The Blytheville City Council lowered property taxes 1 mill Tuesday night, a month after it had kept the tax rate the same.
The rate is now 4 mills instead of 5, after the measure passed, 5-0.
On Sept. 16, Blytheville Mayor Barrett Harrison vetoed a resolution passed at the previous Blytheville City Council meeting that kept the city's millage rate at 5 mills.
After that meeting, a Blytheville Courier News reporter handed Harrison and each of the four City Council members present a copy of the Oct. 21, 2008, Council minutes. According those minutes, the Council was to rescind the mill it added to property taxes last year because voters kept on a 1/4-cent tax for the police and fire departments.
State law allows a mayor to veto action within five days if it is "contrary to the public interests."
"I believe that the action taken at our September City Council meeting is not only contrary to public interest, but contrary to the motion made by Councilwoman (Shirley) Overman, concerning the 2009 millage, at last year's meeting," Harrison wrote in a letter to the Council dated Sept. 16. "The minutes reflect Ms. Overman's motion to read (Councilor Overman moved that the millage for the General Fund be increased to 4.0 mills to replace the 3.0 mills, and that the increased revenue be used to pay jail boarding fees, and the millage to be reduced next year if the voters agree to keep the 1/4-cent sales tax that is sunsetting in January 2009)."
Overman and Councilman Mylas Jeffers were absent from the Sept. 15 meeting, and new Council members Monte Hodges and Carol White were at a disadvantage when voting with R.L. Jones and Shirley Connealy to keep the same millage, Harrison said.
Of the 4 mills passed Tuesday night, 3 mills goes to the general fund, while the policemen's and firemen's pensions get 0.5 each.
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In other business, the Council:
-- Read three times and passed an ordinance setting procedures for lawn sprinkler irrigation systems. The measure passed 5-0 with Jones, Overman, Jeffers, Connealy and White all voting for the ordinance. White voted against suspending the rules twice before the ordinance's passage. She said suspending the rules is only to be used under an emergency. White said the law is in place to give everyone an opportunity to speak out against an issue. Jones, who chairs the Utilities Committee, said his board has been talking about the matter for three months. Several citizens gave input on the issue during those meetings.
Under the new ordinance, sprinkler systems are to be installed as recommended by the Arkansas Department of Health. Customers are to reimburse Blytheville Waterworks for the cost of materials as needed to install a separate meter and backflow prevention device. Each customer will receive a monthly bill unless he requests the meter be shutoff, which must be done in person. The individual also must request it be turned on again in person, then he has seven days to get a Reduced Pressure Zone test.
-- Read three times and passed an ordinance authorizing the issuance of revenue bonds for the Nucor Castrip LLC Project. The measure was adopted 4-0 with Jeffers, Connealy, Jones and Overman all voting "yes." White left the room as the Council was voting to suspend the rules and read the five-page ordinance by title only. She returned five minutes later when the Council took up the property tax issue.
Before the Council meeting, there was a public hearing on the Nucor project. Nucor officials said the ordinance was a follow-up to a September 2006 agreement with the city. Among the items in the agreement was a Payment In Lieu Of Taxes (PILOT). Nucor officials said the city would have no liability for the revenue bonds, which cannot exceed $250 million.
During the public meeting, White asked what percentage of Nucor workers are Blytheville residents as the company requests not paying property taxes. Officials didn't have that figure, though Harrison noted at one time 75 percent of the company's work force included Mississippi County residents. Blytheville resident Louis Rankin said Nucor does a lot for the community and more than makes up for not paying the property taxes with its philanthropic efforts. City attorney Mike Bearden added the PILOT agreement was just a small part of the incentive package for Nucor.
-- Accepted the resignation of Joyce King from the Blytheville Historic District Commission and appointed Clifford Carver Jr. to fulfill the rest of the term, which expires July 1, 2010.
-- After a 15-minute discussion, passed minutes from the last regular Council meeting and the Sept. 18 special meeting with a 4-1 vote. White said the minutes were too detailed and voted against passing the minutes. Jones, Connealy and Overman all voted to pass the minutes, and Harrison cast the fourth "yes" vote.
-- Heard from Overman that department heads are beginning to submit their 2010 budgets.
-- Agreed to put an "In God We Trust Display" in City Hall that resident Preston Dunn gave the city. Blytheville is the first Arkansas city to put up the display of the national motto and 65th in the country to do so, Dunn said. Dunn is creating a Web site, ingodwetrust-arkansas.org. For more information, visit ingodwetrust.org.
-- Heard an update from Main Street director Anita Parrett. She said Saturday's United Way Chili Cook-off went well, and complimented Billy Reed and his crew for their work cleaning up Main Street for the event. In 2009, there have been 38 new full-time jobs and five new part-time jobs created downtown, Parrett said.
-- Voted to renew a lease with the state of Arkansas for a building on the Arkansas Aeroplex, which the city rents from the Blytheville Gosnell Regional Airport Authority. The University of Arkansas Archaeological Research Station uses the facility, which is rented from BGRAA for $434 a month and leased to the state for $714 a month.
-- Heard Streets and Drainage and Code Enforcement committee reports from White, who also delivered Councilman Monte Hodges' Parks and Recreation report in his absence.
-- Heard from Connealy there will be a recycling meeting Saturday at Arkansas Northeastern College's Adams Vine auditorium. Connealy said the city has received a $5,000 grant for recycling bags to be handed out to residents when Blytheville begins curbside pickup.
-- Heard from Ritter Communication officials about the company's recent rate increase. Ritter officials explained the corporations that provide the cable content raise their rates at least 10 percent every year. When Ritter and the companies negotiate to renew contracts, the costs go even higher, officials said. Ritter representatives said they have added 68 channels and brought back a basic package, which is $19.95.
-- Heard a report from Vector Disease Control's Tim Nelson.
-- Heard an update from Rankin on Cypress and Williams parks.
mbrasfield@blythevillecourier.com