This past week I shared the State of the City presentation to the Greater Boerne Chamber of Commerce. In preparing for this annual event, it’s a time to reflect briefly on what’s been accomplished, but more importantly to look forward and discuss what’s coming.
In looking back, I’ve had a consistent top 5 priority list since entering this office and, with the support of all City Council, we’ve made some great strides on those priorities, and more. Those top 5 items have been: 1) Ensure transparent communication 2) Update Boerne’s master plan annually 3) Implement updated UDC to address balance between growth and protecting Boerne 4) Work collaboratively to define mobility solutions for traffic congestion and 5) Define a conservation and consumption plan for water in Boerne. The newest updates for this list are for Mobility and Water. The Transportation Committee is wrapping up their final recommendations this month and will be handing them off to the three bodies that will need to act: Kendall County, City of Boerne and City of Fair Oaks. I’m very grateful to the co-chairs of that committee, Don Durden and Bob Manning, as well as the 20 members of that committee that have met over 100 times to consider the mobility needs of our community. With that final report, I consider this priority essentially complete, and we now focus on key road projects.
Also, the Water Committee, chaired by Patrick Cohoon, has made great strides in recommending key conservation tactics. This month we received an engineering report from HDR that looks out a few decades and predicts the future of our water supply in Boerne, given this growth that has occurred over the past decade. There is good news, but still a need to plan for 20+ years from now. The good news is that our current water sources fair quite good over the next 15-20 years. However, if our personal water consumption stays the same or rises, we will have challenges in that time frame. The emphasis on personal conservation will continue to be a key factor for the future success of Boerne’s water plan.
On another note, our City Manager, Ben Thatcher, has entered his 3rd year in Boerne and we are fortunate to have him in that role. His experience, professionalism and leadership have really been transformational for the City of Boerne and he has worked tirelessly to create a culture of excellence with the entire staff. Ben spoke at the State of the City and shared several instances where Boerne and City Staff have been recognized across the state as innovators and leaders. We don’t often pause to acknowledge all those accomplishments, but when you put them all together, it’s really impressive.
I also spoke about the City of Boerne’s Bond propositions that are currently on the ballot for voting by city residents. As you know, we’ve been openly discussing these ideas since January of this year through a series of City Council meetings and workshops. These propositions are divided into 2 categories and are aimed at implementing large scale projects that our community has been requesting for many years. It’s time to implement those projects, subject to voter approval. As a reminder, we have Propositions A and B on the ballot. Prop A is targeting major road improvements to enhance the flow of traffic on existing streets within the City of Boerne. Prop B is targeting major park improvements within the city. Again, both of these items are large scale projects that have been at the top of citizen requests for quite some time. I hope both of these thoughtful propositions pass.
Wrapping up the State of the City, we’ve made some great strides on a series of fronts within our beautiful city. I shared several times during the discussion how often I hear that Boerne is an amazing place, which I whole heartedly agree with. With my “top 5” list essentially complete, we’re at a new starting line to implement the long list of projects that are in, and will be added to, the City of Boerne’s Master Plan. I look forward to working with City Council and our City Manager to implement those projects over the coming years.
Boerne is truly an awesome place!
Prost!
Comment
Comments