City Council

AGENDA REGULAR MEETING HELOTES CITY COUNCIL June 22, 2023 7:00 p.m. The City of Helotes City Council will meet for a Regular Meeting on Thursday, June 22, 2023, at 7:00 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers, 12951 Bandera Road, Helotes, Texas 78023. Council Members may participate remotely by videoconferencing; however, a physical quorum of the City Council shall be present at Helotes City Hall. This is an open meeting, subject to the open meeting laws of the State of Texas. 1. Call to order. • Invocation. • Pledge of Allegiance. RECOGNITION: 2. Civic Award presented to the following in recognition of their public service on the City of Helotes Planning & Zoning Commission: • Ron Hozza, 23 years of public service; • Jeff Wade, 8 years of public service; and • Mario Rios; 7 years of public service. OPEN SESSION: 3. Citizens to be Heard. The City Council shall not discuss any presented issue, nor may any action be taken on any issue at this time (Attorney General Opinion JC-0169). The Council will accept comments from citizens, business owners, business representative’s, property owners, and representatives of property owners of the City of Helotes and its Extraterritorial Jurisdiction (ETJ) only. Comments are limited to three (3) minutes and this time is not transferable. Each person may only speak once. No profanity or threats will be tolerated. NOTICE OF ASSISTANCE AT THE PUBLIC MEETING The City of Helotes City Hall is wheelchair accessible, and accessible parking spaces are available. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the City of Helotes will provide reasonable accommodations for persons attending the meeting. To better serve you, requests should be received seventy-two (72) hours prior to the meeting. For assistance, contact the City Secretary at 210.695.5911. City Council Regular Meeting June 22, 2023 CONSENT AGENDA (ITEM NO. 4): All Consent Agenda items listed below are considered routine by City Staff and are intended to be enacted by one motion. There will be no separate discussion of these items, unless a Councilmember requests it, in which event the item will be removed from the Consent Agenda and considered in its normal sequence on the Agenda. 4. Approval of the minutes of the Regular Meeting dated June 8, 2023. (Staff) - Agenda Item MAYOR’S REPORT: 5. Updates on the following: • TxDOT improvements; • Water quality permit application for the Guajolote Ranch Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP); and • Reminder of the Helotes Independence Day Celebration & Fireworks event on Monday, July 3 at the Helotes Festival Fairgrounds. ITEMS FOR INDIVIDUAL CONSIDERATION: 6. Discussion of and action on the following appointments/*reappointments to the Ethics Commission, all to serve concurrently with the corresponding council member’s term: • Council Member Cato nominee – Maggie Scheuneman, Pl. 3, term expiring May 2025; • *Council Member Merchant reappointment – Derek Mathis, Pl. 5, term expiring May 2025; • *Mayor Whitehead reappointment – Jesse Saldana, Pl. 6, term expiring May 2025; and • *Mayor Whitehead reappointment – Robert Hoeppner, Pl. 7, term expiring May 2025. (City Council) - Agenda Item 7. Discussion of and action on a Resolution of the City Council of the City of Helotes, Texas authorizing the execution of a Contingent Fee Contract between the City of Helotes and Linebarger, Goggan, Blair, & Sampson, L.L.P. for the collection of delinquent property taxes owed to the city; approving Extension No. 2 for a period of five (5) years beginning on July 1, 2023, and expiring on June 30, 2028; and authorizing the Mayor to execute said extension. (Staff) - Agenda Item 8. Discussion of and information on the maintenance of the existing sign that identifies the Old Town Helotes Special District, located on S.H. 16. (Staff) - Agenda Item Adjourn meeting. Page 2 of 4 City Council Regular Meeting June 22, 2023 The City Council reserves the right to adjourn into Closed Session at any time during the course of this meeting to discuss any of the exceptions to the requirement that a meeting be open to the public, in accordance with Texas Government Code, Chapter 551 Open Meetings, Subchapter D Exceptions to Requirement that Meetings be Open. No action may be taken in Closed Session. ______________________________ Rich Whitehead, Mayor I certify that this Agenda was posted on June 16, 2023, at 4:15 p.m. __________________________ Celina Perez, City Secretary Page 3 of 4 City Council Regular Meeting June 22, 2023 NOTICE OF A PUBLIC MEETING Notice is hereby given pursuant to Texas Government Code Section 2254.1036 that a meeting of the City of Helotes will be held on June 22, 2023 at 7:00 PM in the City Hall Council Chambers, 12951 Bandera Road, Helotes, Texas 78023. for the purpose of considering and taking action on all matters on the agenda for the meeting, including approval of an agreement with the law firm of Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson, LLP as special counsel to perform all legal services necessary to collect delinquent property taxes and authorizing the execution of such agreement. The agreement to be considered is necessary for the delinquent taxes owed to the City of Helotes to be collected in the most effective manner. The City of Helotes desires that such delinquent tax, penalties and interest be collected as provided in the Texas Tax Code. The Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson, LLP firm is fully qualified to provide this representation, being the largest delinquent tax collection law firm in the State of Texas, as well as the United States and having been engaged in this specialized legal service for more than forty years. In addition, the Linebarger Goggan Blair and Sampson, LLP firm possesses infrastructure and technology, such as call center technology, that the City does not currently possess. Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson, LLP has represented the City of Helotes for the past ten years with competence and professionalism, in the collection of delinquent property taxes, beginning in 2013. The specialized legal services required by this agreement cannot be adequately performed by the attorneys and supporting personnel of the City of Helotes due to the high cost of implementing the appropriate infrastructure and technology and employing sufficient in- house attorneys and staff with the level of experience and competence necessary to perform these activities. Linebarger will be compensated on a contingent fee basis as provided in the Texas Tax Code Sections 6.30, 33.07, 33.08, 33.11, and 33.48. These Texas Tax Code sections specifically provide for an additional penalty on delinquent taxes to compensate collection attorneys. A contract to pay inside or outside attorneys on an hourly basis would represent an additional cost to the City. Entering into the proposed agreement is in the best interests of the residents of the City of Helotes because the delinquent taxes will be professionally and competently collected without the additional costs to the District of implementing infrastructure and technology, and employing in- house personnel or paying outside counsel on an hourly fee basis which would otherwise be required. Page 4 of 4