City News

by Erica Hernandez, KSAT.com

Floresville Electric Light and Power System or FELPS serve about 17,000 customers in Wilson County. Beginning Sunday, Feb. 14 until Thursday, Feb. 18. the company has had a total of three brief outages, the longest outage lasting about three hours. Those outages were due to downed lines because of trees or ice. “As of right now, we have no outages,” FELPS CEO, Winston Low said. So how was a small electric company that is fed energy from CPS in San Antonio able to stay on? Low said there were several factors that led to them not having to do rolling outages….

Read Article

UPDATE: Starbucks is now open!

The City of Floresville is proud to announce the addition of Starbucks to our community, in partnership with the Floresville Economic Development Corporation and keeping Floresville Strong.

Friday, September 18, 2020 at 10:00 am, marks a ground breaking celebration for a  Starbucks Store  for the Community, currently under construction on Hwy 181, Floresville, Texas. This project will create local jobs and support economic development.

The new location will include a team of new Starbucks partners (employees), many of whom will be from the Floresville, Wilson County area! Starbucks will utilize local community groups and civic leaders to provide a pathway to opportunity for its local partners through training and development, career options, and industry-leading benefits, which include comprehensive health-care. This new business will be an economic boost to the City of Floresville! The first year of the stores performance will translate to tens of thousands of dollars in added sales tax revenue and other increased tax revenue. Benjamin T. Reed, Floresville Economic Development Executive Director, states, “This is one of the many projects that are in the works, as we continue the partnership with the City of Floresville. With the addition of Starbucks to the area, this allows us to better compete with a different type of retailer. I wish to thank the developer and all the folks behind the scenes that made this happen.”

Read Newsletter

Inside this Issue

• Water conservation tips
• 2019 Consumer Confidence Report for Public Water System

Flipbook Format

Effective Friday, May 8, 2020, the following will be allowed to reopen:

• Cosmetology salons
• Hair salons
• Nail salons
• Tanning salons
• Barbershops

Rules to reopen:

• 25% maximum occupancy.
• Six feet of separation between workers and or workstations. If that’s not possible, add plexiglass between workstations.
• Staggered workforce so workers are not in the same space at the same time.
• Make hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes, soap and water, or similar disinfectant readily available to employees and the public.
• One customer per stylist or station, unless they are waiting for service.
• Appointment system is encouraged; however, if allowing walk-ins, social distancing is required for people waiting for service.
• Strongly recommends customers and stylists to wear masks.
• Regularly and frequently clean and disinfect any regularly touched surfaces, such as doorknobs, tables, chairs, restrooms and equipment used on customers.
• Disinfect any items that come into contact with the public and or customer.
• Place readily visible signage to remind everyone of best hygiene practices.

The following is an overview of the changes that will be made in City of Floresville buildings and facilities in response to Governor Greg Abbott’s Executive Order No. GA-18 relating to the expanded reopening of services as part of the safe, strategic plan to open Texas in response to COVID-19 disaster.

• City offices, lobbies, and drive-thru, including the Police Station lobby will re-open to the public with normal business hours on Monday, May 4.  Staff will continue to follow health protocols recommended by the Texas Department of State Health Services and will continue practicing social distancing.

• Event Center will remain closed to the public, but employees will resume regular work schedule.

• All City parks and playgrounds will be open and available for the public to visit on Friday, May 1.

• As outlined in Governor Abbott’s executive order GA-18, individuals may engage in outdoor sports, provided that the sports do not include contact with other participants, and no more than four participants play the sport at any time.

• The Floresville sports complex, Beer Warehouse, City Park pavilions and City Pool will not be open at this time.

AUGUST 8, 2020 UPDATE: The City of Floresville has lifted the suspension of late fees and water shutoffs.

In an effort to protect our community, the City of Floresville is temporarily discontinuing water shutoffs for nonpayment. Late fees will also be suspended. During these unsettling times, water is a critical resource and no Floresville resident will be left without access to clean water.

As a precaution to COVID-19, the City of Floresville will be closing the lobby to its city buildings effective immediately. We encourage customers to conduct business over the phone or online, the drive thru at City Hall and the night drop box are also available. Please see a listing of contacts below for city offices. We will post any updates on our city website or the City of Floresville Facebook page. We appreciate your understanding during this time.

City Hall
(830) 393-3105
citysecretary@floresvilletx.gov

Police Department
(830) 393-4055
policedept@floresvilletx.gov

Event Center
(830) 393-7070
(830) 581-1134
(830) 581-1022
adminclerk@floresvilletx.gov

FEDC
(830) 393-3965
(830) 581-9998
execdir@floresvilleedctx.gov

Just a friendly reminder that 2019 garbage and recycling pickup will not occur on Christmas Day or New Year’s Day. Therefore, surrounding service days will be delayed one day. Regular service pickup will resume on the week of January 6, 2020.

Christmas Garbage & Recycling Service

• Monday, December 23, 2019: no change
• Tuesday, December 24: no change
• Wednesday, December 25 (Christmas Day) collection will be moved to Thursday, December 26
• Thursday, December 26 collection will be moved to Friday, December 27
• Friday, December 27 collection will be moved to Saturday, December 28

New Year’s Garbage & Recycling Service

• Monday, December 30, 2019: no change
• Tuesday, December 31: no change
• Wednesday, January 1, 2020 (New Year’s Day) collection will be moved to Thursday, January 2
• Thursday, January 2 collection will be moved to Friday, January 3
• Friday, January 3 collection will be moved to Saturday, January 4

On Wednesday, November 6, U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar will announce the groundbreaking of Price Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram.

The City of Floresville, in partnership with the Floresville Economic Development Corporation, is proud to announce the groundbreaking of the new Price Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership at 1531 U. S. Highway 181 North, Floresville, Texas, at the corner of 181 North and Price Way. This new Price Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership will create 45 new jobs for sales associates, along with parts and service departments for Floresville. Price Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram will increase the economic sales tax growth to the City of Floresville from the sales of parts, accessories, and services. The new dealership will have a ten million dollar inventory of 200 new Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram vehicles.

Who

U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar (Texas District 28)
Floresville Mayor and City Council
Floresville City Manager Henrietta Turner
FEDC Executive Director Benjamin T. Reed
FEDC Board of Directors

What

Congressman Cuellar to announce groundbreaking of Price Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership. The public is invited to attend.

When

Wednesday, November 6, 2019 at 11:00 am

Where

1531 U. S. Highway 181 North (at the corner of 181 North and Price Way), Floresville, Texas

On Wednesday, November 6, U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar will announce City of Floresville 2019 USDA water system improvements.

USDA (United States Department of Agriculture), Rural Development Division to Improve City’s Water System

The City has secured $2,465,000 in loans from the USDA Rural Development Division to fund improvements to the City of Floresville water system. The projects in this effort consist of source, treatment, storage, and distribution upgrades. A new Carrizo Aquifer well will be constructed at the existing Plaza Water Plant site to replace the existing, out-of-service well. A permanent interconnect with Oak Hills Water Supply Corporation will be established. The existing “B” Street well will be rehabilitated to provide a reliable source of water for years to come. A new aerator will be constructed and the ground storage tank at the Hospital Water Plant site will be rehabilitated and repainted.

Who

U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar (Texas District 28)
Floresville Mayor and City Council
Floresville City Manager Henrietta Turner
USDA representatives

What

Congressman Cuellar to Announce USDA United States Department of Agriculture, Rural Development water system improvements. The public is invited to attend. Light refreshments will be served.

When

Wednesday, November 6, 2019 at 10:30 am

Where

Floresville City Hall, 1120 D Street, Floresville, Texas

U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar will be at Floresville City Hall, 1120 D Street, Floresville, Texas, on Monday, August 19 at 10:30 a.m. to congratulate the City of Floresville on being selected to receive a $69,000 Community Facilities Grant for the City of Floresville Police Department. The public is invited to attend. Light refreshments will be served.

City of Floresville USDA Facilities Direct Loan and Grant

The City of Floresville has received $69,000 in funding from United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development and city funding/applicant contribution. This funding will allow the City of Floresville to purchase three police vehicles. This is an example of the USDA Rural Development working to support the sustainable development of rural communities and improve the quality of life in rural areas. This grant will certainly pave the way for a stronger future for the City of Floresville.

Read Newsletter

Inside this Issue

• Water conservation tips
• 2018 Consumer Confidence Report for Public Water System

U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar will be at City Hall, 1120 D Street, Floresville, Texas on October 19 at 2:30 p.m. for the unveiling ceremony of the City of Floresville’s newly constructed, state-of-the-art USDA Wastewater Treatment Plant and to acknowledge the receipt of FEMA funds for Wilson County to Judge Richard Jackson. Congressman Cuellar was instrumental in ensuring the County received FEMA funding during the May 2015 catastrophic flooding.

City of Floresville USDA Wastewater Treatment Plant

The City of Floresville received $9.473 million in funding from United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development ($1.798 million in grant, $7.495 million in loan, and $180,000 in City funding/applicant contribution). This funding has allowed the City to construct significant upgrades to the existing wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) on Goliad Road and to the wastewater collection system. Major improvements to the WWTP include a new carousel oxidation basin; two new clarifiers; a new disinfection system; a belt filter press for sludge processing; and new emergency power, electrical, and control system improvements. The WWTP improvements will increase the plant’s average flow capacity from 900,000 gallons per day (GPD) to 1.2 million GPD and increase peak flow capacity from 1.8 million GPD to 4.8 million GPD.  The new plant will have the capacity to anticipate the City of Floresville’s expected growth through 2050. This improvement will certainly pave the way for a stronger future for the City of Floresville.

Wilson County FEMA Funds

The Wilson County FEMA funds will only be granted to Precincts 1, 2, and 4, with Albert Gamez, Jr, Paul Pfeil, and Larry Wiley representing those precincts respectively.

Visitor’s Guide

The Floresville Visitor’s Guide is now available—featuring events, dining, recreation, lodging, churches, maps, and more.

Read Newsletter

Inside this Issue

• Water conservation tips
• 2017 Consumer Confidence Report for Public Water System

The City of Floresville has been approved for a loan from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to fund various improvements projects for the City’s public drinking water system. The total amount of the loan is approximately $3.719 million which will be used to make the required  improvements. The improvements projects will be grouped into three construction packages that are described as follows:

Construction Package No. 1 (Ram II)

• Construct a new welded steel ground storage tank at the Plaza Water Plant to replace the previously demolished bolted steel ground storage tank there.
• Provide hookups for a mobile generator at the City’s three water treatment and storage sites. This will allow City staff to provide water to the City’s customers in the event of a citywide power outage.
• Improve the water system monitoring devices at the three water treatment and storage sites so that the City will be able to better monitor water production and distribution.
• Refurbish the existing aeration tanks at the three water treatment and storage sites so that the City will be able to better control taste and odor in the water provided to its customers.
• Ram II General Contractor Inc. started its business 42 years ago in January, 1975. Ralph A. Minard II is President and 100-percent owner and stockholder. Ram II specializes in water, sewer and drainage piping projects to include specialization in water and sewer plant construction and rehabilitation. Their company also builds lift stations and erects ground storage water tanks. They have worked on projects funded by TXCDBG, TWDB, USDA and TXDOT for the past 40 years. They have completed numerous projects for the City of Floresville for the past 25 years. They presently employ 20 full-time employees. Ram II recently completed a new 12-inch sewer line with 11 sanitary sewer manholes and two bores for the City of Floresville and completed the project 2 months ahead.

Construction Package No. 2 (RG3)

• Replace the existing water meters throughout the City with new meters that will enable City staff to collect meter data without having to
  make a manual read of the meters. The data from the meters will be gathered by a signal sent to a laptop computer as staff drives that meter’s
  location.
• The RG3 companies are composed of a manufacturing division (Meter Company) and a service division (Utilities). RG3’s legacy companies span back to 1950. Their installation crews have installed over two million meter system units of every manufacturer available in North America including Itron, Neptune, Sensus, Hersey, Elster, Master Meter, Badger and, of course, RG3. RG3 uses NO subcontractors for its install crews. They also have the best warranty in the industry, offering a 23-year (12 full/11 prorated for AMI systems) replacement on all endpoint technology (register, battery, transmitter) compared to 10 years on competitors encoder, and 20 years (10 full/10 prorated) on competitors battery and transmitter. RG3 offers the longest new meter accuracy warranty (Perpetual Meters) in the industry (10 years and 1.5 million gallons) compared to most competitors’ new meter accuracy of 5 years and 750,000 gallons. Each endpoint can be read as a drive-by (AMR) or in a fixed network (AMI) with no programming or register transmission power mode changes. If Fixed Network Transceivers are in place, the utility can read seamlessly using either method (AMR or AMI) or both at the same time. This allows the utility to start out as a drive-by system and upgrade to an AMI system at a later date.

Construction Package No. 3 (M&C Fonseca)

• Modifications will be made to the City’s water distribution system that will provide flexibility in the system for staff to move water throughout
  the system to increase supply in cases of abnormally high demand.
• Several water mains in the downtown area will be replaced with new PVC mains. The downtown area is the oldest part of the system and many of the water mains there are made from cast iron. As the cast-iron pipes degrade, there are noticeable effects on the quality of the water that flows through them. This project will replace the oldest lines with new PVC.
• Matias Fonseca and his wife Carmen Fonseca started M&C Fonseca Construction Co. Inc. in 2001. M&C Fonseca was a small concrete construction business of just 5 employees that concentrated on only residential concrete slabs within a 30-mile radius of Matias’ home in Granite Shoals, Texas. In 2003, M&C Fonseca Construction Co. Inc. was incorporated and then had a total of 12 employees. They bid their first commercial underground utility project and won the bid with the City of Kerrville in 2011. Since then, they began to concentrate more on underground utilities for cities and municipalities in the surrounding areas. M&C Fonseca Construction Co. Inc. is now located at 1901 Prairie Creek Road and employs 27 permanent employees in the utility division, 13 employees in the concrete division, 2 superintendents, and 6 office personnel.