HENDERSON COUNTY–Henderson County Commissioners’ Court voted May 13 to award a bid related to what the county auditor called an “emergency situation” at the county’s Judicial Complex at 109 W. Corsicana St. in Athens, where an air conditioning unit has failed.
The action item called for considering proposals for HVAC repair/replacement at the complex. There were three vendor bids concerning this unit, stated County Judge Wade McKinney. “We currently have a major bid out for these, but this unit fell apart on us quicker,” he remarked.
County Auditor Ann Marie Monk called it an “emergency situation” requiring an emergency purchase. Of the three bids, Top Notch Heating & Air of Athens was the low bidder at $8,146.98, which was approved. In addition, McKinney confirmed the county is receiving a five-year warranty. Precinct 4 Commissioner Mark Richardson asked whether the brand name of the unit met standard, to which McKinney replied that the county’s maintenance department had vetted the unit’s quality, saying “they feel very comfortable with it.”
Also, after a public hearing, the court voted to set a speed limit of 35 mph on County Road 3713, located in Precinct 3 northeast of Athens. Teresa Day, who lives along that road and who said she was speaking on behalf of an incapacitated neighbor, reported that the neighbor had nearly been run over by a speeding driver while getting mail from her mailbox, a scenario which Day said had happened to her, too.
“Our road is very narrow, it’s only about a mile long. It’s straight but it is hilly, so you can’t see traffic that easily coming at you,” Day testified. She reported that she often mows her yard and the road’s ditches, “so I see a lot of traffic. Most often I see a lady on her horse, school bus, FedEx, UPS, trash and the mail person. I also see my neighbor right across the street from my house, who is blind. He crosses the road all the way, I don’t cross, but he has to, he’s got his white cane. He does that to get his mail, to put his trash out, and it scares me.” Day also reported “slow-moving” tractors, but with the growth in population, “the speeding is becoming a big, big concern,” she said.
In addition, Precinct 3 Commissioner Chuck McHam said there’s a motorcross racetrack along the road. “I believe a 35 mph speed limit is warranted on this road,” McHam said. The court agreed unanimously to set the speed limit at 35 mph.
In other business, the court:
• Approved a right-of-way permit for Brightspeed to install fiber-optic cable within the Indian Harbor subdivision, located in Precinct 2, along Cheyenne Trail, Comanche Drive, Apache Drive, Indian Harbor Drive, Creek Drive, Aztec Drive, Hopi Trail, Inca Drive, Choctaw Drive and west of Enchanted Oaks Drive.
• Approved a right-of-way permit near Cherokee Shores Drive, Chisholm Trail, Woodside Drive, Running Brook Drive, Pecos Drive, Mustang Drive, Thrush Road, Longhorn Road, Zuni Street, Chickasaw Drive, Sudan Circle, Shawnee Circle, Fargo Road, Deer Park Loop, Red Bluff Loop, Chillacothe Trail, Double Bridge Road, Lake Arrowhead Drive, Huntoon Trail, Little River Bend, Apache Drive, Inca Trail, Quanah Road, Palo Pinto Pass, Tejas Bend, Taos Drive, Navaho Drive, Dakota Drive and Cedar Trail, all located within the Cherokee Shores subdivision and located in Precinct 2.
• Approved paying fiscal year 2025 bills of $460,082.96.
• Approved the final plat of the Parker subdivision, creating three equal lots created from three acres upon which single-family homes are planned to be built, located in Precinct 2.
• Approved the final plat of the Frosch addition located along County Road 2813, which is in Precinct 2, creating three lots.
• Approved the evaluations ranking of architectural services requests for qualifications for the planned county elections building on East Larkin Street in Athens as well as a drive-through building, putting GLS as first, TSK Architects second and Level 5 Architecture third.