Universal City’s City Council awarded a five-year contract to Frontier Waste Solutions for solid waste services during a regular meeting March 17.

What residents need to know: Frontier Waste Solutions will provide trash services twice a week and recycling services once a week. The waste disposal company will also provide bulk and brush pickup once a week and household hazardous waste pickup once a week.

Universal City’s current waste service provider is WM, previously known as Waste Management. The contract with WM expires Aug. 1. The current monthly trash service rate residents pay is $28.07. With Frontier Waste Solutions, residents will pay $26.75 plus $1.10 for hazardous waste services, for a monthly rate of $27.85.

Frontier Waste Solutions will begin serving the city Aug. 3. The contract, which ends July 31, 2031, can be extended for two 2-year terms, according to agenda documents.

City staff will work with Frontier Waste Solutions to work out routes and trash pickup dates, City Manager Kim Turner told Community Impact.

In a 3-2 vote, Guadalupe County Commissioners voted against a $500 million property tax abatement for a multibuilding data center campus with CloudBurst Texas on Feb. 24.

Some details: Guadalupe County Judge Kyle Kutscher and Precinct 2 Commissioner Drew Engelke voted in favor of the tax abatement. Precinct 1 Commissioner Jacqueline Ott, Precinct 4 Commissioner Stephen Germann and Precinct 3 Commissioner Jim Wolverton dissented.

A Chapter 312 tax abatement was the tax break under consideration by commissioners. A Chapter 312 tax abatement is an agreement between a taxpayer and a tax unit that exempts increases in property value taxation for up to 10 years. It is an economic development tool available to counties, cities and special districts to attract new industries, according to the Texas comptroller’s website.

The data center would span across 16 properties and be about 220 acres. The center is located at 2955 Francis Harris Lane in New Braunfels.

From zoo updates to Q&A’s with mayoral candidates, check out the 10 top-read stories across the San Antonio area from March 23-27.

1. Gorillas settle into new San Antonio Zoo exhibit marking the return of gorillas after 35 years
2. Outback Steakhouse closes in Northeast San Antonio after 25 years
3. Locally-owned senior living facility doubles in size with expansion project
4. Q&A: Meet the candidates running for New Braunfels mayor
5. New Braunfels housing development faces setback as rezoning motion fails
6. Anthony’s opens food truck in Cibolo
7. Pawn shop changes name following new ownership in New Braunfels
8. Q&A: Learn more about the candidates running for Live Oak mayor
9. Q&A: Meet the candidates running for New Braunfels City Council District 5
10. Check out 6 of the latest permit filings in the San Antonio Area

In the nine months until Texas’ 90th legislative session begins in January, state lawmakers are expected to hold information-gathering hearings on hundreds of topics that will lay the groundwork for next year’s policymaking.

During a March 27 legislative summit in New Braunfels, four longtime lawmakers shared some of their top priorities for next year.

What they're saying: The legislators said they were focused on furthering some projects from previous legislative cycles, including water preservation initiatives and a new education savings account program.

More details: They said they also intend to study data center operations and how the large facilities impact local water supplies, noting that the legislature will work with local officials to determine how much data center regulation should happen locally and when the state should step in. 

“Does the state need to be involved? Yes,” Rep. Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christi, said. “Does local government need to have a say? Yes. But we’ve also got to remember, so does the private taxpayer. So we need to get a combination of all three.”