Posted: Wednesday, February 20, 2013 9:03 pm

By DONNA RYDER
Associate Editor
The City of Union City has received a clean audit report.
ATA’s Craig Atwill informed council members Tuesday night there were no significant findings and the only one he noted during the meeting was an overexpenditure in the budget for the Carey Counseling Project in the amount of $8,824.
No city funds are being spent for that project. Union City applied for a grant on behalf of Carey Counseling to construct a new building.
The audit suggested the city carefully monitor expenditures and make budget amendments as necessary.
The other items noted in the audit were segregation of duties and collateralization issues at the Union City Electric System.
Financial highlights for the budget fiscal year 2011-12 include net assets of $61,116,469, of which $11,216,947 were unrestricted and may be used to meet the city’s ongoing obligations to citizens and creditors.
The city reported a general fund balance of $3,245,872, an increase of $778,598 in comparison with the prior fiscal year. The fund balance available for spending at the city’s discretion was $2,901,171.
The city did not increase its long-term debt, which was actually decreased by $647,997. The city still had $8,609,907 in long-term debt as of June 30, 2012.
The city increased its property tax and restricted spending during the 2011-12 fiscal year, it was noted.
“You have made progress,” Atwill said. “You’re a little ahead of the hound. You’ve turned the corner ... but you’re not out of the woods.”
“It was a deep long woods,” Mayor Terry Hailey replied.
After the meeting was opened in prayer by city attorney Jim Glasgow Jr., the council:
• Learned there were no recommendations for the one open seat on the Parks and Conservation Board or the two available positions on the Health, Education and Housing Facility Board. The council discussed the possibility of decreasing the number of people serving on those boards. Any such changes would have to be done through ordinances.
• Awarded a bid to Hank Riley of Union City for the demolition of property at 620 North Ury St. His low bid was $3,125. Other bids included $5,295 from Autry’s Trenching & Backhoe in Union City; $5,500 from SDT in Gates; $5,950 from Dennis Scarborough in Union City; and $8,900 from Goolsby’s General Contractors in Blytheville, Ark.
• Awarded a bid to Autry’s Trenching & Backhoe for the demolition of property at 604 Glendale St. His low bid was $1,495. Other bids included $1,575 from Hank Riley,; $1,950 from Dennis Scarborough; $3,500 from SDT; and $4,774 from Goolsby’s General Contractors.
• Agreed to solicit bids for demolition of property at 331 South Sixth St.
• Authorized soliciting bids for a two-ton truck chassis for the public works department. It is a budgeted item.
• Voted to allow the public works department to demolish barns at the Northwest Tennessee Regional Industrial Park and to sell the material for scrap.
• Hired TLM Associates for the engineering, design, administration and inspection of turning lanes off Everett Boulevard at Discovery Park of America. They will be paid $28,750 for their services, a fee city manager Kathy Dillon calls “a remarkable price.”
• Discussed a sidewalk at the corner of East Main and Clover streets which needs to be repaired. Public Works director Steve Ladd told the council it is the responsibility of the home-owners to repair or replace sidewalks in front of their homes. He said a tree on the property had been cut and the former owner was going to fix the sidewalk, but he is now deceased. The current owners of the property have been notified, he said.
• Heard from Jimmy Temple, with building and codes, that Greenway Recover & Recycle in Union City is working with Barker Brothers to haul off items from the property. The business, located in the industrial park, caught fire Sept. 13, 2012, and again  Oct. 31, 2012.
• Was addressed by resident Tina Roberts, who said she came to the meeting because of the yard sale issue, which was not on the agenda.
She asked the council to consider using the empty spec building for a recycling program. She said the city could hire out of work residents to sort the city’s garbage and use the rail line to send items off for recycling. She said it would eventually make money for the city and help keep trash off the streets.
She also told the council she thinks every time it rains, the city floods and the sewer system backs up.
Associate Editor Donna Ryder can be contacted by email at dryder@ucmessenger.com.

Published in The Messenger 2.20.13