News

Marble Falls Fire Chief Russell Sander has announced Thomas “Tommy” Crane as the city's new Fire Marshal.

When he reports to Marble Falls Fire Rescue Jan. 17, he will be succeeding Johnny Caraway, who retired officially Sept. 19.

Crane has 29 years in the fire service, with the last 15 years serving as the Assistant Chief of Prevention for Travis County Emergency Service District (ESD) 2 (Pflugerville Fire Department).

“He retired from the ESD in January 2016 and is excited to return to the fire service after a year of traveling with his wife Sharon,” said Sander.

“We are happy to have Tommy join our team,” Sander continued. “His experience in Pflugerville, which experienced significant growth during his tenure, will be a great value to the fire department and city.

It was another record year for the 2017 Burnet County Livestock Show as the sale raised $422,290 for Burnet County Future Farmers of America (FFA) students and 4-H Club members.

This year marked the 50th anniversary of the show, which was held at the Burnet County Fairgrounds in Burnet Jan. 5-7. Last year's show raised $367,240.

Outstanding Senior awards to Cody Moore and Clay Chasteen, while the Robert Jacoby Memorial Top Breeder award went to Cody Moore as well. The Buck Zimmerman Top Hand for 2017 was Audrey Anderson.

Champions crowned at the Burnet County Livestock Show include:

Market Steers

Grand Champion — Cody Moore, Burnet FFA

Reserve Grand Champion — Kenneth “Kade” Schooler, Burnet FFA

Market Lambs

Grand Champion — Brynlee Cody, Bertram 4H

Reserve Grand Champion — Brynlee Cody, Bertram 4H

Market Hogs

By Lew K. Cohn

Managing Editor

The Highlander

The Texas Education Agency has released to the Texas Legislature preliminary ratings of school districts and campuses based on a new accountability system that is set to go into effect in August 2018. The reviews by area educators could best be described as thumbs down.

Marble Falls Independent School District Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum & Instruction Dr. Wes Cunningham said administrators were told there would be a provisional accountability rating released, but added that the A-F Accountability Ratings are “using a still-in-process methodology that doesn't use any new data.”

“These A-F ratings just released are using the current system data that is being used under our current accountability ratings, in which our campuses and our district got the highest rating possible of meeting the standards,” Cunningham said.

By Lew K. Cohn

Managing Editor

The Highlander

Vandals broke into the former Burnet Elementary cafeteria and another building this weekend, causing a great deal of damage to property being refurbished by the county for use by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service.

Burnet County Judge James Oakley said workers arriving early Monday, Jan. 9, to the building discovered the damage, which included paint intentionally splattered on the floor, on signs, on walls, on windows, on the stage and on aluminum siding.

In addition, it appears the vandals also may have struck another building on the campus that is being used for storage by the Burnet Consolidated Independent School District. A broken window was discovered Saturday and reported to police, who had no reason to believe any other buildings were involved until damage was found Monday morning.

A Round Mountain man remains in the Burnet County Jail, charged with intoxication manslaughter for the vehicular death of a Round Rock woman last year in Llano County. Pedro Ortiz Hurtado, 66, of Round Mountain was transferred into the Burnet County Jail Jan. 5, based on charges of intoxicated manslaughter with a vehicle that followed his arrest by Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) troopers. Hurtado was the driver of a truck in an accident Nov. 1 on Texas 71 that claimed the life of Edwina Dillon Turner, a 56-year-old Round Rock woman. The accident occurred about three miles west of Horseshoe Bay at 8:23 p.m. when, according to Texas Department of Public Safety records, Hurtado's eastbound 2005 Ford F250 crossed the center line and swerved back, striking Turner's eastbound 2014 Volkswagen PTE head on. George Anderson, 51, of Round Mountain, a passenger in Hurtado's truck, was injured in the accident.

Burnet County youths are showing their animals at the Burnet County fairgrounds this week.

By Lew K. Cohn
Managing Editor
The Highlander
Two Pedernales Electric Cooperative (PEC) directors are seeking a permanent injunction against the rest of the board and the Johnson City-based cooperative as a whole to prevent implementation of single-member districts this year.
Directors Cristi Clement of Burnet County and Kathy Scanlon of Travis County have been joined by Burnet County resident Thomas Mitchell in the lawsuit, which was filed Dec. 29 in Hays County District Court.
Last August, the PEC board voted 5-2 to create single-member districts in which only members who live within a district may vote for the director from that district. They also created a different quorum requirement for election of directors than that required for the annual PEC meeting, which is when director elections have traditionally taken place.

By Glynis Crawford Smith
The Highlander
The historic Marble Falls Depot will take its first breath in a life restored as a transportation hub on Friday, Jan 13.
It will reopen with a 10 a.m. ribbon cutting as a station for the Capital Area Rural Transportation System (CARTS).
“We are excited about the privelege and opportunity to use the depot; to have it go back into the purpose it used to serve for people coming and going,” said CARTS General Manager David L. Marsh. “It is such a neat place. I just imagine people coming back from wars, meeting family there. So many things that lobby has seen.”
The depot was constructed in 1893 on land deeded to the city on Avenue N at Second Street by by the Texas Mining and Improvement Company. It began as depot for the Austin and Northwestern Railroad, but was later purchased by the Southern Pacific Railroad and served faithfully until 1968.

By Glynis Crawford Smith
The Highlander

By Glynis Crawford Smith
The Highlander