De Leon Free Press (De Leon, Tex.), Vol. 118, No. 33, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 19, 2009 Page: 1 of 12
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SUNDAY MORNING HOUSE FIRE NEAR GORMAN. Volunteer firefighters from both DeLeon and Gorman
responded to a “fully involved” structure fire around 4:30 a.m. Sunday morning, February 15, 2009, at 250 CR 486,
just off Highway 6. The completely destroyed home was the residence of Jade Warren, who was not home when
the fire occurred. A woodburning stove may have been the ignition source. The state fire marshall has been
requested in investigate the fire. Above we see Gorman firefighters beginning to bring water to bear on the con-
flagration.
Council Hears Good News Regarding Proposed
Motocross Event
Council Hears Annual
Audit Report
By LAURA KESTNER
Editor
Representatives from 3rd
Day Productions were present
Thursday, February 12, at the
most recent DeLeon City
Council meeting to give an
update on their efforts to hold a
motocross event at the
Community Park in June.
Council members Lee
Childers, Pauline Villarreal,
Billie Lightfoot and Mayor
Danny Owen were present,
with Gayle Stroud absent.
Others present for the meeting
included Karen Wilkerson, city
administrator; Rob Duncan,
public works administrator;
Linda Levens, Chamber exec-
utive director, Chief Ralph
Dickey, and Heather Hill,
detective with the DeLeon
Police Department.
During the citizen’s pre-
sentation portion of the meet-
ing, Benji Nabors, Tracy
Kitchens and Angela Kitchens,
of 3rd Day Productions,
informed council members that
they believed “they’d reached
an agreement” concerning the
dirt needed for the proposed
motocross event. “We’re
going to help Rob (Duncan)
move some dirt around, in
effect,” Nabors said. He went
on to add that, depending on
the quality of the clay they
come up with to build their
track, some tractor pull offi-
cials had expressed interest in
leaving some of the clay in the
arena to build up their pulling
surface.
Duncan and Nabors then
explained to council members
that they were basically look-
ing at doing some “excava-
tion” at the park to get the nec-
essary dirt.
“They’ll be leveling some
parts of it, when they dig down,
and putting it back in another
spot,” Duncan said.
Before the discussion
ended, Councilman Childers
told Nabors that the council
wanted this event in DeLeon.
“We’re trying to go with
what you need,” Childers said,
“because we want you here.”
“We want to be here,”
Nabors said. “I think for this
year we’re good to go. I’m
excited about it and I think it’s
going to go well.”
In response to a question
from Tracy Kitchens,
Wilkerson said that the con-
tract would be ready in time for
the next council meeting.
Rick Elmore and Don
Crouch, representatives of
RB3 (Reach), the city’s new
cable franchisee, also
addressed council members
during the citizen’s presenta-
tion portion of the meeting.
They’d been encouraged by
Mayor Owen to attend a meet-
ing, to respond to complaints
from customers regarding
problems with the company’s
Internet service.
Owen told Elmore and
Crouch that the biggest prob-
lem seemed to be trying in vain
to make contact with someone
who could help with issues
related to customer Internet
service problems, and, at times,
not being able to make contact
with anyone at all. Elmore
responded by outlining some
of the improvements his com-
pany has recently implements,
and, providing Wilkerson with
phone numbers where he could
be reached at all times.
In other business, council
members:
• Approved the minutes
from the regular meeting on
January 22, community meet-
ing on January 22, and called
meeting on February 6.
• Approved the January
2009 Tax Statement.
• Took no action on an
agenda item regarding the pos-
sible use of the new tractor pull
arena by the Texas Tmck and
Tractor Puller’s Association
(TTTPA) because no one from
that organization was present at
the meeting.
• Approved the second
reading of Ordinance #001-09,
ordering the May 2009 elec-
tion.
• Voted to “table and take
no action” on an agenda item
request by the Women’s
Division Chamber of
Commerce in regards to
“Christmas Parade and
Christmas Tree Lighting.”
Although there were several
Women’s Division members
present, they requested the
item be tabled before any dis-
cussion took place.
• Heard a Racial Profiling
Report from DeLeon Police
Detective Heather Hill, in
which no problems were
found.
• Voted to let Karen
Wilkerson and Council mem-
ber Billie Lightfoot investigate
how best to utilize approxi-
mately 150 “dedication bricks”
at the new park. These bricks
were sold some years ago as a
fundraiser for the park.
• Heard the annual audit
report from Burl Lowery, CPA
(see separate article).
• Voted to move the city’s
electric service (for city offices,
etc.) to StarTex Power, after a
lengthy presentation from bro-
ker Frank Garza, in anticipa-
tion of significant annual sav-
ings. Garza was the same per-
son who brokered the deal
when the city switched from
TXU to Liberty, which did
result in savings for the city.
During the open discus-
sion between city officials and
city employees, Mayor Owen
spoke briefly on progress at the
Community Park, and work
that Rob Duncan had complet-
ed at the lift station on E. Ross
Street. Owen also noted that
newly-appointed Judge Wayne
Parsons would be on the agen-
da for the next council meet-
ing, at which time he would
discuss the operations of his
office.
Newly-appointed Council
member Billie Lightfoot did
not have anything to discuss,
noting that she was “still learn-
ing.”
Council member
Villarreal asked whether the
new slide had been installed at
the City Park, and was
informed that it had been and
that the DeLeon Study Club
had already reimbursed the city
for half the related costs.
(See page 5)
By LAURA KESTNER
Editor
Burl Lowery, CPA, and
independent auditor for the
City of DeLeon, presented his
annual audit report for the city
at the most recent DeLeon City
Council meeting, Thursday,
February 12.
Lowery began his report
by saying it was a “good, clean
audit report, and an unqualified
opinion.”
“There are no findings, no
questioned costs within this
report,” he said.
“The General Fund bal-
ance sheet shows cash and cash
equivalents of $39,361,”
Lowery said, “delinquent ad
valorem taxes of $25,684; and
accounts receiveable of
$41,867, for total assets of
$106,912.”
He then listed the follow-
ing General Fund liabilities:
Accounts payable of $55,953;
due to other funds, $20,739;
deferred revenue of $25,684,
for total liabilities of $102,376.
A total fund balance of $4,536
was noted, for total liabilities
and fund balance of $106,912.
“All your operating costs,
other than water and sewer,
flow through this fund,”
Lowery said, moving on to the
revenues and expenditures for
the fund.
“The General Fund in
most municipalities has a hard
time breaking even,” Lowery
noted, before listing the follow-
ing revenue items: ad valorem
taxes, $320,968; penalty and
interest, $11,354; other taxes,
$243,222; fines and forfeitures,
$20,681; solid waste collection
$318,225; rents, $9,151; inter-
est, $3,677; other revenues
$47,269; police training grant,
$ 1,840; and contributions,
$925, for total revenues of
$977,312.
Lowery listed the follow-
ing expenditures: general gov-
ernment, $231,394; tax office,
$67,098; animal shelter,
$18,582; solid waste,
$216,692; city court, $43,819;
police-K-9 unit, $6,144; police,
$272, 799; highways and
streets, $202,550; dispatch ser-
vice, $51,059; code enforce-
ment, $0; library, $24,914; fire
department, $44,833; fire mar-
shall, $3; cemetery, $24,653;
swimming pool, $29; park,
$104,235; Senior Citizens
Center, $33,180; DeLeon
Information Center, $3,600;
debt service-capital lease fire
truck, $19,710; and debt ser-
vice-tax anticipation notes,
$82,106; for total expenditures
of $1,447,400.
“The expenditures exceed-
ed revenue by $470,088,”
Lowery said, before noting “net
transfers in of $466,251.” “For
the year, the General Fund
deficit was $3,837,” Lowery
said, “you ended the year with a
fund balance of $4,536.”
Lowery pointed out one
significant increase in expendi-
tures.
“The big increase in
expenditures, it went up
approximately $240,000,
would be the $82,000 note and
interest payment on the park
loan,” Lowery said. “Plus you
spent close to $100,000
General Fund money at the
park. Those are the primary
increases within this fund.”
The next area of the audit
report Lowery addressed was
the Balance Sheet for the
Utility Fund.
“This is where most of the
City’s cash and assets rest,”
Lowery said. “As of
September 30, (2008) the city
had cash and (cash equivalents)
of $722,071, and net capital
assets of $456,542, for total
assets of $1,307,069.”
He then listed the follow-
ing liabilities: accounts
payable, $21,629; accrued
compensated absences, $4,816;
customer meter deposits,
$69,204; for total current liabil-
ities of $95,649. He listed the
following net assets: invested in
capital assets, $456,542; and
unrestricted, $754,878, for total
net assets of $ 1,211,420. Total
liabilities and net assets were
listed as $1,307,069.
Lowery finished his report
by hitting the following high-
lights from the “Statement of
Revenues, Expenditures, and
Changes in Retained Earnings”
in the Utility Fund. Revenue
included: $577,904, water;
$200,850, sewer; $19,315,
interest; $24,356, other; $471,
other sales, for total revenues of
$822,896. Under expenses, he
noted: (See page 7)
MONDAY EVENING HOME FIRE ON HUMPHREY. DeLeon volunteer firemen and firefighters from both Sipe
Springs and Promontory Park combined to fight an aggressive structure fire at 509 Humphrey Street around 8:30
Monday evening, February 16, 2009. The house was reported to be the residence of Jessica Cogburn and Manuel
Gonzales and electrical problems were suspected as an ignition source. There were no injuries reported among
residents or firefighters. Above we see a fireman going around to the rear of the home and reporting what he saw
on his handheld radio. A trampoline and swing rope are in the foreground.
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Kestner, Laura. De Leon Free Press (De Leon, Tex.), Vol. 118, No. 33, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 19, 2009, newspaper, February 19, 2009; De Leon, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth844939/m1/1/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Comanche Public Library.