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San Jacinto County News - Breakout

Speed limits to change

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coldspringcityBy Tony Farkas
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COLDSPRING — Following approval from the Texas Department of Transportation, speed limits on State Highway 156 will change.

Mayor John Benestante said that at the Coldspring City Council meeting on March 4, the council passed a resolution in favor of the change. That resolution was sent to TxDOT, and following its approval, the signs will be changed.

The resolution was passed following a study performed by TxDOT.

The new limit, which will be from State Highway 150 to the city limits, will be 40 mph, down from 50 mph, and the change to the school zone speed near Lincoln Junior High School will be 25 mph.

In other business, the council:

•discussed amending its sewer ordinance regarding multiple taps and multiple meters, and rolling back residential taps to flat fee instead of metered;

•discussed moving the Coldspring Community Center under the umbrella of the city, and has requested information from City Attorney Greg Magee;

•discussed constructing storage building on land the city owns instead of purchasing new property;

•approved a permit for a Christian motorcycle rally set for May 11;

•canceled a city election as there were no contested races. Benestante and council members Dianne Griffiths and Nichole Gatewood will retain their posts, and the city saves $15,000 to $20,000 in election costs;

•discussed the city’s mobile home ordinance as it would apply to an investor looking to put two double-wide mobile homes on a 2-acre tract;

•approved drafting an memorandum of understanding with San Jacinto County Permitting Office; and

•discussed the donation of right-of-way on Perry Drive from Coldspring-Oakhurst CISD.

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Coldspring opens season with new digs, fanfare

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Mayor John Benestante throws out the first pitch of the season. PHOTOS BY CHARLES BALLARDMayor John Benestante throws out the first pitch of the season. PHOTOS BY CHARLES BALLARD

By Charles Ballard
SJNT correspondent

COLDSPRING — Kraig Erwin, President of the Coldspring Dixie League, kicked off opening weekend with a “Thank You” to all that was there at the City Park in Coldspring.

The League joined the Chamber of Commerce and had a ribbon cutting ceremony, featuring members of the Chamber and Coldspring Mayor John Benestante.

There also was a special Thank You that went to the general contractor that built the new concession stand and rest room building, Travis Dean of Team Dean Construction. Erwin also was the MC for the auction of a lot of cakes and baked goods, the funds were used to replenish the bank account for the League.

Benestante also got to throw out the first pitch of the new season.

“I grew up playing on ballparks just like this, we (the City of Coldspring)  are not through with the improvements for this ballpark,” Benestante said.

He also said the ballpark is a needed facility for the community.

Erwin said this was the largest turnout for league participation ever. The ages ranged from very young, Kindergarten all the way to teenagers.

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County considers fees for solar installation

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SanJacCountySealBy Tony Farkas
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COLDSPRING — The San Jacinto County Commissioners Court discussed additional fees for the installation of solar panels, particularly for properties that are in flood plains.

911 Administrator Trisha Basham said the fees weren’t necessarily for solar panels installed on the roof of a facility, but those installed in yards which could constitute an eyesore, and that currently there are no fees at all.

County Judge Fritz Faulkner said he was not a fan of charging property owners additional fees for being energy wise, but Commissioner Mark Nettuno said there could be a benefit from fees to commercial property.

In the end, the county tabled the matter until a future workshop could be held to revamp certain county ordinances.

Separately, in the public comments portion of the meeting, moved to after the agenda items, several county residents chided the court for its lack of action in solving the communications problems in the Sheriff’s Office.

Many residents said the issue constitutes an emergency and asked the commissioners to treat it as such and solve the problems.

In other business, the court:

•approved revisions to a subdivision plat in Waterwood pending the payment of any delinquent taxes in full;

•renewed a contract with Pitney Bowes for postage machines;

•declared an office chair as salvage;

•approved the refund of rent on the storm shelter for a canceled event;

•proclaimed April as Child Abuse Prevention Month, and approved the use of the Courthouse grounds for a display;

•approved the use of the Courthouse Square for a wellness vendor event;

•renewed an agreement for Affordable Care Act tracking services;

•re-appointed County Treasurer DiAnna Bailey as county investment officer;

•approved the county investment policy;

•approved an agreement with Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office regarding law enforcement;

•approved a variance for Walther and Edith Kellum for a lot split;

•approved a plat for Cranford Estates;

•approved a lot split for Jessica LaFoutain;

•approved the donation of a jet machine from the city of Shepherd;

•approved seeking bids for engineering services for the review of pass-through costs for subdivision rules;

•declared property owned by Jose Alariaz and J. Doss as being under the family exemption from subdivision rules;

•approved combining lots in the Waterwood subdivision for Clifford Reddick;

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After the turkey hunt

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031424 turkeyWild turkey are not only fun to hunt, they are great eating. In this week’s column, Luke tells of some of his favorite ways to put wild turkey on the dinner table. Photo by Luke Clayton

By Luke Clayton
Outdoors writer

To me, a hunt or fishing trip is not complete until I cook and enjoy a meal from my harvest from the woods or water.

Through the years, I’ve learned a lot of different ways to cook fish and game from others and I’ve done a great deal of experimenting on my own. One of my favorite recipes I learned from the late Bob Hood. Bob loved cooking with Dutch Kettles over campfire coals and we often prepared this dish for a noon time meal after a successful quail hunt out in west Texas.

The ingredients are pretty basic — a kettle full of quail, 1 1/2 sticks of butter, quail, 4 rows of Ritz Crackers and salt and pepper.

After this hunt, I decided to substitute the white meat from my gobbler for the quail Bob and I usually cooked. I cut the breast meat into pieces about the size of a quail, coated them with melted butter and then covered them with cracker meal.

I do most of my campfire cooking in a big cast iron skillet with lid and a No. 10 Dutch Kettle. The key to success with a Dutch Kettle is to make sure you do not get too much heat under the pot. A good rule of thumb is about 13 charcoal briquettes on top of the recessed lid and about seven or eight underneath.

I usually cook with embers from the campfire but briquettes are much easier to work with until you learn how to gauge the heat. Of course, the amount of heat depends upon the ambient air temperature. When it’s freezing and windy outside, it obviously requires more heat to bring the kettle up to cooking temperature. When the air temperature is 70 degrees or more, the basic 13 above and 7 below formula works just fine.

It’s important to have extra cracker meal to cover the pieces of breast meat; an ample amount of black pepper on top is a must. While the kettle is working its magic, rotate the lid with coals 180 degrees and pick up the entire kettle and turn it the opposite direction. This helps to distribute the heat and avoid hotspots.

It takes somewhere around 40 minutes once the coals are placed on top but it’s a good idea to gingerly pull the lid after about 30 minutes for a check. Cooking with cast iron over a campfire is a bit more challenging than setting the kitchen oven at the desired temperature and removing the finished product when the timer sounds but Dutch kettle cooking is not rocket science.

You will find that the aroma coming from that kettle will have your friends hovering just downwind with plates, fork and knives ready to dig in, but give it about 40 minutes — fight them off if you must. About two quail-sized pieces of the turkey breast covered with extra Ritz cracker crumbs is about right for the average person. Grilled asparagus is in season now and it makes a great side dish to this meal.

Through the years, I have encountered a lot of turkey hunters that have no idea how to prepare the legs and thigh meat from wild turkeys. Wild turkey, unlike their domestic counterparts, have to use their “landing gear” for motivation while foraging for food, often traveling many miles each day.

A wild turkey drumstick is extremely tough. I’ve seen guys try to grill them and it would take the teeth of a grizzly bear to chew the meat. With 10 or so tiny feather bones it can be a challenge to cook, but years ago I learned from an old Mexican cook down on the border how to make the best fajitas out of wild turkey legs and thighs.

The trick to tenderizing any cut of tough meat is slow cooking with moisture. I begin with placing the dark meat in heavy duty aluminum foil and coating it with olive oil, then sprinkling on a generous amount of Fiesta Fajita seasoning. I use my Smokin’ Tex electric smoker set at 225 degrees for an hour to give the pieces plenty of smoke flavor; pecan wood is my favorite but hickory or any fruit wood also gives the meat a great flavor.

After the pieces are smoked, add a bit more oil and just a little water or apple juice then wrap tightly, and allow to steam/bake for five or six hours. Make sure and check for doneness after 4 hours. I then hold the end of the drumsticks to keep the little feather bones intact and strip the meat away.

The thigh meat will simply fall off the bone. I often freeze the smoked/seasoned meat and make fajitas later. If I’m at camp with friends, I toss the meat in a cast iron skillet with a bit more seasoning, onions, bell pepper and onion and enjoy some very fresh camp fajitas. Wrapped in a hot flour tortilla and garnished with cilantro and a bit of picante sauce, these fajitas will rival those you enjoy at your favorite restaurant.

Note: If you haven’t had a successful turkey season thus far, you can substitute chicken breast in either of these recipes or, for the Dutch kettle recipe, Cornish hens. Just make sure and have plenty of that Ritz cracker meal. You will thank me when you spoon a generous pile of the cracker meal on the Dutch Kettle baked fowl and wrap five or six pieces of asparagus in bacon for the grill. The bacon bastes the asparagus while cooking and adds a great deal of flavor. You might want to dust it with a bit of garlic powder to add even more flavor.

Email outdoors writer Luke Clayton through his website www.catfishradio.org.

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Best of county lauded by Chamber

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DidYouKnow ColumnHeadOur pear tree came into bloom this week as did many others. Apparently, spring has sprung before its due date.

This week was busy in our county. The Best of San Jacinto County Awards Banquet was held in Jones Hall in Coldspring. This paper’s editor was there too, so I know you will have a report from Mr. Farkas about it. He gave a speech on the collaboration between the Coldspring Chamber and the San Jacinto News-Times for this event.

This was the first time voting for “The Best” was done online. There were some hiccups to begin with, but things were straightened out and the event showed that in the larger number of categories named this year.

Bullet Grill House catered a great meal and COISD High School Drill Team performed for everyone before the award ceremony. Well-deserving people and businesses won first or second place; please go online to the Coldspring Chamber this week to see all the winners. They won’t be entered till the office opens.

One winner I have to mention is the Community and Children’s Impact Center in Shepherd. Brenda Myers and her team of volunteers won for Best Thrift Shop, which is high praise when you know we have some wonderful resale shops in our area. They won second place for Best Non- Profit and Brenda won second place for Best Volunteer and Activist. Best of all though was when Brenda won Hero of the County. Way to go, Impact Center.

The future Impact Crisis Center is coming along with donations and volunteer help. Their big event fund raiser will be on May18. Casino Night to be held at the VFW Post 1839 in Cleveland will be the venue. Tickets are $50 which buys you $500 casino money. There will be tables for poker, blackjack, roulette and a craps table. The meal will be barbecue with music of course and the VFW bar will be open. More details as we get closer to the date but you do need to have your tickets beforehand. Call Brenda at (936) 499-3632 or James Wall at (832) 235-5737.

On Thursday evenings Brenda and her team hold a Get It Off Your Chest session for youth who are having difficulties in their lives. Some have attempted suicide, some have no family and some have suffered physical and sexual abuse. Given the chance to get it off their chest they can do it with a group of people who are supportive, understanding and helpful as well as offering prayers.

This week Harley and Elizabeth talked about their horrendous experiences. In fact, one will face her molester in court this week for the horrible times he put her through. They were both able to speak of the damage done to their trust in people now, but it was clear this was a healing in the works and I was thankful for them both, that they had found a place to help them with this healing.

•Women’s League of San Jacinto County will hold its annual fundraiser Style Show on April 11. This will be a lunch with entertainment from the fashion show, featuring the latest from Chico’s of Humble. Sponsored by Susan Vaughan, tickets will be $25.

The Board met this last week to finalize the nominations for the new year which starts after our summer break in September. The names will be announced at the next lunch on March 14.

•I attended the second sitting of Coldspring Library’s Princess Tea party held in Coldspring Methodist Church Fellowship Hall. It was a delightful hour and a half. First the princesses had time to color pictures, make headbands for themselves using artificial flowers or go to the play table. Then they lined up and one by one walked to the stage and were presented. Each was announced with a short description of their favorite color, what they wanted to be when they grew etc.

The dresses were beautiful, moms and dads who accompanied their little girls were helpful and, of course, proud of their daughters. Tea or punch was served in cups with saucers, tiny sandwiches, fruit skewers and a cupcake were perfect for the meal.

Coldspring and Shepherd Library plan to support each other’s events, and this was the case with this one. At the reception desk helping out was Marsha Brown and chair of the event Michelle Torres from Coldspring with Terri McIntyre, Ali Payne and Jennifer Arrington from Shepherd. In the kitchen was Shawna Holman and her son Layton. Dee Duke and Leslye McGrath created the food. Brothers Zachary, Cory and Gabriel Gosey were wonderful helping everyone and gathering up the dishes after.

•Coldspring Chamber and COCISD are collaborating with the spring festival at the school grounds on April 13. If you wish to be a vendor, call the Chamber for more information. If you are having an outdoor event in March and would like to rent an inflatable bounce house, obstacles or waterslides, call Santiago’s Moonwalk Rentals. There is a 15 percent discount on waterslides this month, except for the Easter weekend. Call (832) 608-0147. Go to the Facebook page, they also rent tables and chairs and more.

•Shepherd Library’s fundraiser is a chili cookoff on May 18 at Shepherd Community Center. Starting at 10 a.m., this event will have music and vendors. If you want to be in the contest, call (936) 628-3515. More of this in the future.

Contact the Shepherd Chamber of Commerce at (210) 995-7420 or the Coldspring Chamber at (936) 653-2184.

Yvonne Cones is president of the Shepherd Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Coldspring Chamber of Commerce.

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