A conceptual plan for a redesign of Heritage Park downtown drew nearly an hour of discussion Tuesday night, before the Midlothian City Council tabled the plan until a later date so that more feedback from the public could be received.
Ellis County’s Behavioral Health Department has been in existence for one year now, and its director gave a progress update to the county Commissioners’ Court on Tuesday. Caitlin Wilkinson, director of the new department, said one of the biggest things in starting it was developing relationships with local health providers.
In a marathon Tuesday night meeting that didn’t adjourn until 10:30 p.m., the Midlothian City Council authorized an annual contract with Motorola Solutions for a comprehensive multiagency system, and set rental fees for meeting rooms inside the new City Hall. Councilmembers were divided over how to apply the new fees for the two meeting rooms, known as Community A and Community B.
The Midlothian Planning and Zoning Commission Tuesday night approved a change in a planned development to allow plastics and rubber manufacturing, in a very quick first meeting of 2025. A specific-use permit for a 12-acre property at 4521 North U.S.
The Midlothian City Council opened 2025 on Tuesday night by allowing the use of hotel occupancy tax funds to help a local theatre group rent the Midlothian Conference Center. In their first meeting of the new year, the council authorized the use of these funds to assist Back Porch Theatre Inc.
Bill Spinks wspinks@cherryroad.com Ellis County may soon be updating its 9-1-1 system to better respond to emergency calls. In its first meeting of 2025, the Ellis County Commissioners’ Court on Tuesday approved a non-binding resolution of support for an upgrade to the county’s 9-1-1 system. The enhancement would allow first responders to identify unsuccessful callers during disasters and mass-calling events, as well as to issue timely alerts to public officials, policymakers and first responders. County Judge Todd Little recounted a Dec. 12 workshop in which commissioners were made aware of problems with 9-1-1 systems across the nation. The resolution urges the North Central Texas Council of Governments explore options to make such an enhanced service affordable for member governments. Precinct 1 Commissioner Randy Stinson, who represents Ellis County on the NCTCOG 9-1-1 board, said the enhanced 9-1-1 has the ability to identify callers who cannot get through because of heavy call volume. “Any time you’ve got a way to check people, I think it’s a good idea,” Stinson said. “That’s what this system does.” Little said the Ovilla City Council was the first in the county to approve the resolution, and other cities are likely to follow suit. All members of the Commissioners’ Court were present. Other items Commissioners approved three new plats and two replats, the largest consisting of 6.336 acres. The approved consent agenda included previous meeting minutes, acceptance of various reports, a $62,000 yearly contribution to Meals on Wheels, and a pair of budgetary line-item transfers. The court approved a contract with Pearman Oil & Gas for convenience store fuel for 2025. A contract with Heritage Air Services LLC was approved for HVAC and mechanical equipment maintenance services for the Ellis County Jail in an annual amount of $109,492. The purchase of network equipment for the new […]
Bill Spinks wspinks@cherryroad.com In a very fast-moving meeting last Monday, Dec. 23, the Ellis County Commissioners’ Court moved quickly through a pre-holiday agenda, taking a total of just over 25 minutes, not counting an executive session. The court did its part to approve a minor renovation to the Ellis Appraisal District headquarters, in which three larger rooms at the facility at 400 Ferris Avenue in Waxahachie will be further divided into six rooms for appraisal review board meetings. Kathy Rodrigue, chief appraiser of the Ellis Appraisal District, told commissioners that the larger spaces are no longer needed for the meetings and the aim is to extend the life of the facility. She added that security features would be included in the renovation. The remodel will allow up to 84 property tax protest hearings as opposed to 56, County Judge Todd Little asked and Rodrigue confirmed. “We actually had a few (fewer) protest hearings last year, but I think that’s an anomaly,” Rodrigue said. “As interest rates drop and the market turns around, I think we’ll start seeing that go back up again.” Rodrigue said the Ellis Appraisal District has the funds for the renovation, but needs approval of 75 percent of the taxing districts in the county in order to move forward. Precinct 2 Commissioner Lane Grayson was the only member of the court not present. Other items In two related agenda items, the court granted a sole-source exemption from bidding requirements for inmate classification software from Northpointe, Inc. dba Equivant, and renewed a contract with the company in an amount of $60,336. Commissioners presented Dave McSpadden with the first Ellis County Exemplary Service Award. The honor recognizes citizens who have contributed to the economic development and quality of life of Ellis County. The court also gave special recognition to […]
Bill Spinks wspinks@cherryroad.com Meeting for the first time inside the new City Council chambers, the Midlothian Planning and Zoning Commission last Tuesday unanimously denied a zoning change to allow for a single-family residential planned development off Ashford Lane. The 48.59-acre property, previously zoned Agricultural, was to be rezoned to a planned development called Ashford Estates that would include 36 one-acre-minimum lots with two common area lots. City assistant planning director Colby Collins said the application for the rezoning was filed before the City Council updated Midlothian’s comprehensive plan in October. Therefore, the developer will be held to a one-acre minimum lot size standard under the “country module,” rather than the two-acre minimum under the new plan. An emergency gate was proposed for the west end of the project, but Collins said the city received about two dozen letters of opposition to that, mostly from the adjacent Rolling Wood subdivision. Staff’s main concern about that, Collins told the commission, was traffic connectivity. Planner Trenton Robertson told commissioners he saw restricted traffic as a plus. Robertson said the intent of the emergency gate was to limit traffic through the neighborhood to and from Rolling Wood while still allowing access to emergency vehicles. Two commissioners spoke against the project from different perspectives. Commissioner Jackie McDonald was concerned about the existing 90-degree turn on Ashford Lane on the northeast corner of the proposed project, citing a traffic hazard. McDonald was also against the 1,900-foot straight main road. Commissioner Dan Altman said he wasn’t opposed to letting traffic flow freely through the new neighborhood because traffic will follow a better option in the area. While McDonald said she was OK with the lot sizes, Altman favored larger lots, up to two acres. Five nearby residents spoke against the development, citing the possibility of the gate […]
Bill Spinks wspinks@cherryroad.com The Midlothian Police Department announced Monday it had made two arrests and has warrants out for five additional suspects in a burglary ring that had hit pharmacies in Midlothian and other cities at least four times since July. On July 8 and again on Sept. 21, patrol officers from the Midlothian Police Department responded to a report of a burglary at All Care Pharmacy located at 1441 South Midlothian Parkway. Upon arrival, they found that unknown suspects broke the window and entered the building. Once inside, the suspects took controlled substances from the location. On Sept. 25 and Sept. 26, Ropheka Pharmacy at 340 Hawkins Run and Midlothian Pharmacy at 2021 South 14th Street were burglarized in a similar manner. Investigators determined that comparable pharmacy burglaries had occurred around the same dates in other cities. Working with those other agencies, officers arrested Demetrius Wines for his involvement in the burglaries. After interviewing Wines, a second suspect, Alfred Echols, was identified and arrested by a partner agency. “Our officers were able to identify five additional suspects, but only by their nicknames,” MPD stated in a release. “Investigators utilized social media, cell phone and cell tower records, FLOCK cameras, and facial recognition software to accurately identify the additional suspects.” MPD has obtained warrants for the following men for their involvement in the pharmacy burglaries: Jerry Collins, 35; Christopher McCoy, 30; Kaylon Roland, 31; Remond Williams, 27; and Bradford Wines, 23. The warrants are for multiple counts of Burglary of a Building Where a Controlled Substance is Stored (3rd Degree Felony) and Engaging in Organized Criminal Activity (2nd Degree Felony). A total of 26 warrants were issued with a bond amount of $2.6 million. If you see any of the listed individuals, please call 911 immediately. If you have any […]
Mayor Justin Coffman shared the limelight with immediate-past mayor, Richard Reno, other former mayors, and members of the current and past city councils at grand opening ceremonies for Midlothian’s new City Hall and Library held last Saturday, Dec. 7.