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Tri-Canyon’s Only Weekly Newspaper!
Current Weekly News for Leakey, Camp Wood, Sabinal, Utopia and Surrounding Areas Vol. 6 No. 34
www.hillcountryherald.net
August 24, 2016
editor@hillcountryherald.net
REAL COUNTY PROPOSED BUDGET DROPS CONSTABLE SALARY FROM $21K TO $2,400 ANNUALLY by Julie Becker
REAL COUNTY HEARING MONDAY AUGUST 29TH AT 6PM AT REAL COUNTY COURTHOUSE
INSIDE
Somewhere in the West ............................ Page 9
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Nathan Johnson was elected by the taxpayers of Real County to serve as their ONLY Constable. Since there was not a Democratic candidate on the ticket, Johnson will take office in January 2017 to serve a four year term. At Monday morning’s Commissioner’s Court hearing regarding setting the tax rate for the upcoming year, Real County Judge Garry Merritt filed a proposed budget with the County Clerk at the beginning of the meeting. In the proposed budget the County Constable salary was drastically cut from $21,262.07 to $2,400 annually. Also cut were necessary supplies needed to run any office: postage, uniforms, travel, lodging, repairs, auto
insurance, radar equipment and state education were reduced from $1,600 to $200. If the budget is approved with these changes, Johnson will maintain group insurance and retirement. Johnson said “I personally spoke with each Commissioner to share my vision of what the office could be and put together a combined budget that was less than what it had cost to have two not full time constables.” In March of 2015 Commissioners voted to eliminate one Justice of the Peace position which would effectively eliminate the Constable position also. During the meeting last year the motion was approved 3-0. Real County Com-
missioners Joe Connell and Gene Buckner were not present. In a telephone interview both Connell and Buckner said they favored the measure, as cost saving to the county. Connell noted the future plan for the Real County Sheriff’s office is to hire another deputy, thereby facilitating two law enforcement officers for each community in Real County. A public hearing was held on the redistricting on February 26, 2015 with limited community attendance. Though the measure was voted on and passed 2015, it will not take effect until the current JP’s terms expire. Constables are constitutionally authorized peace officers. Constables
have the same arrest powers and duties as municipal police officers and sheriffs and have the added responsibility of executing civil process for the courts. In what was proposed as a cost saving measure, have County Commissioner’s decreased the citizens ability to have different avenues for their protection? The diversity within local government is vital for success. When you begin to cut off the arms of local government, it becomes a dictatorship.
STAND UP REAL COUNTY!! CALL YOUR COMMISSIONERS!!
Uvalde Memorial Hospital Opens Sabinal Health Clinic UVALDE, TX – Uvalde Memorial Hospital is pleased to announce Sabinal Health Clinic will open its doors to patients at 517 N. Center Street in Sabinal, Texas on Tuesday, September 6. Owned and operated by Uvalde Memorial Hospital, the newly renovated building will house a full-time board certified family medicine physician and certified family nurse practitioner (FNP-C). The office will be accepting new patients and scheduling appointments by phone beginning Monday, August 22. The office number is (830) 988- 2582. “We are very excited to announce the re-opening of our clinic in Sabinal. Providing local coverage to the community is something that is very important to us and we are pleased to have recruited seasoned health care providers,” said hospital CEO Tom Nordwick. Providing medical care at the office will be James Kelly, MD. Dr. Kelly graduated from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor degree in Biology and earned his Master degree in Medical Sciences from Loyola University. Dr. Kelly went on to complete his Doctor of Medicine from Tulane School of Medicine in New Orleans, Louisiana. Dr. Kelly completed a family medicine residency at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and has lived and worked in the San Antonio area since 2011. Dr.
Kelly and his wife, Elizabeth, have three children; two daughters ages 5 and 2, and a two-month old son. In the office with Dr. Kelly will be Elizabeth ‘Liz’ Steward, FNP-C. A former United States Army officer, Liz received her Associates Degree of Nursing at Southwest Texas Junior College and then went on to become a registered nurse practitioner. She earned her American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) certification in family medicine
in 2015 after graduating from Walden University in Minneapolis, MN. Her experience ranges from management of chronic complex diseases such as diabetes and hypertension to pediatric home health. Liz’s husband Leon is the band director at Hondo High School. Together they have 5 children, three of whom still live at home; 15-year-old twin boys and a 14-year-old daughter. Uvalde Memorial Hospital Founded in 1949, Uvalde Memorial
Hospital is a 66-bed facility that provides healthcare services for residents of Uvalde, Zavala, Kinney, Real, and Edwards Counties. Uvalde Memorial offers a wealth of medical services including: 24-hour emergency care, advanced radiology services including CT scanning and MRIs, outpatient lab, physical therapy, surgical services, patient education, and more.
School Is Texas Interscholastic League Foundation in Session Scholarship to Emily Carnes Driving is proud to announce that tion scholar. peted twice at the state level in Safety Tips NCHS Emily Carnes, Nueces Canyon This is a scholarship that stuPoetry. By Superintendent, Kristi Powers
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LETTER TO THE EDITOR ............................ Page 4
INDEX Legals/Jail Register .... Page 3-4 Community News ......... Page 5-7 Feature Story ............... Page 8-9 Obituaries ...................... Page 10 Classifieds ..................... Page 14
Today’s Weather
High: 88° Low: 69°
graduate of the class of 2016, was awarded a Texas Interscholastic League Foundation Scholarship! She applied for the scholarship last spring and the district was notified today that she was a UIL League Founda-
dents who have competed at the UIL State Academic Meet are eligible to apply for. We are very proud of Emily and also of Mrs. Hicks, our UIL Poetry and Prose sponsor and UIL coordinator. Emily com-
Emily will be using the scholarship at Texas A&M University. Mrs. Powers stated; “I hope that we will be able to have many more students eligible to apply for these scholarships in the future!”
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PART ONE … INFRASTRUCTURE by Elaine Carnegie
Since we are going to talk about Economic Development, I thought we would start with the basics. Infrastructure. Infrastructure is a direct reference to the basic “public” things that affect your life every day. It means the utilities, water supply, the city streets, bridges, sewers, in our case, the River, pollution, commerce, etc. It is the joining of pieces of related systems that provide commodities, services or enhance the economy of a city, or area. So, basically infrastructure refers to how well our City functions both publicly and individually. For instance… If you ran a Day Care and someone opened a Liquor Store right next to you… that might
not be good for business! Prudent and careful planning, ordinance, and zoning keep everything running smoothly… or does it? The EPA says that Smart growth strategies can help rural communities achieve their goals for growth and development while maintaining their distinctive rural character. Planning where any type of development should or should not go, for instance the Day Care next door to the Liquor Store… can help a rural community provide and maintain an environment where businesses can thrive on a walkable main street. continued page 5