The city of East Ridge has found a new location for an animal shelter. For years the city has been looking for property to build a shelter. It recently found land that Crystal Reno, supervising officer of East Ridge Animal Services, said was made for an animal shelter. The .9-acre site is at 5302 Stone St., just off Ringgold Road and near the center of town. The shelter that will be used for housing animals and a building for storing equipment will fit perfectly on the property that is 100 feet by 385 feet, she said.
Plus there is a natural area that is suitable for walking the dogs. Businessman Emerson Russell, who currently owns the property, has agreed to the sale for the amount of $125,000. The council approved the motion to purchase the property.
A $25,000 grant from Dog Park Dash was awarded to East Ridge last month to build a dog park. The grant application required a location to be specified and the address used was 1623 Springvale Road. The land is in a floodway but water recedes quickly and is suitable for the park, said City Manager Chris Dorsey. In subsequent meetings other locations were discussed and property near the city hall and community center were an option. The question remains if the location can be changed from that of the initial application. Council members do not want to lose the grant if that change is not acceptable, so a motion was passed Thursday night to table the decision until the council meeting on July 22 in hopes that there will be an answer before then. Another option that is being considered is building two dog parks. The one near city hall could be just an exercise area without an agility course, which could be built for less.
City Manager Dorsey announced that with the resignation of former Assistant City Manager Kenny Custer at the beginning of the new fiscal year, that Michael Howell has been appointed the East Ridge Interim Director of Community Services and will be over codes enforcement and animal services. Streets and the sanitation department will be under the city manager.
East Ridge will be spending funds for IT services to protect the security of its network. In the event it is hacked, the new IT service will reimburse the city.
A resolution passed to accept the proposal for use of the soccer fields by an affiliate of the Chattanooga Red Wolves. Other sports will be introduced for use of the fields and clinics will be held.
A resolution passed to accept a grant of $246,749 from the Local Government Direct Appropriations Grant from the state of Tennessee that will be used to purchase police vehicles. One Ford Interceptor and six trucks will be bought.
Another grant that is applied for each year, if received again, will be used to buy safety gear and apparel for the public works employees. The city will get $3,000 back from the $6,000 it spends for the equipment.
A certificate of compliance was approved for the Mapco at 6514 Ringgold Road, which will allow it to sell wine since it has met all requirements from the city.
East Ridge will be joining several purchasing co-ops, which have already bid items and have prices available. The Houston-Galveston co-op can be used for purchases related to the fire department. Another co-op will be used for the purchase of code enforcement software.