Smithville City Council Approves Enclave Development Agreement, Delays Leaf and Limb Fee Decision

By Kristen Meriwether, Publisher

The Smithville City Council held a special called meeting on Friday. Here is a recap of the actions taken, in the order they were approved:

Tax Note
Council unanimously authorized the finance director to pay all current and future invoices to Union Pacific related to the Safe Routes to School grant out of the tax note.

Enclave Development Agreement
The council unanimously approved the development agreement for the Enclave at Riverbend. This included an agreement to pay the community benefit fee, which is expected to be nearly $250,000. The full agreement can be found in the packet.

Council Member Brandon Dunham brought up the dissolution of the Hunters Crossing PID in Bastrop and asked if the language in the Enclave agreement would protect Smithville from a similar fate. The city’s bond attorney advised that the language provided adequate protection.

Trash RFP
The council unanimously agreed to changes in the RFP for the new garbage contract. In addition to what was listed in the packet (starting at page 22), the RFP will include: requiring trucks be no more than four years old and include spill kits; an option for recycling every three weeks; an option for additional cans; a list of what can be provided at no cost to the city; and a recycling educational component for commercial and residential customers.

The city will publish the RFP at the end of the month, and responses must be received by Jan. 28, 2026.

Recycling Center Permits
Council Member Jimmy Jenkins said the city will continue to honor in-town 2025 recycling center permits through March. Out-of-town permits will need to be renewed.

Once the new garbage contract has been approved in March, and a determination about curbside recycling is made, the council will decide what to do with in-town permits.

Leaf and Limb
Interim City Manager Jeremy Frazier gave a detailed presentation on the financial impact of leaf and limb pickup. The current program charges 1,698 residents a $10 monthly fee to fund the program, generating an estimated annual revenue of $203,760.

But labor and expenses are an estimated $304,372.

Frazier presented the council with options to help close the gap, with a $5 increase needed to help the program break even.

The current budget was calculated assuming the city would change to on-demand leaf and limb pickup. But that plan was put on hold due to greater-than-expected administrative costs.

The council opted to table the discussion until January to better understand the true budgetary impact of the options presented.

Budget Cuts
The council tasked Interim City Manager Jeremy Frazier with finding $120,000 in budget cuts, and he presented his findings at Friday' meeting.

Instead of 1.75% cuts across all departments, Frazier was able to find $132,000 in savings through: 
$35,000: code enforcement officer resignation 
$74,000: elimination of the community engagement coordinator 
$14,000: canceling hail damage insurance coverage 
$9,000: canceling Avenue Insights platform

Frazier said he will continue to go line-by-line and look for savings, particularly if more are needed to help offset leaf and limb changes.

The council went into a lengthy executive session to discuss the city manager’s employment contract. No action was taken.

The next city council meeting is expected to be Jan. 12, 2026.