News- June 2007
Mayoral salary likely to attract better
candidates
Brownsville’s next mayor isn’t likely to be Webb
Banks. And the next mayor is going to be paid a lot
more than Webb Banks.
Mayor Banks won approval for a hefty mayor pay
increase when the city board met June 12.
Banks proposed that when the next mayor’s term
begins in July 2010 the office-holder be paid $75,000
per year. The current salary is $55,000.
Banks was quick to point out that he’s not setting
the salary for himself because he says, “I do not plan
on running … it’s certainly not for me.”
The city charter only allows mayoral pay hikes at
the beginning of a mayor’s term.
Banks says higher pay is more likely to bring out
better candidates.
Leaders want residents happy with name change
Aldermen delayed a recommendation from the
Brownsville Planning Commission that Elizabeth Street
be renamed. The action came when the city board met
June 12.
Elizabeth Street property owners, led by Mark and
Margaret Dyer, want the name changed to Lincoln Street
and Madison Avenue.
The Dyers told the board changing the name will
help improve the neighborhood’s not-so-favorable
reputation.
The Dyers say huge capital improvements to property
on the streets have made the difference.
Aldermen expressed concern about the costs and
hassles associated with the name change, especially
for residents. Alderman John Simmons, who is the
elected official for the ward Elizabeth Street is in,
and Alderman Leon King said they will visit the
neighborhood and talk to residents before voting on
the issue.
The name change is likely to be revisited at the
July meeting of the city board.
County unemployment historically
low
The April 2007 unemployment
statistics released by the Tennessee Department of
Employment Security report Haywood County’s
unemployment at historical lows.
In Haywood County the unemployment
rate is 5.1%. That’s down from 6.2% a month earlier.
Neighboring counties also reported
similarly good employment news, including Fayette at
4.5%, Tipton at 4.7% and Crockett and Hardeman
counties at 5.4%.
According to the state, the
unemployment rate increased in just one Tennessee
county in April, remained the same in one and
decreased in the remaining 93.
For a complete look at the state’s
unemployment figures, go to
http://www.state.tn.us/labor-wfd/news/april2007county.htm.
Haywood County Commission meets
May 29
Jail decision growing closer
County government’s timeline for
deciding what to do with our jail is running on
schedule. Jail committee chairman Brad Bishop reported
to the Haywood County Commission when they met May 29.
Bishop said the committee plans to
make a recommendation to commissioners next month
after a public hearing scheduled a week earlier.
Because the state says fix the aging
facility or risk decertification, leaders have only
three real choices; a $5.9 million renovation to the
existing building, a $7.2 million dollar new jail or a
$12 million-plus criminal justice complex.
County Mayor Franklin Smith says
there is new pressure, too. The jail inspector who, in
August of 2004, first threatened to decertify our
jail, has just issued a three-page report – finding
more problems than ever. Right now, Smith says, the
jail remains certified.
The mayor told commissioners that
the cost of the jail almost certainly means a tax
increase, “This means an increase in the property tax
or wheel tax or a combination…”
The public hearing is scheduled for
6:30 June 11. The county commission will hear the
committee’s recommendation June 18, and they’ll be
asked to vote on the recommendation when they meet in
July.
Commissioners adopt ethics policy
Like Brownsville’s government,
county government has adopted an ethics policy. A new
state law requires the policy and, May 29, the
commission adopted the County Technical Advisory
Services model policy. Among other things the policy
requires the county to appoint a five-member ethics
panel.
Mayor reports on mega-site
Mayor Franklin Smith told county
commissioners that there are companies looking for
megasites, but there are no “hot” prospects for our
mega-site at the moment.
Smith says he has appealed to the
Fayette County Commission, asking for support of the
project.
The Haywood County’s mega-site is
certified by TVA and encompasses about 5,000 acres
near I-40’s Exit 42. (See more information by clicking
on the mega-site link found on our home page.)
Anti-litter grant application
County commissioners have authorized
Mayor Franklin Smith to apply for a $27,000
anti-litter grant. The grant funds come from the
state.
Smith says the grant is awarded
annually and “pays for about half” what it costs to
clean up around rural green boxes.
The solid waste department spends
about $4,000 of the cash annually on education and
advertising.