Preparation for the County Fair was high on the list during reports given Tuesday, June 12, 2018 at Fairfield Council Meeting by Public Works Director Clyde Woods and Sgt. David Utsey with the Police Department.  City workers had been helping get the fairgrounds ready for visitors, and officers provided nightly security during Fair Week.

“Ya’ll are doing a great job,” said Mayor Kenneth Hughes.

During his report, Mayor Hughes stated that Police Chief Kenny Bulger is still on leave, as that matter is “still under investigation.”

Council approved expenditure of $6,570 to purchase a new motor for a city truck that has been out of commission for the last two months.  The replacement will include a three-year warranty on the vehicle.

This will allow the City time to replace one of their older vehicles.  “The other truck is always in the shop,” stated Director Woods, who would like to eventually get rid of the vehicle in order to purchase a new one.

In other business, council met in Executive session to discuss a possible appointment of legal council to represent the City of Fairfield regarding TDCJ matters.

Fairfield is currently working with TDCJ to secure a multi-million dollar bond to finance improvements to the 30-year-old water systems at the Boyd Unit, located on Highway 84 west of the city limits.

This unit was built in 1990 and included an agreement between the City of Fairfield and the City of Teague to provide water and wastewater services for the facility.

After being contacted about the proposed improvements, the City of Teague obtained the services of an outside law firm to review the execution of the original interlocal agreement between the two cities. This agreement is set to expire in 2020 once the original bond has been fulfilled.

During the 50-minute closed session with Fairfield City Council, Mike Tibbets of Hayter Engineering was called to join the discussion.  The City of Fairfield has an agreement with this firm for services relating to TDCJ improvements.

Once back in Open session, council chose to take no action, and the meeting was adjourned.

“The council meeting was productive concerning the TDCJ project,” stated Councilman Landis Bayless, a few days following the meeting.  “I’m looking forward for continued success in the future so we can move forward with this project.”

Fairfield City Council conducting a Special Called Meeting on Tuesday, June 19, 2018 with two items to be consulted with the City Attorney in Executive Session:  Matters Concerning TDCJ Utility Project, Pending Personnel Investigation, and Matters Concerning Forensic Audit.

Also during this meeting will be a Training Session on Municipal law and procedure, ethics and Open Government training for City Council and City staff.

Stay tuned for news coverage in next week’s edition.

Fairfield City Council meets in Regular Session the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month.

Meeting agendas are posted 72 hours prior to each meeting on the outside bulletin board at City Hall.

Agendas are also posted online at www.fairfieldtexas.com and on the GO FAIRFIELD mobile app.

Download GO FAIRFIELD for free from the App Store or get it on Google Play.