The Sandy Oaks City Council is now in its second year. The idea of being a city and having a city government was that city government could offer more than what the county government was doing and could do a better job addressing basic governmental services like road repair, law enforcement, fire protection, and animal. […]
The people claiming to be in charge in the City of Sandy Oaks have established a habit of wanting things to work “both ways.” They want all the credit of success and all the power of position, but don’t want the responsibility and work that comes with it. For example, Jim Clement is upset that […]
On February 11, 2016 the Sandy Oaks City Council banned the shooting of firearms. Alderman David Tremblay claimed he hears people shooting firearms often, saying I sit outside my home on my porch and my back yard on the weekend and I hear people firing off automatic weapons…New Years was pretty crazy. Fourth of July, […]
On January 14, 2016 the City Council discussed the transfer of vehicles from a Bexar County parking location to the City of Sandy Oaks. The item was not on the agenda, which didn’t stop Mayor Micki Ball, Aldermen Douglas Tomasini and David Tremblay, and City Marshal Jesse Gutierrez from discussing the topic. The City of […]
On January 14, 2016 the Sandy Oaks City Council banned the riding of livestock at night. The City Council passed an ordinance on animal control on December 15, 2015. On January 14th the Council decided to make changes to the ordinance. While discussing changes to the ordinance, Alderman David Tremblay said people rode horses with […]
The Sandy Oaks City Council filled a vacancy on the Council on January 14, 2016 at its regularly scheduled monthly meeting. The position, Alderman Place 4, originally belonged to Micki Ball until she become the Mayor last November and the position became vacant. At a previous meeting on November 12, 2015, the City Council decided […]
On December 15, 2015, the Sandy Oaks City Council banned the sale and storage of fireworks. Before approving the ordinance regarding fireworks, the Council heard a presentation from Julio Martinez, a part owner of the Mr W Fireworks company that operates a fireworks stand at the corner of Waterwood Pass and Priest Road inside the […]
On October 8, 2015, the City Council decided to contract with a trash collection service and to allow only that service to collect trash within the City of Sandy Oaks. The decision follows a “Community Meeting” on September 26th where different contract proposals were discussed Alderman Earnest Gay gave a summary of the fees and […]
The City Council has cancelled the election planned for November 3, 2015. The election was for 3 different Alderman positions and a replacement for the position of Mayor. The following 3 Alderman Places were up for reelection: Alderman Place 1: David Tremblay Alderman Place 3: Joel Ortega Alderman Place 5: Earnest D. Gay Related: November […]
For the City Council meeting on June 11, 2015, the Council had on the agenda to discuss documents needed by the Bexar County Tax Assessor Collector’s office and the Bexar County Appraisal District. Documents needed by the Tax Assessor Collector included who the City of Sandy Oaks had as a Tax Attorney. The City, however, […]
The Sandy Oaks City Council violated the Texas Open Meetings Act again at its regularly scheduled meeting May 14, 2015. The Council discussed a topic that was not posted on the meeting’s agenda, a requirement by state law to give citizens the opportunity to know in advance what is to be discussed. The violation occurred […]
March 21, 2015 the City Council met for a special meeting after having cancelled the meeting it had planned for Thursday, March 19th. The 12th item on the agenda was to “Discuss and consider a proposal from the WPPOA on the transfer of assets of the WPPOA to the City Of Sandy Oaks, Texas.” The […]
Sandy Oaks News began taking detailed records and recordings for the community directly after incorporation and before there was even a city government. The desire to keep solid records came after the Committee to Incorporate promised the community that it would announce the deadline for people to apply for office, but instead kept the deadline […]
On February 26, 2014 the City Council met to fix the tax debacle they created when they created an illegal amount of sales taxes. The issue was that the city could only create up to 1.5% in sales taxes and instead created 1.75%. The only reason it was 1.75% and not 2% is because someone […]
At the City Council meeting on February 12, 2015, the City Council was handed an Open Records Request from Don Hormachea. He handed the Request to each of the 5 Alderman, the Mayor, the City Clerk, and the City Attorney. The Public Information Act gives people the ability to access information that the government has. […]
The Sandy Oaks City Council held a special meeting on February 26, 2015 to discuss the illegal amount of sales taxes they created last fall. In their first official meeting, the Council created an election for 3 new sales taxes that, if approved, would equal more than the amount allowed by Texas law. The voters […]
By Texas state law, the maximum sales tax that can be imposed is 8.25%. Of that, the state collects 6.25% which means that local municipalities and transit authorities can only impose an extra 2% of sales tax. The Sandy Oaks City Council, however, went beyond the legal limit. The Council Wanted The Maximum Above is […]
Last night the Sandy Oaks City Council met for a budget hearing to discuss revenue and expenses. The meeting was less formal than a usual City Council meeting and allowed questions and comments from the audience. Mayor Jim Clement, whose job it is to create a budget, presented a budget that included over $300,000 in […]
Last night the Sandy Oaks City Council voted in favor of of a resolution thanking the Committee to Incorporate Sandy Oaks (CISO), the group that pushed for the creation of the new city. On the issue of creating the city, Mayor Jim Clement stated “We worked hard to get this done. Its called perseverance!” But […]
The very first City Council of Sandy Oaks, Texas was elected August 9, 2014. 2014 Candidates Political games started the same month that Sandy Oaks incorporated. The Committee to Incorporate Sandy Oaks had said at a public meeting before incorporation that they would announce the deadline for application for people to run for city office. […]
On July 22, 2014, candidates running for City Council met for a 3rd and final time before the election. The event was hosted by Catherine Rendahl and her husband Don who rented the Waterwood clubhouse and set up tables and chairs for people. “Air Conditioning!” said Rendahl. “It should keep people calmer than last time.” […]
People are now starting to call them the “Outsiders” because Micki Ball, Cathleen Recio, and David Tremblay are the only candidates outside of the Sandy Oaks Political Action Committee (SOPAC). On July 14, 2014, the three organized a 2nd meeting for the community for people to meet those running for city offices. The divide between […]
On July 8, 2014, a “Meet the Candidates” meeting was held in the Waterwood clubhouse. The event was organized by Jim Clement, the only candidate running for mayor. 23 people were present, including all the candidates running for alderman positions except for David Tremblay. Inside the clubhouse, chairs were arranged in a wide oval allowing […]
The following was submitted by Mr. David Tremblay July 16th, 2014 Picture: Platform: My platform is simple; fiscal responsibility, transparency, community involvement, an affordable tax rate and providing emergency services to the residents of Sandy Oaks. What specifically would you like to accomplish in the first year? Within the first year, I hope to develop […]