DECATUR -- Prior to the start of the Jan. 11 meeting in the conference room at city hall, duly elected members of the City Council, five in the chamber and one via Zoom, rose to their feet to take the oath of office administered by Mayor Bob Tharp.
Taking the oath were Danny Harrington, Randy Boone, Linda Martin, Sandy Duncan, James Jessen and Ladale Clayton. Clayton took the oath from her home via the internet. All six members were reelected during the Nov. 3 general election.
The council's first major order of business for the first meeting of the new year was the approval of the 2021 city budget.
During a week-long budget summit in the conference room in mid-December, Tharp, city clerk Kim Wilkins and the department heads worked out details for expenditures and income for each of the seven city departments. Once the budget was completed, it was sent to the city council for approval. After a short discussion, the council, in a unanimous decision, approved the 2021 city budget.
The budget is made up of two equal parts, expenditures and income. Expenditures are items such as building upkeep, salaries, new equipment and utilities. On the other side of the equation is income -- what the city takes in through various taxes, grants and fees. In order to reach a balanced budget, both sides of the equation must be equal. In other words, what the city spends must be equal to what it takes in if it is going to have a balanced budget.
For 2021, the city expects to take in an estimated $1,384,355, which equals the expected expenditures for the coming year.
Five of the seven departments are budgeted together and include administration, police, fire, parks and library. Expenditures break down to the following: administration -- $328,955, Police -- $576,800, Fire -- $159,269, Parks -- $284,946, Library -- $34,384, for a total of $1, 384.355.
The street department and water/wastewater departments have their own budget, separate from the general one. The street department's income/expenditures for 2021 will be $267,333. The water/wastewater department 2021 budget is $5,549,973.
The council discussed at length the growing problem with unsightly items on properties around the city.
Andy Adams, the new code enforcement officer, and Police Chief Steve Grizzle talked about the enforcement process, including contact by mail and direct intervention.
Adams and Grizzle have sent first and, in some cases, second notification letters to several property owners within the city limits. They reported that most of the property owners contacted have complied with the city codes.
Once the letters are received, the owners have 10 days to comply. If these residents are trying to make improvements, the code enforcement officer will give them a short grace period. However, if they do not fix or make improvements after the second notification period runs out, the city would be called in to clean up the property and a lien be placed on the property for city costs which will remain in place until it is paid in full.
Tharp stressed the need for a beautifying program in Decatur in order to bring in new residents and businesses to grow the city.
"The City Council has taken a strong interest in code enforcement for the city of Decatur," Tharp explained. "Code enforcement means that we, as residents within the city limits of Decatur, live responsibly as far as how we maintain our property as well as how we store items that cannot be stored in the state of Arkansas, such as tires and batteries, in our backyards. These are the things that we will be looking at, along with the height of grass and condition of buildings. Our goal is to make Decatur a safer, friendlier town to live in and provide a world where we can grow the town. Without pride in our city, we cannot entice new businesses to bring new opportunities for goods and services for us all to enjoy."
The council approved the Benton County District Court West budget for 2021 which totals $300,000. The city will pay $47,712.35 into the system to cover court cases that involve the city. This cost was factored into the city's 2021 budget.
The council also approved an agreement to engage building and fire inspection services from the Benton County Community Risk Reduction Division. Anyone needing building inspections needs to contact the city at 479-752-3912.
The City Council meets on the second Monday of each month. Due to the recent covid-19 pandemic, the meeting is open to no more than 10 people. Any citizen who wishes to bring a matter to the council's attention should contact the city clerk's office at (479) 752-3912 or contact his council representative.
Mike Eckels may be reached by email at [email protected].