The Soddy Daisy Fire Department will be getting a third pumper fire truck. The purchase was approved by the city commissioners at the meeting Thursday night. Although they all come from Pierce, the same manufacturer and the design of the truck is identical to the last two that were bought two and a half years ago, the price is significantly different. The trucks that were bought earlier cost around $690,000 apiece. The price of the truck that was approved to buy Thursday night is $1,032,687. And the lead time needed to build it is 48 months. Also approved for the fire department was the purchase of three portable radios from Motorola Solutions.
The purchase of three new Dodge Durangos was authorized for use by the Soddy Daisy Police Department. They will be bought from Chrysler Dodge Columbia for a total cost of $125,082 using a state contract which is presumed to be the best price available. The city declared 11 vehicles from the police department as surplus equipment because they have too many miles or are non-working. They will be sent to Compass Auctions.
There are already a few License Plate Reader cameras in the school zones in Soddy Daisy. An invoice for additional LPRs was approved by the commissioners. The new cameras will be bought with $27,493 from a Homeland Security grant that the city received.
Solar School Zone lights for solar traffic systems are also being purchased for the school zones on Sequoyah Road that will replace older ones. Fines collected from speeding tickets will be used to pay for the new solar systems.
Discussions that took place at the meeting included the danger posed to neighborhoods that are blocked in when trains park on the railroad tracks. Commissioner Mark Penney lives in a neighborhood that is cut off from emergency access in or out when the trains stop. It is not a problem in just a single location, said Mayor Steve Everett, it is throughout the city. He said the railroad operates on a schedule and could notify the public when they know the schedule includes stopping on the tracks in Soddy Daisy. City Manager Burt Johnson said there is already a digital sign at one location in the city. Other digital signs could be used to warn people ahead of time to find an alternate route. The city manager said his priority is to find funding to build a bridge for traffic to cross the tracks.
Parking for the ballfields at North Park was also addressed. This is not a problem that started overnight, said the mayor. Cars parked on both sides of the road narrow it to a single lane and two vehicles cannot pass each other. The city is aware that there is a problem and new areas to build parking lots are being looked for. No parking signs are not posted now so it is not illegal to park there and police do not give tickets. Commissioner Geneo Shipley said the problem is during large baseball tournaments and involves out of town people coming into Soddy Daisy, spending money, which is what the city wants. He responded to one resident’s complaint with, “We are inviting people into town, what do you want us to do, give them a ticket?” Until parking can be increased in lots, the commissioners suggested that neighbors who are affected could take another road to get home.