Reprint from the Progress Times - August 31, 2007
©Progress Times 2007 - All Rights Reserved

CITY OF MISSION
Mayor stomps on CAC recommendation

By Kathy Olivarez

A recommendation that no new applicants for the Community Development Block Grant Housing Assistance Program be taken until the current list was completed brought the wrath of Mayor Beto Salinas down on Jo Anne Longoria, Community Development Director, and the recommendation of the Citizen’s Advisory Committee in the Tuesday, August 28, meeting of the Mission City Council.

The action was recommended because of the amount of paperwork needed to qualify families for the program. To have their name added to the list, a family must have their income certified as low along with many other requirements. Once the name is on the list it may take several years to get to the top of the list. During that time incomes may change. Currently, there are 60 names on the list, that were qualified but only 15 homes are built each fiscal year.

Because it will take several years to build the homes for all the families now qualified, the CAC recommended that no other families be accepted at this time.

The recommendation came about as the result of one family being qualified and awarded a home. Once they are selected, the re-certification process must be done again to assure they qualify by income before construction begins. In this case the family did not report their complete income. They were no longer qualified under program guidelines to receive a home. There was an agenda item to rescind a bid granted to JD Villarreal Construction to build the family a home.

To avoid having this happen again, the CAC recommended that no one else be qualified until those on the current list receive their homes. The Department of Housing and Urban Affairs, the department that provides the funding, indicated that annual re-certification was "too paper intensive to be done on an annual basis."

The mayor did not agree and felt that families who wished to apply for homes should be able to do so. They should not be forbidden to do so because the staff did not want to have to certify them now and re-certify them again later. If staff did not want to do the job, the program should be eliminated altogether. The CDBG grant money could be used for other purposes.

No decision was made at the meeting. While the bid for the house for the family that no longer qualified was rescinded, the recommendation that CAC wanted was tabled so council members could decide whether to continue the housing program.

A second item also raised the ire of the mayor. Chris Duque recommended that the council set aside a budget of $50,000 from the health insurance fund to pay for health club memberships for staff members who wanted to take up a fitness program. Duque said that for every dollar spent at a health club, research showed a $2 to $3 savings in health-related medical bills so the city would actually be saving money on health costs.

He said the staff had been polled on whether they would take advantage of the program if it were offered and many indicated they would participate.

The mayor said he could not justify using $50,000 of tax money so staff members could join local health clubs without expense. He recommended they come 15 minutes early each morning and make three loops around city hall at no cost to the taxpayers instead. For additional good health, they could make an additional three loops around city hall in the evening before they left. He also suggested that the only staff members who needed the program were those at city hall because "the guys in the field who are outside working all day did not need a health club membership to stay in shape."

The plan presented also contained recommendations to keep costs in line by cutting the level of deductions, doctor and prescription co-pay and by reducing in network coverage to 75 percent.

It was Duque’s belief that by encouraging employees to take better care of their health, costs would be further reduced.

The mayor refused to consider the fees for city employees for local health clubs and said they could work out at school gyms or find some other means of working out that would not cost the taxpayers $50,000.

The council proposed annexation of several properties including the new Peter Piper Subdivision to be located on the northwest corner of Mile 2 Road and Conway Avenue.

On Mile 2 Road and Los Ebanos Road Patricia Estates, which forms an L-shape around the northwest corner, Mountainview Estates on the northeast corner and a small lot carved out of Mountainview Estates were designated for annexation.

The council will institute annexation on October 30 and final annexation will take place November 26.

Under zoning matters, rezoning of lot seven Stewart Plaza Subdivision, from C-3 to R-1 was tabled for further study.

A conditional use permit that would have allowed a site-built home in a subdivision zoned for mobile homes was tabled for further study. The site was in Inspiration Manor Subdivision, whose lots are the same size as those required for single-family housing.

Several of the lots already have site-built homes on them that were previously approved. Salinas was opposed, saying it was not fair to mobile home owners to allow the site built homes in their subdivisions.

When he was shown a map where at least six other lots already had site-built homes in the subdivision, he asked who had voted to approve the changes.

"If I voted for them, I need to have my head examined," he quipped. "I don’t think it is fair to those who have the mobile homes."

Councilwoman Norie Garza said it was also happening in other subdivisions. The mayor asked for a report of how many times it had happened to be prepared for him to examine before a final decision is made.

Final plat approval of Countryside Mobile Home Subdivision, Phase II, to be located on 9.34 acres from lot 19-1, West Addition to Sharyland was approved. Salinas asked if future owners could replace their mobile homes with site-built homes later but was told no because the lots did not meet single-family lot standards.

Final plat approval of the Yessica Podraza Subdivision, to be located on 2.23 acres of lot 25-11, met with opposition from Garza who opposed allowing construction of a home facing 24th Street without the developer obtaining right-of-way for the road to be continued to the end of the lot.

Plans showed entrance to the site from a cul-de-sac on 24th Street. Previous discussion of extending the road to the west brought objections from residents on Orange Avenue who did not want the road to be extended.

City Planner Sergio Zavala said the city was at fault for not obtaining the right-of-way needed years ago and it should be up to the city to get the right-of-way.

A conditional use permit for a second resident for care of elderly parents at 515 N. Glasscock was approved for the life of use. The permit was granted several years ago for two elderly parents. One has since died but the other is still living and the home is needed even though the time period on the permit has expired.

A conditional use permit for a home occupation notary service and income tax preparation business at 2006 N. Shary Road was approved.

An ordinance amending site plan approval for open carports adjoining major thoroughfares was discussed. A public hearing will be scheduled. Changes give the Planning and Zoning Commission authority to consider construction materials to be used in the carport.

A building permit for construction of a commercial complex on 0.78 acres of lot 124, John H. Shary Subdivision was approved.

An alley located on Lot A of Glasscock Acres Subdivision was approved at the request of Ignacio Garcia.

A request from Quintanilla, Headley & Associates to reduce the capital sanitary recovery fees for Mountainview Subdivision to be located on 59.141 acres on the northeast corner of Mile 2 Road and Los Ebanos Road was approved. If a subdivision is located outside the city the fee is $750 per lot. However by the time construction begins the city will have annexed the subdivision into the city. The fee for subdivisions inside the city is $200. The savings to the developer for the 140-lot subdivision is $77,000.

The council rescinded the bid for storm drainage for the Sonora and Reynosa Street Project previously awarded because the bidder could not provide a bond large enough for the entire project. The item will be rebid.

A bid for fencing at Bentsen Municipal Park was also rescinded because the bidder could not get a performance bond for the entire project.

Javier Hinojosa Engineering was engaged for professional services related to street improvements.

Bautista Construction received the bid for re-roofing the Kika de la Garza building. The cost will be $54,775.50.

Isaac Torres, a 15-year-old from Mission who won a silver medal in national competition in boxing was presented to the council. He was the only male from Texas to qualify for finals held in Michigan.

Under citizens’ participation the council expressed concern that graffiti in the city is increasing.

Police Chief Leo Longoria told the council that visits to families of youth caught were being made but oftentimes the families had no way of controlling the youth.

Municipal Judge Jonathan Wehrmeister told the council that until legislature creates stiffer laws and penalties that would hold youth responsible for their actions, things would not change. Many times they are arrested and released to their parents. Within a matter of hours they are back out on the streets doing it again.

Mayor Salinas said the city needs to purchase cameras and place them in key locations around the city to videotape the offenders so they can be arrested.

In closing, the mayor offered his condolences to the family of Augustin Esperiqueta Jr. who had served on the Housing Authority Board for many years.