Rio Communities agenda covers judge appointment, roads, water planning

Rio Communities’ council packet put Tommy Westmoreland up for municipal judge as city leaders lined up decisions on roads, water and police staffing. The same agenda bundled a manager’s report with Maverik and parks updates, a road-fund agreement for Hillandale Avenue, a detention-center deal with Valencia County and an executive session on the police chief position and pending litigation.

Water planning sat near the center of the city’s growth question. Bohannan Huston is scheduled to present on water and wastewater planning on July 27, with Donzil Worthington and Todd Burt set to brief the council as Rio Communities keeps weighing how to serve new development without overwhelming existing systems. The city previously voted to establish its own water system and place the project on the Infrastructure Capital Improvement Plan, a step meant to prepare for city growth and new connections. Mayor Joshua Ramsell has said the new system belongs on that capital plan and that, as he put it, “As residents, we want clean, healthy water.” He also said Maverik would not have to pay the new fee tied to the system.

The Maverik update carries its own local history. Human skeletal remains were found there during demolition at the old car dealership site, and the Office of the Medical Investigator later determined the bones were not of criminal or medical significance because of their believed age. That project has been one of the city’s most closely watched development sites, and the council packet shows it is still part of the day-to-day discussion as Rio Communities tries to move construction, infrastructure and public confidence at the same time.

The leadership vacancies are just as immediate. Rio Communities was again without a municipal judge after Judge Victor L. Williams resigned in March 2026, and the city’s municipal judge page listed the post as TBA before Monday’s meeting. The police chief job is also back in play after Felix Nunez, the city’s first police chief, was hired in September 2023, later placed on paid administrative leave and then terminated. With an executive session set for candidate review, the council was preparing to deal with another core public-safety vacancy.

The road item on Hillandale Avenue adds the same pressure on a different front. Resolution 2026-12 calls for a Local Government Road Fund Cooperative Agreement tied to Project Control Number L300396, a sign the city is looking beyond its own budget to keep infrastructure moving. That approach matters in a city that has already faced budget pressure from expiring committed funding and revenue concerns, while residents have also tied heavy truck traffic to road damage.