Overflows of the sanitary sewers system in Red Bank should soon end with the extensive work that the Hamilton County Water and Wastewater Treatment Authority is doing. Engineer Scott McDonald, leading the project for WWTA, told the city commissioners on Tuesday that during the heavy rain event caused by Hurricane Helene, that no overflows were detected in areas that WWTA worked on in Phase I. The meters will remain in place during both dry and future rain events to continue to test the system. Then the data will be sent to both TDEC and the EPA for their approval of the first phase, as work continues in other areas of the city. It was also noted that during the rain and afterward, the storm sewers handled the large amount of water with no problems.
The commissioners have a special interest in when the work will be completed so that the sewer connection moratorium can be lifted. Currently the affected areas are extensive and prevents new construction to join the sewer. The city wants to develop a comprehensive plan for future development and a big component is for 3715 Dayton Blvd., the 12 acres in the center of town that formerly held the Red Bank Middle School. It is owned by the city and for years, discussions and studies have been done to determine what to use that property for.
There is other vacant property in Red Bank that the city would like to see developed, but “the EPA does not care about growth,” said Mr. McDonald. All the work that is being done now does not add new sewers to land that is without them. WWTA is having trouble finding people to work like everyone else, he said. Additionally, every municipality everywhere is doing sewer infrastructure work at the same time using ARPA money. A best-case scenario for lifting the moratorium in Red Bank for Basin 3, north, will be towards the end of next year, he said.
Red Band has applied for a multi-modal grant from the state three times in the last three years without being approved. Because TDOT already has a repaving plan for Dayton Boulevard, the city was asked if it wanted any changes. So Red Bank has asked for the road markings to be changed from the tunnel to the intersection with Signal Mountain Road to create bike lanes. The scope of the work that is planned includes new asphalt and road striping. The road in that area will become three lanes, two in each direction with a turn lane between them and outside bike lanes. The bike lanes will only be defined with striping and will not be buffered. And the work will not include building sidewalks; the city would have to be responsible for that. Paving and striping will be put out to bid in March 2025.
A condition assessment of the Red Bank swimming pool is planned, said Parks and Recreation Director Jeffrey Grabe. The commissioners approved the pool audit that will be used to determine the cost options, which include work to keep the existing pool functional for another five or so years, or the cost to build a new one. The $10,000 to do this assessment was included in this year’s budget and will come from the capital improvements master plan.
Oct. 6-12 has been designated as fire prevention week in the city. Deputy Fire Chief Eddie Iles said that the highest risk for people occurs at home and that the risk can be cut in half with the use of working smoke alarms. He said the devices can detect smoke before people can. An alarm is typically good for 10 years, he said and recommended checking the alarm each month. Citizens of Red Bank are eligible for the fire department to provide and install detectors in their homes. There is a link on the city’s website to request it.
The purchase of fire extinguisher training equipment, budgeted for $15,797, was approved for the fire department. The device will be used to train both fire fighters and the public in the behavior of flames and use of an extinguisher. The equipment is portable which will allow the fire fighters to take it to city functions to demonstrate and train people in how to effectively use extinguishers.
Police Chief Dan Seymour received approval from the commissioners to apply for and accept the annual Tennessee Highway Safety Office Community Traffic Safety Enforcement and Education Grant. He said the department applies for this grant each year, and this year it is for $79,992 with no match required from the city. If it is received, plans are to use the grant to stop impaired driving and general traffic enforcement.
Greg Tate, director of the public works department was authorized to spend $47,475 to replace the tailgate on city’s largest garbage truck. It has been determined that it will be more cost effective to replace it rather than repairing it. The truck is only three years old and has a lot of life left, said Mr. Tate, and makes it worth the cost. The truck that is used daily is critical to work done by the public works department, he said. Until it is repaired, the city has put an old truck into service.
There will be no commission workshop or regularly scheduled meeting on Nov. 5 because it is election day. City Manager Martin Granum would like for all Red Bank citizens to know that the voting process will be different this year. In the past, Red Bank commissioners were elected by district. This year all commissioners will be elected at large. The names of all candidates running for a commission position in November will be on the ballot. When votes are tallied, the two with the highest number of votes will be the winners. There must be votes for two candidates for the ballot to be counted, he said. If a mistake is made and only one name is marked, the citizen will be given a chance to make a correction to his ballot.
Announcements from the commissioners include that the city is partnering with Skillern Elementary and the Soddy Daisy Fire Department to collect items or checks for victims of Hurricane Helene. The items can be taken to The Meeting House through Friday. The next food pantry will be held this Thursday from 4:30-6 p.m. The cleanup of Stringer’s Branch was a success, where 40 volunteers removed rugs, tires and two dump trucks of garage from the stream. The public art board is now looking for artists to paint a mural on the small bathroom building in Red Bank City Park. If interested, there is an application on the city’s website. The next Food Truck Friday will be Friday from 5:30-8:30 p.m. And a portion of the White Oak Connector trail that is missing will soon be complete, said Mr. Granum.