Police pup meets public at Hutto council Fire Department tax-sharing debate settled
Special to the Press
HUTTO — A new, four-legged police officer melted hearts last Thursday when crisis K9 Chase was introduced to the City Council.
The 6-month-old golden retriever began training with the Hutto Police Department in February. Handlers Ashley Wilson and Katia Leal-Bristol, crisis support team members, brought the canine to the council meeting to help with acclimation.
In other business May 7, the city reached a tax-sharing agreement with a first-responder service, discussed needed improvements to local ball fields and honored the graduates of a program teaching about city government.
Meanwhile, council members learned more about crisis K9 dogs, which are trained to provide emotional support and help de-escalate high-stress situations during emergency responses, according to the Central Texas Public Safety Commission.
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New Hutto Police Department crisis K9 Chase looks to handlers Ashley Wilson and Katia Leal-Bristol for behavioral cues as he is introduced to the community.
Photo by Edie Zuvanich “The Crisis K9 initiative will allow our officers to respond to people in crisis with another level of care and understanding,” said Police Chief Jeff Yarbrough. “It’s a safer solution to help calm highly emotional situations and support both the community members we serve and the officers who experience trauma on the job.”
The Police Department partnered with the CTPSC to sign up Chase, believed to be the first crisis canine serving in Williamson County.
“At crisis scenes — often chaotic, unpredictable and emotionally charged — these dogs can help calm individuals experiencing distress while supporting victims, families and first-responders,” CTPSC said in a press release.
Hutto Fire Rescue, city come to terms
After more than a year of back-and-forth discussion, Williamson County Emergency Services District No. 3, also known as Hutto Fire Rescue, has come to a sales-tax sharing agreement with the city.
ESD 3 is partially funded through a 2% sales tax collected outside the city limits, but jurisdictional conflicts can arise when a property is annexed, officials said.
State law allows an ESD to continue collecting sales taxes, yet the city provides infrastructure and services to the property but does not take in any of the levies.
On May 7, ESD 3 officials announced they had agreed to share a portion of local sales-tax revenue generated from certain properties now part of the city to help support infrastructure needs.
The agreement establishes a 60/40 allocation of certain local sales-tax revenues, with 60% going to the city and 40% to the ESD.
Sports club, city play ball Complaints about unsafe conditions at the city’s softball and baseball fields led the council to schedule a June 4 workshop with Hutto Youth Baseball and Softball Association leadership.
Parents have taken to social media to air their concerns, saying the city has ignored calls to do something after rains left fields soggy.
Mayor Mike Snyder said it was unacceptable he learned of the situation only after it “blew up” on Facebook.
“All I want out of you all is if you guys have concerns they need to be addressed. If there’s a bathroom closed down for a month, that’s freakin’ unacceptable,” Snyder said.
Jeremy Carter, HYBSA vice president, said the organization shares blame with the city for the disconnect regarding problems with the sports fields.
“There have been some real frustrations in the community. There have been concerns expressed on social media. Those concerns are heard and they matter,” Carter said.
Hutto Citizens University honors new graduates
In other business, city leaders recognized the recent graduates of the Hutto Citizens University, an eight-week program highlighting how city government operates.
“This group has taken a hands-on journey through the inner workings of the city, learning not just what we do but why we do it,” said City Manager James Earp.
Graduate Ebony Adams said she was surprised to learn during the course that water running into storm drains from washing cars and landscaping goes directly into local streams without being filtered or cleaned of chemicals or solvents.
“Those (pollutants) don’t just affect Hutto, the streams move through the area. I had no clue about that,” she said.
Adams, who is a niece of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, said what she learned during Hutto Citizens University will be helpful as she advocates for local environmental issues.
