The 37th annual Sertoma Club Family July 4 Celebration and fireworks display has been canceled due to COVID-19 safety and physical distancing concerns.

“While we tried to find creative ways to continue this year’s celebration, City Council felt it would be in the best interest of public health and safety to cancel,” Mayor Dale Ross said. “With COVID-19 cases rising in our community at an alarming rate, it’s more important now than ever to be vigilant about keeping our distance, avoiding gatherings with people outside our homes, wearing face coverings, and disinfecting surfaces and our hands frequently.”

A factor in the decision to cancel the fireworks display was concern that residents from other nearby cities where fireworks have already been called off would come to Georgetown, which would increase the potential for crowding in city parks.

The number of active COVID-19 cases in Williamson County has continued to increase at new, daily records for the past week. Hospitalizations continue to hit all-time highs and are expected to continue to increase throughout the next two weeks, putting a strain on hospital, ICU, and ventilator capacity. The most recent COVID-19 case count and hospitalizations can be found on the Williamson County and Cities Health District dashboard.

By City ordinance, fireworks are not allowed in the city limits or within 5,000 feet of the city limits, unless they are used in a permitted display authorized by the Georgetown Fire Department. This area outside city limits includes, but is not limited to, the neighborhoods of Cedar Hollow, Crystal Knoll, Escalera, Fountainwood, Indian Creek, Logan Ranch Road, Lost Rivers, Oak Crest, Olde Oak Estates, Serenada, Shady Oaks, Turtle Bend, and Woodland Park, and areas along D.B Wood Road.

Violations can lead to fines of up to $2,000. To view a map showing the 5,000-foot boundary, go to maps.georgetown.org/fireworks-ban-area-map.

Other COVID-19 updates

2020 Music on the Square: To encourage social distancing, the City will hire buskers to play on corners of the Square on Thursday evenings in July and August.

Blazin’ Beer Crawl: Due to COVID-19 safety concerns, this event has been canceled.

Parks and Recreation:

• Garey Play Ranch and Splash Pad and other splash pads – Will open June 25
• Garey Park hours will remain at 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Creative Playscape in San Gabriel Park – Open date tentative pending repairs
• Groups using parks facilities should not exceed 10 individuals.

The Council is expected to discuss options and triggers for additional restrictions, as well as the rescheduled Red Poppy event (still scheduled for Oct. 23 to 25) at its July 14 meeting.

For a full list of openings and access to City services during the COVID-19 response, visit bit.ly/COVID19GTX.

The City will reinstate downtown parking enforcement June 15, after nearly two months of suspending the program.

Parking enforcement had been suspended at the direction of Police Chief Wayne Nero because of limited parking demand due to the county’s Stay Home Stay Safe Order.

As businesses have continued to reopen, parking has once again become a premium on the Square. This week, parking ambassadors began counting vehicles parked in excess of the allotted 3-hour time limit.

According to the City’s Downtown Parking Ordinance, on-street parking is limited to 3-hours in certain areas between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. First violations will receive a written warning. Each subsequent violation for the same vehicle within the calendar year will receive the following fines:

• $20 for second violation
• $50 for third violation
• $100 for fourth or more violations

For more information, contact the Downtown Parking Ambassadors at (512) 930-6530, or refer to the Downtown Parking Ordinance.

City facilities reopening update

Based on the Governor’s Executive Order GA-26, issued June 3, the City is opening additional facilities or increasing capacity limits on facilities. Those attending facilities or events should continue to observe 6-foot physical distancing and considering wearing a mask or face covering to reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-19.

Lobbies opening beginning June 15 during business hours

• Animal Services, 110 W.L. Walden Drive
• Parks and Recreation Administration, 1101 N. College St.
• Planning Department, 406 W. Eighth St.

Parks and Recreation – June 15 openings and increases to capacity limits

• Recreation Center (now open at 50 percent capacity)
• Tennis Center (50 percent capacity)
• Outdoor and Recreation Center pools, except for River Ridge pool (25 percent capacity)
• Community Center (50 percent capacity)
• Garey House (50 percent capacity)
• Day Camps (Camp Goodwater) at Recreation Center (50 campers only)
• Outdoor athletic field rentals

Remaining closed/canceled:

• Garey Play Ranch and Splash Pad
• Other splash pads
• Creative Playscape in San Gabriel Park
• Other summer camps such as tennis, adventure, volleyball, soccer, Junior Fire and Police academies, Kid City, adaptive, enrichment camps

The City is still evaluating its outdoor summer events schedule.

The Georgetown Cultural Citizen Memorial Association will host “Embracing Change: The New Normal,” a virtual town hall event for the 68th annual Juneteenth celebration Saturday, June 20. The annual public event will feature two panel discussions beginning at 10:30 a.m.

Juneteenth event schedule

The event starts at 10:30 a.m. with a panel discussion on education with Paula Simmons, vice principal at Westview Middle School, as well as Georgetown ISD parents Mike Sedwick and Alexandria Clark. The panel will be moderated by Alicia Moore, Southwestern University Education Department chair.

A second panel discussion on social services will begin at noon and feature Ginna O’Connor, The Caring Place executive director, Rhonda Franklin-Romar of the Salvation Army, and Kelly St. Julien from The Boys and Girls Club of Georgetown. The panel will be moderated by Suzy Pukys, Georgetown Health Foundation vice president of strategic philanthropy.

To participate in the event, visit bit.ly/2XKPmRB.

Juneteenth history

Juneteenth marks the day on June 19, 1865, when Union soldiers landed at Galveston and reported that the Civil War was over and slavery had ended. The Emancipation Proclamation freeing the slaves had been in effect since January 1, 1863, but word did not reach Texas for more than two years. Juneteenth was declared an official state holiday in Texas in 1980.

Contact information

For more information, contact (512) 630 0634 or gccma1975.org@gmail.com.

Skye Masson has been selected by City Council as city attorney for the City of Georgetown. She is expected to start July 4. Her appointment was unanimously approved by City Council following a May recruitment to fill the role of outgoing city attorney Charlie McNabb. In April, McNabb announced his resignation from his position, effective July 3.

“It’s exciting to have such a great internal candidate who is ready for the role, understands the organization, reflects our professional values, and has the full confidence of City Council,” Mayor Dale Ross said. “The Council and I are looking forward to Skye serving as city attorney.”

Masson has worked in the City Attorney’s Office for the last 10 years and since 2016 has served as the City’s first assistant attorney. She has been the primary attorney for a variety of assigned departments, including Information Technology, Planning, Parks, Police, Fire, Human Resources, and the Airport. In addition to supporting assigned departments, she has contributed to many key projects, while developing effective working relationships with staff and elected officials.

“My years spent working for the City of Georgetown have been filled with interesting, challenging, enjoyable, and rewarding work,” Masson said. “I look forward to this opportunity to lead the City’s legal team as the City continues to grow and develop.”

Prior to coming to the City, Masson practiced in the commercial litigation section in the Atlanta office of one of the largest law firms in the nation. She received her law degree with honors from The University of Texas School of Law, where she was the editor-in-chief of the Texas International Law Journal. She holds a master’s degree in English from Boston College, as well as Bachelor of Art’s degrees in both English and French from The University of Texas at Austin. She is active in state and local bar associations and has been a recent speaker at several continuing legal education seminars.

The City of Georgetown is asking residents to share their priorities for the Fiscal Year 2021 budget by taking a short, online survey: surveymonkey.com/r/GTXBudget21. The survey is also available in Spanish.

The survey will be open from June 10 to June 26, and the results will be presented to City Council during its July budget workshops. The survey explains where the City’s funding comes from and how it’s allocated, and asks residents to provide feedback to specific questions to help inform City staff and Council about residents’ priorities as they work to build next year’s budget.

“The City budget affects every resident in Georgetown,” City Manager David Morgan said. “How we allocate their taxpayer dollars determines the level of service they get in return for City functions. Because we ask our residents, to trust us with their hard-earned income, we must make sure we’re spending their money the way they want it to be spent.”

The City is limiting this initial phase of public engagement on the budget to a digital survey, in an effort to reduce to public gatherings while COVID-19 continues to spread in the community. What impact the pandemic will have on next year’s budget is yet to be seen, though the City is monitoring all available resources and planning for a lean year.

Important 2021 budget dates:

June 10-June 26: Budget engagement
July 21: First Council budget workshop
July 22: Second Council workshop
Aug. 11: First presentation of the full budget; City Council sets maximum tax rate and public hearing dates
Sept. 8: Public hearings and first reading of both the tax rate and the budget
Sept. 22: Second reading and final adoption of the tax rate and budget

For more information about the annual budget process, visit finance.georgetown.org.

Customers should follow two-day watering schedule

With the start of summer and the period of highest water demand, City of Georgetown water utility customers should make sure they follow the two-day watering schedule for irrigation systems and hose-end sprinklers. The year-round, two-day per week irrigation schedule is based on the last digit of the street address.

The watering schedule is posted at gus.georgetown.org/water/whatsmyschedule.

Irrigation is not permitted on Mondays because they are a maintenance and recovery day for the water system. The two-day schedule spreads watering over six days each week in order to balance demand on the water system. Watering with a hand-held hose or bucket can be done any day and at any time. Other outdoor water uses like washing a vehicle or filling a swimming pool, can be done any day at any time.

Violations of the irrigation schedule may result in fines.

During the summer months, 75 percent of the drinking water treated each day in the city is used to irrigate lawns and landscapes.

The utility has added more than 3,000 new water customers in the past year as a result of new residences and businesses in the area.“To address growth, the utility has completed the Braun elevated storage tank and is working on other projects, like the expansion of the Lake Water Treatment Plant, to increase our capacity,” said Water Utility Director Glenn Dishong. “But given the growth in demand from new homes and the likelihood of hot and dry weather, we anticipate we will again be near our plant capacity this summer. Our customers can help us meet the peak demand by following the two-day watering schedule and avoiding watering on Mondays.”

Seasonal Adjust

One simple way for customers to reduce their overall water use is to use the Seasonal Adjust setting on their irrigation system controller. The Seasonal Adjust feature on the controller allows users to decrease or increase watering times on their schedule by a set percentage. So, for example, changing the seasonal adjust to 80 percent would result in run times for each watering zone on the system at 80 percent of the normal schedule. As customer demand reaches the production capacity of the system, the utility will be asking customers to use their Seasonal Adjust setting to reduce demand and stay within the plant production capacity.

Using Seasonal Adjust to reduce demand can help to avoid more drastic reductions in usage by limiting watering days, as directed in the Drought Contingency Plan. If usage exceeds 90 percent of plant capacity for a long enough period of time, then then next step is to limit watering to one day per week.

Watering times

The best time for watering your lawn and landscape is on your watering day in the early morning hours after midnight. This allows the water to soak into the soil and reach the roots of your grass and plants. Watering during the heat of the day, especially between noon and 7 p.m., should be avoided since much of the water sprayed from sprinklers will evaporate and is wasted.

For assistance in programming your irrigation controller, call (512) 930-3640, or email gus@georgetown.org.

City of Georgetown leaders, including Mayor Dale Ross and Council members, Police Chief Wayne Nero and other police officers, and City Manager David Morgan, joined more than 200 people on the Square Wednesday afternoon in support of the Black Lives Matter protest. City leaders plan to attend other events scheduled for this weekend.

The City and the protest organizers are asking everyone to protest peacefully and continue to follow CDC guidelines to protect themselves and others against COVID-19, including wearing a face mask and limiting contact with and proximity to others.

The City of Georgetown knows of three planned events on the Square within the next few days. These events are organized by private individuals and organizations and are not City events. First Amendment events do not require a special-events permit.

Black Lives Matter/Police Brutality protest
1 p.m. Wednesday, June 3
https://www.facebook.com/events/719121368630420/

Peaceful Assembly
Noon to 6 p.m. Saturday, June 6
https://www.facebook.com/events/1295932913935736/

A Prayer for Black Lives Lost to Police Violence
3 to 5 p.m. Sunday, June 7
https://www.facebook.com/events/3134928503232743/

Below is a statement from Mayor Ross about the events. Chief Nero’s comments can be found here, on his official Facebook page.

I’m honored to stand with our community as we protest the injustices and racism so prevalent in our society. The prayer event Sunday is particularly poignant: We need prayer all the time, but especially now, when so much of our community is hurting and angry and scared.

These protests are for a just cause that must be heard, and I want the community to know that we are listening. We, as a government and as a community, have much more work to do to acknowledge and address the inherent racism in our city. We won’t get there, we won’t see real change, without one another, without our whole community joining together.

On Wednesday, Chief Nero spoke with community leaders to help identify challenges here in Georgetown and a path forward. We anticipate additional community conversations in the coming weeks. We hope you’ll join us.

I support the Police Department’s continued efforts to engage and build relationships with every part of our community. We must open our minds, our ears, and our hearts to every voice in our community, so we can move forward, together, to make Georgetown a better place.

The City of Georgetown will continue to open City facilities, programs, and services throughout the month of June. The openings are in accordance with orders from the governor’s office, as well as the City’s ability to provide staffing and essential safety measures, including physical distancing and sanitization. The City will reclose any of its facilities, with notice, if safety procedures can’t be maintained or the governor alters his orders.

What follows is a detailed listing of what is opening, when, and under what conditions. These openings are in addition to previous announcements, including the Georgetown Public Library and some park amenities, which opened May 1, and several lobbies and parks and recreation services, which opened May 18.

For additional details about City services and COVID-19-related information, visit bit.ly/COVID19GTX.

Parks and Recreation

The City is opening as many of its Parks and Recreation facilities as it can, as soon as it can. Decisions on if, how, and when to open facilities and programs are informed by several factors, including the governor’s orders, staffing ability, and safety measures.

This is not a complete list of the facilities, programs, and services that are available. Information and details about those already open can be found here.

Opening June 1

• Youth athletic field practices (one team at a time)
• Outdoor basketball courts
• Community Center
• Outdoor exercise stations
• Garey House
• Picnic pavilions (2+ tables)
• Playgrounds: Except for the creative playscape and play ranch at Garey Park
• Recreation Center: By reservation only
• Outdoor volleyball courts
• Private/small-group tennis lessons

Opening June 15

• Athletic field rentals (youth)
• Outdoor pools at the following locations: Recreation Center, Williams Drive, Village
  • Open at 25 percent occupancy
  • All other outdoor pools will remain closed at this time, due to limited number of trained lifeguards
• Camp Goodwater (50 kids/week)
• Fitness programs

Opening July 1

• Adaptive Camp-Georgetown ISD Campus
• Kid City-GISD Campus
• Recreation programs

Unknown

• Adult athletic leagues
• Sunset Movie Series (July and August)
• Swim lessons

Remaining closed/canceled

• Other outdoor pools
• Garey Park Play Ranch
• Creative Playscape
• Splash pads
• Youth athletic leagues
• Sunset Movie Series (June)
• Tennis camps
• The following sports camps: Tennis, Adventure, Volleyball Skills, Challenger Sports Soccer, and Sporties for Shorties
• All Enrichment Camps (art, hoop dance, LEGO, comic book creation, U-Tubers Unite!)
• Junior Fire and Police academies

Municipal Court

The Municipal Court lobby, 510 W. Ninth St., will reopen June 1. Hours will be 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and 8 a.m. to noon Thursdays. The public is encouraged to contact the Court offices prior to coming in person. Contact the Municipal Court at (512) 930-3625, court@georgetown.org, or by fax at (512) 930-8030.

The Court is working to hold virtual docket proceedings within the month. Any essential proceedings that must be held in person will be limited to no more than five defendants at a time. People who enter the courtroom will be required to wear masks and submit to temperature checks.

Advisory Boards and Commissions

Effective June 1, City advisory boards will start meeting, either in the Friends Room of the Georgetown Public Library or Council Chambers. Meetings will be held in person, with the option for advisory board members to participate via conference call. Public comment will only be taken in person, and the public is welcome to attend. Meeting rooms will be set up to provide physical distancing among the board members and the public.

Information about and agendas for meetings can be found at agendas.georgetown.org.

 Council meetings

As of the May 26 City Council meeting, the public will have the opportunity to provide comment during Council meetings two ways: Phone and in-person, virtually from a City conference room.

Members of the public are encouraged to send written public comment filling out this form at least 15 minutes before the meeting begins. People can watch the live stream of the meetings at gtv.georgetown.org, on the Government channel 10, or the City’s Facebook page.

Special events

The City is working with the Georgetown Sertoma Club to provide a drive-in fireworks show. The annual festival has been canceled due to physical distancing concerns. Updates can be found at gtxsertoma.org.

The City will continue with its plan to hold POPPtoberfest, in the place of the annual Red Poppy Festival, from Oct. 23 to 25.

Music on the Square is expected to start in July.

All other special events in Georgetown facilitated by other organizations must follow the governor’s guidance on physical distancing and go through the regular Special Event Permitting Process. 

GoGeo

Regular GoGeo bus service will resume June 8. Hours will be 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. There will be no Saturday service.

GoGeo buses will begin collecting regular fare July 1.

The following rules for passengers remain in effect:

• Do not travel if you are sick.
• Face coverings are required. Scarves, bandanas, or other non-medical coverings that cover the nose and mouth are acceptable.
• Passengers without face coverings will not be allowed to board. Please bring your own face covering.
• Practice physical distancing by seating yourself as far as possible from other passengers.

CARTS will continue to provide needed medical trips for dialysis and other critical medical needs for pre-scheduled trips. Rides for qualified paratransit riders can be requested online or through the CARTS Reservation Center by calling (512) 478-7433.

Fee waivers and Customer Assistance Program

In an effort to support individuals, families, and businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, City Council at its April 14 meeting voted to waive certain City fees through May 31. The Council on May 26 directed staff to continue waiving these fees through June.

• Temporary sign permit application fee
• Security systems false alarm fee
• GoGeo transit fares and para-transit fee
• Utility billing late fees

City Council also approved a $1 million COVID-19 customer assistance program to help people pay their utility bills. The program will be managed by Opportunities for Williamson and Burnet Counties (OWBC) and is funded by unanticipated income and special revenue in the City’s electric and water utilities. People can apply through OWBC.

 Safety changes

As announced in May, and unless otherwise stated, the public can expect the following changes when visiting City facilities and interacting with staff:

• Occupancy limits
• Face coverings, strongly encouraged but optional
  • Unless physical distancing cannot be maintained, in which case, masks will be provided or other accommodations will be made.
• Minimizing touch points
• Hand sanitizing stations
• Sanitization schedules
• Signage indicating occupancy limits and directions for self-screening before entering the building
• Safe-spacing, floor markers
• Limited seating
• Limited hours
• Physical distancing

In addition to the steps listed above, City employees will be required to take their temperature before and when they arrive at work. Employees also will be required to wear masks when interacting with anyone, staff or public, if 6 feet can’t be maintained. Employees exchanging items with the public, like cash, will wear gloves. The City continues to prioritize telecommuting, virtual meetings, and working in shifts, limiting the number of people in the building at one time.