The city of Soddy Daisy is ready to begin placing new signals on Sequoyah Road and the off ramp from Highway 27 at Sequoyah Road. City Manager Hardie Stulce told the board of commissioners Thursday night that he had met with TDOT for a pre-construction meeting and the work is scheduled to begin Monday.
All requirements that Soddy Daisy needed to complete for road work on Montlake Road have been ready for a year and a half. The road has been designed, funded and engineered and is ready to go to bid. In order for the project to qualify for federal funding, the Federal Highway Administration must move an arbitrary boundary 1,100 feet. This has yet to be done. The Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency recommended approval of this work in June, yet the federal government has not acted, said Mr. Stulce. He updated the commissioners telling them that he called Senator Bob Corker’s office for help and is waiting for a reply.
In the citizens participation portion of the commission meeting, a resident of Brumlow Hollow Road asked the commissioners for help with an ongoing problem with another road. He said, "I feel sorry for the man, who has a mental problem, but what he has been doing directly affects those that live on the road and is vandalism. This man uses a shovel to dig ditches in the gravel road and causes erosion."
He said police have been called repeatedly and, when they arrive, the man is gone.
City Attorney Sam Elliott told him that the man must be caught in the act or videoed as evidence before he can be charged with a misdemeanor. Mayor Janice Cagle said the commissioners do not have the ability to do anything and advised that he needed to contact either the police chief or city manager at the time the vandalism is occurring.
Commissioners voted to confirm the county certified property tax rate. In past years the rate had been $1.00, and in July the commissioners voted to increase that to $1.35 per $100 of assessed property value. Since then, the county increased the rate to $1.3524 in order to provide the same income since property values declined slightly with the latest county re-assessments.
Also approved, was an amendment to the classification and pay plan for city employees. The city charter specifies that commissioners must set the pay plan. With the new paid positions of full-time fire chief and additional firefighters, the established pay plan was changed to reflect the increased expenses.
Commissioner Patti Skates asked Police Chief Phillip Hamrick to compile arrest reports of incidents that have taken place on Walmart Drive for the past year. She has heard complaints from nearby residents of juveniles creating a commotion during the night lasting until 3-5 a.m. Some neighbors are concerned, she said, and asked him to also increase patrolling that area.
Commissioner Jim Adams announced a meeting planned for Aug. 29 at 6 p.m. at city hall to review options for replacing the sign at the Industrial Park. Mayor Cagle explained that the city had removed the original sign and then agreed to share costs to replace it with a new one. The meeting is to determine what is needed on the sign. There will also be discussion with individual owners and management about cleaning up the park, especially the side that faces Highway 27.
A planning meeting of the Parks and Recreation Department is scheduled for next Wednesday at 6 p.m. at city hall to discuss the creation of a blacksmith shop, said Vice Mayor Rick Nunley.
Mayor Cagle asked Chief Hamrick for a report to update the commissioners about progress with the cleanup efforts instigated by the board concerning the condemnation of property that has not been brought into compliance with city codes.
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