The Pflugerville City Council pressed pause on two city projects after council members raised questions about the associated costs.

The two projects—the installation of electric vehicle charging stations and a parking lot at Pfennig Pfields—were pulled from a list of otherwise approved projects paid for by the city's General Capital Reserve fund at the Jan. 24 meeting.

The main concern expressed by council members was whether the projects were a good use of the city's funds—$48,000 for the charging station installation and $215,844 for the parking lot.

"I remember when we talked about this, I didn't remember putting these stations up were going to cost us any money," Mayor Jeff Coleman said. "I was surprised to see the $48,000. I thought that we got enough grants to completely cover that cost."

City staff said that while the city did receive a grant to acquire the electric car charging stations, the city still had to pay for installation costs.

Assistant City Manager Trey Fletcher said the original intent was for the charging stations to be available for public use by the end of November but that the city received an extension.

"The reason that they're not [installed] is because the manner in which they were considered to be installed in the first place, I did not consider to be fiscally responsible," City Manager Brandon Wade said.

Two of the charging stations have already been installed at the Pflugerville Community Development Corp. property on Pecan Street.

Of the remaining stations, three to six of them are proposed for Stone Hill Town Center, generally in front of the Cinemark Theatre, and four are proposed for the parking lots at Lake Pflugerville.

The council plans to discuss the locations further before approving funding the installations.

Pfennig Pfields parking lot

The council also left hanging the question of a parking lot at Pfennig Pfields.

According to city staff, Pfennig Pfields gets a lot of use from residents as a sports practice area and open play area but lacks parking, creating a safety issue. The project in question would have provided 60 spaces at the park.

However, the proposed price tag—$215,844—got some pause.

"I have some real issues with spending almost a quarter of a million dollars for those 60 spots. And the reason being is that of that entire street, this location is the least used [southeast corner of Pfennig] of any of the park along that road," Coleman said.

The council agreed that city funds could be used more effectively in other projects.

The city did approve to fund the following projects:

• ADA parking space at 100 E. Main St. for $15,000
• Fiber-optic connection from City Hall to Parks and Public Works for $170,000
• Remodel of City Hall Ste. 100, 200 and 300 for $107,000
• Comprehensive assessment of regulator codes for $50,000
• Gilleland Pool deck for $247,000
• Park amenity improvements for $260,639
• Trail gap analysis study for $25,000
• Undeveloped park finish out analysis for $50,000
• Athletic complex feasibility study for $75,000
• Mountain Creek Trail supplemental funding for $55,500
• New police phone system for $95,000
• Animal shelter repairs for $45,000
• Upgrade security cameras at the Justice Center for $25,915
• Sidewalk repair at Immanuel Road, the library, and southwest Black Locust Drive for $65,000
• Street sign blades for $60,000
• School zone signal upgrade for $11,000
• Sidewalk construction on Kennemer Drive for $15,000
• Overlays due to drought conditions for $285,000

The total cost of approved improvements is $1,682,054, which leaves a remaining balance of $1,082,946 in the city's General Capital Reserve fund.