[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6426451,"mediaKeyId","5897057-007b032e1532565496817f748743b3de","parentId",5897057,"title","City Council approves volunteer fire department MOU, awards golf-course contract and approves municipal prosecutor; declines appraisal-board nominations","audioSeconds",39,"startMs",3539000,"endMs",3578000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5897057-007b032e1532565496817f748743b3de&start=3539&end=3578","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5897057-007b032e1532565496817f748743b3de/thumbnail_3539000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6426451/Texas/City-Council-approves-volunteer-fire-department-MOU-awards-golf-course-contract-and-approves-municipal-prosecutor-declines-appraisal-board-nominations","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6426451-d2c64c68665a7cbe0e156a36ec266e51/orig.mp4?Expires=1771139889&Signature=EiMNEIhNNKRDvPMC1iieh~FkQZyPrvsLtfK9zO4sD1tEyUrARsBifFAv71cwKugqpBfqaVxisHmWUcRklyqhz8GMh~nVG0LoSqA9~nryHVEfyqEWX1WuKJIij28Cm7acQkXaJlq4PeJ85uwVy-DEVWa5nvt1B~tCEh28ejhRQooUeTU~s7U1eYM57b8E1mEn5-hqRSK-v5TPE8vEBuftj-LzMBwfIpaxFW2lxq4Lf0sQo9H5Ji4h9fxNXiXLLAY0aTg4v-6TSAQckpygE~ocJ0s~fRoaWZS4bwCdrOU5nh~pJ78Jd0JUN060QZOpJ0EG88wx9CwsCeSyMEIWb7D9Ng__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Lake Jackson","date","2025-10-06T00:00:00Z","article","The City of Lake Jackson City Council took several formal actions on Oct. 6, approving an updated memorandum of understanding with the Lake Jackson Volunteer Fire Department and authorizing contracts and awards for a municipal prosecutor and a golf-course repair project. The council also declined to nominate candidates for the county appraisal district administrative board and voted to nominate a regional director for the Texas Municipal League.

Why this matters: The MOU documents a long-standing operating relationship with volunteer firefighters and clarifies expectations and reporting obligations; the contractual approvals commit city funds and vendor arrangements; the prosecutor contract covers the city's municipal-court legal operations.

Volunteer fire department MOU
City staff presented a memorandum of understanding intended to record the roles and expectations between the City of Lake Jackson and the Lake Jackson Volunteer Fire Department. \"We finally have an agreement, which, I believe we never had an agreement for last, almost 80 plus year,\" a city staff member said while presenting the item. The fire chief said the department had reviewed the document and had no problems with the text.

Council and the fire chief discussed a proposed change to paragraph 6.1.3, which governs reporting of allegations; council asked staff to add a requirement that allegations be reported to the city manager's office within five business days. With that change included, Councilwoman Seth moved to authorize the city manager to sign the agreement; Councilman Baker seconded. The motion carried unanimously.

Golf-course bunker repairs
The council awarded the bid for bunker repairs at the Wilderness Golf Course to RGR Golf Services LLC. Staff said RGR was selected because it had verifiable golf-course experience relevant to the scope. Councilman Sennahania moved to award the contract to RGR Golf Services LLC for $347,386; Councilman Buell seconded. The motion carried.

Appraisal board nominations
For a county-level appraisal board (administrative board that oversees appointment of a chief appraiser), the council declined to nominate any candidates. A motion to decline nominations passed unanimously.

Texas Municipal League region director
The council cast its vote to nominate Sally Branson for the TML Region 14 director position. The motion was seconded and carried unanimously.

Municipal court prosecutor contract
Council approved a contract authorizing payment not to exceed $47,800 for a municipal court prosecutor, with authority to renew for three rolling one-year terms and to include a cost-of-living adjustment. Council members praised the prosecutor's work. The motion to authorize the city manager to execute that contract passed unanimously.

Votes at a glance:
- Memorandum of Understanding with Lake Jackson Volunteer Fire Department (Item 2): approved; motion by Councilwoman Seth, second by Councilman Baker; amendment to require reporting within five business days; outcome: approved.
- Wilderness Golf Course bunker repairs contract to RGR Golf Services LLC (Item 3): approved; motion by Councilman Sennahania, second by Councilman Buell; contract amount: $347,386; outcome: approved.
- Resolution to nominate candidates for the county appraisal administrative board (Item 4): council declined to nominate any candidates; motion approved unanimously.
- TML Region 14 director nomination (Item 5): council nominated Sally Branson; motion approved unanimously.
- Municipal court prosecutor contract authorization (Item 6): authorized; contract not to exceed $47,800 with renewal and COLA provisions; outcome: approved.

What happens next: The MOU will be signed by the city manager with the five-business-day reporting amendment. The awarded golf-course contract will proceed to execution and construction scheduling, and the prosecutor contract will be executed under the terms approved by council. The appraisal-board nomination will not be forwarded because the council declined to nominate candidates; the TML nomination will be sent per association procedure.

The council recorded the votes in open session; staff will update contract files and post final signed documents where required by city procedures.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","City Council","oneSentenceSummary","At its Oct. 6 meeting the City of Lake Jackson City Council unanimously approved a memorandum of understanding with the Lake Jackson Volunteer Fire Department, awarded a golf-course bunker repair contract, authorized a municipal court prosecutor contract, elected a TML regional director nominee and declined to nominate candidates to the county App ","taxTitle","City of Lake Jackson, Brazoria County, Texas","taxId",3533,"location","Texas","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6426456,"Lake Jackson residents press council over stalled Sleepy Hollow road repairs, ask for traffic study and safety measures",3655,147000,3802000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5897057-007b032e1532565496817f748743b3de&start=147&end=3802","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5897057-007b032e1532565496817f748743b3de/thumbnail_147000.jpg","/articles/6426456/Texas/Lake-Jackson-residents-press-council-over-stalled-Sleepy-Hollow-road-repairs-ask-for-traffic-study-and-safety-measures","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6426456-eca387a50cee6943abf76048d0359ebc/orig.mp4?Expires=1771139889&Signature=gy5ShPFKpxgpxnBKDSN3UmzA9RdgZg6V2PRst4xKShEdxExuAnkNu3p5eqDYhAMuD96rXcdSundTWGRX88O-wsO3J-F83iJ-qOydyUJXKIg66YmWNKAv2oZmOIRiP4DF3m8V1LkMre4oJchCdvyfixYUbb9ScI9fI-z1G2ESGXfJ9ymluu4mU-P-lEY4egZhfOOZg26~aCWjsN868jKKZ98hXS6imE7SLzMyApjHA3Jhb7cnZL8pL4VCXMcV841xjIG60pDARhU0qtxXi4l2MYocOpUQebuPxED22YjPKj8uOzH6y2ZGSe5AwJvlV4b7YdhyXAbvtJXqjCkH9~2tCw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Joseph Ham, a Sleepy Hollow resident, told the City of Lake Jackson City Council on Oct. 6 that deteriorating pavement and patchwork repairs in the Sleepy Hollow subdivision have created safety hazards and that the neighborhood has been misled about the schedule for reconstruction.

\"This bond was approved by voters back in 2021 and funds have long been available,\" Ham said. \"After 4 years since the bond was passed, the fact that construction won't even begin until next spring is unacceptable.\" He showed council members photographs of large potholes and patched sections he said leave children at risk when biking in the neighborhood.

The concern came during discussion of the Sleepy Hollow Reconstruction Project, a bond-funded street repair program that residents said has repeatedly been described to them as close to completion even though major steps — bidding and contractor selection — were not completed. The neighborhood's petition asked the council to accelerate work and provide clearer public updates.

Why this matters: residents said the potholes and uneven road grades are causing falls and vehicle damage, and they warned that continued delays could increase liability and repair costs. Several speakers emphasized that children no longer ride bikes in the area because of the road conditions.

Haley McGrady, who identified herself as living at 113 Sleepy Hollow, said the conditions have harmed her children. \"It's not safe to do that anymore,\" McGrady said. \"I don't let them ride their bikes anymore around the neighborhood. It's not safe.\" Resident Terry Berry asked the city to inspect erosion around his property at 309 Van Winkle.

City officials and council members described technical and scheduling reasons for the delay. The mayor explained the project requires a full engineering approach — curb, base preparation and a chemical base treatment the city has investigated — and noted the city sold the debt for the project's second phase in December 2023 and hired the engineering firm in March 2024. \"We hired the engineering firm in March 2024. So that's the start date,\" the mayor said in response to public questions about when work began.

Staff and council acknowledged the job is behind the hoped-for schedule. The mayor said the city will try to accelerate work where feasible but cautioned that speeding up contract timelines often raises costs. He described a recently posted bond-tracker web page intended to give residents a running account of bond expenditures and schedules.

On traffic-safety requests, the council agreed to a multi-step response: conduct a neighborhood survey, ask the Traffic Commission to review the Sleepy Hollow area for a possible reduction from the current 30 miles-per-hour limit and to consider speed bumps and other traffic-calming measures if the commission's criteria are met. The mayor said the city must document why a neighborhood should get a 20 mph limit before that change could be extended elsewhere in Lake Jackson.

Council members also asked staff to inspect the erosion report at 309 Van Winkle and to consider targeted code enforcement for parking issues residents flagged. Several council members encouraged residents to participate in the survey once it is released; staff said a short delay was possible because the staff member who runs surveys is temporarily out.

The city emphasized that Sleepy Hollow's planned work is a full-engineering reconstruction; staff said the chosen approach uses curbing and a treated base intended to reduce the sloughing that has affected other local resurfacing efforts. Officials said some schedule slippage resulted from switching engineering firms and from additional testing required for the chemical base treatment.

The city did not set a new, firm construction start date at the meeting; staff said the earliest realistic start would be after the current bidding process is complete and following contractor award and bonding steps.

Residents were encouraged to leave contact information if they wished to be notified when the Traffic Commission considers the item and to attend commission meetings. The mayor asked council to keep the bond tracker updated so the neighborhood can see schedule changes.

The council did not take a formal vote on policy changes at the meeting; instead it directed staff to survey the neighborhood, forward the traffic request to the Traffic Commission, inspect erosion complaints, and pursue code enforcement as appropriate.","Residents of the Sleepy Hollow subdivision told the City of Lake Jackson City Council that potholes and failing roadway grades have made streets unsafe for children and cyclists, criticized perceived delays in a bond-funded reconstruction project, and asked the council to seek a lower speed limit, traffic calming and immediate inspections.","actionData","errors"]

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City Council approves volunteer fire department MOU, awards golf-course contract and approves municipal prosecutor; declines appraisal-board nominations

Lake Jackson residents press council over stalled Sleepy Hollow road repairs, ask for traffic study and safety measures