The meeting can be viewed in its entirety on the city's facebook site.
Speaking before the board first was Taylor Marshall, bond counsel from the Friday, Eldredge & Clark law firm of Little Rock. He explained the ordinances that would 1) allow the city to levy 1/8 cent sales tax for the maintenance and operation of the parks, including the proposed aquatic and recreation center; 2) place the 1/8 sales tax proposal on the November 5th ballot and 3) place a 7/8 cent sales tax proposal on the November 5th ballot that would be used to pay off funds to come from a bond issue that would finance the building of the aquatic/recreation center and parks improvements.
The total sales tax under these proposals would not exceed 7/8 cent per dollar spent. The November 5th ballot will contain introductory language and three questions asking voters to declare themselves for or against the levying of a 1/8 cent sales tax per dollar spent in the city for parks maintenance and operation, for or against a bond issue to fund a new fire department main headquarters, for or against a bond issue to fund a new aquatic and recreational center. The two bond issue would include a total 7/8 cent sales tax to be collected per dollar spent in the city to pay off the bonds.
Marshall said the maximum principal amounts to be raised with the 1/8 sales tax to fund the fire department headquarters is $3.52 million. The maximum to be raised to pay off the bond issue to finance the aquatic/recreation center and park improvements would come to $28.82 million. Once these amounts are raised, the sales taxes would no longer be collected.
Under Arkansas law, the ordinances need to be passed in time for the ballot language to be placed on the ballot 70 days before the election date, which would August 27th. The bond issue would be announced in a newspaper prior to the election. Should the tax and bond issue pass, Mayor Don Still would issue an announcement of the election results and a 30-day challenge period would begin. Marshall said the beginning of the bond issue process would likely be in the spring of 2025 and the board would need to pass another ordinance at that point.
During discussion, there was a question from Director Trevor Coffee about language in the ordinance to levy the 1/8 cent tax. Marshall said that if the city found it needed funds for another purpose, it could raise the tax by 1/8 cent increments up to two and five-eighths of a cent. But to do so would require voter approval.
Director Mark Ross asked when the ordinances would go into effect. Marshall replied April 1, 2025, the date of the start of the second fiscal quarter of 2025. Sales taxes would begin flowing into the city about two months later.
The board passed a motion to suspend the rules. The ordinance to levy the 1/8 cent tax was read by title only by Marshall. It passed unanimously by roll call vote.
Before the vote on the ordinance to set the election for the 1/8 cent tax to be approved by voters, Marshall read the title and the two ballot questions.
City Manager J.R. Wilson then said, “So Taylor, just to be clear with the board, this eighth cent can be used to repay bonds whenever we want it to or we can use it to build up in operation and maintenance.”
Marshall said it could be used for both. “If the bonds get approved, then you're going to dedicate this tax, basically, to operate, maintain that recreational and aquatic center.” He added that Jason Holsclaw, Senior Vice President of Public Finance with Stephens Inc. who will market the bonds, will want to communicate what the city’s plans are to potential buyers of the bonds.
“Mr. Holsclaw is also going to want the ability to pledge the collections of this tax to our bond issue … He's not going to expect that you're ever going to need the tax, but he's going to want to be able to show investors that, if you need it, then you can use it to repay debt service,” Marshall said.
The second ordinance to be adopted was the one sending the 1/8 cent tax proposal to the November 5th ballot. A vote to suspend the rules passed. Adoption of the ordinance, too, passed unanimously by roll call voice vote.
The third ordinance contains the city’s ordering of a special election to levy a 7/8 cent sales tax to pay off bonds used to finance the new fire department headquarters and the aquatic/recreational center with outdoor pool.
Director Ross said the city board needed to make clear that the ordinance does not stack two new 7/8th cent taxes onto the 1/8 cent referred to in the first two ordinances passed Tuesday evening. “It's not that way. It's just 7/8ths total?” he asked.
“Yes, sir, that's That's correct,” Marshall said.
“The community thinks we're are trying to stack all these taxes on them and that’s not it. We need to make sure when we get out there and start talking about that, that is addressed,” Ross said.
Marshall referred to a part of the ballot language that introduces both ballot questions. “You can see the second sentence says the rate of taxation will not exceed 0.875% even if both purposes [the fire department headquarters and the aquatic and recreation center] are approved. I'm not saying people are going to actually read this when they get in there. Hopefully they're educated by you all before they get into the ballot box, and they're not reading this for the first time. But in any event that is in the introduction. You can point them to that.”
Marshall said the language of the two ballot measures binds the city to providing those improvements if they pass but allows the city flexibility to use any funds left over should the projects cost less than what is collected from the taxes and the bond issues.
Director Coffee made the motion to suspend the rules on the third ordinance and read by title only. Marshall read the ordinance’s title. Then by roll call vote the board adopted the ordinance unanimously.
Coffee asked what would occur if the 1/8 cent park operations and maintenance sales tax does not pass but the 7/8 cent total sales tax for the fire department and aquatic and rec center do. Marshall said then the city has the option of raising funds with fees to use the aquatic and rec center or it can do away with the bond issues approved by the voters with a 3/4 vote of the board of directors and elect not to collect the taxes. Wilson added that the city could go back again to the voters in a future election to ask for the operations and maintenance funds to be approved.
Holsclaw reminded the board that the large costs mentioned in the ordinance for the fire department ($3.52 million) and the aquatic and recreational center and parks upgrades ($28.82 million) are maximums. The city does not have to borrow or spend those full amounts on the projects but they provide a cushion in case of unforeseen costs.
Holsclaw said he would be available for public meetings in the future with city residents to promote the Hope for the Future projects.
In the next item, the new assistant manager Daniel Shelman was added to the list of signatories for the city’s financial accounts and Police Chief Kim Tomlin subtracted. Vice-mayor Kiffinea Talley expressed that view that the number of signees should be limited to three. Director Ross said there was nothing against Chief Tomlin in the decision. Talley made the motion to add Shelman and subtract Tomlin. The motion passed by voice vote.
Later in the meeting, during City Manager’s Report, Wilson said a commercial lease had been provided to the board members in which Hope and Hempstead County would rent the property being used by Wadley Regional Medical Center to the hospital’s eventual next owner, presumably Pafford EMS, with the Hope-Hempstead County Economic Development Corporation as manager. This lease needs finalizing and signing prior to any next steps taken by the bankruptcy court.
Wilson said under the terms of the lease, the city would get the $250,000 back that it paid for the property by 2029.
At this point, Wilson said Steward objected to the sale by MPT of the property Wadley Regional is using to Hope and Hempstead County for $500,000, contending that amount is below what Steward thinks is the true value of the property. He also said Steward is no longer paying its lease to MPT.
American Rescue Plan Act funds from the state of Arkansas could be requested for up to $4.5 million, Hope and Hempstead County have committed a million each, Wilson said. If the hospital achieves Rural Emergency Hospital status, the federal government will provide $2.5 million per year. This status is achievable, Pafford told Wilson, in 60 to 90 days.
Vice-mayor Kiffinea Talley moved that Mayor Still be allowed to sign the lease on behalf of the board. The motion carried.
In the next item after the ordinances were passed, a citizen living outside the city limits on Avenue B requested to attach to the city’s wastewater system having already obtained easements to place the pipe under neighbors’ property. Discussion led to Wilson explaining procedures for annexing, in case the board decides to do that in the future. Director Coffee’s motion to approve the request was carried by the board.
A session of questions regarding financial reports followed with directors asking about particular line items. Wilson said at one point, “Our sales taxes are at a growth rate for half the year at about 3.6% for our city tax and about 3.43% for our county. So if you put that together, our portion of the county, if you put that together, we're somewhere in the about 3.25ish range of growth rate for our sales tax.”
In City Manager’s Report, Wilson said the wastewater project to dredge a runoff pond, replace chlorine-based disinfection with ultraviolet disinfection and install an automatic valve is under way. He has asked Engineer Glen Spears to determine what the next wastewater project should be for the purpose of applying for funds from the state.
Wilson also announced that there was a train derailment this past week that necessitated repairs to the track be made quickly. The cost to the city is not known yet. A separate project to tamp the grounds beneath a section of railroad in the city was completed this past weekend. Another project to create a rail spur to Hexion will need new work because Union Pacific judged the track to be too low to the ground. The cost to raise it will be up to $100,000, Wilson said.
The Sixth Street Project paving will be finished Thursday at a cost of $311,000 for asphalt. Wilson asked the board to decide on options for striping. The striping options include 16th Street and possibly bicycling lanes on both streets with signage to prohibit parking in the bicycling lanes. Street Superintendent Kenneth Harvel helped clarify questions in the discussion that ensued. Director Ross moved to stripe and place bicycle lanes on both Sixth and 16th streets.
The motion passed unanimously. Harvel said the striping could get underway next week and be finished in time for the Watermelon Festival.
Wilson reported the park parking lots are near finished. He said he was appointed as a voting member of the executive board of the Arkansas Municipal League.
He also reported that Sparks Fly in July, the city’s Independence celebration involving concerts and a fireworks display was a success. Police Chief Kim Tomlin was asked how many cars were parked at the event. She said she had pictures but would lose count trying to count individual cars. Wilson told the board it could include a counting service for the event in next year’s budget.
A company called Moresco will be doing an audit on what the costs would be to replace the city’s remaining non-LED lighting (about 58 percent, Wilson said) and how much the city could save on energy costs after replacement. More specific numbers will be available by September and it is possible the board could be presented with a decision should the numbers be favorable.
Then came Wilson’s report about the process of retaining Wadley Regional Medical Center described above. The board approved a motion allowing Mayor Still to sign the lease on behalf of the city.
Director Ross raised concerns about the use of a bushhog rather than zero-turn mowers to control the grass at the I-30 exits. Wilson said these would be communicated to the contractor.
The meeting adjourned after an hour and fifty minutes.
NOTE: An earlier version of this story had J.R. Wilson saying $4.5 million in ARPA funds have already been requested. Wilson informed us today this is being considered but has not yet occurred. It also had Wilson saying Pafford EMS had pledged $2 million to an effort to improve the hospital. This also, Wilson said, is not the case. The article also had Wilson saying the hospital will pursue REH status. Wilson told us this is something being considered as an option at this point. SWARK.Today regrets these errors.