TAFT, Texas — After canceled meetings and delayed votes, the Taft City Council met for the first time this year with all members present.
In December, three meetings were canceled in just over a month because of insufficient attendance, after Alderman Alonzo Molina indicated he would not attend. Molina was not present for the January 14 meeting either, but the council moved forward anyways.
On Tuesday, however, Molina and all other council members were in attendance.
The first vote of the night was to fill the vacant Ward 1 council seat. The position has been open since Mayor Elida Castillo was sworn in in November. Four candidates applied for the position, but only one attended Tuesday’s meeting.
Lucy Lopez, a lifelong Taft resident and former council member, spoke about the need for unity on the council and said she admired the current council’s emphasis on transparency. With a motion from Molina, Lopez was unanimously appointed and sworn in.
Lopez will hold the position until the Nov. 3 election.
Following that vote, the council approved Epimenio Ysassi as the city’s new legal counsel. The city was previously represented by Thomas Gwodsz before Scott Tschirhart represented Castillo, Molina, Mayor Pro Tem Esmeralda “Mimi” Cruz and Alderwoman Mariah Moreno amid the lawsuit filed by City Manager Ryan Smith.
Other agenda items approved included rescinding the current personnel manual to allow for public hearings to draft a new version, as well as plans for future amendments to the city’s fiscal year budget.
Regarding Smith, who was not present at Tuesday’s meeting, the council tabled an item that would have rescinded all prior ordinances or resolutions delegating powers to the city manager and reverted those powers back to the mayor and council. The item was tabled to allow Ysassi time to review it.
However, the council did vote to dismiss Smith’s lawsuit against them.
As previously reported, the Thirteenth Court of Appeals had denied a motion by Smith that sought to dismiss an appeal filed against him by the city's mayor and councilmembers.
The appeal stems from Smith's lawsuit against Castillo, Mayor Pro Tem Esmeralda Cruz-Molina, Alderwoman Mariah Moreno and Alderman Alonzo Molina. That lawsuit alleges the city leaders acted beyond their legal authority.
A San Patricio County district judge previously denied Smith’s request for a temporary injunction and declined to dismiss the lawsuit following a hearing on Jan. 8, allowing the case to proceed at the trial court level. Smith, who is representing himself in the matter, argued during that hearing that council actions had "clouded the lines of the chain of command."
Also at the previous January meeting, an agenda item passed unanimously, calling on the city manager’s $25,000 surety bond to cover the city’s legal expenses in the lawsuit. A surety bond is a written agreement, often required by law, to guarantee performance or payment of another company’s obligation under a separate contract or compliance with a law or regulation.
The Taft City Council will convene again on Tuesday, February 10.
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