By Bill Peterson
KYLE – Todd Webster has announced his intention to resign from the Kyle City Council. However, he has not announced his resignation.
In an announcement Webster released Saturday, he noted that the timing of his intention has left the timing of his resignation open-ended. Webster said he decided to intend to resign last Friday, when his terminally ill father in Ohio decided to engage hospice for his remaining care.
Webster has shuttled back and forth between central Ohio and Kyle for the last ten months, often flying back to Texas specifically to attend city council meetings. Though he moved his family to Ohio early this year so his kids and his dad could get a good dose of each other, Webster said, "I plan to remain a resident of Kyle."
By the time Webster decided to intend to resign, the possibly of putting his seat on the Nov. 6 uniform election ballot already had elapsed, since such elections must be called two months before the election date.
Webster could resign immediately, but he said he's concerned that his district could be left without representation for up to the 120 days the charter allows for the city council to hold an election. Meanwhile, Webster noted, his vacated seat would leave a six-member council and the possibility of gridlock.
The sometime-in-the-future-outgoing councilmember said his original intention was to intend to resign in time for his seat to go on the November ballot. However, budget and tax rate deliberations during the last month compelled him to stick with the task.
As the most vocal tax hawk on the council during the process, Webster can be said to have won that battle. After considering a 6.26-cent tax rate increase to 33.50 cents per $100 of taxable property value, the council voted for a 27.07-cent tax rate last week.
City finance director Charles Cunningham reportedly found a way to reduce the tax rate by transferring interest earnings into the general fund and cutting about $130,000 worth of items from the budget. The council is expected to approve the budget next Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Webster remains on the council, intending to resign, but not quite doing it for the time being.
"My objective will be to make certain that my district does not lack representation for an extended period of time," Webster said. "I will work with the Mayor and the City Manager to determine the effective date of my resignation so as to provide the greatest opportunity for voter participation in an election to select my replacement while simultaneously minimizing the vacancy on the council."
Commentary
By Bill Peterson
BUDA – A proposed skating rink that would have opened in Buda's city park around Thanksgiving is officially kaput. What are we all going to do now with those ice skates we have lying around and never use?
It's probably for the best. The enterprise had something of a thrown-together quality about it and indications are that it was just too much of a rush job. For example, the promoters first went to the city council with the idea on July 3 and a lease contract for the park was approved by the city on Aug. 21. But Tony Smith, who attempted to organize the set-up, told the local weekly, in effect, that the venue didn't come together fast enough.
Smith told the oldest weekly in the county that corporate sponsors didn't want to kick in so long as the venue wasn't secured and the possibility of ordering the equipment on time had passed by Aug. 21.
So, six weeks to gain approval for a private venue with an admission charge at a public park wasn't fast enough? One would think a promoter could allow for a couple months, anyway, when dealing with a city government for the appropriation of a public park for private purposes.
And Aug. 21 is too late to arrange for a skating rink that wasn't supposed to open until Thanksgiving?
Next year, perhaps, the promoters will go to the city sooner.
