County Reviews Storm Shelter Policy, Adds Volunteer Chaplain

By LYDIA BERGLAR
News Editor

The April 3 Dade County Board of Commissioners meeting was emptier than usual, with Phillip Hartline (District Two commissioner) and Bob Woods (District Three commissioner) absent and few other people in attendance. The work session and regular meeting portions were short but were followed by a lengthy executive session.

Regarding Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST), the board tabled one purchase (a Ford F-150 for code enforcement) until next month when the other commissioners are present. Melissa Bradford (District Four commissioner) asked if the vehicle would also be used for animal control enforcement, and Don Townsend (county executive) said it likely could be. He believes the county and city could share the vehicle, but those details have yet to be decided on and put into writing.

The commission then approved the purchase of a Ford F-250 for the maintenance department from Marshal Mize Ford. Including accessories, the total of $61,364 was the cheaper of two bids. The county will hold onto the current vehicle which has about 200,000 miles on it for a while, but it’s been having issues and needing repairs.

Townsend implied that having two vehicles would be necessary if another maintenance employee were hired, saying, “If we had another maintenance person, in time, with the additional buildings we’ve got now, we do have quite a backlog of things that need to be done.”

Townsend noted that the impact of the Trump administration tariffs remains to be seen, but the dealers agreed to honor the bids which they submitted two months ago regardless of tariffs.

The commission also approved the purchase of rifles for the Dade County Sheriff’s Office from GT Distributors. The DCSO’s current 19 rifles aren’t enough for all deputies, so the department is trading those in and purchasing 29 new guns. GT submitted the lower of two bids, and after trade in, the total is $33,780.50.

The purchase of 29 soft rifle plates (i.e. body armor) for $11,200 was also approved. The department’s vests currently don’t withstand shots from rifles.

The commission then turned to the storm shelter policy. (The policy was not attached to the online agenda platform.) Townsend reported that the policy was prepared by the Emergency Management department as part of its oversight of the shelters, but the policy was never adopted by the county commission. During one of the recent storms, questions online pushed the county to publicize the document officially.

Townsend explained that the questions from citizens were about bringing animals to the shelter. The policy allows service animals, but they must be kept on a leash. All other pets or non-service animals are not allowed to reserve space for humans. The policy did not mention some people’s concerns about allergies to animals.

Townsend requested that all commissioners review the entire policy (of which the animal portion is just one part) before the county publishes it online.

The commission approved the continuation of the agreement with the company that tests the old landfill (off Back Valley Road) for methane and other safety concerns. Townsend said, “We hope one day that the Environmental Protection Division will relieve us of this duty. We’re getting close to 30 years, and 30 years is the magic number we’re no longer required to do this, but as long as any of these wells show any kind of abnormal reading, they will continue to require us to do this.”

Townsend also noted that some amendments were made to the fire protection and rescue services agreement after the March 3 meeting with the fire chiefs. (He did not elaborate on the amendments, but the documents are posted on the online agenda.) The board will vote on the agreement at the May meeting after the fire chiefs have had their next meeting.

Wrapping up the workshop session, the commission accepted a bid from Trenton Telephone Company to purchase the old public defender’s building for $100,000. This was the only bid, and Townsend considers it a generous one. (Indeed, the tax assessor’s site lists the value of the property at just $54,900.)

Before Pastor Jerry Atkins gave the invocation, Townsend announced that Atkins is now the volunteer chaplain for the county. The county chaplain will be present at community events and will visit county departments. It is not a paid position; rather (per the role’s description) it is “offered as a gift of service by someone who genuinely loves and cares for the people of Dade County.”

During his report, Bill Pullen (District One county commissioner) noted that population growth is a common topic of discussion, and he mentioned two articles in the “Chattanooga Times Free Press” that might interest readers. He did not directly name the articles, but it appears he was referring to the articles titled “Hamilton County looking at alternatives as growth strains waste capacity” and “Opinion: Hamilton County data show academic success not always linked to economic disadvantage and per pupil spending.”

Pullen shared the 911 report. Calls for March were as follows:

• EMS: 235
• Fire and Rescue: 323
• Law Enforcement: 2,562
• Total calls: 3,120

Bradford reported that she’s been emailing her contact with the glass recycling program and hopes to set up meetings soon to figure out a glass recycling program for Dade.

Townsend’s report first covered several networking/community events on his calendar followed by a few announcements. He reported that more dirt work has been done at the animal control facility site, and temporary stop lights are at the interstate bridges at Hicks Hollow and Lake Hills while the bridges are being worked on.

All are invited to the historic courthouse ribbon cutting on April 16 at 2:30 p.m. Townsend thanked the Historic Preservation Commission for their work on the project over the years. He said, “It has been slow, but that was by design. A little slower process meant a little less expensive process.” A dedication service will be held later in the year once all plaques have been added.

Townsend reported that oral rabies vaccines are currently being dropped by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Citizens might find the small packets in wooded areas and might see low-flying planes dispersing the vaccines.

Lydia Soucy (library manager) reported that a new book has been installed at the Jenkins Park story walk. Also, at 6 p.m. on April 17, a free basic guitar lesson for teenagers (ages 11-17) is happening at the library. Space is limited, and registration is required.

The second annual homeschool art show open house will be at the library from 4-6 p.m. on April 22, and the art will be displayed from the 22-26. Soucy also touched on the vendor classes hosted by Lula Lake Farmers Market ahead of Mingle on the Square. (See the accompanying article in this issue.)

The board entered executive session to discuss real estate matters. After they exited the session, there was no explanation or discussion of those matters, and no vote was taken aside from adjourning the meeting.