The simple forecast is sunny, sunny, sunny, pretty good chance of sunny and definitely sunny. Yup! That's it. The National Weather Service makes it clear it's going to be filled with sunshine this week. Highs in the high 80s to the low 90s. The National Weather Service forecast is clear that rain is not in the immediate forecast. Sigh.

On today's The Lead Live!

Tom Fox joins the discussion today to follow up on a conversation from last week about how financial regulations failed with Bernie Madoff but stopped another financial scheme. Texas Hill Country Advisors Andrew Gay and Gilbert Paiz will join that discussion. The Kerrville Convention and Visitors Bureau's Leslie Jones stops by to update us on this week's many events.

Upcoming Featured Events

Name: Fossils @ RNC
Start: 2023-09-28T10:00:00-06:00
End: 2023-09-28T18:00:00-06:00
Location: Riverside Nature Center

The Kerrville Chalk Festival, Oct. 15-16, Kerrville City Hall.

Kerrville Chalk Festival is a family-friendly art event for the Texas Hill Country. More than 65 artists create large-scale chalk drawings directly on the pavement. Kerrville’s downtown becomes a festive canvas for local and regional artists, as wells as invited guest artists from around the United States.

The Festival has live music, many free activities, food trucks, as well as wine and craft beer. It attracts an estimated 10,000 attendees annually. Read about the history of chalk art.

Held at Peterson Plaza in the heart of downtown, the event encourages tourists and locals to dine, shop, and experience the beauty and charm of Kerrville, Texas.

The 2022 beneficiary is Kerrville Arts and Cultural Center (KACC). KACC was founded in 1995 by a group of artists with a mission of providing a show place for local artists and to further the arts and culture in the community. The Center is comprised of sixteen affiliated groups representing over 500 artists and has three distinct gallery spaces. It attracts over 20,000 visitors annually.

Mark your calendar for Public Power Week Oct. 2-8, and the Bucket Truck Rides

The Kerrville Public Utility Board (KPUB) is hosting a family-friendly event to meet our heroes in hardhats while we celebrate Public Power Week!

Please mark your calendars for Saturday, October 8, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m., to join us in Louise Hays Park for a free community event!

This will be a free community event with family-friendly activities that will include taking a ride in one of KPUB’s bucket trucks, arc & spark demos, line worker tool displays, photo ops with our linemen, face painting and more.

KPUB will be providing free hot dogs, chips and refreshments on a first-come, first-served basis, as well as a free t-shirt for the first 100 attendees. For more information: https://www.kpub.com/community/public-power-week/

The Kerr County Commissioner's Court is back in action

There's plenty on today's agenda for the Kerr County Commissioner's Court, including their own salaries. Elected official salaries were a hot-button issue in the last few weeks, but Precinct 3 Commissioner Jonathan Letz worked to remedy that by telling folks they have no choice.

Now, that sounds like a lot of hooey from a politician, but in this context, Letz is right. The county cannot exempt elected officials for across-the-board cost-of-living raises. That order comes from the Texas Attorney General's office. There is an opposing argument that a county the same size as a small city forks out a lot of money for elected officials — more than $1.4 million annually in salaries.

The commissioners meet at 9 a.m.

Short-term rentals are heading back to the City Council

If you want to start a vacation rental business, or as we like to call it short-term rentals, in Kerrville, you might want to think twice because the rules are about to change. Whether those rule changes will make anyone happy is to be determined.

On Tuesday afternoon, the City Council will participate in a 4 p.m. workshop to hear a revised plan for short-term rental management from the city staff. It's the latest chapter in the back-and-forth between residents and short-term rental owners over the conditional use permits required for their approval. The City Council could restrict short-term rentals in residential areas while leaving them intact in certain parts of the city.

In that same workshop, the City Council will meet in an executive session to discuss a potential legal entanglement with a property owner about a parking lot. After losing a legal decision, the city is trying to accommodate residents of Clay Street, who are concerned about a new parking lot that would serve a Sidney Baker Street strip mall and restaurant.

The city's planning and zoning commission tried to place restrictions on the parking lot, which would help overflow parking to Soaring Dragon restaurant. However, they ran into questions from the property owner's attorney, who objected to the changes proposed by P&Z. The long-standing battle between the city and the property owner was adjudicated in the 216th District court, which gave the property owner a win.

The regular Tuesday City Council meeting is loaded with — you know what — more short-term rental discussions. It's also another opportunity for the City Council to look at the city's proposed budget. We'll have more on this in Tuesday's newsletter.

Tivy is definitely falling on gridiron hard times

Fredericksburg was supposed to be down this year, having to replace 23 players from a team that made a deep run in the state playoffs, finishing 9-5. However, they looked brilliant against Tivy with a rousing 31-28 win over the Antlers — marking the first time in 16 years the Billies had won back-to-back games against Tivy.

Now, Tivy is 1-2 and struggling to find its way on the field. Tivy's biggest problem continues to be penalties and a seeming lack of discipline. In three games, Tivy racked up nearly 300 yards in penalties, but seven of those were unsportsmanlike conduct or personal fouls.

And against Fredericksburg, the offense collapsed in the second half. Tivy rushed for 34 yards on eight carries in the second half after a 161-yard effort in the first half. The Antlers hit the road this week at Marble Falls, which is 2-1.

Even Manziel couldn't help

Before the game, Heisman Trophy winner and Tivy alum Johnny Manziel spoke to the team. He even brought the famed trophy with him. Manziel was inducted into Tivy's Hall of Fame on Friday, and spoke about his love for the community. Here's his speech:

Here's the link to our story: https://kerrcountylead.com/johnny-manziel-comes-home-to-kerrville-and-is-met-with-warmth-only-a-hometown-offers

The weekend was full of sports, 9-11 remembrances

This past weekend we saw a run for the Riverside Nature Center and a pickleball tournament at First United Methodist Church, and Sunday solemnity in remembrance of 9-11. Hard to believe it has been 21 years now. Here's a look at some of our photo galleries from the weekend:

The Run for the Riverside: https://thekerrcountyleadphotography.zenfoliosite.com/zg/run-for-the-riverside-5k

Pickleball tournament at First United Methodist: https://thekerrcountyleadphotography.zenfoliosite.com/zg/pickle-ball-tournament-at-kerrvilles-first-united-methodist-church

We mentioned that this is a busy week

If you like lots of things to do, this is the beginning of an incredible three weeks of events around Kerr County. We published a list with 47 events on Sunday, but that was only the events we could find. Here's a look at the biggest events this week:

Tuesday

Women's volleyball — Schreiner University, 6 p.m. The details: The Mountaineers, 4-4 on the season, play host to Hardin-Simmons University.

Wednesday

State of Health Care — Arcadia Live!, 11 a.m. Information: https://www.kerrvillechamber.biz The details: Learn more about the state of health care in Kerr County, including key results and action plan from the Community Health Needs Assessment.

Thursday

Thirsty Thursday Trivia — Arcadia Live!, 5:45 p.m. Information: https://www.thearcadialive.org The details: Join the Arcadia Live crew for another trivia night and, perhaps, become the new reigning Trivia Champ Team! Beyond bragging rights, winning teams will be awarded gift cards to local restaurants.

Friday

Leading Ladies — The Cailloux Theater, 7:30 p.m. The details: https://www.playhouse2000.com Two down-at-the-heels Shakespearean actors try to take advantage of a rich Pennsylvania widow who is looking to leave her fortune to missing relatives. They plan to impersonate the lost nephews "Max" and "Steve," and are surprised when the pair turn out to actually be nieces "Maxine" and "Stephanie." Undeterred, the pair continue the ruse by assuming female form. Their ploy becomes even more complicated when love enters the picture, and the laughs just keep on coming.
Tex Fest — Schreiner University, 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Information: The details: Live music every day. Bring a chair and enjoy this uniquely Texan event. The Trailhead Beer Garden (featuring a great variety of beers, wines, and other non-alcoholic drinks) will be open, and food trucks are available throughout the day. The featured events are: 8 a.m. to noon, Texas Heritage Days; 10:30 a.m.-2 p.m., WWII Demos (Texas Armed Forces Museum); 12:30 p.m.-5:30 p.m., live music from the staff and students of Schreiner University; Noon to 10 p.m., food trucks and vendors; 6 p.m., The Flyin A's, 7 p.m., Dead Texans Tours, 7:30 p.m., Josh Grider, 9 p.m., Bruce Robison. Saturday's lineup: Starting at 8 a.m., IBCA and HS BBQ Competition; 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., live music from the staff and students of Schreiner University; Noon to 10 p.m., food trucks and vendors; 3 p.m., Terri Hendrix with Lloyd Maines

Saturday

Kerrville River Festival — Louise Hays Park, Noon. Information: https://kerrvilleriverfestival.org/activities-schedule/ The details: The big river festival starts with a Kids Zone and exhibitors at noon. The rest of Saturday's schedule: 12:20 p.m., Texas Music Heritage Foundation Community Showcase; 1 p.m., The Performing Arts School of Classical Ballet Community Showcase; 1:40 p.m., Big Seed performances; 2:20 p.m., Tivy High School band showcase; 3 p.m., Cirque Akrobat Thrill Show; 3:30 p.m., Walt Wilkins; 4:45 p.m., Shake Russell; 6 p.m., Michael Salgado; 7:30 p.m., Cirque Akrobat Thrill Show; 8:15 p.m. Kyle Park; 9:45, fireworks.
Don't Try This At Home Festival — Lazy Days Cantina at Roddy Tree Ranch, 2 p.m. Information: https://www.lazydaysandstarrynights.com The details: Check out bands, including headliner Saliva, and opening acts Nautical Nation, Mortar, White Rabbit and Eden Burning.

Some stories we're following

McCraw said he wishes DPS ran Uvalde scene

The Texas Tribune provided analysis and context about an interview Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw gave to USA Today on Sunday. The Tribune noted: "In addition, McCraw told USA Today the agency's first captain wasn't on scene until 12:25 p.m., about an hour into the standoff. But records reviewed by the Tribune show a DPS special agent arrived around 20 minutes after the shooting started."

Here's a link to the Tribune's story: https://www.texastribune.org/2022/09/11/uvalde-shooting-texas-dps-steve-mccraw/

Here's the link to the USA Today story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2022/09/11/uvalde-texas-school-shooting-dps-chief-steve-mccraw/8023846001/?gnt-cfr=1

Texas A&M reeling after loss

There was immediate speculation that Texas A&M football coach Jimbo Fisher was in big trouble after his team lost to Appalachian State, 17-14, in College Station. USA Today said A&M is paying Fisher way too much for mediocre results, while others speculated about Fisher's future with the program, which plummeted in the AP Top 25. However, it wasn't a great day for Texas college football (unless you're a Texas Tech fan) because Texas and Baylor both lost big games against ranked opponents. Texas, however, at least looked formidable against No. 1-ranked Alabama.

https://247sports.com/LongFormArticle/Jimbo-Fishers-contract-Texas-AM-footballs-progress-questioned-by-media-after-App-State-upset-193174506/

And then there were the awful NFL performances of the Dallas Cowboys and the Houston Texans. The Cowboys lost quarterback Dak Prescott to injury in a woeful loss to Tampa Bay and Tom Brady. The Texans finished in a 20-20 tie with Indianapolis. Yawn.

Dark money appears in governor's race

By all indications, the race for Texas governor is going to be an expensive and nasty affair, but the Texas Tribune reported on a new player — Coulda Been Worse LLC. The dark money group, presumably aligned with Democratic challenger Beto O'Rourke, unleashed a scathing ad directed at Abbott's record. This race! Here's the story: https://www.texastribune.org/2022/09/09/greg-abbott-beto-orourke-tv-ads/

Best of the weekend