By Edna Clark
The Town of Van Horn City Council convened for a regularly scheduled meeting with all members present.
City Secretary Fran Malafronte advised Council that the general fund balance once again saw an increase after paying out over $117,000 in bills. In an update on reopening the City Landfill, Ms. Malafronte related that the initial permit had been submitted to TCEQ, and progress is being made daily. City street crews continue filling potholes, and citizens are encouraged to contact City Hall for street repairs.
Raul Rodriguez, Mountain View Golf Course Manager and Culberson County Commissioner addressed Council on the need for funding to pay for installation of playground equipment for the City County Park and Rainbow Day Care. Ms. Malafronte and Council members asked Mr. Rodriguez to complete a Budget Request Form for the funds needed.
Additionally, Mr. Rodriguez received permission to close the Mountain View Golf Course to the public during the week of March 20-24th for reseeding and course maintenance. The greens and fairways appear to be in the best condition seen in many years.
Saturday, March 4, the CCAISD Golf Team will sponsor and Invitational Golf Tournament from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. andthe course will be closed to the public.
Patricia Golden presented Council with an overview of the Clark Hotel Historical Museum activities and 2017-2018 needs for funding which include roofing, balcony, window sealing, and other repairs. Ms. Malafronte distributed to Council copies of the WINTER, 2015 version of The Medallion, a publication of the Texas Historical Commission that had text and photos of the Clark Hotel Museum and the Town of Van Horn.
Under Ms. Golden’s guidance, individual rooms in the museum have been restored. Currently, local citizens of the McVay and Lipsey families are renovating rooms in honor of their ancestors. For the Cowboy Room, Ms. Golden is asking the public for taxidermy animal heads of the area for room decorations.
As the Clark Hotel Museum was once used as the Culberson County Courthouse, Ms. Golden has been gathering documentation to submit so the Museum may receive financial assistance from the Texas Historical Commission for further renovations.
For safety issues, Alderman Lyndon McDonald requested the El Paso Electric Company install street lights at 1207 La Caverna and at the corner of Elm Street and West Broadway.
Ms. Malafronte advised Council the MorphoTrust USA will begin operations twice weekly in the City County Library for fingerprinting that is required by several government and school entities. Library personnel will be trained on the procedure with reimbursement to the Town of Van Horn by MorphoTrust for employee time.
Alderman McDonald and Ms. Malafronte presented Council with the agenda of the 2017 Spring Clean-up Campaign scheduled to be held on April 22 this year from 8:00a.m. until 3:00 p.m. All entries must be submitted to City Hall by April 19.
The Campaign will kick off at El Mercado at 8:00 a.m. and initially move to start litter clean up on the Interstate 10 Southeast Frontage Road and Golf Course Drive from 8:15 a.m. to 9:15 a.m. Then, participants will move to their designated areas for garbage pickup until 2:00 p.m. A free hamburger/hot dog meal then will be provided to participants at El Mercado to round out the day.
Prizes for groups will be $500 for 1st place; $300 for 2nd place; and $100 for 3rd place. Individuals will once again be given computer tablets for the top three collectors.
Something new this year is a drawing for non-City employees who participate in the clean-up. Individual and groups will earn raffle tickets for an opportunity to win a very nice prize.
More on the Clean-up Campaign will be provided in this newspaper, as well as much more publicity will be provided by the Town of Van Horn to make this year’s event the best ever Spring Clean-up Campaign.
