At the June commission meeting, Town Consultant Dwight Montague presented the 2018 budget on first reading. The town has no debt, he said. Capital projects for the year include $25,000 for the second payment for parking meter kiosks around Point Park, $40,000 for a new police car and $15,000 for repairs to Navarre Pavilion. State Street Aid in the amount of $50,000, which is provided by the state of Tennessee, is in the budget for paving, but only $15,000 is expected to be used in 2017-2018.
Public Works Commissioner Walker Jones said paving will be done after the WWTA completes work that might cause road cuts. The balance of those funds will be building up, he said.
The final budget cannot be completed until the new certified tax rate, due to reassessments, is received from the Hamilton County Assessor’s office. If that number, which is based on a citywide increase, goes up, by state law, the tax rate will be lowered so that the change is revenue neutral. The town’s current property tax of $1.83 per $100 of assessed value may be changed before second reading.
Revenue in 2018 will be increased with higher parking fees at the new kiosks and rent that is anticipated from the planned cell phone tower. The budgeted amount for interest is up, and Lookout Mountain, Ga.,will pay half the cost of the security camera maintenance which previously has been paid from donated funds. The PTA contribution for Lookout Mountain School has not yet been set.
Expenditures include a three percent increase for teacher salaries, and for paying Rick Dockery’s salary at the school and benefits. A 15 percent increase is planned for insurance benefits and a two percent salary increase for town employees.
With information from Director of Parks and Playgrounds Rick Dockery and Scott Shell, Brooke Pippenger, commissioner of the department, recently met with Mayor David Bennett from Lookout Mountain, Ga., to determine the use of athletic facilities from each town. After review, Mayor Bennett raised the amount that is being contributed by Georgia. The joint rec board and baseball board are each contributing to pay for new fencing at the Commons. Commons Camp is now in full swing.
Commissioner Pippenger has received applications and is in the process of interviewing to fill the position of assistant to Scott Shell who will be moving into the director job long held by Rick Dockery. Before he leaves, Mr. Dockery created a priority list of work that is needed at the Commons, said the commissioner. With heavy rains, the walls built at the new tennis courts cannot stop drainage problems so sink holes are continually in need of being filled. Past Commissioner Joe Hailey, Public Works Commissioner Walker Jones, and landscape professional and community volunteer Jimmy Stewart are working together to find a way to divert the water. Commissioner Pippenger would like to thank Mr. Stewart for spraying the hemlock trees at the Commons and for leading two sessions demonstrating how to spray the trees to protect against the hemlock wooly adelgid which is threatening hemlocks on the mountain.
Statistics from the fire and police departments in May show police had 108 calls, 26 calls to 911, eight assist citizen calls and nine medical calls in Tennessee and three in Georgia. Police patrolled 3,704 miles and answered 12 burglar alarms, all false. There were 28 traffic stops, 14 traffic citations and three auto accidents without injuries. Three arrests were made on failure to appear warrants. There was one false fire alarm during the month.
Jim Bentley, commissioner of fire and police, said that in an effort to slow down cars, the police have been diligently running radar and will continue to issue tickets. Speed signs have been put on East Brow and West Brow Roads and two portable signs are being moved around. Mayor Carol Mutter said that it appears the signs are making people aware of their speed and slowing them down.
This has been a banner year at Lookout Mountain School, said Commissioner of Schools Don Stinnett. LMS students took first place in the Math and Science Olympiad. Mac Jackson was awarded the Ben Carson Scholarship recognizing writers with a college stipend. Maddie Frierson won the Susan S. Frankenberg award for excellence in writing. The Redwood Award for growth in all areas was awarded to Michael Pettit. The PTA refurbished the gym, The Roots and Wings Learning Conservatory was built by Lookout Mountain Beautiful Garden Club and Laurelwood Garden Club funded new landscaping at the school.
The public works department is clearing brush, spraying and trimming vegetation from roadways and filling potholes, said Commissioner Jones.
The next commission meeting has been postponed until July 25 when the amount of Hall tax received by the town will be known.