City, county negotiate remodeling
By LPR Staff
Editor/POST-REGISTER
In their brief meeting on Tuesday, the council heard an appeal from Caldwell County, which asked the council to overturn a decision made by the Historical Preservation Commission regarding the tax office building on Market Street.
Earlier this year, the County Commissioners accepted a bid to have construction and refacin
g done to the building, including the removal of several rows of black tile from the front of the building. Because the building is in the Historic District, any changes to the structure must be approved by the Historical Preservation Commission. The Commission denied the County”s request several weeks ago.
“I don”t understand what era you”re trying to preserve,” said Caldwell County Commissioner Tom Bonn. “The best anyone can tell, those tiles were probably installed in the 1950s or 1960s, and are not an original part of the building.”
Historical Preservation Commission chair Coyle Buhler said that, although the black tiles may not be seen as tasteful, they are part of the character of the building, and therefore, should not be removed.
After much discussion, the council chose to table the conversation and not rule on the appeal until their next regular meeting on Nov. 15. In the meantime, Buhler will work with the County to determine other alternatives for refacing the building.
In brief council business:
A number of citizens approached the council, still riled on the heels of the recent cuts to the Lockhart Police Department. While some offered viable suggestions to keep the lines of communication open between the citizens and the council, others continued to blast the council, mayor and city manager for the reduction in force.
The name of Fir Street will be changed to Fir Lane to alleviate some confusion for postal workers and dispatchers.
Councilmember Lew White asked city staff to present information regarding the updated command structure in the police department after the retirement of several ranking officers.
Bertram thanked the citizens for their participation in the political process.
