By Judith Pannebaker

“A budget is the best estimation of spending,” offered Bandera County Judge Richard Evans. A basic, but banal, explanation of what at times was transformed into a remarkably lively workshop.

By Stephanie Parker

Texas Education Agency (TEA) ratings have been released and Medina Elementary School is the only school in Bandera County to have earned an Exemplary rating - the highest possible rating.

Contributed

Friends Velma Cassel and Addie Douberley celebrated 100 years at a birthday party at the Cedar Creek nursing home in Bandera on Friday, Aug. 1. (Photo only)

Contributed

It’s almost time to send the kiddies back to school and Texas shoppers should gear up to take advantage of the approaching sales tax holiday, according to Comptroller of Public Accounts Susan Combs.

By Stephanie Parker

The Bandera Police Department announced today that it will join an intensive nationwide crackdown on impaired drivers Aug. 15-Sept. 1.

By Judith Pannebaker

As the price of regular gasoline soared to $4 a gallon, Texas District 21 Representative Lamar Smith strongly criticized Democratic Majority leaders for their decision to adjourn the House for five weeks rather than hold a vote on the American Energy Act, HR 6566.

By Judith Pannebaker

Opponents of a proposed wastewater facility that would initially dump 225,000 gallons of treated effluent into a creek that feeds the Edwards Aquifer packed a Kendall County District courtroom Tuesday, July 22.

By Judith Pannebaker

After Labor Day, county residents will have to pay more for depositing their household trash and bulk items at the four county dumps - don’t call them landfills.

By Judith Pannebaker

According to local law enforcement officers, John Ivan Heinen, 32, is a menace to public safety and needs to be taken off the road.

By Judith Pannebaker

Steven Shannon Veselka expected to mark his 36th birthday in style. To his surprise, he found himself confined to the Kerr County Jail.

By Stephanie Parker

Darryl Lee Rosenthal, 37, of Kerrville died at Medina Lake on Sunday, Aug. 10. He was last seen alive at approximately 1:30 am at a late-night party when he announced that he was going to “jump into the lake to cool off.”

By Stephanie Parker

A dog doesn’t have to be Lassie to be a hero, nor does the dog have to be any certain size - including big.

By Stephanie Parker

A fire that started in a burn barrel off Oil Well Road in Pipe Creek at approximately 3:30 pm on Sunday, Aug. 10 fanned into flames that burned across 60 acres and engaged seven Bandera County volunteer fire departments.

By Judith Pannebaker

Entrepreneur Steve Ball recently took a step closer to bringing his dream of a boutique hotel and conference center with special amenities to Bandera.

Contributed

The Bandera County Sheriff’s Department is invites the public to attend a TRIAD symposium on Thursday, August 21 from 10 am to noon at Misty’s Cove in Wharton’s Dock. A pavilion will be set up to accommodate the organizations that attend

By Judith Pannebaker

Just after waving a heartfelt good-by to a contingent of Town Hall visitors from Bandera’s sister city-county, Strezelce Opolskie, it’s time to offer a big Lone Star welcome to a second group of Polish visitors.

By Judith Pannebaker

If couch potatoes think they’re going to lean back in their recliners with a cold wet one and enjoy an evening of television entertainment on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2009, they could be disappointed.

1935-2008

Efrain M. Escamilla Sr. of Hondo went to be with the Lord on Tuesday, August 5, at the age of 72 years.

Contributed

In a letter sent recently to US Attorney General Michael Mukasey, Senator John Cornyn, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Judiciary Committees, asked the Department of Justice to investigate the potential disenfranchisement of thousands of American military service member

By Judith Pannebaker

In an uncharacteristic about- face for the 216th Judicial District, a tentative date has been set on Tuesday, Sept. 30, for the trial of John Ivan Heinen, 32, on charges of intoxication manslaughter. A trial would supersede his previous plea bargain that included 10 years probation.

'96 case tried in Bandera

On Tuesday, August 19, the seven-member State of Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles unanimously denied Jeffrey Lee Wood’s request for clemency or commutation of his death penalty.

By Judith Pannebaker

Like the Stones sing, “You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometime, you just might find, you get what you need.” Bandera City Council adhered to lessons taught by Mick and his mates during budget workshops on Tuesday, August 19, and Thursday, August 14, thrashing out details for fiscal year 2008-2009.

By Judith Pannebaker

Valentine Ranch, a sprawling subdivision poised to spill over from Medina County into Bandera County, has been on the books for years. However, from the onset, the development has apparently been plagued with problems.

By Judith Pannebaker

Bandera County Commissioners unanimously approved a proposed tax rate of $0.6869 per $100 valuation for fiscal year 2008-2009.

By Judith Pannebaker

Zoning and re-zoning and additions to the city’s zoning ordinance were on the plates of Bandera City Council members recently.

By Judith Pannebaker

Architect Wayne Gondeck’s assessment of the progress on the Bandera County Jail and Justice System currently under construction on Highway 173 North ranged from “it’s progressing onward” to “it’s moving along.”

By Judith Pannebaker

To everyone’s surprise, a slight little cowgirl accompanied Bandera’s venerable rodeo champions honored during the National Day of the American Cowboy, Saturday, July 26.

By Judith Pannebaker

The voice that ostensibly speaks for the animals of Bandera County “because they cannot speak for themselves” has been uncharacteristically quiet of late.

By Judith Pannebaker

Despite swirling rumors, horses have not been banned from the streets of the Cowboy Capital of World, nor did Mayor Horst Pallaske favor a prohibition on the cowboy’s traditional mode of transportation.

Students and Teachers from Bandera's sister city-county, Strzelce Opolskie are visiting Bandera promoting an international school partnership

By Stephanie Parker

A Bandera ISD bus transporting 20 students was involved in a minor accident with a passenger vehicle at approximately 3:50 pm on Tuesday, August 26 at the intersection of Highway 16 and Old San Antonio Highway

By Judith Pannebaker

Just under six hours before he was scheduled to die for participating in the 1996 murder of a clerk in a Kerrville service station, Jeffrey Lee Wood, 34, was granted a stay of execution.

To view the KENS 5 television coverage of the John Heinen case, visit the Courier website, www.bccourier.com.

By Judith Pannebaker

According to authorities with the Texas Department of State Health Services, the amount of rabies vaccine available to Texas residents bitten by potentially rabid animals is dwindling rapidly.

By Judith Pannebaker

San Antonio attorney Rachel Reuter represents Larry and Noreen Dratch, Joe and Cecilia Rittgers and Mike and Ann Tagaras, third party defendants in the current litigation surrounding Valentine Ranch. San Antonio attorney Robert Lee “Trey” Wilson III represents the property owners association.

By Judith Pannebaker

The City of Bandera has applied for a grant to continue rehabilitation of wastewater utility mains, and city staff and administrators need assistance gathering preliminary data.

By Stephanie Parker

The Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District (BCRAGD) held their quarterly meeting on Thursday, August 21, and proposed a 2008-2009 budget of $486,673, driven by a proposed tax rate of .026849, or approximately .027 cents per $100 valuation.