Have you considered subscribing to The Kerr County Lead? If not, let us share with you some of the things you missed from our coverage over the last week:
- With no take-home testing kits available commercially, Peterson Health said it would open the Peterson Health Medical Plaza, 1331 Bandera Highway, for testing by appointment only. The testing is from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. A physician referral is not required, but Peterson asks those interested in making an appointment by visiting: www.petersonhealth.com and clicking on the link on the top banner of the homepage, which will re-direct you to the patient portal for registration. No walk-in appointments are available.
- Kerr County's suffered its first 2022 COVID-19 death, most likely attributed to the omicron variant, when the Texas Department of State Health Services announced the fatality on Thursday. The death appears to have happened on Monday — outside of Kerr County.
- The meatiest part of the upcoming City Council meeting is during the 5 p.m. workshop Tuesday at City Hall. In that meeting, the city's public safety committee will present its recommendations to the City Council about a new building to house the police department, fire administration, municipal court and information technology. The price tag could be around $45 million for a nearly 70,000-square foot building constructed on 7 acres — which is a fantasy at the moment.
- On Friday, Pete Calderon, a Kerr County capital improvement committee member, told us that planned general obligation bond would come in around $30 million — far cheaper than previously planned.
- Adding onto the bond conversation, Kerr County Precinct 3 Commissioner Jonathan Letz told us a new animal shelter will likely be part of the planned general obligation bond. Letz said the county would work closely with Kerrville Pets Alive and the county's capital improvement committee to determine the needs of a new shelter.
- Over at the Kerr County Livestock Show, Brooke Fisher was very busy Thursday afternoon at the Hill Country Youth Event Center. The 19-year-old senior at Ingram Tom Moore High School was showing a pair of goats at the Kerr County Livestock Show, and she took home the critters and the hardware of a champion. Fisher won a pair of division championships for her market goats and was named Grand Champion to cap a stellar day.
- With omicron surging and bad weather across the U.S., airlines canceled hundreds of commercial flights this week across Texas and the nation. On Monday, San Antonio International Airport saw airlines cancel 15 flights, delay 31 others.
- It's still a difficult moment for most of us to process — the storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. A year later, the U.S. Department of Justice will prosecute 725 people, including Kerrville's Elizabeth Rose Williams, charged with illegally entering the Capitol. Willimas faces a fine, six months in jail, a combination of both. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges. She is still awaiting trial. U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said he intends to prosecute all 725 people indicted in the attack. Williams was identified of being at the Capitol with Bradley Bennett, who is also facing charges.
- One of the storylines to close out 2021 was the relentless protests by a handful of Kerr County residents over a commissioner's court plan to accept $10 million in federal aid for COVID-19 relief. However, it's only about 10% of what county businesses, agencies and local government have already received. The $10 million the commissioners are considering accepting is nothing compared to the federal loans and aid Peterson Regional Medical Center has received — more than $33 million. As the threat of COVID-19 emerged, the federal government propped hospitals up with interest-free loans designed to boost cash flow through accelerated Medicare payments.
And this was a light week for us. Now, for just $5.99 per month — that's a 70% savings from other local media — you can get The Lead email newsletter delivered to your inbox by 7 a.m. Monday-Friday. For $54.99 you can get a subscription for the year. It's easy to sign up and there's no minimum commitment.
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But wait, there's more:
We did a deep dive into six areas that we think are the most significant storylines heading into 2022. Most of these won't surprise you. We did leave off a couple, including the labor situation. However, these six areas are seemingly some of the most important the city of Kerrville and Kerr County face in the coming year. This section is accessible (for the time being) to paid subscribers.
Outlook 2022: Kerr County voters will decide how they want to be led
Outlook 2022: Kerr County voters will be asked to pay heavy prices for facilities
The city, county could ask voters to approve $110 million in bonds in 2022.
Outlook 2022: Short-term rentals continue to fill a need in Kerr County
Outlook 2022: Don't expect Kerrville's housing affordability to improve
If anything the market conditions will only tighten, leading to higher prices.
Outlook 2022: Tackling coronavirus will be a persistent Kerr County headache
Outlook 2022: Quality of place is defining Kerr County's splendor
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