News

Needmore Ranch, formerly known as Little Arkansas, has applied for a 289,080,000 gallon per year permit for water from the Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer Conservation District. The permit will be for wildlife management and future agricultural uses. 

BSEACD General Manager John Dupnik has submitted his preliminary recommendation to the board for approval of the permit, with special provisions, but also stated that there is a projected unreasonable impact from the potential pumping.

The Trinity Edwards Springs Protection Association stated in a press release that they planned to contest the permit. Public comment on the permit is due by December 19.

Wimberley’s Sarah Jarosz has been nominated in some form or fashion for four 2017 Grammy awards.

The two biggest nominations are for Best American Roots Performance and Best Folk Album. Jarosz’s new album Undercurrent, her fourth, is billed as showing the growth she has experienced since heading to New York City.

“(On the album), the impact of being a full-time artist living in New York City is palpable,” her website says. “Undercurrent captures the process of personal evolution and discovery as well as the inspirational nature of change.”

The town’s dream of a local radio station KWVH, has been around for a decade or two and this year, it finally arrived. It’s a low power station, but it serves a great purpose in Wimberley, especially during emergencies when up to the second communication is needed.

In the past few years, we’ve had a few of those times. The KWVH station went on the air right after the Memorial Weekend Flood, and the FCC granted them a permanent license earlier this year in February.

KWVH now has the funds to keep operating when the power goes out. LCRA and the PEC awarded a $20, 179 grant to the station for the purchasing of an emergency generator and propane system for the station and the transmitting tower, both.

The EmilyAnn Theatre & Gardens will build a butterfly greenhouse and garden thanks to a $9,100 community development grant from the Lower Colorado River Authority and Pedernales Electric Cooperative.

The theater will use the grant, along with nearly $10,000 in local matching funds and in-kind services, to construct an 800-square-foot greenhouse and 400-square-foot garden to expand its educational programs and annual butterfly festival.

Aqua Texas has an informal offer on the table to become the retail service provider for wastewater services throughout the Wimberley Valley. Currently, Aqua Texas serves the area north of the Wimberley Square and all the way through Woodcreek. The city of Wimberley has planned a wastewater treatment facility and collection system for the Central Wimberley area. Aqua Texas believes it can save the city money and effort by operating the system themselves.

“Basically, what we are doing is attempting to accommodate the city in terms of providing retails services in return for what we hope will ultimately be some growth opportunities for us to become the full wastewater service provider for the Wimberley Valley,” Aqua Texas President Bob Laughman said.

Harlingen-based Texas State Bankshares, Inc. and Blanco-based Blanco National Holdings, Inc. announced this week that they have entered into a definitive agreement to merge Blanco National Bank with Texas Regional Bank, pending regulatory approval.   As a result of the transaction, Texas Regional Bank will add Blanco’s four Hill Country banking centers (Blanco, Fredericksburg, Wimberley and Spring Branch) to its existing network of branches in the Rio Grande Valley and Falfurrias, Texas. 

“Texas Regional Bank has been searching for the right opportunity in the Hill Country and found it with Blanco National Bank,” said Michael Scaief, Chairman of Texas Regional Bank.   “Blanco National Bank will provide the foundation for Texas Regional Bank to extend its core banking, wealth management and mortgage divisions throughout the Hill Country.  

Saturday night, the lights were switched on, Santa Claus arrived on a fire truck and the Christmas Season was underway for the 19th year at EmilyAnn. At six o’clock, the pathways were packed with families, all here on the Saturday after Thanksgiving to see the lights of the season and maybe give Santa their wish list.

Watching the Collie members sing ‘O, Holy Night’ then travelling down the hill to see who the winning illuminations were this year. Children’s eyes were lit with wonder, with some adults’ eyes just as wide.

The clear skies and moderate weather was just icing on the cake. The many local exhibitors made it very hard to judge the best of the best, as they all put their hearts in their illuminated creations. The winners were:

Best of Show 

Ace Hardware

Rookie 

Dr. White

Most Creative 

During World War Two, everybody did their part in winning the war. Being a veteran of that war, 99-year-old local Sal Sutera will receive an Austin Honor Flight, leaving on December 6 and returning December 7, Pearl Harbor Day.

“The Honor Flight Austin mission is to transport veterans with a specific priority to Washington, D.C. to visit their memorials dedicated to honor their service and sacrifices and return them home to their families and loved ones,” according to their mission statement. They will visit the WWII Memorial and other Washington, D.C. sites.

Wimberley’s Salvatore (Sal) Sutera was the oldest child in an eight children family. He was raised on the lower east side of Manhattan, and after Pearl Harbor, he tried to enlist in the Marines. Authorities told him, that as the oldest son it was more important for him to be at home to provide for the family.

The Wimberley Village Library held its Inventor’s Fair on Saturday for kids of all ages. Although drones of all sizes were a big hit, they also had lots of other fun activities, such as building your own light up monster, one-liter bottle rockets that blast off after filling them with air from a hand pump. 

Giant bubbles were made, a mosaic could be completed, RC cars driven, and other activities that stretched the imagination. Stretching the imagination is part of the library’s job and it does it well.

The library offers many programs with technology as its basis, storytime for kids, programs for senior citizens. The library offers programs that appeal to all residents. For more information on all their doings, see their website at:

wimberleylibrary.org

Although Thanksgiving has come and gone, the Community Thanksgiving at the Community is always fun to attend. Smiles on the faces of visitors and volunteers alike told the whole story, a free feast and a great crowd to go with it.

Greeters at the door such as Ricardo Cardenas, Norm Long and Carolyn Walker, made you feel welcome just coming up to the door. Boo Beath volunteered for the event for the first time. While her welcome table partner Linda McCrocklin volunteered for the very first one nearly thirty years ago, moved to Brownsville and, since she was visiting Wimberley, she volunteered again.

“It all ran so smoothly in the kitchen this year that we were done early,” organizer and head honcho Dave Lewis said.” Over 600 turkeys were made for the annual meal.