The Countywide

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Runge finishes best season in 7 years with winKarnes City bulldozes BulldogsLady Badgers record first playoff win in school historyPlayoff-bound Lions finish 2nd in districtGarcez going to state, Karnes City, Falls City girls among region's best

Bluebonnet DaysFalls City ISDKarnes City ISDKarnes County HistoryKarnes County OfficesKenedy ISDLonesome Dove FestRunge ISD

Floyd Salinas may very well have saved a life by taking time out to help while driving his route. Little did Falls City Post Office regular route carrier Floyd Salinas know that August 31 would not be just another day at the office.
During the later part of his morning as he was delivering the mail, he noticed a car weaving on the roadway and traveling extremely slowly. As he passed the vehicle to reach his next delivery point he saw an elderly occupant in the driver's seat. After servicing his next mailbox, he noticed in his rear view mirror that the car had stopped.
Having a gut feeling that something was not right, Salinas got out of More

Karnes County Commissioners Court considered an item to authorize advertising for competitive sealed bids for an addition to the new county annex building at its regular meeting Tuesday.
The addition will be used "for courtroom space, emergency operations center, and meeting rooms," according to a public notice published in this week's edition of The Karnes Countywide.
If Commissioners Court votes to authorize the advertising, the county would move forward with the bidding process and convene in regular session on December 14 at the County Courthouse and "consider the passage of an order authorizing the issuance of one or more series More

Shaw says open government will be key as county judge

Barbara Shaw Nearly two years ago, Barbara Najvar Shaw decided to run for Karnes County Judge for a very simple reason: She saw a problem, and she wanted to help solve it.
It's something Shaw has done for the majority of her adult life. As a specialist for child and adult protective services, she has helped put families back together. As a small business shareholder, she dealt with the day-to-day operations of a business and the challenges that arise in that realm.
The problem she perceived way back in 2008 still exists today, and Shaw is looking forward to taking another simple More

Jose Aliseda Conservative leadership was the message with newly elected District 35 State Representative Jose Aliseda. Aliseda served as Bee County Attorney from 1998 to 2003 and was later appointed to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles by Gov. Rick Perry.
Aliseda, a Republican, won Karnes County by 242 votes (54 percent) and is a local representation of the pro-Republican swing that voters led throughout the state this past election cycle. He said bringing new economic opportunities to the region will be important moving forward as well as providing the type of leadership he heard a call for during his campaign More

Schendel looking to reign in spending, fix infrastructure

Tracey Schendel Wasteful spending, poor county roads, and a need for more law enforcement are the main reasons newly elected Pct. 4 County Commissioner Tracey Schendel decided to throw his name in the hat for last week's election.
Schendel, running as a Democrat, defeated Daniel Burris in the November 2 election with nearly 70 percent of the vote (401-174). Burris and Schendel squared off with incumbent Stormy Rossett choosing not to seek reelection.
"I think the county government is in pretty bad debt and someone needs to get in there and stop a bunch of this unnecessary spending," Schendel said. "We need More

One of the things I noticed most about the voters in Karnes County during this recently departed election cycle was how long many people stayed undecided for. Up until less than a week before election day, I probably spoke to something in the neighborhood of 25 people who had yet to make up their mind about several key races.
The county judge election seemed to be the big one locally, but voters seemed very in touch with the major issues at play in many of our statewide races as well. In my experience, most people have made up their minds More

The City of Runge has scheduled a clean-up day for Saturday, November 13 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The event is intended to provide Runge residents with a chance to dispose of larger trash items that cannot be included in the regular garbage collection.
The city council opted to have three trucks go through the city picking up items rather than have roll-off trailers.
Mayor Homer Lott said the roll-offs would cause problems by encouraging people from out of town to dispose of items that are not supposed to be included, such as televisions.
The city will be hiring More

Area oil field supply company makes 10-year commitment

Enterprise Products Partners, L.P., announced last week that certain of its subsidiaries have entered into 10-year agreements with Pioneer Natural Resources USA, Inc., Reliance Eagleford Upstream Holding LP and Newpek, LLC (collectively, the "Pioneer JV") under which Enterprise will provide a full scope of midstream energy services to handle liquid-rich natural gas and crude oil production from the Pioneer JV's acreage in the Eagle Ford Shale play in South Texas. The agreements cover a significant portion of the Pioneer JV's expected Eagle Ford Shale production, including commitments for firm natural gas transportation, natural gas processing, natural gas liquid (NGL) fractionation More

Hinojosa, White put focus on education during campaign stops to Karnes County

Elena White, left, daughter of gubernatorial hopeful Bill White, stopped by the Karnes County Courthouse October 27 and spoke with county clerk Alva Jonas, right, among others. Local Congressman Ruben Hinojosa (D, TX-15) and Elena White, daughter of Texas gubernatorial candidate Bill White, both stopped in Karnes County in the final weeks of October in advance of the November 2 election.
Hinojosa attended a private reception at the 505 Bed and Breakfast in Kenedy October 21 while White visited with public officials and voters in the Karnes County Courthouse October 27.
Both spoke at length about education [150] a key issue in Texas, which is currently ranked between 49th and 51st out of the 50 states and Washington D.C. (depending on the poll) in the number of More

Phase One of the Karnes County Courthouse restoration project will come with a price tag of approximately $900,000. County Commissioners Court voted unanimously to accept the lowest bid, presented by M.J. Boyle General Contractors of San Antonio, at its regular meeting October 29 and will pay one-third of the total cost with the state kicking in the other two-thirds as a result of a Texas Historical Commission (THC) grant.
Commissioners voted to go with architect Fisher Heck Inc.’s recommendation of accepting M.J. Boyle’s $760,000 base bid, along with an additional $12,000 from Alternate Price No. 1, which will ensure a More

Commissioners approved entering an order establishing FM 887 from Hwy. 181 to FM 791 as a truck route October 29. The move will restrict travel for trucks and truck-trailers or other designated vehicles, and establish a fine between $10 and $200 for violators.
The County will have to post notice that it plans to assess fines in the area and put up signs on its part of the roadway, which Pct. 2 Commissioner Mike Beam said is less than one-half mile. Kendall estimated five signs will be put up in the area.
"This agreement requires certain markings for a truck More

Karnes City bulldozes Bulldogs
Lady Badgers record first playoff win in school history
Playoff-bound Lions finish 2nd in district
Garcez going to state, Karnes City, Falls City girls among region's best
Falls City cruises to another district title