Mineral Wells Area News

The Mineral Wells City Council received a favorable audit report and welcomed a new economic development official during its regular meeting on April 1.

“I’d like to introduce our new Deputy Director for the Economic Development Corporation, David Miller,” said Nathan Dyer, Economic Development Director. “David Miller comes to us from Breckenridge EDC. Prior to that, he worked in Graham under their EDC and has worked in the real estate industry for over 10 years now.”

Miller briefly addressed the council, saying, “I just want to put a face to the name that I’m here serving Mineral Wells. And if you’ve got questions or concerns or anything, you can always holler at me.”

The council unanimously approved the fiscal year 2023-2024 annual financial report presented by Mischal Majewski from Patillo, Brown, and Hill LLC.

“We were able to issue a clean opinion, an unmodified opinion in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards and government auditing standards,” Majewski told council members.

She highlighted the general fund’s unassigned fund balance of $5.2 million, “which equates to roughly about three and a half months worth of general operating expenditures in the general fund.”

City Manager Jason Weeks noted that with assigned funds for the subsequent year’s budget, the city has “over 48% of your fund balance.” However, he cautioned that some expenses in the budget are recurring costs.

“As we go through the budget process, generally you use fund balance for one-time cost items, not for reoccurring, because fund balance is not reoccurring,” Weeks said.

The council also administered the oath of office to Michael Rankin for City Council Ward 4.

Mayor Regan Johnson issued a proclamation declaring April 2025 as Child Abuse Prevention Month and April 4 as Go Blue Day in Mineral Wells.

“Whereas the Children’s Alliance Center for Palo Pinto County, the Court Appointed Special Advocates, CASA, and the Palo Pinto County Child Welfare Board invite all residents and businesses to participate in Go Blue Day on April 4th, 2025 as they seek safety, justice, and healing for the children of our community,” Johnson read from the proclamation.

Representatives from the Children’s Alliance Center, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), and the Palo Pinto County Child Welfare Board addressed the council about their services.

“We are a children’s advocacy center, so we do forensic interviews on children who meet our protocol of either sexual abuse or physical abuse to a criminal level,” said Cherie Patterson, Children’s Alliance Center Executive Director.

Connie Ball, president of the Palo Pinto County Child Welfare Board, noted their work has helped reduce the number of children in foster care. “We have gone from having as many as 190 kids in foster care from Palo Pinto County down to 42,” she said.

Monica Riedlinger, CASA program director, highlighted their critical need for volunteers. “We have 30 kiddos that we serve from Palo Pinto County with only five volunteers from our community,” she said.

In other business, the council approved recommendations for professional services related to the Texas Water Development Board revolving loan fund, including Bond Council with McCall, Parkhurst, and Horton, HDR for engineering, and Hilltop Securities as financial advisors.

The city continues to follow the application process for forgivable loans they have qualified to apply for and could potentially receive funding for the construction of a new water treatment facility.

The council also approved a contract for land donated by the Crazy Water Hotel, which contains a dog park facility built by a Leadership Mineral Wells Class through crowdfunding efforts. The agreement incorporates maintenance requirements with Envision Mineral Wells and Friends of the Dog Park nonprofit.

Additionally, council members authorized City Manager Weeks to proceed with a no-fee agreement with Terracon Consultants to apply for EPA brownfield grants.

“What we believe is we’re a very safe company. We put safety first. Our clients are our neighbors,” said Len Dial, Terracon’s regional brownfields manager. “We would donate our time to the city to get an application put together for EPA brownfield funds.”

Dial explained that brownfields are properties where development is hindered by possible environmental contamination. “It’s basically just any real property that has the presence or potential presence for contaminants,” Dial said, noting examples like asbestos in buildings, underground storage tanks at old gas stations, and industrial properties.

After driving around Mineral Wells several times, Dial observed that the city “has just about as many as anybody” when it comes to potential brownfield sites. “It’s certainly something you guys can help address with these brownfield funds,” he added.

Dial noted that such grants have historically had a success rate of over 70% with their company, compared to the national average of about 32%.

Following an executive session, the council voted to approve a drainage fee refund to customers in the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) who had been overcharged as ratepayers. Council member Kyle Kelly noted, “This refund only impacts city water customers who live outside of the city jurisdiction.” The City is expected to release more information soon regarding the refund process.

The council also appointed Scott Elder to serve as President of the Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ) #2 board.