February 11, 2010

With the base of a water tower outlined against the Texas sky and crews laying utility lines towards the proposed site for the new Lake of the Hills Regional Medical Center on Hwy 71 west of Hwy 281, a slight detour in plans was announced Monday by Scott & White officials. “We are moving forward with the plan and commitment to build a regional medical campus with a hospital and physician building,” said Peter Brumleve, Scott & White Chief Strategy Officer.

Early voting for the March 2 primary elections begins on Tuesday, February 16 at three locations in Llano County and two locations in Burnet County. Llano County voters may vote at the Horseshoe Bay Property Owners Association at Quail Point, 708 Red Sails, on weekdays from 9 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.

Members of the Bluebonnet Club from Arrowhead Bank enjoyed a great evening on Saturday, Feb 6, traveling to the Long Center for the Musical Legends ~ American Voices performance. The trip included dinner at Green Pastures in Austin followed by the show that included entertainment by Larry Gatlin, Crystal Gale and Andy Cooney.

The Church at Horseshoe Bay will conduct an Ash Wednesday service in the church’s sanctuary at 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 17. Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent and occurs forty days (not counting Sundays) before Easter Sunday. It falls on a different date each year because it is dependent on the date of Easter Sunday.

As of December 31, 2009, the total of all City of Horseshoe Bay accounts was $14,929,580. The Utility Fund accounts for $5,621,096 of that amount, and the General Fund contains $9,308,484, according to Toni Vanderburg, the city’s Administration Manager. December 31 marked the end of the city’s first fiscal quarter. For the quarter, the Utility Fund revenues were $98,622 less than budgeted primarily due to the reduction in water sales.

After some unexpected audience participation in the two previous meetings of the Llano County Commissioners Court, Judge Wayne Brascom opened Monday morning’s meeting with a brief review of the court’s rules. Pointing out that the public is invited as spectators, and must have permission to participate, he said the court “is not a forum for accusations or insults,” and that the court has authority to remove a disruptive audience member or even to issue a contempt cita ...

A total of 46 foreclosure notices were filed in Llano County during January. But the majority of the notices were repeat filings involving the same lenders, borrowers and properties covered in prior foreclosure counts. One investor in Horseshoe Bay waterfront properties accounted for 23 of the 24 repeat filings. Thirty-three of January’s 46 foreclosure notices pertained to property in Horseshoe Bay, including one lot in Lago Escondido. Forty-one foreclosure notices were f ...

Celebrate Mardi Gras in Llano at the 5th Annual LMHS Mardi Gras Ball. Sponsored by the Llano Memorial Healthcare System Foundation, the gala event scheduled for this Saturday, February 13th at the Oestreich Rose in Llano is sure to be the party of the year with all of the fanfare that one expects with Mardi Gras.

LCRA is seeking public input on its draft Water Supply Resource Plan, a 90-year plan focused on meeting water needs in the lower Colorado River basin. Individuals can give input by attending an upcoming meeting or by completing an online form at www.lcra.org/watersupply. “LCRA is planning water supply for future generations,” said Tom Mason, LCRA General Manager.

Join an exciting book review by Patty Hundley on February 26th at 11:30 a.m. in the meeting room of the Marble Falls Public Library. Hundley will review Literary Life: A Second Memoir by Larry McMurtry. Who hasn’t heard of Larry McMurtry, a fellow Texan? He has written forty books – including essay collections, memoirs, and novels ranging from the Duane Moore series that began with The Last Picture Show to the Pulitzer Prize-winning Lonesome Dove.

Over 90 percent of Llano County property owners paid their 2009 property taxes before the deadline of February 1, 2010, according to Llano County Tax Assessor-Collector Dexter Sagebiel. The collection rate of 90.027% was similar to last year’s collection rate, but represents a higher dollar amount as the county’s total tax levy grew to $51,302,046 for 2009, up from $47,082,274 for 2008. The high payment rate “is an indicator of the quality of our taxpayers,&rd ...

Three local law enforcement departments teamed up to arrest 40 year old Charles Darrell King on a five count federal indictment last week. Sgt. Brad Evans, Investigator Mark Burke, and Deputy Kermit Robinson of the Llano County Sheriff’s Office, LCRA Ranger Lance Bilski, and Llano Police Department Officer Allyn Rub arrested King in the 200 block of East Leon St., in Llano on Feb.

Pedernales Electric Cooperative’s Governance, Bylaws and Legal Committee met on Wednesday, Feb. 3 and voted to send key governing documents to the cooperative’s full Board of Directors for consideration. When the Board meets on Feb. 22, it will consider approving revisions to PEC’s bylaws, and whether or not to put a revised Articles of Incorporation, which would include the co-op’s first member bill of rights, up for a member vote. If the revised bylaws are ap ...

South Llano County Republican Women cordially invite women of the area to their annual Membership Tea to be held at Quail Point on Tuesday, February 16, beginning at 12:30 p.m. The featured speaker for this year’s tea will be Deborah “’Borah” Van Dormolen. For you ladies who have never heard ‘Borah speak, you’ve missed a presentation filled with information, inspiration and entertainment!

David and Lisa Culp hosted a great party Sunday cheering the Saints as they came “Marching In”! Pictured L to R (1st Row) Carolyn Hanak, Tina Simpson, Kim Tucker, Marilyn Parker, Lisa Culp, Mary Hart and Mary Beth Glosson; (2nd Row) Pat Doerfler, Sandra Williams, June Sargent, Peggy Jordan, Randy Tucker, David Culp, Trudy Mann, Harold Mann, Referee Tenyards, Marjorie Lawrence, Bob Nolen and Virginia Roberts; (3rd Row) Annie Miller, Lulu Glass, Aileen Hodgson, Susie Nasser, Joe De ...

Musicians who have endeared themselves to many in Horseshoe Bay will be featured in the first installment of this year’s Church at Horseshoe Bay Concert Series. Nathaniel Mayfield, Mela Dailey, and Vincent de Vries who help each year in the church’s Messiah presentation will perform “Intimate Solos, Duos, and Sonatas” on Sunday afternoon, February 21, at 3 p.m.

I don’t know about you, but watching The Who perform at the Super Bowl this past Sunday night spurred thoughts within me about getting older. Perhaps seeing Betty White pile-driven into a mud puddle increased it, but nonetheless, I couldn’t stop thinking about aging, which caused me to start some research. I remembered a report on the nightly news last year citing “Blue Zones” on the earth where people tend to live well into their second century with all their ...

This love story has continued for forty-eight years, but it begins in the fall of 1961. Larry Canter had just graduated from Vanderbilt University and received a scholarship to take graduate engineering courses at the University of Illinois. One of his friends in his hometown of Nashville, Tennessee told him of a great girl she had met in Illinois who was attending the University.

Nine years ago, Lonnie and Kim Harmon thought they were finished raising children. Their daughter and son (Natalie and Nathan) were grown, and they themselves were making plans to move. On the fateful day when the airliners hit the World Trade Center, they were on their way from Illinois to Texas; this year, their lives were rocked by an even greater tragedy, as a devastating earthquake that killed many thousands of Haitians rocked the orphanage where their sixth adopted child was waiting to ...

President Sheri Zoch, of the Friends of the Red Top Jail, was recognized in a ceremony at the state capitol last Thursday, where Llano’s historic county jail was officially designated as one of the state’s “Texas’ Most Endangered Historic Places.” A delegation from Llano was on hand for the presentation, which occurred as part of the annual meeting of Preservation Texas. Founded in 1985, and named a statewide partner of the National Trust for Historic pre ...

Experience an up close view of the stars at Westcave Preserve’s Star Night Program (weather permitting) on February 20 from 6:30 until 8:30 p.m. The dark sky location and a high-quality telescope offer a rare local opportunity to bring the stars within reach. Fees for the star gazing program are $5 for adults and $2 for children.

Stocks that tend to pay sizable dividends. Institutional and individual investors buy preferred stocks because they offer fixed dividends – in fact, dividend yields are typically greater than those of common shares.1 Preferred stocks are occasionally called hybrid securities, because they have characteristics of debt instruments as well as equities. Let’s review some of their features and pitfalls. Priority dividend payouts. As the ...

You may not have the pictures, suntan or souvenirs to show for it, but if you’re at least 70-1/2, you’ve just finished a “vacation.” And that means you’ll have to do some work — on determining how much to take out of your retirement plans this year. Typically, when you reach 70-1/2, you must start taking withdrawals (“required minimum distributions,” or RMDs) from your traditional IRA or your employer-sponsored retirement plan, such as a ...

CITY OF HORSESHOE BAY, TEXAS PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING REGARDING AN ordinance amending the zoning regulations, codified as chapter 14 TO Add A NEW SECTION 14.02.406 (i) (10) Minimum Lot Development Standards for Manufactured Homes TO BE PLACed ON LOTS CLASSIFIED m-1 MOBILE HOME in Zone 4B Horseshoe Bay South The Horseshoe Bay Planning & Zoning Commission will conduct a public hearing on March 2, 2010 as part of its regular Public Meeting that will c ...

CITY OF HORSESHOE BAY, TEXAS PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING REGARDING ZONING RECOMMENDATION FOR THE NEWLY ANNEXED LAKE AREAS, ALL IN LLANO COUNTY, TEXAS The City of Horseshoe Bay Planning & Zoning Commission will conduct public hearings at a Special Meeting on recommendations to City Council for establishing Zoning Classifications for each of the following newly annexed areas, as required by Section 14.02.156 of the City Zoning Code.

A beautiful dinner with a special menu lovingly prepared and served at home certainly has its charms when it comes to a romantic St. Valentine’s Day celebration. But, let’s be honest. On this occasion, most women I know would much prefer the charm of dining out in a fine restaurant (actually, come to think of it, on almost any occasion).

Thursday, February 11 Dinner Bingo for HSB residents-6 p.m. at Quail Point, dinner catered by Moe’s. Game begins 6:45 p.m. Bring your beverage of choice, decaf coffee and iced tea provided. $9 includes meal, entry fee and a bingo card ($1 each.) Reservation necessary, call Dianne Jones at 598-4528. Friday, February 12 US Marine Band Brass Quintet-6:30 p.m.