|
Committees deal with requests for funding
October 5, 2006
HUNTSVILLE — Monday’s four-hour work session for County Commission was filled with appeals for financial assistance from elected officials and representatives of local nonprofit organizations, some of which were granted, and others which await further action.
Sheriff Anthony Lay got the approval of the Emergency Services Committee to purchase six surplus police cruisers (for a total cost of $33,600) as a stop-gap measure until new units can be bought.
On a motion by 6th District Commissioner Gerry Garrett and an all-aye vote, approval was given to advertise for bid 29 to 30 “Level 3” bulletproof vests for use by his officers. The vests are estimated to cost between $300 and $400 each and will be fitted to the individual, Sheriff Lay said.
During the course of his discussion with the committee members, Sheriff Lay said that only two positions need to be filled to complete 100 percent staffing of the department. He says he is still conducting interviews for another court security position, and a female officer to work at the jail.
Lay also informed the committee that a total of eight new officers will have to be enrolled in the state police academy within the next six months. Three of that number will begin their training on Sunday, followed a few weeks later by three more, Lay said. It was pointed out that all academy-trained deputies are required to sign a contract stating they will work in Scott County for a minimum of two years, or else they will have to pay for their training.
The sheriff urged the committee to take action on the purchase of new handguns for his officers, saying it could save a lot of money if they did so by November, when “a lot” of ammunition will have to be purchased for state-required firearms qualifications.
Also during the Emergency Services Committee meeting, a one-time $500 appropriation was approved for the Scott County Women’s Shelter, after hearing an appeal from the shelter’s director, Patti Brown. The contribution makes Scott County one of several corporate sponsors being sought for a fund-raising walk through Oneida on October 28, in observation of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
After that meeting was adjourned, the Intergovernmental Committee met and voted to appropriate $2,000 a year for three years to help fund the Imagination Library Program. Start-up funds, which have been provided by the Appalachian Quality Life Initiative (ALQI) to match funds from Gov. Bredesen’s “Books From Birth Foundation,” result in a book each month for every child in Scott County signed up for the program from birth to age five.
Lori Phillips Jones and Shelly Duncan made a presentation before the committee’s vote, during which Jones said that 11 other local businesses and/or organizations were being sought to make a similar pledge of funds to keep the program going.
Later on in the evening, during the Community Development Committee’s meeting, General Sessions Judge Jamie Cotton got approval for the establishment of a locally-run Probation Department for Sessions Court, as well as approval for two professional services contracts: one which will pay $250 a month for the salary of a Traffic School instructor, and the other which will pay $3,000 a month for outpatient treatment for participants in the Scott County Drug Court program.
Judge Cotton also appealed to the committee to be allowed to use the furnished apartments in the Scott County Help Center (the old Capital Hill School), as “temporary transitional housing” for homeless Drug Court participants.
Judge Cotton explained that a few participants in the drug rehabilitation program do not have a place to live, and that without a residence, are unable to get and keep a job. The furnished apartments, he said, would be an ideal site from which the recovering drug users could get a fresh start in life as they break their addiction to drugs.
He stated that there was only one other such facility in the nation (in Nashville), and he would like to establish a similar one here. He is proposing that “non-violent, non-dealer, mentally and physically able” individuals be allowed to use the facility while in the recovery program, pointing out that an adult supervisor would also live in the facility and keep watch over the individuals day and night.
Realizing the impact such an announcement might have on the community, Judge Cotton agreed with 1st District Commissioners Odeva Byrd and Jeff Watson that two public hearings be held prior to making any decision about housing recovering drug users in the facility.
The committee voted to contact the residents of the community, and the congregations of the nearby churches, to let them know the date and time of the public hearings.
He said there would be little or no risk to the surrounding community because “the risk comes from somebody that has no supervision,” not from people “well along” in the recovery process.
This committee also voted to approve a $1500 donation to the local food bank, which will be used to purchase turkeys for Thanksgiving for needy families in Scott County.
During this committee meeting, as well as later during the Building and Grounds Committee meeting, Circuit Court Clerk Donnie Phillips asked for; 1) another full time staff member due to the fact that Scott County Sessions Court NOW meets five days a week instead of three, which causes an overload of work for him and his four staff members; 2) Six new computers for his office (one of which should be a laptop for use in the courtroom); and assistance to make repairs to the floor in the Circuit Court Clerk’s Office which was apparently damaged a few months ago due to a broken water pipe.
Phillips’ request for a new staff member was referred to the commission’s Budget Committee for further action. His request for new computers was forwarded first to the newly-established Technology Committee, and then will go to the Finance Committee for further action. No committee action was taken on the request for floor repairs, but Mayor Rick Keeton indicated he would have the county’s maintenance director look at it and determine what needed to be done.
In other business Monday, the commissioners:
• Voted to advertise for bids on 29 jackets for employees of the Scott County Ambulance Service, as well as for three new computers for EMS use;
• Voted to allow EMS Director Jim Reed to purchase (for $1300 to $1500) a heating and cooling unit for the newly-built Ambulance Service storage shed;
• Heard an update on the justice center project from Mayor Keeton, who pointed out that minor changes had been made in the layout of the jail component at the request of Sheriff Lay, that officials of SouthBuild anticipates advertising for bids for contractors by the third week of this month, and awarding the building contract bid by mid-November. Weather permitting, Mayor Keeton said, the site preparation being performed by J&M Excavating at the justice center site on Scott High Drive will be completed by week’s end;
• Voted to post 15 mph speed limit signs on York Drive in the 2nd District, and Marcum Road in the 7th District;
• Heard a report by Mayor Keeton that the state has approved the county’s 2006-07 fiscal year budget and that County Trustee Jimmy Byrd and his staff mailed out “the majority” of property tax statements on Monday;
• While no action was taken, commissioners discussed at length the need to put a 30-inch cap of soil and sew grass atop one 3-4 acre section of the old landfill in Helenwood;
• Heard a report from Mayor Keeton that National Railroad would likely have its first run of coal cars from Devonia to Oneida on Monday, October 9, and that company officials are planning a grand opening event on as yet undetermined date;
• Heard a report from Mayor Keeton that a Canadian company which manufactures precision miter gauges for “high-end” saws, etc., has expressed interest in the 42,000 square foot industrial “spec building” the county owns in the Mid-County Industrial Park. Officials of that firm will be coming back for a second visit soon, Keeton said;
• Voted to approve a motion which will allow Scott County to submit an application for a grant to promote tourism in an eight-county region, of which Scott County is a part; and,
• Heard Mayor Keeton’s report that he would be applying for a grant from the Tennessee Department of Transportation to provide at least part of the funding necessary to acquire a “roll-back” truck to transport trash from convenience centers to the landfill.
news@ihoneida.com
Enjoy the Independent Herald? Have it delivered to your door! Click here for details.
| 
