[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6260738,"mediaKeyId","3127721-9214c1889021d0cd91cdd7ce6a3d55db","parentId",3127721,"title","Resident says building permit stalled after retaining wall work; city staff to meet to review process","audioSeconds",176,"startMs",256000,"endMs",432000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3127721-9214c1889021d0cd91cdd7ce6a3d55db&start=256&end=432","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3127721-9214c1889021d0cd91cdd7ce6a3d55db/thumbnail_256000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6260738/Helotes/Bexar-County/Texas/Resident-says-building-permit-stalled-after-retaining-wall-work-city-staff-to-meet-to-review-process","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6260738-da0a4752646bcb84d38c11d04ab2587c/orig.mp4?Expires=1771179729&Signature=GzsBVgHO0kwJ48LMNsDmZmGUtABLfR-UTNyLqpx3NjZFwtb-ClviiaJNbaZmQl0-qGPZzgoyyI4R6oPRn4TUlH7nuj-nicKH7iKdzfDJWqwfUd7m2Ic5nCAFzBRJFvNf3NBTCHiMtU5mjN4ke0TYEgDgepfalq2vIrBxUiIVVxDdo49gWbVwYfrPWJCdGGwfN5VmQI7mG7JyT~wSzYVKd6giCNDs29uLdmVgC7~SB6wt2IVG6rgp6A-HMnqMtdmXsyntKuq531ukISOEBa9XzrERE4Obd6viymCJLmN~LS-A-F4jOnCxyA983TnU6m2xe4mb-nj7oTYB2k9MzJs5hA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Helotes, Texas","date","2025-04-26T00:45:11.233Z","article","Anthony Gonzales, a Helotes resident of Iron Horse Canyon Stablewood subdivision, told the City Council during the public-comment period that a retaining wall he built in December 2023 was later deemed to require engineering approval and that the city’s review of his building permit has stalled.

Gonzales said a code compliance officer observed the wall during construction but did not inform him that walls over four feet require an engineered design. “I completed the wall believing I was in compliance,” Gonzales said. He told the council an engineer cannot now certify the wall because the engineer did not inspect the foundation at the time of construction. Gonzales said he submitted a building-permit application nearly two months ago and that the city policy indicates review should be completed within 30 days, but his application had not been processed because no engineer could retroactively approve the work.

The mayor and other council members responded by explaining that structural approval requires a licensed engineer and that the city cannot sign off on structural work without proper engineering certification. The mayor said staff would schedule a meeting with the city administrator and meet with Gonzales to “take a look at this and . . . try to find a path forward.” The mayor emphasized that building permits and engineering sign-offs are required to ensure public safety and to avoid city liability if a structure were later sold or failed.

Gonzales said his intent is not to challenge the code but to seek a fair resolution and to ask the council to review how compliance issues are communicated so other residents are not placed in the same position.

Bill Gray also spoke during citizens-to-be-heard, thanking the council and first responders and asking whether a veterans’ organization (“Post 309”) could relocate inside Helotes city limits; that request was presented as public comment only and no formal action was taken at the meeting.

Council staff did not provide a final resolution on Gonzales’s permit during the meeting; they said only that staff would meet with him and that the city administrator was “well versed” in the process. No timeline for a final decision was provided in the transcript.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","City Council Meeting 04-24-25","oneSentenceSummary","Anthony Gonzales, a Helotes resident, told the City Council on April 24 that his retaining wall, begun in December 2023, cannot obtain retroactive engineer certification and that his building-permit application has stalled beyond the 30-day review goal.","taxTitle","Helotes, Bexar County, Texas","taxId",55408,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6260742,"Helotes council approves monument sign relocation with permanent approval; consent items OK'd, one item postponed",328,764000,1092000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3127721-9214c1889021d0cd91cdd7ce6a3d55db&start=764&end=1092","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3127721-9214c1889021d0cd91cdd7ce6a3d55db/thumbnail_764000.jpg","/articles/6260742/Helotes/Bexar-County/Texas/Helotes-council-approves-monument-sign-relocation-with-permanent-approval-consent-items-OKd-one-item-postponed","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6260742-e1b163e04a44eb95db080d18f2b74412/orig.mp4?Expires=1771179729&Signature=Hk1hZw~9GRH6N04KW1K~EREJfVLEelR8XPGSbm8Q5byxUFHqDPXr2N81nDDN0pRAKoQ4S4EEcUvG2KuHYYz001hQHIaQWVfk2KwvQ0M5YmVk4mwWjd7QPoWwSeS1Zl7buNmbqmW7O~mJeFvWGz~xlHLufSb36hOtSD2Pvxdmoqi92LMu07RY~WEvP~BNE3fVBDowzhNbmdgxBQYC3thtP2lfsO73vfEiOJxe2bNu-0Q6qtDCjsDzsRX6lPAW9GrcBk4Vbj5x335tg1h2k5Yp-cu9l1hR7g8YBDsrKeOWbc7tAJsAUIsLNXuGwjAGBuCbYtvfpb5oooBR88egDhFDUQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Helotes City Council voted April 24 to allow a property owner to relocate a monument sign and amended the permit to make the approval permanent so long as the sign is not reconstructed, relocated or abandoned.

The council’s action, taken during agenda item 5, follows a recommendation from the planning and zoning panel and staff. Mayor (name not specified) moved that the council amend the original 10-year term to language approving the sign “in perpetuity as long as not reconstructed, relocated, or abandoned.” The motion passed on a voice vote. The council did not record a roll-call vote in the public transcript.

The council heard that the sign will be moved roughly 30 feet closer to the driveway and that the relocation was prompted in part by the installation of a fence and by repeated trash and parking issues in the business’s lot. Councilmember Sanders said he supported the change and asked staff whether the 10-year term was required; City Attorney Henry (last name not specified) said the council could set the term at 30 years or in perpetuity and recommended the “not reconstructed, relocated, or abandoned” phrasing to avoid repeated reauthorizations. “If we have a short time, we’re setting some things that we’ll have to track, monitor and adjust over time,” Henry said.

The meeting also approved two consent agenda items (items 3 and 4) without discussion. Councilmembers voiced “aye” and the mayor said the motion carried. A council member thanked the fire department for securing a grant that allowed replacement of malfunctioning defibrillators without using taxpayer dollars; staff named Firehouse Subs as the grant source during the discussion.

Item 6, a development contract matter, was removed from the agenda at the developer’s request and postponed to a future meeting so additional questions can be answered.

Votes at a glance
- Consent agenda items 3 and 4: approved on a voice vote; item 4 described by a council member as replacement of defibrillators using a Firehouse Subs public-safety grant (no dollar amount specified).
- Item 5 (monument sign relocation): approved as amended to be in perpetuity “as long as not reconstructed, relocated or abandoned” (motion carried on voice vote; no roll-call tally provided).
- Item 6 (development contract): postponed to a future meeting at the request of the applicant.

The council left the meeting after a relatively short session; the mayor closed the meeting following the postponed item.","The Helotes City Council voted to allow a business to relocate a monument sign and amended the approval to make it permanent unless reconstructed, relocated or abandoned. The council also approved two consent items including a grant-funded defibrillator replacement and postponed a development-contract item to a future meeting.","actionData","errors"]

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Resident says building permit stalled after retaining wall work; city staff to meet to review process

Helotes council approves monument sign relocation with permanent approval; consent items OK'd, one item postponed