Bell County approves consent agenda, final plat for Buckmaster Acres and IBM maintenance renewal

Bell County Commissioners Court on March 17, 2025 approved a consent agenda containing multiple administrative items, voted to accept the final plat for Buckmaster Acres in Precinct 3 and renewed an IBM maintenance contract for $55,807.32.

The consent agenda, moved by Commissioner Woodson and seconded by Commissioner Reynolds, passed by voice vote with commissioners saying "aye" and no recorded opposition. Items listed on the consent agenda included approval of the court minutes for the March 10, 2025 meeting; payroll and accounts-payable items; and several personnel appointments to the Bell County Animal Shelter Advisory Board recommended by the Bell County Sheriff’s Office: Dr. Gina Jensen, Sergeant Dustin Pinnell, Pam Phillips, Annika Negu and Ron Iskarmi. The court also ratified two resolutions authorizing submission of community project funding applications — one for $15,740,000 (no local match specified) for road and bridge infrastructure improvements and another for $6,800,000 (no local match specified) for Chaparral Road infrastructure improvements. The court additionally authorized the county judge to enter a local agreement among Bell County, the City of Killeen and the City of Temple for a 2024 Justice Assistance Grant Program award that includes $23,013.45 from the City of Killeen to Bell County, and approved a county right-of-way dedication on Wyndes Parkway to Turnbull Residential Ranch Residential Community, Inc.

The court approved a final plat for Buckmaster Acres, a 7.985-acre, one-lot subdivision in Precinct 3. County staff said the property owner is Janet Henry Buckmaster, the lot has a 25-foot building setback line and the developer dedicated 60 feet of frontage right of way along Shortcut Road; the plat carries a Little Elm Valley water-supply certificate. The motion to approve the plat was made by Commissioner Reynolds and carried by voice vote; a second was recorded but the transcript does not specify the seconding commissioner.

Separately, the court approved a contract renewal for IBM maintenance through Saris Computer Solutions/CDW (DIRCPO 52 27) in the amount of $55,807.32 for the county’s IBM backup hardware and software licenses. Adam (county tech staff) told the court the county has used the IBM platform for about 30 years and that the renewal reflects an effort to stand down one of two active environments while retaining essential services; staff said a multi-year migration off the platform is planned over roughly two years. Commissioner comments noted concern about rising technology costs in the face of revenue limits.

Also on the consent agenda: authorization for the county judge to terminate a contract with LNP Global Security for security at the Bell County Diversion Center; authorization to add two deputy positions related to diversion-center security; a reclassification in Technology Services from a "program analyst 3" to a "business analyst 2" with an annual increase of $15,884; and a reclassification in the county auditor’s office from an "annual position specialist" to an "accounting assistant" with no budget increase specified.

Votes at a glance - Consent agenda: motion by Commissioner Woodson; second Commissioner Reynolds; outcome: approved (voice vote: ayes, no recorded nays or abstentions). - Final plat, Buckmaster Acres (7.985 acres, 1 lot, Precinct 3): motion by Commissioner Reynolds; second not specified in transcript; outcome: approved (voice vote). - IBM maintenance renewal (Saris Computer Solutions/CDW, DIRCPO 52 27): motion by Commissioner Whitson; second by Commissioner Schneider; outcome: approved (voice vote).

No roll-call tallies were provided in the transcript for these recorded approvals; the court used voice votes and the record shows unanimous "ayes" on the items as announced.

Ending: The court concluded the regular meeting and planned to reconvene for a workshop in about five minutes.