Athens-Henderson County Now

Unofficial Returns in Athens and AMWA Elections – Totals Including Early Voting

Proposition: Should AMWA be abolished?

No: 668
Yes: 590

In December 2013, AMWA filed a lawsuit against the city which questions who should pay for the operation and maintenance of Lake Athens, the dam, and the water treatment and transportation facilities. The City answered back by voting to dissolve AMWA. A petition circulated by AMWA, however, caused the issue to be placed on the ballot for voters.

This vote means that the Athens Municipal Water Authority (AMWA) will continue to exist.

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Athens City Council — All challengers won

Place 1
Joe Whatley: 674
Carol Barton: 573

Place 2
Charles Elliott: 619
Aubrey Jones: 612

Place 3
Tres Winn: 672
Elaine Jenkins: 558

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AMWA Board (Top 2)

Mike Peek: 664
Herbert Gatlin: 487
William “Billy” Carter: 360
Gregory Hisey: 307

Siren Malfunction in Athens

Emergency warning sirens in Athens inadvertently sounded this morning because of a malfunction, said Fire Chief John McQueary. The chief said Fire Department officials are out checking the sirens now. …. So if you’ve been hearing sirens, it is a malfunction and not an emergency.

Thank you to reader Jame Edmondson who first brought this to our attention.

Athens City Administrator Pam Burton to Retire; City Secretary Also Stepping Down

By Michael V. Hannigan

In a move that sent shock waves through city government, Athens City Administrator Pam Burton told council members today that she is retiring effective Dec. 31.

The announcement came during a City Council special session. Burton has been with the city for 36 years and has been the City Administrator for 19 years.

In a related move, council members accepted the resignation of City Secretary Pam Watson for personal reasons. She will be leaving the city on Sept. 30.

Burton said she made the decision to step down Tuesday night.

“I really decided to go ahead and resign because it is the best thing to do for Athens,” she said.

Mayor Jerry Don Vaught said he was “still stunned” about Burton’s retirement when reached Wednesday afternoon.

“I’m pretty emotional about it all,” he said.

Vaught said the city will start looking for a city secretary first so the replacement will have time to train with Watson before she leaves.
Continue reading “Athens City Administrator Pam Burton to Retire; City Secretary Also Stepping Down”

Early Voting Turnout

There has been some confusion about the early voter turnout figures from the two Athens elections we released today. This graphic does not show how people voted, but shows how many voted.

No results on how people voted will be released until after the polls close on Saturday.

Things are a bit convoluted this time around and I think there are some folks who are not quite sure of the process this election. Here are some important points to remember.

THERE ARE TWO ELECTIONS

The Athens Municipal Water Authority (AMWA) and the City of Athens are separate entities. That means they are holding two separate elections. Yes, they are both being conducted in the same place, but they are still two completely separate elections.

THERE ARE TWO BALLOTS

Each election has its own ballot. If you want to vote in both elections you have to vote both ballots.

DISSOLVING AMWA IS ON THE CITY BALLOT

Because the ordinance to dissolve AMWA was originally passed by the City Council, the proposition on whether to dissolve or keep AMWA is on the city’s ballot.

The rest of the city ballot is for City Council seats.

AMWA BOARD HAS ITS OWN BALLOT

The four people running for the AMWA board are own their own ballot.

The graphic shows that 767 people voted in the Athens election during early voting. That was for City Council seats and dissolve/keep AMWA.

The graphic shows that 708 people voted in the AMWA election during early voting. That was for the AMWA board.

AMWA v. Athens Legal Bills near $400,000 So Far

By Michael V. Hannigan

The Athens Municipal Water Authority (AMWA) and the City of Athens have combined to spend about $400,000 so far in legal fees and related costs connected with the water authority’s lawsuit against the city and the looming election.

The figure comes from records obtained by Henderson County Now through open records requests.

In December 2013, AMWA filed a lawsuit against the city alleging the city is in breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, is negligent and has committed fraud (AMWA later dropped all but the breach of contract allegation). The issue basically boils down to who should pay for the operation and maintenance of Lake Athens, the dam, and the water treatment and transportation facilities.

The City answered back by voting to dissolve AMWA. A petition circulated by AMWA, however, has caused the issue to be placed on the ballot for voters during Saturday’s election.

The lawsuit is currently on hold while the 12th Court of Appeals in Tyler considers the first ruling by Visiting Judge Joe Clayton. To put the progress of the lawsuit in context, if it was a football game we would say that the opening kickoff is still under review.

The City

The City of Athens has spent approximately $234,000 so far on the lawsuit and the election, according to officials.

The city did not release most of the actual bills because attorneys believe much of the information contained therein is covered under attorney client privilege.

The city has requested an opening from Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott on the issue.

AMWA

AMWA released invoices totaling about $170,000 in response to the open records request. The invoices come from the law firms of Kugle, Skelton & Bennett in Athens, and Messer, Rockefeller & Fort in Frisco.

The bills for Kugle, Skelton & Bennett total about $75,000, but attorney Martin Bennett said that included other work the firm did for AMWA not connected to the lawsuit. It is unclear exactly how much work was done for what purpose from the invoices, thanks to a Free Invoice Creator.

The bills for Messer, Rockefeller & Fort total $94,335 and includes a $20,000 retainer. Those invoices are for January and February. There are no invoices from the law firm for March or April.

For more background on this issue, click here.