contract over who should pay for the operation and maintenance of Lake Athens, the dam, and the water treatment and transportation facilities. That lawsuit is still in the courts.

The controversy escalated until the May election became a referendum on the subject with the existence of AMWA on the line. In that election, AMWA not only won the right to continue, but also two former AMWA board members were elected to the City Council.

The details regarding the meetings between AMWA and the City have not been made public.

Athens ISD Sets Public Hearing on Tax Rate

By Michael V. Hannigan

It is time for many local entities to start looking at their budgets for next year and that includes Athens ISD.

The Athens ISD School Board will be holding a public meeting 6 p.m. Monday, June 23, at the administration building to discuss the proposed budget and property tax rate for next year.

The proposed tax rate is $1.196470, which is one penny higher than last year.

Here are 5 things you should know about the tax rate.

1. Breakdown: The Athens ISD tax rate is broken down into two funds: Maintenance and Operations (M&O) and Interest and Sinking (I&S). Basically the I&S fund is for the school district’s debt while the M&O is for operations. Under the proposal, the M&O is 1.037380 per $100 valuation and the I&S is .159090 per $100 valuation.

2. History: Prior to this year’s proposed penny increase, the AISD tax rate has been the same for five consecutive years.

3. Increase: The penny increase in the tax rate comes in the I&S fund and will be used for the district’s debt. According to AISD Superintendent Blake Stiles, “The primary reason for the need to raise the I&S rate by one penny is because property values have not risen at the rate expected.”

4. Shortfall: The M&O rate will stay the same, however according to to the AISD documentation that will not be enough to “maintain the same level of maintenance and operations” as last year. Stiles said, “That tax rate cannot be changed without a tax ratification election, which we have no intention of conducting at this time.”

5. Challenge: How does Athens ISD get by with effectively less spending power than it had last year?

Stiles answered: “We have been working diligently to squeeze all the value we can from our operation funds. Most districts, including ours, spend around 75 percent of that portion of the budget on salaries. That means that by the time we purchase items like school buses and fuel there is very little left for discretionary spending. Facility upgrades and routine maintenance can also be a challenge when you use M&O funds to cover the costs. Luckily for us, the AISD Board of Trustees have been responsible with the taxpayers’ money and we have a healthy fund balance that we can dip into from time to time. However, the state recommends that we maintain three months worth of funding in that account in case we need it in emergency situations.”