County Commission Meeting

Monday’s meeting began in silence as commissioners took a moment to remember and pray for the family of Commissioner Doug Jobbitt following the recent and untimely loss of his wife, Robin Jobbitt.

Scale Fees established for brush and other non-pit materials

A resolution passed that established the scale fee for trees, brush, concrete, bricks, rocks and other non-pit material at $0.01 per pound or $20 per ton following the discussion at the Solid Waste Committee meeting on Nov. 2nd.

The resolution stated that the prices will be effective January 1, 2021, and “shall apply to everyone disposing of these types of items at the Lewis County Transfer Station, from residents, to businesses, to government organizations, to churches, to non-profits, etc.”

Those who plan to dispose of such material will be required to have a sticker/receipt showing that they are current on their Solid Waste Fees.

The resolution read, “As a part of their regular Solid Waste Fee, which primarily covers the disposal of household type waste that goes into our garbage trailers, residents, businesses, etc. shall also be allowed to dispose up to 250 pounds of this type of material per day (per dwelling/per business) at no additional cost.

“This cannot be accrued and built up over time; it is only valid from day to day. As with pit material, a landlord cannot use their renter’s ‘Solid Waste Sticker’ and 250 pound daily credit for their use, nor can they combine their credit with other rental properties. Also, family members, friends, etc. cannot combine their ‘stickers’ and 250 pound daily credits together. Furthermore, a commercial business is not allowed to combine their ‘stickers’ and 250 pound daily credit with other businesses or residential dwellings, even if the owner of the business owns other businesses or residential dwellings.”

The resolution was sponsored by commissioners Wendell Kelley and Allison Tanner. The resolution passed in a roll call vote with 11 “Ayes.” Commissioners Brian Peery, Timmie Hinson, and Ronnie Brewer passed, as two “no” votes came from Commissioners Larry Hensley and T.J. Hinson. Commissioner Aren Ragsdale was not present to vote as he came in late to the meeting.

Scale Fees established for demolition of buildings

After consideration, a resolution was brought before the commission to lower the $0.03 scale fees for those who are bringing in remains of old homes, broken down barns and dilapidated commercial buildings in Lewis County.

The resolution, sponsored by Commissioners Austin Carroll and Brian Peery, asked that the new scale fee be 1.5¢ per pound or $30 per ton as long as the Solid Waste Director, Bradley Loveless, had been notified in advance of the demolition, reviewed the project on-site, consulted with the County Mayor and both gave their approval.

Those wishing to do this must also have their Solid Waste Fees paid up to date, and the free allotment of 250 pounds of pit material per week remained unchanged.

The resolution passed in a roll-call vote with 13 “Ayes” and four passes from Commissioners Peery, Hensley, Timmie Hinson and Billy Dyer. The updated fees have been in effect since Tuesday, Nov. 17.

Back-up radio system for Emergency Personnel

This resolution moved new money from the County General Fund into the Communications line in the Emergency Management Agency’s budget to pay for a back-up radio system for First Responders.

This would ensure that responders will not be without communication in the event of a tower going down, as it did in the past.

“Currently, the radio system is completely faulty outside of the Hohenwald City limits. Lewis County Deputies as well as the Hohenwald/Lewis County Fire Department are currently in an extremely dangerous situation where they lack the ability to communicate with our dispatch center as well as our other officers and emergency personnel,” said Sheriff Dwayne Kilpatrick in an email to the County.

The back-up system and repairs needed would cost $34,351, but would increase communication in the county by 30-40 percent, according to EMA Director Danny Atkinson.

The resolution, sponsored by Commissioners T.J. Hinson and Peery, passed unanimously in a roll call vote.

New Voting Machines for Election Commission

Administrator of Elections Rusty Isbell came before the Budget Committee on November 2nd and asked to purchase new voting machines for Hohenwald/Lewis County.

Isbell explained the current voting machines were unreliable and expensive to maintain, as four of them went down during this year’s elections. The lifespan of such machines, said Isbell, are typically 15 years. Hohenwald has had theirs for 16 years.

The total price of the machines including the equipment and shipping would be $274,651. The additional hardware, support and programming fees would be $8,883, making for a total cost of $283,534.

Isbell said the Election Commission worked hard to get a discount from all companies involved and finally got it, with Harp Enterprises giving them a discount of $76,600 on the machines.

The Election Commission also received a state grant that would pay for $100,000 of the cost, the City of Hohenwald agreed to pay $36,000, and the Election Commission had $6,934 left in their budget to put towards the machines, leaving the County Government to pay only $64,000.

Commissioners Ronnie and Robert Brewer signed the resolution as sponsors once it was revealed that the cost would be covered by the CARES Act Grant money, with $14,672 left over.

The resolution was put to a roll-call vote and passed with 15 “Ayes” and three passes from Commissioners Jerry Ashmore, Timmie and T.J. Hinson.

Other Business

The Commission unanimously passed a resolution that added Oakwood Road to the county maintained road list. Oakwood Road has three houses on it and is .10 miles long.

A resolution to adopt the policies and procedures for the HOME Grant awarded by the Tennessee Housing Development Agency was unanimously passed, allowing owner occupied homes in Lewis County to be rehabilitated.

The Commission unanimously voted to accept Vanessa Dicus as Deputy Assessor, with no pay raise, as appointed by Assessor of Property Travis Hinson.