A Message From Mayor Chris Riley

LETTER TO LEON VALLEY CITIZENS

From Mayor Chris Riley

March 20, 2026

                     CITY COUNCIL MEETING –March 17, 2026

          The following are highlights of council actions from the March 17^th    council meeting which began at 6:00 p.m. and ended at 10:13 p.m.

        EXECUTIVE SESSIONS

     There were two executive sessions held at this meeting, one at 6:00 pm and the second at 9:00 pm: 1. Deliberation about an offer for the City to purchase the property at 6908 Poss Road.  Council took no action.  2. Deliberations about the Deployment of Security Personnel and Security Audit – this was an informational meeting only and no action was taken by Council.

                                    REGULAR AGENDA

Council Approved a Resolution Awarding the Highest Qualified firm and Authorizing the City Manager to Enter into a Contract with Ardurra Engineering to Update the Current Leon Valley Comprehensive Master Plan - The City received 7 proposals which were evaluated by a staff committee.  Ardurra, the City’s current engineer, scored 18 points higher than the second highest proposal, thus was recommended for this contract. Ardurra’s cost bid was significantly lower than the $250,000 which was included in this year’s budget.  The Master Plan will include detailed standards on land use, design and commercial, retail and residential development, infrastructure, traffic and circulation improvement, connectivity, transit, bicycle and pedestrian options, streetscaping, and beautification and implementation strategies.  This is a very open and transparent process soliciting citizen and business input. The Planning and Zoning Commission will facilitate this Master Plan process with Ardurra.  The last update to the Master Plan was in 2018.  Dates and times for meetings will be published and we look forward to your participation in helping to shape Leon Valley’s future development.

Council Unanimously Approved Amending Short Term Rentals Occupancy Tax to Add a Requirement of Permit Number Listings and Address Identification.  Persons owning or managing short term rental services (such as AirBnB) must obtain a permit number from the City and  provide an itemized record for the tax being remitted under each permit number. Failure to comply could result in fines.

                                        PRESENTATIONS

Presentation of a Proclamation Declaring March, Red Cross Month. Most people know the Red Cross is there during emergencies, offering shelter, food and comfort after disasters.  Red Cross also provides blood supply for patients facing conditions like cancer treatments or traumatic injuries.  Red Cross also assists military families and veterans with 24/7 global support. Your support for Red Cross’s humanitarian mission is encouraged!

Presentation of Leon Valley Crime Trends and Community Safety Update for 2025 – Police Chief David Gonzalez expressed commitment to community partnerships and data driven policing, both proactive and reactive. Our population is 11,269 and we are surrounded by the City of San Antonio. Violent Crimes (murder, rape, robbery, assault) significantly declined in 2025 from 53 offenses in 2024 to 35 offenses in 2025 for a 34% reduction. The 35 violent crimes were:  1 murder, 1 rape, 1 robbery, and 30 simple assaults.  Property Crimes (burglary, larceny, auto theft) declined from 583 offenses in 2024 to 537 offenses in 2025 for a 7.9% change. If you are interested in seeing county-wide crime statistics, please go online to https://texas.nibrs.com/.  Overall, crime is down in many suburban cities, as well as the City of San Antonio. Chief Gonzalez agreed that citizens are the eyes and ears of our community in reporting suspicious activity in our neighborhoods.  Thanks to our Leon Valley Police Department for keeping us safe and for their timely responses to citizens/businesses concerns.

Presentation/Discussion of the Annual Town Hall meeting Survey results by City Manager Dr. Crystal Caldera – The summary consisted of results from the townhall meeting attendees on February 7^th – 38 respondents with average age between 65-74; Online survey results – 24 respondents between the age of 30-39. Participants prioritized eight infrastructure projects (police property room, erosion project in the Natural Area, ADA Park bathroom renovations, public works building, Linkwood street reconstruction, Hike and Bike Trail III, Library Annex and Crystal Hills parking lot).  In Person meeting and Online survey top two priorities were erosion project and property room expansion.  These infrastructure projects will be discussed in the upcoming budget for FY 26-27. What respondents loved about Leon Valley: small town feel, location and emergency services. Service that can be improved upon: code enforcement. There were many other topics surveyed; I would encourage you to search for the March 17^th agenda item at www.leonvalleytexas.gov under Agendas for the full report.  Thank you to everyone who participated. We greatly appreciate your time and effort given to help guide the future of Leon Valley.

Presentation/Discussion on Utilizing SAWS Recycled Water for Landscape Irrigation for the Huebner Creek Greenway Hike and Bike Trail, Phase 1 - The City of Leon Valley currently has a recycle water service agreement with SAWS to water Raymond Rimkus Park.  Public Works Director Dimaline investigated the possibility of using recycled water (much cheaper) along the Hike & Bike trail from El Verde Road to Shadow Mist.  Currently, 200 trees along the trail are watered with potable water by drip irrigation.  SAWS confirmed there are three locations in the area to connect to their recycled water line.  The cost for design and installation is $362,639 with annual costs of $6,471. Council requested staff to get more information on how this initiative could be funded, engineering costs, etc. and bring back to Council, but with no commitment at this time. 

Presentation/Discussion and Direction to Staff on the Texas A&M Forest Service Community Forestry Grant to Fund a Position for a Municipal Forester - Staff applied for this grant, however a grant match is required to pay for the salary with phased funding over three years. The grant award is $100,000 (Year 1 - $50,000; Year 2 & 3 - $25,000).  The goal of the grant is to fund an experienced arborist to help support local community forestry initiatives. The fiscal impact over three years of funding a full-time municipal arborist to the city, subtracting the grant amount is $174,568.66.  Oak Wilt has been a priority in our community, and this position would focus on oak wilt prevention, dead trees and tree inventory. Council moved to pull the grant application and to explore funding options for a contract, rather than full-time salaried, arborist in the FY 27 budget.

Presentation, Discussion and Direction to Staff on the 4^th of July event - The Leon Valley Historical Society will host the Pioneer Fun Run along the Huebner Creek Hike & Bike trail at 7:30 am on July 4^th. City Manager Caldera presented Council two options to consider:  Option 1:  Flag Raising Ceremony with presentation of colors, reading of Declaration of Independence, Pledge of Allegiance, National Anthem, Opening and Closing remarks- Option 2: 9:30 am – 12:30 pm – Option 1 plus Guest Speaker Tom Jackson, face painting and balloon artists, booths, inflatable interactive games and live band performances.  Additional ideas were to have a Patriotic Outfit contest, 250 Flag display, Light up LV – City Hall and trees at Veterans Park, and decorated wagon/stroller contest. Council added these ideas: a D.J. instead of a live band, children’s performances, free ice cream cones while they last, food trucks. Council favored combining Option 1 and Option 2, as an Option 3.  Staff will work on the ideas discussed and bring back a more specific agenda for July 4^th at a future council meeting.

     The next City Council meeting is on Tuesday, April 7, 2026 and will start at 6:00 pm, due to executive session.

                                     UPCOMING EVENTS

March 21, 2026 – Basura Bash, Meet at HEB Marketplace - 8am– to help clean up Zarzamora Creek. Clean up is from 9am – Noon.  Thank you for your volunteer spirit!

March 28, 2026 – City Wide Garage Sale. If you’d like to host a garage sale at your home (8am – 6 pm), please contact Saundra Passailague, City Secretary, at (210) 684-1391, Ext. 216 or s.pass@leonvalleytexas.gov.  Permit fees are waived for this city wide garage sale.

April 2, 2026 – Last Day to Register to Vote in the May 2^nd election.  Contact Saundra Passailaigue (info above) who can assist.

Hope you have a great weekend!  Stay cool – expecting 90 degree weather on Saturday and Sunday – and it’s only March!

Sincerely, Chris

(210) 618-2092 (cell);

mayorriley@leonvalleytexas.gov