At its July 6 meeting, the San Marcos City Council discussed the second reading of Ordinance 2021-45, an ordinance that requires registration of lobbyists and periodic reporting of contacts made by lobbyists with elected city officials.
During its June 1 meeting, the San Marcos City Council approved Ordinance 2021-45, on the first of two readings, which requires registration of lobbyists and periodic reporting of contacts made by lobbyists with elected city officials, city board and commission members and city employees.
After being added to its May 18 agenda, City Council debated if the cite-and-release ordinance should be dismissed and whether or not the ordinance has been the cause of enhanced crime in San Marcos.
San Marcos City Council discussed Winter Storm Uri's effects on wastewater rates and debated possible revisions to the Criminal Justice Reform Committee's purpose statement at its meeting on May 4.
San Marcos City Council authorized the Council Committee Rules and Procedures, a document that lays the foundation for policy and provides direction on how committees may function, at its April 20 meeting.
The San Marcos City Council revised the Revive SMTX small business grant program to correlate with updated Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines at its April 6 meeting.
The San Marcos City Council has discussed lease renegotiations with the Lions Club local tube rental facility after the Parks & Recreation Advisory Board cited concerns related to the facility's impact on the city.
Following a presentation from city staff, San Marcos City Council provided direction to staff members regarding utility disconnections for non-payments and late fees at its March 16 meeting.
The San Marcos City Council unanimously approved a resolution authorizing the city's electric utility division to implement a voluntary program allowing customers to purchase renewable energy at its March 2 meeting.
The San Marcos City Council approved a resolution in support of the possible establishment of an Indigenous culture center at its meeting on Feb. 24.
The San Marcos City Council discussed a potential emergency order that would increase COVID-19 restrictions at its Feb. 2 meeting, ultimately deciding to forgo it in favor of increasing education on the virus.
Hays County’s voter turnout during the 2020 general election was the highest the county had seen this century. 109,963 of 153,614 registered voters, or 71.58%, went to the polls or cast their ballots by mail.
Local organizations that work with the homeless population are looking toward City Council for assistance as they face capacity limits and an increased need for motel room stays.
The San Marcos City Council considered imposing new COVID-19 limitations, which could possibly challenge Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's state orders, at its Jan. 19 meeting.
The San Marcos City Council passed an amended version of a parking variance for the Whisper Planned Development District, the location in which a new Amazon warehouse is expected to be built, at its Jan. 5 meeting.
The San Marcos City Council postponed an amendment to rezone acres located near Steen Road after comments from a public hearing expressed concerns about an increase in already high traffic and further runoff damage.
The San Marcos City Council declared results of the Dec. 8 runoff election for the mayoral and City Council Place 5 races at a special meeting Dec. 14 and voted for the fulfillment of the mayor pro tem and deputy mayor pro tem positions.
San Marcos held its Runoff Election Day Dec. 8, unofficially reelecting incumbent Mayor Jane Hughson and voting former Councilmember Mark Gleason into the vacant City Council Place 5 seat.
The final polling locations for the San Marcos runoff election reported unofficial results at 8:56 p.m. Here are the unofficial results for the mayoral and City Council Place 5 races.
The San Marcos City Council voted Dec. 2 to award $500,000 to various social service organizations and adopt a revised Community Development Block Grant action plan at its regular meeting.
After seven years at its current location, the San Marcos Post Office will move its retail services to a new location despite community outcry and the passing of a resolution by the San Marcos City Council opposing the relocation.
The San Marcos City Council amended the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Action Plan and announced a new COVID-19 testing site at its regular Nov. 17 meeting.
San Marcos City Councilmember Ed Mihalkanin requested a recount of all early voting and Election Day ballots cast in all city voting locations for the City Council Place 3 race, where election results show he lost with 28.6% of the vote.
Election Day in San Marcos saw a steady flow of voters, long wait times for some and various watch parties featuring local candidates reacting to live results.
The City of San Marcos selected Stan Standridge as the new San Marcos Police Department Chief of Police.
The San Marcos City Council approved city plans to spend federal CARES Act funding and appointed members to two citizen committees at its regular Oct. 20 meeting.
The San Marcos City Council approved the city's municipal budget Sept. 15 for Fiscal Year (FY) 2021, taking into account a number of issues caused by COVID-19 during its development.
The San Marcos City Council voted against relocating the city post office and expanded a law enforcement information center at its regular Oct. 7 meeting.
The San Marcos City Council voted on several resolutions and ordinances, including the budget and tax rate for the fiscal year at its regular Sept. 15 meeting. Following a public hearing, the council voted to approve the proposed budget for the fiscal year 2020-2021, which totals $258,741,41…
San Marcos City Council candidates shared their campaign platforms revolving around affordable housing, job market recovery and the city’s response to COVID-19, during a Sept. 10 virtual forum. Of the 12 candidates running for office, five are running for mayor, two for City Council Place 3,…
The San Marcos City Council met for its biweekly meeting Sept. 1 to vote on a new land development code and discuss the city’s budget for the upcoming fiscal year, as well as numerous resolutions and land ordinances. The council approved several amendments to the city’s development code, as …
The San Marcos City Council met for its biweekly meeting Aug.18 to announce the opening of two free COVID-19 testing sites, discuss a possible return to in-person council meetings and discuss various resolutions and land ordinances. Director of Public Safety Chase Stapp announced that San Ma…
The San Marcos City Council met for their regular biweekly meeting Aug. 4 after a one-month hiatus to discuss the city’s response to COVID-19 as well as various resolutions and land ordinances. The meeting began with a COVID-19 status update, after which the council voted to approve a progra…
San Marcos City Council met for its biweekly meeting June 16 to redirect COVID-19 relief project funds to improving testing, provide funding for police department building additions and discuss Community Development Block Grant projects. The council agreed the city needs improved testing cap…
Offices, lobbies, courts and parks within the Hays County system are in varying stages of reopening to the public. All members of the public who enter county buildings should wear face coverings and maintain six feet between themselves and others who are not in their own family. Below are th…
The San Marcos City Council met for their regular biweekly meeting June 2 to discuss the development of the Community Development Block Grant Coronavirus Response fund allocation and pass various land ordinances. The council approved the amendments to the CDBG program to add $425,261 in COVI…
The San Marcos City Council met for their regular meeting May 19 to pass a multi-million dollar plan for improving city services, pass a commercial scooter ban and discuss a variety of land ordinances and resolutions. On the first and final reading, the council unanimously authorized the usa…
The City of San Marcos is accepting applications until May 20 for funding through a $425,261 Community Development Block Grant for Coronavirus Response. The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. San Marcos is seeking qualified applications from for-profit e…
The San Marcos City Council met for their regular meeting May 5 to discuss a temporary downtown parklet program and amend the 2019-2020 fiscal year budget for mental health services for public safety employees. City Council passed a temporary program allowing businesses to convert on-street …
San Marcos City Council met for their regular meeting online over Zoom April 7, passing the cite-and-release ordinance, passing an action giving relief to tenants facing eviction and discussing additional funding for novel coronavirus (COVID-19) tests. The council voted 4-3 in favor of passi…
The San Marcos City Council passed an ordinance encouraging the use of cite-and-release during its first reading on Tuesday, April 7, with four members voting in favor and three opposing it. The reform will need to be voted on twice in two separate city council meetings. If passed during its…
The fate of a cite-and-release ordinance could be affected by the recent resignation of Place 5 City Council member Jocabed “Joca” Marquez. Marquez, who was elected in December of 2018 to serve a three-year term and sat on the Criminal Justice Reform Committee, had been a primary supporter o…
The City of San Marcos announced the closing of all public-facing counters most public facilities to entry from the public beginning Friday March 20. The order from the city is aimed at preventing the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and falls within the Centers for Disease Control…
City and Hays County officials issued a state of disaster following the county’s announcement of the first presumptive case of COVID-19. Hays County reported its first presumptive case of COVID-19 on Saturday, March 14, according to a county press release. The patient was admitted to a local…
The City of San Marcos issued a press release following the announcement of Hays County’s first presumptive positive COVID-19 case, the City of San Marcos, in coordination with the County, is planning to declare a state of disaster. Per Hays County, the presumptive positive patient traveled …
San Marcos Planning and Zoning Commission Vice Chair Mark Gleason announced he will be a candidate for the vacant seat left after Council Member Jocabed “Joca” Marquez’s resignation on Monday, March 9. According to the press release detailing Marquez’s resignation, a special election to fil…
Place 5 City Council Member Dr. Jocabed “Joca” Marquez submitted a resignation letter to the city clerk March 9. Marquez was elected to her position December 2018 for a three-year term. The resignation letter states Marquez’s resignation is due to new employment plans requiring her to move r…
The lack of knowledge in local government jurisdiction is one of the top five obstacles listed for poor voter turnout in millennials, according to focus group study from the Knight Foundation, a nonprofit foundation dedicated to creating “informed and engaged communities.” In the 2014 midter…
San Marcos City Council met during their regularly scheduled meeting March 3 to discuss a proposed ordinance encouraging the use of cite-and-release and approved the annexation of an additional 57 acres of land. The ordinance seeks to guide San Marcos Police Department officers’ discretion, …
“Your rights are not guaranteed unless you fight for them. Unless you vote, unless you participate,” Shannon Fitzpatrick, former Texas State University attorney for students, said to a group of about 40 women. “They can be taken away. And they were hard-fought to get there. Please keep that …
Editor’s note: In no way is this article meant to promote the use of animals as a means of transportation in the downtown square area of San Marcos. Video circulated online by @BarstoolTXST of a horse on the downtown square left many viewers asking the same question: Can you legally have a h…
