In December the Lookout Mountain, Tn., Fire and Police Department hired several new officers, said Jim Bentley, commissioner of fire and police. One of them is a female officer, the first female officer to work for the town. Christina Henderson was formerly a Chattanooga Police officer. The other new officers are brothers Kevin and Carl Ritchie.
The new fire engine is nearing completion and the first week in February, Captain Danny Wright will be making a final trip to inspect and approve it.
At this time, it is expected for the fire truck to be delivered on time in mid-February. Commissioner Bentley said that police cars are now needing a full year from ordering to delivery, so a priority will be to maintain all the existing police vehicles as well as can be done.
Lookout Elementary School is continuing to carry on while dealing with expected cases of COVID, said Commissioner of Schools Brooke Pippenger. Activity at the school includes a PTA meeting that is scheduled for Jan. 25 and Grandparent’s Day on Friday, Feb. 25, starting at 1 in the afternoon. Night Out for Lookout, the biggest fundraiser for the school, will be held the following night, Feb. 26, at the Lookout Mountain Club. A music program is being planned for March 24 and 25 to replace the Christmas music program that was cancelled in December because of the pandemic.
There continues to be a lot of participation in sports on the mountain. Commissioner of Parks and Playgrounds David Paschall said that basketball practices started last week and are being held at both the Lookout Mountain School and Fairyland School gyms. Games will start on Tuesday, Jan. 18. Next comes baseball and registration for it will begin in February. Lawson Electric is in the process of putting LED lights in the parking lot behind the wall at Senter Field.
So far this winter, there have been some scares related to the weather, Frank Schriner, commissioner of the public works department, said, but nothing has actually happened yet to cause bad road conditions on the mountain. However, the town has received a new shipment of road salt and will be ready if icy and snowy conditions do occur. The department is largely caught up with removal of leaf and brush piles, said the commissioner.
Jennifer Waycaster, the town’s certified municipal officer, said $453,000 in property taxes has been paid and more than anticipated has come from state and local sales taxes. At halfway through the fiscal year she said 64 percent of the budgeted amount of state taxes and 80 percent of the budgeted amount of local taxes has been received. The PTA has made the first of two payments in the amount of $94,000. That money is combined with contributions from the town that are used to pay for additional teachers and enrichment programs at the school.
Expenses in December include $5,000 in training for the fire and police and $6,000 to pay for salt for the public works department.
A change has been made to health insurance plans for town employees. Previously, insurance benefits were available at 30 days after an employee started work. The change is that insurance benefits will be available at the first of the month after employment begins.
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Fifty percent of Lookout Mountain, Tn.'s allotment of federal funds from the coronavirus American Recovery Plan has also been received in the amount of $280,000, said Mayor Walker Jones. A second payment of the same amount will be received next fall. Mayor Jones said that rules which were originally put on use of the money were so restrictive that it would have been hard to spend it. The good news, he said, is that the rules have been relaxed and now there are not as many limitations. He said the town will now be able to use the money for practical applications.
The mayor said some dead trees are leaning over the town’s roads. In that situation, he said, the homeowner is responsible for any damage done by falling trees or limbs. Homeowners have been warned and he asks that people take care of any problem trees on their property.
Mayor Jones also reminded the commission members that it is time once again to file a nominating petition to run for office again.
The next Lookout Mountain, Tennessee commission meeting is on February 8 at 5:30 p.m.