HIGHFILL -- Council members in Highfill passed an ordinance not to raise water rates in 2016 and passed a resolution to allow the city to continue to pay salaries and operate in 2016 until a budget is adopted in January.
With rules suspended and on three reading with a single vote, the council, on Dec. 8, passed an ordinance suspending the rate increase which would have automatically gone into effect in January. Water rates would have increased by 5 percent without the council action to suspend the annual increase for 2016.
James "Butch" Wiand, the city's water and sewer department supervisor, told the council that it was his recommendation and that of the city's water board not to increase rates. He said the city is gaining new customers every month and was likely soon to gain a number of new water customers at the Silver Meadows Subdivision and he didn't want to raise rates and discourage area residents from signing on to receive water through the city.
Stacy Digby said he was neutral on the matter, seeing both the need for an increase to pay for the increased costs of providing water and for keeping rates low and gaining new customers. He said the rate increase would have only brought in about $7,500 per year, making it a small amount to forego if not raising rates could increase the customer base.
The council, at the recommendation of Digby, voted unanimously to table an ordinance to adopt a city budget for 2016. Digby said some additional work on the budget needed to be completed before it is adopted by the council. An additional budget workshop for the council was set for Tuesday night, Dec. 15, and a resolution was passed allowing the city to continue to function in 2016 until the 2016 budget is considered and adopted at the January meeting.
In reports submitted to the council, Gene Holland, Highfill's fire chief, reported that the concrete slab for the fire station addition was being poured on Dec. 8, clearing the way for building construction.
Vernon Reams, the city's street and maintenance supervisor, reported replacing a collapsed culvert on Hutchens Road and clearing trees on N. Holland and Marrow Roads in addition to other equipment maintenance and assisting the water department install new water service.
Wiand reported getting things ready for the water tank repair project and replacing old water meters which no longer transmit readings. He reported researching options for replacing air relief valves at the wastewater plant.
Blake Webb, Highfill's police chief, provided the council with a comprehensive listing of traffic stops and calls received by his department, including 74 traffic stops, 22 arrests and 130 calls for service in November.
The proposed general/administrative budget, still being reviewed and modified, reflects a decline in overall receipts from $874,520 in 2015 to $658,300 in 2016. Expenditures show cuts from $218,970 to $184,470. The proposed street budget shows income of $59,250 and expenditures of $121,303, with $62,053 coming out of the general receipts. The water and wastewater departments both show increases in incoming revenue and decreases in expenditures, with the amounts subsidized by the city for loan repayments declining significantly.
General News on 12/16/2015