Special Session Meeting of the City Council of the City of Jersey Village to be held on Monday, September 12, 2022, at 6:30 p.m. in the Civic Center Auditorium, 16327 Lakeview Drive, Jersey Village, Texas, for the purpose of considering the following agenda items.
- SPECIAL SESSION ITEM 1. Consider Resolution No. 2022-53, determining that an amendment to the Articles of Incorporation of the Village Center Local Government Corporation is wise, expedient, necessary, and advisable; authorizing such amendment; and approving the form of such amendment. Austin Bleess, City Manager
The Jersey Village City Council and Mayor continue to work out of the view of the residents of Jersey Village. The simple fact is that they do not want the taxpayers to know what they are doing, because they may have more opposition to their actions. They have shown in the past that they do not want the taxpayers to have any say in any of their actions.
Without providing any prior notice to the residents, they are making changes to the city structure to add three additional people not elected by the voters to become involved or to make deals that impact the property owners and could end up causing sizable increases in property taxes. They are stacking three meetings back-to-back on the same day to meet the “letter of the law” requirements and at the same time violating the “intent of the law” by doing it out of sight of the taxpayers.
Jersey Village Use of Local Government Corporation
I suspect that most of the residents of Jersey Village do not realize that City Council had created a Local Government Corporation for the development of the Village Center project back in 2019. I doubt if many residents know what this is or what powers this entity has or how the taxpayers may be affected by the actions of that corporation.
Here are a few things to consider about granting powers to individuals and/or organizations like these to conduct business that can create obligations for residential property owners in the form of increased property taxes.
This is giving three individuals that are not willing to provide their home addresses authority without the residents a chance to vote on them or the LGC!
ARTICLE VIII: INCORPORATORS
The names and street addresses of the incorporators, each of whom resides within the city, are: Andrew Mitcham 16327 Lakeview Drive, Jersey Village, TX 77040 Greg Holden 16327 Lakeview Drive, Jersey Village, TX 77040 Gary Wubbenhorst 16327 Lakeview Drive, Jersey Village, TX 77040
ARTICLE IX: ENABLING LEGISLATION
- The LGC is formed pursuant to the provisions of the Act as it now or may hereafter be amended, and Chapter 394, Texas Local Government Code, which authorizes the LGC to assist and act on behalf of the City and to engage in activities in the furtherance of the purposes for its creation.
- The LGC is created as a local government corporation pursuant to the Act and shall be a governmental unit within the meaning of Subdivision (2), Section 101.001, Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. The operations of the LGC are governmental and not proprietary functions for purposes of the Texas Tort Claims Act, Section 101.001 et seq., Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. The LGC shall have the power to acquire land in accordance with the Act as amended from time to time.
ARTICLE X: POWERS
A. The LGC shall have and exercise all of the rights, powers, privileges, authority, and functions given by the general laws of Texas to non-profit corporations incorporated under the Act including, without limitation, Article 1396, Vernon’s Texas Civil Statutes (the Texas Non-Profit Corporation Act).
B. The LGC shall have all other powers of a like or different nature not prohibited by law which are available to non-profit corporations in Texas and which are necessary or useful to enable the LGC to perform the purposes for which it is created, including the power to issue bonds, notes, or other obligations, and otherwise exercise its borrowing power to accomplish the purposes for which it was created, provided that the LGC shall not issue bonds without the consent of the Council.
ARTICLE XI: BOARD LIABILITY
A. No Director shall be liable to the LGC for monetary damages for an act or omission in the Director’s capacity as a Director, except for:
1. any breach of the Director’s duty of loyalty to the LGC;
2. acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law;
3. any transaction from which the Director received an improper benefit, whether or not the benefit resulted from an act taken within the scope of the Director’s office; or,
4. acts or omissions for which the liability of a Director is expressly provided by statute.
B. Any repeal or amendment of this Article by the Directors shall be prospective only, and shall not adversely affect any limitation on the personal liability of a Director existing at the time of such repeal or amendment.