The Noel City Council has voted to reduce its monthly salary, which will eventually save the city $3,600 a year.
City council member Allie Peck made the motion Thursday night to reduce the monthly alderman's salary from $200 to $150. Members and Mayor Lewis Davis said city council candidates had to be aware of the salary before the filing deadline ended on Friday, Jan. 17.
The Noel City Council met in regular session Thursday night after the original meeting was postponed from Tuesday.
The pay-scale change is being conducted in stages, starting at the beginning of an elected term. The first three positions affected include Lonnie Huckabey and William Rose's positions, in addition to another position, which are posted as open positions on the April ballot. The other three council positions will be affected next year. The council has a total of six alderman positions.
When the reductions are all in place, city officials will see an additional $3,600 a year in the coffers.
Rose, who has served on the council for several years, brought up the idea at the December city council meeting. He initially wanted to drop the salary to only $50 a month, which would save the city $10,800 when the change is implemented for all the council positions.
The salary was only $50 monthly several years ago, but leaped to $200 per person per month with approval by the city council under a different mayor's tutelage, Rose said.
Alderman Terry Lance said saving money is commendable but worried that the reduced amount wouldn't attract needed candidates. He said he felt the candidate pool was already low. Recruiting people to run would be affected by the small salary, he said.
Peck said she thought dropping the salary would help the city's budget. "I didn't run for $200, I ran to help the town," she said.
City council members voted to drop the salary to $150 per month. Rose, Peck and Reid Schmit voted for the reduction; Huckabey and Lance voted no.
In other discussions, Rose said the staff, mayor and department heads should be commended for keeping the budget in line. He said the budget, by year's end, was $16,000 in the black.
"They need a congratulations, to keep us out of the red," he said.
Davis said the effort was due to everyone working together, including the city council.
Discussions also included boosting the street department, led by Christopher Craig.
City council members agreed to help Craig find a half-ton or three-quarter-ton used truck in good condition that department staffers can utilize. Members discussed topping out that budget at around $10,000. Davis said he and Craig would look at area dealerships to help price out a vehicle.
Members also discussed the possibility of hiring a full-time employee, which was budgeted in the current city budget.
In an effort to clean up the city, Craig said he would like a street department employee to begin handing out a letter to residents regarding improvements. The letter will inform a resident of cleanup efforts that need to be made. If the resident remains noncompliant, Marshal's Office deputies can then issue a ticket. Craig and city council members believe the letter can play a huge part in helping clean up the city.
General News on 01/23/2020