13 May 2025 Council Meeting Review by The Community News, 16 May 2025 Online Edition

Summary: Willow Park City Council Meeting reviewed by the City of Willow Park newspaper of record, The Community News. Topics: • Palmer takes seat as new mayor • Applications approved for active transportation plan • Financial report halfway through the fiscal year • Other business.

• Latest Update: posted 16 May 2024

• Note: Willow Park Civics is about Willow Park but is NOT associated with or managed by the City of Willow Park.

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[13 May 2025 Council Meeting Review] Palmer takes seat as new mayor, The Community News, 16 May 2025 / Subscribe 

Topics

• Palmer takes seat as new mayor

• Applications approved for active transportation plan

• Financial report halfway through the fiscal year

• Other business

Text and pdf.

By Alex Hoben The Community News

A packed house saw the transition of mayors at the May Willow Park city council meeting on May 12.

Outgoing mayor Doyle Moss gave a farewell speech thanking his fellow council members and highlighting the infrastructure work done in his time as mayor, particularly related to the wastewater treatment facility plans.

“With the projects we have done in the past few years, together, we have made Willow Park a better place for our citizens and our neighboring communities,” Moss said. “My hope is you will continue the work you were elected to do. It has been my honor and privilege to serve with you.”

After her swearing in, new Mayor Teresa Palmer spoke about her commitment to the people of Willow Park and how she would prioritize transparency regarding the goings on in City Hall.

“We work for the people,” Palmer said. “Every decision and every dollar must reflect our accountability to the taxpayers who employ us.”

Palmer also introduced a proposal to the board to begin the process to change the government system of Willow Park from a Type A general law city to a home rule class city. This designation means the governing system is defined by its own municipal charter document rather than which the citizens vote on. Palmer also called for a charter commission with residents from Willow Park to be formed.

“Willow Park is operating under an outdated government concept, one that no longer reflects the size, complexity, and aspirations of our growing city,” she said.

Along with the mayor, two other council members were sworn in, Eric Contreras and Chawn Gilliland. They both were reelected to their council seats.

[Slide Show of photos available at The Community News.]

Applications approved for active transportation plan.

Parks Director Mandy McCarley and city engineer Gretchen Vazquez presented applications to obtain federal funding through a Transportation Alternatives (TA) grant provided by TXDOT for transportation improvements including bike lanes and crosswalks.

“It’ll be a city-wide, all-inclusive, comprehensive plan,” Vazquez said.

According to the resolution briefing, the approval of these applications is needed to show the city’s “commitment to the project’s development, financing, management, adoption and implementation of completed planning documents.”

McCarley explained how one of the applications includes improvements to alternate travel including fixing broken sidewalks, getting ADA compliant street corners and safe routes to the school.

“We’re trying to connect all active transportation elements, which include pedestrian, bicycle, micromobility,” Vazquez said.

The other application is regarding the intersection at Meadow Place Drive and Kings Gate Road. McCarley said that through multiple discussions it is an unsafe crossing with dead end sidewalks and high traffic.

“Our proposition to TxDOT was to add bike lanes on Meadow Place to connect that hopefully through as our subdivisions grow that way,” she said.

Along with the bike lanes, the plan also includes adding a crosswalk, ADA compliant corners and streetlights for the intersection.

If approved, the funding for these plans through TxDOT would be an 80/20 split with the city paying 20 percent of the estimated $290,000 for the first application and $384,000 for the second application. City Manager Bryan Grimes explained how the city would obligate the engineering funds for this project if approved knowing the city would be paid back by either TxDOT or federal funding.

“The engineering funds are reimbursable,” Grimes said. “Our match would be 80,000, 90,000, wherever that number ends up being, we can budget for that in the next fiscal year. We also have that in reserves.”

Contreras said it sounded like a good deal for the city if they were to get federal funding for the project.

“It seems like a great thing for such a little cost for us to have something where we can have the people with a disability to get onto the sidewalk to cross the road safely,” he said.

The deadline for the detailed applications to be sent in is June, with awards being announced in October.

Financial report halfway through the fiscal year

CPA Jake Weber gave a presentation regarding the quarterly financial report, now halfway through the fiscal year.

He said that the city is on budget with general funds. But development, specifically in permits, is down $213,000 from last year. The total budget is at 52% for the year at this halfway point.

Also in a deficit currently is the Water and Wastewater Funds but Weber said this was due to the timing of the budget with debt payments and with the coming summer months the revenue will increase and break even.

“I think you look good in all your major funds,” Weber said. “You got strong cash position, we looked at water, wastewater, the deficit. Trying to explain ‘Hey, we’re going to come back on that water.’ You have solid reserves, and the general fund obviously is in very strong position. We’ve actually built up some reserves last few years on that.”

In other business, the council:

• appointed Lea Young as mayor pro tem;

• appointed Eric Contreras as alternate mayor pro tem;

• updated signatories for city bank accounts to Teresa Palmer, Lea Young, Bryan Grimes, Andrea Saylor, Michelle Guelker, and Eric Contreras;

• updated signatories for the Police Seizure Fund to Andi Saylor, Ray Lacy, and Brian Roberts.