The Collinwood City Commission met in regular session on Monday, April 12th, 2021 at 7:00 p.m. in the conference/courtroom of Collinwood City Hall.
The meeting was called to order by Mayor Glenn Brown. All commissioners were in attendance, including Vice Mayor Danny Sandusky, Commissioner Jeremiah Stults, Commissioner Debie Pigg, and Commissioner Butch Kephart. City Manager Gary Victory and City Recorder Cindy Kephart were in attendance as well.
A moment of silence was observed, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
First was approval of the agenda. A motion was made by Commissioner Pigg and seconded by Commissioner Stults to approve the agenda as presented, and the motion carried.
The next item on the agenda was the approval of the minutes from the regular meeting held on March 8th, 2021. Vice Mayor Sandusky made a motion and Commissioner Kephart seconded to approve the minutes, and they were unanimously approved. Commissioner Kephart then made a motion to approve the minutes from the special meeting held on March 15th, 2021. Commissioner Stults seconded, and those minutes were approved as well.
Department reports from March 2021 were distributed to the commissioners for their review. There was a brief discussion regarding the automated gas meter problems having been corrected, and the need for trash cans around the city to be emptied more often due to heavier usage at the park.
Next on the agenda, an agreement was offered to the city concerning the current land dispute lawsuit over land that the city owns east of the intersection of Daniel Street and Third Avenue. The terms of the agreement were rejected by the commission due to the city’s ownership of the property. The commission agreed that no agreement to any terms needed to be decided upon at this time.
Next, City Manager Victory told the commission that the request for an extension of the CDBG grant had been approved, but TDOT is currently running behind schedule.
Victory then spoke to the commission about an infrastructure planning grant that is available to the city. He laid out the guidelines for the grant, and said that the city could use the funds for a water loss study of an asset management plan. The commission agreed that asset management seemed to be the best use of the grant funds.
Next on the agenda was the Tennessee Arts Commission grant for a mural at Veterans’ Park. The city is being offered a 100% grant to paint a mural at the Veterans’ Park on Broadway. The mural must be painted by June 30, 2021 in order to receive the grant.
Roof conditions on several city buildings were discussed next. City Manager Victory told the commission that an insurance adjuster would be coming to inspect and give an appraisal of the damage and cost to repair, and to decide if the repairs would be covered by insurance.
Next, the commission discussed the temporary use of the Carvle Bevis Education building by Wayne Medical. The commission decided against allowing Wayne Medical’s use of the building due to the work that has been done to set the rooms up as classrooms, and also due to the original agreement that stated the building may only be used for community or education purposes.
The sanitation contract was next on the agenda. City Manager Victory reminded the commission that the current contract will be up in one year. He said that he has been looking for garbage trucks to purchase, if the commission decides to take that route, instead of contracting it out. It was also discussed that the current garbage disposal company leaves leakage on the roads, which is against contract regulations.
City Manager Victory then gave the commission an update on the City Pool. He said that the pumps are not in working order, and he had to order replacement pumps.
Next, Mayor Brown read the Wayne County Welcome Center report, and went over the schedule for the Music in the Park series.
Several items were discussed under “other” on the agenda, including
•Due to continuing dog problems in the city, Mayor Brown spoke with a representative from Country Road Animal Rescue about how they may be able to help. He said that the city has received numerous complaints about vicious dogs roaming the city, and some citations have been given.
•A request to use the Carvle Bevis building by a dulcimer group was denied, but the group was given permission to use the Collinwood Fire Hall instead.
•EMS was given permission to use the Carvle Bevis building for First Aid and CPR classes.
•Several city streets have had their signs stolen.
•Tennessee Downtowns 50/50 grant for storefront renovations – the store owner must spend up to $2,000 to receive the maximum amount of $1,000.
•School Superintendent Marlon Davis contacted City Manager Victory about using COVID funds for swimming pool vouchers for students.
•Mark Greer let the city know that he was changing to Coca-Cola for Dixie Youth ballgames. Coca-Cola donated a scoreboard, and Mr. Greer wanted to know if they could put vending machines at the City Pool.
•A request to use the City Park for an exercise class was discussed, with the commission deciding that it would not be a problem.
•A city water customer asked City Manager Victory about a opening a business at his home that would require quite a bit of water. There is only a ¾-inch line extension where the customer’s home is located, which would not be sufficient. The commission discussed the need for a 2-inch line to be extended into that area of Railroad Bed Road, but decided that it is not feasible at the current time.
•The commission was informed that the fence surrounding the tractor pull area had been cut and stolen.
•City Manager Victory told the commission that he received a letter thanking Officer Horton and the City Fire Chief for their help while they were camping in Collinwood during a storm. The Fire Hall was offered for their use as a shelter during the storm.
With no further business to come before the commission, Vice Mayor Sandusky made a motion to adjourn. Commissioner Pigg seconded, and the meeting was adjourned.
