The Cleburne City Council unanimously approved a set of zoning, infrastructure and technology measures and accepted a state cybersecurity grant during its regular meeting tonight.

The council passed an ordinance amending City Code Title 15, Chapter 155 to change residential and nonresidential fencing and screening requirements, approved a professional services agreement for design and construction oversight of the Lake Marty Loop 16-inch water transmission main improvements, authorized multi-year licensing and implementation agreements for the CityWorks enterprise asset-management platform, accepted a $25,200 state grant for SCADA cybersecurity assessment services and adopted a related budget amendment to spend the award. The council also approved the consent agenda, which included several property and contract resolutions.

The fence-code change removes the existing 10-foot separation requirement between parallel fences and consolidates related standards into a single section of the zoning code, a move staff said will reduce pseudo-alleyways and maintenance challenges. Planning staff member Navarroz told council that the proposal "remove[s] the 10 foot fence for separation requirements to resolve issues that can be caused by a pseudo alleyway" and recommended consolidating regulations under one code section to improve clarity.

Finance director Craig Boonstra reviewed unaudited quarterly financial results and told council the city "had a very strong year in revenues" while noting figures are preliminary pending the annual external audit. Boonstra said property-tax collections were at or above expectations and that sales tax performed strongly, driven by retail, manufacturing and accommodation and food sectors.

On utilities, staff described repeated failures on a roughly 20-year-old 16-inch transmission main between two elevated storage tanks in the industrial park. City staff member Wright said the line "transports about 2,000,000 gallons a day" and that major line breaks in 2021 and 2022 prompted a 2023 assessment. Wright said the proposed $315,000 professional services agreement with Providence Engineering will produce design, bid and construction-phase services to add valving, monitoring, replacement sections and additional thrust blocking to improve reliability.

Council approved a three-year, not-to-exceed $324,280 licensing, maintenance and support agreement with Azteca Systems for CityWorks and authorized up to $65,626 to New Edge Services LLC for implementation services to configure permit and workflow modules. City staff said CityWorks integration will expand online permit and payment options, better connect SeeClickFix citizen reports to internal work orders and improve cross-departmental tracking.

The council accepted a $25,200 state and local cybersecurity grant for penetration testing of the city's water and wastewater SCADA systems, a grant administered by the Homeland Security Grants Division of the Texas Office of the Governor. IT staff member Raybuck said the award requires a cash match included in the FY25 IT budget and that the work will produce a vulnerability report; mitigation work would be procured separately if vulnerabilities are found. The council then approved a budget amendment increasing appropriations by $25,200 to accept and expend the grant.

Votes at a glance
- Consent agenda (minutes; Chapter 380 facade-improvement agreements for Garza Properties and 2 Sisters Antiques; license with Fort Worth Western Railroad; right-of-way easement acquisition from JCP Woodard for Hicks Road, $12,000 plus closing costs; purchase of ~2.25 acres for $115,000; 2025 annual hot-mix asphalt contract with Reynolds Asphalt not to exceed $250,000; investment report; accounts payable and budget transfers): approved unanimously (motion to approve consent agenda by Blake Jones; second by Oliver Cosby).
- OR1 — Ordinance amending Title 15 (fence/screening code) to remove 10-foot separation and consolidate standards: motion by Derek Weathers, second by Blake Jones; approved unanimously.
- RS9 — Agreement with Providence Engineering for Lake Marty Loop 16-inch water transmission main improvements, not to exceed $315,000: motion by Derek Weathers, second by Oliver Cosby; approved unanimously.
- RS10 — Agreement with Azteca Systems for CityWorks licensing, maintenance and support for three years, not to exceed $324,280: motion by Oliver Cosby, second by John Warren; approved unanimously.
- RS11 — Agreement with New Edge Services LLC for CityWorks implementation services, not to exceed $65,626: motion by Blake Jones, second by Derek Weathers; approved unanimously.
- RS12 — Acceptance of a $25,200 state/local cybersecurity grant for SCADA assessment (requires a cash match included in FY25 IT budget): motion by Derek Weathers, second by Oliver Cosby; approved unanimously.
- OR2 — Budget amendment to increase appropriations by $25,200 and projected grant revenue to expend the SCADA award: motion by Blake Jones, second by John Warren; approved unanimously.

Council discussion and staff comments emphasized that the fence-code change aims to reduce neglected pseudo-alleyways that create safety and maintenance problems and that the water-line design work is meant to reduce risk of future service interruptions following recent breaks. Staff repeatedly noted financial figures were unaudited and that the SCADA assessment will produce recommendations but not include mitigation work.

The council recessed into executive session later in the meeting to consult with counsel on real-property easements, environmental remediation matters and economic development incentives and returned to adjourn without further public action.