History of $1 million purchase, best use of hangars discussed at first meeting with advisory board & TxDOT

What to do with airport hangers…. Mayor Butch Cook insisted the council consult with its Airport Advisory Board regarding the history and what the best use of the $1 Million hangars is. Devine Airport Advisory Board President Hap Squires, third from left in background, presides over a board meeting held July 12, 2023 to hear from representatives of the Texas Department of Transportation Aviation Division on planning for airport development. (Photo by Anton Riecher)

By Anton Riecher & Kathleen Calame
The search for the history behind the million dollar airport hangar purchases, as well as why and what to do with the hangers now, were topics of discussion at the July 12 meeting of the City of Devine’s Airport Advisory Board, who is also seeking advice from TxDOT Aviation on planning.
The former Mayor Cory Thompson and the prior Devine City Council decided to go ahead and declare imminent domain last year forcing the tenant to sell so the city could buy the airport hangars. The settlement was reached in February 2023 at a cost of $885,000. Overall Certificate of Deposits for $1 Million were obtained to buy several hangars with.
New Mayor Butch Cook, elected two months ago and the new city council now has to decide what is the best use for the large vacant hangars and what to charge for them.
In the quest for the who, what, where, why, when, and what do we do now–Cook insisted the council seek the opinion of Devine’s Airport Advisory Board members and TxDOT Aviation before taking action on leasing the hangars or making any changes.
To his surprise the City of Devine’s own airport advisory board’s opinion or advice had NOT been sought before the city’s decision to purchase the hangars which gave the city total control of the airport by moving out a tenant that was not in compliance.
Going forward, Mayor Cook wanted to involve the city’s airport advisory board, seeking out their knowledge and expertise in the industry, knowing all have used the airport and/or owned hangars there. Most board members have served on this board for many years.
So the July 12, 2023 meeting was planned with the Devine Airport Advisory Board and TxDOT Aviation officials and with city officials present.
Hap Squires opened the meeting at 2:02 pm then offered citizen comments, and no one was signed up to speak. Next, he then requested changes to the minutes of the prior month’s June 12, 2023 meeting.
“I have one minor change on the second page where it says ‘Squire says it seems to me that to develop long range plans for the city we need to have long-range plans for the city.’ …” That should read to develop long-range plans for the “airport” we need to have long-range plans for the city. It’s a minor change,” Squires requested.
Another Airport Advisory member Chris Yanta requested another change.
“On the fourth page the minutes talk about interim city administrator and board, I mean the Texas Aviation, wanted us to make sure that we were all in line with the grants. During this time a comment was made that all of the airports in Texas are owned by the city, it’s all the property on the airports. Then in the next paragraph it says Airport Manager Humphrey discussed that in most of the airports in the state, the hangars are owned by the city. I’ve got it on recording the way that actually went down. I can play it for the members here if I need to,” said Chris Yanta, Devine Airport Advisory Board Member.
“It was stated by the interim city administrator that the cities owned all of the airports,” he said.
“They then asked Vicki what are the amount of airports that have the deal?.. In Vicki’s response, she said about 50% of the airports in the state are private and have private hangers on them,” said Yanta.
“So I move that that be changed to read what was accurately said.”
The minutes were approved unanimously with the changes mentioned on a Bill Bain/ Greg Coyne motion.
Oath of Offices
Mayor Butch Cook administered the oath of offices to the entire Airport Advisory Board of The City of Devine:
Brian Crosey, Chris Yanta, Vicki Pumphrey, Hap Squires, Bill Bain and Greg Coyne.
History
Devine Airport Advisory Board President Hap Squires welcomed the two TxDOT representatives to the meeting.
“I want to welcome Daniel Benson and Jim Hailey from TxDOT who at our request have graciously put together a presentation giving us ideas on how we can best utilize our airport and how TxDOT can assist us,” said Hap Squires.
“Before I turn it over to them I would like to give a brief history so everybody’s on the same page. Five years ago we had 100 % of the hangars were privately owned. We had a sleepy little airport that is well maintained. It was not self sufficient, the cost to the city was minimal I believe the net cost was $20,000 a year. In addressing the shortfall the city was in the process of raising the rental rate since the leases became due. This all changed in November of 2018. Our airport manager received a letter from TxDot stating that we have issues at the airport thus threatening our current and future grants about the same time we received a phone call from TxDOT stating (if) the situation is not fixed TxDOT will suspend all of our current grants. And our current Grant is $600,000, not only make us payback our current grants but our past one as well. Over the next few years in numerous meetings the city council decided that the best approach to getting control of the airport would be to own it in its entirety. This was also the suggestion of TxDOT. Today the city owns all but three of the hangers, but we’re a million dollars in debt and our cash flow is significantly higher than our income,” Squires explained.
“I know we can’t undo history and hopefully Mr. Benson and Mr. Haley can let us know if we’re still in jeopardy of losing our funds and what suggestion we can offer to achieve self- sufficiency. With that ball I throw it at you guys,” said Squires.
TxDOT representatives
Daniel Benson the Airport Planner with the Texas Department of Transportation introduced himself. “I’m an airport planner and I cover the South Region of Texas. I have 47 airports assigned to my program.”
Next Jim Halley with Director of Airport Planning and program introduced himself. “I’m over all the planners as well as our compliance, environmental, the state aviation system, planning the Strategic Plan for the entire system, so 271 airports in our program. We had a beautiful program we were going to show you but we’re in the wrong building for being able to show that so we can speak off the cuff. So it sounds like compliance and grant obligations in paying the main flavor of the day for everyone,” said Halley.
“No I really just kind of wanted to present everybody here and citizens our history and what led us to where we are now. I am personally very interested in your presentation and what we can do,” said Squires. “We can’t undo history. But first I think it is important to know first off is, are we are in compliance? Is there something we still need to do to get in compliance? But more importantly is where do we go from here? I mean you know we can’t get our million dollars back,” said Squires.
“If you talk to Mike you are going to know more about the compliance and things. Let me say I’ve just joined TxDOT Aviation in January after a 5 year hiatus. I spent 15 years in the aviation division prior to 2017 and have come back in to this new role of planner. So I don’t know the history of what transpired. My understanding from the previous planner Micheal Van Fleet, who is now with the FAA, in a conversation with him, he indicated there was some issue with one of the hangars that led to that person leaving the airport after the lease expired. So I am not sure what the history is and with the million dollars.
How often do they ask for money back
The Mayor then asked a few questions.
“I am Butch Cook the Mayor of Devine. I was elected back in May so I’m glad you mentioned about the policy of being in compliance and so forth and so on. So what do you do if the tenant refuses to cooperate? I’ll give you a back story on that. You mentioned about the hangars. Our legal advice was to use imminent domain and buy the hangars from them. Now we own three hangars, and we spent a million dollars because they said we had to. The way it all came across was that we were going to have to pay back a previous grant, current grants, etc and not get any more down the road. So, we had to spend a million dollars plus interest of taxpayers’ dollars. Does that happen very often?” asked Mayor Cook of the supposed threat of losing grants.
“Not very often,” Benson answered.
“In a situation like that you have three tools a city or county that owns an airport that they have at their disposal to entice tenants or lessees to be compliant. One is building in language inside the lease.”
The other two tools involve legal action and documentation in good faith to get the leasee into compliance and Benson went on to explain more about those processes.
Leases and threats
Bad lease agreements for hangar space have left many community airports across Texas with no recourse in dealing with problem tenants, a top TxDOT aviation executive told the Devine Airport Board during a July 12 meeting.
“We have situations where airports 20 years ago entered into really, really bad leases with pretty bad language,” Halley said. “And they have absolutely no cause of action with their tenants. They can run wild.”
Prompting the comment was a review of the airport history leading to the city’s decision to purchase all the privately owned hangar space. That decision came in the wake of a threat from TxDOT officials in 2018 to suspend all current and future airport funding grants due to how some tenants were using hangar space.
Benson said the Federal Aviation Administration had an issue with “non aeronautical use” of one of the hangars leading to that tenant leaving the airport after their lease expired.
With regard to future self-sufficency, Benson said that general aviation airports generally have only two revenue streams available to them – ground leases and fuel sales.
“I have recently visited the airport for the first time and notice that you have a brand new fuel system and new lighting system,” Benson said. “So you are on the way to managing part of that revenue stream.”
As for leasing hangar space, TxDOT is available to consult on leases with regard to the rules and regulations that apply.
Halley said that a bad lease can leave a community trapped in decades of non compliance with aviation requirements.
“We see that across the state where a sponsor will enter into an agreement and it’s a non compliant agreement but they’ve executed it,” Halley said. “The private party has no legal incentive to get out of the agreement.”
Halley said that the situation that Devine found itself in is not common. Most communities protect themselves with language in the lease that requires the tenant to comply with all regulations that might jeopardize the airport’s compliance.
The next step is to carefully document the tenant’s activities that might violate the lease. TxDOT can issue the tenant a letter warning of possible violations but, as such, the state has no legal authority to force compliance.
That problem falls to the airport owner, Halley said. As long as the owner is making a good faith effort to move forward on compliance its grant standing should be safe, he said.
Money available for Devine
On the positive side, Halley said that TxDOT has $14,390 available for the airport.
“Devine, being a federally obligated, federally eligible airport, is allotted, for lack of a better word, an allowance under three different COVID relief bills,” he said.
That money is available to cover normal expenses at the airport such as salaries and fuel purchases. Any equipment purchased must comply with the FAA’s “Buy American” standards, Halley said.
Benson said the airport is also eligible for a $150,000 “non primary entitlement” or allowance annually. Airports typically roll three or four years of this funding together for a one-time use project.
Halley said the airport also has a second allowance option for $113,000 through an airport improvement allocation under the Infrastructure Investment Jobs Act subject to 10 percent in local matching funds.
The airport is also eligible for a competitive grant averaging $104,000 per airport, Halley said. That is based on a state apportionment of $19 million spread between 182 federally eligible airports in Texas.
Squires asked the TxDOT executives for guidance in developing an updated airport layout plan regarding best use of space available for hangars, taxi ways and parking, both aircraft and vehicle. Benson said the current plan in use is nearly 15 years old.
As for the economic future of the airport, Halley said to remember that Devine is in competition with other airports in terms of fuel, lease rate and convenience.
“The trip doesn’t stop at the airport,” Halley said. “Most people who want to do business in Devine are going to need to go into town, do their business, then get back in the plane and fly somewhere else.”
He suggested the addition of facilities such as a pilot’s lounge were travelers can shelter from the rain and heat and take a bathroom break.
Cook asked for suggestions regarding the 17,000 square-foot hangar recently acquired by the city. Halley suggested operating the space as a shared hangar maintained by a homeowner association-type group. Also, the space might be used for aircraft storage for travelers staying in the area overnight during hunting seasons and such.
Munoz recalls interest
Dora Rodriguez, interim city administrator, told the board that Joe Munoz, owner of M C Aircraft Refinishers, is no longer interested in leasing Hangar 10, the largest at airport, for his business. Munoz had offered between $1,000 to $1,500 a month for the property.
Cook told the board that the going rate for a hangar that size should be at least $7,000 a month.
Airport Manager position
In other business, board member Chris Yanta confronted District 5 Council Member Debbie Randall about remarks made with regard to board member Vickie Pumphrey qualification to continue to serve as airport manager.
During the June 20 council meeting Randall asked to have Pumphrey’s name removed from the airport board with the intention of hiring a new manager. City Attorney Thomas Cate advised the council that the agenda item referred solely to the advisory board and Pumphrey was sworn in.
Randall said she thought that since the various city boards were on the agenda that night it would be appropriate to discuss the airport manager.
“I’ve been asked not to bring it back up again until we have a city administrator,” Randall said.
View the meeting
You can view the entire meeting online on YouTube. It is titled Devine Airport Board July 12, 2023.
Lost emails
Officials stated there are two emails involving the threats of having to pay back grants if not compliant, but a copy of only one of the emails was available. The other email was not available to view at the meeting due to the loss of all city emails during a crash. It was thought to be from 2021, and Interim City Administrator Dora Rodriguez is now trying to track down the email.
Hap Squires had a copy of the 2018 email at the meeting. Rodriguez explained there was a second TxDot email which is the one the city lost when its email storage on Rackspace crashed.
From the files…Settlement reached
At the February 21, 2023 Devine City Council Meeting- In resolution of a long standing airport issue the council approved an $885,000 settlement agreement to acquire more than 21,800 square feet of hangar space. Three hangers (17,090 sq feet, 2,482 sq feet and one 2,284 sq feet) all currently owned by David Ehlinger, President of Aviation Fuels, Inc.
Cate told the council that based on advice from an outside firm hired by the city “this is the best course of action.”
“We were told by (Texas Department of Transportation) Aviation that we need to get control of the airport, we need to stop allowing people to have non-aviation activities there,” Cate said. “This is part of it.”
Devine sent Aviation Fuels an offer to purchase the hangers for $845,000 on November 2, 2022. Aviation Fuels agreed to Devine’s offer on November 4. Aviation Fuels had to vacate the hangars and relocate to another location by February 28, 2023, the relocation deadline.
Devine had signed a lease with Aviation Fuels on January 1, 2010 regarding the hangars.
The final settlement also includes nearly $40,000 in relocation funds for Aviation Fuels, Inc. Money to fund the purchase is from certificates of obligation issued in September 2021.
The council approved the agreement on a motion by Randall, seconded by Espinosa.
Cate also reported that two other hangars at the airport are up for sale.

Update…Devine Water violations “rejected”

In regards to an article titled “Water violations for City of Devine cite ‘failure to test,’” we have learned new information.
The violations applying to the LC Martin well have been “rejected” since the TECQ has learned the well has been offline since the last big snowstorm in Devine.
The following is a response from TECQ after another inquiry: “As of July 10, 2023, and based on the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s Water Supply Division compliance data, the City is in compliance with the Revised Total Coliform Rule, Groundwater Rule, the Lead and Copper Rule, and all primary and secondary chemical drinking water standards. The City received two monitoring and reporting violations for failure to monitor nitrate and volatile organic compound samples at one entry point during calendar year 2022.
“Upon further review, the applicable entry point was inactivated as the plant was offline and the associated monitoring and reporting violations were rejected. The City’s three other active entry points were monitored during calendar year 2022 and sample results were reported as required.
 “The City received a violation for failure to conduct triggered source monitoring under the Groundwater Rule during October 2022. This violation was rejected as the corresponding well, associated to the entry point in question, was not online.
“Both the two monitoring and reporting violations and the triggered source monitoring violation were rejected by TCEQ and are no longer valid. The annual consumer confidence report (CCR) requires systems to only include valid violations for notification to customers. Rejected violations are not required to be included in the annual CCR.”

New internet company will use water tower; food trucks, airport hangar value draws debate

By Anton Riecher
The Devine City Council voted unanimously on June 20th to allow SAGO Internet to place an antenna on the Devine Ingram water town near the golf course. The motion by Ritchey, seconded by Vega, calls for a $200 a month charge during the four-year contract.
Company owner Rodney Hitzfelder told the council that SAGO is a three-year old Internet service provider that benefited from a $700,000 grant issued through the county to expand available local Internet to national standards.
“Since then we’ve gotten eight towers up,” he said. “We’re growing very rapidly. A lot of our requests are in Devine, Natalia and Lytle.”
In the Devine area, SAGO already operates a monopole tower on Rossville Road, he said. However, because the system he offers requires line-of-sight between the tower and the client “we found a bit of an issue getting from our 100-foot tower to the other side of town.”
Hitzfelder assured the council that the five gigahertz (5G) bandwidth used by the new water tower antenna will not interfere with police communications or other remote equipment used to monitor the water level in the tower.
Short of a direct lightning strike, the SAGO antenna will not require continuing maintenance, he said. The company does not require routine access to the water tower.
“We don’t generally go to these sites once we get them up and running unless there is some type of issue,” Hitzfelder said.
In other matters, the council did take action to end paid quarantine leave for Devine employees contracting COVID. However, that action was with the exception of law enforcement personnel still under the protection of state law.
The motion by Ritchey was seconded by District 3 Council Member Stacy Pyron and adopted unanimously.
New action was taken on filling the long vacant city administrator position currently occupied by interim city administrator Dora Rodriguez. Following a closed executive session, the council voted unanimously to schedule appointments with city administrator applicants.
Ritchey, who made the motion, said that multiple applications for the opening have been received to date.
Council renews Airport mowing contract $19,200 a year on split vote

By Anton Riecher
The council also approved a contract with Joe Munoz, owner of M C Aircraft Refinishers, for mowing at the Devine Municipal Airport. Councilman Josh Ritchey was the lone opponent to renewing the annual contract which increased to $19,200 per year.
Munoz testified that the 65-acre airport sometimes requires mowing as often as five or six times a month. Of his seven employees, one is dedicated almost full time to mowing.
A monthly $100 increase requested by Munoz is to cover additional area to mow behind Hangar 10. Munoz provides his own equipment, fuel and chemicals for the airport lawn care.
Councilman Josh Ritchey asked if the contract, in place since 2018, had ever been put out for bids to guarantee a competitive rate.
Ritchey made a motion to go out for bids on mowing, but it died for lack of a second.
Debbie Randall made the motion to continue with Munoz, stating that the constant attention required by the airport grass made it impossible for city public works to keep up with, with support from Rufino Vega, Stacy Pyron, and Michael Hernandez with Ritchey voting against the action. Instead Ritchey had suggested amending the agreement to paying for each time mowed.
With regard to Munoz’ previous request in May to lease the 17,500 square-foot Hangar 10 for his business at a monthly rate of between $1,000 and $1,500 Airport Advisory Board chairman Hap Squires suggested to the council that the Texas Department of Transportation be consulted.
“What we are hoping for from them is a look at the whole airport and how best do we utilize it now that the city owns the majority of the hangars,” Squires said.
A meeting with TxDOT’s aviation division is scheduled for July 12, he said.
Mayor Cook made a presentation based on further discussion with the airport advisory board. In a sale finalized March 9 the city purchased Hangar 10, the largest hangar at the airport, for $609,000. By comparison, the purchase of hangars 8 and 8A amounted to only $165,000.
Based on the appraisal that established the sale price, Hangar 10 should be leased at 40 cents per square foot for a return of approximately $7,000 a month to the city, Cook said.
“We have a pretty large investment there and we need to proceed accordingly to get the best return possible for our investment,” Cook said.
He said it might take another month to arrive at a decision on the Munoz offer. No action on the mattter was taken at the council meeting.
Food truck debate
Renewed effort to suspend an ordinance more closely regulating food trucks and other mobile food units in favor of existing state and county statutes proved unsuccessful during the June 20 regular session of the Devine City Council.
A motion by District 4 Council Member Josh Ritchey to repeal the city’s ordinance regulating these food vendors failed for lack of a second.
“I don’t like diverting resources to this when there are two other government agencies that do this,” Ritchey said.
Filling in the background, Mayor Butch Cook said the controversy revolved around a business who has objected to the city requiring him to obtain a permit to sell from a mobile food unit.
Ritchey said the recently enacted city ordinance managed to put city staff “in a tough spot.”
“Now we are essentially requiring extra certifications for our folks to go check ‘Is this safe?’” Ritchey said. “Did we make it clear enough that the state already has requirements? If we didn’t have this ordinance we could simply refer to the state and say ‘Hey, please enforce your policy.’”
District 5 Council Member Debbie Randall countered that all the city ordinance requires is for the vendor to show copies of their state or county health certificates.
“We don’t ask for anything additional to the state or county requirements but we need to see it and make sure it’s good to go,” Randall said. “Otherwise, Mr. Policeman will go and tell them to shut down.”
Interim City Administrator Dora Rodriguez reported that the city currently has nine permits for mobile food units issued. Cook stated that the fee is $10 a day or $50 for a year.
“So it’s a very reasonable fee,” he said.
Jerry Stevens, owner of Charlie’s Daughter restaurant, said the city ordinance provides accountability for people doing business in Devine.
Local restaurants are required to obtain “certain permits, licenses, the things we have to have to be able to run a business and sell to the public,” Stevens said.
“If you have a vendor that comes in that may or may not have the proper permits I would be concerned about what they are selling out of their trailer,” he said. “Maybe it isn’t up to the standard it should be.”
Stevens said that he would support the need for the ordinance even if he did not have food business of his own.
Cook also said the city ordinance is important with regard to sales tax enforcement.
“Without a permit no one would know if they are charging the required tax,” he said.

Devine council votes to freeze property tax rates for over 65

By Anton Riecher
By a vote of 4-0, the Devine City Council approved an ordinance to freeze property tax rates for residents over the age of 65, mirroring previous measures taken by the county and school district.
“I couldn’t be more in favor of it personally,” Mayor Butch Cook told the audience for the June 20 regular session.
On a motion by District 4 Council Member Josh Ritchey, seconded by District 2 Council Member Michael Hernandez, the council approved the ordinance stating that no Devine property owner will pay more in city property taxes than the year of their 65th birthday.
Effective beginning the 2022 tax year, the tax relief ordinance also applies to permanently disabled citizens unable to work.
District 5 council member Debbie Randall chose to abstain from the vote.
Johnette Dixon, chief appraiser for Medina County, described how the county tax freeze works.
“Whatever they would pay in 2022, anyone who is over 65 right now would pay whatever 2022 taxes were from here on out,” Dixon said. “The rate can come down but can never go above it.”
Former District 4 County Commissioner Jerry Beck spoke in support of the action, saying it meant relief from “skyrocketing appraisals.” Devine resident Bill Montgomery also spoke in support of the ordinance.
“The city isn’t going to be out any major amount of money,” he said. “The value of my property is still going to go up.”
Mayor Cook initially wanted to table the ordinance until a draft could be prepared. However, Dixon warned that it would have to be in place before the appraisal district’s tax certification scheduled for July 20. Otherwise, the tax relief would not apply until the 2023 tax year.
City Attorney Thomas Cate recommended proceeding with a vote on the ordinance to assure making the deadline.
Dixon earlier addressed the council regarding the proposed 2024 budget for the Medina County Appraisal District approved by its board of directors.
“Our 2024 preliminary budget proposal is $1,585,200,” Dixon said. “Our final budget last year was $1,559,155, which is an increase of $26,000.”
Part of the increase is the number of protest hearings scheduled by taxpayers, she said. At present, the district has nearly 4,500 protest hearings scheduled, almost 500 more than last year.
For the entire county, the 2023 preliminary taxable value issued by the appraisal district in late April totaled $309.3 million, a $32.3 million increase in value from the previous year. From that increase, the appraisal district generated an additional $159,000 in revenue.
Devine’s pro rata share of that taxable value in 2024 is $22,801, an increase of $963 from 2023
“So, of that $159,000, we are asking for $936 more dollars” from Devine to fund the appraisal district in the coming year, Dixon said.
Ritchey used the opportunity to criticize the appraisal district process.
“From what I understand, the entire appraisal process is very opaque and any disagreement with the board is met with some rather subjective opinions and response. How can we drive through this process more transparency and more objective standards in the appraisal of properties?”
Dixon said the best way to challenge any appraisal is by using comparisons with other property nearby.
“If you can find comps in your neighborhood that’s what we do,” Dixon said. “We first look in the neighborhood. If we find comps we use those. We try to get as close to the subject as possible. From that point, if there aren’t any in that subdivision directly then we can expand out to the school district and we’ll try to find something as much like the property as possible.”
On a motion by Ritchey, seconded by Pyron, the council passed the budget increase for the appraisal district.
Aside from the property tax ordinance, Ritchey placed two other items on the council agenda – consider upgraded software for governmental budgeting and review options to ease bureaucratic challenges to local building contractors. Both items were tabled.
Under software, Ritchey asked the city staff to review a possible transition to ClearGov software designed to streamline the annual budgeting process by improving the collection, creation and communication of their budgets.
The item was tabled because the city is currently taking applications for a new city administrator. Interim City Administrator Dora Rodriguez advised that the applicants may have their own opinion on which software is best for the job.
On Ritchey’s request to make challenges to contractors easier he said that a “multitude” of contractors he has talked to refuse to work in Devine.
“Their explicit feedback is the city is too difficult to work with, requiring a lot of documentation and additional inspections over what they would expect in other places,” Ritchey said.
Mayor Cook also reported similar complaints from contractors he has dealt with. However, Ritchey nor Cook were ready with what Pyron referred to as “concrete examples.”
“We need some concrete examples rather than complaints like ‘I’m just annoyed that I have to fill out this paperwork,” Pyron said.
Rodriguez said the main reason contractors are required to fill out fresh paperwork about themselves for each project is to make sure their required licensing has not expired. It was noted by Randall that the city has not had a code compliance officer for nearly two years.
Ritchey countered that he did not necessarily want to bring immediate action before the council.
“I just want to start a conversation,” he said.

Espinosa retires, Pyron chosen to serve

Stacy Pyron (left) addresses council last Tuesday before she was chosen to serve the remainder of Councilman David Espinosa’s term. On right Espinosa accepts a plaque for his 9 years of service after announcing his resignation due to health reasons at Tuesday’s meeting.

By ANTON RIECHER

Through a combination of election turnovers and a surprise resignation of a long time council member, half of the Devine City Council changed hands May 16 during and after a meeting that also aired details of discrepancies in the voter registration rolls that arose during the May 5th city election.
For Cory Thompson, the May 16th meeting marked the close of his mayoral administration after being unseated 502 to 107 in a landslide victory by Butch Cook.
“First of all I want to thank all of you for an incredible six years,” Thompson said. “Obviously it has been scary. It has been exhilarating. It’s been nauseating. It’s been enlightening. I have learned a lot. It’s definitely had its ups and downs.”
He also said he wished Mayor Cook all the best as he takes over the reins of the city. “This is not an easy job,” Thompson said. “In the past six years I have found the burden of expectations to be much greater than the actual job. I want to wish Mayor Cook safe travels as he navigates the treacherous seas of expectation.”
The May 16th meeting saw the departure of District 2 council member Angela Pichardo after two years in office, defeated in a 47-42 race won by Michael Hernandez.
Also departing, at the end of the meeting after announcing his resignation was District 3 council member David Espinosa, citing reasons of health.
Pichardo, in her closing remarks, said she wanted to thank everyone.
“We worked really hard,” she said. “We accomplished a lot. The overall goal is for the betterment of the citizens of Devine. We fought some hard battles and we won many.”
Espinosa, quoting from a letter of resignation submitted on May 5 (effective May 16), described his decision to step down as a “bittersweet moment.”
“Thank you for all the support throughout the years,” he said. “I am grateful for the opportunity I have been given to represent District 5 by the citizens. I hope I was able to make some contribution to our community. I was honored to be part of the team that made a big difference to our city.”
Espinosa voted and participated in the entire meeting, stepping down at the end.
His recommendation to appoint replacement during the same meeting that his resignation was announced drew concern.
“I greatly respect the work that councilman Espinosa has done for the city,” Mayor Cook said. “He has been a long standing member of the city council and he has a lot to offer. I mean that with all sincerity.”
However, acting immediately to replace Espinosa eliminates any chance that others interested in the job might step forward to be considered, Cook said.
“If we proceed to appoint a replacement for councilman Espinosa this evening, whether recommended by him or anyone else, I think it would be one of the worst things we can do because it constitutes a total lack of transparency.”
Mayor Cook pointed to precedence established when District 5 council member Debbie Randall was appointed and time had been given for others to volunteer for the position and a committee reviewed both candidates. (Randall took Thompson’s seat in District 5 after Thompson was appointed Mayor after the resignation of Mayor Bill Herring in July 2019).
Randall cited another precedence in the appointment of Rufino Vega to replace former District 1 council member David Valdez without notifying the public beforehand.
Hernandez pointed out that Espinosa had run unopposed.
Citizen Frances Navarro spoke up and complimented how respected David Espinosa was and suggested that perhaps no one wanted to run against him out of respect, but that now there might be others interested in the council seat.
Regardless, Randall moved to accept Espinosa’s recommendation to appoint Stacy Pyron, whose name was withheld until late in the discussion.
“My feeling is the person who is stepping down should be able to recommend someone because he was voted in and he wants someone like minded to vote like he has,” Randall said.
With a second by Hernandez, in his first official action after replacing Pichardo, the council voted 4-1 in favor of accepting Espinosa’s recommendation of Stacy Pyron. District 4 council member Josh Ritchey voted against the appointment.
Ritchey’s own motion to conduct a special meeting to allow others interested in the opening to come forward died for the lack of a second.
Upon the decision of the council, Mayor Cook said he would “like it noted that I strongly object. This is not transparency”. He stated that The Devine News is our official newspaper and time should have been given for it to be published and the public notified of the opportunity officially. He noted that a council member’s social media account is not the city’s official account, they are personal.

Prior to the vote, Pyron took the podium after her introduction by Espinosa to introduce herself to the council.
“I graduated Devine High School in 2004 during which time I was also highly involved in the community,” Pyron said. “We used to help out in the summer when the library would have their summer reading program.”
As Fall Festival Queen in 2002, Pyron received a scholarship that she put to use in earning her degree from the University of Texas at San Antonio in speech communications. She has also worked four years in the city library since then.
“My passion in life is really connecting with people,” Pyron said, citing one of the skills that will make her a valuable asset to the council.
Voter list causes election mistakes
Further controversy arose regarding the voter registration card errors that could have impacted the District 2 race. During the official canvass of the May 5th election results, election judge Glenda Allen made a lengthy presentation on issues related to an incorrect voter registration list provided by the county.
“Once we caught it and (Interim City Administrator Dora Rodriguez) caught it right away, thank goodness, she made all the phone calls that she needed to make and then she and Denise spent the next day and a half, maybe two, going through each address and every district for every citizen that we had listed.”
More than 200 mistakes were found in the registration list provided by the county, Allen said. However, only 6 of those errors did directly affect the District 2 council race, which was a very close race with a difference of only 5 votes (Hernandez v Pichardo).
Pichardo said she was contacted by residents who said they were not allowed to vote in District 2.
“So that brought us some concern as to the results of the election, a couple of questionable acts that occurred,” she said. “But, again, we understand or at least I understand you were following protocol and were instructed by individuals.”
Allen said that most of the errors found involved District 3 voters listed in District 5.
“Typically what happens when we come in for our training is if we’re lucky enough people bring in their voter registration,” Allen said. “Most people do not and they don’t have to. They can just bring their driver’s license or a photo ID. We verify that with the voter registration list.”
Usually, if a voter is missing from the list, it indicates that they have recently moved either in the district, city or county, she said. It is then a matter of contacting county officials in Hondo for direction. The voter fills out a statement of residency and is then allowed to vote in their previous district.
“We really do try to be as efficient as possible when it comes to the voting process because we want everybody to vote,” Allen said. “We want it to be a fair election.”
Pichardo said she wanted to make sure that the correct protocol is observed going forward.
“We definitely wish to keep that trustworthiness in the election process for the City of Devine. So with these questionable protocols it has put a red mark on it,” she said.
The council voted 4-1 to accept the canvass of the election with Pichardo opposing the action.
New Zoning Class proposed
In other business no action was taken on a proposal by District 4 council member Josh Ritchey to create a new zoning classification for the community north of Colonial Parkway, so that would be more broadly favorable to small business and residents on the south of Colonial Parkway in our farming community.
He suggested that people who want to have animals for their 4H or FFA projects or raise or grow some food for their family should be able to do so, especially in these economic times. Those who live on Zig Zag and have land to farm should not have to go by the same fence and animals rules as those who live around a golf course he suggested.
“Current policy is postured toward looking like an HOA,” Ritchey said. “We are a rural farming community. Many people moved here for that reason.”
Randall had a different view of the situation saying, “We are not a farming community. We are a City”.
City Attorney Thomas Cate said that the idea would be more properly presented to the planning and zoning commission for consideration.
Sarah Espionsa appointed to Parks & Rec. Board
On a motion by District 1 council member Rufino Vega, seconded by Espinosa, Sarah Espinosa was appointed to serve in the District 1 seat for the parks and recreation advisory board and the emergency management advisory board.
Herring named to Planning and Zoning Comm.
On the nomination of Mayor Cook, Scott Herring was named to the planning and zoning commission to replace the resigning Diane Austin.
Briscoe Park slide replacement $9,537
The council voted 3-2 to approve $9,537 for the purchase and installation of a new playground spiral slide at Briscoe City Park and the removal of the existing one that has had a small crack near the bottom for several years.
Talk about researching other options to allow for something more suitable to attract more than toddlers was mentioned to help encourage the whole family to participate in the outing.
It was mentioned that around $24,000 is in the parks budget currently and that there are two parks, not just the Briscoe Park that has needs, the Curcio Park on the other side of town has needs too.
New $5,500 valve for Devine Drive
Council also approved a budget amendment of $5,500 to allow the installation of an inserter valve on Devine Drive.
Public Works Director Pete Sanchez said the valve is needed to permit workers to shut down water service to the area if needed. The valve is being installed as a “live tap” and will not involve any service disruption.
The new valve would allow for service to be worked on when needed without affecting others parts of the area.
Experience preferred instead of required for City Admin
Following a closed executive session the council voted to change the requirements for the city administrator opening to ask for two to three years of experience “preferred”. It had previously said “required”, and this is an effort to open up the position to more possible candidates. The motion by Randall was seconded by Espinosa.
Sworn in after meeting
Attorney Tom Cate swore in new Parks and Rec board member Sarah Espinosa and new councilwoman Stacy Pyron after the meeting.

Devine elects a new Mayor…
Cook wins by a landslide

Butch Cook won the mayor contest with a landslide vote.

The people have let their voices be heard again as Butch Cook victoriously won the City of Devine Mayor race by a landslide vote of 502 to 107, defeating the incumbent Cory Thompson.
It was the largest turnout for the city elections in quite some time. This year 609 residents came out to vote as the campaigns heated up, increasing the voter turnout to 140% compared to two years ago (436).
Butch Cook took the lead during early voting with 348 votes to Cory’s 74. On election day, Cook received 154 to Thompson’s 33.
Back in 2021, a total of 436 people voted in City Elections (with Cory Thompson narrowly defeating Kevin Hicks 229 to 207 in 2021).
“For the last two and a half months I have been knocking on doors, meeting as many people as I can. From past experiences on the Devine City Council I’m very aware that if there were simple solutions there wouldn’t be a problem, but I’m ready and eager for this new challenge! It is an incredible honor that the voters in our city are allowing me to do so,” said Butch Cook.
Cook’s campaign promises included:
-Make our city’s water system the top priority. -Aggressively pursue a City Administrator, and remove requirements that are hindering the process.
-Restore order and civility to the city meetings, and ensure all council members are informed on agenda issues in a timely manner.
-Show transparency and accountability -when and where taxpayer money is spent.
-Bring back the lines of communication between the city and the citizens that we are here to serve.
Cook brings his leadership skills to the office from his 7 years on the City Council, 5 years as President of Devine Little League, 7 years as President of South Texas Basketball Officials Association, 8 years as Men’s Basketball Coach at Palo Alto College, and 38 years as a Business Owner in Devine ( Image Matters and South Texas Trophies), and multiple days volunteering with organizations including Mission Devine, Chamber of Commerce, DYSA, and Devine ISD Committees.
A little history…
Thompson served as an Alderman for District 5 before being appointed the Mayor after Bill Herring resigned, and then winning the election two times, against Pichardo and then Hicks.
According to The Devine News files (July 19, 2019): District 5 Councilman Cory Thompson was appointed mayor during an emergency meeting of the Devine City Council held on Friday, July 19, following Bill Herring’s sudden resignation from the position.
After District 2 Councilman and Mayor Pro-Tem Steve Lopez said he was not interested in taking over as mayor, District 3 Councilman David Espinosa nominated Thompson. Lopez provided the second, and the motion carried with the support of District 1 Councilman David Valdez and District 4 Councilwoman Jennifer Schott.
Then, council later appointed a resident of District 5 to fill Thompson’s seat on the Council. Debbie Randall was appointed in September 2019 as recommended by Thompson as someone who would vote like him for that district.
District 5
In the uncontested District 5 election Debbie Randall received 168 votes. (In 2021 that district election drew 201 voters, 128 for Randall and 73 for Kevin Stephens.)
All terms are two year terms. All of the May 2023 Election Results are considered unofficial results until they have been canvassed.
Problems at the polls…
Errors prevented at least 6 residents to vote in the District 2 race in City of Devine
In the District 2 race, unofficial tallies show Michael Hernandez receiving 47 votes to incumbent Angela Pichardo’s 42, a difference of five votes.
There were errors in District 2 voting cards reported in the first couple days of voting, as announced by the City of Devine last week, stating that six voters were not allowed to vote in the District 2 election. As a result, the District 2 election could be contested.
The City of Devine sent out a public notice as soon as the issue was discovered to let the public know that there were 201 voters whose residency was inaccurately listed. After the clerical error was discovered, the City found 6 voters that had been denied the right to vote in the District 2 race. From that point on, election judges were very careful to look over every voter card and make sure that people who live in District 2 were able to vote in the District 2 race by comparing addresses to the most recent redistricting maps.
Last week, Medina County Elections Administrator Lupe Torres explained that “As for how the incorrect precinct/districts were assigned, it was due to a clerical error made during the redistricting process.”
According to City of Devine Interim City Administrator Dora Rodriguez, if a candidate wants to protest this contest, the candidate will be responsible for filing a lawsuit.
“After contacting our Attorney Tom Cate and the attorney at the Secretary of State’s Office, I told both candidates when I called them to let them know about the election situation, and that whoever lost the election, they would have to file a lawsuit at their cost for the election protest.  The court would determine if the city needs to hold a special election.”
In response to the incident, Angela Pichardo stated, “We will seek remedies to investigate who’s Responsibility and negligent actions caused the errors. I do not want to create a separation in District 2 since we have worked so hard to unify the community as a whole, but if laws have been violated, we must make sure EVERYONE’S Right to Vote is Given and those responsible be Accountable. This is an example of the needed changes in City Government. I want to Thank all the citizens that came out to vote as we had a record number and I want to wish the New Leader of our City much Success and Progress for Devine….I want to make sure that voters were not cheated out of their right to vote.”
In this year’s election, Pichardo had a small lead after early voting with 38 to Hernandez 36. Election Day, Hernandez took the lead with 11 votes to her 4. Totals were Hernandez 36+11= 47, to Pichardo’s 38+ 4= 42.
Back in 2021, Pichardo was first elected to the position by defeating Maria Pena 32 to 18. Voter turnout almost doubled in this district this year.
All of the May 2023 Election Results are considered unofficial results until they have been canvassed.

Election Info…

City of Devine Voters-

All registered voters in Devine can vote in the mayoral race, and early voting is now underway at City Hall.
There are two contested races in the City of Devine, including:
Mayoral Race
-Cory Thompson (i) and
challenger Butch Cook.

District 2 Race
-Angela Pichardo (i) and challenger Michael Hernandez

Distict 5 councilwoman Debbie Randall is unopposed.

Early Voting:
April 24-28, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.;
May 1-2, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Early Voting one Saturday, April 29 – 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Election day: May 6, 2023, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
You can Vote at City Hall, 303 S. Teel, Devine.

Devine ISD Voters-
Polling locations in both Medina and Frio Counties

Vote For or Against the following Bond issues:

Proposition A – 31.5 Million for Safety and Renovations of Schools, Band Hall

Proposition B – 1.5 Million – for 4 New Tennis Courts

Medina County Polls:
Vote at Medina County Precinct 4 Annex Building this year (317 TX-132 N, Devine).
Early Voting: April 24-28, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.; and Saturday April 29 9am-2pm; May 1-2, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. May 6, 2023 (Election Day) 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Election day: May 6, 2023, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Frio County Polls-
Voting at the Bigfoot Alternative Center, 13777 FM 472, Bigfoot, TX 78005
April 24-28, 2023 (Early Voting) 8:00 am – 5:00 pm; April 29, 2023 (Early Voting) 9:00 am – 2:00 pm and May 1-2, 2023 (Early Voting) 8:00 am – 5:00 pm
May 6, 2023 (Election Day) 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Medina County- Vote at Medina County Precinct 4 Annex Building
(across from Tractor Supply)
Voters can vote in the ESD District elections, where they are registered to vote.
Medina County ESD 2 – (Devine Fire area) – add 1.25 % to sales tax
Medina County ESD 5 – (Natalia Fire area) – add 1.25% to sales tax
Medina County ESD 4 – (EMS Devine/Natalia areas – add .50% to sales tax
ESD4 overlaps both fire districts (2&5), since EMS can bill for services they are asking for only .25 from each district, so .25+.25= .5% sales tax
*Note: 8.25% is the maximum any city or county in Texas can charge for sales tax. Medina County is at 6.75% currently, so that leaves 1.5% open.
ESD 2, 4, and 5 – All Voting at County Building:
Election day: May 6, 2023, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Early Voting: April 24-28, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.; and Saturday April 29 9am-2pm and May 1-2, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
May 6, 2023 (Election Day) 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Lytle ISD- Vote for one or none, Single Member District 2


Trustee Special Election for Single Member District 2 will be on May 6, 2023 between Jessica Perales , and one write-in candidate Jeremy Davenport.
Voting in a trustee for Single Member District 2. (Voters must vote in the Single Member District where they are registered to vote.)
Note: Lytle ISD is only conducting the special election. They were able to cancel the general election, which is the annual election due to unopposed candidates. The special election is due to having two SMD vacancies however, they canceled the SMD 5 election, but not the other as there was one write-in candidate for SMD 2 before the deadline.
Polling places:
Lytle ISD Administration Office, 1537 Cottage St., Lytle, Tx.
Medina County Courthouse Annex, 1300 Ave. M Room 108, Hondo, Tx.
Medina County ESD No. 1, Station #15, 17934 FM 1957, Rio Medina, Tx.
Medina County Pct. 4 Annex, 317 State Hwy. 132 N. , Devine, Tx.
Medina County Pct. 2 Annex, 8366 FM 471 S. , Castroville, Tx.
Early Voting weekdays: April 24-28, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.; and May 1-2, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday April 29 9am-2pm.
Election Day: May 6, 2023 from 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

City of Lytle – cancelled election due to uncontested races.
Natalia City/Schools – no elections
LaCoste City – no elections

Local Elections on May 6
Where, when, why, how much
Early voting April 24- May 2

City of Devine- Vote at City Hal, 303 S. Teel, Devine
Vote For or Against
Bond Election- $15.02 Million for drainage and flood control
Everyone can vote in the Bond election
Everyone can vote in mayoral race.
Mayor- Cory Thompson (i) and Butch Cook
District 2 and 5 get to vote in their races as well
Council Dist.2- Angela Pichardo (i) and Michael Hernandez
Dist 5 – Debbie Randall
Election day: May 6, 2023, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Early Voting: April 24-28, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.; May 1-2, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Early Voting one Saturday, April 29 – 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Applications for Ballots by Mail (ABBMs) must be received no later than the close of business on April 25, 2023.

Devine ISD- Polling locations in both Medina and Frio Counties
Vote For or Against
Proposition A – 31.5 Million for Safety and Renovations of Schools, Band Hall
Proposition B – 1.5 Million – for 4 New Tennis Courts
Medina County Polls voting at Medina County Precinct 4 Annex Building this year (317 TX-132 N, Devine).
Election day: May 6, 2023, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Early Voting: April 24-28, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.; and Saturday April 29 9am-2pm; May 1-2, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. May 6, 2023 (Election Day) 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Frio County Polls-voting at the Bigfoot Alternative Center, 13777 FM 472, Bigfoot, TX 78005
April 24-28, 2023 (Early Voting) 8:00 am – 5:00 pm; April 29, 2023 (Early Voting) 9:00 am – 2:00 pm and May 1-2, 2023 (Early Voting) 8:00 am – 5:00 pm
May 6, 2023 (Election Day) 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Medina County- Vote at Medina County Precinct 4 Annex Building
(across from Tractor Supply)
Voters can vote in the ESD District elections, where they are registered to vote.
Medina County ESD 2 – (Devine Fire area) – add 1.25 % to sales tax
Medina County ESD 5 – (Natalia Fire area) – add 1.25% to sales tax
Medina County ESD 4 – (EMS Devine/Natalia areas – add .50% to sales tax
ESD4 overlaps both fire districts (2&5), since EMS can bill for services they are asking for only .25 from each district, so .25+.25= .5% sales tax
*Note: 8.25% is the maximum any city or county in Texas can charge for sales tax. Medina County is at 6.75% currently, so that leaves 1.5% open.
ESD 2, 4, and 5 – All Voting at County Building:
Election day: May 6, 2023, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Early Voting: April 24-28, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.; and Saturday April 29 9am-2pm and May 1-2, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
May 6, 2023 (Election Day) 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Lytle ISD- Vote for one or none, Single Member District 2
Trustee Special Election for Single Member District 2 will be on May 6, 2023 between Jessica Perales , and one write-in candidate Jeremy Davenport.
Voting in a trustee for Single Member District 2. (Voters must vote in the Single Member District where they are registered to vote.)
Note: Lytle ISD is only conducting the special election. They were able to cancel the general election, which is the annual election due to unopposed candidates. The special election is due to having two SMD vacancies however, they canceled the SMD 5 election, but not the other as there was one write-in candidate for SMD 2 before the deadline.
Polling places:
Lytle ISD Administration Office, 1537 Cottage St., Lytle, Tx.
Medina County Courthouse Annex, 1300 Ave. M Room 108, Hondo, Tx.
Medina County ESD No. 1, Station #15, 17934 FM 1957, Rio Medina, Tx.
Medina County Pct. 4 Annex, 317 State Hwy. 132 N. , Devine, Tx.
Medina County Pct. 2 Annex, 8366 FM 471 S. , Castroville, Tx.
Early Voting weekdays: April 24-28, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.; and May 1-2, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday April 29 9am-2pm.
Election Day: May 6, 2023 from 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

City of Lytle – cancelled election due to uncontested races.
Natalia City/Schools – no elections
LaCoste City – no elections

City of Devine strikes bond from ballot

Several city leaders changed their tune after citizens voiced their concerns about rushing into a bond election without many details, and overall cost and tax bill impact. This past week, the Devine City Council voted unanimously to cancel the $15 Million Bond Election for drainage projects.

Current Mayor Cory Thompson (TOP) will be challenged by mayoral candiate and local businessman Butch Cook (BOTTOM) seen voicing his concerns among many other citizens about the $15 million bond at a recent public hearing.

A video on Devine News YouTube, shows the bond presentation given by Mayor Cory Thompson at a special meeting this past February 2nd when three council members voted to go out for the $15 Million Dollar Bond/Drainage Project, after choosing from a “wish list” handed out by the mayor.
Voting to put the $15 million drainage bond on the ballot were council members Debbie Randall, Flipper Vega, and David Espinosa, with encouragement from Mayor Cory Thompson to put it to a vote, who stated “If people don’t want this they can vote it down.”
 Then a Espinosa-Randall motion to approve it passed (3-2), with Josh Ritchey and Angela Pichardo voting against it.
Two public hearings were held where citizens questioned the priority need for such drainage projects and pushed for more details.
Before ballots were printed, a special meeting was called to discuss the cancellation of the bond, and this time all council members voted in favor of cancelling the bond issue.
There will still be an election for Mayor of Devine between incumbent Cory Thompson and Butch Cook. District 2 Councilwoman Angela Pichardo re-filed for office also, and will be challenged by Michael Hernandez for that position. Councilwoman District 5 Debbie Randall is unopposed.
Election Day is May 6, but early voting starts April 24.

Devine fire engine returns to operation after extensive overhaul

By Anton Riecher
Devine Volunteer Fire and Rescue Engine 8120 has returned to duty after a $29,499 overhaul, Medina County Emergency Services District 2 board secretary Brenda Butler reports.
The board was updated on the engine’s status during its March 21 monthly meeting.
Engine 8120 is a 2008 Spartan pumper carrying 1,700 gallons of water and 50 gallons of Class A foam. It has the capacity to draft water from a static source such as a pond. The unit carries six personnel and is generally the first out of the station for structure fires.
Devine Volunteer Fire & Rescue consists of nine apparatus and 30 personnel, of which 24 are line officers, active firefighters and cadets with 2,300 hours of training annually. The rest are active personnel in the fire auxiliary working behind the scenes.
In February, the fire and rescue responded to 39 emergency calls in a 31 day period.
In other matters, the board was told that 15 students in Hondo and 18 in Devine were ready to take their emergency medical technician (EMT) test. Preparation for testing by the group amounts to 300 hours of trainng.
The board asked staff to research the cost to add a 1,000 gallon tank at the main fire station to fuel trucks and equipment.