Mayor talks State of the City

During a State of the City address, Wimberley Mayor Gina Fulkerson highlighted accomplishments made in the last year.

The mayor spoke on a variety of subjects at the luncheon hosted by the Wimberley Valley Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday. She called attention to the transportation master plan, highlighting the work done on roads like Blue Heron Run and Spoke Hollow Road.

“I want to thank our Transportation Advisory Board. They help us figure out what we can do every year to make our roads better,” Fulkerson said. “It’s not something we can do all at once. We’ve been able to work within our means and pace it out, that’s been a big help.”

Fulkerson said, in the coming year, the TAB is looking at future improvement to the downtown square to help with traffic flow and safety.

“They will be going through formal training to break down roads into categories that include factors like: How bad is it? Is it unsafe? How many people cross that every day? What can we do now to address it financially within our means? All those factors are weighed,” Fulkerson said.

She said the TAB is also looking at making transportation improvements to the downtown square.

“When you go to the downtown square — and it’s super busy — firetrucks or emergency vehicles cannot easily get in and out of the square,” Fulkerson said. “So, this has become a priority, as well as ADA modifications to make things more accessible. We’re also looking at doing a project that would do repaving, drainage, and striping.”

Regarding public works projects, the mayor said the new portion of the wastewater system is complete and modifications to an older lift station have been completed.

Fulkerson spoke of a sidewalk plan from RR12 in the Square (at the Cedar Chest) to FM 3237.

“Everyone knows we need it,” Fulkerson said. “You see people walking around cars and down into ditches to avoid traffic. This would allow sidewalks and remote parking to be more feasible. It will allow greater safety and greater aid to the businesses that are not right in the square and to spread out some of our foot traffic.”

Fulkerson said the city has sought funding for the project and has moved onto phase two, but they will not know if they’ll get funding until October.

The mayor thanked Hays County Commissioner Lon Shell, as well as TxDOT, for their help with completing intersection improvements at Winter’s Mill Parkway and FM 3237 and at Winter’s Mill Parkway and RR 12.

“We really want the trucks and other traffic — if you don’t need to be in the Square — to be encouraged to use Winter’s Mill,” she said. “This was a great example of working together.”

Fulkersonsaidother County/TxDOT projects in progress include adding turn lanes at the intersection of 3237 and RR12. Construction on that project begins this month and is estimated to take no longer than 142 working days.

Fulkerson said the Old Kyle Road Trails Project is currently in design and is expected to be completed in the spring of 2024. Sidewalk grant funding has also been approved for FM 2325 from Wimberley High School to H-E-B, according to the mayor. Sidewalk design will be completed later this year, and construction is expected to begin in late 2024.

Fulkerson said preserving the city’s historic character is a high priority for the city.

“We’ve been working with Post Oak Solutions to create a historical district in our downtown,” Fulkerson said. “It’s not an easy process and councils have really worked in the past to get that done.”

She said it was vital to preserve the city’s character and not forget its history. “It’s important to not be a town where you have strip malls and everything looks like the next new thing,” Fulkerson said. “We have already paid the National Register of Historic Districts, that’s an honorary designation, which allows businesses within that district to seek tax credit. That’s a great benefit that’s already there.” She said the next process — which the city is in the middle of — is to carve out and designate a local historic district with reasonable workable guidelines that preserve the city’s character and history.

As for the city’s finances, the mayor said the city has more than $1 million in the general fund — which is $250,000 more than the city’s goal of $750,000. The city’s wastewater operating fund is also at a surplus: $26,400. Additional funds include the Hotel Occupancy Tax Fund: $707,443; Blue Hole Operating Fund, $1.4 million; and the American Rescue Plan Act, $426,666. The sales tax income is up 5.36 percent.

The mayor also spoke of the Comprehensive Plan and that the city was eligible for a General Land Office grant to the tune of $300,000.

“This is money we don’t have to spend out of our regular budget,” Fulkerson said to applause. “So that really helps our bottom line.”

The mayor concluded with praise for the parks and recreation department.

“I’m very proud of our city as a whole because working together is how we get things done,” Fulkerson said. “Thank you for making this all feel like a little bit of heaven.”