By REVIS BLAYLOCK
NEA Town Courier
Blytheville committee members held the Fire, Police and Safety meeting followed by the Finance meeting on Tuesday evening at the Justice complex with Council members Linda Moore, Matt Perrin, Shirley Marshall, Barbara Brothers-McAdoo and R.L. Jones present.
During the Fire, Police and Safety meeting, reports were given by Leah Carmack with Pafford Ambulance Service, fire chief Mike Carney and police chief John Frazier.
Carmack reported for the month of September Pafford had transported 408 patients to the hospital, 48 refusals and 188 cancellations for a total of 644 responses. She also informed the committee they are fully staffed.
She also reported the Pafford team received third place in the Cooking for a Cure and they will participate in the chili cook-off on Saturday.
Fire Chief Carney reported the department is currently short one person but feels the position will be filled within a week. There will be another retiree in the next few weeks.
“We are losing two lieutenants with 20 plus years of experience and they will be missed,” Chief Carney said. “We hate to lose them but they have done their time.”
He said the department will be busy Oct. 6-12 for Fire Prevention Week. They will be busy throughout the month with demonstrations and visiting schools. He said the fire department does offer free smoke detectors and will install them for residents who need assistance.
“There is no reason for any individual to not have a smoke detector,” Chief Carney said. “Smoke detectors do save lives.”
He also reminded everyone the importance of checking batteries in the smoke detectors. Smoke detectors should be replaced at least every 10 years.
The fire department won second place in the recent Cooking for a Cure.
He said three firefighters will be attending rookie school and will be gone for 10 weeks.
“We will deal with it,” Chief Carney said.
The city pays for the meals and travel during the school.
He said the fire department had received four cases of NARCAN and he expressed his appreciation to Pafford staff offering training classes.
“It will be a good tool to have,” Chief Carney said.
He was asked about the hazmat response and if the department had what it needed?
“We are working on it,” Chief Carney said. “Memphis is a good contact for us. Containment is what we do.”
He said they are meeting and looking at any equipment upgrades needed.
Police chief Frazier gave the police report informing the committee the department is staffed with 29 officers. They are budgeted for 35 leaving six positions open. He said they are in the hiring process and are accepting applications.
Chief Frazier requested a $11,000 budget line move due to a mistake in software billing.
The request was to pay Ally IT for a monthly bill that was being billed yearly by mistake. The mistake was found in July and the department is responsible for just under $11,000 for the rest of this year that was not budgeted for.
The committee approved moving the request to finance.
Chief Frazier reported the cadets are still on track to graduate from the academy in November.
“They are doing well,” he said.
He presented the statistics and response times for the month of September.
John Callens, city finance director, gave the financial report for September. With nine months into the year he said most are in line. The golf course and parks usually utilize most of their budget during the summer. They will be going into their slower months.
He gave the tax collection report with the 1.5 cent city tax for September up $35,295.96 from last year and up $319,222 for the year. The one cent county tax was down from last year.
Shep Russell of Little Rock and Gary Goodnight, plant manager of Wheatland, addressed the committee about a bond issue to expand Atlas which would provide an additional 80 to 90 jobs. Following a discussion it was decided to move forward to the full council.
Blytheville Mayor Melisa Logan said the public safety tax that helps take care of the police and fire departments will sunset soon, once the Justice Center is paid off. She introduced Michael McBride with Stevens, Inc. in Little Rock.
McBride discussed the restructuring of the bonds once the building is paid off. There is a timeframe and it could go to the voters in May of 2025.
Mayor Logan said the city needs a new city hall and she has been looking at the options which included revamping existing buildings or building new and it would be cheaper to build new. She suggested building it across the street from the present city hall on property the city owns. Mayor Logan estimated that would cost $1.5 to $2 million. That would leave money to construct a community center and a new water park facility.
“We want to start on it now, so if the public decides that is not what they want, we will have time to make changes before the tax sunsets,” Mayor Logan said.
She said she wants something the city can take pride in and increase the quality of life for the citizens of Blytheville.
A preliminary discussion was held on locations.
Councilman Jones said he would like to hear from the people on the location.
Committee members agreed to discuss it again in November.
A 5-year contract with Ritter was discussed. The committee discussed the possibility of a shorter term. Councilman Perrin said he would contact Ritter. It was tabled until the November meeting.
Callens discussed the new time clock system for city-wide employees. He said his only concern moving forward was making sure it is compatible with the software.
The bids for four properties will be sent to the full council.