Gentry council seeks additional 7/8 cent sales tax

GENTRY -- Passed on their first readings by the Gentry City Council on Monday, were two ordinances connected with seeking to raise the sales and use tax in Gentry by 7/8 of one percent. One ordinance authorizes the additional tax if approved by Gentry voters, and the second ordinance places the measure on the November 6 general election ballot.

If approved on three readings by the council and then by voters in November, the sales tax increase would increase Gentry's local sales tax from 1 1/8 cents per dollar to 2 cents per dollar and would make Gentry's sales tax the same as the tax rate in Siloam Springs and numerous other local municipalities. The state tax rate is 6.5 percent, the county receives 1 percent, and the city currently receives 1.125 percent. The increase would raise the total sales tax rate in Gentry from 8.625 percent to 9.5 percent.

The dedicated breakdown being proposed in the ordinance is 1/8 cent for street improvements (including sidewalks and parking); 1/4 cent for public safety (police, fire and ambulance services); and 1/2 cent to the city's General Fund, to be used (though not specifically dedicated) for the evolving park master plan as needed for phases and for other city projects.

"Once the 'plan' is addressed, the half-cent will be utilized to support the operation and maintenance of the new system and our efforts to provide an excellent quality of life and a great sense of place for our community," Kevin Johnston, Gentry's mayor, said at a town hall meeting last month.

This is not the first time the city council requested the increase. The council passed ordinances in 2014 to levy the additional tax, but the voters failed to approve it in the general election in November 2014. The 2014 bid for an additional 7/8 cent sales tax was defeated 347 to 252.

Johnston has said he thinks the tax increase stands a far better chance of being approved by voters now that the city has presented plans to the public for park improvements and other needs, including streets and public safety services, which would be funded by the additional tax.

Johnston also updated the council on plans to build an above-ground water storage facility near the Benton-Washington Public Water Authority tanks on Y-City Road to supply water to the eastern portion of the city's water system and to supply the new Simmons plant which is under construction along Arkansas Highway 59 just south of Y-City Road. Garver engineering services will be preparing plans for the new system which will enable the city to seek bids, as well as grants and loans to pay for the project. Preliminary cost estimates are in the range of $10.8 million, but that includes a 30 percent contingency because of costs which will not be known until geotechnical survey work and engineering plans are complete.

Water-tower plans are not solely the result of the new Simmons plant. The city had been discussing and planning to build a water storage facility for several years. Already, in July 2014, then public works supervisor David McNair said the Benton-Washington Public Water Authority was requiring cities to have storage capacity sufficient for at least 24 hours to ensure cities have an adequate water supply during times of peak usage, or should a supply line be disrupted, and that Gentry did not have that storage capacity but was dependant upon Two-Ton storage.

Updates were also provided to the council on the city's participation in a county bid request in regard to providing ambulance service in the city. Johnston expressed hope that partnering with the county in the request for bids may provide a less expensive option for the city in providing ambulance service. Bids are to be received by June 15.

Johnston said the city is paying $77,000 to Siloam Springs this year and is being requested to pay $130,000 in 2021. Johnston said joining with the county in requesting bids could possibly provide a less expensive option for making ambulance service available in Gentry.

Johnston said the county's goal with the bid request is for service which would be cost neutral to the county and to cities. He said that might mean the city allowing the ambulance service provider to operate out of a Gentry fire station to offset costs for the city to provide the service.

General News on 06/06/2018