Board of Mayor and Aldermen
May 18th, 2023 Meeting
The meeting started promptly at 7pm. All members of the board were present. The Ward 4 seat is still vacant. No one signed up for the public comment or the public hearing. There were nine citizens in attendance.
10. Communication from Mayor, Aldermen, City Attorney, and City Administrator City Administrator Herman was the only member of the board with an update. The city has been in a lawsuit for more than 10 years over vehicle damage caused by a garbage truck. That suit has finally been resolved. The digging has started on the hill for the new rec center. The tennis courts are back on track to be completed. They should be done next week and the open house is coming soon.
Finance director Jason Barnes spoke to this. There are many revisions to the control manual. These revisions are all in the monthly packet. This is the 7th revision since the inception of the manual. All changes are highlighted in the packet. One of the changes is in terminology. The word clerk has been replaced with cashier. The tax clerk for the city was not replaced. The city now has customer service reps that are cross trained in taxes, permits, and licensing.
The city now uses an armored car for deposits. That language needed to be changed from police escort in the manual. All changes can be viewed on the city’s website.
13. Consideration of the Following Ordinances:
a. Ordinance 23-07: An ordinance amending the Municipal Codes Title 18, Chapter 3 Sewer Rates, Fees, and Charges, Section 18-301. Second Reading. This was discussed last month. These are the changes that were made to the fees, deposits, and late charges. Approved.
b. Ordinance 23-08: An ordinance adopting the annual budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2023 and ending June 30, 2024. First Reading. The annual budget was completed in a study session. The only change to this budget is that $1.2 million was added for a traffic light at Pleasant Grove Road and Highway 76. The city plans to borrow as little as possible and still get this done. This project will be on a three year not. Mayor Corbitt stated that intersection is in desperate need of a light. Finance director Barnes said there were a couple of typos that needed to be fixed before the second reading. Alderman Matthews asked if a comprehensive traffic study was included in this budget. Planning director Clark added that the study would be in the next budget cycle. The city is in the process of updating standards for subdivisions and do not want to complete the study until the updates are complete. Herman stated that the public works department has been working on paving and there are a few more projects listed. Herman created a list of all road projects and their funding in the packet for this month. At this point a comprehensive study would only help to prioritize projects. Clark and public works director Andy Cieslak have been working with other engineers on traffic issues in the city. Matthews stated that the study should be a high priority item. Clark and Cieslak have consulted others and can handle things internally for now. Approved
c. Ordinance 23-09: An ordinance to de-annex certain territory within the corporate boundaries of the City of White House located at North Palmers Chapel Road. First Reading. This property was discussed at the May planning meeting. Bill Norfleet’s daughter is building a house and the front portion of her property is in city limits. The majority of the property is in Sumner County. The county has to accept the change and that will not happen until September. The house is perked for a septic system, and that portion of the property is out of city limits. Approved.
d. Ordinance 23-10: An ordinance amending the Municipal Code Title 18, Chapter 3, Sewer Rates Fees, and Charges, Section 18-301 and 18-302. First Reading. The water and sewer rates are allowed to be raised at the rate of 3% a year. This is simply to keep up with inflation. The rate increase is reflected in the annual budget. The rate hasn’t actually been increased in several years. Approved.
e. Ordinance 23-11: An ordinance amending the Municipal Code Title 17, Chapter 1, Refuse, Section 17-113. First Reading. Director Cieslak stated that GFL actually went up in price, but were still the lowest bid. The cost to residents are going up $5/month/unit. There will still be recycling and backdoor pickup for those in need. There are added benefits as well. All of the services will stay the same; garbage pick up, recycling, and brush removal. GFL is working on their app and push notifications. That will take about six months to get everyone in their system. When GFL’s prices increased, the city already had their contract in place and got a great deal. There will be two Saturday drops offs for large items. People in the county pay more for their garbage pick up with fewer services. The last increase was $1 about 2-3 years ago. The garbage company is allowed to raise rates every year, but they did not. Approved
14. Purchasing:
a. To approve or reject the bid from Rogers Group in the amount of $434,710 and allow City Administrator Gerald Herman to enter into an agreement for the White House Heritage High School road extension project. The City Administrator recommends approval. The city has been working on this for a couple of years now. Herman said they have been collaborating with the school board and the county commission in Robertson County. This will connect the school to Pinson Road. The improvements needed are mostly for safety. Once the road is built, it will be up to the county as to how it is managed. The school has discussed a gate like the one currently in place. The city is simply providing the road and the lights. The pole that was in the way has already been moved by CEMC. The city is hoping to have it completed over the summer. Matthews asked who was paying for it. The city is covering the costs. (see road chart in article above) Matthews asked how the city ended up paying for it and no the developer. Clark responded that the developer was responsible for the upgrades to Pinson and the turn lane on Pleasant Grove. The road to the high school was discussed, but it was not ever finalized. Herman added that the tripling of impact fees will help in covering the cost. Approved.
b. To approve or reject the bid from Twin States Utilities in the amount of $2,173,762 and allow City Administrator Gerald Herman to enter into an agreement for the Southern Force Main Phase 3 project. The Public Services Director recommends approval. This is the next phase involving the water treatment plant. Herman said three bids came in to the city. Twin States did not have the lowest bid, nor the highest bid. The city has the option to reject all bids and start over, or go with the most responsive bidder. Cieslak added that Infinity (lowest bid) was missing information, including references, from their bid. They have done other work in the city, but a bid so much lower than the others makes Cieslak wary. Often a low bid will end up cost more when the company cannot provide the service for that cost. This is a sensitive project that ties into the city’s existing infrastructure. Approved.
c. To approve or reject authorizing the City Administrator Gerald Herman to enter into a one-year Interlocal E911 agreement between E911 Emergency Communication District of Robertson County, Robertson County, the City of Springfield, the City of White House, and other cities within Robertson County in the amount of $255,204.01 for furnishing dispatching services for the purpose of emergency dispatch at the E91 I facility. The Police Chief recommends approval. When Herman started with the city, the city had its own 911 dispatch. At this point in time, the city is tied in with Robertson County. The city splits the cost with RobCo. Other cities did not have to share cost as White House did, so Herman lobbied for other cities to have to share costs as well. That was done years ago. The yearly cost for the city is $255k but has actually gone down from last year. RobCo rebuilt the system last year and the city purchased all new radios. Approved.
Meeting was adjourned.
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