Signal Mountain Keeps Same Tax Rate

  • Tuesday, June 28, 2022
  • Gail Perry

The Signal Mountain Council passed the fiscal year 2023 budget on the first reading at a Monday night special called meeting prior to the regularly scheduled work session. The property tax rate will remain the same as last year, at $1.7012 per $100 of assessed value. Included in it are retention bonuses for each employee that will be based on a percentage of their salaries.

 

Federal money that the town received from ARPA funds for COVID relief will be used to improve infrastructure including needs for the water company, road repair and improvements for stormwater drainage.

Money is also included in the budget to be able to livestream the town’s meetings and record them for YouTube.

 

Until the public hearing and second and final reading on July 11, the town will continue to operate on the 2022 budget including paving Brooks Edge Lane. The only bid received for the work to pave the 245-foot-long street came from Phaltless, Inc. for $40,215.

 

At the work session portion of the meeting, the council heard requests for the many significant needs of the town from department heads.

 

Council members agreed with Public Works Director Loretta Hopper, that there is an immediate need to purchase a new tractor mower with a boom arm that the city uses daily to mow and trim right-of-ways and vacant properties. The tractor is functioning but the boom arm broke, she told the council. The equipment had been scheduled for replacement and $80,000 is in the vehicle replacement fund for it, but the cost is now estimated to be $150,000. In the meantime the city has use of one that is on loan from Hamilton County. The next step will be to get bids on a replacement, which should be available by next spring.

 

A request to buy a bucket truck for the public works department was also considered. It would be used for tree work, and could also be used by the parks and recreation department to replace bulbs and do maintenance and repairs to lighting that belong to the town. When a bucket truck has been needed in the past, the equipment has been rented or the work has been given to tree or electric contractors. The council decided that the cost of a truck would not justify buying the equipment that is not used daily, compared to what was spent last year for tree maintenance and upkeep of lighting. It will have to pay for itself, said Council Member Andrew Gardner. A suggestion was to continue renting and collect data this year and track costs in order to make a better judgement about a purchase next year.

 

Fire Chief Eric Mitchell detailed options for the acquisition of a new pumper truck for the fire department. Options he has researched include purchasing it, which would depend on the purchase amount, down payment amount and interest.  Costs would also vary depending if payment was up front that could earn discounts or paid for when delivered. This truck is needed for the department to maintain its Number 2 ISO rating which helps to keep insurance premiums down for residents. A huge part of the rating, said Chief Mitchell, is “fire flow,” or gallons per minute and a city the size of Signal Mountain needs three pumpers to maintain the rating. The chief will get specifics from the seller and different payment schedules to present to the council.

 

Matt Justice, the water utilities director, told the council that soon, a new water pump installed in 1949 will need to be replaced. That one is a 250-gallon-per-minute pump. He said it should be replaced with one that will pump 670 gallons per minute to accommodate the growth of Signal Mountain. He said that around $300,000 had been budgeted last year for a new pump but it did not get done. Mr. Justice said he plans to seek a grant from the state of Tennessee that would pay 65 percent of the cost. Also needed as a companion to the new pump will be a generator. Presently, the town does not have one which would serve as a back up if power is lost. He said he would also like to install a switch that could connect and switch the town’s pump to a generator owned by Tennessee American Water, if needed. Connections of the new pump, generator and switch will require electrical upgrades. There are future plans to build a totally new station for the pump system.

 

Signal Mountain’s water is supplied by Tennessee American Water. The town traditionally has a minimum purchase agreement with the utility. Because water usage has become more efficient, mostly due to leak detection and repairs, the minimum gallons in the contract was not met in 2022 and the town had to pay $16,000-$19,000 in penalties. The contract can be amended, said Mr. Justice, to reduce the minimum amount of usage, although the rate per gallon would stay the same. This would not be a new contract, he said, but an amendment to the old one. With 12 month’s notice, either the town or the utility can get out of the contract.

 

The Signal Mountain water utility is also considering offering a water leak adjustment program to customers. For a small monthly payment, the program would cover the adjustment back to the location’s average use.

 

On Monday night, the council gave Elaine Brunelle, interim city manager, approval to update the city’s policies regarding COVID. As the virus has evolved and changed, signs in the lobby of city hall and the requirement of masks will be removed.

 

In her report, Ms. Brunelle said that all of the town’s fire hydrants have been tested and that all of them have sufficient pressure. The results of the testing will be published to let citizens know that they are safe, she said.

 

A year ago the town entered into a five-year contract with the Signal Mountain Education Preservation Fund (SMEPF) to lease the building which houses the Mountain Arts Community Center. It recently was discovered that the contract had not been signed resulting in the need for a new contract. SMEPF board member Dick Graham clarified the relationship between the town and the organization. The town owns the building and leases it to SMEPF. The town provides maintenance for the exterior of the building and utilities and insurance, but gives no funding for programs that take place there. He also said a board, not any individual, makes decisions such as when masks are required.

 

Mayor Charles Poss said there has been discussion about the town having some type of oversight for the SMEPF and it may come in the form of reactivation of the MACC board which is currently vacant. This could give some town presence at the facility.

 

Mayor Poss also would like residents to know they are welcome to the pubic meetings held by the town. He said they are posted on Facebook and advertised through an email blast and on the town’s website. He said no residence is more than seven minutes from town hall where the meetings take place. Council member Gardner added that also anyone can reach out to any council member individually since their email addresses are on the town’s website.  

 

The next Signal Mountain Council meeting will be held July 11 at 6 p.m.                                                     

 

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