Anderson discusses debris removal

ANDERSON – Past storms have created a lot of debris in Anderson, so town council is planning on a debris removal day this fall.

During the July 13 town council meeting, Anderson Mayor Marc Benton noted storms had caused downed trees around town. Main areas include space between West JohnsonAvenue and St. Stanislaus Catholic Church and the sewage plant.

Council is considering a tree and brush removal day similar to the town cleanup day already in place. This will be geared toward collecting and assisting with the removal of debris from storm damage. Council plans to vote on the cleanup measure at the August meeting.

Tourism

An application will be sent to the Texas Office of Economic Development for a tourism assessment. The assessment will bring two people from the office to Anderson for two days to offer a report and recommendations for the town.

The town will need to provide lodging accommodations and food expenses. Benton said he will reach out to local businesses to help support the tourism assessment.

Building rental changes

Council approved an amendment to the rental use contract for Anderson Town Hall. The building is rented for various events including receptions, meetings, parties and more.

The amendment removes the option of four-hour rentals. Only full-day rentals will be available for $150.

One way

West Buffington Avenue was converted to a one-way street when the Grimes County Annex building was still used by the county. Anderson approved converting the stretch back to two-way traffic.

Ordinance also passed to limit speeds on Anderson’s streets to 25 mph unless otherwise marked. An electronic speed checker will also be placed in town next week.

Cellphone use policy

The city is still trying to dial up a cellphone use policy for Town of Anderson phones. Discussions and wording of the policy have been discussed in previous meetings and will be voted on at next month’s meeting.

The policy may include limiting shopping applications to town accounts only, blocking TikTok and streaming services, etc.

Chamber discussion

Discussion took place concerning rejoining Navasota Grimes County Chamber of Commerce. Benton said Chamber Executive Director Lucy Ybarra has been very active since taking over in January.

Anderson Town Council previously let their membership expire because they didn’t see the benefit. Mayor Pro-Tem Harold Minor and Councilman Daryl Alford said they still have concerns that the chamber only caters to Navasota and is not a benefit to Anderson.

Benton pointed out the chamber has made it a point to involve themselves in other portions of the county with ribbon cuttings in various parts including Bedias. Alford said he would like to see more from the chamber before rejoining.

The chamber offered the Town of Anderson a pro-rated membership of $75 for the remainder of the year and $200 for the new year. An attendee in the audience offered to pay the membership fee if money was the only reason for not joining. Alford said it isn’t about the money just about not seeing the benefit.

A motion not to join the chamber was made by Alford and seconded by Minor. Both voted in favor of the motion. Councilmembers Bessie White and Tanner Krause voted against the motion. Mayor Benton was the deciding vote and voted neigh against the motion causing the motion to fail.

Chamber membership will be reevaluated later.

Council approved the Grimes County Emergency Management plan and the submission of the Harvey Reallocation Funds application to the Texas General Land Office.

The next council meeting is Thursday, Aug. 10.