Ryan Andrus, 18, and Samuel Foster, 20, both of Liberty Hill, were arrested and booked into the Williamson County Jail on the charge of burglary of a building.

Liberty Hill Police Chief Randy Williams said Officer Michael Manis was on patrol near the stadium when he observed something unusual about the concession stand and the surrounding chain link fence.

Upon closer inspection, he observed that the concession stand near the entrance to the stadium, which is operated by the Liberty Hill All Sports Booster Club, had been forcibly entered.

Williams said the officer exited his vehicle for a closer look and saw the two men walking nearby.

Williams said food items and can soft drinks were reported missing from the concession stand, but he did not yet have a value on the merchandise taken.

In recent weeks, police have increased the frequency of patrols around school facilities as a result of some incidents of vandalism. Williams said the football stadium press box had sustained damage to windows and the school district’s bus barn had also been burglarized.

So far, the contest is for the Place 4 seat on the Liberty Hill ISD Board of Trustees where incumbent Leslye Pogue is facing challenger Kim Corbett.

In Place 3 on the school board, incumbent David Nix has filed for re-election; and in Place 5, David Wise has filed for a place on the ballot. The Place 5 seat is currently held by Alfie Perrin.

Members of the school board serve three-year terms. To qualify, candidates must be registered voters who have resided inside the school district boundaries for six months prior to the filing deadline and in Texas for 12 months prior to the deadline.

On the Liberty Hill City Council, there are four open seats, including the position of Mayor.

Incumbent Jack Harkrider filed his intent to run for the Place 2 seat, and Mayor Michele “Mike” Murphy has also filed for re-election.

Other positions on the Council ballot include Place 4, which is currently held by Charles Canady, and Place 5, which is an open seat since the resignation in December 2011 by Lisa Kirk.

Members of the City Council and the Mayor serve two-year terms. To be eligible, candidates must be registered voters who have resided within the city limits for six months prior to the filing deadline.

Early voting is April 30-May 8. Election Day is May 12.

During a presentation to members of the Liberty Hill Chamber of Commerce Tuesday, representatives of the Lower Colorado River Authority and Pedernales Electric Co-op shared a quote from a marketing company regarding the benefits of spending money with locally-owned businesses.

“When you buy from a small local business you are not paying for a third vacation home for some CEO. You are paying for dance lessons, you are buying a little-league uniform. You are putting food on a family’s table and sending a student to college. You are making the American Dream come true for somebody in your community. Somebody you problably know.”

“When local businesses make money, the community becomes more attractive to others (businesses) considering moving in,” said Alicia Cook of LCRA.

Ms. Cook listed reasons why consumers should shop local, noting that local merchants are more likely to invest and donate in their own community.

Although the shop local discussion was made possible by the Liberty Hill Chamber, Board Chairman David Pope said the organization’s real application of the idea is to promote only those businesses that are members of the Chamber, regardless of where they are doing business.

While the Liberty Hill Chamber’s Mission Statement, which was distributed Tuesday, states that it is to “provide services to members, to enhance the quality of life for the community and its businesses, and to support constructive initiatives on major issues of public policy,” Pope said “we (the Chamber) have a fiduciary obligation to act on behalf of their (member businesses) interests alone.”

Pope told The Independent after the meeting that the Chamber Board does not have a plan yet for implementing a “Shop Local” campaign. Should it adopt one, “the Chamber  would focus its energies on benefitting member businesses.”

He said the question of whether a chamber of commerce should work to promote local businesses as opposed to all of its members, regardless of their place of business, “is not a problem unique to Liberty Hill. Every chamber is going to have businesses from outside and every chamber is going to have, or at least desire, the membership of big box stores.”

He said of the 58 active Chamber members, 11 are based outside Liberty Hill.

“Not every program will benefit all of the members equally, but the goal for the chamber is to offer a variety of opportunities for our business members to succeed. There is no ‘one size fits all’ model that can address the needs of all of our business members simultaneously, so we will continue to work with our members to develop a multi-faceted approach,” he said.

Pope said part of the purpose of Tuesday’s discussion on shopping local was to “get the conversation started and get the input of our members. The lack of retail members certainly creates a challenge for us in dedicating time and money to a program best suited for retail businesses.”

Pope, who owns a local insurance company, said most Liberty Hill businesses are “service businesses.”

“This is why we continue to discuss ways to target service businesses within a ‘shop local’ context,” he said.

The caterer for Tuesday’s monthly Chamber Lunch & Learn was Scirati’s, a restaurant/catering service based in Leander. Pope said the business paid the same amount of membership dues as Liberty Hill restaurants. Scirati’s has catered previous Chamber events.

“It would be an interesting notion to consider higher dues for non-local business, but I think there are several problems that could arise from such a plan,” he said.

Also part of the program Tuesday were references to reports prepared for the Chamber by LCRA and PEC regarding the demographics of the Liberty Hill Independent School District based on the 2010 Census. The reports, which are available here include income profiles and projections, as well as population projections for the area.

Of special interest is a Retail Marketplace Profile showing the gap between retail potential and retail sales.

The report shows Liberty Hill has a surplus of gas stations, stores selling building materials and supplies, florists, home furnishings and general merchandise.

Pope said the Chamber is making the information available to members, the City’s Economic Development Corp., “and other prospective businesses that happen to contact us.

“We are not in any position to take on a true economic development role, given our very limited resources,” he added. “However, the City’s Economic Development Corp. collects somewhere around $150,000 per year in sales tax that is specifically dedicated to economic development. My goal is to continue to seek a partnership with the city that would have us working in concert together on attracting new businesses, policy development, tourism and ‘Shop Local’ programs.

“This is what our membership, new businesses and the residents want to see — businesses, the city and the citizens working together toward a common goal: community,” he said.

While the Board had previously authorized the school superintendent to proceed with negotiations to obtain water service from Chisholm Trail, the issue has become a point of contention between the school district and the City of Liberty Hill, which was also vying to be the water provider for the new facility. The district has claimed that connecting to Chisholm Trail will cost about $1 million less than using the City’s water system.

While The Independent requested a copy of the Interlocal Agreement through the Open Records Act, it was not provided by press time Wednesday. Superintendent Dr. Rob Hart said the document would not be available until it is also executed by Chisholm Trail. LHISD trustees authorized Hart to execute the contract without seeing a final version of the document, he said. There was no discussion on the matter among Board members in open meeting.

On Feb. 13, Hart and Trustee Clay Cole addressed the City Council asking for approval of the district’s request for wastewater service to the new school. The Council discussed the request with the City’s attorney in executive session, but did not discuss it in open meeting. No action was taken at that time, but if at some point the Council approves the district’s request it will be granting a variance to its ordinance that requires wastewater customers to also be customers of the water system and be annexed into the city’s corporate boundaries.

Council member Jack Harkrider made a plea to school trustees Monday for representatives of the two entities to meet and negotiate an acceptable compromise. Harkrider addressed the Board during the public comments portion of the meeting — minutes after the panel voted to approve the agreement with Chisholm Trail.

Clarifying that he was speaking as an individual member of Council and not for the entire group, Harkrider said he was concerned that the Council’s inaction on the district’s request the week before might have been misinterpreted.

“We weren’t ignoring the school district’s request,” he said.

Harkrider explained that during the Council’s executive session, he and Council member Byron Tippie proposed that a meeting be arranged between them, two school board members, Hart, City Manager Manuel De La Rosa and city engineers to negotiate a compromise.

He said the City has prepared a proposal for utility services to the new campus that will be presented to district officials this week.

“I have heard the Board doesn’t want to meet with the Council and I hope that’s heresay,” Harkrider said. “I’m asking you to take the proposal, and if it looks feasible, agree to the meeting so we can work out the details. I ask you to give serious consideration to the proposal.”

As is typical for the public comments portion of regular board meetings, trustees did not respond to Harkrider’s comments.

Also Monday, the Board heard a report on the administration of the state-mandated STAAR achievement test.

Curriculum Director Claudeane Braun said Liberty Hill High School students will take the end-of-course exams this spring, but the results will not impact the school’s or the district’s performance ratings. In the first year of the new testing program, Mrs. Braun said the district will retain its Recognized ratings based on student performance on the TAKS last school year.

She presented the Board with a District Improvement Plan as required by the state for the current academic year. The plan outlines goals that the state requires each district to meet. In response, the Board voted unanimously to approve those goals and objectives.

Also Monday, the Board adopted an order calling for the Board of Trustees election May 12. Three positions are up for election — Place 3, currently held by David Nix; Place 4, currently held by Leslye Pogue; and Place 5, now held by Alfie Perrin. The Board also adopted a Joint Election Agreement with the City of Liberty Hill.

In other matters Monday, the Board adopted a change order from two completed construction projects — the parking lot at Bill Burden Elementary School and a cafeteria expansion at Liberty Hill Elementary School. The change orders returned a total of $8,182 to the district. Hart explained that the projects came in under budget and the savings goes back to the district. The projects were part of an $81 million bond package passed by voters in 2010.

The Board recognized Elias Ledezma, a junior at LHHS, who has been selected to attend the Bert Corona Leadership Institute in Washington, D.C. this summer. The Institute is an opportunity for migrant students from across the country to learn more about the federal government, Congress and tour the nation’s capitol. Ledezma is a migrant student who travels with his family from May to October each year working in the agriculture industry. He was recommended by school officials.

Trustees also heard the annual report from the School Health Advisory Committee. Kim Hofstetter presented a synopsis of the committee’s activities during the past 12 months and shared the committee’s recommendations to the Board that physical education classes continue to be a top priority at all grade levels.

In other business Monday, the Board voted unanimously to extend the employment contracts by one year for Central Office and all campus administrators, as well as Athletic Director and Head Football Coach Jerry Vance.

Board President Tony Stephens was not present Monday.

Qro Mex Construction will be progresing with the project according to the following schedule:

Feb. 13-24: Installing sewer lines along Snyder’s Trail, including services, manholes, and road and driveway repairs.

Feb. 27-March 9: Installing sewer lines along the full length of Bryson Bend including services, manholes, and road and driveway repairs.

March 12-23: Installing sewer lines on Bluebonnet Lane and from Bluebonnet along RR 1869 to Snyder’s Trail, including services, manholes, and road and driveway repairs.

March 26-April 6: Installing sewer lines along RR 1869 from State Highway 29 to Snyder’s Trail, including services, manholes, road bores, and road and driveway repairs.

City staff say the dates may vary with weather conditions and other unforeseen factors.

For more information concerning the sewer construction, please contact Qro Mex from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at (830) 598-2268.

Liberty Hill Police say a four-vehicle collision this morning on State Highway 29 resulted in injuries to a 10-year-old child. The child was riding in a booster seat in the back seat of a vehicle that was crushed by a pickup truck. Police and emergency personnel closed the highway for about 45 minutes this morning. Stay tuned for more on this story. (Courtesy Photo)

The Council votes to extend the employment contract of City Manager Manuel De La Rosa. From left are De La Rosa, Jack Harkrider, Mike Crane, Mayor Michele "Mike" Murphy, Charles Canady, Byron Tippie and City Secretary Tammy Kirk. (www.ThunderstruckPhotos.com)

By SHELLY WILKISON

In a 3-2 vote Monday, Liberty Hill’s City Manager received a three-year extension to his employment contract that includes a provision for up to a three-year buyout should he be fired without cause. His salary for each of the three years is $86,000.

Mayor Michele “Mike” Murphy cast the tie-breaking vote in support of the contract after an 80-minute executive session. Council members Mike Crane and Byron Tippie voted no while Council members Charles Canady and Jack Harkrider voted yes.

Two weeks ago, Harkrider identified himself as the ”swing vote” on the issue of extending Manuel De La Rosa’s contract.  At that time, he said he could not support a three-year contract and said that a three-year buyout was too much. But, the document he supported Monday was identical to the version considered two weeks ago when his opposition resulted in the Council taking no action.

He told The Independent Tuesday that he changed his mind after considering the alternatives and “talking to some people.

“We have a lot of projects going on and we can’t afford to lose Manny (De La Rosa) at this time,” Harkrider said.

“I wanted time to look at his contract more thoroughly,” he said, adding that he was “confused about  the difference between removing him without cause  and with cause.”

Under the terms of the contract, the City would pay De La Rosa a lump sum payment totaling the amount remaining on a three-year contract if the council were to fire him  at some point “without cause.”

Harkrider said by nature of the job, De La Rosa had been “put in a controersial place and there had been some complaints. I wanted the chance to look into the background of those (complaints). What I found was that much of the negatives about Manny are rooted in the actions or non-actions of the Council, and we need to rectify that.”

Two weeks ago, Harkrider said that he had been told that he would have an opponent in May’s City Council election if he voted yes on the contract. After he voted yes, Harkrider said that didn’t matter.

“The community needs the stability of a city manager,” he said.

Also Monday, the Council took no action on a request by the school superintendent to provide wastewater service to the new high school facility — a decision that seemingly deepened a rift that has developed between the two entities in recent months.

Despite a plea from Superintendent Dr. Rob Hart to “put politics aside” and permit the school district to connect its new campus to the City’s sewer system, the Council took no action after reconvening from executive session where the matter was posted for private discussion. There was no discussion by Council in the public meeting where school principals, district administrators and other school supporters filled the Chamber.

“We’re excited about what’s happening in our schools and we would like you (the City Council) to join us in that. Put politics aside and take care of the young people of Liberty Hill,” said Hart.

It was the Superintendent’s first visit to a City Council meeting, and his first address to the City Council as a whole. He spoke during the public comments portion of the meeting, along with school Trustee Clay Cole, who also requested that the Council approve the application for service. Cole, who is a Council-appointee to the City’s Parks & Recreation Board where he serves as chairman, stressed the importance of the two entities working together.

The point of contention between the school district and the City is an ordinance adopted by the Council in November 2011 requiring customers of the City’s wastewater service to also be city water customers and be annexed into the city’s corporate boundaires.

Hart has maintained that the district can save about $1 million if it uses Chisholm Trail Special Utility District for water rather than the City. However, he wants to use the City for sewer service and claims the district filed an application for wastewater service prior to the adoption of the ordinance.

In December 2011, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality approved the district’s request to be released from the City’s water service area (CCN), but the City appealed to the entire Board of Commissioners hoping to get the decision overturned.

Hart said the City’s motion was “overruled by operation of law” on Feb. 3.

After the Council meeting, he told The Independent that the Commission “refused to hear the City’s case” by not responding within the 45-day window from the date that TCEQ granted the district’s release from the City’s water CCN.

“The TCEQ during that 45-day period could set a hearing date, grant an extension or do nothing. If they do nothing, the motion is overruled by operation of law. Basically they refused to hear the City’s case,” Hart told the newspaper.

“The decision on the water…well, it is what it is,” Hart told the Council Monday. “Don’t take further action because it is what it is.”

Hart says the City’s legal maneuverings are creating delays for the $71 million facility, which is scheduled to open to students in summer 2013.

“Tonight, you have the opportunity to help us out,” Hart told the Council. “I ask you to accept it (the district’s wastewater application). We will be responsible for paying all fair and necessary fees.”

De La Rosa has said that the district’s application for sewer service is not complete and the City had no record of it being filed when Dr. Hart said it was filed.

After the meeting, De La Rosa said the Council has authorized him to continue negotiations with the school district.

“This is still a discussion. No decision has been made,” he said. “The Council still believes the matter lies with the manager and it is incumbent on me to negotiate something.”

Although TCEQ’s decision to release the the new school property from the City’s water service area stands, De La Rosa said he believes there is still an opportunity to persuade district officials to change their minds.

He said he would like school district officials to see “the bigger picture” and understand the full impact of a decision to use another water provider.

To that end, De La Rosa said he plans to reach out to district officials in the coming days and will propose that a meeting be held involving some members of the council and school board, along with administrators and engineers representing the two entities.

“I think it’s time we take personalities out of this,” he added. “This (decision) is bigger than a city administrator and a school superintendent, and has long-term effects on the community. I don’t want the school district spending any more than what it would spend with another provider.”

In other business Monday, the Council:

* Unanimously approved an ordinance calling for the city council election May 12.

* Unanimously approved a letter of engagement for CPA services at the rate of $120 per hour with the firm of Taber and Burnett, P.C. of Burnet.

* Authorized Harkrider to develop a plan for future Town Hall meetings this spring.

* Unanimously approved a request to abandon a utility easement on two lots in Purser Estates.

The Council took no action on proposed changes to the City’s burn ordinance. The delay was made at the request of the interim fire chief for Williamson County Emergency Services District #4, who said more time was needed to ensure compliance with state law.

Police Chief Randy Williams said the male suspect was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and jeans, and his nose and mouth were covered by a handkerchief.

Williams said the suspect was attempting to take beer out of the store without paying when a clerk tried to block his exit.

Store video shows the suspect acted as if he were going to hand the beer back to the clerk, but he jerked away and pushed his way through the door. Williams said a scuffle ensued in the parking lot, the clerk received minor injuries and the suspect ran away

A witness reported seeing a man running to a truck parked at Liberty Hill Junior High School. The vehicle  was described as a 1980s model red pickup with a white or silver stripe down the side, Williams said.

Robbery is a second degree felony.

Williams said that in the past the store has reported several cases of theft. While those remain unsolved, he said he suspects that those suspects are minors stealing beer because they can’t legally purchase it.

He said those offenses are Class C thefts. But when the suspect in Tuesday’s incident caused injury to the clerk, the crime became a second degree felony.

Williams asked that anyone recognizing the suspect, or persons with information regarding this case contact police at (512) 515-5409.

As administrators of the school district and the City of Liberty Hill plant their heels firmly in a utility turf battle that has many scratching their heads in confusion, the question of who should provide sewer service to the new high school has become a political hot potato just in time for local elections.

The back-and-forth exchange between the Superintendent and the City Manager escalated two weeks ago when Dr. Rob Hart suggested the school district’s application for city wastewater service had “suddenly gone missing from the City.

“And that’s funny because we still have our copy of it,” Hart said.

Hart said Assistant Superintendent Robert Parks filed the application for service on Feb. 28, 2011, on a form provided by City Hall. Parks swore to it in an affidavit.

But City Manager Manuel De La Rosa says the City had no record of receiving the application until a copy was included in a packet hand-delivered to him Jan. 27 in which the Superintendent requested a decision be made promptly. And even then, De La Rosa said the application was incomplete.

“I don’t consider this matter funny by any means,” De La Rosa said. “It is serious for all parties. We want to reach an amicable solution to the issue. As much as Dr. Hart’s interest is in protecting the school district, mine is to protect the interests of the City.”

In summer 2013, the school district will open a $71 million high school and athletic complex on 96 acres outside the city on State Highway 29. But, 14 months out and there is still no final plan for connecting the facility to water or wastewater service. Hart blames the City for delays that he said could soon impact the construction schedule, which would add costs to the project and potentially delay the opening.

“We don’t believe that we’re the cause of any delays,” said De La Rosa. “They have provided us with an incomplete application and through previous applications for service, they have shown that they do have knowledge of how the process works.”

De La Rosa, who was not employed with the City at the time Hart said the application was filed, said city staff searched for evidence of the application and did not find it. But after the district delivered a copy of it Jan. 27, some pages were not included.

In response to an Open Records Request, the City provided The Independent with a blank application packet as a point of reference.It contains a page that provides for a connection fee.

It’s that page that is missing from the district’s current application.

De La Rosa said the school district should have known to submit that page because just one year earlier — January 2010 — it filed an application for wastewater service for the Administration Building. The page was part of that packet, which was also provided to The Independent, and contained a provision for a $4,500 connection fee that was paid.

Hart did not know why the page was missing from the current application, but said the district requested the application form from the City, completed all the pages that were provided and turned them in Feb. 28, 2011. He said Mr. Parks was told by a city employee that staff would contact him further if anything else was required.

The dispute, however, is not just about incomplete application forms. At the heart of the issue is the school district’s disagreement with the City that the City should be both the water and sewer provider to the new school facility.

Hart says it’s about saving taxpayers money. When district officials learned LHISD could save just over $1 million by using Chisholm Trail Special Utility District for water, it made sense to ask Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to release the new school site from the City’s water service area so it could be served by Chisholm Trail.

For sewer service, Hart says it is in the district’s best interest to use the City of Liberty Hill, and he thought things were headed in the right direction until the City Council passed an ordinance that changed the rules.

The Council adopted an ordinance last fall requiring customers seeking wastewater service to also be customers of the water system and be annexed into the city limits.

Hart said he was taken aback by the Council’s action because he had previously met with De La Rosa who assured him that connecting to sewer would not be a problem. Hart said on a different occasion, he got the same assurances from Mayor Michele “Mike” Murphy.

But still he thought the district was exempt from the ordinance because the application had been filed seven months earlier.

“We assumed all was fine because we were doing all the work,” Hart said. “At no point  were we told that our application was not on file, was incomplete or that we needed to pay fees.

“We were meeting regularly with Steger Bizzell (the City’s engineers) on the wastewater project,” Hart said. “We had agreed to pay to upsize the (sewer) line as they requested, and made progress through the summer and early fall.”

Hart said when the contractor for the high school said things were moving more quickly than anticipated, they contacted Jim Cummins with Steger Bizzell and asked for a price so it could be budgeted.

“He (Cummins) said he was ordered to stop working on our project by the City Manager,” Hart said. “That was about a week before they (the Council) passed the ordinance.”

The dispute escalated in mid-December when both parties learned that TCEQ staff had approved the district’s request to be released from the City’s water CCN.

De La Rosa said the City  filed a motion to appeal the staff decision to the Commission Board. He said TCEQ had already set a precedent on such matters and the ruling in LHISD’s favor conflicted with that.

In response, the Liberty Hill school board authorized Hart and district attorneys to do whatever is necessary to fight the appeal, which could take another 45 days.

In addition, the district filed another request with TCEQ to be released from the City’s extended CCN. The City applied for the extension in the midst of the ongoing disagreement between the two entities.

The district’s request will likely be granted because the rules provide an exemption for property that is larger than 25 acres.

While the school district fights to free itself from having to use city water, De La Rosa contends that using the City to provide both wastewater and water makes better sense and believes the City did not get fair consideration.

De La Rosa said the City’s proposal included costs for engineering and consulting fees that were not contained in a plan submitted by Chisholm Trail. He said the school district didn’t compare “apples to apples” before deciding to use Chisholm Trail.

“We designed our specs, and the fire department’s requirements for water supply made it more expensive for the City to deliver it,” Hart said. “The costs of delivery are what we’re talking about and their methods of delivery were different.”

Hart said he didn’t need to put the project out for bids, and added that only a “sliver” of the 96-acre property touches the City’s water CCN.

After talking with engineers for Chisholm Trail, Hart said he was impressed with their plan to deliver water to the site.

“We have been impressed by the costs, their organizational structure and the way they are meeting challenges (for the future),” Hart said.

On the other hand, Hart said he is concerned about the City’s shortage of water.

“The City has no water for anyone,” he said.

However, during drought conditions last summer and fall, Chisholm Trail put water use restrictions in place for area customers just like the Liberty Hill Water Supply Corp., which is now under City control, was forced to do.

Hart said Chisholm Trail’s shortage was different, and is not a concern now.

“Chisholm Trail’s problem was not overall supply. It was its inventory of drinkable (treated) water. While that was happening last summer, the company was building more water treatment facilities that have since come online,” Hart said.

Monday’s Council meeting  

In his letter to De La Rosa on Jan. 27, Hart requested that the water and wastewater issues be added to the City Council’s regular meeting agenda for Monday, Feb. 13.

“Due to the clear disconnect between the District, City officials and the City Council, the District feels that these pressing issues should be discussed as soon as possible,” Hart wrote.

“I do want to address the Council,” Hart told The Independent. “I think it’s important that they hear  from me how all of this came to be.”

It will be the first time Hart has attended a City Council meeting and addressed the panel.

The public discussion comes one month before the filing deadline for Liberty Hill City Council and LHISD Board of Trustees. At press time Wednesday, no one had filed the paperwork required to seek any of the seats on the Council or school board.

“The Board has been with me 100 percent on all of this,” Hart said.

He said he has met privately with some members of the Council and shared his concerns, and believes the conflict can be resolved to the district’s benefit.

“That’s a City and this (the school district) is a community,” Hart said. “We all need to work together.”

In recent weeks, the Council has been divided on the issue of whether to extend the employment contract of De La Rosa — an item that also comes back for consideration next week.

The Liberty Hill City Council took no action this week to extend the employment contract of the City Manager, who in recent months has drawn the fire of some in the business community and some school district officials.

After a 40-minute executive session Tuesday, the Council reconvened in open meeting to act on a motion by Councilman Charles Canady to approve a proposed three-year contract for Manuel De La Rosa at the salary of $86,000 per year.

Identifying himself as the “swing vote” in the decision, Councilman Jack Harkrider said that while he thought De La Rosa is doing a good job, he could not support the proposal because a three-year contract was too long. He was also concerned by a provision that would require the City to buy the remaining time on De La Rosa’s contract should he be fired without cause.

Harkrider said he was seconding Canady’s motion for the sake of opening public discussion.  While no other Council members voiced objections  in the open meeting, Harkrider’s admission that he is the swing vote indicated the panel is split with Canady and Mayor Michele “Mike” Murphy expressing support. Mike Crane and Byron Tippie were silent on the matter. The Mayor cannot vote except to break a tie. Rather than vote on the contract after Harkrider voiced his objections, the Council voted unanimously to table the item until the next regular meeting Feb. 13.

“I don’t feel right about this,” said Harkrider on Tuesday. “My gut tells me that we could work out an agreement with Manny for less years. I will vote against three years and full payout.”

Harkrider, however, was part of the same council that unanimously approved the employment contract of Wendell McLeod, who was hired by the City in July 2011 as water utility operator after the City took over  the Liberty Hill Water Supply Corp.

McLeod was given a three-year contract that provided for a complete buy out of his salary if he had been terminated without cause.

In McLeod’s case, however, he was fired for cause months after his contract was nullified by a Williamson County District Court’s decision to support the merger of the two entities by condemnation.

Harkrider also supported the employment contract of Police Chief Randy Williams.

Williams was awarded a three-year contract in 2011 that contains a provision for up to a six-month buyout should he be terminated without cause before its expiration.

De La Rosa, who said Tuesday he would not negotiate his contract in public, told The Independent on Wednesday that the contract proposed to Council by the Mayor did not contain provisions that were new to the City of Liberty Hill.

“There was nothing in my contract that wasn’t done here before,” he said.

The Mayor said the purpose of offering De La Rosa a longer term contract was to “stabilize the City.”

While announcing his opposition to the terms of De La Rosa’s contract, Harkrider said that he plans to seek re-election to the Council although he was told that “if I vote yes (on the contract), I will have someone run against me.”

“The only people who want to see him (De La Rosa) out are those who don’t live in the city and want to see things done their way,” Mayor Murphy responded.

Harkrider said De La Rosa had “saved the City” and united a city council that was “split like crazy. He’s pulled it together and started moving us ahead. I strongly support Manny (De La Rosa) and I don’t want to see us lose him.”

Council members Tippie and Crane were not present for last week’s regular meeting where the item was posted for consideration. That meeting was not convened for lack of a quorum.

At the time, De La Rosa said a special meeting would not be called and the items could wait until Feb. 13. However, days later, the decision was made to call the special meeting for Tuesday because some items could not wait.

In addition to the discussion about the Manager’s contract, the Council took no action on most of the other reposted items Tuesday.

Those items included a discussion on looking into possible exemptions of ad valorem taxes for city residents age 65 or older. Mayor Murphy proposed that city staff look into the impact to City coffers.

The Council also discussed, but took no action on amending the Fire Code to allow outdoor burning of brush piles. State law prohibits burning inside the city limits.

De La Rosa also informed the Council that he would be developing an outdoor watering policy for city water customers and asked for input from Council members.

He said the City might consider options for customers who are raising vegetable gardens, possibly allowing them to water by hand.

He said converting the water from the City’s well at City Park into potable or drinking water is also being considered. He said plans to add a playscape to the park and other amentities will require the use of potable water.

“We should also look at putting a higher price on big (water) users,” added Mayor Murphy. “We have users just dumping it on the ground and we can’t afford it in any way. A lot of people are growing their own food and that’s a legitimate use.”

The Council did adopt a resolution that establishes procedures to aid in monitoring the tax-exempt status of bonds and meet IRS requirements.

Also Tuesday, the Council heard from Planning & Zoning Commissioner Wes Griffin, who distributed a statement about his ethics, which he said were founded in his belief in God.

In recent months, the Council has questioned whether Griffin and other appointees are in compliance with the City’s Code of Ethics and Conduct.