Said lack of information slowing down renovation at the city’s park
Jay Mayor Shon Owens showed frustration for the town’s lack of information about the utilities in and around Bray-Hendricks Park at Monday night’s meeting and said there should have been fireworks this year based on the possibility of how long it will be before work on the utilities for the renovation can begin.
“Before I get frustrated, why don’t we have all these answers before we ever start a project like this?” asked Owens. “These utilities are things that we are supposed to have in place and know what we’re doing before we ever get to a point we are ready to bid something out. We’ve been working on this a year. This is frustrating. We should’ve had Fourth of July fireworks. This is our fault. This is all on us. This is uncalled for.”
Dewberry Engineering Representative Crystal Weatherington told Owens she had been working on locating and understanding the existing utilities. She said she spent a couple of hours Monday to figure out the locations, but she had not been successful.
“We want to install sewer the at the park, and use the lift stations at the community center but I’m not sure what ties to one of the lift stations,” said Weatherington. “I’m checking with that company that designed the pump to see if there are any historical drawings for it.”
She said two lift stations are right next to each other and there are some water valves and extra sewer valves, but she is not clear how all of it is fed. She did say the sewer runs all of Booker Street but there is still some troubleshooting to be done.
Owens asked about the timeline for beginning of demolition, saying he has dedicated some of his heavy equipment to grade it. There are several unknowns and the council discussed the challenges.
“A lot of the stormwater stuff is going to be the challenge,” said Owens. “Even on my side of the business, stormwater stuff is pretty hard to get.”
Councilwoman Jane Hayes suggested figuring out what the town will need and bidding out the labor. Owens agreed.
Weatherington said she wanted to use all plastic and Hayes said there are lots of places to order the materials from, which may help speed the process somewhat.
“Anytime we provide the materials, we save money,” said Owens. “Some of this stuff is 10 months out. These are going to be the challenges we face to try to get the park done on the schedule everyone expects us to get it done.”
TAXES
The town’s millage rate was 3.8 last year, which brought the town $168,547 in ad valorem taxes. Keeping the same rate for next year, the town will receive $180,559 next year, around $12,000 more due to increased values.
Councilwoman Hayes made a motion to keep the millage rate at 3.8 mils for fiscal year 2022/2023, which was seconded by Owens. The motion carried unanimously.
There will be a TRIM (Truth In Millage) ad valorem rate and tentative budget meeting in September to be announced. The public is invited.
In other business, the council:
- Heard the first reading of the updated Land Development Code Ordinance.
- Was thanked by Jay High School Band Director Connie Wilkes for donating the picnic tables from the park to the school for use by students during band camp.
The next meeting will be at 6 p.m., Monday August 15, at Jay Town Hall. The public is invited.
