City Council - Regular Meeting

I call to order this work session meeting of the San Marcos City Council. Today is Tuesday, September 1st of 2026. Yes, guys, it is September already. The time is 3 o'clock. Mr. Vino, let's see who's here. Yes, Mr. Rodriguez.

Okay, and for citizen comment time period, we have two. We have Virginia Parker. Is she joining us online? While you call her up, Lisa Young is here, so I'll go ahead and call Lisa Young to the podium.

Our next speaker is Virginia Parker, who joins us online. Can y'all hear me? We can see you and hear you.

there may be things that make a lot more sense for the community especially the neighbors in that plan and that's all i wanted to say okay and that concludes our citizen comment time period ms trevino would you tell us about item one please yes ma'am receive a staff presentation on the fiscal year 2027 capital improvements program as contained within the proposed fiscal year 2027 budget

Can we take a pause real quick? I really appreciated that slide. The level of detail. I know this was the topic of discussion the last time we met. And I can't imagine how much time it took, but it's much appreciated. So thank you. I just wanted to give a shout out to that.

You took info snacks to like a whole other level. So I appreciate it. Really appreciate it.

Thank you, Mr. Condor, and thanks for either informing or reminding us that these are not easy tasks. There's lots and lots of moving parts, and so thank you for bringing that to us. So, Council, Mr. Rodriguez, did you have something?

Yes, ma'am. Again, Mr. Condor, I always really enjoy your presentations because since I've been on council, you have made a topic that is highly complex, very easy to digest, and it is very much appreciated. I just had one quick question on the slide that was depicting the Wallace addition area improvements.

That one, yes. Thank you, Hayden. So just a quick question. So I see that TxDOT, the South Highway 123 sidewalk improvements that are gonna be on that particular stretch. I guess my question would be, did we apply for grant funding for that? Is that something that they initiated themselves?

Okay, and the reason I ask is because when you look at all of the growth down 123 further south, I know for a fact there have been fatalities on that road, and sidewalks is a reoccurring ask I hear from people who live in that neighborhood, contiguous sidewalks all the way down. And so this might not be an appropriate question for this particular discussion, so please feel free to say so. But I guess I'm just wondering, How are we approaching TxDOT about potential future sidewalk improvements all throughout that highway?

Well, I'm very happy to hear that staff already recognizes this as an issue. I guess my last question would be, if there's any way that council can support, whether that's a resolution that depicts our support for something like this, and really articulating the necessity of it, citing the safety concerns that we've been seeing, I would be more than happy to introduce that and work with council on this side of things, if that helps strengthen that application. So I'd be open to future discussions should that be a good idea.

Yeah, especially with the new legislative session coming up. I mean, I know that the legislative committee has been talking about ways in which we can petition the legislature for things that are necessary for our community. I would be even willing to go as far as speaking on behalf of this should that also provide an additional level of support. So, yeah, thank you. And thank you for everything else and you and your team.

Ms. Costa, did you have anything? Okay. Nope. Excellent presentation. That means you covered all of the things that we would have had questions on. So this is great, thank you.

All right. I'll repeat what I put on the message board. Well done. This is the best get real presentation on the CIP that I've seen in a long time, maybe ever. But what also was significant to me was the slide that you had that talks about the rate, where we set the rate, and how it affects this. And if the rate isn't high enough, projects are gonna be delayed or maybe not done. So that was huge, so thank you.

Council, do you all have anything? The only thing that I had, which was across all of these, was the game tables that Ms. Rodriguez had talked about. You've said that those can be fairly easily done. So that's the only thing that I had on this one. So I just wanted to mention that. Ms. Rodriguez, do you have some more cool ideas?

No, so since we had the last presentation, people have really liked the, I forget what we called it, the workout equipment over there. At City Park? City Park. Okay. And wanting to understand if we plan to put that in various other places within our parks. And so I know that that wasn't something that I had brought up last time. In addition, there was an express interest in I'm not a, player, but volleyball. Is the city planning on doing volleyball, whether it's sand or whatever? And I was trying to figure out, do we have, but we don't. I believe Texas State at Sewell Park is the only.

Well, the apartment complexes, and this is personal experience, when you go and you're not a resident, some of them actually do not like that, and in fact threaten for you to leave. So I said I would bring it up. I didn't know if there was interest in potentially adding that, and even if this is the particular part where it would need to be,

Well, I guess before we kind of check to see if there's interest, um, Mary, remind me the question that you put on the message board, it was related, you know, confirming that the tables were in fact there. I think it was you, Director Case, that mentioned that the tables will be similar to the ones we have over there in City Park that are ADA accessible with that little ramp and how it sticks out at the end.

Yeah, I would really appreciate that consideration, because those tables I walk around City Park quite frequently, amazing. And such intentional design, just like how it slopes up and it has that extended, that's really cool. And so if those same considerations could be made, I really appreciate the intent behind that design.

You all good with that? Yes. Did you have anything else? No, ma'am. Okay. Over at the city park where the children's playground was taken out and a bunch of that workout equipment put in? Yes, ma'am. I'm not complaining about what's there, but when I went, the ribbon cutting, it looked like there was a lot of stuff for adults and not so much for children anymore in that same space.

Yeah, it just looked like what you normally expect to see, you know, the swing sets and the other stuff. that we just didn't have near as much as what we did before for the kids. So that was just an observation that I had. So if we're going to be doing more of the workout stuff somewhere else, and I have no objection to that at all. I think people will like it. I'm just concerned that we're not having less kids places to play well than what we had before.

I hear you, ma'am. But I do think that like the composition of a lot of San Marcos families are, um, like various children of various ages and it also gives like caregivers something to do. So I, I, yeah, I can see both, both sides.

That's why I said I'm not opposed to the other adult stuff, but it just looked like there wasn't very much left for, for the, for the little ones. So maybe I just missed it, but I just wanted to get that on record.

Yeah. I was actually going to say, um, I walk city park probably at least four or five times a week at, at, you know, towards the afternoon and sometimes in the night. it is people of all ages and it's packed constantly. Like if they're not at the basketball court, you have multiple people of all ages to Alyssa's point playing together. And so I've actually had so many people compliment the city park renovations. And so I just want to give a shout out because it's really a beautiful area.

um to recreate there yeah yeah i like it that was just that one concern uh okay so as far as but that wouldn't be in bicentennial park most likely so anyway so are we all good with bicentennial park as as planned it is okay all right moving on sure um if i may just because i know that we'll probably get back into it uh council member rodriguez but since you brought up the volleyball um i just want to

before we for my notes want to make sure that there's a consensus on as we proceed not maybe not right here but volleyball yeah i didn't want to address it here but if you want us to talk about volleyball in general somewhere um what do y'all think yeah i think it would be helpful just to like get an understanding so that if and when our neighbors approach us because they do know that there is some kind of feelings about you know, whether they can go to school or, you know, whether whatever, whatever, just so that we can answer them. Like this is kind of the, all that goes into something like

Absolutely. Like the high maintenance. Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah, like I said, if there's a better place where it could live, like the concept of it, that's fine.

I'm going to say we have our youth volleyball as well attended. So they're going to eventually want to go out to other areas to play.

That's a good point. And they're like award winning. Like the volleyball players in the Marcus ASD, they're like, That's the whole thing.

For that, is that going to take up a lane? No, ma'am. A travel lane? No, ma'am.

I think that we will play for renovations is what threw me.

Mayor. Yes, ma'am. I have one question. Go ahead. So Mrs. Case, I guess first question, do we plan, you know, I think I've reached out about the closure of Children's Park during the managed access. Yes. So I am happy to see that there is now going to be a shared use path that will connect adjacent to that parking. Yes, ma'am. I do appreciate that. I just have one additional question. And so I know that the premise of that is for the purpose of ADA and just general accessibility as well. My only question would be, so given the current design, there is no actual connection from that path into C

And then, so the, so that's perfect. So like if people park to the left of that, you know, they have that. So this new path adjacent to the rail, the railway, this one. Yes, ma'am. So right there, if like there was a connection there that would be possible, should somebody take that route? versus going all the way around to the top, you know, if they're in a wheelchair. Yes, ma'am. I'm just wondering, like, if they're in a wheelchair, it might not be able to get through that grassy area in the same way. Okay. Yeah, I was just wondering if that could be a consideration.

That thing should be able to like, you should be able to hit a button and capture a screenshot.

Is that lane next to the tracks? Yes, ma'am. Thank you. Yes, ma'am.

I appreciated your question on the message, Board Mayor. You know, I've had people say, express desire, and granted the school district is making some steps towards this, but an additional natatorium I think has been a request for quite a long time. And so while this does not function in the same way as that, it still gives people an opportunity should they want to go swim laps and the like. to do so, and I understand the maintenance component, and it's costly. I know we, I think, repainted the bottom of that, and it was costly, but it just seems like a big loss for the people who do use that.

If we've only got one, I'm thinking, I think people would rather have it in the central part of town than out on Highway 21, so I get one and not the maintenance on two, but I just don't know about putting the only outdoor, I'm gonna call it a fun pool, because at the activity center, that's not where kids come and play right it's more of a serious adult thing yeah so for the fun pool I just I don't I don't know I just can't see I mean I'm not opposed to moving it if we need to do that but at Rio Vista or maybe if it were oh it doesn't necessarily have to be in real Vista but I just I I don't

I'm interested in keeping it. Now, if there is a better location within the riverfront park, I understand, but to move it all the way to quail Creek though, for me, it's going to be a non-option because it takes that away from, for the residents nearby.

Right. Yeah, I agree, Mary. Thank you for bringing that up. Like a lot of folks, like they carpool or it's like, I'm going to pick up, you know, my girlfriend's kids and we're all going to hang out and it's easier to access when you're not having to drive.

So yeah, it's the, it's the access. Yeah. Right.

Okay. But we are all okay with maybe putting it somewhere else in this same general vicinity. It doesn't have to actually be where it is. may want to keep it where it is just because we've made a lot of investment yeah because well there's that well i didn't know what shape it was in and if it was a matter we were going to need to do something big anyway but i i don't know why we can't just leave it but i didn't want to say leave it or else right i guess what was the rationale because i'm assuming that there's like a

Right. And what, will you remind me, what was the response rate for those surveys?

Yeah. I'm thinking maybe those folks didn't have children.

right or i'm just thinking like the folks that that i'm thinking about to the mayor's point of like for that it's the fun point thanks for like saying that because it triggered birthday parties yeah is that maybe it could be that population just you know does didn't have the time or capacity to fill out their survey but i do feel like generally it's kind of like a if we have to like we're fine with it yeah but if it's like not a um if it's not a whole other deal like if it's feasible to leave it there.

Is this the one leadership San Marcos put in? I don't think so. No? No, ma'am. OK. So we're keeping the pool likely in the same place. And splash pad.

Y'all good with keeping the splash pad? Oh, absolutely. Councilman Shane Scott has been an advocate for more of the kiddo stuff. And I'm like, he's like splash pad real quiet. But I feel like if we came for a splash pad, he'd come for us.

Yeah. Y'all good? Over here. OK. All right. Anything else about Rio Vista Park? Yes, ma'am.

So I probably should have mentioned it on the last one too, but I guess, so one of the things that came back to us that kind of, well, actually really did change my opinion on sort of the managed access and all those things was the incidence of heat exhaustion. And so, you know, I see that we're going to be hopefully planting more trees. We've been continuing to do that to address that. But I'm also wondering water bottle stations, like water bottle refill stations. Is that a current consideration for this area as well? Oh, yes, ma'am.

Yeah, so I've seen those and I really do appreciate it because they're great. I was just wondering if there was any proposal maybe to expand based on kind of how we're going to be changing patterns of work. Yeah, we can absolutely.

And then, so this is a probably more unique one, but again, I probably should ask it on the last one. The city of Arizona, just given heat, has been exploring, I think what they call cool, let me see, Cool pavements, I might be wrong on that. But essentially, we talk a lot about impervious cover as it relates to the river and those things. But Arizona is actually trying out the way they paint their concrete to reduce the heat island effect. And so given that we're going to be looking at potentially, I mean, not necessarily a tremendous amount of more parking, but more concrete for sure. I don'

Sure. I've been seeing stuff on that for a while, including even asphalt. They've just gone lighter. Yeah, so maybe to help reflect.

Well, the question right now is do we want to look at it? We're not committing to. spending millions of dollars on it.

Okay, and then this last one, Mayor, it might receive the same, more of the minutiae, but I just want to throw it out there. So for the managed access, considering we're sort of designing something around keeping that. So I've driven by the river. I know that for the staff that are processing the people coming in and out, we have tents and those things situated for them, which is much appreciated. I guess, are we planning more I guess, firm, in place, permanent, robust shelters for them?

Yeah, and I really do like the lighting that y'all put on the, again, the city park to shout y'all out. It's beautiful, and people are playing there at night, and it's really cool to see. And I don't know, back to the volleyball, I don't know if this is a potentially better location for something like that.

Let me go around the table. Are y'all good at looking at adding volleyball court or courts, plural? Mr. Mendoza, my question, while you contemplate, my question is, is this something that people are asking for?

Okay, so we might want to survey before we commit. I've had people ask.

I guess this whole conversation, the last time we did it, sparked a lot of engagement. People were watching, and so I did have people ask, and to Shane's point or to Mr. Scott's point, I didn't even think about that, that component, that there is interest even with our kids to come out and have a place to do it. And the kids aren't going to go to school. They're just, it's not, it's not a place for them. So this really gives a city an opportunity to have our own.

Here's my, my question. Do we want it inside the managed access or put it over there at the multipurpose courts? That's not inside the managed access.

I'd be open to whatever location would be most practicable and feasible.

Thank you. Are you all good with bringing volleyball back? I would think that there might be people who ask, The activity center, how often is volleyball played at the activity center?

How often do people use volleyball? Just what's the inquiry at the activity center of people in volleyball?

Yeah, but I think when the park staff was gracious enough to give members on council, I think the city of Kyle also came along the tour of the activity center. I think one of the reoccurring themes that I realized is y'all are sort of, to put it frankly, busting at the seams. We are. And so I also think about how these potential improvements to the parks does alleviate some of what y'all are dealing with. I mean, I don't see us going out for bond anytime soon to put another activity center, even though I would wish for us to. So this, I really think of it too, to alleviate some of what the cit

Okay. So we'll note that we've got active volleyball available at the activity center. but you'll let us know what the expense on this might be.

Whatever it is, and I would say the lower the maintenance, the better. Yes, ma'am.

I would think you'd almost have to go with sand because unless you're wearing knee pads all the time and sliding across the rocks or...

I don't have anything. No, ma'am, just again, I don't know for anybody who comes off that bottom corner through the, it looks like it connects the shared use path adjacent to the, but I would say if not, maybe the same consideration should somebody be. Yes. Okay. Yes, absolutely.

All right. Solve everything with Ramon Lucio while I was gone.

Any thoughts, concerns on this section, which is the central section of...

What do you all think? Although I'm not opposed to having another pool, I'm just thinking maintenance and just more expense and just the nature of the different parks. And so I think we made the right decision as to if we're only going to have one where it would go. How much, what's the maintenance in a splash park?

I'm going to go with Mr. Scott's suggestion. If it is cheaper to the mayor's point about maintenance and given that we've kept it at Rio Vista, I'd be personally fine with an expansion of the splash pad. Okay. I guess just a quick question. Do splash pads typically have like a shaded area? structure or is that just not a thing? Cause people might get cold. I'm just trying to wonder.

Yeah, I don't know either. Or I wouldn't have a problem if we leave a space for a pool. Because if we ever decided we needed a second one, this is probably where it ought to go. So we leave the space. We do something that's changeable. And then we leave the space, but we just not do it for.

So we're talking about we'll do the splash park, hold on the pool, and in the meantime, it can be tables or whatever would fit in that area. Yeah, we can do that. Mr. Scott, you good with that?

Yeah, that sounds good. And that's where all the new ball fields are going to be, right? Yes, sir. Having a swimming pool out there, I'm not sure it would do as well with people bringing their kids in to play softball. Maybe the little ones can go play the splash pad or something while they're playing. Sure. I don't know.

That's why I thought this wasn't the place for the only pool. But we're getting to be 100,000 now, and we're going to keep growing. We're going to want a second pool.

I assume that that wasn't an option. Mr. Mendoza, what do you think? What are your thoughts on this? Nothing's changing with the fields. They'll be there. Mr. Gonzalez? Ms. Garza? Okay, I think maybe we're all comfortable with that. Is there anything else on this in the central activity area of our east side park? No? We'll move on to one of the other sides. Okay.

That's going to be really good. Council?

In the center of one of the fields we went to, they had very much the same setup. In the center, they had it built where it was covered all the way around. You could keep families under picnic tables there.

Was there a concession stand under there?

Just to extend the shelter a little bit.

Okay. Mr. Mendoza, we good with Ms. Gonzalez? Ms. Garza? Ms. Rodriguez?

I'm trying to pull up the e-mails. the plethora of emails. I've got that addressed in the next one. Okay, because this is just the north that we're talking about. Yes, correct. This is not the part up against Blanco River Village.

All right, moving on. I'm sorry. Mrs. Case, just one question. Yes, ma'am. And I should ask this on the storage, the upgrades to storage facilities. Is it just for storage, or does city staff also work inside there? Are they ever inside that it would require A.C.?

When there's a tournament, do the tournament managers need an office-ish space for what they're doing, and do we have that on this plan? Yes.

As long as we got it, I'm good. Yes. I just didn't know how much space any. All right.

So we will be doing that as time goes on. And would you... Enlighten us all and to what the little hash thingy that's not sure on our map, but it's on this one.

Any enlightenment other than, because I noticed that they've got the concession stand, that part is out of the floodway, but you know, we may think that's where it is, and sometimes nature has other ideas.

Yeah, because I'm thinking backstops. Backstops will hold a whole bunch of stuff that's flowing through.

And if it's breakaway, then what? It goes floating down the river?

Really? Cool. OK. I believe that this is the space that we said, let's keep it in the plan. We want the five field one to see that one done. and at some point in the future, since we're gonna keep Ramon Lucio ball fields and these, that we probably didn't need these for the foreseeable future. And so, you know, planning that. I'm wondering, do we even want to propose having these for the future, if that's right, in the floodway area?

No, ma'am, for me, and I was a proponent for this initially, but I think given the consideration both to the floodway, to the responses by the neighbors, and I could have sworn I put these, all of the emails that we got in a separate folder that I cannot find right now.

Well, many of them preferred not to have any active responses I took that to mean a lot of cars, a lot of cheering, that kind of noise. And of course, this is on that end, although these maps are not laid out the way Google Maps are. So I'm trying to match up what we've got here. My request was, since the parking was going to be closest to them, that we take that parking and spin it so that the parking and the car door slamming and all that and the road noise, so if we could move that, those are roadways, right? The gray that's leading into the parking lot?

And if somehow we could not have those behind these folks' homes.

Mayor, do you, in that, those, Yes. Do you have the concept A that Ms. Parker had mentioned?

That's based right there, which would be, if we went with this, would be more of the natural. But what I like about the one that we liked, is that those multipurpose fields are over here. So they're further away from the homes. So I think if we keep B and just take out that set of fields, that will take out some parking. and some other stuff?

It's a lot less dense also. Bogey Lane also, people had eight foot of water in their houses in one of the floods.

I really do like the idea of the multipurpose fields. But yeah, I guess I was just trying to, we mentioned this with the riverfront park kind of having to move things around and redo it. I guess without kind of seeing where we would put those, because to Ms. Case's point, the same considerations, despite it not being Blanco River Village, would probably apply here if those neighbors maybe found out. And I'm presuming. They've come and voiced their opinions before. It would be kind of like pushing the issue to a different side. And so I wonder if there's a way in which we can sort of marry it a

But yeah, position them in a way that's more... With keeping the baseball? The multipurpose fields.

So kind of as it is shown here, perhaps? Keep the five plex... but not the fourplex.

I'm not seeing Blanco River Village. It's going to be, there you go. Thank you, Hayden. Right. If those maybe were turned perpendicular to where they are and the parking was more between the baseball fields and these so that that's the majority of your parking. So when you've got a tournament, you may or may not have multipurpose field activities going on and all the parking could be used for that.

Yeah, I just think of that area out there as being pretty flat. So we didn't have any topo maps. I wasn't sure why things were necessarily where they were. But... I think we need to not have these that close to people's homes, including that roadway.

Yeah, I think that's great. I think it's... I'm glad to see the consideration from the body for this because we want people to love this park. Absolutely. It's going to be such a generational park.

So we don't want sentiments to already be muddied. So I'm glad to see the collaboration here. So we've taken out the four baseball fields. We're not going to have a roadway right behind the folks' houses. And we're going to see where we can move that multi-purpose field. You know, maybe just... maybe perpendicular, because if we don't use, I'm assuming that the parking, next to it is on flat land, so if it can be pushed a little further and then whatever, we'll let people figure it out.

If it's ever so often somebody's out there, that's fine. Yeah, it's not. But it's this car that's going back and forth all weekend long. Sure thing. It's not.

Yeah, no, that's going to be good. Okay, perfect. All righty then. All right.

I didn't even know what that was until I moved to San Marcos, and then I understood the hype.

Most people call it frisbee golf, but that's broken down.

Because you always see them play over there by the cemetery.

Oh, it's the old San Marcos Academy place.

I used to do that with my Bible study, and I was like, oh, I get the hype now. I was an undergrad.

So open to any feedback. Just a question. I'm looking at Google Maps, and it looks like there's all kinds of paths through the country club already? Is that like just golf cart trails? Golf cart trails, yes, ma'am.

Sometimes it may work, sometimes it may not. Correct. Anything else here, Council?

Yes, ma'am, just one real quick question. Is there water in the river?

Okay, and the reason I ask is because it's really cool to see that we're going to be giving access despite the steep grade. And this case might be more into the minutiae, given that this is high overview, but If we're going to be putting people there, maybe also considerations for people who want to fish. Oh, yeah. Y'all have those wonderful litter things for, I guess, fish material? Yes, absolutely.

Oh, you don't. So I was going to say, Ms. Reyes, does this almost close us out? Because I was going to give a big thank you.

You mean the folks are not going to be building tomorrow?

Will we be doing the improvements to the existing parks first?

Okay, we'll have that conversation when we talk about this again. Yes, ma'am.

It'd be future commitments. Thanks to Ms. Case and your staff, thanks to the consultants, and thanks to the 700, thanks to the people who came to the open houses. Yeah. and provided input in any way, shape, or form that it was done. Absolutely.

Cool. So Ms. Reyes, does this close this one out? All right, then, Ms. Trena, if you will read item three. Yes.

Looking for a motion to go into executive session. Motion by Ms. Rodriguez. Seconded by Mr. Gonzalez. And we will vote.

And we will go into executive session at 4-58. Thank you. We have returned from our executive session that we concluded at 6.08. There is no one signed up for question and answer with press and public. Therefore, the next item on our agenda is adjournment, and I will adjourn this meeting at 6.10. And we need to allow a few minutes for our control room folks to close out one meeting and start up the next one.