DECATUR -- The Decatur City Council met Jan. 13 in the conference room at the city hall for the first session of the new year and new decade. The results produced a new city budget for 2020 and raised some concerns over the use of the community room at city hall.
As the first order of business, as is customary for every first meeting of the new year, the council approved its rules of order. In May of 2014, the Arkansas Municipal League published the "Procedural Rules for Municipal Officials" which governs how council meetings are to be conducted. It also sets up a "president pro tempore" to preside over the council meeting should the mayor be absent. The council voted unanimously to adopt the "Rules of Order" and establish city clerk Kim Wilkins as the president pro tempore.
The council went on to review, in detail, the new 2020 city budget. In December 2019, the mayor and his department heads met in several sessions to set up the new budget. In the 2019 fiscal year, which runs from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, the city administration, police, fire, street, library, parks and recreation all managed to stay within the allotted $1,611,211 budget and take in revenue equal to that of the expenditures.
The Decatur Municipal Wastewater Plant and Water Department went over budget for 2019, prompting the council to pass an amended water budget resolution.
City officials trimmed this year's budget down from 1.6 million dollars to $1,450,131, with administration set for $348,676, police $539,000, fire $163,750, library $35,802, parks and recreation $362,903. Expenditures for the street department, which is a separate department, were set at $426,190.
The Decatur Water and Wastewater budget was set at $6,329,050. The largest expenditure of this department goes to bond transfers, salaries and chemical supplies.
After careful review, the council voted 6-0 to approve the new budget.
Councilwoman Linda Martin reopened the community room rules of use once again. She and fellow council members Sandy Duncan and Robin Holt worked on and the council adopted a new set of rules governing the use of the community room at Decatur City Hall two years ago.
Concerns over the condition the room was left in after use prompted the council to review the rules. In some cases the room was left unclean, disorganized and, in one case, damage was found in one restroom.
The contract that each individual or group signs includes cleaning and placing the room back into the original condition.
Because of the abuse of this room, which is part of the historic 1937 Decatur High School building, the council considered closing the community room to public use on a permanent basis. After a long discussion, the council decided to keep the community room open on a six-month trial basis. It will be reviewed again in June.
The Decatur City Council meets at 6 p.m. on the second Monday of each month in the conference room at city hall. The first 30 minutes of each meeting is open for citizen comments and concerns. For more information, contact the city clerk's office at 479-752-3912, Option 4.
Note: The new polling place in Decatur was moved from the community room to the new Decatur Annex located in the blue building on the north side of the city hall. The March 2020 general election will be the first use of the new annex.
General News on 01/22/2020