Aledo Municipal Complex, 200 Old Annetta Road
Aledo City Council, Oct. 1: a Dean Ranch work session, a $1,831,476 budget amendment, the FY 2027 fee schedule, class 1 e-bikes on trails and the Parker County Public Utility Agency
The agenda posted Sept. 25 opens with a 5 p.m. work session on Dean Ranch in the Executive Conference Room, then a 6 p.m. regular meeting with public hearings on Ordinance 2026-O-26 amending the FY 2026 budget and Ordinance 2026-O-27 adopting the FY 2027 Municipal Fee Schedule.
Published Saturday, September 26, 2026, by The Aledo Ledger. Publisher: Christopher Weaver.
The work session. The 5 p.m. agenda, posted Sept. 25 at 1:06 p.m., lists one item, Dean Ranch, and a note that the council may vote or take action on any listed item. The 6 p.m. agenda's executive session lists the City of Aledo and City of Fort Worth v. City of Willow Park, Beall-Dean Ranch and Parker County potential Settlement Agreement, Dean Ranch Development Standards and Downtown Development under Section 551.071, Citizen Boards and Commissions Appointments under 551.074, and the Dean Ranch Development Agreement under 551.087. The Ledger's tracker of the annexation suit is at /trackers/dean-ranch/ and the place page at /places/dean-ranch/.
The budget amendment (Ordinance 2026-O-26). A Sept. 25 memo from Doug Martella of Zactax says the amendment brings fiscal 2025-2026 appropriations in line with projected year-end results so that no fund closes the year with expenditures in excess of its adopted appropriations. Across all funds it increases revenue appropriations by $1,831,476 and expenditure appropriations by $1,658,469, a net increase in fund balance of $173,007. General Fund revenues and expenditures each rise $770,895: sales tax is $310,399 over budget, franchise fees $189,550, interest income $170,632, miscellaneous permit fees $134,641, plan review fees $59,678 and building permits $23,312, while current property tax is reduced $151,114 to actual collections; the largest expenditure lines are Public Works Administration ($230,886), City Manager ($178,001, including interim city manager and recruitment costs), Police ($128,161, mainly Parker County dispatch and patrol services $86,413 over budget), Non-Departmental ($106,534) and Legal ($58,749). The Water & Wastewater Fund adds $537,591 in revenue and $776,936 in expenditure, a planned use of fund balance of $239,345; the TIRZ Fund's property tax increment rises $304,937 to $474,937 against a $170,000 budget; the Strategic Initiatives Fund adds $105,280 for the Comprehensive Plan; the Economic Development Corporation adds $227,117 in revenue, mainly sales tax ($193,065), and $5,358 for Christmas lights.
The fee schedule (Ordinance 2026-O-27). The city manager's memo says staff reviewed the schedule against operating costs, service delivery needs and industry benchmarks, with adjustments to existing fees, new fees and the removal of fees no longer applicable or administered by another entity, across development and permitting, utility services, short-term rentals, Library and Community Center services and other operations; the new fees become effective October 1, 2026. The schedule lists a Short-Term Rental Application Fee of $100, a Short-Term Rental Permit of $300 and a Short-Term Rental Permit Renewal of $150.
Purchasing policy (Resolution 2026-R-18). Finance Manager Jennifer Garrett's memo says Senate Bill 1173 increases the expenditure threshold requiring competitive procurement from $50,000 to $100,000; the revised policy raises the formal competitive sealed-bid threshold accordingly, requires three informal written or electronic quotes for purchases over $3,000 to $100,000, keeps council approval for purchases over $50,000, and adds sole source, HUB, RFQ, competitive sealed proposal, cooperative purchasing, lease-purchase and emergency procedures. Fiscal impact: N/A.
E-bikes on trails (Ordinance 2026-O-28). Director of Community Services Erika Cooper-Bateman's memo says Ordinance 2025-O-25, passed Nov. 6, 2025, prohibited all three classes of e-bikes on paved and unpaved trails in city parks at the request of the Weatherford Mountain Bike Club, which maintains the Parks of Aledo Trails and The Pit; since then the City of Weatherford allowed Class 1 e-bikes in its parks and trails and the club amended its rules, and the ordinance would remove the prohibition on class 1 e-bikes to align with the club's rules.
The Parker County Public Utility Agency (Resolution 2026-R-19 and the funding agreement). The city manager's memo says Parker County has worked with Freese and Nichols to establish the agency for long-term water supply; fourteen public entities are identified as initial participants; each appoints one board member and may appoint an alternate; most matters are decided by a majority of directors present, while contracts of $500,000 or more, debt and certain withdrawals require 66.7% of a weighted vote based on population and average daily water demand, with no participant above 25%; creation occurs when the last participant approves, and all must act no later than May 31, 2027. Aledo's anticipated annual cost is approximately $20,000, funded through the Enterprise Fund; participation does not by itself obligate the city to build infrastructure or buy water. The funding agreement sets annual contributions of $5,000 to $50,000 by population, Aledo's at $20,000; the initial payment is held by Parker County until the agency is created and returned if it is not created by May 31, 2027; the agreement runs through Sept. 30, 2032 and then renews annually until a termination condition or Sept. 30, 2040. Board appointments are anticipated no later than the Nov. 19 council meeting.
Also on the agenda: a proclamation recognizing October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month; approval of the Sept. 17 minutes on consent; and appointments to Places 2, 4, Alt. 2 and Alt. 4 on the Planning and Zoning Commission, Places 2, 4, 6, Alt. 2 and Alt. 4 on the Aledo EDC, and Places 2, 4, Alt. 2 and Alt. 4 plus unexpired terms in Alt. 1 and Alt. 3 on the Zoning Board of Adjustment, per the city secretary's memo.
Sources: City of Aledo: agenda, Oct. 1, 2026 Regular City Council Meeting (CivicClerk), posted Sept. 25, 2026 12:09 PM, read Sept. 26; City of Aledo: agenda packet, Oct. 1, 2026 (107 pages, CivicClerk), read Sept. 26; City of Aledo: agenda, Oct. 1, 2026 City Council Work Session (CivicClerk), posted Sept. 25, 2026 1:06 PM
How this was sourced: Primary documents: the two Oct. 1, 2026 agendas and the 107-page regular-meeting packet on the city's CivicClerk portal, read Sept. 26, 2026. Figures are the staff's and consultant's as proposed; nothing has been voted. The Ledger did not review Exhibit A's account-level detail line by line, the full fee schedule beyond the lines cited, or the ordinance and agreement texts beyond the sections cited.