Gravette council selects new chairman, hears council member hopefuls
GRAVETTE — Gravette city council members selected Richard Carver as their new committee chair at the Committee of the Whole meeting Thursday, April 14. Carver will take over for former chairman Ron Theis, who has moved from the city.
Reports were heard from several department heads. Police chief Chuck Skaggs praised officer Felisha Latham. He said she has completed phase one of her training and will be going to the police academy on April 24, so she will soon be on patrol in Gravette.
David Keck, building inspector and code enforcement officer, reported he was gearing up for added spring code enforcement duty. He said he had sent out several letters about the annual spring cleanup. Keck also noted that Razor Box Storage in Hiwasse was holding a grand opening, Tuesday, April 19.
Richard Sutherland, water department head, said he is working with both engineers and the Department of Health on four different projects. He said he now has a full crew and they are being trained.
Karen Benson, library manager, reported storytime is being held again at the library. She also reported Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art will be bringing their CB to You mobile lab to Old Town Park from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 14.
Fire chief David Orr reported training is going well and five department members have completed the course. He said fire department members would be at Hiwasse for Easter events on Saturday and they planned to have a helicopter landing there. Orr said they would begin testing hydrants next month and plan to test a quarter of the hydrants each year.
Tim Dewitt, streets and parks department manager, reported 16 dumpsters were filled during spring cleanup so the town is looking better. He said 130 trees were distributed in 53 minutes at the city’s tree giveaway. He also announced that the city’s new backhoe arrived last Friday and invited all to come and look it over.
A special council meeting was convened to consider two items of business. First on the agenda was a motion to approve the large-scale development plan for New Life Christian Church. The motion passed unanimously, approving the plan to construct a 20,000 square foot facility on the church’s 15 acres near the bypass.
Also approved at the special meeting was the purchase of three vehicles at state bid prices, a Ford Interceptor SUV at $35,694.96, a 2022 Dodge Durango Pursuit at $33,814 and a 2022 Dodge Charger Pursuit all-wheel drive at $28,715. Finance director Carl Rabey explained that $70,000 has been budgeted from the capital improvement fund for the first two vehicles and the third will be purchased with $15,000 from the capital improvement fund and the remainder from the American Rescue Plan funds.
After the special council meeting was adjourned, Chamber of Commerce president Steve Harari gave a quarterly update on Chamber projects, focusing on four areas, business retention, business expansion, business recruitment and hosting and advertising community events. He reported on recent Chamber meetings and announced the launch of the Gravette area app, urging everyone to promote the area by signing up their businesses and downloading the app. He also told about ongoing Chamber events, including Business After Hours on the first Thursday of each month and third Thursdays on Main.
Four candidates for the vacant city council position introduced themselves and were given five minutes to present a brief profile of themselves to the council. Council members will choose one of the four applicants, James Denver, Shane Hargrave, Mary Edmondson or Mike Dennison, at the April 28 city council meeting.
In new business, council members considered Chief Orr’s request to declare as surplus a 2008 Ford ambulance that is no longer in service. A resolution to surplus the vehicle will be on the agenda for the April 28 council meeting.
Mayor Kurt Maddox explained that, due to city clerk Mike von Ree’s ill health, there is a need for an alternate signer for city checks. An alternate will be chosen at this month’s city council meeting.
Council members discussed securing easements for water line projects on Birmingham Street, Highway 59 and Mount Pleasant Road. Mayor Maddox suggested focusing on Birmingham Street and delaying the other projects.
A fee schedule for updating the city zoning code from Garver Engineering was presented. A vote to approve the estimated fees of $46,317 will be on the agenda for the April 28 city council meeting with a proposal to pay half this year and half in 2023.
A clarification of policy for private lift stations was presented. The policy specifies that lift stations on private property must be maintained by the property owner. The city will maintain only public lift stations serving more than one customer.
Finance director Carl Rabey presented a resolution approving adjustments to the 2022 budget which will be voted on at the April 28 council meeting. He said there are several small adjustments to be made. In his monthly financial report, he showed a $38,000 surplus in the general fund, a $1,000 shortfall in the water department fund and a $41,000 surplus in the street department fund. He said he had no bond update.
Rabey said the water audit fieldwork has been completed and announced he has completed the level 1 training for City Government 101 for certified municipal officials and will complete level 2 training in Leadership 101 in May. Rabey thanked Cindy Pembleton, human resources and assistant finance director, saying she was a tremendous help to him.
Mayor Maddox concluded the meeting by thanking all applicants for the vacant city council meeting for their interest. He also thanked Chamber president Harari and other Chamber officers for their work.