Edna city officials gave their stamp of approval Thursday night to a joint proclamation declaring Saturday to be Mayor Joe Hermes Day in Edna and Jackson County.
Current Mayor Lance Smiga read the proclamation drafted by Jackson County Judge Jill S. Sklar and signed by he and Sklar which lauded Hermes for his four decades of service as an elected city official and involved citizen and businessman. Hermes passed away on July 27. Saturday would have been his 83rd birthday.
Smiga told the council that he would like to see Hermes’ legacy honored further and asked council members to think about ways to make that happen, a sentiment which was echoed by the council.
“Joe gave his life to this city, to everybody who lives here, and I would welcome, in the coming months, ideas on how we can truly recognize him for what he gave to all of us,” Smiga said.
In addition, the city set public hearings for the proposed Fiscal Year 2026-2027 city budget and tax rate. The hearings will be at 6 p.m. on Sept. 3 and Sept. 17 at City Hall, at the beginning of the regularly scheduled council meetings. Residents are encouraged to attend and to ask questions regarding the proposed budget and tax rate.
By state law, the proposed budget and tax rate must receive two public hearings and readings prior to a final vote before Sept. 30. The fiscal year begins Oct. 1 and runs through Sept. 30.
In other business, the Council:
· Approved the minutes of the Aug. 6 council meeting;
· Proclaimed Sat., Aug. 22, 2026 to be Mayor Joe Hermes Day in Edna, Texas, Jackson County;
· Approved a request from the Edna Business Association and Texana Arts Council to sponsor Texana Fest on Oct. 17, 2026, along with an alcohol permit, $3,000 in hotel/motel funds, and closing Main Street and part of Ed Linn Street from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m.;
· Approved a request from the Edna Business Association to close Main Street on Dec. 5, 2026 from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. for Market Days on Main Street and the annual Christmas Parade, along with a request for $5,000 in hotel/motel funds;
· Approved an interlocal cooperative agreement with Edna ISD for a school resource officer;
· Approved the new rate for the Texas Municipal Retirement System;
· Approved the proposed tax rate of $0.2611 per $100 of valuation for the fiscal year 2026-2027;
· Approved payment of $266,132.49 in current city bills; and
· Heard city staff reports.
During the City Staff Reports portion of the meeting, Broz said that the C.O. Project is moving along very well, with Miracle Drive set to get another coat of asphalt on Saturday. Crews are installing drainage boxes on Progress Street and Division Street and will move to Brackenridge soon. The contract for the General Land Office Reallocation Grant has been signed, and the two panels will be installed by Sept. 30. The GLO Mitigation Project is still in the environmental and design phase, and the city expects to hear by Oct. 31 if it will receive any money for water line replacement from the Texas Water Development Board grant program. Workers are finetuning the newly installed Kleas Street water well backup generator from the Texas Department of Emergency Management. Meanwhile, the city is in the bid stage for the TDEM generator for Sunset and is working on the start-up paperwork for the TDEM generator for the Police Department. Likewise, the city is receiving proposals for next year’s Texas Department of Agriculture Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) and will award the winner at the Sept. 3 council meeting, which is the next step in getting the contract set for water line replacement in District 2 by Dec. 31.
In addition, Broz said he has received eight resumes so far for the police chief position and will begin reviewing them next week. City staff held a meeting to discuss what to do to replace the current animal shelter and to get prices. The city’s new animal control pickup truck should be delivered in the next few days. Staff continues to work on watching expenses for the remaining weeks of the current FY 2025-2026 budget and is finetuning the upcoming FY 2026-2027 budget.
City Finance Director Valerie Callaway said that the city has received $6,248.64 so far in August from the July 2026 ad valorem tax revenue. The city also received a $148,321.111 payment of city sales tax and use tax allocation on Aug. 12 from the Texas State Comptroller’s Office, along with $576.88 from mixed beverage sales. Preparation continues on the FY 2026-2027 budget for review and evaluation, and the auditor from Harrison, Waldrop, & Uherek, L.L.P., is scheduled to conduct onsite interim audit testing on Sept. 22-23. The city has a bond payment of $399,968.75 due on Sept. 13.
City Streets Supervisor Andy Brzozowski said that crews have cleaned the southeast facing ditch on Elm Street from Colorado Street to Guadalupe Street and replaced three driveway pipes for elevation correction. John has commenced shredding and mowing again. The guys have been trimming grass despite the heat and have cleaned up the sidewalk on Allen Street and added gravel to N. Trinity Street and the alley between Cypress Street and Elm Street.
Utilities Director Brad Ryan said that workers made sludge boxes and repaired the lift station pump at the sewer plant; repaired water leaks at 711 S. Wells St. and on Washington Street; installed a new meter at 109 Fay St. and installed a water tap on Simons Street; jetted the main line at 512 Ward St.; kept watch on pressures all week and weekend due to control issues caused by a fuse at the Kleas water well; changed out the cutoff on Gilbert Street; and helped the contractor find shut-off valves for new line tie-ins.
Interim Edna Police Chief Mark Matlock said that since the Aug. 6 council meeting, officers conducted 79 traffic stops, wrote 52 citations, issued six warnings, and made one arrest. The department had 218 calls for service with 24 reportable offenses and one assistance with escort. Over the last two weeks, the officers have investigated four reportable motor vehicle crashes. Officers have used some overtime due to late calls and one officer will be traveling to the Houston area for required TCOLE training for intermediate licensing. In addition, the department met with organizers for the Veterans Day Parade and Luncheon to discuss roadway closures and staffing.
City Parks Supervisor/Code Enforcement Jaime Liepe reported that the city has 47 open code violations cases, with seven involving dangerous/unsafe buildings; three involving fencing violations; four involving junk/trash/debris; two involving mobile home skirting violations; one involving RV living conditions; and 38 involving mowing violations. Staff will be sending out contractors to bid on mowing lots within the next seven to 10 days. They are still waiting on three properties to be demolished by the owners. Liepe said she is working on sending court letters for non-compliance.
The next city council meeting will be at 6 p.m. on Thur., Sept. 3, 2026 at Edna City Hall, 126 W. Main St.