The story headline links to a better view of the story and share features.
News
The water on N.E.W. WSC no longer requires boiling.
September 4, 2022 - On August 30, 2022, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality required the N.E.W. Water Supply, #2030034, to issue a Boil Water Notice to inform customers, individuals or employees that due to conditions which occurred recently in the public water system, the water from this public water system was required to be boiled prior to use for drinking water or human consumption purposes.
N.E.W. Water Supply has taken the necessary corrective actions to restore the quality of the water distributed by this public water system used for drinking water or human consumption purposes. We have also provided TCEQ with laboratory test results that indicate that the water no longer requires boiling prior to use as of September 4, 2022.
If you have questions concerning this matter, you may contact the office: 220 West Columbia Street, San Augustine, Texas, 936-288-0489 or Charles Sharp 936-201-5001.
Thank you for your patience and cooperation.
If a customer, individual or employee wishes to contact the executive director, please call (512)239-4691
Effective August 30, 2022 Until further notice
August 30, 2022 - Due to a break in the line at Plant 1, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has required the N.E.W. Water Supply Corporation PWS #2030034 to notify all customers on CR 203, Fountain Town and Woodland Acres Communities to boil their water prior to consumption (eg., washing hands/face, brushing teeth, drinking, etc). Children, seniors and persons with weakened immune systems are particularly vulnerable to harmful bacteria, and all customers should follow these directions.
To ensure destruction of all harmful bacteria and other microbes, water for drinking, cooking and ice making should be boiled and cooled prior to use for drinking water or human consumption purposes. The water should be brought to a vigorous rolling boil and then boiled for two minutes.
In lieu of boiling, individuals may purchase bottled water or obtain water from some other suitable source for drinking water or human consumption purposes. When it is no longer necessary to boil the water, the public water system officials will notify customers that the water is safe for drinking water or human consumption purposes.
Once the boil water notice is no longer in effect, the public water system will issue a notice to customers that rescinds the boil water notice in a manner similar to this notice.
Please share this information with all the other people who drink this water, especially those who may not have received the notice directly (for example, people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and businesses). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or distributing copies by hand or mail.
If you have questions concerning this matter, you may contact N.E.W. Water Supply Corporation at 220 W. Columbia Street, San Augustine, Texas, 75972, or call 936-288-0489 or Charles Sharp at 936-201-5001
September 5, 2022 - The Joaquin Volunteer Fire Department is glad to say that there were no emergencies dispatched for the department over the week of August 28th to September 3rd. However, this does not mean there’s no news to share.
In the morning of Saturday, September 3rd the JVFD took part in a control burn on a house on Connell's Ferry Road. After lighting the house up, members of the department broke into two hose teams to keep the heat from the fire from causing any damage to another property near the site of the burn building. In about 30-40 minutes the small house was mostly on the ground but to be on the safe side, the JVFD stayed on site until it was clear the fire would not spread.
The Joaquin VFD routinely does control burns on homes and buildings in the area, per request of the owners, both as training exercises and just as a service to the community. These kind of control burns help to improve skills and tactics that may have real application on potential house fires in the future.
This concludes this weeks report. As always we hope everyone has a great and safe week.
September 2, 2022 - The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the theft of a side by side that occurred September 2, 2022.
At approximately 12:52 a.m., an unknown individual entered on to a property in the Mt. Herman Community on Highway 7 W and left driving a 2017 Polaris Razr. Video surveillance shows the suspect pulling out of the driveway on the Razr heading West on Highway 7.
If you have any information regarding this case, please contact Investigator Chad Hooper at 936.572.5045 or 936.598.5601.
This is a vehicle of interest in the theft of the Polaris Razr.
September 1, 2022 - Tenaha Street in Center was the scene of a two-vehicle collision September 1, 2022, at the intersection with Old Airport Road around 11:15am.
When emergency personnel with Center Police Department and Shelby County Sheriff's Department arrived, both vehicles involved were on the western side of the roadway.
According to Center Police Department Officer Garrett Rocchi, a silver 2010 Chrysler Sebring driven by Percy Ratcliff, 72, of Shelbyville was northbound on Tenaha Street in Center. Ratcliff attempted to make a u-turn, and did so by first turning onto Old Airport Road then left into a parking lot and back out onto Tenaha Street where the Sebring struck a silver 2013 Chevrolet Malibu on its right side driven by Tanisha Bazille, 33, causing damage to both vehicles.
Bazille was transported by ambulance for possible injuries and Ratcliff was taken into custody by Center PD officers for warrants unrelated to the crash.
No citations were issued
Updated: Joaquin ISD has cancelled school today, Thursday, due to a power outage.
September 1, 2022 - Due to the wide spread power outage, Joaquin ISD we will delay school start time by two hours, School will update in a hour with further information.
August 29, 2022 - State Highway 87 (SH 87) North was the scene of a single-vehicle crash August 24, 2022.
When emergency responders arrived at the scene, the vehicle involved was located off the roadway at the end of a large culvert. The driver had escaped the vehicle and crawled to safety through the culvert.
According to Texas Department of Public Safety State Trooper David Shields, Jr., at around 6:48am a Chevrolet Equinox driven by Coneshie Ratcliff, 33, was southbound on State Highway 87 just south of CR 1450 when the vehicle malfunctioned in the front end causing it to veer off to the west side of the roadway.
The Equinox rolled several times before coming to rest at the end of a culvert.
Ratcliff was transported by ambulance to Nacogdoches Medical Center - Shelby Emergency Department for treatment of minor injuries.
No citations were issued resulting from the crash. The vehicle was towede from the scene.
Trooper Shields was assisted at the scene by DPS Trooper Taylor Buster and Shelby County Sheriff's Deputies Josh Anders and William Denison.
August 29, 2022 - The Joaquin Volunteer Fire Department ended the last full week of August with 3 total calls, all of which pertaining to medical emergencies.
The first call came in on Monday, August 22nd for a lift assist on Carroll Street to help a patient back into their home after being returned from the hospital.
The other 2 calls came in on Saturday, August 27th, with the earliest at 2:06am for a Covid patient having trouble breathing in their home on Highway 84 East. The JVFD EMR team responded and, after donning proper personal protective gear, monitored the patient until Allegiance EMS could arrive to transport.
Later on in the morning at 11:38am the JVFD would be dispatched to the public park in downtown Joaquin for a 15 year old patient having a seizure. With help from some good samaritans, members of the Joaquin VFD administered medical aid until Allegiance EMS could arrive on the scene.
That concludes the report for this week. Until next time, the Joaquin Volunteer Fire Department hopes everyone has a safe a great week ahead.
August 26, 2022 - The Center City Council met on August 22, 2022 and adopted the Tax Rate of $0.602640 per $100 which is slightly lower than the voter-approval tax rate of $0.602641. The voter-approval rate is the highest tax rate the city may adopt without holding an election to seek voter approval of the rate.
Prior to the City voting on the tax rate, a public hearing was held for citizens to express their support or opposition to the proposed tax rate. No citizen comments were made during the public hearing. Council reconvened and Council Member Terry Scull made a motion for the proposed tax rate, “I move that property tax rate be increased by the adoption of the tax rate of $0.602640 which is effectively a 5.36% increase in the tax rate.” The motion carried.
For the City of Center, the now approved tax rate is a decrease of -0.016593 or -2.68% over the 2021 tax rate of $0.61233. However, because the average homestead taxable value saw an increase of 10.60%, the overall taxes increased on the average homestead by 7.64%. According to the ordinance, the Appraisal District presented the city with a report of the value of all property situated within the City of Center, Texas subject to ad valorem taxes, a total certified valuation of $337,390,920. Of the total property valuation, the total tax levy on all properties for 2022 is $2,002,693 and the new rate will increase the city’s revenue by $109,522 or 5.79%.
For a more information regarding property taxes, visit https://shelby.truthintaxation.com/property-search.
In April 2022, the Shelby County Appraisal District notified property owners they would see an increase in valuations for the year. To read the press release, click here. For homeowners needing assistance for delinquent property taxes, click here for more information.
During the meeting, the City of Center approved Ordinance 2022-7 (Adoption of FY23 Budget) which begins October 1 and approved Ordinance 2022-9 (Establishing Rates and Fees for FY 2023). The notable changes to the budget includes increased spending and the reduced tax rate. In the approved budget and rates and fees for the year, there were no residential utility increases. However, commercial utility rates were increased by less than 1% and commercial monthly garbage service fees were increased 5%. The monthly residential garbage service fees were adjusted to $23.95 or a 3% increase. Rentals of the Civic Center and the Community house were also adjusted to a higher rate although the new rates are still lower than average rental rates according to a regional survey.
Click here to view the FY2023 Budget online on the City of Center's website.
Municibid was used to auction off three vehicles and the council approved the top bid amounts for each of the vehicles. A 2005 Ford 1/2 Ton Pickup sold for $2,217; a 2012 Ford 3/4 Ton Pickup sold for $9,800; and a 2017 Chevrolet F150 4 Wheel Drive sold for $15,300. The total amount for all three vehicles was $27,317. City Manager Chad Nehring said, “We ended up putting these on an online auction, Municibid. It has been used for a couple of years and we’ve just never experimented with it. It wasn’t readily usable; however, we will be putting a piece of equipment or vehicle on that for auction from here forward.” Mayor Chadwick did advise, “The public has access to that same thing so a local person can still bid on it just as anything else.”
Council approved Change Order #1 (South Elevated Storage Tank Project). The change order was made upon the engineer’s recommendation to modify the connection point of the tank into the system. The change will minimize connection problems and potential future maintenance issues. The cost of the change order is $47,350.
A budget change for the Civic Center to install new carpet was also approved by council. The Civic Center which opened in 2010, has areas showing wear and tear. The total cost for replacing all the carpet in the Civic Center is $34,000.
Restroom at Perry Sampson Park nearing completion.
Backside view of new restroom at Perry Sampson Park.
Items of interest mentioned during the meeting included Sales Tax for August 2022 being $389,688 which is up by 7.98% over August of 2021; lake water levels have improved since the rain, however, they are still low; the Broadband project which will be on the EDC’s next meeting agenda; the Street Works project should get started around the end of September; Perry Sampson Park restrooms are near completion; Poultry Plaza at the Civic Center is finished; and SWEPCO Smart Meter deployment is underway.
Illegal dumping site under Loop 500 overpass at Noble Street had large debris removed by the county.
Council member Leigh Porterfield commented on the AT&T cell tower being up behind the Civic Center saying, “There is hope on the horizon maybe.”
Council member Joyce Johnson asked about the clean up which has been done of large trash and debris under the overpass of Loop 500 at Noble Street. Mayor Chadwick advised the County Judge and Commissioners receive credit for the clean up job.
The meeting adjourned.
Crews working on installing the tower on August 19, 2022.
August 24, 2022 - Emergency personnel with the Texas Department of Public Safety and Constable Precinct 5 responded to the scene of a single-vehicle crash on U.S. Highway 59 in Timpson on Monday, August 22, 2022, which developed into more than just a crash investigation and resulted in the arrest of two men.
The crash was located just past the intersection of U.S. Highway 84 in Timpson.
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, the preliminary investigation indicates that at approximately 3:45pm, a 2004 Dodge pickup driven by Ricardo Zarate Vazquez, 33, was traveling north when it is reported that the right rear tire blew out on the pickup, which caused it to hydroplane into the west ditch.
During the course of the investigation, Troopers became suspicious of criminal activity and it became known that prior to them arriving on scene, an individual took some items from the pickup and took them to a nearby restaurant. Troopers located and identified the individual and a search of his vehicle yielded multiple counterfeit government documents and approximately 60 grams of methamphetamine.
Vazquez was placed under arrest for the following offenses: possession of a controlled substance, tampering with physical evidence and fraud – use possession of identifying information, all felony offenses. He is also charged with the following misdemeanor offenses: tampering with a government record, fail to identify and fail to maintain financial responsibility.
The individual, identified as Lonnie Downing, 59, was charged with the felony offense of possession of a control substance and a misdemeanor offense of possession of drug paraphernalia.
This is an ongoing investigation and there is no additional information available at this time.
No injuries were reported to have resulted from the incident, and Vazquez was examined by EMS. Josh Tipton, Constable Precinct 5, assisted the Troopers with their investigation.
August 24, 2022 - The Shelby County Commissioners lifted the burn ban during their August 24, 2022, meeting.
Upon considering the order and declaration prohibiting outdoor burning, Judge Allison Harbison remarked she has had many phone calls on the issue. The Keetch-Byram Drought Index still lists Shelby County on the 600-700 range, as of August 23, 2022, with 800 being the worst.
The current order is set to run out next Monday and the commissioners would then have to take action to put a new one in place.
Commissioner Roscoe McSwain made a motion to lift burn ban, seconded by Commissioners Stevie Smith, and McSwain said if the need arises they will take further action regarding putting a ban in place.
The vote carried with all in favor of lifting the ban.
Pages
