Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Waxahachie council postpones downtown alleyway design contract after sharp debate over consultant fee and total cost
Summary
Council postponed consideration of a $15,000 design-and-engineering contract for a downtown alleyway revitalization to Jan. 5, 2026, after council members questioned why the city would pay a consultant for work they said could be done in-house and raised concerns about a likely $198,000 construction cost and property-owner approvals.
At its Dec. 1 meeting, the Waxahachie City Council voted to delay a decision on a one-time $15,000 contract for design, engineering and project administration for a downtown alleyway revitalization until its Jan. 5, 2026 meeting after a lengthy debate about cost and transparency.
Councilman Smith pressed the council to hold off, saying the $15,000 request was being presented without full cost context. "I just don't understand why this can't be handled in house," Smith said, adding that the council had already seen a presentation years ago and that the $15,000 “is the start of additional fees that are gonna stack up pretty quick.”
City staff member Guillermo answered that the $15,000 is a one-time design-and-engineering expense and that the consultant would also handle contract and…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
