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City Commissioners name new Interim City Manager

Wed, 02/10/2021 - 5:00 am

The Breckenridge City Commission appointed City Secretary Heather Robertson-Caraway as the new interim Breckenridge city manager during the city’s February 2 regular meeting. She replaces the acting interim manager, Scott Dixon, who has served in that position since September of 2020. Dixon explained that his position in Breckenridge was temporary and he had accepted a position in Castorville. The committee that had met and recommended his temporary appointment also recommended that current City Secretary, Heather Robertson-Caraway, be named as his replacement.

Dixon said, “It has been a true pleasure serving you and the citizens of Breckenridge. I felt welcomed from the first day and can easily see why so many folks come back home to Breckenridge. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to work alongside your hardworking and dedicated staff. I hope that I will have left the City ‘better than I found it’ and that you feel my services were worth the time and effort you have invested. I believe great things are in store and hope to be able to continue to help whoever is chosen to be the City’s permanent City Manager. This has truly been an honor and a privilege.”

The process of finding a permanent City Manager can take three to six months or longer. Two quotes were submitted from CHC and Strategic Government Resources for assistance to the city in locating a qualified manager and it was decided to hire Strategic Government Resources with their submitted bid not to exceed $24,900 to locate and employ the future manager. The Breckenridge Industrial Foundation had previously funded SGR for the purpose of bringing in Dixon.

The City Manager also reported that the City of Breckenridge had been allocated $319,385 by the state to be used for COVID-19 related expenditures that weren’t previously budgeted. Thanks to Heather Robertson-Caraway and her staff, good use for the funding were found and $319,365 was expended. Their efforts also insured that the City of Breckenridge was the first Texas city to comply with each deadline set by the state regarding those fund’s administration. Those efforts ensure that Breckenridge will be first in line to have reimbursement checks cut from the state to the participating municipalities.

Additionally, possible election propositions may need to be established for the May election depending on the actions that the City Commission decides to take. Propositions that have been discussed include the possible repeal of the ¼ cent property tax reduction sales tax and implementing a crime control and prevention sales tax. Depending on which city services eventually become combined with the county, City Charter amendments may need to occur.

A Cost of Service survey authorized at December’s City Council meeting is reported to be well underway through New-Gen Strategies, a management consulting firm that requires an enormous amount of data relating to the City’s water and wastewater distribution and collection systems. The City’s staff has already gathered most of that information and it is expected to take three to four months to complete the entire process of evaluations.

The City also reported that total combined funds on deposit, at First National Bank as of Sept. 30, 2020, totaled $5,420,082.57 having accrued $1,604.96 in interest this period.

The Breckenridge Police Department submitted a full Racial Profiling Report covering all of the 2020 year as required by Article 2.333(c) Code of Criminal Procedure and reported no complaints of racial profiling against the department across all 754 stops made locally.