The Whitesboro City Council approved the installation of new water meters for city residents at last week’s regular meeting. These meters will help to enforce and restrict water usage for citizens.
After much discussion, the Council approved entering into an installation contract and associated guarantee agreement with Performance Services, Inc. (PSI). This approval will accomplish installation of 1,871 meters, installation of 2,090 AMI endpoints and upgrade SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems to dramatically enhance visibility and operational control.
The system (which will allow citizens to use an app to manage their water use) will include the rehabilitation of 35 manholes, LED street lighting upgrade and will allow the City to execute a water restriction plan. The estimated project duration will be four months and the project finance amount would be $3,321,168 (financed for 20 years). According to the agenda, a 20 percent increase in sewer rates equates to less than a $10 increase per month for over 85 percent of citizens.
The council also held a public hearing on Ordinance No. 1239, for the purpose of adding a planned development zoning district to the City of Whitesboro Code of Ordinances. The ordinance was approved.
A second public hearing took place for a mixed-use development. Questions arose, which included discrepancies that didn’t align with zoning ordinances, landscaping and the language used for specificity. Ultimately, the council approved a Planned Development Zoning for the 29.1 acres of real property located north of 623 W. Main Street for a mixed-use development.
Regarding ongoing City projects, the Water Tower project is moving forward and has an estimated completion date of April 23, 2026, according to the current schedule. As of now, there have been no injuries with workers and the crew just met with the project manager on Aug. 13 about the seal for the tower. Citizens can watch real-time progress of the construction project on the city website 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Meanwhile, Frontier Waste Solutions has initiated a price increase of 4.88 percent (effective Oct. 1, 2025) and is within existing contractual terms. As a result, the City is conducting additional utility rate studies. Representatives of Frontier Waste Solutions were at the meeting and said it is very common that there is under-education regarding recycling. Many residents do not understand or know what recyclable items are. The company thinks recycling literature might be beneficial for residents in Whitesboro.
After much discussion, the Council approved the City Administrator to enter a master services agreement with Aoka to provide building department services for the City of Whitesboro.
Whitesboro Fire Chief Steve Pinkston put together an open burning permit in hopes to use in the future to prevent open burns that can be dangerous. He said the City of Whitesboro currently doesn’t have one. Pinkston sent the open burning permit to the City Attorney to look over and ensure the verbiage was accurate. The Open Burning Permit was approved.
Next, there was a discussion only on the 2025-2026 City budget. No action was taken. The Fourth Street project will be funded through a future bond.
Lastly, this year’s Peanut Festival is fast approaching. Mayor Butts said the city has never had an active enforcement with vendors. The Whitesboro Chamber of Commerce has decided to enforce and create a system where vendors must fill out a form.
“The more commercial business that we have, the more sales,” the mayor said.
Source: Freepik.com