Councilman David Bennett on Thursday reported that the city of Lookout Mountain, Ga., has received a new rating for the volunteer fire department. The previous rating for the city’s fire department has been a 5 on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the best. After the new audit by the ISO the new rating is 3. This means that the improvements to equipment and training techniques have given way for the better rating. The new rating will allow for slight decreases in rates of residents' home owner insurance. Mr.
Bennett praised all of the personnel who helped in the increase.
Councilman David Fussell made some suggestions about the accounting methods the city uses for the annual budget. In his review of the budget for the fiscal year, he is confident the city will not have to use any reserves by the time the fiscal year ends in June. He did have some suggestions for the council to consider. One was to consider using a monthly analysis of the budget rather than an annual analysis. The other was to consider another form of investment when SPLOST funds come in during April. Currently the city puts SPLOST funds in CDs, but Mr. Fussell would like to consider other options that earn higher interest.
The Lookout Mountain, Ga., planning commission recommended Cindy Whitaker and Jimmy Campbell to fill two vacant seats. The council approved the planning commission’s recommendations.
City Manager Brad Haven reported that he has turned in recent sulfide reports to state officials. He also reported that city employees recently replaced a motor on a sewer grinder pump at a resident’s home. The approximate cost of the repair was $500 to replace the parts and seals needed. Mr. Haven will also be advertising the purchase of 30-50 new grinder pumps over the course of the next several years.
The council ended the meeting by transitioning into executive session to discuss real estate transactions. The next regular scheduled meeting will be Thursday, March 20, at 5:30.