Blog

Admin: Sales Tax Report. (Aug 2018, $41,834.62) We have ended yet another fiscal period with a small budget surplus. In total Revenues collected are 0.7% less than budgeted and Expenses are 2.0% less than planned. I applaud all our employees for exercising discretion when making financial requests. Seldom do I have to decline requested items….staff recognizes the importance of tight financial control. This month, our City Clerk worked with our CPA firm to provide financial information for the routine end of fiscal year audit.

Online bill pay is available to all residents, and utilization is growing faster than I predicted. Residents are actively paying their invoices for city services online. Many have opted to receive electronic bills, however, paper bills will still be available for residents who do not want to receive them electronically.
New skid steer has arrived…the vendor returned the old one and issued full credit toward the replacement.

Projects:
The Preventative Maintenance project is progressing. The online repository will allow new employees to learn more effectively. The online resource will also house manuals, diagrams and other supporting materials. This month the PWA completed 9 additional Preventative Maintenance Schedules.
The ACOG REAP grants ae due 10/31/18. I have asked Darci Terrell to assist.
Surplus property website is online, surplus property will continue to be added as time permits.
The School project is progressing. We met with Kerr 3 Architectural group and IBTS, to discuss the inspections for the project. Kerr Group is very impressed with the plan in place to provide inspection services throughout the construction.
The City passed an ODOC audit for the grant funds received for the generators at the water wells.
The Safe Routes To School Project is progressing nicely. The primary construction is nearly completed. Still pending are the pavement marking, signs, lights. I have been working with Bart to plan the spending of the education component of the grant.

Mowing: The city is continuing to mow image and infrastructure properties, and is surprised to see the growing season progressing so late into the year. The mowing team is now equipped with a small trailer to tow behind a mower increasing efficiency. Response from the public continues to be positive.

Roads: Continuing to use inmate labor to improve the roads. Due to rain, we have seen delays on our weekly maintenance goals. We will continue to prioritize the roads and make progress on repairs. We installed approximately 30 tons of asphalt in the last month.

Wastewater: The lift station grinder is back in service. The maintenance tech informed us that Haynes had decided to shoulder the cost, although there was some debate as to the cause of the issue. They believe that deferred maintenance was a contributing factor. I pointed out that vibration caused by a field installed drive shaft extension could also be to blame. In the future, The City needs to increase maintenance to the device. The lift station at the Community Center failed 2 weeks ago. I was able to effect a repair, and order parts for a more permanent solution. I would like to add that lift station to our SCADA system for better monitoring. High cost will prohibit that expense in this budget cycle.

Fresh Water: Inspections passed. Standpipe final inspection is scheduled for Thursday, October 11. This month we moved four residential services and a fire hydrant on Broadway to a new service main.

Library: Operating smoothly. We are considering increasing Library operating hours to accommodate public demand. Proposed hours are: M&W 10-4, Tu&Th 10-6, F 11-2. We may be able to further extend operating hours using volunteer staffing. The library added a Fax machine…services for sale to the public.