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Council gives
green light for townhouse development
By Pearl Cantrell
Monitor Staff Writer
GUN BARREL CITY–The Gun Barrel City Council unanimously rezoned acreage
on a causeway island across from Tom Finley Park at he city’s western
border to make room for a mixed-use townhouse development.
“This would be a very fast project with 20 - 30 units ready by July,”
project developer Chris Ganter of Ganter Development told the council
Tuesday.
The 50-unit development is 50 percent presold, he added with contracts
to buy in place.
“We’re ready to move as fast as the city is ready,” he said.
Townhouses will range in price from $299,000 to $450,000, he said. The
project would also include about 38 boat slips and include egress and
acceleration lanes onto State Highway 334.
The projects will compliment a second retail/hotel/apartment project
across the highway on 10 acres abutting the Beijing Restaurant, he said.
Ganter claimed to have constructed 15 similar projects in Texas with
great success.
An agreement between West and East Cedar Creek utility districts is in
its final stages, line testing is yet to be done and then the Texas
Commission on Environmental Quality will have to review and approve the
agreement.
At a normal pace, this process could take a year, The Monitor learned.
Currently, the agreement is in the hands of the WCCMUD attorney, The
Monitor was told.
The council also approved a special-use permit for a tattoo clinic to be
located at 114 S. Old Gun Barrel Lane, Suite 6.
Veronica Lamb assured the council of the cleanliness of the operation,
privacy and all tattoos being in books, for those over 21 and another
for those 18-20 years old.
The motion passed with councilwoman Patsy Black opposed.
In other business, the council:
• appropriated up to $3,000 to plant and maintain 50 trees along Main
Street from the Contingency Fund.
Dave Pinkas has generously donated 50 crepe myrtles for the project and
also 150 other trees for planting at the Justice Center and city park.
GBC Beautification Committee president Helayne Wendel explained the
project, and showed a small picket sign designating the project to the
committee. A sign is already posted at city hall, where the committee
has cleaned and planted the landscape there.
• appointed Fred Kurlander of Solar Screens on State Highway 198 as a
member of the Planning and Zoning Commission, with a term to expire
October, 2010. Kurlander’s appointment makes six commissioners and one
more slot to be filled.
• tabled finalization of a 3 x 8-inch tourism tract for distribution at
state entry points.
The council wants to review further choices for photos featuring
activity along or on Cedar Creek Lake. The public is invited to make
submissions of vertical photos to the city manager at gboren@gunbarrel
city.net by Tuesday, April 15, for consideration.
• authorized up to $22,000 from the Hotel-Motel Fund in connection with
the July 4th Festival.
Councilman Marty Goss outlined plans for 52 free booths, with school
fund-raisers the only ones allowed to sell food and beverage, two bands,
picnicking and a 20-minute fireworks show from 5 - 11 p.m. Friday, July
4.
Much discussion pertaining to the narrowly defined use of Hotel-Motel
funds.
“It (the expenses) will fall within the guidelines, or it won’t be
spent. Everything will be up front and legal, or it won’t be done,” Goss
said. Ray
Nutt wins runoffRay Nutt wins runoff
By Michael V. Hannigan
The News Staff
ATHENS–Ray Nutt will be the Republican nominee for Henderson County
sheriff in the November general election following Tuesday night’s
decisive run-off win.
Nutt soundly defeated Assistant Chief Deputy Tony Allison 1,492 to 820,
or 64.5 percent to 35.5 percent.
The runoff became necessary when no candidate gained at least 50 percent
of the vote in the March 4 primary.
At that time, Nutt led all candidates with 46.9 percent of the vote,
with Allison trailing with 27.2 percent. A third candidate, Mitch Baker,
received 25.7 percent of the vote and was eliminated from the race.
Nutt will face Democrat Bill Casey in November.
Nutt is a former Texas Ranger.
He came to Henderson County in 1988 and made it his home, later serving
as an investigator in the District Attorney’s Office and with the
sheriff’s department.
Allison has been with the sheriff’s department since 1990. He became
jail administrator in 1993 and was promoted to his current position in
2001.
Allison had the endorsement of retiring Sheriff Ronny Brownlow and his
predecessor, H.B. “Slick” Alfred.
Democrats also went to the polls Tuesday, but not nearly in the same
numbers.
In the Railroad Commissioner run-off, 126 voters turned out and gave
Dale Henry a four-vote win over Mark Thompson, 65-61.
Ray Nutt
MHS students honored for attendance, TAKS test efforts
Monitor Photo/Kerry Yancey
More than 100 Mabank High School students were honored with
gifts Tuesday for perfect attendance (52) or major improvements
on their math and/or science scores on the TAKS test. “You’ve
made great progress and effort,” high school principal Dr. Tommy
Wallis told the gathering. More than 85 percent of this year’s
senior class are attending college or other type of higher education.
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