Polk County News - Breakout

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From Enterprise Staff

Livingston ISD students were already scheduled to have Friday off with it being a bad weather makeup day that was not used. However, students attending Livingston High School got an even earlier jump on their weekend when district officials made the decision late Wednesday to cancel classes at the high school Thursday. The air conditioning system at the high school campus was not working properly due to control issues with the HVAC system.

“The problem was only control issues with the system and not a mechanical problem. The temperature inside the building became uncomfortable by Wednesday afternoon, so we made the decision to cancel classes on Thursday,” Livingston ISD Superintendent Dr. Brent Hawkins said.

“The issue has been resolved, so we look forward to students returning on Monday morning,” Hawkins said, adding that the control issues did not affect any other campus.

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The Polk County Commissioners Court will discuss and consider the appointment of committee to develop a strategic plan and long-term goals for guidance in the county budget process during its regular meeting at 10 a.m. Tuesday.

The Court will consider approval to begin procurement for the fiscal year 2023-24 Community Development Block Grant application cycle and appoint a rating committee and will also consider approval to advertise request for proposals for an independent auditing firm to complete the fiscal year 2023 and fiscal year 2024 audits.

The Court will consider approval of Amendment No. 1 to Part III, Subpart B, of the agreement with Langford Community Services to include the dollar amount for grant administration of the water infrastructure projects to be funded by the American Rescue Plan Act.

Requests for capital purchases to be paid from the fund balance and included on the fiscal year 2023 reimbursement resolution for the year-end issuance of legally authorized debt will be considered for approval, specifically, after-market equipment on a leased vehicle for environmental enforcement in the amount of $7,693 and after-market equipment on six leased vehicles for the sheriff’s office, in the amount of $89,398.

The Court will discuss and consider action regarding a request from the Texas Department of Transportation for a special use project for the bridge replacement on Sunflower Road/County Road 1077 over Big Sandy Creek in Precinct 4.

In personnel matters the Court will review and consider approval of personnel action form requests submitted since the last meeting and will review any authorized emergency hirings.

The Court will also consider approval of fiscal year 2023 budget revisions and amendments, as presented by the county auditor’s office.

During informational reports, the Court will receive an update from the county clerk regarding voter registration and will also receive the annual report from the Polk County AgriLife Extension Office.

Items on the consent agenda include:

•Approve minutes of Feb. 14 regular meeting;

•Approve schedules of bills;

•Receive county auditor’s monthly report, pursuant to local government code Sec. 114.025;

•Approve interlocal agreements with the City of Livingston and Goodrich ISD for the county’s provision of election equipment and services for the May 6 election, as recommended by the county clerk;

•Approve rescheduling the regular commissioners court session set for May 23 to May 30;

•Approve renewal of agreement with Polk County Community Service Restitution program of the 258th and 411th Judicial District Community Supervision and Corrections Department;

•Approve Precinct 1 Constable Scott Hughes’ request to appoint Kent Martindale to reserve deputy constable to replace Keagan Newman;

•Receive treasurer’s monthly reports for December and January; and

•Accept donation of two polimaster personal radiation detectors from the City of Houston Public Safety and Homeland Security Office for the Office of Emergency Management.

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From Enterprise Staff

Polk County’s emergency notification system, AlertMePolkCounty, has changed providers from Blackboard Connect to Genasys Emergency Management. The Polk County Office of Emergency Management launched the new system Friday.

AlertMePolkCounty powered by Genasys will offer lifesaving emergency notifications. AlertMePolkCounty allows users to designate whether they depend on medical assistance, signify which city or area they live in, and add multiple phone numbers and email addresses for notification purposes.

Users can also set preferences for how they would like to receive emergency alerts, such as via SMS, voice, email, etc. Overall, users should expect a more focused emergency alert system with this transition.

Emergency alerts include, but are not limited to: tornado, flash flood, flood, tropical storm, hurricane, wildfire threat, winter storm, hazmat chemical threat and evacuation.

Outreach messages that provide information on emergency shelters and commodity points of distribution may also be sent through AlertMePolkCounty.

Existing users of AlertMePolkCounty should already be registered and are encouraged to log in to the new registration portal and update their information. Visit the page on the emergency management website at https://polkcountyoem.com/page/alertmepolkcounty for instructions on how to access your account in the registration portal, establish a new account, and set preferences. For additional assistance, call the Polk County Office of Emergency Management at 936-327-6826.

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In what is called the “Parade of Champions,” the Livingston ISD School Board recognized numerous students for their accomplishments during its regular meeting Monday. NNDCC students under the direction of Sgt 1st Class Grady Tinker making the National Joint Leadership Academic Bowl Round 1 and Semi-Finals Top 20% included Cadet Lieutenant Commander Leah Robeson, Cadet Ensign Jase Whiteside, Cadet Lieutenant Jr Grade Gabriella Woychesin, Cadet Ensign Edith Perez, Cadet Lieutenant Kayla Islas, Cadet Ensign Jamie Hopson, Cadet Ensign Stacy Weatherspoon, Cadet Ensign Molly Black, Cadet Chief Petty Officer First Class Monica Fisher, Cadet Lieutenant Jr Grade Jaxson Fuller, Cadet Chief Petty Officer First Class Austin Mahon and Cadet Chief Petty Officer First Class Isis Mcloud. Senior leaders include Cadet Lieutenant Commander Xavier Mindiola, Cadet Commander Sonja Wiley and Cadet Commander Samantha Rodriguez. Students making Top 30% on the National Academic Exam included Cadet Lieutenant Commander Leah Robeson, Cadet Lieutenant Kayla Islas, Cadet Ensign Stacey Weatherspoon, Cadet Ensign Jaime Hopson, Cadet Lieutenant Jr grade Gabriella Woychesin, Cadet Lieutenant Jr grade Autumn Duarte, Cadet Lieutenant Jr Grade Lizzy Zuniga, Cadet Ensign Edith Perez, Cadet Chief Petty Officer First Class Isis McLoud, Cadet Lieutenant Jr Grade Jaxson Fuller, Cadet Chief Petty Officer First Class Alaya Jusko, Cadet Chief Petty Officer First Class Alexus Jusko, Cadet Ensign Thomas Burnett, Cadet Chief Petty Officer First Class Austin McMahon, Cadet Ensign Kathryne Griffin, Cadet Ensign Jase Whiteside, Cadet lieutenant Jr grade Jaden Fryar, Cadet Lieutenant Jr grade Tristan Hardy, Cadet Lieutenant Jr Grade Joseph Teano, Cadet Ensign Molly Black, Cadet Lieutenant Jr Grade Jeweleanne Aguilar and Cadet Lieutenant Jr Grade Cody McCarty. Senior Leaders included Cadet Commander Samantha Rodriguez, Cadet Commander Sonja Wiley and Cadet Lieutenant Commander Xavier Mindiola.