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www.sweetwaterreporter.com Weekend Edition, July 11 & 12, 2020 Vol. 122, Issue 156 n $1 www.ffin.com 605 Lamar St Sweetwater, TX Loans Up To $1,400 (325) 235-1124 Visit Us Online at www.sweetwaterreporter.com BY RON HOWELL Sports Editor The Mustang Booster Club is offering face masks to help keep fans safe during the current COVID-19 pandemic and upcoming sports season, and at the same time also support all of the Sweetwater High School athletic teams. The sale of the face masks will run through July 22 and the delivery of the masks is expected by the first week in August, said club president Rodney Foster. For more information, go to https:// gogearonline.com/sweetwa- ter-mask-20. Booster Club to be selling masks Press Release Notice of Meeting of The Commissioner’s Court Of Nolan County Notice is given that a regu- lar meeting of the Nolan Commissioner’s Court will be held on the 13th day of July 2020 at 9:00 A. M., in the County Courthouse Sweetwater, Texas, at which time the following subjects will be discussed, 1. Pledge allegiance to the United States flag. 2. Pledge allegiance to the Texas Flag. 3. Approve minutes from June 22nd meeting. 4. Consider approval to remove/reinstate the Nolan County Burn Ban. 5. Presentation of Nolan County Service Awards. 6. Consider approval of the 2021 Nolan County Holiday Schedule. 7. Consider approval for the Justice of the Peace to purchase a computer to be used for video magistra- tion. 8. Consider approv- al of a Resolution and Order approving the County Transportation Infrastructure Grant Program. Read Commissioners’ Court, Page 3 Commissioners’ Court to Meet in Regular Session, Monday Press Release The City Council of the City of Sweetwater, Texas, will meet in regular session on Tuesday, July 14, 2020, at 9:00 a.m. via GoToMeeting videoconferencing in Sweetwater, TX. This meeting will be closed to in person attendance by the public. You may view the meeting by going to https:// global.gotomeeting.com/ join/146311205 You may call in to provide comments during any posted public hearing by calling 866 - 899 - 4679 (Access Code: 146-311-205) or you may submit your written com- ments up to one hour before the beginning of the meeting to be read during public com- ments by emailing them to [email protected] . 1. Call to order. 2. Invocation. 3. Pledges of Allegiance to the Flags of the United States of America and the State of Texas. 4. City Council to dis- cuss, consider and act upon approval of minutes for meet- ing held on June 16, 2020. 5. Public Comments and Receipt of Petitions: [you may submit your writ- ten comments up to one hour before the beginning of the meeting to be read during public comments by emailing them to Licensing@coswtr. org .] 6. Presentation: Update on Census by Ms. Amber Pedigo with the United States Census Bureau 7. Action Items: A. City Council to dis- cuss, consider and act upon approval of the Quarterly Investment Report for the quarter ended June 30, 2020. B. City Council to discuss, consider and act upon entering into an agree- ment with Tommy Morris Agency to act as our Broker of Record for insurance pur- poses, and to evaluate com- petitive sealed proposals for Self-Insured Group Health benefits to be considered at the Council’s August 11, 2020 meeting. C. City Council to dis- cuss, consider and act upon authorizing staff to receive competitive sealed proposals for health insurance benefits, and receive recommenda- tions from Broker of Record at the September 11, 2020 meeting. D. Resolution: City Council to discuss, con- sider and act upon naming of the splash pad located at Newman Park. E. Ordinance: City Council to discuss, con- sider and act upon adopt- ing amendments to Code of Ordinances for Chapter 23 - Parks and Recreation. F. City Council to discuss, consider and act upon Marketing Agreement with Utility Service Partners Private Label, Inc. d/b/a Line Warranties of America. G. City Council to dis- cuss, consider and act upon awarding highest bid for Oak Creek lake lots #468 and #509. H. ·City Council to discuss, consider and act upon establishing a date for a workshop to review Request for Proposals and Selection of Vendor to mana- Je and operate Solid Waste Management Services in the City of Sweetwater. I. City Council to dis- cuss, consider and act upon authorizing City Manager to enter into a license and operation agreement for the opening of the Lake Sweetwater Bait Store. 8. City Manager’s Report. A. COVID-19 Update... Read City Council Meeting, Page 10 City Council to Meet in Regular Session, Tuesday Texas State Technical College shifted classes to online in mid-March, then went with a hybrid approach in several programs for the summer semester. (Photo: TSTC) TSTC Communications Daniel Perry Communication Specialist Press Release (SWEETWATER) - Now is an exciting time for the devel- opment of online classes. “I think this will open the doors to a whole new mar- ket of people who want to be part of Texas State Technical College,” said Hector Yanez, TSTC’s senior vice president of Student Learning. TSTC shifted classes online in late March due to the COVID-19 situation, then in early May went to a hybrid format in several programs so students could complete hands-on labs. The hybrid format is being used this summer and will be used this fall. “What we are doing is making sure the quality of our online courses has stepped up even further,” said Gina Cano-Monreal, TSTC’s associate vice presi- dent of Online Learning. “We are working with subject and content experts in each area to ensure there is the same level of quality in their online programs as we have in our face-to-face courses.” The Harlingen campus was the first of TSTC’s 10 campuses to have an online learning office. Since the merger of TSTC’s campuses in 2015, online learning has expanded statewide... Read TSTC, Page 3 TSTC Embraces Online Learning Opportunities Tuesday is Election Day at Courthouse By JOSEPH GRANT Editor The Democratic Primary Runoff Election to nomi- nate Members of Congress, Members of the Legislature, and state. district. party offl- cers: and for the purpose of electing county and pre- cinct chairs will be held on Tuesday, July 14. Registered Voters of Precincts 1-9 can vote at: The Nolan County Clerk’s Office 100 East 3rd Street- Suite 108 Sweetwater, TX 79556, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. See Page 10 for a look at a Sample Ballot Health Department Reports 10 new COVID-19 cases for Nolan County Health Department to remain closed until July 20 Press Release The Sweetwater- Nolan County Health Department is reporting 10 new positive cases for Nolan County, 1 more for Mitchell County and 2 more for Fisher County. 5 of the new positive cases for Nolan County are residents of Nolan Nursing and Rehab in Sweetwater. The health department was notified early this morning and we were told that the resi- dents that tested positive are in isolation on one hall. State is in the build- ing to give them guidance and as we learn more or get a formal statement from them, we will share that. The other positives range in age from 21 to 63 years old. One case did say that they were at the July 4th celebration in Roscoe last weekend. He also visited Lowe’s, Dollar General and Gas N Grub over the weekend. Other businesses affect- ed and times they were visited are as follows: Thriftway in Rotan, on Thursday, July 2nd in the afternoon hours. Tractor Supply on Saturday, July 4th between 4 and 5 p.m. Allsup’s on Broadway on Monday, July 6th between noon and 1 p.m. Dollar General in Sweetwater on Wednesday, July 8th around 2 p.m. Walmart on Thursday, July 9th between 9 and 10 am. If you have questions or need testing, please call the Sweetwater- Nolan County Health Department at 325-235- 5463. Sweetwater, Roscoe athletes resume SAC workouts Monday BY RON HOWELL Sports Editor After a two-week suspen- sion due to coronavirus con- cerns, high school athletes at Sweetwater and Roscoe will resume summer strength and conditioning workouts on Monday. The UIL on Wednesday updated its guidelines for the workouts, which also cover sport specific instruction and said it will “continue to work with state officials and moni- tor CDC and other federal guidance to determine any potential modifications.” As of now, Aug. 3 is the official date set by the UIL for schools in Class 1A through 4A to begin season workouts in football and volleyball. The first football game for all four Nolan County schools will be played on Aug. 28 and the volleyball teams in Sweetwater play their first matches Aug. 13. All four schools, includ- ing Highland and Blackwell, began having strength and conditioning workouts dur- ing the second week of June for boys and girls athletes prior to the recent COVID- related suspensions. Ben McGehee, head foot- ball coach and athletic direc- tor at Sweetwater, said that further UIL information regarding workouts and preparation for the 2020 season will be coming in the near future. Sweetwater has received approval to host a Legends Showcase football camp for students entering grades 8-12 on Sunday at Mustang Bowl. A session for running backs, linebackers and linemen is from 1-4:30 p.m. and another session for quarterbacks and skill posi- tion players will be conducted from 5-8 p.m. McGehee said walk-ups are welcome for Sweetwater athletes only. Registration and check-ins will be held Sunday at 12:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. “This is one of the last opportunities to be evaluated and learn elite skills from coaches that know exactly what it takes to get to the next level,” McGehee said. Jake Freeman, who is Roscoe’s head football coach and AD, said Wednesday on his Facebook page “Let’s do this right! Take the necessary precautions so we can get rolling on time and have suc- cessful seasons throughout the entire program. Pound the Stone!!”... Read SAC, Page 3
