By Kim Hilsenbeck Is it time for residents to start paying the full price for emergency services? Buda Fire Chief Clay Huckaby is hoping voters will think it is, as they have a chance to make a difference in the lean budget on which the Emergency Services District 2 (ESD2) runs. Voters will decide i...

  By Kim Hilsenbeck G etting into the Christmas spirit seems easier with decorated hallways at elementary schools around Hays CISD. But the decor in the hallways at Carpenter Hill Elementary in Buda was considered a fire hazard. According to Principal Jason Certain, much of it must come down per the...

By Kim Hilsenbeck Accidents have the potential to stop traffic for hours and cause residual effects on the flow of travelers, particularly during afternoon rush hour.  That happened last week when a Hays County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) deputy made the decision to shut down FM 1626 in both directions ...

By Kim Hilsenbeck F ire Fest is coming back to Buda and that means Main Street will be heating up this Labor Day weekend. Hosted by Emergency Services District (ESD) #8/Buda Fire Department, Fire Fest is the organization’s major fundraiser of the year. While the ESD is a taxing entity that takes in ...

By Moses Leos III An action allowing a sound level increase during the upcoming Fire Fest reignited discussions on Buda’s controversial noise ordinance.  One downtown business owner, Tavern on Main owner Julie Renfro, hopes the action is the first salvo in a fight to permanently change the measure. ...

By Paige Lambert When business owners prepare for the worst, many focus on protecting their physical assets from disasters. However, having a game plan to protect documents and data can be just as important. Clay Huckaby, Buda fire chief, said he was glad his department considered that before the fl...

By Moses Leos III A crowd of more than 600 showed up at Bowie High last Tuesday for TxDOT’s public hearing on the Environmental Impact Statement draft for State Highway 45SW (SH 45SW). The hearing drew hundreds of supporters and some vocal opponents of the controversial road.  “I’m surprised that so...

By Moses Leos III O f all the antique signs Evan Voyles owns in a warehouse outside of Uhland, one rusted relic stands out above the rest.   For Voyles, who once owned the Prairie Schooner Antique Shop, the sign signifies one of the few surviving items from the Buda Main Street Fire of 1994. It’s be...

By Moses Leos III After a three-year hiatus, Fire Fest is heading back to Buda — the place it once called home.   While the festival will be a one-day event on August 30, Emergency Service District (ESD) No. 8 Chief Clay Huckaby hopes Fire Fest’s homecoming spurs Main Street business.  “We’re excite...

By Kim Hilsenbeck Following his instincts, and his nose, Emergency Services District 8/Buda Fire Chief Clay Huckaby pinpointed the source of a noxious odor in the Leisure Woods neighborhood. “We had eight calls yesterday and two this morning come in about the smell of propane or natural gas,” he sai...