Revisions on regulations for manufactured home rental communities were recently approved by the Erath County Commissioners Court.
On Monday, Feb. 27, the court discussed manufactured home rental communities along with County Engineer Joe England.
The change came about after these communities were included as part of the subdivision ordinance.
“It specifically states these should not be considered subdivisions, so we have talked about removing it,” England explained to the court. “It’s a common practice done by counties in Texas.”
England said the rules are clear about what counties can and cannot regulate within manufactured home rental communities.
Counties can regulate: adequate drainage, adequate water supply, sanitary sewers, septic systems and a survey identifying streets, especially where emergency service vehicles are concerned.
“Will the streets revert back to the subdivision ordinance for streets or how will that work?” Commissioner Dee Stephens asked.
“Yes Sir, what it says is we cannot put something in place more stringent than what we have in the subdivision ordinance,” England said. “We do refer back to the subdivision ordinance for streets and also for drainage. The septic systems have their own section under the Health Code.”
The county held a public hearing on this issue during the meeting and no one spoke.
The revision on the regulations was unanimously approved. It will have to be updated every five years and is effective immediately.
Erath County Fire Marshal Tommy Shelton was appointed for another 2-year stint by the court.
A $250 donation was given as a grant request for the Leon Bosque RC&D Council.
The nonprofit encompasses a wide area and helps out with a variety of projects. They are the last council west of Interstate 35.
Recently, the organization helped with the disposal of tires for Erath County, filling an 18-wheeler with 750 tires. Their funding comes from enforcement actions of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
“We still have about 200 tires on the ground,” Commissioner Joe Brown said. “If we have room left after our next batch we will notify the public.”
The court approved a parttime school resource officer through the sheriff’s office in partnership with White House Academy.
Sheriff Matt Coates explained the agreement was similar to what the county has in place with Bluffdale ISD, but it was only for a parttime employee, therefore they would not have the deputy during the summer.
The county would potentially be out the cost of $2,000 for outfitting the deputy, but Coates said he would be willing to discuss the charge with the school district to see if they would split it with the county.
“I’m all in favor of us helping out school districts and wish every school district would put in a school resource officer,” County Judge Brandon Huckabee said.
The court held a closed session to discuss a personnel and legal matter but no action was taken when reconvening into open session.
In other business the court: ■ approved selling two vehicles at an auction in Comanche
■ approved the consent agenda with monthly/ quarterly departmental reports
■ approved participation for Erath County in the new opioid settlement
■ received and filed a roofing bond for the new annex building
■ approved running a water line across County Road 203 for cattle
■ approved the January 2023 monthly treasurer’s report