Plans are being put into place for the fall festival planned by the merchants of Lookout Mountain, Tn. with the help and encouragement from all the town commissioners. The event has tentatively been named “Shop the Top - Holiday Open House”, according to spokeswoman Ruth Oehmig. The intent is to showcase the town with all businesses, restaurants, schools, churches, artisans and craftsman and realtors that work on the mountain participating.
Characters from Rock City will be there and applications are now being taken for Santa Claus. It is planned for the afternoon of Nov. 19 from noon to 5 p.m. The issue of insurance has been addressed, by Café on the Corner assuming the cost and the role of primary insurer with the town being named as the secondary insurer. Brian Smith, town attorney explained that all regulation lies with the town for serving beer on public premises. The existing ordinance will need to be amended by the Lookout Mountain Beer Board to issue a special license allowing beer to be sold for a specific event in a limited area. Mayor Greg Brown suggested that the change to the ordinance be written to permit special event licenses to be issued in the future with one required for each event, so that this process need not be done each year.
Police Chief Randy Bowden will be responsible for the routing of traffic and parking, and has gotten permission from TDOT to close a portion of Scenic Highway around the street fair using two off-duty police officers positioned to direct tourists.
The day of the festival is the weekend before Thanksgiving, and also the opening day of the “Enchanted Garden of Lights” at Rock City. Bill Chapin representing Rock City was present to voice his support of the event and to encourage the road closure be “traffic friendly” on a day when 500 cars are predicted to travel between Rock City and Ruby Falls, and 300 hundred to visit Point Park. There will be a meeting at Café on the Corner, the morning of Tuesday Oct. 18 at 9:30 for further discussion by those involved or interested.
In other new business, attorney Smith announced that the state of Tennessee Comptroller’s office has created a “debt policy” which will require all debt obligations assumed by a municipality to be approved by that office. The new policy will also require all commission members to take courses in Municipal Finance in order to understand what is required by law. He commented that this is “overkill” for a town the size of Lookout Mountain, but the policy must be adopted by the end of the year. The matter will be revisited at the November commission meeting once it is better understood.
The financial report for the month of September, was given by Dwight Montague, town consultant. There were a few things that appear to be out of the ordinary. The town has not received the revenue due from the Incline for several months because of bookkeeping problems. However, it should be received in a few days and from then, the town should begin receiving payments on a monthly basis.
There was a capital outlay of $5,250. to pay for the handrail on the Moses Bridge at Natural Bridge Park. A donation of $5,000 had been received by the town for that purpose.
There was good news for the bottom line concerning insurance. The town had included a 15 percent increase in the budget to cover the expected rise in insurance premiums. The cost for workers compensation did increase $15,400, but medical insurance came in at $34,400 under budget.
Additionally, the town got back a check for $2,000 from the insurance company for a “package bonus”. Mayor Brown added that he had never heard of that happening, but that it is great news.
It was reported that the expenses to repair fire and police vehicles are up and that gas and diesel costs are significantly over what they were last year due to the increase in the price of fuel and brush pick-up caused by the many severe storms. Claims made to FEMA are now complete, but since the agency is notoriously slow to pay, the town may not see the money this year.
The State Street Aid fund is up $173,000. The amount to be used for the expanded Scenic Highway will come out of next month’s budget. The parking meter income from around Point Park and the Incline is close to budget at this time.
Carol Mutter, commissioner of fire and police, gave the monthly statistics for those departments, commenting that there was nothing dramatic that happened. Chief Bowden added that it was a “peaceful month”. For the month of September, there were 69 police calls, 4,798 miles patrolled, 17 burglar alarms [all false], nine assist citizen calls, 8 “911” calls, one auto accident with no injuries, 17 traffic stops and 1 disorder, no arrests and no thefts. There were 10 medical calls and five fire alarms, all false.
Mayor Brown asked if there had been any non-compliance issues concerning golf carts, which was answered in the negative. Chief Bowden stated that if anybody was thinking of purchasing one, to please check with the police first, to be aware of the guidelines.
Commissioner of Parks and Playgrounds Will Moses’ report was brief, saying it is a rather quiet time for sports. The town is currently in the midst of football season. There will be a couple of weeks off because of fall break and then games will resume for another two weeks.
Commissioner of Schools Walker Jones turned the floor over to Ruth White, principal of Lookout Elementary School, to give the report after the first two months of school. She said that they have had a fabulous start to the year, and thanked the commission for their support. The first fundraiser, “Boosterthon”, not only was successful money wise, it also encouraged leadership skills, character building and physical fitness. The carnival was on a beautiful Friday afternoon and was also a big success. She thanked the police department for their contributions to the event. The following weekend was “Night Out for Lookout” which will most likely be skipped next year. Ms. White extended her thanks and appreciation for the entire faculty and staff at the school, saying that they are all diligent and dedicated. Enrollment of the school is currently 178 compared to 181 last year. She is expecting four new students by Thanksgiving.
Public Works Commissioner Dan Crates commented that “last month’s bad news is this month’s good news.” This statement was concerning salt for the roadways. The report last month that no salt was available got a lot of people’s attention and concern. During September, salt was found in North Carolina from the Morton Salt Company. The price, however, is not yet known. He also stated that the leaf machine is now prepared for use.
The meeting was concluded with Mayor Greg Brown’s report for the month. He began by saying how sad he was that Bobby McDaniel’s last day as head of public works was last week. Mr. McDaniel has worked for the town for 43 years - since 1968. This was interrupted only by the year he “went fishing”. The mayor stated that he was “in awe of Mr. McDaniel’s dedication and quiet way of getting things done”. An engraved clock was presented to him to commemorate his service to the community, along with a check for $100 for each year he worked for the town. On Wednesday there will be a lunch gathering at Hill City Pizza in his honor. Corey Evans will have big shoes to fill as he assumes the position Mr. McDaniel leaves. Mr. Evans has worked for the Town of Lookout Mountain for 18 years.
Mayor Brown introduced May Mitchell who came to the meeting representing Susan Bradley, and the Garden Club of Lookout Mountain. She gave the town a framed certificate from the Smithsonian Institution which places “Jane’s Garden” in the archives of American Gardens. Photographs of the garden will be put on the Smithsonian’s Internet website.
It was noted that Phase One of the pedestrian walkway has been completed and that Phase Two will be finished by the end of the year if weather cooperates. This section will extend from the corner of Scenic Highway and Fleetwood, to where Woodhill Drive intersects Scenic Highway, and will navigate around the most dangerous curve on the path.
The next Lookout Mountain, Tn., Commission meeting will be on Nov. 8 at 5:30 p.m.