Lago Vista approves master interlocal agreement with Texas State University for consulting services

The Lago Vista City Council on a unanimous vote authorized a master services interlocal agreement (ILA) with Texas State University that will let the city issue project task orders — for example, to review budgeting tools or development‑services workflows — without negotiating a new contract for each engagement.

Councilmember Owen said the city is “in the midst of needing to upgrade systems and such in order to support our staff,” and she led the motion to approve the ILA. Rebecca Davio, director with Texas State’s Institute for Government and Innovation, told council the master agreement “is to be very generic and simply spell out the contractual terms,” with any specific work, schedule and cost defined later in separate task orders.

Why it matters: The agreement gives Lago Vista a standing contractual vehicle so staff can quickly hire university experts or student teams for short projects (for example, process improvement, checklists or initial due‑diligence studies) without starting a full procurement for each small engagement. Council members said they expect to use task orders selectively and to review any task orders that carry cost before they are executed.

What council approved: The ILA itself carries no immediate cost; the city approved the master contract and authorized staff to negotiate task orders as needed. Councilmembers clarified they did not intend to start every task order immediately — several members said the first task order could be a modest scope around finance and budgeting as a pilot, and any task order that requires spending would return to council for appropriation or budget approval as required.

How it will work: Davio explained the master agreement sets common contract terms (invoicing, payment, liability and administrative items) and that each project will come with its own statement of work, timeline and cost. Council members asked staff to add a short sentence describing the broad purpose of the agreement (for example, “to enhance local government operations and efficiency”) before the city manager executes the contract.

Other council action tied to the ILA: On the same agenda, council created a three‑member finance subcommittee (Councilmembers Owen, Roberts and Durbin) to work with staff during the fiscal transition and to expedite review of near‑term finance items as the city hires a new finance director. Council also requested periodic written fleet and finance status updates be provided at budget time.

Votes at a glance: The meeting recorded several formal votes. Key outcomes included: the master interlocal agreement with Texas State University (approved); formation of a finance subcommittee to support financial reporting and planning during transition (approved); adoption of a police fleet lease program for six vehicles in year one (approved 5–1); formal acceptance of public infrastructure in Firefly Cove phases 1A and 1B (approved); conveyance of a city right of way on Park Drive to the Lago Vista Property Owners Association (ordinance adopted); a budget amendment to replace a failing air‑conditioning unit at City Hall (ordinance adopted); and a procedural repeal/change to the city’s official‑newspaper resolution (approved). Several agenda items were tabled for later meetings per council direction.

What council members said: Several members voiced support for the agreement as a way to get technical help quickly; others asked for clear limits so task orders are reviewed for cost and scope before money is spent. Councilmember Benfield said the ILA could be a low‑cost way to get checklists or customer‑experience fixes for development services; Councilmember Prince and others emphasized the value of giving staff the tools to move projects forward while protecting budgetary oversight.

Next steps: City staff will finalize the master ILA language per council direction, add the brief purpose wording requested by the city attorney, and return any task orders that require funding or appropriation for council approval. The finance subcommittee will convene and report back as budget work continues.

Ending: The agreement is intentionally broad; specific projects and costs will be defined by future task orders and by the city’s normal budgeting process.