Mayor Rick Nunley and Commissioner Robert Cothran with the certificates for level 2 of the Elected Officials Academy
photo by Gail Perry
The Soddy Daisy fire department will be getting some new equipment. At the commission meeting Thursday night bids were approved for the purchase and installation of emergency lights for the new squad trucks. Another bid for $12,705 was approved to buy skid units, which are tanks and pumps for the trucks. These allow the firefighters to work off-road, such as for extinguishing brush fires. Five new suits of turnout gear, fireproof jackets and pants, will also be acquired at the cost of $9,435.
Fire Chief Mike Guffey has applied for a grant for these suits, but it is still unknown if the city will receive it. He said that turnout suits are good for only five years after which they need to be replaced. The purchase was not made earlier because it will come from the new budget that began July 1.
Chief Guffey also reported that he is still in negotiations in the attempt to lower Soddy Daisy’s ISO rating from three to two. The department’s score was short just .37 points to get the lower rating, which would help in the cost of insurance for homeowners, but would have a greater effect on industrial and commercial insurance rates, he said.
City Manager Janice Cagle was also given approval from the commissioners to declare as salvage some vehicles that have been removed from the city’s impound lot. The fire department will use them for educational practice before they are scrapped, she said. Several old police cars also were declared as surplus and will be sold on gov.deal.
In the new budget, $80,000 was dedicated for use in the city parks. At the request of Commissioner Gene Shipley, the commission approved using around $6,000 of it to divide a large, unused sports field by adding fencing to create both a small and regulation-size soccer field.
Commissioner Patti Skates said that the city asked Tractor Supply remove a portable sign on a stand in front of the store, but that there are 12 similar remaining signs on the main drag from the city limits to city hall. City Attorney Sam Elliott said if a sign existed before the zoning ordinance was created, that sign has grandfather status which is why the ones still standing do not have to be taken down.
Commissioner Skates made a presentation to Mayor Rick Nunley and Commissioner Robert Cothran for completing level two of the Tennessee Municipal League’s Elected Officials Academy. This certification helps officials be aware of what is and is not allowed as well as helping the city receive grants. All of the commissioners have now achieved certification, she said.
As of Thursday night, the city’s Fourth of July celebration is still scheduled for Saturday, beginning at 9 a.m. Mayor Nunley said a decision will have to be made by around noon on Friday whether to postpone it due to the rain and storms forecast for the weekend. Chief Guffey said that fireworks can be shot in the rain, but that with cloud cover they would not be visible. If there is lightning, he said it would be too dangerous to even light them. Once the decision has been made, the city manager said she will try to have it publicized and put on the city’s message sign at city hall.