Monticello Council Holds Work Sessions on Budget

The Monticello City Council met for its second budget meeting Thursday evening, and discussed several individual budgets.

At their first meeting, they heard from Michael Boykin with the electric department, Monte Roper for maintenance, Robby Colvin with the gas department, and Waymon Cody with the water plant, sewer plant, water distribution and the street department.

Mr. Boykin outlined his budget, and said Mr. Roper is also paid from his budget. They have seven vehicles, he said, but one bucket truck is past its prime. He said he needs another bucket truck and a pole trailer. The approximate cost of a new bucket truck is $165,000, and he said he has found a used one for $84,000. He also said he needed a new computer.

The overtime in his budget was reduced, and he credited it with a lack of bad storms.

He said they are really busy now, and mentioned Oak Ridge Subdivision is currently being built, and said it looks like Phase II of Nancy Street may be coming along soon.

At the second budget meeting, council persons learned that there is enough money left in the electric budget for the current year to absorb the bucket truck and the computer. The pole trailer will be left in the 2022 budget.

Mr. Roper said that his budget is up as work is needed on the courtyard, and he can’t keep up with it. He has bid it out, apparently, and said it will cost $6,600 annually. That will include taking care of the alley, cutting grass and hedges, blowing the parking lot, etc. every two weeks.

Other items include some broken plaster which council agreed should be replaced with sheet rock, and he said that money is in this year’s budget.

The gas superintendent said his five year plan is in the works, and they are seeing growth in Jones County. He said he needs a four-wheel drive flatbed vehicle, and said he had found a 2016 model that would work. He said he wants to hire an employee now, as it takes about two years to become fully trained, and he has at least one employee that will likely retire in a couple years. He said he was unsure how much to budget for the gas water heater rebates, and he put a figure of $10,000, but felt like that much would not be used.

Mr. Cody had a power point presentation for the four departments he oversees. He said he needs to start replacing turbidimeters, as the current ones will not pass inspection. He also needs a computer software upgrade. He has a vacant position in the water plant he said.

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For the street department, he said he had five people, some of whom are aging, and that the current workload is very labor intensive. He made a case for a grappler truck to pick up limbs on the side of the road, and said if not, he needed more people. The first budget worksheet for the city added three personnel. After agreeing to buy the grappler truck, council approved one new employee only.

The only presenter besides city officials at the second budget meeting was Michele Celani with the Monticello Downtown Development Authority (DDA). The city funded the authority at $30,000 last year, and apparently is looking at that same amount this year. Mrs. Celani presented a handout and spoke for some time about what DDA does.

Council members questioned funding the Monticello-Jasper County Chamber of Commerce (COC) at $1,500, saying they didn’t know what that was for. They questioned if it was in the current year’s budget. City Manager Angela Redding said it was not, but when the COC sent the invoice, the city paid it. When she questioned it, she was told it is for promoting the city.

Other suggestions included making a separate line item for the city attorney, rather than lumping it in with other expenses in the budget.

The next budget work session is set for today, May 13, at 6 p.m. in Council chambers. Like all work sessions, there is no public input, and only council is privy to the numbers being presented.

There was discussion, before a closed session Thursday, about the city manager’s salary. There was also discussion on raises for all employees, but since the press is not given the handouts, questions will need to be addressed to the city manager, clerk, or a council member.

Documents produced by the city are public record by definition, but the city is reluctant to release draft copies.