Resources, News, and Announcements
From the Mayor’s desk – 11/7/25
Happy Friday!
I hope that you were able to get out last Saturday and brave the threat of rain to enjoy the 50th Anniversary of Surfside at City Hall. It was a really fun time, filled with great folks, great food and great music. I personally want to thank all those who worked at and planned in advance for the event. It does indeed take a village!! This was a test run of the fun, so to speak, as we plan to have multiple fun events next year held in the same area, but centered on the new outdoor stage. The goal is to create events that attract tourist to visit Surfside, spend the night, along with spending some dollars locally as well. As an added bonus, the residents of Surfside can take part and benefit from the events we host. I’m looking forward to more of these fun gatherings starting next spring on what I’ve been affectionately calling the Surfside Sunset Stage.
There are still T-shirts for sale($15) and free stickers that were left over from the 50th celebration if you are interested. Please visit City Hall to get yours before they run out!
Beach & Parks:
We have submitted our requests for just under 2 miles of road repairs to Brazoria County Road Commission as part of our interlocal agreement. Again, we pay for the materials and they perform the road repairs. This is part of what we budgeted for this fiscal year in road repairs. Our 4 projects are to resurface all of Fort Velasco Dr, including the intersections of the many cross streets, Texas St from Beach Dr to Surf Dr, Thunder Rd from Monument Dr to Surf Dr, and Starfish St from Treaty Dr to Beach Dr. We have confirmation with the County Road Commission that they have our projects in the queue and we hope to start before the spring.
Hay bales will be distributed and staked down in front of the dunes in the upcoming weeks. The plan is to place them along the entire length of our beach and allow for space to add Christmas trees with the help of SOBA in January. The dunes are looking really good with vegetation growth and accumulation of sand.
PD:
Chief Hester attended Texas Police Chief school this week. I’m looking forward to hearing what he learned to continue improving our PD in Surfside Beach.
Finance:
Christie and Janet attended the annual TML state conference last week. They brought back a ton of information and contacts to help us with everything from contractors for resurfacing water tanks to low cost government purchasing programs that will help us shed roughly 5-10% of our expense costs on nearly all of our purchases going forward.
EMS:
Our Community Health program focuses on proactive wellness and safety. This initiative allows our EMS team to work directly with residents to help prevent emergencies before they occur, through home safety checks, wellness visits, and education on managing chronic conditions. It’s about keeping our community heathy, safe, and informed.
Surfside Beach EMS is proud to offer CPR and First Aid education to the community. Learning these life-saving skills empowers our citizens to make a difference when seconds matter most.
Last but not least please like, share, and follow the newly created Village of Surfside Beach Emergency Management Facebook page. Thanks to Tiffany for creating the page in efforts to help streamline information when it’s needed.
Emergency Management:
With the colder weather coming, we encourage you to check your home for weatherproofing and water pipe protection. Plan ahead of a freeze!
Please join us for a Town Hall meeting with Emergency Management Coordinator and Safety & Risk Manager on Monday November 24th at 6pm, City Hall. This is your opportunity to meet the team, ask questions, and learn how we’re working to protect and prepare our beautiful community for any emergency or disaster that may come our way.
Public Works:
Erick and I had a meeting this week with Texas Water Development Board (TWDB). An invitation made possible in conjunction with some efforts from a non-profit water & environmental company, Moonshot Missions. Thanks to resident Bart Forbes for bringing them in to help us. During the meeting, they detailed the requirements for application for TWDB Development Funds, of which we plan to apply. They offer up to 70% forgiveness on these loans but it is linked to median household income, of which VOSB struggles to meet low enough thresholds. The TWDB Development Funds would be a loan for a specific project that would ultimately need approval by City Council. It is one way to secure funding for our large water and sewer projects that need attention. We are just at the initial stages of this process, but I wanted to share.
Last month City Council approved new modified garbage pickup service from Waste Connections. Starting January 1st the garbage pickup will be once per week on Monday. This once per week schedule will continue until March 1st when we will return to twice per week, on Monday & Thursday. Twice per week garbage pickup will continue until the end of September, at which time we return to once per week again. This will be the new trash collection schedule going forward.
Human Resources:
Our City Secretary, Amanda will be retiring from VOSB at the end of December. We will be starting an active search for a replacement City Secretary right away in hopes of some overlap and knowledge transfer before December 31st. The job will be posted soon and we will be assembling an interview panel. As part of this interview panel, we would like to invite a citizen to participate. If you are interested in being part of this interview panel please contact myself or Janet in HR.
We will be discussing the recruitment process for the new City Administrator at next Tuesdays City Council meeting. Regardless of the process, we will also be assembling an interview panel for that new position, and would also like to add a citizen to the panel. If you have interest in being on the interview panel for the new City Administrator, again, please contact me or HR.
Other items of interest:
I was reminded this week by one of the great folks working at City Hall that it was officially my 1 year anniversary as Mayor of Surfside at the end of October. What a ride it has been. Thanks for being patient with me, as I am a rookie, and thanks for your support over the past year as I believe this really is a team sport!! In just six more months I will pass the torch to the next Mayor…and hopefully in just a few months I can pass the day-to-day torch to our new City Administrator!!
As always, I hope that you have a great day in wonderful Surfside Beach! Get out this weekend and enjoy some sweater weather.
Thanks,
Zach
05/01/2025
SCAM ALERT: Beware of Fraudulent Emails Posing as City Communications
The Village of Surfside Beach has been made aware of scam emails being sent to residents, falsely claiming to be from official city departments. These emails may request personal information, demand payments, or contain suspicious links.
Please Note:
- The City will never ask for Social Security numbers or bank details via email.
- Official emails from the City will come from addresses ending in @surfsidetx.org
- If you're unsure about the legitimacy of a message, do not click any links or download attachments.
If you receive a suspicious email claiming to be from the City, mark it as spam. When in doubt feel free to call the City first. 979-233-1531
Help us spread the word by sharing this post. Stay alert and stay safe!
— The Village of Surfside Beach
Notice
Notice About 2025 Tax Rates
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Public Works After Hours: 979-248-2085 (Please Text)
Notice
If you need help obtaining a WPI-1 for Windstorm Inspection, feel free to call the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) Angleton Office at 800-248-6032, option 4, then option 3; or you may hire a Texas Certified Windstorm Engineer.