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December 30, 2021
Formal complaint filed against Bandera City Council member
By Jessica Nohealapa’ahi
The Bandera Prophet
The City of Bandera has received a formal complaint filed by the Flying L Public Utility District against City Council Member Darcy Hasty.
At the beginning of council’s Dec. 21 meeting, Flying L PUD Administrator Steve Childers said Hasty was “out of line” during two November PUD board meetings, while members were discussing selling water to a new Dollar General, set to be built at the beginning of the Flying L main entrance. Childers said Hasty made several accusations about board members, and “issued resignation letters to all of us and threatened if we did not resign on the spot, she would be turning the matter over to the attorney general for prosecution.”
The PUD held more than one contentious meeting on the controversial matter, so Childers said the board hired an off-duty City Marshal’s deputy for security, who Childers said has refused to work at another PUD meeting because of the hostility.
A Brief Timeline
Childers said the PUD received an email requesting water for a "retail development,” which was shared with the board during their Sept. 13 meeting. On Sept 21, it was discovered that the development would be a Dollar General, and it was shared with the Flying L POA during their Sept. 23 meeting.
Childers said the development of the store was not contingent on the PUD selling them water, as they had already contacted the Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District and could have been granted authority to drill their own well. He said they also could use a storage tank filled by an outside source.
“With that in mind, we leveraged the small amount of water we would be supplying them to gain concessions that would reduce the impact to our community,” Childers said.
Some of the concessions include building a brick and stucco façade, modified site lighting, landscaping and a $35,000 impact fee to the PUD, a $2,500 tap fee, $200 per meter fee and $50 per meter connection fee, totaling $38,000. Childers said the money will be used to update the sewer system and water quality.
Further, Childers said, “if they do not live up to the agreement, like any resident, we turn off their water. The PUD is in complete control.”
Complaint Filed
“I have received a formal complaint regarding the alleged conduct of Councilor Hasty,” City Administrator David Jordan said. “Since [she] is a city councilor, I do not have any administrative oversight. However, all complaints are forwarded to the mayor and then to the entire city council for discussion and consideration for action if any. I have forwarded this complaint to the mayor.”
Childers said he plans to post recordings of the meetings on the PUD website, and has presented the city with a $3,000 bill for legal fees he said the PUD has incurred as a result of Hasty’s accusations.
“Since Ms. Hasty was introduced as a city council member, even though she was out of her jurisdiction, I am assuming she was representing the interests of the city of Bandera. So we took all of her accusations of illegal activity to our PUD attorney who has debunked all her claims…Since the allegations were false, her statements now become slanderous,” Childers said. “As is stated in Sec. 1.03.255 of the Code of Conduct of City Officials: The professional and personal conduct of city officials...must be above reproach and avoid even the appearance of impropriety. City officials...shall refrain from abusive conduct, personal charges or verbal attacks upon the character or motives of other city officials, boards, commissions, and the public in general. She was in clear violation of this code of conduct.”
Childers said since speaking during the council meeting, Hasty has filed numerous open records requests, “inundating” the PUD.
“We would just like for the city councilwoman to know she can’t treat people the way she treated us,” Childers said. “She needed to have her facts straight.”
Hasty denied violating any ethics rules. In light of the complaint, Hasty said she did not want to violate the Texas Open Meetings Act and speak outside of the council.
However, she said, “I have never acted on behalf of the city in anyway and never portrayed myself as such. I have always acted as a private citizen with First Amendment rights and I will continue to do so. I will not allow Mr. Childers' lies and scare tactics to keep me from attending open meetings or making my voice heard.”
To see more on the Flying L PUD and Dollar General issue, go to www.flyinglpud.com/dollargeneral-2/ , and, a response to the PUD newsletter from those opposed to the future Dollar General location at www.facebook.com/StopFlyingLDollarGeneral.
At the beginning of council’s Dec. 21 meeting, Flying L PUD Administrator Steve Childers said Hasty was “out of line” during two November PUD board meetings, while members were discussing selling water to a new Dollar General, set to be built at the beginning of the Flying L main entrance. Childers said Hasty made several accusations about board members, and “issued resignation letters to all of us and threatened if we did not resign on the spot, she would be turning the matter over to the attorney general for prosecution.”
The PUD held more than one contentious meeting on the controversial matter, so Childers said the board hired an off-duty City Marshal’s deputy for security, who Childers said has refused to work at another PUD meeting because of the hostility.
A Brief Timeline
Childers said the PUD received an email requesting water for a "retail development,” which was shared with the board during their Sept. 13 meeting. On Sept 21, it was discovered that the development would be a Dollar General, and it was shared with the Flying L POA during their Sept. 23 meeting.
Childers said the development of the store was not contingent on the PUD selling them water, as they had already contacted the Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District and could have been granted authority to drill their own well. He said they also could use a storage tank filled by an outside source.
“With that in mind, we leveraged the small amount of water we would be supplying them to gain concessions that would reduce the impact to our community,” Childers said.
Some of the concessions include building a brick and stucco façade, modified site lighting, landscaping and a $35,000 impact fee to the PUD, a $2,500 tap fee, $200 per meter fee and $50 per meter connection fee, totaling $38,000. Childers said the money will be used to update the sewer system and water quality.
Further, Childers said, “if they do not live up to the agreement, like any resident, we turn off their water. The PUD is in complete control.”
Complaint Filed
“I have received a formal complaint regarding the alleged conduct of Councilor Hasty,” City Administrator David Jordan said. “Since [she] is a city councilor, I do not have any administrative oversight. However, all complaints are forwarded to the mayor and then to the entire city council for discussion and consideration for action if any. I have forwarded this complaint to the mayor.”
Childers said he plans to post recordings of the meetings on the PUD website, and has presented the city with a $3,000 bill for legal fees he said the PUD has incurred as a result of Hasty’s accusations.
“Since Ms. Hasty was introduced as a city council member, even though she was out of her jurisdiction, I am assuming she was representing the interests of the city of Bandera. So we took all of her accusations of illegal activity to our PUD attorney who has debunked all her claims…Since the allegations were false, her statements now become slanderous,” Childers said. “As is stated in Sec. 1.03.255 of the Code of Conduct of City Officials: The professional and personal conduct of city officials...must be above reproach and avoid even the appearance of impropriety. City officials...shall refrain from abusive conduct, personal charges or verbal attacks upon the character or motives of other city officials, boards, commissions, and the public in general. She was in clear violation of this code of conduct.”
Childers said since speaking during the council meeting, Hasty has filed numerous open records requests, “inundating” the PUD.
“We would just like for the city councilwoman to know she can’t treat people the way she treated us,” Childers said. “She needed to have her facts straight.”
Hasty denied violating any ethics rules. In light of the complaint, Hasty said she did not want to violate the Texas Open Meetings Act and speak outside of the council.
However, she said, “I have never acted on behalf of the city in anyway and never portrayed myself as such. I have always acted as a private citizen with First Amendment rights and I will continue to do so. I will not allow Mr. Childers' lies and scare tactics to keep me from attending open meetings or making my voice heard.”
To see more on the Flying L PUD and Dollar General issue, go to www.flyinglpud.com/dollargeneral-2/ , and, a response to the PUD newsletter from those opposed to the future Dollar General location at www.facebook.com/StopFlyingLDollarGeneral.