Little League field to honor Hazelett

By LPR Staff
Editor/POST-REGISTER

When Lockhart Little League spring season opens on Saturday, the organization will pay tribute to one of its most giving and influential volunteers.
The Lockhart City Council gave their blessing on Tuesday night to have a field at the Lockhart Little League Complex named the “Johnny Hazelett Memorial Field.” The field wi

ll be dedicated during Little League opening ceremonies on Saturday.
“[Johnny] was a remarkable individual and he set the pace for what the program is today,” Little League president David Reyes told the council. “At 15 years old, he was out there umpiring. He endured a lot, but he did it because he loved to see the kids having a good time.”
Hazelett was killed in a car accident in 2001 at the age of 31, but his family has remained active in the community, particularly in Lockhart Little League.
“Mr. and Mrs. Hazelett continue to contribute in more ways than financially to their son”s belief in this community,” Reyes said. “There are people that have developed [in sports] and gone on to college because of opportunities the Hazeletts gave them. This isn”t the type of recognition that they ask for, it”s just something that they do.”
Reyes suggested to the council that naming the field in Hazelett”s honor is an appropriate way to recognize the contributions that he made during his short life, and the contributions his family continues to make today.
The council agreed and voted unanimously to rename the field.
Changes made by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs to the HOME Investment Partnerships Program may be detrimental to Lockhart”s participation in the HOME program.
The program, which focuses on the rehabilitation or rebuilding of houses for very low-income homeowners, underwent significant changes last month. The changes will affect the way the program is implemented, the length of time available for construction projects and the ability of participants to qualify for the program.
In the past, dozens of Lockhart homes have been rebuilt under the HOME Program, including nine last year, but the contractor who has worked with the city in the past may bow out because of the new restrictions.
“Bud Love feels that the changes have an adverse affect on the program and would like the city to sign a letter asking the board to rescind the changes,” assistant city manager Vance Rodgers told the council. “They have decreased the maximum grant amount, which limits the way the homes can be built, and he said that he doesn”t want to build 700 square foot homes.”
Because of the good the program has provided to the community in the past, and because there are no other similar programs for home rehabilitation available, the council agreed to sign the letter.
In other council news:
Mayor James “Jimmy” Bertram continues to draw fire from citizens who are disappointed with his decision to file legal action to block a recall election. Three citizens approached the council to blast Bertram for his decision, insisting that the recall effort is not a personal attack, but rather a protest of the way the city is being governed.
City Manager Clovia English and City Attorney Peter Gruning were also criticized for the way Gruning handled a hearing last week.
An Elgin citizen lodged a complaint against the police department, stating that he had been stopped for speeding while rushing his mother to the hospital. He was concerned that the officer held him and issued the ticket, even after he explained his situation. Interim Police Chief Ray Sanders assured the council that the issue had been addressed with both the officer and his supervisor.
In brief council news:
The council appointed assistant city manager Vance Rodgers to act as a liaison between the city, Caldwell County and the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) for the purposes of negotiating an agreement regarding a wetlands reclamation project in connection with the construction of State Highway 130.
The city has entered an agreement with the Lockhart Independent School District Community Education to provide swimming lessons at the City Pool. The availability of classes may have an effect on the pool”s ability to accommodate evening swimming parties. Schedules and costs for classes will be announced at a later date.
Interim Police Chief Ray Sanders presented the Lockhart Police Department”s Racial Profiling Report for 2005. According to Sanders, data collected by the police department shows that the department does not engage in “racially biased policing.” Sanders also noted that the statistics could be a bit skewed because of the small number of searches performed by the police department last year.