Weatherford City Council Meeting - November 18, 2025
Weatherford City Council Meeting - November 18, 2025
The Weatherford City Council held a regular session meeting on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, at 6:00 PM in City Council Chambers. All council members were present. The meeting included presentations, public comments, adoption of ordinances, and purchase approvals. Notable actions included adoption of reduced roadway impact fees, purchase of four truck-mounted attenuator vehicles, and approval of the city's votes for the Parker County Appraisal District Board.
Presentations & Recognitions
- Patriot Award: Assistant City Manager Chad Marbut presented the Department of Defense Patriot Award to City Manager James Hotopp for his support of military reservists and guardsmen. The City of Weatherford employs five active guard/reservists among 399 employees.
- Parker County Transportation Bond Project Update: County Judge Pat Dean, Commissioner Larry Walden, and consultants Chris Bosco (Freese and Nichols) and Brian Grimes provided an update. Key points: the county has secured over $1.6 billion in federal/state transportation funding; the Bethel Road project may be taken over by the county; schematic design for FM 730 is underway with a public meeting in early 2026; the Rick Williamson 180 overpass design is advancing; and the county is forming a Public Utility Agency (PUA) for regional water planning. A Parker County Water Symposium is scheduled for Friday, November 21.
Consent Calendar
- Approved minutes of the October 28, 2025, City Council meeting.
- Appointed Brooke Cray and Grant Mills to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, and Jaime White to the Historical Preservation Commission.
- Awarded purchase of a splash park at Love Street Park to Kraftsman Commercial Playgrounds ($447,830).
- Awarded hail damage repair services for 59 city vehicles to Bearded Guys, LLC ($443,241).
- Approved renewal of miscellaneous concrete improvements contract ($700,000).
- Authorized procurement of asphalt paving materials via interlocal agreement with Fort Worth ($500,000).
- Approved purchase of radio system maintenance from Motorola Solutions ($179,861).
- Authorized purchase of network security hardware from Maverick Computer Services ($150,000).
- Authorized purchase of hardware/software from SHI Government Solutions ($400,000).
- Authorized Year 2 payment to Motorola Solutions for police body cameras and cloud storage ($167,747.04).
- Approved final plat for Holiday World on 26.31 acres at 2328 East Interstate 20.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Lynn Main (211 West Oak Street) urged better signage on city projects (e.g., the building at Waco and Oak Street, and the Love Street splash park). She also highlighted dangerous sidewalk conditions in her neighborhood, citing crumbling sections and unsafe drainage covers, and asked the city to prioritize sidewalk repairs.
- Chris Coffee (113 Christopher Courts) spoke in support of reducing roadway impact fees, noting that high fees discourage new construction in older north-side neighborhoods and lead to remodels instead of teardowns. He cited a personal example of a project where impact fees made demolition uneconomical.
Discussion Items
- 8a – Comprehensive Safety Action Plan: Staff requested tabling to confirm data. Council voted to table the item.
- 8b – Roadway Impact Fee Reduction (Ordinance O2025-49): Public Works Director Matt Leppla proposed reducing residential impact fees to 40% of maximum and non-residential to 60%, making Weatherford more competitive. Current single-family fee: $5,310; proposed: $3,185.51. A 20,000 sq ft office in Area A would drop from $124,416 to $66,384. Council discussed potential unintended consequences on project funding. Staff committed to monitoring and bringing any needed adjustments back. The ordinance was adopted.
- 8c – Purchase of Four Mack MD6 Trucks with Truck-Mounted Attenuators ($821,559): Two trucks for fire department, two for public works/parks/electric. Fire Chief Peacock noted 312 accidents on I-20 in 2024 (690 vehicles, 845 people). The trucks provide a safety buffer, reducing risk of losing expensive apparatus. Councilmember Smith asked about retrofitting existing trucks; staff explained weight and availability issues. The purchase was approved, funded through TERS 1 and 2 accounts.
- 8d – Resolution R2025-19 – Parker County Appraisal District Board Votes: The city casts 96 votes for nominees Joe Wilkerson and Richard Barrett (both on the ballot). Council approved the resolution.
Key Outcomes
- Tabled: Item 8a (Comprehensive Safety Action Plan) – to confirm data.
- Adopted: Ordinance O2025-49 reducing roadway impact fees (motion by Heidi Wilder, second by Matt Ticzkus; vote passed).
- Approved: Purchase of four Mack MD6 trucks with attenuators (motion by Zack Smith, second by Heidi Wilder; vote passed).
- Approved: Resolution R2025-19 for PCAD board votes (motion by Matt Ticzkus, second by Heidi Wilder; vote passed).
- Postponed: Presentation of Police Department Civic Achievement Award to Tonya and Kevin Williams (absent).
- Executive Session: Council convened in executive session (7:06–7:19 PM) to deliberate real property at 2001 Bethel Road. Action item: Approved purchase of 1.6381 acres right-of-way and 0.728 acres of utility/sewer easements from Roberta Kirkpatrick, Trustee (motion by Luke Williams, second by Heidi Wilder; vote passed).
Meeting Transcript
Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for being here this evening. Before I call the meeting to order, I'm going to invite Tim Rose up with first priority to lead us in our invocation. Thank you for being here, Tim. Thank you. Let's pray. Father God, we thank you so much for this day. Yeah, we're grateful that the sun rose and it went down, even if it went down earlier than we wanted it to. Uh, but we're grateful. We're grateful for this time of year where we get to be thankful. We get to reflect on all that you've done. And that God, that then we move into a time where we get to celebrate your birth. Uh Lord, I pray that as we go into the season, this this time is fun for many, but unfortunately hard for others. I pray for comfort uh for those families who are hurting, for those who are missing loved ones this time of year. Um, God and I I pray that you would just be the author of comfort and peace that you are. Um God, I'm grateful that we get to come here. We get to discuss things of our city. Uh Lord, I pray for wisdom as uh all of these in front of me lead. Uh and God, I pray that you would just allow uh us to be more and more flourishing and that we would become more and more like you. God, I'm grateful for the wonderful movement that we're getting to see right now on Weatherford High School's campus. Um, God, that we got to see last week 45 teenagers share their faith for the first time. God, we're grateful for that. I'm grateful for all the many things that our city brings. Um, and God, I just pray now over this time of meeting that again you would be an author of peace. Uh that there would be no discord, but instead that uh decisions would be made all in accordance to your will and into your word. Uh God, we love you so much, and we thank you most of all that we can celebrate your son Jesus, that he came, lived on the earth, died on a cross, and did not remain on the cross and did not remain in the grave, but instead is risen king, and that we can worship him in all ways every day of our life. Lord, we pray this all in his name. Amen. Thank you, Tim. Have a good evening, sir. It is uh 6.02 p.m. at this time. I'll call the big order and announce that we'd have a quorum present. All council members are in attendance this evening. Item three on the agenda is pledges of allegiance to the United States and Texas flags be led by Councilmember Matt Tiskus. All right, please join me. We pledge to the flag in the United States. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the remote for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Now the Texas flag. Honor the Texas flag. I pledge allegiance to the Texas. One state under God, one and indivisible. Thank you for that, Matt. Item four on the agenda is items of community interest. Aaron Spicer, welcome. Good evening, Mayor and Council. Just a quick few highlights from around town, because it's officially that time of the year when we light the Christmas tree, but also the mosquito repellent candle at the same time. But no matter what the thermometer says, the holiday season has arrived, and Weatherford is ready to celebrate. The Weatherford Chamber of Commerce just brought home the gold for best event in Texas from the Texas Festivals and Event Association.
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