Rains County joined the Lake Country Crime Stoppers program Thursday. Rains Commissioners heard from a Lake Country Crime Stoppers representative who said the program wishes to expand into Rains, Franklin and Delta Counties. Current;y, the program includes Hopkins County.

Commissioners signed an agreement with the group which will allow the group to take anonymous tips from Rains County residents concerning crimes in the area. The Lake Country Crime Stoppers representative said the program is fully self-supporting, using funds charged by the court to convicted felons. He stressed the program would not cost the county any money. Rains County Chief Deputy Kurt Fisher said the Sheriff's Department supported the program.

In other action:

• Cast the county's ballot a slate of nominees for directors for the county appraisal district board. Commissioner's divided the county's votes between Bob Russell and Dwight Craver, giving each 1,026 votes.
• Established a new policy for manufactured home rental communities within the county. Among other restrictions, the policy requires home be separated by at least 25 feet to allow emergency vehicles to pass between them.
• Approved a policy for public displays in county offices.

Van Zandt County Commissioners Tuesday approved a resolution that should pave the way for donations for the local Veteran's memorial. County Judge Rhita Koaches said the Army and Air Force wanted a statement in writing from the county that the court was cooperating with memorial organizers. 

She said they wanted minutes from the commission's court showing the court has agreed to participate in the Van Zandt County Veterans' Memorial Project in order to consider donations of equipment or items for the memorial.

The weather is cooling and it is time to address all those fall maintenance issues. We are into the second week of the month. Owners of Surface Application Aerobic systems should check and maintain the system regularly.

I suggest performing these activities at the same date each month, so it becomes a habit. I have a number of activities I schedule that way, in order to not forget them. These activities include such mundane chores as giving the dog his heartworm pill and checking the chlorine tablets in my OSSF. These are not exciting activities, but they must be addressed each month.

Van Zandt County voters defeated all three local options to sell alcoholic beverages in Precinct 1 Tuesday evening.

On Proposition 1, allowing the sale of beer and wine for off-premise consumption, voters cast 1,001 for and 1,442 against the issue.

Fall is upon us.  It is November and the vegetation is greener than it usually is, due to the October Rains.  A lot of the “summer” vegetation has started dying off and the winter grasses are starting to thrive. 

As the tree leaves die off and fall, the accumulation of leaves on the ground, provides shelter for insects and other “critters”.  Now that the weather is pleasant, it is a good time to clean out tall grasses and other growth near our homes to discourage our “creepy crawly” neighbors from taking up residence in or near our homes.  It is not too early to start “winterizing” outdoor faucets, flower beds, gardens and pet facilities. 

The Mineola City Council awarded a project to build a new water tower for the city to a company from    McGuire Iron submitted the lowest bid of $1.14 million.

The engineer overseeing the project said McGuire Iron, "might not be the easiest to work with," but admitted it was not worth the $140,000 of additional money to use the second lowest bidder. He said his firm was familiar with McGuire Iron since it had built a similar tank in Crandall which the engineering firm had designed.

The city also discussed the current status of the city's street projects. Councilman John Storace asked about the quality of the current work in the light of some much recent rain,

The city's public works director, Johnny McCoy said the contractor on the job was qualified to lay asphahlt and would put it down if it was too cold or the conditions were not proper. McCoy noted, however, that the city would probably not be able to finish the project until Spring.

Rains County began today the process of applying for an Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant. Commissioner Jim Painter said the county could receive $50,000, divided up among the cities in the county.

County Judge Joe Dougherty noted the program is not a matching grant, "We'll always welcome free money." The program allows a variety of activities to qualify for the money including updating current air conditioning systems.

Early voting began Monday for Texas constitutional amendments affecting the Texas State Guard, veteran's hospitals, and emergency services districts. Early voting runs through Friday, October 30.  Voters can cast ballots from 8 a.m to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday, October 24 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Dawn Goldthorn, Wood County Elections Administrator, said "New electronic poll books will be used for the first time this election."  Goldthorn encourages everyone to bring a voter registration certificate or a driver's license.

Early voting in Wood County takes place at the Wood County Courthouse.  General election voting is Tuesday, November 3 and will be held at regular polling locations.