City Council - Regular Meeting

Okay, good. Good evening everyone and welcome to tonight's city council meeting uh on Monday, March the 2nd, 2026 at 7:01 p.m. Miss Derry, would you call the role for us, please? Certainly. Casey Brown here. Ralph Maker here. Tim Terry is absent. Roger Rainwater here. Steve Tedford here. Rod Pal is absent, but we do have a quorum.

Thank you very much. If everyone would please stand, we will begin our meeting this evening with a prayer led by uh Chief Brad Hobbs and our pledge by Chief Steuart Bryan. Thank you for our city. pray for our country, our troops overseas, Middle East.

Amen. I alian to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. You may be seated. Excuse me. At this time, I'd ask uh council to consider approval of the minutes for the February 2nd regular city council meeting. Make a motion to approve them as written. Second. Have a motion. A second.

Mr. Brown. Yes. Mr. Maker. Yes. Mr. Rangwwater. Yes. Mr. Tford. Yes.

Thank you very much. Uh recognitions and acknowledgements. Uh we were talking this morning and Greenwood Junior High School freshman boys basketball team uh is conference champs. So, that's pretty pretty cool for those guys. Congratulations. And I want to recognize, although he was very reluctant to allow me to. Uh, but I get to do it. He uh Brad, our chief Brad Hobbs now has the fourth generation serving in uh our armed forces. And Carson Hobbs not only is serving, but is an honor graduate from the from the airman. So, yeah, that's awesome. We we discussed how he became honor student and it's not Brad, it's his mom. Right. Okay. So, that's that's cool. Very cool. I'm proud of of you and your family. Uh committee reports. Uh I can look this afternoon. I think everybody pretty much except uh water waste water. I don't know if they got theirs in or not.

We didn't get water wastewater street. Um and the boys club. Okay. So, we're missing three there, but Oh, building. Building. Okay. Okay. So, uh if there's questions you have concerning those, please let me know or Danielle. We'll get try to get those answered for you. So, they're not obviously not all in your packet. So, uh we are Oh, I want to recognize uh I know your name, sir, but I'm just going to make sure I do it right. Adam, where are you? Watson. Adam Watson. Watson, uh thank you for being here again. Did you want to speak tonight on anything? Sure. Sure.

So, I came to the sales tax a couple weeks ago and didn't get to meet the whole council. So, I wanted to introduce myself tonight about politics. I'm here in Franklin County and I wanted to bring up resolution 124 pass November 7th. That was seven days after passing the citizens of Charleston County before us knew enough to be opposed to it for any good reason. And it was really impactful to see somebody stand with us from outside of the to recognize the issues that we were having. So I applaud you for having that forought. Thank you for your public service and encourage you. Thank you.

Thank you, sir. Appreciate you. Thank you. Uh also that has signed up this evening on our uh am I there? No. Yeah, I am. Citizen form. I don't know where I'm at. Uh Miss Lauria Ransom has has signed this evening. So M. Mr. Rman, if you'll come forward, state your name and address, we'll have you on record.

Okay. Oh, yeah. I think that works better. Can y'all hear me? Okay. Um, Lori Ransom, 12200 Excelsia Road here in Greenwood. Um, I want to first say I'm not a zoologologist. I'm not an animal biologist. I'm not a veterinarian. I don't do any of that stuff. However, the last meeting, um, there were some concerns raised about the outdoor cats and Chief Hobbs went over the new animal ordinance. I This thing is right in my face.

There you go.

Okay, there. Now I can see everybody else going like this. Okay. Um, so there was um concerns raised about the wildlife impacts, disease risk and all of that. So I just wanted to, you know, go over that a little bit and I know there were some questions from AC Brown. I don't have all the answers. Mr. Mer might have more answers. I I don't know. Um, but anyway, the points raised were um they're valid concerns that that that were raised about free roaming cats and the impact to the environment and disease and all of that. Um, so the question really isn't whether or not there's any impact, but how to, you know, manage the cats that are here right now. Um, the unmanaged cat populations can grow, roam, fight, spread disease, leading to more complaints. Managed TNR colonies, on the other hand, they're sterilized, vaccinated, they're ear tipped, and monitored, which reduces all of those things. Um, as far as the zooonautic diseases that he mentioned, um, the I looked up stuff from the Arkansas Department of Health on rabies and toxopplasmosis, which seem to be the most prevalent. Um, from 2025 to from 2020 to 2025, there was 169 reported rabies cases. Um, in Sebastian County, we just there was just five cases reported. That's not how many that's just how many were reported. there was four skunks and one cat. Um, but vaccinating the community cats through TNR provides protection for the cats and the public. So, I didn't know, you know, whether or not everybody knew that we vaccinated the cats for rabies when we did the TNR. So, that is done. Um, also another um zooonic disease is the toxinoplasmos. And by the way, I gave you all a book last year. If you remember that, all of that information is in here about all these zunotic

diseases. So um of course there's a lot more that these this just covers the cats but there's more you know other animals transmit um so from there was 10 years of cases from 2011 to 2021 for toxopplasmosis 183 cases were reported now most of these this is what I read on the Arkansas department of health most of these cases present no symptoms at all 10 to 20% have mild symptoms that resolve on their Now, this this is the one where the that's the pregnant women. That's the one that affects the pre pregnant women. Um but if you um do the TNR program still sterilization and safe litter practices, which is at your home, you know, you don't have litter boxes out there in the community cats usually, you can reduce that um environmental contamination. Now, feral outdoor cats aren't sociable and they usually avoid people. I don't know if any of you have tried to trap a cat. They don't come to you. They just don't. So, the risk of disease transmission is very low. Most of these uh infections happen with direct contact like bites, scratches, or handling the cat litter and not washing your hands. Um also from um the CDC data also shows that poultry, livestock, reptiles, and even dogs cause farmer human illnesses than cats. So, responsible caretaking, hygiene, washing your hands after you're working in the garden, things like that, you know, help to eliminate some of that. Um, so there was the book I told you about that. Um, the I he he mentioned an oh, sorry, Mr. Mer mentioned an article he had read and I think I found the article. It's from the Wildlife Society and their official policy does support among other things the elimination of feral cats and the prohibition the pro prohibition of

feeding and that position reflects the wildlife conservation's mission but for for a practical purpose for here the responsibility is broader public health fiscal responsibility which the TNR program is not costing the city anything um and removing the feral cats doesn't solve the overpopulation. I don't know if y'all have heard the vacuum effect, but when you more cats just move in. Even if if there's a food source, they move back in. So, it doesn't, you know, solve anything in the long run. And any type of law is not going to stop irresponsible ownership. Abandoning cats, dumping them, that's just not going to stop. And dogs, too, for that matter. But when I was doing research in the very beginning, very very few cities in Arkansas have any policies managing cats and across the country it's the same way. So it's not that this problem is new, but there's just been nothing done about it. So I'm kind of glad that, you know, Chief Hobbes have come up with something that might help. So um I mean that's all I really wanted to say. Um but if there's no you know program at all then if you do nothing then the problems you you don't even you know kind of go for you know a solution at all. So that's all I wanted to say. I just wanted you all to please look at the book. I know you had questions AC. So look look in the book and you can look on CDC and the department of health's website too. They have lots of information on all these zonatic diseases and things. So that's all I want to say.

Any questions or comments from council? Thank you. Okay. Thank you. Thank you very much. I I I for one appreciate what you're doing. I know it's I know it's uh you don't get thanked very often. Probably you don't get a lot of calls thanking you. Uh but but thank you for what you're doing. It's made a difference from what I can tell in town. And I live out, you know, where I live and there used to be a lot and I don't I don't see them. So, uh yes, there is there is locations around there and um there will be no kittens there this year. So,

Gotcha. So, my wife won't be collecting kittens. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Uh I meant to start out with this little speech here, but I forgot. So, I'll do it right now. I feel like I'm very much preaching to the choir, but uh I know we have folks at home watching, too. So, if you don't know, and I know everybody knows that, and I know I know our uh our pressman here knows, but we were talking about how busy he's going to be tomorrow night. Uh but tomorrow is an important day for the future of Greenwood. Of course, uh we will vote on whether to renew the the city's 3/4% sales tax. Uh I think the I think the staff chief uh Sunny, not Sunny, Chief Stewart, thank you, Chief Brian. Uh there's been some and Casey has, that's what I was trying to think of, has put out some good videos,

uh explaining what this tax is about, what it's for, uh and and again, and I I did one, too. So, uh, as you know, the tax is, uh, an important source of funds to keep our fire department equipped with modern firefighting vehicles and equipment. Equipment wears out and becomes obsolete. Staying properly equipped to fight fires keeps us safe and helps keep our class two fire protection rating in place. Greenwood has one of the most beautiful and functional park systems in any small city in Arkansas. I think that's a lot due to the very first parks director there ever was, but we don't we don't talk about that. I'm joking. Kind of. No, we're not.

Uh, no we're not. The sales tax is the primary source of the funds that have provided the parks amenities in recent years and it is very much important to count on for uh grants. That's matching funds to go for grants that Casey relies heavily on. Street department is tasked with a tough job of building sidewalks, improving drainage, and re repaving the the many streets throughout town. Again, the sales tax uh is a main source of funds for these projects. often funds from the tax are used to match monies from the state money that Greenwood could not receive any if or of if we couldn't come up with the matching portion. Uh so your vote tomorrow is very very important and critical. Please go and and do your duty and and vote tomorrow. Uh tomorrow is election or today is the last day of early voting. I'm not sure what time they close. 7:30

5. Huh? The one in Fort Smith was 5. I watched 15 people get escorted out there. didn't get to vote. Oh, really? Yeah. Well, we're much kinder down here.

So, uh please vote everybody and and and say your piece on this issue. It's very very important. So, with that, uh citizens and forum we've taken care of. Mr. Tom, you are up, sir. Financial report. Last year in 2025, February was a really eyeopener month for city sales and use tax because that's when we discovered the rebate issue and we discovered $115,000 was pulled directly from our distribution as a result of uh significant purchases that met the criteria for a rebate. Um, I would I'm happy to report that we didn't feel that that was going to be the case in 2026. And so I'm going to go right to the uh slide that shows you the highlights. The city sales and use tax the same period February over last February grew 27.75%. That is indicative of a much lower rebate than what we were even estimating it to be. The accumulative growth for the uh period is 15.19%. That's right now for the two months. Now, I will caution you again. Like I said last month, one month is not a trend. Two months, you're getting a little better, but um I'm going to show you a graph which causes me a little bit of a pause. And I'll show you why. County sales tax, that was a same period change, 4.95% over the same period, February of last year. cumulative we're up 3.10%. I realize we budgeted zero growth. So that is uh that's to our favor especially on the operating side which is made up of this county sales tax revenues. As far as advertising and promotion tax is concerned they're down 1.92% just under two%

uh for the two months and I'll show you those statistics as well. Getting right into it. If you look at how we fared as far as other cities within the county, city of Greenwood was one of by far the um highest of the bigger cities as far as population is concerned. Uh Barling had a a marvelous February over same period February of last year and Midland also grew. But when you're your numbers are that low any amount is is a significant impact I guess as far as percentage is concerned. But as as far as we're concerned that 27.75% is very positive and this is what it does as far as our trend was concerned. Last year for two months we were at -2.52% based on what I was telling you involving the rebates and this year we're 15.19% for the two months. So this is a very good trend right now. Um, as far as the what the actual rebate came in being, 115,000 in 2025, we're at 38 point 38,760. So, it's much much lower than what I had anticipated. I thought for sure that it would be somewhere between 60 and $70,000 still to our benefit and it came in much lower. So, as long as we see this kind of a trend over the next few months, we'll just have to look for the next reporting period. But I do want to show you a graph. This this being the graph of what the rebates were for 23, 24, 25, and now 26. This is what caused our we could never we didn't really recover from that spike. However, this year we've we came in much lower. But if you'll notice in 24, the two peaks right here, this represents the fiscal year end December 31st and this represents the fiscal year end June 30th. So while this went up a little bit in February,

there still could be some more residual filing that was a little bit later and it might impact in March as well. So I don't know where this number is going to go. Even if it stayed flat, we're still way ahead of the game as far as last year and what we budgeted and what the budgets are based on. Okay. So, that was my caution. As far as the audit is concerned, we actually picked up $3. So, we're still way in line with what our normal would be. Audit's not really impacting us as much as the um the rebate is as far as the city of Greenwood's adjusted growth is concerned. If you factor back in the rebate amount, realizing that we put in a placed back in as far as the distribution, if we actually collected all of that, we we would have grown just about a half a percent. That's basically instead of the 27.75 that all happened because of that rebate. So when you come down, I guess the better way of looking at it is what does the distribution do in relation to taxable sales. So the distribution for on a cash basis plus the adjusted back for the rebate taking out the noise. What does it mean for sales? And as far as sales is concerned, we're up almost $800,000 from 26's same period 25. So for the distribution that occurred in February, we are up about threequarters of a million dollars, more than threequarters of a million dollars or 2.13%. And that's the buying power and the purchasing power and the consumer confidence within the city of Greenwood. So that's uh that's positive, very positive. We were we were tanking negative for most of last year, but November and December really helped out because December is what you're seeing here. So Christmas was fairly decent within the city of Greenwood. I don't have the details whether that's on uh

online sales or whether that's in store sales. I don't have that breakout. But now as far as county is concerned uh very positive that's that 3.10% increase that parlays right back into the uh operating department. So that's more money back into their coffers that they can do some of the things that they were sacrificing as far as their budget was concerned because of that zero budget growth. uh they can start looking at as we get farther down. I think during your first budget review session in April, you'll be looking at potentially um maybe adjusting one way or another how you want to look at their operation revenue stream if we want to adjust it or not. As far as the combined is concerned, this is very positive. Last year we ended up down seven and a half% we're up 9.62 right now for February. So all those numbers are positive. I did my best to make those numbers black instead of red

for you. Uh, city of Greenwood's advertising and promotion. You do kind of see that in January the average that we normally get is a little over $18,000. You see that for 22 23 24. This was the COVID period. So, um, but you do see 18,000 is about normal for a January. That was a little low. That's why it's 11.27% up over 25. We're at 156, but it is a short month and uh the end of the month came on a weekend. So, um I'm sure that there's some stragglers that will come in that'll bring us back up. But if you'll notice the 15,000 almost 16,000 is about where we normally end up. So, because this was short, most of that came in in February. That made up for it. So, we're we're down 14 over the same period last year, but only 2% down for the cumulative And I'm sure a lot of that will come in as a result of the weekend and 28 days in the month.

Tom, back to the AM. Yep. That money that you report in AM is actually a month ahead of the money that's reported from city sales tax. Yes. We get an early indication from AM at least what's being spent in restaurants. That's correct.

Okay. Yeah, that represent February represents January sales. Okay. As far as cash flow is concerned, you got to realize too that the budget wasn't approved until the end of January. So there wasn't a lot of spend going on. So we didn't have as much of an impact on the cash flow in the month of January. In February, it decreased half a million dollars. And for the year with the pickup that we had in January because no one was spending against a budget that hadn't been approved yet, we're at $23,000 decrease in cash for the year. So our ending current fund balance as of February 28th or actually the 26th, which was Friday, is 12,151 or just under um two ten of a percent. So pretty much flat as far as that's concerned. Our budget though is to drop the cash balances or cash flow down by 60%. Most of that coming from water and sewer side for their projects they have going. They're significant players in the capital expense. Speaking of which, there's the capital. Capital year-to- date, we have a all-in city capital budget of 11,85,000. Capital expense for the year to date 26 is 770,000. That's through February, the end of February. So water sewer is 717 of that and I think most of that is sewer I believe maybe I don't know that 717 is one of the two it's it was a project that had already been started and was in in the works that's water yeah that's water so they're 8% of the amount that they have of that 11 million is 8.6 million 2.4 4 million is the city, street department, general, and all the departments that make up the unrestricted general fund. So there's 2.4 million on the city side. They've

spent 52,50 of that or just under 50 of that is a CubCadet mower for the street department. That's the only major purchase there. Um and that's 2.17% of the actual budget so far. Those numbers will start picking up as projects, capital projects start progressing. And as far as the contingency, I wanted to share this with you because if you this is something you need to see and you're going to start seeing this every month. You've established that 15% for the for the what you're saying is the contingency. You don't have an ordinance yet. So there's nothing binding that. But what we have though is that that comfort number right there for a reserve for catastrophic events or what you would declare as a disaster. And I I want you to know that when you look at where we are for February, the general unrestricted fund had a balance of 843,000. So we're almost $100,000 ahead of where that reserve would be. Now realize monthtomonth if this number falls below this number that kicks in the ability to have to fund it or triggers that would be generated because this money technically once that ordinance is approved would be requiring a declaration and control by the city council to spend andor the mayor given an emergency. So this is kind of a reserve. It is a restricted reserve. So that's why I'm showing you this where you are. So this is kind of your operational buffer as a way of looking at it. So that's your margin right there. And I'll show you that every time. Uh you also gave me the go ahead to move turnback out of the street department's O andM in order to isolate it. So I did that and this is the way I've done it. You now have in front of you a street department revised budget. That is the

revision for this turnback and city sales and use tax. I wanted to show you how it was calculated. We have the turnback monies for the years 2018 all the way to 2025. So I had to come up with how much of the street money actually should be transferred into a turnback virtual account to isolate that. And I took all of what makes up the requirement for what is allowed by the turnback. The expenditures for that same period of time. The revenue is 5.9 million. The expenditures was five million. So given everything the way it should be paid as a restricted turnback account, we would be at a balance at 1231 2025 of $819,000. And that's what we start going into 2026 in that account. And we are now coding directly against that on the financials. And you will see that in your actual financial report. Now for the city sales and use tax did the same thing but a lot of what was in city sales and use tax can also be paid by the turnback. They kind of mirror capital improvement project for roads can be done by turnback or city sales and use tax but also can the capital expenditures for the equipment to pave a road or to repair a road and the materials and supplies like sand and like the the cold patch and all that that they would store materials that they need. We're putting under city sales and use tax. So we we isolated the city sales and use tax monies and the turnback monies in a way that um brought over the um amount of money that would be construed as very definable for the years 2018 to 2025 is expenditures that justifies the city sales and use tax. And that means that that balance when you bring in a $ three.5 million over that eight-year period, you have a $2.5 million

expenditures for these items. So the turnback I mean the uh city sales and use tax money would be a million dollars. So all that said, this is what changed in your street budget. At the end of December of 2025, there was $2.6 6 million in the street fund which is made up of which was made up of these three accounts street sidewalk and city sales and use tax. But when I redistribute the street on&m which included the turnback you now have a 593 balance in there for the on and m side salaries office supplies various other sundries that are not related to streets. Your sidewalk did not change the turnback was 819,000. I just showed you on the previous slide and the million is the city sales and use tax. And you'll notice that the all we did is redistribute it and I showed you how. So that redistribution did not change the actual street fund balance. It's just redeployed in different virtuals. Now when you look at the projected balance that would be in each of those funds from the budget you have in front of you, you'll see that street fund and m checking is 98,000 left. They'll have 259 in the fund and sidewalk still. Um that's an increased by 10. There's no actual sidewalk projects on the budget. There's a street turnback amount that will decrease to 748,000 and the city sales and use tax based on some projects that are already scheduled and already being funded through the city sales and use tax is at 511. So they're going to drop about 40% of their balance. But you'll notice that none of the actual fund balances are negative. Whereas before you had street, city sales, and use tax negative. This redefineses it and redeploys it where it's very easily discernible as to what monies are for what.

Okay. I have a question on street and m and sidewalk in this budget that we have here. The dates are 123124 for the beginning register balance. Yeah, that's right. Is it just a date problem? It's not um No, it's not because that's what you do. Start with the 24 for 25 and then it'll get you the 25 number by looking at what the if you look at the middle column of your budget. Well, the reason why I asked is because the others are 25 dated and this one these ones are Yeah, that's probably Was that the sidewalk one or the street on&m and the sidewalk? Yeah, those are the only two. That's just a date thing.

Okay. Just want to make sure it wasn't a balance that would change things and just a date issue. Uh that's we just use the template and that date didn't get changed in there. You start with the balance as of the end of 24. You take what the amount of money would be for 25 and then you come up with what the balance is at 25 plus what you're looking at the budget for 26 to be and that ends up with your 98,000. So it should be 24 get to 25 budget for 26 fund balance. That's how it works. Tom, on the you mentioned I think you me said that there's no sidewalk project on the budget this year. Is that what you said? Not in his budget. No.

What about what we're waiting on on phase two, Hunter? Where does that stand?

Money's in the sidewalk there. It's not budgeted. Okay. That's what I'm saying. And and it's not because I guess we didn't get our approval. We're still waiting on some issues things. Is that right?

Okay. And is it less than $250,000? So you get all but you have $250 in that fund. There's not. So but I don't know. Sure. That's okay. I just didn't know what where the I know we're working on it. Have been working on it. It's taking forever. So, okay. Okay. Plus, city sales and use tax can fund the sidewalk department. Sidewalk amount is how much? Uh, I can't remember. I want to say 250, but I could be wrong. And it was 5050 match. 7525. No, that's okay.

You're under that or 25. Yeah, it's a reimburseable grant, is it not? Not 8020. I think so. I don't hold me to it, but I we'll know. Check it out tomorrow. Is it a reimburseable grant? They we pay it all and they reimburse. It should be I think reimburseable. That means the cash flow will have to fund the whole 100%. Right. I think that's right. And and we have all these easements.

Hunter can answer to that. Yes. I think the latest thing from AROT was more about the bridges, right? On issues on on right away or how to do it. But yeah, easements have been obtained, right? Okay. Okay. And as we know in the past the the first phase uh was 500 rough number half a million dollars and it turned out to be more than that because because of the time that's why we cut this in half. Yeah. 80. That's what I thought. That's all right. I like being right once in a while.

Not very often. All right. Thank you. Thank you. Uh Tom just to I won't get into it, but to squaltch ideas that the city doesn't know where our funds are and how they're spent, I beg to differ with anybody that that says that on Facebook or something. And if you don't, you don't have to believe me. Come and talk to Tom Marsh anytime, any day here at city hall and he can tell you where everything is and how we're doing it and all of that. So, thank you, sir.

Yeah. Yeah. We like that. Just think you get you keep make giving happy news. We're going to stand up. All right. Thank you, sir. Uh agenda additions. Uh we do have one at least, maybe two. Two. So, number eight would be uh an annexation ordinance that I believe our city attorney is going to provide. Jones Street annexation. Jones Street. It's not an ordinance actually. Oh, I'm sorry. And then number nine, I don't even have it down. It's a resolution adopting a consent agenda process.

That resolution adopting a consent agenda process. Okay. And those are the two that we had. Does council have any additional Excuse me. Agenda additions. Additional addition. Additional. Yeah, whatever.

Yeah, I'm having a hard time. I'd like to think it's my allergies, but I don't I'm not sure what it is. Okay. Uh if not, we'll move on into the old unfinished business. Number one is city attorney repeal replace ordinance number 23-17 private club permitting third reading. Uh it was tabled from the previous meeting. Do I need to remind everybody of the changes that were made or I mean they're indicated in it? This is what we took out the 1500 for the half year whatever. Yes.

Yeah. So page three has has that we struck 1500 B and then F Yeah, that was it. Um, there was a little something. There's a strike of that number four. It was a typo on section 14, page five. And then the application has that at the top. Okay. Of the heading. And then striking a little bit of the ACA down there and putting at SE on the application itself. Yeah. Craziness for

Do I know? I'm sorry. No, no, I haven't heard it or seen it. We also also removed any specifically numbered ordinance references in there and just put city orders so we don't have to go change them all the time. Beautiful. I'll make a motion we pass this ordinance by title only for third reading. Second have a motion and a second. Mr. Brown, yes. Mr. Baker, yes. Mr. Terry, yes. Graater, no. Mr. Terry, I mean Mr. Tedford, sorry.

You got two votes. And Mr. Pow, yes. Passes by majority. We vote. An ordinance repealing and replacing ordinance number 3-1 establishing a permitting process and privilege permit for selling or dispensing any controlled beverage within a private club within the city of Greenwood by businesses licensed by the state as a private club to sell alcoholic beverages. Levying permit fees in a city supplemental tax of 5% of beer, wine, and 7% of mixed drinks upon the annual gross receipts which are derived there from repealing any ordinances in conflict therewith. establishing penalties for the violation of these provisions and for other purposes.

Mayor, I'd like to just say for the record, the I get asked all the time about this private club stuff and why doesn't the city allow it and why and so I don't know and I don't care if it ever happens, but this is something that's been on the books for years. So, it's not like we've been, you know, sitting out there at the city limit sign with pitchforks. I mean, if anybody wants to try, they're welcome to or, you know, I just I get asked all the time about it. I'm voted against it most of the time. So, just because of the requirement for foot distance for one here and there, but

even without the permit process, which we did not have before, it was still legal. But I mean, it's still state law. Yeah. State law has been out there for a long time on private club. We just put in a formal process. That's now recently this legislature has removed the requirement for the 501c3. That's right.

So now we now there's a more likely chance that we'll have this type of application come in and we've got to have the pieces in place to deal with it. the the removal of the 501c3 keeps us from being dishonest. So that's a lot more appealing when you're not saying that Tupelo Gentleman's Club is a legitimate 501c3 in your town, which we know is not. BFW is

Boys and Girl Boys and Girls Club is uh Bashgrass Country Club is we know all that. Agree. Appreciate what you're saying. It's it's there now. The pol I think the important part is as we just said the policies in place uh and we have guidelines to help you decide on that. So, I just don't know what people think of this council trying to push this issue. It's been on here for a while. Yeah, it's not new.

Okay, thank you all. Uh, moving on to number two is the police animal services ordinance repealing replacing ordinance number 23-11, animal services rules and regs. Second reading. This is reading change. Then we also made a change to 11 police department. picture 12 microchip services. about reaching out to our vets to see if they had to off

No, this is this ordinance. I didn't like the ide love the mobile part of it.

It's cool. I think I think you'll see the participation will be much larger than it has. Agreed. Any questions, thoughts? Make a motion we put this on for the second reading. Second. Motion second. Mr. Brown. Yes. Mr. Mer. Nope. Mr. Terry. Yes. Mr. Rainwater. Yes. Mr. Tford. Yes. Mr. Powell.

Yes. Passes by majority. An ordinance repealing and replacing ordinance 2311 and all other ordinances in common therewith authorizing the regulating the keeping and control of companion domestic animals creatures in the city of Greenwood, Arkansas for other purposes. Thank you, gentlemen. Thank you, Chief. Uh, moving on. Number three, finance department resolution or finance resolution adopting physical performance policy table from a previous meeting. You want to start that physical performance? Yes, physical.

Uh yeah, Tom had prepared this for uh the council review and the codification committee studied it with Tom present today and we went over all the different aspects that we felt needed addressed in there. Um thank you.

I made those changes that we discussed and um mainly we tried to remove specificity in there and make it general because when the budget is adopted is every year is when the contingency reserve fund will be addressed every single time. And we also plan on putting this in front of council every year to keep it fresh because we don't want this financial policy to just fall back in history where everybody eventually forgets about it. But we encourage council to read all of it and make any suggestions for changes that they thought. Yeah, we're not asking for the resolution to be um acted upon today because I I'd like to have your feedback, but some of the things that we actually changed, most of it was in the reserve policy starting with 31. Um there was the 15% that was listed in there, but we didn't want to put a percentage in the policy. If it's going to be reviewed and approved at the time of the budget, you can you have the prerogative at that point to establish what that percentage will be based on the budget. and we didn't want to have a document that hardcoded an actual percentage in there unless you feel you want a hard code in there. That's totally up to you. So, we put the wording in there to purposely give you the latitude. Um 32 where it says the contingency reserve will be maintained at not less than the stated percentage of estimated operating expenditures adopted in the current year's budget. And that would be either a percentage or you could even opt to come up with a a number. Whatever you do, whatever you approve in that budget is what this is saying becomes the reserve. Um on number 34, there was some confusion in the way that was originally worded. Um it says that the contingency reserve balance exceeds the contingency

reserve amount by 25%. In other words, zero of the amount that is restricted reserve up to 25% is what I consider the operational buffer. That's the monies you have to buffer your operations with and that's not to be used for any pet projects or something that you think you can go ahead and spend. That 25% is a number I put out there. That's a number you can establish. That totally whatever you feel comfortable with. But um that 25% says anything above that you have options to do with that money. It could be on a a budgeted item that was uh pushed aside because of the funding wasn't there and we actually had increased revenues and now it's there and you can decide based on what's listed as criteria here. Um couple other things that we talked about was the uh wording for the replacement equipment u replacement reserve. right now. I wouldn't think that that's something that we would be entertaining because of the margin that we're operating under right now. Uh to say we're going to also throw a whole bunch more money aside into a replacement reserve. It's not there to throw aside right now. Your your margin is right now $100,000 buffer and you're not anywhere near 25% more on top of that. So, um, those are some of the things that there's also discussions in here about debt. There's also discussions about the revenue policies, the budget process. I wholeheartedly recommend that you go through and read this because it does have an impact on some of your discussion that you're going to have on this ordinance that you're going to be looking at today for reading number two. Oh, it has been vetted through the u through the codification committee.

Uh probably ask for a motion to take I'll make a motion. Okay. Second a motion to second. Was that AC? Yes. Mr. Brown? Yes. Maker? Yes. Mr. Perry? Yes. Yes. Mr. Tempford. Yes. Mr. Pal. Yes. Uh, city attorney. He's asking me if we should put this on. Is that what you're asking?

Yes. Yes. Third reading. Correct. Which one? What? We just did the alcohol ordinance. Yeah, that was the third read. That was third reading. Yeah. Does it say second or No, I think No, I may have. We're good. Thank you. By the way, the confification I get to sit in on those meetings and that is that is educational to say the least and and the group that's in there work diligently and work well together to come up with these uh suggestions to bring back to you. So, there's a lot of good work in that meeting. I think I'm impressed. Yeah, that was that's a very helpful kudos to Travis for getting that going. Thank you. causes a lot of work on my part.

It's a helpful. It's working well. Yeah. Okay. Uh where am I? Four. And by the way, the codification committee minutes are in your folder on the left side from the prior meeting that we were in February 17th. Just so you can see kind of the content of what we talk about. Okay. Number four, finance ordinance establishing contingency reserve fund. Second reading. want to talk about your changes?

Oh, sure. Uh, codification committee reviewed this again today. We came up with a few changes even since last time this was read for the first time. So, this is the second reading. Mainly the we noticed that uh the terminology was inconsistent throughout. So, we I decided to just call it contingency reserve fund if that's okay with everybody. um we you know removed the specific 15% on page two and just put a percentage in there. Um and then one main part is in section five that we talked about a lot today. Um and Travis, would you like to expound on that one?

Yeah. So we talked about situations in which you can access those funds in the contingency reserve. Um when we're talking about declarations of disasters, normally the executive would make that um declaration um due simply to the fact it would be hard to get you guys together in a quorum in a in a disaster type situation. And if you'll notice, we we changed city council declared disaster to declaration of disaster by the mayor. But the following sentence, uh the city council shall then pass a resolution to appropriate the fund. So there's still that check and balance. Um, and then again in the bottom paragraph, it talks about an emergency requiring immediate action. We talked about today if if a kid was down in a well 40 ft and we had to get some sort of special equipment out here. Obviously, the mayor would make that phone call and we wouldn't try to call special meeting for that. We just do whatever necessary to save the child. And u and then it talks again about how you guys at the next regular meeting would appropriate the money to cover that. That's where that check and balance is. Um

let me ask you this before before we lose that point. Let's say that exact scenario happens. Would there be a I don't know where that money when we try to look somewhere else in the budget before we went to the contingency plan? I guess is what I'm asking. I mean, so we wouldn't have to touch the contingency reserve plan. No, that's certainly an emergency. Excellent point. But excellent point. I And I'm just saying, would we try to It would probably need to be an extreme disaster, but that seemed like a good example. It is, but I don't think it'd be millions of dollars involved. I mean, but we're talking about 50,000 probably to have somebody bringing something down there.

If it could be operationally absorbed is what you're saying. Yes. Well, again, you guys would come in after the fact and look at the money situation. Yeah. Yeah. Do it however you guys saw best fit. Say no and put it use your operating, right? I mean, say it in your resolution that you passed appropriating that. You would say I'm just saying it might be taken away from some other project we had, but Okay. I just said, "No, this is we're just immediately going to this contingency, this reserve plan." Do you think we need to add it as a letter under section five that says the council may choose to, you know, No, I you got in there that we're going to do a pass a resolution so that like you said we would just discuss then do we need to go

I mean people might not think of it at the time you know emotions are high disaster has happened who knows might be helpful to remind us to do that in consideration well I mean not just go to the contingency fun hopefully we we would be just good stewards of the money enough to realize that we're not needing 1.6 million. We just need 40,000. We're going to get it from the fire department. You know, whatever. Second, but not the tax. We are not getting it from the tax. Not from the 3/4 cent sales tax. It would be your Yeah.

Right. I was just thinking, you know, if this was a didn't have to be the immediate go-to if we can get it out of our normal budget. So the the the again this cotification committee talks in depth about how not for this contingency fund to be a hey let's go get that make it almost make it hard. Yeah. Or you know what I mean? Yep. Good. It's it's set aside for a reason. Right. Right. Tornadoes, floods. That would be my question. So section five of of the ordinance that we're currently reading

and number 34 of the resolution that we just read kind of conflict one another. So section five the contingency reserve fund will only be used in the event of a declaration of disaster. Right? But then in number 34 it's saying that if the contingency fund reserve exceeds 25% then the city may consider utilizing those excess funds. That's an excess. That means it's more than the contingency. You can't spend, right? But section five doesn't say that. It just says, It just says contingency fund. It doesn't say the excess. It doesn't say the minimum balance. It just says the contingency fund.

The excess is operational monies that exceed 25% of what you reserve. The reserve you can't use for anything but that. But if you go over 25%, you have the authority to say, "Hey, that backho that needed. Uh we now have the money. We're we're 20 we're above 25% cushion. So that's operating money. You you control that and you could approve a budget resolution to allow it. That's all that's saying. Yes. If our contingency fund money is a million and we end up with one a million and a quarter, that 250,000. I understand it. But section five doesn't it doesn't say it doesn't say anything about

Well, we'll go steal it before it gets to section five. As soon as it gets to 25%, we'll move it. Well, it's not in that fund is what I'm saying, right? That 25% above that contingency, it's not reserved. It's not restricted. It's just remember that 100,000 I showed you. Yeah. Well, that number would have to grow 25% more than the actual reserve for you to consider using that money for something that's not in the budget. Right. That's all I'm saying.

Yeah. So section five, I mean, it's basically saying if if you haven't met the contingency fund level, you're not in access, then the mayor has the ability to use those funds. I mean, it doesn't he doesn't have to meet he doesn't have to meet the uh reserve amount. I mean, it doesn't have to meet that excess 25% to use those funds in an emergency. you know that we could we could probably just remove that because it's operational monies and it would require just a resolution to come to you and we not even discuss how high that could get

because you you guys can entertain any resolution at that point. Are you talking about the the number 34 you want to really because that number 34 we don't need to remove the whole thing though do we because touching on excess being considered for the equipment reserve we need some of that in there maybe just not the 25% part to remind council that we want I think he's saying make the ordinance reflect that because you're saying it's in conflict. Yeah, I'm saying that want to add it's not clear in section five that we probably

at any point the mayor can use those funds regardless if it's excess or not. Gotcha. So add like an E in that provisions, Ralph. Would that fix it? And mention the contingency balance in excess or is that Yeah, that would be Are you saying he be available? Are you saying he'd be able to access them or should not be? Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. He's saying if it if there is excess, we should still be able to get those in case of an emergency. Sure.

Yeah. Yeah. Well, yeah. So, what 34 is saying is the only time that that we're able to spend this this contingency fund is if we're 25% over our minimum level. It exceeds the return. That's what it says. Exceeds the contingency by 25%. That's if you want to use that money considering it excess,

but the contingency fund you can't use unless you do a declaration. That's why it's confusing the way it's worded. I think I think understand what you're trying to say. I was just trying to say we have an operational budget that's a buffer and I didn't want um that 100,000 gives me angst that we're at right now because one event if that contingency fund went into play, you'd be looking at an economic situation that you could declare a disaster and dip into that contingency fund right now. So I want to build that up. So maybe right now we just don't even address excess. We just build the excess, right? And then you deal with the uh It'd be nice if it was two million. Well, see

whatever we took out an excess, Tom. Pardon? How would there be an excess? We had unanticipated revenues above what we budgeted for, right? Like what's happening right now with our city sales and use tax. We didn't budget a 15% increase. But if they set that fund at a percentage, wouldn't that move with percentage is set based on the budget expenses. So it's hardcoded at the budget. Okay. It doesn't move monthto month. Makes sense. You know, we don't have to spend money if we don't want to. We can just leave it in there.

Let's go back and look at that again. I think I understand what we'll we'll rever. And uh why is the 15%? We're just saying a percentage. Are we saying that each year we're going to determine what the percentage is? Every budget period you will do like you did this year. You will say this is what we want because you can make it 15, you can make it 20%, you can make it whatever based on what the budgets come in at, what our revenue projections are. Well, that's what I'm worried though that we could, you know, a certain council could say, "Oh, I just want to be 5%." and we're back in the same you you'd have to deal with my recommendation on that. I I would not recommend a 5%.

Well, the reason we did that so y'all wouldn't have to we wouldn't have to reddraft the ordinance every year because y'all set that at your budget and so this way the policy just stays the same and y'all would just y'all just pass it every year without any change unless because it would tie to the budget directly. Yes, it would. But but to whatever percentage we choose, I would still like to have to say at least a minimum of a of a percentage. Well, that's up to you at the budget. You can you you can lobby for that with your company. Could that be in this ordinance, Tom? Well, the financial policy addresses it. It's it talks about the budget process in that financial policy.

That's where the operation of this contingency reserve fund is being managed. less than the stated percentage of estimated operating expenditures adopted in the current year's budget. So, you control that at the budget approval time. And I will do exactly what I did this year. I'll show each operating department. I'll show what their budget is. I'll show we'll we can play that number all day long to what you're comfortable with. What? But I think what he's asking, Tom, is like in section three of the ordinance, could we put that the reserve shall be maintained at a target level equal to a percentage of the city's annual budget or operating expenditures uh not to fall below 5%. I mean,

I think that's what they're Well, I was want to say be hesitant to hard code a number. Well, there again, I think just depending on the the council that we have sitting uh or whatever at that time, you know, that they could just say, "Hey, we just want a 1%." You got to remember your triggers are in there, too. And they automatically kick in. So, if you're if you set a 5% and you hit that, you go below that, those automatic triggers are going to immediately force your hand on budget crunch. I mean, you you've got safeguards built into that.

Well, yeah, but if it's if if it's 25% of of the 5%, you know, then it's just it's still a smaller number. What you're saying your reserve is going to be is you're going to say it's 5% of whatever your operating expenditures are. The uh I I I guess whatever we determined it was this go round. You know, we said we're putting in there you know, to get that 750,000 or saying we 5% would be two and a two $250,000. That's what you said you'd be comfortable living with. That's that's one disaster.

No, I'm not saying I would be comfortable with it. I'm just saying, you know, two years from now, we have a whole different council, you know, we have a whole different, you know, finance director and stuff. I'm just saying if we don't set a minimum, you know, I say at least a minimum, you know, then, you know, I'd like to have him go through this whole process again of trying to, you know, set a new ordinance and saying don't have to convince me. You have You can raise it 15%. You don't have to read

because it's then a living document like you are deciding it based on all the factors of the budget at that time. To me, that's based on what we've been doing all along. No, you haven't been doing a replace a reserve at all. Well, okay, but but you can still say I just think 1% that doesn't sound like a reserve to me, you know? I mean, that doesn't sound like that's not compelling us to say make the hard decisions kind of like we had to do this year. We said, hey, sorry, it's been a tight year. And usually that's when things are the hardest decide, you know, when when it's a a surplus year. So it's not making it uncomfortable enough is what you think. Huh? It's not making it uncomfortable enough. Well, I'm just thinking it it's just

easy. It's is too vague. I mean, we're we're saying a contingency fund can be whatever we decide that that year. Well, that's your job. That's what you do.

I I think we we we pretty much looked at the 20% is saying that's our comfort level. And then we've got these triggers in place if it goes down to 15% 10% and so on. But I don't see a problem if if as a body we feel like 20% is a is an ongoing target. I don't think that's uh I don't think that it's something that we shouldn't state in here because that way if if if we go for several years with 15% and and then think that's our status quo, we forget the days when it was 20% and then we had this slide. So, it might be good to put a 20% in there saying, you know, this is a this is what we have used in the past and continue to to look for as a guide. I don't know. That's just my thought. You're not following your own rules.

Well, ordinance would have to be changed. Uh, you know, you Oh, I'm thinking the ordinance does need to be changed. And I'm just saying that it's not a hard and fast 20%. I'm saying a minimum. And I'm saying, you know, we're not going to go below a 10%, you know, minimum of that. Uh and that's a percentage of the whatever operating budget we're looking at that year, you know, and so uh but because to me, we've always uh indirectly or whatever had a rainy day fund because we always I don't I think all of us had a number in mind that we wanted to we don't want to get below that. But

we started got Yeah. We started getting lower and whittling away at it. And so to me, if you don't say a a minimum of a percent, you're saying a percentage, well, that can fluctuate from to me 1% to whatever percent. It's just easy out. I'm just saying you should have like a minimum percentage to say we will not go below this, you know. Uh I'd rather have a dollar value amount on any operating budget. But but your as your budget grows, that dollar amount, that hard dollar amount,

it's not a hard dollar amount. I'm talking percentage. has to be a percentage and and we felt like when Tom says, "Okay, we're starting to fall below, you know, we're going to be below 21 20% this year." It was an arduous point getting to saying, "Okay, we're going to make it 15." I think I think it should say something to the effect of we can look at this each year and determine what based on the ending ending value of the budget is but we ideally would look at 20% and then as we do the budget here's the process for changing that and then the triggers fall in there but I think 20% is kind of like a it's kind of like a debt to equity ratio or There are certain targets that that companies look for and and that's a good one for us. We didn't meet it this year and we've got a good document that tells us what we do to get to write the ship, but I think a 20% is a comfort level that I would be happy with.

Government Financial Accounting Standards Board recommends, they don't recommend percentages. That's an option for you. They say it should be two months of your average expenditures, budgeted average expenditures. Now, if you look at our two months of the budgeted average expenditures, the percentage that that equates to would be 15.84%. So, but 15% I was okay with that because you're still within that 1% of the the tolerable level of that two months of your average expenditures.

So, you could go either way, but It's fine. I mean, I originally had the number hardcoded in there and then there was a lot of talk about you have to change the ordinance every time. Three e readings. Here we go. Well, that's what we were trying to do is make the ordinance one thing and then the living document, the financial policy, make it make all the sticking points like you're talking about because this is what you're going to see every year, the financial policy. We're going to put it before you every year. But the ordinance just establishes this process. It says establishes the city's going to do this. So that's where I think you know you should have stated in there a minimum uh because the percentage is going to fluctuate. I would think that would need to be in the policy.

In the policy. Yeah. Yes. Because it that's referring to this saying this drives it. Y'all have all the power on that every year. Yeah. The policy is is the flexibility that we have to change it from year to year. The ordinance just kind of says that we're going to do a contingency funding. Yep. Right. Yeah. So, a contingency fund of and so but it's not it's not being very definitive though when you say a contingency fund. I mean we could have a contingency fund of of 1%. And you say yes, but no, the guidelines really recommend two two months of the average expenditures

of average expenditures, you know, uh and and we even gave into that because this was a hard year that we were looking at and saying, well, we don't want to be, you know, too restrictive. Uh and uh and so we've dropped it down to 15%. And so I think and so I said I think in here we should say it shouldn't go uh a minimum you know of 10%. You know it can always be higher sure you know then we really want to strive for 15% or or maybe a higher amount but we shouldn't say it can go below you know uh 10% you know just saying that's a minimum that we will you know accept.

I still think you can put that in the resolution. I I think I think your ordinance would say that that we're going to adopt a certain percentage. Just just leave it that. We're going to we're going to adopt a certain percentage. Um but the resolution should could say, you know, not not to exceed 25%, not to fall below 10%. And that would give us flexibility that we could change from year to year. Yeah. Yes. And that's what the pol and that's what the pol the resolution would allow us to do. Okay. Could could what you were talking give me that standard that you referenced with the gap the financial accounting standard for

what was that what was that that they recommended two months of your average monthly expenditures budgeted expenditures. Average monthly. So we took the annual budget and divide it by 12 and times it by two. And that's what percentage of that of your operating budget is that and it was 15.84%. But you were budgeting 15% for your reserve. And I was okay with that because you were real close to being within the tolerable level. Would we want to put something like that then in the in the uh resolution? Give it a reference point so that we don't stray too far from it over a period of time.

Does it already have it in there? been moved several times. But aren't you saying though that yes an ordinance makes it a hard and fast kind of because like saying it takes three readings to to change one and stuff and so but you know yes a policy can be changed year to year and so again uh you know and each year that uh we were dipping into our kind of reserve you know uh we were doing that each year and knowing that we were dipping into it and we were balancing our budget by dipping into that and stuff because it was easy to change from year to year. And to me, I'm thinking I want to have some more a little bit more guard rails on it that it's so not that easy to change from year to year that you're saying, well, we can't go we we can have some fluctuation, but boy, we can't go below a 10%, you know, uh of uh percentage wise. Yeah, that still to me leaves you with lots of uh room. I mean, right now we're at 15% in a very difficult year.

Well, I I guess what I'm thinking is just in in the resolution where we're looking at generalities here. When you're doing financial analysis, you look at at the liquidity ratios on businesses, you look at debt to equity, you look at all kinds of statistics, and you want them to fall into a certain range. And and this is a guideline that we could put in here to remind us of what is a a a target, you know, so we don't have to say what would 17% do, what 14% do. GAP says, here's a formula you can use to create a target and and we could do something like that in here, which is just as general as the rest of the stuff. It's not it's not in the ordinance. It's just in the resolution. Is that reasonable?

Well, I say that's surely that sounds reasonable when you have a uh you know, six councilmen that are that are reasonable. But if again, if you get into, you know, different councilmen up here uh that are saying, well, I think, you know, uh going below that, you know, like saying, I think 5%'s reasonable. I think 2%'s reasonable. But then you're looking at Councilman's one man's opinion versus the generally accepted accounting principles. Haven't those generally accounted principles been present all this time? Yeah. Yeah. So they they've been in existence for I mean

but now now now that we're going through this and we're understanding where we are is an excellent time to put this in as a reminder that there are certain things that we need to look at and say wait this is this is the ships starting to list. Let's look at that gap principle and go back to that and use that as a target.

That's where an ordinance is a very hard and definite reminder. Yeah, like I said, I I think the resolution would be a good place for us to look at that target and then this is the reminder of the target and then the resolution I mean the ordinance is where we would make a change to it. Let me ask why wouldn't you want to say it's 20%. Is that too hard? Does it does it run us so low on spending? Yes. We just cannot do it. You have to be careful when you set that thing too high. Then you start figuring out people got money. That's what I figured. But I wanted to talk about that part.

And I agree that that's too high. That that is too rigid. But I'm just saying when you say a minimum of 10%. So you're saying established by the city council uh through the budget process not to fall below a 10% below. Yes, below a 10% say it's always going to be 20%. When maybe some years we cannot do that, right? He's saying put a bottom level. Put a bottom level, but the bottom level really should it's it moves too because if you have a $6 million operating budget, 10% is relatively high. If you had a $4 million budget, it's relatively low.

And so you I don't know if that 10% is something that you want to give you that wiggle room with. I I think uh well it seemed like Bentonville you know their budget was really high but then they got below and stuff. So it it's all, you know, uh, you know, to me relative to, you know, to the, you know, the size of the budget means that you're a size of a you're a larger city more than likely. And so that if a tornado comes through here or a massive ice storm that covers the the entire city, then it's going to be even more dramatic and stuff. And so I think that, you know, you don't have to convince me. It's whatever you guys want. It's your it's your ordinance.

I'm just saying I'm not looking for a hard and fast number. I'm just saying that shouldn't be, you know, should never, you know, I'm looking for a bottom floor that we should never go below this amount. I think the optimal thing is to at least do 15 if not 20%. But isn't that the purpose of the triggers? What the triggers

the triggers it says if the contingency reserve falls below the level adopted uh ify falls below 25% of the established intensity if it falls below 50% if it falls below 75%. Those are your those are are the things that you do to address where you are. But if you say the contingency is only uh 5% and so let's say that you know we're saying the contingency you know next year we're saying it's going to be 500,000 instead of 750 and so then then it's 25% of that 500,000 50% of that 500,000 you know so we're saying that each year we're whether we call it a percentage or a hard and fast number which I say percentage is is more appropriate Uh but uh I'm just saying that th those triggers only amount uh apply to that current year and that percentage of whatever you establish. And so I'm thinking even in a hard year we said we're going to go 15%. We'd really like to do 20% but we're going to go 15% because it's been a hard year. And I'm thinking, okay, now it's the triggers are 25% of that 750,000, 50% of that 750,000, you know, but I was saying if we lower if we lowered that percentage to 10%. Then it' just be 500,000 that we're looking at. But why would Okay, I I would kind of recommend this is for review right now. Let's review it and come back and tackle this next month and have some, you know, chance to look at it and and

this is only on second reading. This Yeah, this ordinance on second reading. So, you know, we can let's just table the second reading and keep on. I'd say just keep on and going. That's the second reading. Let's just keep moving forward. I mean, we can still have discussion again. So, I'll call for a vote, you know, on the second reading by title only. Second it. Is that a motion? Is that a motion? Yes. Motion is second. Mr. Brown. No. Mr. Baker. Yes. Mr. Terry. Yes. Mr. Rainwater. Yes. Mr. Tedford. Yes. Mr. Powell. Yes.

Passes by majority. An ordinance establishing a general fund contingency reserve providing funding, use administration, and replenishment, ensuring compliance with generally accepted accounting principles. Arkansas law and governmental accounting standards and for other purposes. Thank you. Moving on. Uh number four. Oh no, no, it's not been that again. Number five, city attorney annexation ordinance for fire station properties on a second reading. Again, this is the ordinance approving the order of the county court annexing the proposed future fire station property.

Discussion gentlemen, I'll make a motion to put this on for the third reading by title only. Second motion second. Is this the highway frontage or where the building's at? I forget. Highway frontage. Yeah. Can we get some second reading? Okay. Can I Can I say something real quick? You said second reading. Yes, you may. Um, I just want to reinforce the the concept of highest and best use the property. We've got 71 dedicated to already to a city city use and we're looking at

dedicating sales tax generating property for another non- sales tax generating use and this would be very long term and this would be considered permanent. And so when we start looking at Highway 71, that's precious stuff for us, that's meant to generate sales tax. So while I mean I I don't have any problem with annexing the property, but I I don't know that it's a wisest thing for it to be that type of use along 71. I mean, if it if it goes to the extent of sacrificing a retail use, I think that's, you know, we may have gotten it for a reasonable price, but to me it's kind of pennywise pound foolish because we're killing the goose that lays the golden eggs.

Well, a couple things I'll give you both sides of this argument. One, we may never have enough money to build another fire station. So it might at some point go to whatever. Two, you can go to almost any town in the area that's a decent size. And as you're going through all the stores and department strip malls, there's a fire station. So they get prime real estate gets wasted a lot on fire stations. We do it here for storage buildings. That's been that was been our MMO for years. Uh and we're really good at that. But the other and the third thing is at some point when the 49 highway comes through here, 71 frontage, it's going to be good but not great. I mean, so there's that. I I I get what you're saying, but I mean, and I I would love to have a third fire station because that certainly helps

Yeah. the infrastructure. Will we ever get to build it? Certainly. Probably not to the taste we want to have out there. I'm not so much arguing against what we're doing. I'm just saying from now on we need to look at a a piece of property like that and say is is that the best use for it? Yeah. And we need to think like that. Otherwise, you know, we've needed to for a long time, but we have not. You do have to think it's got to be out there somewhere, huh? It's a good location. I mean, I've visited with Stuart. It's a good location for the fire station. you draw that circle and it's covering a lot of the right spaces.

I don't think, if I may, I'm sorry. I don't think that it has not been thought about moving forward. I totally agree with you with any new property that the city might have the opportunity to purchase. I think I think it's very important that we do that. I don't I don't think kind of what Councilman Terry that property sat there for as long as it sat there and nobody to my knowledge attempted to purchase it. And I'm just on on that property's behalf. So, and I agree. So, the first thing you see when you go, what's the little town outside of the airport in northwest Arkansas? Cave Springs.

Cave Springs. You turn that corner and right there's the fire station. And that would have been an awesome spot for a case or something, but it's it's a big deal that your fire station is right there and able to address issues. Is there a better property for fire station?

Maybe, but I'm I think I heard you and I appreciate what you're saying, but you got to move past where we are and and we we have it now. I said the same thing about the senior citizens center and I think this fire station property would be the same if somebody came along one day and offered the city $10 million for either one of those property and I'm not suggesting we're selling anything. Please do not misunderstand me public. Uh but if that case if that showed itself then I don't think this council or any other council would go n we're good because that's not a great business decision to make. But in the future

that would be our contingency plan. We just spend everything else. So uh but anyway I I agree in the future we ought to consider every possibility and things are going to change when I when I when that interstate comes through. I think things will change. I mean don't know for better or worse but yeah. So I I don't that's worth anything to anybody. I was on the committee to to look for a place for fire station 3 was too. And you know when you're looking for a fire station ISO kind of dictates it's not a just a whereforall.

You're down to just a very slim spot. You're trying to keep the most house and rooftops and businesses in that circle that we cover. So we didn't have a lot of choice. Uh, and the everything else was more expensive. So, that was the cheaper one. I did I was at a fire conference this week where they all think Stuart's a rock star because he kind of puts it on. But one one of the one of the segments was put on by Northwest Arkansas Fire Chief and he said, you know, we are trying to constantly get out in front of that growth and he said, "It's not that we go out there and buy the ideal place for one for a fire station." we'll buy three pieces of property and then see what might work out better as the growth winds up out there. And he said, "You may find out the two additional pieces of property just paid for your fire station because it gets so crazy." And you took the most ideal one. Uh but ISO is is your game. I mean, we play this ISO game.

I remember that circle being drawn. Yeah.

Yeah. The circle was drawn. We looked at I can tell you where we looked. We looked at uh Jacob Burton's property which would have been in front of the library so we had access to the highway. And that's that's the thing. Access becomes a big deal. When you start delaying time, you're delaying response. And when you delay, you know, maybe you say, well, we save money if we put it back over behind the Boys and Girls Club. But if we delayed response getting to the scene, we constantly get graded on that response time. And when you're playing that ISO game, you're you're going to start getting gigged. And you start getting gigged, it lowers your ISO. And the big gorilla is Fort Smith. Fort Smith's coming at us. They're going to have ISO1. They're going to take that intersection. Years ago when we were at the municipal league before Doug Doug was mayor and may have been, we were walking down the hall with those guys and something come up about annexation. They said,

"Y'all, he that was you then?" He said, "You clowns can do anything you want up to Bear Hollow Road. You step one inch over Bear Holler, we'll bury you in litigation." And they said, "You won't be able to crawl out of that litigation." They said, "Cuz that's our water plane that comes up there and you're staring at that big water tower." So they said, "Y'all do whatever you want on the other side of Bear Hollow, but you are not going to step one inch boat." So we kind of know where boundaries are probably going to be. They'll probably fight. They paid a lot of money to James Fork for that water district. So, you know, they're going to fight over it.

So, we've got to cover up to about Bear Hollow. It become an ideal spot uh to to you do have a good point. You are taking up, you know, prime sales tax. One thing we did, we bought more land than we thought we needed at the moment. So, you know, maybe there's some when the concept plan is drawn out and it's all drawn out, maybe there's a little corner there for a seven bruise coffee and maybe there's a little corner there for, you know, something else. You know, a pizza to go, a Domino's or something. I don't know. But maybe there are a few little corners that can work in. But until the concept plan's done, you don't really know what you need. Uh but again, we may sit on this and if you come up with a piece of property that we can purchase, it's we know we know a fire station is going to cost three $3 million.

Uh we know that we'd already bought it if it was three million. But if you if there was another place that you thought would be comparable until we figured it out and we could give another $200,000 for it, maybe we do it that way. Yeah.

Well, I I I do uh respect your opinion there, Steve, that we do need to be cognizant of, you know, where our, you know, commercial properties are and, you know, and and not really try to take them up with, you know, city- owned properties, but uh uh but also I know uh uh you'd pointed out to me one time just about, you know, where our where our curio our curios are or whatever our main streets are, you know, and and the way I see it, you know, with the bypass, you know, that's really there and the intersection there at 71 is going to be a critical uh spot, you know. I think still Center Street and 71 is still a critical spot, you know. Uh and yes, 71 just period is all sorts of traffic over there. It's just whether or not you have uh egresses onto it and off of it, you know, is the the critical thing there and stuff. Uh, and it just so happens that we kind of acquired this property two times. And uh, you know, I I think that uh, uh, and it is good, like Tim's saying, for fire stations to kind of be near

stuff, you know, uh, yeah, stuff, you know, commercial properties, you know, and and, uh, res residential properties. And I think that's where the growth is going to be going that way, you know, westward and stuff. Uh but unfortunately a lot of that stuff on that side as you go north is none usable. It's flood plane unless it gets built up real high. So that there's not a whole lot of room for improvement behind the baseball fields and stuff. That's all just wasteland basically.

We did buy what we more than what we originally intended to because we bought those buildings. But the more you look at it with I49, I mean, they're purchasing property right now all the way to Y City. They're fixing to start blowing down to Y City. It's going to be a busy intersection up the road and that station's going to have to be a real station. We did early on back before we built station two, we toured Fort Smith stations, and that same comment about sales tax and everything, they did have one in a high valued area. It's that station that's right there by the mall. And at the time they were building it, they took over a station that was a rural fire station by that old that mall was on an old rock quarry. And they said, "Don't ever do what we did." And they said, "This was the biggest mistake in Fort Smith." I think they've made bigger mistakes since, but they uh they said we took this over and moved into it. And then as everything started growing up, we couldn't take any more land. They said, "Now it's the smallest station in Fort Smith, but it's the most expensive times two." The way we had to remodel it and bring it up to code and everything. He said, "We were backing trucks out. We were living in house trailers."

He said, "It's ridiculous. Don't ever get in a trap right there." Well, we think we've eliminated that trap by the property that has been purchased. So I think that's a good point there too with station two. We we wish in some ways that we had a little bit more land. Let me let me reiterate what I said a while ago for the general public. The senior citizen center is not for sale and we we have no one that has approached the city for it. So all of my folks that I visit with out there, please, we're not selling the center. So do we have a motion? I'm sorry. We do. We had a motion. A motion and a second. Yeah. I have one really quick question. Okay,

Travis, when it says assigning the same towards and I've noticed this about other annexation ordinances, it never says what board it's in. I mean, is that just some kind of legal ease that has to be there? Yes. I never see a ward assigned to anything. I just wondered about it. Let's put it in three. Just got to have it on there. Wait. Okay. Thank you. Yeah, it be W three. What? It can be W three. All right, Mr. Brown. Yes. Mr. Terry, yes. Mr. Mr. Maker. Yes. Mr. Ramwater. Yes. Mr. Powell. Yes. Mr. Deford. Yes. Unanimous. An ordinance annexing certain real property within the limits of Greenwood, Arkansas, assigning the same towards and for other purposes.

Okay. Thank you. Move on to new business. Number six, wastewater department resolution to amend budget for sewer portion of splash pad utility improvements. Yes, ma'am. Miss Tanya. It should be I think it's underneath. There it is.

Um the sewer portion of the splash pad was budgeted in 2024. It did not get carried over to 2025. I did not get a pay request for it till December 15th. At that time, the wastewater commission had already approved the budget uh for 2026. It wasn't on the 2025 budget and then we couldn't meet until February because of the ICE. So, they had to meet approve it, which they did to amend the budget to add the splash pad back in. It was in there. It just didn't get carried over. So, now we have to come to the council. So, it's something that was budgeted and it kind of just fell out by there was a lot of personnel change and it was fell out. It needs to be put back in

and it's being paid for by the city sales and use tax, too. Yes. Yeah. It's a capital improvement and it, like I said, it just it just missed the train for 2025. And so, when I went to pay it, I didn't see it in there. And so, I thought technically I didn't think I could pay it if it wasn't in the budget. And that's when Tom said, "Well, you have to amend the budget, but now you have to get the commission to approve it first," which they have our last meeting, and now it's up to y'all. So, it's kind of a technicality paperwork. Housekeeping housekeeping. We're throwing Tanya under the bus. Oh, okay. I was just

Yeah. I mean, when I got here, it was already completed as far as I knew, so I didn't know. We hadn't paid for it until I got a bill in December. So, I'll make a motion we adopt the resolution. I second it to adopt. Okay. Mr. Brown, yes. Maker, yes. Mr. Terry, yes. Rwater. Yes. Mr. Temper. Yes. Yes. I have a question for you. Yes, sir. Semi-related. Yes, sir. How so how close are we to being able to hook up the pavilion up there? to get to the bathroom to get the bathroom on. I didn't know we were uh working toward that. Oh, we're not.

But we got we got that thing that operates off of a tank that has to be emptied out. So, is that something you want me to look into? No. No. Just You think it's just a 100 yards? I did ask for just for fun while they were at it. Just go ahead and do just keep going. I don't guess it through all the rocks. It didn't work.

No, that's that's water commission, parks commission stuff. And I just was curious how close we were. I'll know next time anybody asks me how well that's that's how it would be very I mean it's going to be gravity fed I know it it just flush it up there and come down like I said just a big ditch just need pipe right no big ditch a ditch we're just a ditch away then a ditch that thank y'all very much thank you thank you uh number seven is planning or got sorry I thought had an extra comment. Oh,

the ordinance this is repealing is on your tablets if you need to look 22-7 amending others removing planning jurisdiction.

Yes, this is a fairly simple housekeeping ordinance uh aligning uh the city of Greenwood's standards with new state legislation. Uh as you are all aware the state legislature removed the planning jurisdictions from uh all cities commonly known as extr territorial jurisdiction ETJ. This ordinance just an amendment ordinance to any existing mention of planning jurisdiction authority and then also repeals the uh planning jurisdiction ordinance 2217. We we can carry this out. There's no need for an emergency. We can't do it anyway. Correct.

So, I make a motion we put this ordinance on for the first reading by title only. Motion in a second. Mr. Brown. Yes. Mr. Terry. Yes. Water. Yes. Mr. Steer. Yes. Mr. Yes. An ordinance amending code of ordinances of the city of Greenland, Arkansas to remove references to municipal electric territorial or planning jurisdiction to repeal ordinance 22-17 establishing a planning jurisdiction area to conform local law. through 2025 and for other purposes. Thank you, gentlemen. Thank you, Mr. Michaels. Uh, next is number eight, annexation ordinance on Jones Street. What?

Uh, yes. So, this is something I just wanted to get you guys in the know on, get you uh ahead of the game. So, this is an enclave that we have right up here off of Denver Street and Jones Street. Um I believe there's three property owners. Uh we can do this by ordinance, but there's a process by which we have to follow to do it. Um which includes a hearing and notice. The planning department's already ahead of the game on that and they've got a hearing set up before the commission, but you guys will need to pass an ordinance. And so I'm asking for your um proposal of an ordinance to be brought to you next month for consideration to annex this property. It's not something that has to go before the county court. It's a little different. So I just want to put it on your radar.

Jones Street's the old railroad. And so you're talking about over by the rodeo grounds. Okay. So you got the old concrete place. behind between that and the subdivision. It's not it's really illegal for us not to do it to have an enclave. Having an enclave is illegal and that's why we can do it by ordinance and we don't have to go through the county court, but it's a little different. So, I want to put it on your radar and request your proposal that we have an ordinance presented to you next month for passage. Well, yes. I I make that or

Yeah. Approval or whatever. I'll make a motion that we proceed. Have a motion to second. Second. Roger. Either one of them. M Brown. Yes. Mr. Maker. Yes. Mr. Terry. Yes. Mr. Yes. Mr. Tford. Yes. Yes. No. Which one? From Mr. Do it now. Can I get a copy of that sheet that you showed? Oh, yes. It'll it'll all be a part of the ordinance. Do we have any other ones? Oh, yeah.

We do. Set either one or tandem. I got about five or six have U I think three other enclaves. Valley Loop and then there's two on 96 going out towards East Gate. Out towards where? Eastgate on 96. It's between uh Ridgerest and uh where road. It's best that we just do them one at a time.

I think so. less just that way we only have a certain amount of pissed-off people in here at one time. Exactly. And there will be a one large one, you know. One on Jones Street. I think Michael Johnson owns one side and his dad owns the other side. Yeah. This is Johnson's property. Yeah. Bruce, most of it's in the flood plan. you know, I've got got all the documentation for the enclaves. It's just, you know, when we want to move on.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Uh, moving on. Number nine is a resolution adopting consent agenda process. Who want you? This is something I've been wanting to propose for a long time. And then when we got the codification committee,

we started talking about ordinances and routine like financial policy this that and the other that we could put in front of the council every year because a lot of these old financial policies and things get lost in time way back when. I've I can already think of several to do, but we would want to put a bundle of these things in front of you. It's a streamlining tool for meetings. Uh, multiple cities in Arkansas do this. I think that we're big enough and our meetings are long enough now that we could uh find some advantage in this. And examples of what could be in a consent agenda are the minutes, the millage ordinance, the procedural rules, like three documents right there that would require one motion and vote to pass. And if anybody had any question about it, because they're all there. All of the documents are there. They all went out just like you would normally do it. But you would say, "These three are non-controversial. They're easy. They're routine. We want to pass that right there." Boom. Done. Three things out of the way. You could always pick them out, pull them out. Even a member of the public could say, "I want to pull that out of this consent agenda." You know, it's all listed right there on the agenda. And say because I I've got something to say about it, etc. Anyways, it's all laid out in here. Um, and we talked about it at codification today. Everybody was on board thought it was a great idea. Anybody else about please have it

where where is part of it is where this where a member of the public can say something. Yeah. Where something could be pulled out. Oh, there's a second removal of items on the last page. Okay. I could I thought it was one page. Thank you. What? Who is there a state law involved in this? This just

No, it's just an option sort of like how you can run your meetings. Uh you know, like your procedural rules say you do this, that, and the other. This is just one of the tools in the toolkit in order to help streamline and make your meetings move a little better. Some of the things that we mentioned today in this clification meeting was did you already say that about what? Well, I can't remember. I'm trying you say was uh like minutes minutes and then typical resolutions. Yeah. Things things that we do every single year and it and there may be a month that doesn't have anything on the consent agenda. Yeah. And you don't just because it's in there doesn't mean you can that you got to have it.

You got to do it. Well, we in the third fourth whereas it's a recognized municipal practice. I'm just want to make sure that Mr. Foia out there says, "Well, what gives y'all the right just to blow through those?" Well, it addresses for you in uh section seven, consistency with law. The public can remove it.

We can remove it. So all the she's saying all the documentation that we would normally get if we did it individually is there. Anybody who looks at the agenda can say no I think we need to I think y'all need to talk about this. So everything's everything's covered. It's consistent with Arkansas law. So, another useful um scenario would be it's we just started today in committee talking about the municipal code and it's nearly nauseating look to look at and see all the things that need to be fixed. And so, there could be a time when we're bringing you guys two, three, maybe four corrective or curative um type measures that are just basically housekeeping. They're not changing anything. They're just making it to where our municipal code is accurate. Um, that could be another useful benefit of this.

Yeah. And you would have all of the documentation like you have now. You'll still get it before the meetings. I'll make a motion adopt the resolution. Second. Motion second to adopt. Mr. Brown. No. Mr. Maker. Yes. Mr. Terry. Yes. Mr. Rainwater, yes. Mr. Tempford, yes. Mr. Pow, yes. Passes by majority. Thank you. And then if you know, even if something passed and you felt like later that it shouldn't have on the agenda, n thank you. Thank you, Mr. Derry.

That is all on our agenda tonight. Uh I think Mr. Pervvis wanted to address you guys for a moment. Bob certainly Bob has been our very special guest in our department head meetings for the last three two three weeks. So we introduced him this morning as a uh chamber department. So told y'all get tired of me. But first couple of good news items. Uh this Saturday, 7th of May, 10:00 a.m. March

at at Ed Wilkinson Pavilion at Bell Park, we will celebrate for the first time Founders Day. It is the 175th anniversary of the founding of the city of Greenwood. It'll be fairly brief. We'll have some cookies and a birthday cake and some speech and a little history and the mayor will be speaking, but it still last less than an hour. But we hope this will be the first time and we hope we'll make this an ongoing event and hopefully turn it into something big for Greenwood as time goes by. But Donna Goldstein has done a lot of work to put this thing together. So, y'all are all invited. I'm going to send everybody a text. What's up? 10 o'clock. 10 o'clock at Saturday. Saturday 10 o'clock at the Bay.

Yeah. And I'll text all you guys and let you That's the seventh. Seventh. Yeah. Our actual birthday is the 10th, but that's a Tuesday. We figured best to do it on a Saturday when we could, you know, get some people out.

Second thing, a good news item. For the second time in three years, the Greater Fort Smith Homebuilders Association has picked Greenwood as the location for their showcase house. And again, it'll be built at East Village and Buddy's going to been going to build it. As y'all know, this is the showcase house that all the homebuilders kind of go in on, help with they they do a lot of things and then when they sell it, it becomes what funds the home builders association for the year. So, it's it's kind of a big deal that they picked Greenwood. We are going to break ground for that on the 20th which is a Friday at 11:30 in the morning. And again, I will send you guys an invite. But again, it's a big deal. We'll be out there and carry the Golden Troubles and go from there.

Big crowd last time. There was a big crowd. Yeah, there were people from all over. You know, it's a big deal. I know Buddy can tell you real quick. You probably folks that went through that home, the one he built before that showcase. Yeah. Do you know the number of folks that toured that? Hundreds. I mean, hundreds of people went through it. It gets a lot of attention. Got a lot of people in Greenwood. The 20th of March. Minister, 20th of March, 11:30 lunch will be provided by the homebuilders. So,

and the last item and most important where y'all are tired of hearing from me, but tomorrow's election day. Votes count. In in in my life, I have personally won one election by 11 votes. I've won one election by 13 votes and I lost one by 16 votes. I have managed campaigns where we won one by nine and where we elected a mayor by one one vote. She was dead, but we still won by one vote. The mayor was dead or the mayor was dead. Okay. Yep. But we got her elected anyway. Interesting. Long story, but fate to ABC News

tomorrow. I think we've done a good job getting our message out. We We've done everything we can do. I think we've done everything that was practical. The team had presented a unified message and that was important. Everybody was on the same page. Everybody had the same answer. When we heard negatives, all of your team had the same response back to them. So, it wasn't like, "Hey, we're nobody to do it." Tomorrow is getting votes out. tomorrow. Make calls to people that you think probably already voted because some of them won't have. Oh, I know. Bill always votes. Oh, Bill might have forgot. Oh, Bill might be busy. Talked to somebody who studies polling and he had five friends that he talked to after the last election. Oh yeah, we voted for him in the first election. When he'd already looked at the voter list, they didn't vote. But call people. Just make some phone calls. I'm going to send you all a message again tomorrow. The second thing for tomorrow, we're going to do it at our office. Put your thinking cap on. Think of an elderly neighbor or relative who may not can get to the polls. Somebody you could offer to give a ride to. We're going through some lists ourselves of people we say back there.

Everybody knows somebody. try to think of that elderly person or that disabled person. Okay. So, there's polling places everywhere around the area. I know for the early voting like my daughter and the principal polling place again will be at the EMT center. Well, would someone from Greenwood be able to stop at the tornado shelter in Ben Garren and vote on Greenwood stuff? I was told that my understanding is that anybody in the county can vote at any center. That was my understanding too, but I don't know. I'm just wondering. You'll need to have your ID and you probably need to know a little bit more, but they can pull up because it's electronic. They can pull a ballot up. It would just print the ballot for Greenwood's goodies and

Yeah. No, it's all computerized or all connected. So, yes. I was just wondering if they were going to be doing that on election day. A lot of I know early voting they said they were. They said that you can go to any voting center. Now, obviously, it's easier if you go to yours because they're expecting you and you're not going to throw it. You know, they're volunteer election judges. So, right. If you go to somebody else's, expect that you're probably going to go, "What?" Yeah. But it is. Thank you guys. I know y'all have done a bunch, but let's keep doing it tomorrow. Get up. We really appreciate your leadership on all this here in the chamber.

Y'all be proud of your of your team. Be proud of yourself. All except one who said to me today he and his wife had not voted yet. Has it happened? Okay. Have all y'all voted? Okay. Yes. Check the list. But nobody in particular, but they're waiting to be the difference makers. Voted the first day and tomorrow night we'll sit here and celebrate. Thank you for You are You have led this major. I want to I want to do a thing for my good friend, really good friend in Cave City, Arkansas, the mayor Jonas Anderson. Uh If you've not met him, you need to meet him. He's look like he looks like he's 15. Uh and he's not much older than that, but he is an amazing mayor for the city of Cape City. And they have been they have been nominated the strongest town in North America.

Wow.

And this is due to their recouping themselves or getting back their feet under them after that tornado hit. And so I would encourage you to I think anybody can vote. I know you can go to go to their website. It's www.strong Strong Strongs Strongstown that's weird.com. So, uh it is an amazing community. We've been there several times. Jonas is amazing leader uh does great things and this this community rallied. I mean, I was only in the fourth grade when Greenwood got blown away, but I remember watching what I remember as a as a 10-year-old us rallying and I got to witness it firsthand with their town, too. So, they they are coming back That That's quite a thing to get nominated. I think I think they're in competition with Oh, it doesn't say just headtohead with Oh, 15 other North American cities. So, anyway, that's a cool thing for them. So, I want to give give Jonas some kudos. And

you say Cave City or Cave Town? Cave City. Cave City. Cave City. Is it strongtowns.org? Because what you just said didn't get me. www.strongstown.com. Oh, it's strong. Yes. Is it ES? Strongest. Strongest. Sorry. No wonder I could. I'm like, I graduated here. I graduated here in Greenwood. Quit shaking your heads, people. The tornado had a big effect on the tornado. I may or may not have had in fresh head injury back in 1960. The fourth grade year was traumatizing. I spent the best three years in the fourth grade. Town. There you go. By the way, their high school mascots, the cave men.

Yeah, it is. I'm surprised it's not a watermelon, right? So they are the sweetest watermelon, not the largest. That's hope. But they I I go down there now to get I brought back 15 or 20 watermelons last year. So if you need a watermelon, let me know. That's what I've got. I know the department heads are here. We are department reports and questions from council. You can I have a department head question. I'm not sure which department I'm assuming is planning. Okay. So, I listen to uh Talk Business Fort Smith every Friday afternoon at lunch. That's how I eat my lunch. And it's very informative because they give you a lot of information about Fort Smith River Valley. It's Michael Tilly.

And he got into a segment talking about uh Fort Smith and uh how they're not being very transparent. Joey McCutchen was after him. And then he went straight into here are the building report numbers and he said uh he'd give it for Smith, he'd give it for Van Beern and he said I cannot get Greenwoods. He said they said they've ch software change. Uh he said they're not reporting the numbers to me. And then he kind of went on but it you know he he had a transparency type deal. So I uh I was actually doing And I went down sat on the computer and I just typed him an email saying, "Hey, I'll follow up on this. I'm a councilman." And

who is it? What is it? Who Who is this outfit? Talk business. Talk business. Yeah, it's Michael Tilly. Michael.

Anyway, 10 o'clock at night, I'd walked in the house. I needed my thing dinged and it was him and he was emailing me back and uh and I'll I'll read it to you and I can forward it to whoever. I just I I would have done it earlier. I just forgot and it says uh building permit now numbers. Mr. Pal, first thanks for listening. Second, we hope to be able to gain incorporated Greenwood numbers. The city is an important part of the region and has an impact on the regional economy that needs to be included. We initially told that the December and the and and 25 yearendin report was not available because it was stored on a on the old system that was no longer available. For the January numbers, we received a CSV file that provided no project totals and would only assign a valuation to new construction. Reports with the old system provided a monthly total of all permit values including renovations, additions, etc. for housing, commercial, industrial, and other types of construction. And he says, "If there's anything I can do to communicate better or make the process easier for all involved, please let me know. We would love to keep Greenwood in our in the monthly report." So, whoever reports that, I appreciate uh we need to be part of that.

Sure. And I don't I never understood that we were getting any new software. I I don't understand what the software deal was. So can we can we address that? Is that is this a planning deal? Who? Yeah. Yes. Okay. So my contact there is Tina. It's what? Tina Dale. Oh, I just sent him one to to Michael Tilly and he emailed me back. I'm assuming that that's her boss, but I So I did Michael Tilly would be her boss. Yeah, it's it's his program.

Yeah. So I send out emails every month with our permit reports, but I did not get December's full permit data due to an issue with our previous uh permit software.

Okay. And I gave them that information as much as I had everything from January up to that point and and all the way through November of 25. And then January's report was missing that critical data. Tina emailed me. I turned around. It took me about a week and I got her another report back. I had to create a custom one and call the software company, but we got that fixed. And I just sent out the report uh while the council meeting was going on earlier. So, they are getting them. They are getting Yeah. Okay. I just had to fix the report for January and then I'm hoping that February is correct.

You can go on his website and listen to his broadcast and it wouldn't have been Friday. I missed this Fridays because I was at fire convention and but it was the Friday before and it'll be on you can go into, you know, he's got Jonesboro, Little Rock, you know, and he's got Northwest Arkansas, but he's got Fort Smith and you can listen to it. And it was just the fact that he was following the transparency problems of Fort Smith. Yeah. And so we need to do everything we can to be very transparent. And I'm sure he could formally have an FOI, but that's no fun. We just let's just report him the figures.

Yeah. If he foil, he'd get the same information I provided. whatever this CSV communication CSV file out of that's a it's an Excel file that was originally requested several months ago and they didn't have the capability out of the old software this new software did and they didn't like it. So well if if you have time please follow up with them and make sure they're getting these numbers. I will. And because it it didn't sound good for Greenwood. Yeah, they've put it out several times that I didn't report the December numbers after I've explained why I couldn't I didn't have them. It sounded worse for Fort Smith.

Thank Thank you. Anything else? The department has Yes, ma'am. You're asking your own question. Oh, how'd you figure that out? It's close.

So, seven seven football field. Seven football. Long ways. That's a long ways. 100 yards, give or take. Yeah. Is the is the tank in the front or the back of that thing? I mean the hookup if it's about thousand yards. So you're close to the holding tank. You talking about for the it's on the if you're facing it. It's on the right hand side end of the building. At least it's in a good location. At least it's in a good location. You were in the park. You stayed at that. You were in the ball. He was in the ballpark. He's in the bell. He's in park.

Yes, you were. the trucks. They say there's a little rock up there. Hard and harder. Really really I remember watching when I was a parks director watching the some of you all remember that giant trench move about from here to that podium in a day and a half trying to lay digest

that white rock's the hardest that was uh What? That was one of the best jobs he ever bid on. And he loved every minute of it. Good one. A good one. Really? No. Yeah.

Yeah. Disco. Cheese did a good job.

Uh, most people may know and some that were watching may not know. Obviously, we had a little wreck out there at 71 and center the other day and I got asked about all the blue stuff that's all over the ground. And I mentioned that the Bermuda will be real nice out in that area. But that was from a grass people's fertilizer green work. Yeah. Okay. Somebody asked me what it is. I thought originally I was like maybe there was an oil spill and it was some kind of but then I got out there and saw that it was Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Right. Okay.

I just kind of want to put that on public record for those that are watching. I kind of wonder what all the blue stuff is out there. saw it on Highway, Chief, while you're standing up. We're talking about we're talking about accidents in that area. So, with Brahms, um, right now there's only one one ingress and eress to the curve. What uh where are we at with the that the fire? So, we're meeting Come on. Get up there, Brad. Get up there, baby. I mean, I know Brahms is going to be done here pretty

he's not here, but we actually met with uh Mr. Burton because he had the same concerns about that and we gave him our advice that you're going to have to rework that intersection and to where it it's most likely going to need need to be two lanes so you can until you get past tractor supply. It's to be determined. It's going to be uh two lanes on each side at least on the one side coming into town. As much as I hate the two

to get past so people making that lefthand turn because right now if you are sitting in traffic to go across, you know, to make a left-hand turn, you're going to block traffic out to 71. Well, I'm I'm talking about if if you're pulling if you just got you a a hamburger at Brahms and you're going to pull out and an accident happens there, how does everybody who's at the library and at Bronms get out because there's only one way in and out. That won't be that won't be always. I mean, as of right now, it is. But don't they have You can get out. They have the dirt road that is available to use.

Will people be able to use that road? That may be a hunter question for an emergency. Yes. So I we would probably reroute them if we could through there. If not, we would just work it like we do any other traffic accident. It's just going to be a a tough sandwich to eat for 15 20 minutes and it's going to be tough for We met with Sorry, Chief. The chief's right. We met. Were you in there chief? The chief was me, you Hunter.

Hunter, Cheryl Garner, and Jacob Sunny. And so we've got I have calls into ARDOT. We're waiting for and Jeff's not here, but he was in there obviously too. We're waiting on some confirmation back from Ardot. We we can look at it and kind of guess where our you know that's our street now. But obviously some of it coming off the stoplight coming up is still Art. So, we're going to work we're working with them and to wait to hear their suggestion and to make sure because what's what's on ours we can do what we choose to do uh without our DOT's permission necessarily but we want our dot to be on the same page as we are to make something work. So, and you're right it's opening in April probably last of April or something. So, it's got to be addressed quick and soon. And phone calls have been made and we've been out there a couple of times trying to

Oh, if uh the street director came back and got a price on what that would cost to do the to make the two lanes at least and get past tractor fly. Be nice to even get past the Walmart intersection to where you're coming over a blind hill. School traffic go to the Westwood if you're going to do it. does. So, we we've gone the Westwood traffic has gotten better with the new road. I forgot about I forgot about that. I'm out there so I know it has that has gotten better and people are getting more accustomed to how that works. So, that has dramatically improved versus what it was. But, you're right. This is going to be

going to be a little tough at the very beginning. Well, I can remember I'll toot my own horn many, many moons ago whenever we started to talk about the curve and putting in this stupid stoplight out there because there some stupid people can't drive and all this. And then I made the and then this pretty greenwood sign was going to get put up and I thought we're going to need to get with the highway department and redo the whole area for this stupid stoplight and the curve because it's going to be a mess if it is by the rendering we have. And everybody's looked at me like, you're just the fat idiot that yells touchdown. And so here we are trying to figure out how to I'm not an engineer.

You weren't even on You were just a regular old copper back then. Well, I'm just, you know, Hunter and Mr. Sunny and I tried to director 10 years ago. That's what I'm getting. Yeah. I'm sorry. So, what's wrong with our planning process when we're here at the end with emergency services out here saying this is fixed to be a disaster? This is why we have a planning commission. We're not the planning commission. This should all been done a year ago. Stop right there,

you know, and we don't build all this stuff. Developers build stuff. If you put in a If you put in a mall, we don't build all the roads and parking lots and all the egress and all that. The mall does. Not us. But it was by it was a tie. The tie got broke by. Do you ever get a kind of hard I hate that he's not here and I hate to I mean Jeff can speak for himself but we were going to look at what that would cost and it was talked about

if we're looking at also an alternate saying that a way out of that you know where the library is in the uh Bronms it should be more than just a dirt road I mean you know something like at least Well, it won't be. It won't be when it gets done. Right. When it gets done when you're going to get feedback saying, "Well, does the city would they like to pull in some money and help us pave and curb and gutter that?" No, they would not. That's the answer there. We've already addressed that in the meeting, too. Yeah. Over there off of what's that road? We can't pull up the map.

Yeah. So my next question then would be, you know, as the library is going up, as Brahms is going up. I mean, I'm assuming are we are we inspecting those structures as they're being built? I mean, Chief had somebody else. No, I mean, I'm talking I can assure you it's checking all the boxes, boys. Yeah, we uh we have inspections and everything. if you want to go with me in the morning and inspect the attic sprinkler system tomorrow. But SDC, but he's out there all the way to the top. I mean, we're we're we're confident. Oh, the sewer system. I'm talking about everything.

I'm not in charge of sewer system. I'll just charge the fire code. I will tell you right now it meets. Yes. Okay. I promise you.

Would I like to have a road that goes all the way through to Cedar Valley? Absolutely. And hopefully that's going to be his next plan to come to us. But right now, um, we had the the first and what two phases that came in to be approved and it meets it meets code requirements because of the the turnarounds right now. So, and both of them are sprinkled. But, uh, you start adding stuff on through then he's going to pro he's have to do a through road the rest of the way. And, uh, hopefully that's his next step. It's just like on a subdivision, you know, you build 30 houses, you over 30, you have to put a second entrance in. But on commercial, it's a little different. And so we're Yeah, we're on top. In fact, I'll be up there tomorrow at Bronms. And uh and then I actually had Travis tell me uh architect last week that suppression people showed up, wanted to start doing some stuff over at the library, and he shut them down because they hadn't even come to us to get a permit yet. And so I know even the architect's watching it out there for them. So

I sorry I went on site with both of those projects with Hunter what last week, two week, whatever it was and I can I can assure you the foreman on both projects were there and they know Hunter's truck and they were very cordial but yeah they're getting checked often not to mention fire.

To say before I left, Mr. Burton made that if when the dump trucks was going in there to deliver, he made that where they could make a left-hand turn and continue out to Cedar Valley. So, it's the road strong enough to hold the dump trucks. If you had to take a fire truck in there, I'm sure it would be okay for now, you know, but it's not the perfect situation, but they do take large trucks on up to Cedar Valley and come out back to 71 that way. It would certainly handle a Honda Accord if there was a wreck there. Yes, sir. Mil I get what you're saying. Might not make it to the other end with your ice cream scoop now. You know, I don't want to be talking about this 15 years from now.

I will say this. You know, we're talking about it's dry weather. You know, ask me that. Ask me that on Friday or Saturday if you can take a Honda Accord through there and it might change. So, I can tell you have two to four inches of rain. There is some dirt on the top, but you're driving on rock, right?

When When is that happening? None of our business

or the county library people, whoever wants to pay for it. I was going to say open. There's no certificate of occupy until that happens, right? Okay. Anything else? Water. Yes. I was wondering uh you know uh with the tunnel over here at the end of Main Street and the bypass, you know, uh that looks great. I was just wondering is there what the possibility of getting lighting inside the tunnel? It's after the fact. I mean, anything can be done. Casey, I don't know if you

you do. Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you now. Best time, I guess, as any, but not over there, but right here on the trail by this bridge, there may be two poles that have to be moved while they're demo and rebuilding. But I'll get he's going to get me. He's before he he's going to make a final decision. I'll get with you. So, Huh? You told him no. Can we tell him no? Uh, no. You can, but I think they're gonna do it. I think the best way to handle that is make sure that we're in charge of it and not I got somewhere and point put them back.

I got Well, for instance, I got a call from And by the way, this guy's really easy to work with. Kenny Hooton from Force called me the other day. He's the foreman in charge of all that. And he said, "Mayor, I've got we've got two memorial park benches over by the tunnel. We need to move them because we're getting ready to demo that trail section. address it to where it goes into the tunnel. Would you want me to do it or do you want to do it? You know what? I think I'd rather send our guys. So, we they did a street part went over there before I hung up on those and got them moved to save to place them somewhere else. The the asphalt, what I thought was asphalt that you see on this on the main street connection is not truly asphalt. It's a new product that will be covered with concrete in case anybody's curious. That whole connection

there to to 96 and No, no, no. Right here. Right here on off of Maine. Okay. That what's black. Now, if you hadn't been over there, there's a road. Yeah. Same thing down here. Okay. There's a road there, but it's not the finished product. There' be concrete on top of that. Their their main street connection. Is there have they put a time on it? No. I had a chance to ask I was asking him a lot of questions the other day and he kept saying there's no dumb question because I was I was asking him about the bridge with the netting. If you haven't noticed the orange netting that is to keep spark sp uh swallows

swallows thank you from nesting in there from now until they demo the bridge. They they inspected it said there were none or they got them out and then they put that birds. We were concerned that they were getting ready to jackhammer that bridge. Cats we got. I know. We don't have any cats anymore. I should have mentioned that too. But anyway, that's what that's for. And I failed to ask what what his timeline was on getting that open. I mean, he was very clear as you all know. That's got to be open before they demo. They didn't demo nothing till that main street. Yeah. So, they're working big time getting that prepared for all of Oh. I know what I meant to ask. Were we in council form yet?

Well, you can be now. What about all the this email I'm getting from the Burgesses and the entry to his farm and all that? I'm on top of it. As much as it may not seem like it, but I promise you I am. Well, I don't have any idea. I just saw Yeah, they're concerned and I understand their concern. Uh, no, I know. So, I called I called everybody except Jared Wy because I didn't want to bother him with that. Yeah.

And everybody else was very nice, but not not a lot of people had any answers for me. So I called Mr. W Director Wy and told him the concern from Burg's family and can we make sure that they are made happy. And he was very quick to say, "Let me get this to somebody that will take care of this for them." And immediately within the next day or two, I got an email from Dne saying that he had been I can't remember the gentleman's name. He's out of Walter and actually contacted him and said that he will They may not get everything that they try to be they were under the impression that they're going to get x amount of driveways. Some of those driveways were marked on the map as access points and some were marked driveways. An access point for ARD dot is not necessarily a driveway. It's just where the fence is a gate.

A gate. And so some of some of the family and I'm not I understand their concern and their wishes. They're trying to get as much they feel like they need to get what they asked for originally and so ARDOT is going to to quote Dane kind of we feel like we're going to get at least something maybe not everything we wanted but we're going to get they're working on it. The only thing you're able to get in the place you get equipment in there that's all they're asking. Yeah. So it's a it's being addressed. I guess a curb jump is what the issue is. I mean, you can put a gate here, right?

Yes, sir. Yeah,

I can probably call him tomorrow and get it. So at the at the center street in 96 as how's that is that going to be just again like it is right now stop sign and yield signs or it's supposed to have a traffic signal there in the end game end game. I don't know how they're going to do it if they think they're that close to putting traffic on it. Yeah, because there's not they haven't stubbed

down right. Yeah, Sunny, do you What happens to old highway 10 when it is in between? Does that become ours

from right here to from Bill Glass Autos to Yeah. From to the bridge that's not going to be there anymore. Are they are they going to take out the asphalt or they going to They will they're going to crush the asphalt and leave it and then build over it. They'll resurface it to brand new. You're talking about the old Highway 10, right? between the bridges. Yeah, they're going to crush the material. I mean, I he told me this very specifically the other day on the phone that that roaded will be crushed and left in place and then they'll build on top of it. Build what? So, yeah. So, the what we've all what we've always

No, he's just wanting to know what's going to happen from 96 to First National Bank. Basically, Yeah. So, what we've all questioned I have what you see they they you got the old you got the road we're driving on right between the bridges and then you got the the high side over here which is going to be the new road, right? And then they came along and built up down on the Burgess's property up to the existing road.

And I've questioned that many times. So the answer I got the just the other day with Mr. Force, Mr. Putin was the edge of that that is near over into the Burges property. That will be I'm sorry this is pitiful that that will be where that they will build that's the edge and it will slope up to the new highway. That's a that's a big slope but that's what he literally says. That's what he says

driveway. So, that will all be built up, covered over. Uh, and but that's how wide the slope is up to the new highway on that side. I don't know what they're I don't know that we Well, there's nine acres is theirs. That's what they were wanting us to fill in. Yeah, there's there's property that we own due to the rideway and that's what they're building on from wherever that ends. I guess that drop. So what we do on this new section will be on will be up to us. We can allow access to the Burgess property

from from off of the the new highway or not the bypass this. Yes, we can allow that. Yes, they're very restricted or that's why they're they don't ourod said from the very beginning. I'm talking way back before Jared Wy became director when we were talking to Lori Tutor and maybe even Scott Bennett that the access off of the bypass to their property would be limited because that's the whole point of your I remember trying to sell this idea and say hey that's our new economic development and one of I think it was Scott Bennett looked at me and he said

I don't think so that's the reason you're having bypass right so you out like the road around Poto. Yeah. So, so to answer your question, the road will rem that that asphalt was I was kind of surprised, but makes sense. I guess they're going to use it. They're going to bust it all up and use it and then just cover it up. It won't be hauled out, but it will be ours from 96 all the way to 71 will be center street. Yes. If you part in between there, the part that's ours, we could use it for something. No, there won't be. That's just It it's like it's going to be a slope. The rideway when the rideway ends will be Burgess from that point over to

and see they wanted to they asked us to fill it in to you so they can commercialize it and we said no. So does that make sense? I think so. I'm not sure. Well, and he told me he said you can call me any I kept saying I've got silly questions. He said there's no silly question. I'll answer anything you got. Bridges in a big slope. It look just like it did five years ago in about two years. There's going to be no kind of public access really to the bash grass or if we could use it for trail or something. Oh, it'll be it'll be underground. When you'll have a sidewalk on both sides of this new road anyway. Yeah. Never enough.

Anyway, that's and the five foot sidewalk is if you've not been out there We're not I go out there not every day by any means, but if you've not been on that new section of bypass, there is a five foot sidewalk on both sides from all the way across. Is it five laid all the way down through there? Yeah. And there's going to be a five foot sidewalk on each side. Both sides. Now, when it extends from Peak Bud all the way to 71, that that will be a five foot on one side and a 10 foot on one side. on between bridges is five and five. Now, this bridge right here is going to have a 10 foot sidewalk on this side matches that one down

between the bridge between here and 96. Oh, I uh I'm sorry. I may have spoke too soon. Uh I think so, is it Hunter? Are you looking at it? I think I think it does. Rod, I can't remember which side the tin's on. Well, the one they just built, it's on this side. So, I'd assume this one would be on this side and Why are we five laning that all the way? Why are we? We're not. They are. Why are they five laning that all the way? They says he Because he says we will He said we will not This is years ago. He said we're not going to come in there and build something that will be outdated in 10 years or 20 years.

He just told us we couldn't put any commerce on it. We need turning for the tractor to get in there. EMS. It's true. That's a great answer. I'm sticking with that. Okay, I'll buy that. That's what the chief would have said. I mean, I get having a turn lane at Maine and get close to Coker and out here, but you waste a whole lot of money making the fifth lane if we can't develop, which I don't think we should either. I get it. It's a bypass truck route. You got those bridges and wrecks. It's hard to get around. Yeah, right down the center.

Well, the other day I went out. I didn't ambulance chase. I happened to be on Fort Smith anyway when that wreck happened at the light and I got out there and I don't know who was doing we were there obviously with the with the ladder truck and it parked in that turn lane once it was cleaned up and who was driving I don't know but it pulled over there and parked for a moment a few moments while things cleared out and allowed traffic to go on both sides.

If it hadn't If they couldn't have done that, have been bigger. But on from from Pink Bud out to 71, I mean, every home that's there right now is going to have a a a be able to get off of the the bypass, right? Yeah. So, you're so need

the four lanes really for the people getting off. And as you've heard my sermon on where I think the next development could or should take place is out there on the north on the south side of 10 between here and 71 all that pasture land. I mean for I'm not I can't dictate what it is but I know there's already parties trying to sell that property off for development. There's some parties fighting back it every week at the church. Sure. Y'all fix that next week. Maybe. Oh the church. No, the lady who lives right by uh gosh, Mrs. Nixon, is it? Yes, sir. Miss Dixon, she's selling her road. She's selling. Yeah, she's kind of

I don't know if she's excited, but she's she's been on board from day one.

Different subject than the road and I'll try to make her real quick. AC and myself ate lunch with the two ISO auditors for Arkansas. Actually, they do more than Arkansas. And we're at the fire convention and they were inquisitive of stuff. Stuart was sweating. He's probably still if we get an audit, it's because of me and AC. But we he they were asking us what what's been working in Greenwood and what we're doing. And they're very very interested in our shift work. And I thought that itself was going to prompt an audit. But we we did we talked about where we were struggling. and they give they give us some suggestions about work uh putting some of your volunteer system on shift work where you just assign them a shift and pay them like $4 an hour to just take that block of time and he said because our fire departments they they were both from Benton and Bryant and what there some of them are still in Haskell and Haskell's growing and they said it worked in Haskell and they said really worked well that these guys would take that and they kept and quit getting zeros. So I I think me and AC will probably follow up over the fire department. So we may bring back a policy change that probably shouldn't have any budgetary pro, you know, there shouldn't be anything that would affect the budget. I think we can do it within the existing budget.

We're doing that to an extent. Not we're not doing that part where we're require we're talking about more medical. We're not doing so. they were work they had it where they were doing two shifts. You accepted 5 to midnight and midnight to 5 and then you would get a fee if you if you were to accept that shift and you when you accepted that shift you're you accept that you're not leaving the city limits of Greenwood and that you'll go to every call that happens between 5 and midnight or if you accepted the midnight to 5 and they said it really works. So these are the ISO guys

and uh so that was really interesting when me and AC were listening to him. So we might bring that up to Stuart and see if we can help if that would help us out on some of our problems. When you give that information to him, can you be somewhat here's something that might work? Don't just turn it on me. response. You don't want any response, right?

Anything else council forum just just one just one thing when we're getting rid of our planning jurisdiction. We need to document the things that arise because of that because there's going to be some push back on that. has to be that it's a disaster brewing right now for lots of communities can have no subdivision uh extension beyond the city limits. All

well all it tells me is you need to start trying harder to annex stuff. If the because here's the deal if the state's not going to let you have a planning district then you're going to have to figure out how to soften up on their stupid annexation rules. Now I can tell you this. The city enforcement doesn't care about rules. You'll get a letter in the mail from them and says, "How you doing, Steve? We're annexing your property. You got two months." They don't care about Enclave and all that junk and don't I don't want to hear that they do. Did you attend that at AML? I I don't think I got to that section of it.

Uh Greenwood is in a better place than most cities around the state according to uh Mr. Von Tugland because we have an ordinance in place that says if a subdivision outside of our planning jurisdiction, which is no more outside our city limits, wants to build a subdivision and has to have our services, they have to be annexed. So that then they come under our subdivision regulations. He says we're very fortunate to have that because that that protects us. But uh as it stands right now, the cities of our size that our planning jurisdiction ends at the city limits.

Yeah, that's what I'm saying. You just extend your city limits if you're mad about not having a plane. And at AML, they said you can whine, you can cry, you can beat your chest and all that, but the state says this is the way it's going to be. And he says you might as well get over it. He says we would we're going to continue to fight to get some of it back, but he says, you know, it could be two or three sessions from now.

Well, I'm just saying that as you know, as things happen, document those things carefully. If you know, somebody splits a lot out there and puts septic on it and and you end up with some of that incremental stuff, just document the impact on the city because that they need that. documentation to help with their case. Well, it's like this area out here on 90 secrets that put some roads in and they're just sitting out there in the the menopons and not doing anything. That's the reason why they're sitting there not doing anything. They can't get water. No, they you know he he came to us and was going to do this big subdivision. We said, "Okay, we need rope. We need curb and gutter. We need street lights and all that." And he said, "Whoa, whoa."

Yeah. And so he says, "Well, if what happens if we do five acre lots?" I said, 'Well, they're stateized lots and and if you can get uh and he wanted water and I said, 'The closest water we've got is at Eastgate. Y you want to run a pipe from there all the way out there. I said, you know, come you send us the plan. Well, we can't afford that. And I said, well, you can't get our water. And so he goes to Miltown Washurn and they send him a letter says, "We will not connect another house onto our water system." Correct. And so they're sitting out there with this property with roads and he he assures me that he has had it per test and it tested good. That's great.

And he said he has drilled wells and the health department has approved them. But have you seen any house being built out there? No, there's no water. No. Water. Where's that water coming from? You put on well water, I guess. Well, it's right over the the mines, right? Another old belt. City belt. Yeah, but he said the health department passed him, so who knows? I don't think. Okay. Thank you, Sunny. Anything else for the council or anybody? Don't don't don't but thank you. If not, I'll make a motion we Mr. Mayor. You're welcome. Love you, too.

Thank you all very much. section all