Collinsville Police Lt. Jon Cheshire was sworn-in as the official Police Chief at Monday’s City Council meeting. Cheshire has been serving as Interim Police Chief since March 5 when then-Chief Jeff Ashabranner tendered his resignation to the City Council after accepting a Chief’s position at Bartonville.
Cheshire is a veteran police officer. Of his 20 total years of service, 15 of those have been spent with the Collinsville Police Department. He is a 2001 graduate of Collinsville High School.
Also discussed during the meeting was an update on the city’s ongoing water well project. Clint Bissett of the Westwood engineering firm explained that the firm is bidding the project as three separate pieces. First is the water lines, which will also provide water to the work site and save money in the long run. This is expected to go out for bid in July.
Second is the water well, which will be drilled 1,700 feet into the ground. The firm is waiting on hydrogeologic reports (studying the distribution and movement of groundwater in the soil) to be finalized, but bids are expected to be advertised in September.
Third is “everything else” – fencing, ground storage tanks, etc, which will be sent out for bid once the rest of the project is about halfway done for proper timing of overall project completion (likely November or December, but possibly January to get past the holiday season).
The plan is for the water well to be producing during the ‘26/’27 budget cycle.
The Council also approved Ordinance 905-2026 which is an update to the International Fire Code They moved to the 2024 International Fire Code, meeting the goal of remaining two years behind. The city haf been using the 2018 Fire Code.
The Council also approved Julie Carney as a Park Association Board Member.
In department reports, Betty Graham with Keep Collinsville Beautiful (KCB) informed the room that KCB has put up about 45 American flags around town to fly from Flag Day through the 4th of July. The gazebo will also be decorated for the upcoming July 4th holiday.
KCB will hold its annual ice cream social on July 9, which will be an opportunity for the organization to give a state-of-the-union and welcome guests to learn more about KCB.
Graham has notified business owners about the upcoming TxDOT sidewalk project, and she confirmed with Council that the city will take over the mowing and weeding in the downtown square and fire station. They’re still looking for a solution for help with maintaining public flower beds.
The Chamber of Commerce is preparing for its Sept. 19 Pioneer Day, which will feature all of the fun events and activities that people look forward to. The Southern Cross Car Club will manage the car show, with proceeds benefiting the Grayson County Children’s Advocacy Center. Looking ahead, the Chamber is also exploring options for purchasing a new city Christmas tree, as the current tree is about nine or 10 years old and is ready for a replacement.
Things are “rockin’ and rollin’ at the Collinsville Library” according to Library Board President Kelly Smith. May’s gate count was 266, June’s is looking like it will reach 400 and July is anticipating a record-setting number of visitors. The Summer Reading Program is about halfway finished, and they’ve met maximum capacity for their weekly events. Story time is still a big draw every Friday, and the library is attracting visitors and wonderful volunteers. The library recently received a generous donation from Collinsville Area Youth Sports Association (CAYSA) that will help fund some summer programs.
“We’re blessed with a great librarian and a great board,” Smith said.
The next Collinsville City Council meeting is slated for Monday, July 20 at 6:30 p.m. at the Collinsville Community Center (111 N. Main Street). Everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend.
