[1:06] Dear heavenly father, we thank you for
[1:08] this day and all your many blessings.
[1:10] Remove anything that hinders us from a
[1:12] relationship with you. We pray for our
[1:14] country, our president, our state, local
[1:16] leaders. We pray for the military, our
[1:18] first responders, and their families.
[1:20] Lord, forgive us where we fail you.
[1:22] Lead, guide, and direct us in all that
[1:23] we do. And we will be sure to give you
[1:25] the praise in Jesus name. Amen. Amen.
[1:33] Call to order the January 20th, 2026
[1:36] council meeting. Uh Ally, will you lead
[1:38] us in the pledgece
[1:44] to the flag of the United States of
[1:46] America to the
[1:49] standy
[1:55] for all.
[1:59] Miss Vicki, call roll when you're ready.
[2:22] here.
[2:25] >> Here.
[2:30] Let the record show we have a quorum
[2:33] and we will start with a resolution for
[2:36] [clears throat] council procedures.
[2:41] » Make a motion.
[2:43] >> Second
[2:46] change.
[2:49] Who was the second?
[2:51] >> Lewis uh was made the motion and JP did
[2:54] the second. Any discussion
[2:59] » when you're ready? And what's the
[3:02] number? 01.
[3:16] » Oh, I'm ready.
[3:21] Oh, we can. Louis, do you mind to read
[3:24] it?
[3:29] » I can.
[3:30] >> Okay.
[3:32] [clears throat]
[3:32] >> Is this 01?
[3:35] Uh resol resolution 202601, a resolution
[3:39] establishing procedures for the conduct
[3:41] of meetings for the Hebrew Springs City
[3:42] Council. Whereas Arkansas Code annotated
[3:45] 1443501A1C
[3:47] requires that the governing body of the
[3:49] city of Hebrew Springs, Arkansas,
[3:51] determine the rules of its proceedings
[3:53] during the first meeting in January. Now
[3:55] therefore, be it ordained by the city
[3:57] council of the city of Hebrew Springs,
[3:59] Arkansas, section one, meetings of the
[4:00] city council of the city of Hebrew
[4:02] Springs, Arkansas shall be held in the
[4:04] council room at city hall.
[4:08] >> Yeah,
[4:09] >> it says,
[4:10] >> oh, okay, it does say 101 West Main
[4:14] Street or Community Center, 2011 Bobby
[4:16] Gene Lane, Springs, Arkansas. However,
[4:19] nothing shall preclude the relocation of
[4:21] meetings, regular or special, to an
[4:23] alternate location. Notice will be given
[4:26] to the public at least seven days in
[4:28] advance in the event of scheduled
[4:30] relocation. All meetings of the city
[4:32] council, regular or special, will be
[4:34] recorded in accordance with Arkansas
[4:36] Code 2519106.
[4:39] Section two, regular meeting of the
[4:41] Hebrew Springs City Council will be held
[4:42] the third Thursday of each month
[4:45] beginning at 6 PM. Special meeting times
[4:48] and locations will be posted on the door
[4:50] of the Hebrew Springs Council room as
[4:52] otherwise required. Section three and
[4:54] agend agenda shall be prepared by the
[4:57] Hebrew Springs City Clerk for every
[4:59] regular and special meetings of the city
[5:01] council. The agenda shall contain any
[5:04] item of business that any member of the
[5:06] Heber Spring City Council or the mayor
[5:08] presents for inclusion on the agenda.
[5:10] Any item of business to be included will
[5:12] be submitted with a brief written
[5:15] explanation for their requested
[5:17] consideration to the city clerk no later
[5:20] than 4 p.m. on Wednesday, one week prior
[5:23] to the regular meeting date. Agendas for
[5:25] special meetings will be prepared with
[5:27] the consideration of the requirement for
[5:29] public notice. Agenda shall be delivered
[5:32] by mail or other means to members to the
[5:34] city council, mayor, and press no later
[5:37] than seven days prior to the meeting
[5:38] date. Section four, notwithstanding the
[5:42] foregoing subsection of this ordinance,
[5:44] the city council may by a majority vote
[5:46] of the members present elect to place
[5:48] any matter before the city council for
[5:50] consideration of that meeting. Section
[5:52] five. The city clerk shall place any
[5:54] items of business to be before the
[5:56] members of the Hebrew Spring City
[5:58] Council on the agenda under the
[5:59] appropriate category according to the
[6:01] following order of business. Items under
[6:04] new business which are not resolved are
[6:06] to be again placed under old business
[6:08] under until resolution or removal by
[6:11] council vote. A call to order. B. Pledge
[6:14] of allegiance. C. Roll call.
[6:17] D. Motion to wave the reading of the
[6:20] minutes and approval of minutes. E.
[6:22] Approval of payments. F. Financial
[6:24] statements. G. Supervisor reports. H.
[6:27] Old business. I. New business. J. Open
[6:30] mic. K. Announcements. I. Adjournment.
[6:34] Section six. A council member may vote
[6:37] to approve minutes of a meeting even
[6:39] though he or she was not present at said
[6:41] meeting as an expression of confidence
[6:43] in the veracity of the SEC secretary.
[6:46] The actions of his or her colleagues in
[6:48] the corrections of the minutes
[6:49] preparation process. Section seven, any
[6:52] ordinance or parts of ordinances in
[6:54] conflict here are hereby repealed to the
[6:56] extent of such conflict. Section 8, that
[6:59] the provisions of this resolution are
[7:01] hereby declared to be severable, and if
[7:03] any section, phrase, or provision shall
[7:05] be declared or held in invalid, such
[7:09] invalidity shall not affect the
[7:11] remainder of the sections, phrases, or
[7:13] provisions.
[7:19] » Sorry. [snorts]
[7:20] >> Yeah, we need to change the address.
[7:22] >> Address is not a thousand. Yes. 860 or
[7:24] 806.
[7:25] >> 806.
[7:26] [snorts]
[7:35] Okay, Vicki, you're ready.
[7:41] » Yes. [clears throat]
[7:42] >> Yes.
[7:51] >> Motion carried. Next a motion to wave
[7:54] the reading of the minutes and approve
[7:55] the minutes as presented. excerpts of
[7:57] December 18th, 2025 company meeting.
[8:00] [snorts]
[8:06] » Any discussion?
[8:10] » Vicki, when you're ready.
[8:15] » Yes.
[8:25] Motion carried. Next, approval of
[8:28] payments journals dated December 1st to
[8:31] December 31st, 2025.
[8:36] » So move
[8:38] second.
[8:40] >> Any discussion?
[8:47] >> Yes.
[9:01] >> Motion carried. Next. Approval of street
[9:03] fund, financial statement, sanitation
[9:05] fund, general fund, community center,
[9:07] ON&M, and miscellaneous funds dated
[9:09] December 31st, 2025.
[9:13] >> I make a motion we approve those.
[9:15] Second.
[9:17] >> Any discussion?
[9:20] Miss Vicki?
[9:23] Yes.
[9:25] >> Yes.
[9:36] >> Motion carried.
[9:38] On to supervisor reports.
[9:42] Um,
[9:44] Chief Hell, would you like to go first?
[9:52] He had
[9:54] >> he had a report included included in our
[9:57] packet
[10:01] a letter to the mayor and council in
[10:04] your packet. Uh, I have had a unforeseen
[10:09] engine failure on the 2014 Explorer
[10:14] and
[10:16] um, it's going to be about $4,000 to fix
[10:19] it.
[10:21] In my opinion,
[10:23] I think [clears throat] I can make this
[10:25] work with $25,000 from general fund.
[10:30] I've already ordered the the one that
[10:31] was approved, the unit that was approved
[10:33] for 26 already. Um,
[10:37] but I can take
[10:40] the rest of it out of police equipment
[10:42] fund. Got about 45,000 in there. Um,
[10:47] maybe just a hair less and still have
[10:49] enough money to cover body armor and any
[10:53] unforeseen
[10:56] problems, radios, anything like that.
[10:58] Hopefully, we're good on all of that.
[11:00] So,
[11:02] uh I'm asking for 25,000 out of general
[11:06] fund. I intended on doing this in June.
[11:08] I know.
[11:10] >> I at least expected like March or
[11:12] something. I [laughter] mean, this is
[11:13] >> I No, I No, I really wanted June. That
[11:17] was that was the plan. We We had a plan.
[11:19] and I was planning on sticking to, but I
[11:22] hate to throw good money over over bad.
[11:26] And that's where we're at. Um,
[11:29] >> on the on this one, [snorts] there was
[11:31] also the upfit on the vehicles. Was that
[11:34] out of the equipment fund or was that
[11:35] >> No, some of it will come out of
[11:37] equipment fund for the first one. The
[11:39] second one we will have to come up with
[11:41] out of police equipment fund. That's
[11:43] what's going to Yeah, it's going to be
[11:44] run, you know, seven
[11:46] >> if I get Levi to do it, which he really
[11:48] don't want to do, but I think we'll have
[11:50] to. So,
[11:52] >> um, if y'all approve this, otherwise,
[11:55] uh, if y'all don't want to go that
[11:57] route, then I'll be spending about a
[12:00] fifth of my budget on one unit in
[12:02] January.
[12:04] >> Two questions for you. Do you have a
[12:05] sense of what the 2012 and 2015 could be
[12:08] sold for?
[12:09] >> Yes, ma'am. I I I actually did uh I had
[12:12] Dodge
[12:14] uh put an offer on them and it was
[12:16] $3,000 for both. 2,000 for the 15 and
[12:20] $1,000 for the old white car,
[12:23] >> which goes along with what the Witcher
[12:24] auction kind of gave us some numbers and
[12:28] guidance on last year.
[12:31] >> And what were the state doing?
[12:33] >> Uh was it not in your packet? Uh 39,000
[12:38] is state bid.
[12:46] I'm sorry. 41545 is the total.
[12:51] We have to have the police wiring
[12:52] package and they can put it in or we
[12:54] can, but it's still going to cost the
[12:56] money. So,
[12:59] 2145 on it.
[13:03] That has to go in there.
[13:14] one of the 12 and one of the 15.
[13:17] >> Yes, sir. That that was the intentions,
[13:20] you know, towards the end of the year.
[13:22] Um I just thought it would take longer.
[13:34] The other 20 pick up that one. Doing
[13:38] pretty good. It's actually got higher
[13:40] mileage than the one
[13:41] >> uh
[13:42] >> when we're talking about getting
[13:43] >> That's the animal control truck.
[13:45] >> Okay.
[14:01] I don't see that we have any
[14:04] other option. So, I'm going to make a
[14:07] motion that we budget $25,000 towards
[14:12] the purchase of a new police vehicle,
[14:15] amend our budget. I do have a question
[14:18] as to what it's going to do to these
[14:21] other things negatively.
[14:23] Are these things like crucial that you
[14:25] need? Other things [snorts]
[14:28] >> you said you're taking from
[14:29] >> Oh, you know, it it's things like
[14:33] I did go ahead and pull a thousand out
[14:35] for a ballistic shield after watching
[14:37] the the SWAT team run through the
[14:40] Holiday Inn. They gave us a training
[14:41] opportunity up there. It's a necessary
[14:44] piece of equipment. It gives them some
[14:46] coverage in the hallways. It'll act the
[14:49] same way in the schools. Uh, so I did go
[14:52] ahead and spend a thousand already out
[14:54] of police equipment fund. That's the
[14:56] kind of things that that I generally use
[14:58] that fund for. I know we're headed in a
[15:01] different direction on that uh with the
[15:03] police equipment fund, which is fine.
[15:06] Uh, as long as we don't have any
[15:10] breakdowns of anything. Uh, I'm talking
[15:14] about equipment.
[15:18] jump back to. So I did ask you to send
[15:21] that list of vehicles. So there were 20
[15:23] total, but you're talking about taking
[15:26] two of those 20 out, right?
[15:28] >> Yes, sir.
[15:29] >> So then we'll be functioning with 19. Is
[15:32] that still sufficient?
[15:33] >> No, there No, we'll be we'll be running
[15:38] the 14 Explorer and I think I explained
[15:41] it in the letter. I would hang on to it
[15:44] and if we've got the money in vehicle O
[15:46] and M at the end of the year I've got
[15:49] two 14s
[15:51] uh the car that Jonathan Hrey's driving
[15:55] and then that Explorer. So if the end of
[15:59] year vehicle O and M looks good enough
[16:00] that I can fix the motor and the
[16:02] Explorer if I need to or if his looks
[16:05] like it's going to keep on running we'll keep it. Uh just some decisions
[16:09] that have to be made on towards the end
[16:11] of the year. So
[16:14] we we'll be at 20
[16:18] units
[16:20] >> $4,000
[16:21] >> counting counting animal control. I'm
[16:22] sorry. I I keep on I I look at it all as
[16:26] one. It's 19 units for the police
[16:28] department. one.
[16:29] >> I'm looking at it all in one two, but I
[16:31] it also in that in that listing that I
[16:34] received of the vehicles, it only lists
[16:36] one 2025. I know we got two in 2025.
[16:41] You may just want to double check.
[16:43] >> Now, sir, we got
[16:44] >> models.
[16:46] >> So, there were zero in 2020. There are
[16:49] zero 2024 models in the fleet,
[16:52] >> right? 2023s. There's one 2025,
[16:55] zero 22s.
[16:57] >> The second one in 25 was new.
[17:01] >> It came out of police.
[17:02] >> One 2025 in the police vehicle
[17:04] inventory.
[17:05] >> Yes.
[17:06] >> For the year.
[17:07] >> Yeah. For the year. That was the only
[17:08] new purchase.
[17:10] >> We didn't get two last year.
[17:13] >> She was saying it was a used
[17:15] 25
[17:16] >> that we got.
[17:17] >> Gotcha. Okay.
[17:19] We we show
[17:21] again it just for clarity I'm I'm
[17:24] looking at it just to look at the
[17:25] numbers. So I total them up there's 20
[17:27] total. There were 21 12elves 113 214s
[17:31] 115 116 317s 118s 019s
[17:38] 12 5 2021s
[17:41] 022s
[17:42] 23s 0 24s and 125 is what it shows.
[17:49] This list is accurate,
[17:55] but the 14's not functional. I mean,
[17:58] we're sitting on it, but we
[18:02] >> and those included in here, though.
[18:05] >> Yes, they are included.
[18:06] >> Would knock us down to 18. Then we're
[18:08] adding one back to 19,
[18:11] >> unless there's another vehicle that's
[18:12] not listed.
[18:14] Well, he's got the new one missed
[18:16] >> that's coming.
[18:17] >> The new one was going to replace that 15
[18:20] car
[18:21] >> already. That was the intent of it. So,
[18:25] once this 14 went down,
[18:27] >> right?
[18:28] >> You know, it's it's just a tradeoff. So,
[18:34] » I still don't have any other questions
[18:35] and I still have the motion to approve
[18:37] 25,000 for the purchase of the
[18:42] go
[18:46] second JP.
[18:50] >> Any more discussion?
[18:56] » I'm sure it's only January.
[19:00] It's not budgeted.
[19:01] >> It's not budgeted.
[19:01] >> It will be budgeted. We'll have to, you
[19:03] know, amend later,
[19:06] which is fine.
[19:09] » Any more questions for Chief?
[19:14] » Okay, Miss Vicki.
[19:17] >> Yes.
[19:31] >> Motion carried.
[19:35] » Thank you.
[19:37] >> Uh Mr. Haves
[19:42] [laughter]
[19:43] from bad to worse.
[19:45] >> Yeah,
[19:46] not much better on this end. [laughter]
[19:49] Had some misfortunes. Uh we had a uh 17
[19:53] trash truck go down. Um, it is some
[19:56] major repairs. Basically, the whole
[19:58] regen system went bad in it and it's
[20:01] having some engine issues with high
[20:03] crankase pressures and that is not able
[20:08] to figure out until they actually bust
[20:10] into it. But just the uh regen system,
[20:12] just parts alone is 17 $18,000.
[20:16] And then, you know, if we're looking at
[20:18] a motor, 35 to $45,000 for a motor and
[20:22] the truck ain't worth it. I mean, it's 9
[20:23] years old. Average trash trucks about
[20:26] seven years old. You know, about seven
[20:27] years you get out of them.
[20:30] So that that's kind of where I'm at with
[20:31] the trash truck. Now, we did get our new
[20:34] one in today, which is going to replace
[20:36] the commercial. So, but that leaves us
[20:38] with still running a 2012 and a 2018.
[20:42] And then obviously our two new ones, we
[20:44] got the 25s and we run four a day.
[20:49] So, I don't have much for a backup at
[20:51] this point.
[20:52] >> Yeah. And Scott, we I know you just had
[20:54] some work done on on the new ones. We've
[20:56] gotten those back.
[20:58] >> Yeah, but I have to let one go again.
[21:00] The other one has to go in. I lost the
[21:03] last new one for six weeks.
[21:06] Engine issues. I mean, it was under
[21:08] warranty, but it's just a point of
[21:09] losing it. You know, you don't they
[21:11] don't give you a loaner
[21:13] >> to get one. So, we actually lost it for
[21:16] >> Yeah. One of the new ones. Yes, sir.
[21:19] >> And I have to take one. Actually, our
[21:21] other new one in is having uh ABS issues
[21:25] with the braking. So, I who knows how
[21:28] long I'm Yeah, I didn't plan on losing
[21:30] the other one for six weeks. So, and
[21:33] that was just over parts.
[21:36] >> So, you're pivoting from the freight
[21:37] liners to the Peterbuilt possibly so
[21:40] that you're not
[21:40] >> Yeah, I haven't been happy with
[21:42] Peterbuilt probably for the last three
[21:44] to four years. They they've been gone
[21:46] downhill. They're probably, but from
[21:49] what I've talked to all the reps and all
[21:51] that, they're the cheapest made truck
[21:52] out there.
[21:53] >> The Peterville or the Freight Liners?
[21:54] >> No, the Freight Liners. Yeah, the older
[21:57] ones were good. Like my 12, knock on
[21:59] wood, it's still running, [laughter]
[22:02] which I can't say much for the newer
[22:04] stuff in the Freight Liner.
[22:07] So, that's the reason why I flipped over
[22:08] to the Peterbuilds.
[22:10] >> They got a good rep and plus I went to a
[22:12] different type of packer.
[22:14] uh the the uh new ones that are on the
[22:16] pet on the freight liners right now that
[22:18] we have, they have pile backends on
[22:20] them. I went with the new uh new way
[22:23] designed the new back end for them and
[22:25] uh it's they've actually listen to the
[22:27] people that actually run them and work
[22:28] on them and uh I want all of you to come
[22:32] and see the new one. Put your eyes on it
[22:34] and you can actually see the difference
[22:36] in how they're built.
[22:40] What what is the uh
[22:44] >> what's that?
[22:45] >> Dollar sign. How much?
[22:47] >> How How much is a new one? Uh $2399.
[22:52] » Yeah, my my stuff's expensive.
[22:54] [laughter]
[22:57] » It's probably got a six-month lead on it
[22:59] if you purchased it today, right?
[23:02] >> I don't I didn't even look at leases.
[23:06] >> How long delivery?
[23:08] >> Yeah. On if I was to order a new one.
[23:10] Yeah, we're probably Well, he thinks he
[23:12] has he's able to get a hold of like
[23:14] three of them. And I said, "Well, just
[23:16] put my name on one of them just to hold
[23:17] it and see." But I could possibly have
[23:20] that by middle of February.
[23:24] >> The other one you got today?
[23:26] >> Yeah, I just just received one today.
[23:28] >> Oh, okay.
[23:29] >> After budget.
[23:30] >> Yeah,
[23:32] but that's going to replace our
[23:34] commercial.
[23:36] Would it be worth it to lease another?
[23:39] >> Um, no. I think we could buy these. I
[23:42] mean, these won't be the Well, the
[23:44] commercial will be ran hard, but the
[23:46] other one's going to be kind of my flip
[23:49] around truck. You know, it's not going
[23:50] to be used every day. I want to keep a
[23:52] good backup truck for when the new ones
[23:54] go down.
[23:56] >> Which one is the backup then? The
[23:58] >> the as of right now.
[24:00] >> No. Yeah. Yeah.
[24:01] >> Yes.
[24:03] >> Yeah. Well, we're we're actually using
[24:04] it now, but yes.
[24:08] >> And and technically the 12 is too. I
[24:10] mean, that's my cardboard truck, the old
[24:12] one. I try not to run it too hard,
[24:14] >> so we just pick up commercial cardboard
[24:16] with it.
[24:17] >> Yes.
[24:17] >> Emergency. It's just smaller, right?
[24:20] >> Yes.
[24:22] >> Yeah. I usually run that on like when we
[24:24] do a two-day holiday, like for instance,
[24:26] like Thanksgiving when we got Thursday
[24:28] and Friday. So, we'll do two days worth
[24:30] of trash. So, I put two trucks out on
[24:32] Thursdays and one on Fridays. And then
[24:35] when they're done, they come and pick up
[24:37] the ice, you know.
[24:38] >> So, what do you do with the truck that's
[24:40] broke right now?
[24:41] >> What's that?
[24:41] >> The one that's broke that you're wanting
[24:43] to replace. What do you do with it?
[24:44] >> What do you want to do with it?
[24:46] >> Uh, that I don't know. I don't think
[24:48] it's going to be worth much.
[24:50] >> Well, here here's what I'd like because
[24:52] I I'm not going to vote for $230,9
[24:56] tonight. I'd like to look at leasing.
[24:58] I'd like to see what we can do with it
[25:00] just to have all our options on the
[25:02] table. I mean, I don't know if anybody
[25:04] else is comfortable with just saying,
[25:05] "Yeah, 240,000." Um, I would just really
[25:09] like to see all of our options on that
[25:11] before we make enough before we
[25:14] >> see what it cost to lease.
[25:16] >> I would like to look at that.
[25:19] That's a lot of money.
[25:23] » And if we could trade, what could we
[25:25] get?
[25:25] >> Yeah. And I I would just like to see
[25:27] that, too. like if we can trade or what
[25:28] can we get for it? Like let's get all
[25:30] the numbers before we make a decision on
[25:34] that.
[25:37] » Also, what's the worst case scenario at
[25:39] this time in our in our situation that
[25:42] we're in? What's the worst case
[25:43] scenario?
[25:44] >> Uh if another truck goes down, we're going to be pinched, be down to
[25:49] three trucks.
[25:51] >> And it might be we just have to be
[25:52] pinched for a month until we get those
[25:55] numbers. Well, the problem is with the
[25:57] new ones, I mean, I'm
[25:59] >> If we can get this one in. Otherwise,
[26:01] it's going to be next year that you need
[26:03] another truck.
[26:04] >> Yeah. Do you think you could get those
[26:06] numbers to us in the next week and
[26:08] >> Yeah, I think I can.
[26:10] >> I mean, send them out to us in an email
[26:12] and we could look at them. I just want
[26:14] to be able to look at everything.
[26:15] >> Okay.
[26:16] And I know when we were discussing that
[26:18] budget, our
[26:20] I think our
[26:23] ideal would be doing no more than one a
[26:27] year.
[26:27] >> Yeah.
[26:28] >> Going forward. That way you're rolling
[26:31] one off, rolling a new one on. You kind
[26:33] of know that expense is there.
[26:35] [laughter]
[26:35] >> Yes.
[26:37] >> And I realize in a perfect world that's
[26:38] how it would work. And I realize we're
[26:40] going to be in this same situation with
[26:41] 225s
[26:43] at some point, but I mean, it just looks
[26:47] better
[26:48] >> continually rotating them. Yeah. If the if we're expecting to get nine
[26:54] years, maybe it's only every other year
[26:56] we've got to replace one.
[26:57] >> Well, and if we could lease one, it
[26:59] might help us for the time being.
[27:00] >> Yeah. Right.
[27:01] >> I mean, yeah, half a million dollars in
[27:03] trash trucks in one year would just
[27:06] >> That's a hard hit.
[27:09] on the on the expense of the expenses of
[27:12] repairing.
[27:15] What what level can we get it to cost of
[27:19] repair that we're talking?
[27:23] What other pieces are on the truck that
[27:26] could not?
[27:27] >> Oh, I I have no clue. Could could be
[27:30] cylinders. I mean, it it could be
[27:32] anything.
[27:35] I mean, I wasn't expecting the regen
[27:37] system to go on it. So,
[27:39] >> we're talking this is what happened here
[27:41] is just motor stuff, right?
[27:43] >> Well, the Well, the regen's actually
[27:45] separate from the motor
[27:48] that actually burns the uh with diesels,
[27:50] the soot all gets put into a filter and
[27:53] then the truck has to actually burn it
[27:55] off to clean it out.
[27:56] >> And our problem is, and this is what any
[27:58] trash company, the stop and go kills us.
[28:01] Uh big trucks, they roll 60 70 miles an
[28:04] hour. They burn in it while they're
[28:05] going all their exhaust fumes and stuff.
[28:09] Well, our trucks, I'm going to have to
[28:11] get them. Technically, I should be
[28:12] getting them forced regen, I'm find out,
[28:14] like every two months because they won't
[28:17] do it naturally. You know, they they
[28:20] have a system and we'll do it
[28:21] automatically,
[28:23] but our trucks don't get hot enough to
[28:26] do that. Like on an over the road truck,
[28:28] they get hot enough they'll burn them
[28:30] off as they drive them.
[28:31] So I was wondering about reach system.
[28:34] Yeah. Because
[28:36] tractor
[28:37] >> like my tractor gives me a warning light
[28:40] in I have to hit a button and I hit a
[28:42] button and then
[28:43] >> it it revs up for a really high RPM for
[28:47] probably
[28:48] >> 15 minutes.
[28:51] >> Yeah. Ours is an hour.
[28:54] >> Yeah. And so you have to
[28:57] that nothing tells you to do it. just
[29:01] >> it it does, but at that point it's
[29:04] already gone into like a limp mode.
[29:06] >> Yeah,
[29:08] >> because it should be doing it as you
[29:10] drive them.
[29:11] >> You know, it's it's what they call a
[29:13] park park regen.
[29:15] >> That's where I got to get them forced.
[29:17] They'll come in and do it on a computer
[29:19] and actually make the truck do it
[29:21] >> because it won't allow you to do that.
[29:26] >> Correct. And do a force regually?
[29:29] Nope.
[29:31] What does it cost to have that service?
[29:33] >> Uh about 110 bucks besides service call.
[29:37] >> Oh,
[29:45] and what about the jump?
[29:48] >> Okay, that's another one. Uh this one's
[29:52] uh been an issue. Uh the top end's been
[29:54] done on it three times. uh I guess once
[29:57] before I took over and then I did it
[29:59] when Jimmy was in mayor seat and then I
[30:02] just got done redoing it and it lasted
[30:04] about four months and it's pretty much
[30:07] uh it's something underlining issue
[30:11] there because I think there's a deeper
[30:13] problem in it to have it do it three
[30:15] times
[30:17] and the truck's 18 years old so I think
[30:20] it's time to cut our loss on it. I don't
[30:22] think it's worth sticking any more money
[30:24] into it. I mean, I could do it again,
[30:26] spend 19 grand and could last four
[30:29] months.
[30:31] >> Does it Does it have any value?
[30:35] >> It may,
[30:37] like I said, I haven't got that part.
[30:38] This just happened last week, so I
[30:41] haven't got uh I haven't dug into that
[30:43] one yet. an 18y old dump truck
[30:46] >> probably.
[30:51] I've seen them at 20 and 25.
[30:56] » We're using that on the street side.
[30:58] That the street side hauling gravel.
[31:00] >> Yes, we actually uh leap back. That's
[31:04] the one I usually pull leaf back with.
[31:06] >> Okay. We have but we have another one
[31:08] that we call gravel.
[31:09] >> Oh yeah. Yeah. I have a a big full size.
[31:12] >> Yeah.
[31:12] This this this would be considered
[31:14] a uh medium duty where the big one's
[31:18] heavy duty and then I got what they call
[31:20] light duty.
[31:22] >> So this is the one they're using for the
[31:24] leaf back.
[31:25] >> Yes, this is the one that usually pulls
[31:26] the leaf back. Yes, sir. Now I'm using
[31:28] the little guy. [laughter]
[31:31] >> What are you looking at for the price of
[31:34] >> there? Haven't got back to me yet on
[31:36] that. I should have it probably uh
[31:38] sometime this week.
[31:41] I mean, are we talking?
[31:45] » I would guess probably
[31:48] 150 to 160 roughly. I I'm not sure on
[31:52] that.
[31:55] » We have two other dump trucks because we
[31:57] run a leaf back and the claw to fix up
[32:00] limbs and such, right?
[32:02] >> Yeah, that's a grappler. That's its own
[32:05] >> truck.
[32:06] >> The grapple is a separate
[32:07] >> Yes.
[32:08] >> Yeah. That has a bed with the actual
[32:10] grappler on it.
[32:11] >> Okay.
[32:12] >> Yeah, that that I don't haul gravel or
[32:13] nothing.
[32:14] >> But that one's okay.
[32:16] >> Oh, yes. Yes, [laughter] that one is
[32:18] okay.
[32:19] >> How old's that one?
[32:21] >> I was going to say it's pretty new.
[32:22] >> Just wondering.
[32:23] >> Yeah, it is. It's newer.
[32:25] >> Yeah.
[32:26] >> Okay.
[32:26] So, um Scott will get us some
[32:29] numbers together and we'll send you an
[32:31] email
[32:32] >> with that info. That work?
[32:34] >> That's good enough.
[32:35] >> Okay. Thanks.
[32:36] >> Is that a 7500?
[32:38] The what?
[32:43] » I believe it is 74 or 75
[32:46] actually.
[32:49] miles
[32:50] >> probably.
[33:07] » Yeah.
[33:09] >> How long?
[33:11] Last time we had it fixed, it was gone
[33:12] for
[33:13] >> It was what?
[33:14] >> Four months or so, wasn't it? No, that's
[33:17] when I got it fixed.
[33:18] >> Yeah.
[33:18] >> Oh, yes. Yes.
[33:20] >> Took about four months to get it fixed.
[33:23] >> Mhm.
[33:27] » Yeah. Another parts thing. You know,
[33:28] that was that time where parts were
[33:30] getting hard.
[33:33] >> They take their time.
[33:34] >> Yes, they do.
[33:38] » Any more questions for Scott?
[33:41] >> Thank you, sir.
[33:43] >> Thank you.
[33:46] Okay, you ready to move on to unfinished
[33:48] business?
[33:50] Uh, ballfield shades. I was at league
[33:52] last week and talked to a couple of
[33:54] exhibitors. They're coming to find out
[33:57] there's a state bid for metal.
[34:00] Don't know why they didn't tell me that
[34:02] before. So, I'm waiting on some numbers
[34:04] from that. I emailed another one of them
[34:06] today. So maybe he can call me tomorrow
[34:08] or the next day and I will get y'all
[34:10] those numbers so that hopefully we don't
[34:13] have to put it out for good bid and we
[34:14] can just purchase the state good price.
[34:18] And then one of the gentlemen did give
[34:19] me another option to if we replace the
[34:22] shades they could put um
[34:26] attachments on there so that we could
[34:27] take them down when it's not in season
[34:32] for y'all.
[34:34] >> Uhhuh. We
[34:37] Okay. When I get the state bid numbers,
[34:39] I will send it out to you immediately.
[34:43] Okay. Update on the weather, Pam. Uh we
[34:46] are still waiting on a survey from 1st.
[34:51] Okay. New business. State of the city.
[34:55] 2026. As we step into
[34:58] 2026, I'm proud to declare that our city
[35:00] stands firm in a strong financial
[35:02] position and is prepared to embrace the
[35:04] opportunities ahead. This past year was
[35:07] marked by significant progress with the
[35:08] expansion of the fire department,
[35:10] including new bays, rehabilitation of
[35:12] the community center and aquatics
[35:14] facilities, ensuring a great space for
[35:16] recreation and efficiencies, the
[35:18] completion of the splash pad, which is
[35:20] an awesome addition for our families and
[35:22] children. and we have continued
[35:24] development of the Sulfur Creek Trail,
[35:25] enhancing outdoor access and natural
[35:27] beauty. Our momentum will come will
[35:30] continue in 2026 with some essential
[35:32] projects. We'll be advancing storm water
[35:35] management to protect businesses and
[35:36] launch downtown beautifification efforts
[35:38] to strengthen our city's heart and
[35:40] attract visitors. The state of our city
[35:43] is robust and our future is undeniably
[35:46] bright. These accomplishments and
[35:48] upcoming initiatives reflect the
[35:49] resilience, vision, and dedication of
[35:51] our community. I extend my deepest
[35:53] gratitude to our local businesses, civic
[35:55] leaders, and residents. Your partnership
[35:57] and commitment make Hebrew Springs
[35:59] exceptional, and it is a privilege to
[36:00] serve you, and together we continue on
[36:02] building a better Hebrew Springs that
[36:04] thrives.
[36:07] Um there I did get a little update from
[36:09] FEMA.
[36:10] Hopefully, they are sending all of our
[36:13] paperwork to Adam and then we have to
[36:15] wait for Adam to release the funds. So,
[36:17] we're getting a little bit closer for
[36:19] the storm water project.
[36:23] Okay, new business. Miss Darby Gaines is
[36:25] here from the Child Safety Center.
[36:27] Darby, if you'll come up. Um, we are
[36:30] looking at creating a partnership with
[36:32] the Child Safety Center. Um, Miss Sugg
[36:35] has served on their board and um has
[36:38] kind of connected some dots to help make
[36:39] this happen. Miss Darby.
[36:41] >> Yeah, thank you for giving me a chance
[36:42] to speak tonight. Like she said, my name
[36:44] is Darby Gaines. I'm the executive
[36:45] director of the Child Safety Center. Our
[36:48] physical location is in Cersei, but
[36:49] we've been serving Clebring County for
[36:52] many, many years now. And so, if you
[36:54] haven't heard from us, um we are a
[36:56] nonprofit that partners and comes along
[36:59] our law our law enforcement. Um so, the
[37:02] police department, the sheriff's office,
[37:04] prosecutor's office, as well as DCFS,
[37:06] Arkansas State Police, Crimes Against
[37:08] Children's Division, um to partner with
[37:11] them, collaborate with them um with
[37:13] child abuse cases. So when kids um have
[37:15] experienced abuse um physical or sexual
[37:18] abuse, trafficking, anything like that
[37:20] um oftentimes they are brought to our
[37:22] center which like I said is in Cersei
[37:24] and then we can provide the forensic
[37:26] interview, advocacy and support um
[37:29] sexual assault exams on site as well as
[37:32] mental health assessments um and
[37:34] outpatient therapy. So, we're able to do
[37:36] all of that on site um there in Cersei,
[37:39] but um unfortunately that's not um super
[37:42] close and easy for some of our families
[37:44] um in Hebrew Springs. And so, it's been
[37:46] on our um hearts and minds um a lot,
[37:50] especially over the last several years.
[37:52] It's been a part of our strategic plan.
[37:54] How can we serve Clebrron County and the
[37:56] kids um here better? Um especially when
[37:59] transportation seems to be one of, you
[38:01] know, one of the big barriers. So right
[38:03] now um we serve about 50 kids from
[38:06] Cleburn County. Um but really we're only
[38:08] serving about 30 to 40% of what we
[38:10] should be serving. And so we have been
[38:13] talking u with Mayor Griffin about what
[38:15] it would look like to partner and bring
[38:17] a second location um to Heber Springs.
[38:20] And so to to be able to offer all of
[38:22] those services but on-site um here in
[38:25] Heber um to hopefully, you know, again
[38:28] get those services locally um have a
[38:31] quicker response for those kids and
[38:32] those kids that are missing out right
[38:34] now. Um and so
[38:37] um there's been some unused space I
[38:39] think in city hall. And so the idea um
[38:41] that we've talked about and would love
[38:43] your support on is to be able to bring
[38:45] um our services into a section of city
[38:48] hall. And so I I've got you a packet
[38:50] there kind of breaks down some of our
[38:52] numbers, the why, um the benefits. Um
[38:56] but the second page kind of shows you if
[38:58] you're familiar with the city hall
[38:59] building, the area that we're thinking,
[39:02] which case you may be able to explain
[39:04] better than I can kind of that it's that
[39:06] back section um where the drive-thru is
[39:09] police are in there now.
[39:11] >> Yes. Arkansas State Police over here in
[39:13] this other office. Um and so we would
[39:17] have a a private office for or a private
[39:19] entrance for our families so um can kind
[39:21] of remain confidential um but be able to
[39:24] provide all of those services um for the
[39:26] child and family but also for our
[39:28] partners. Um right now, uh Chief Hail's
[39:31] still here. Um you know, his officers
[39:33] oftentime have to drive all the way to
[39:35] us. Um that family has to drive to us,
[39:38] um to be able to get the services that
[39:39] they need for the investigation, but
[39:41] then also the services that they need to
[39:43] be able to go on to heal and thrive, um
[39:46] and all of that. And so, we're excited
[39:48] about the possibility of being able to
[39:49] bring that closer closer to home for our
[39:52] families.
[39:53] >> And they have a dog. [laughter]
[39:55] Most importantly, we do we also have
[39:57] facility dogs um that are a part of our
[39:59] process as well. So, we do everything we
[40:02] can to make that as child-friendly as
[40:04] possible um so that we're not inducing
[40:06] any more trauma than they've already
[40:07] experienced. So,
[40:11] any question? I tried to do a real quick
[40:13] synopsis of what we do. So, I know that
[40:14] was a fast run through, but any
[40:16] questions about the services we provide
[40:18] or what that would look like to bring a
[40:20] second location? Um, I do want to add
[40:22] that we um we do provide all of those
[40:25] services for free for the kids and
[40:27] families. Um, and we do that we we
[40:31] typically are Monday through Friday um 8
[40:33] to 5, but we are also on call 24/7. So,
[40:36] I mean we respond middle of the night,
[40:38] weekends, um, whenever a child or family
[40:40] or law enforcement needs us. So, um,
[40:43] that would be the same for our Clebrron
[40:46] County location. We wouldn't have to
[40:48] start we wouldn't have um staff on site
[40:50] tw you know all the time. Um we would
[40:53] just our staff from the Cersei office
[40:55] would respond um and drive up as needed.
[40:58] So
[41:00] and and talk a little bit about because
[41:02] if y'all are like me, I knew nothing
[41:04] about the child safety center before. Um
[41:07] but it's not just they work with these
[41:09] kids for years. not just when the call
[41:12] comes in um on the hotline and they're
[41:16] running the test and doing the initial
[41:18] interviews like it could be years and
[41:20] they stick with them even while there's
[41:22] might be a trial and even it was in the
[41:25] news last week that and I know you guys
[41:27] were a big part of that the sex
[41:28] trafficking um that that was in White
[41:32] County that that finally
[41:34] >> uh went through last week. I mean y'all
[41:35] were a part of that since the very
[41:36] beginning
[41:37] >> for years. Yes. So unlike a lot of
[41:40] agencies where they have kind of their
[41:41] time-specific role like through the
[41:43] investigation and once the
[41:44] investigation's done they kind of hand
[41:45] off their part or um DCFS just while
[41:48] that case is open. we are open, you
[41:50] know, and we'll work with that family
[41:52] for as long as they need. Um, and
[41:54] unfortunately, just the way our justice
[41:56] system works, that can be years
[41:57] sometimes. And so, we will continue to
[41:59] work with that family um and provide
[42:01] support, resources, things like that for
[42:03] as long as they need. And like Ally
[42:04] said, that sometimes is years um that we
[42:07] will be a part of that. And court
[42:09] support is a is a big part of that. Our
[42:10] dogs also can participate in court um in
[42:14] a in a variety of ways. So, um, yeah,
[42:18] thank you for bringing that part up.
[42:20] >> And how are you funded?
[42:21] >> So, we are about 70% uh grant funded,
[42:24] state and federal grants is a big part.
[42:27] Um, and then about 20% is community
[42:30] support um fundraisers, things like
[42:34] that. We have uh a pickle ball
[42:35] tournament I think we've done for three
[42:37] years now here in Heber Springs um here
[42:39] at the community center. Um and so so
[42:42] that's kind of a broad overview of our
[42:44] funding. About 50% of our grant funding
[42:46] is federal funds. Um and quite a bit
[42:49] from state funding.
[42:50] >> And some of the counties give
[42:52] >> Yes.
[42:53] >> Did you cover four counties?
[42:54] >> Yes, we cover White, Woodruff, Cleburn,
[42:56] and Jackson counties. Um and so several
[42:59] of our counties have um and cities have
[43:02] um provided some annual funding as well.
[43:04] So, but just to be clear, I'm not asking
[43:06] for money.
[43:07] >> Yeah. So, [laughter]
[43:09] >> so
[43:09] >> just space.
[43:10] >> So, that's why if we could provide a a
[43:12] space and you know when she was talking
[43:15] about it, I'm like, we just moved into
[43:17] this building that
[43:19] >> is more space than what we need and we
[43:21] had extra rooms. I was like, let me just
[43:23] let me see what we got. And and then the
[43:27] state police are willing to move over um
[43:30] and make room for them to come in. And
[43:33] so it sounds like and it's it's just in
[43:35] that kind of extra hallway space that we
[43:38] don't even use anyways.
[43:40] >> Yeah. The west side of the building.
[43:42] >> It would be minimal re renovations. I
[43:44] think it'd be adding kind of a wall and
[43:45] a couple doors but nothing like majorly
[43:48] al you know altering the the use of the
[43:51] facility that couldn't be taken down.
[43:53] >> And you guys are going to be paying for
[43:54] the renovations, right?
[43:55] >> Yes. We'll fund raise the renovations
[43:57] and the equipment. We've already um
[44:01] applied for a grant, so we have some
[44:02] funding already. Um and we'll continue
[44:05] to do that.
[44:07] >> As a former foster parent
[44:09] >> Oh, yeah.
[44:11] >> We appreciate having
[44:14] >> that that's a long drive.
[44:17] >> Yes.
[44:20] >> Absolutely.
[44:23] » No, you don't have to.
[44:24] >> We don't.
[44:25] >> No. But
[44:26] >> I just want to let y'all know that we
[44:27] want to create this partnership and we
[44:29] are both working on an an agreement
[44:31] >> so that they can move in.
[44:34] >> So
[44:35] >> there'll be a contract, you know, sign,
[44:38] but
[44:38] >> just wanted to kind of present to you
[44:40] guys what plan was.
[44:42] >> Yeah, Darby wanted to come and meet
[44:44] everybody and if you had any questions,
[44:46] I think it's would be a great asset to
[44:48] our community.
[44:49] >> Yeah.
[44:49] >> And if we got the space and it's a
[44:52] win-win for everybody.
[44:53] >> Yeah.
[44:54] Thank you, ma'am. Thank you for
[44:56] making that drive.
[44:57] >> Thank you. Of course. Of course. I
[44:58] appreciate your support. If you know of
[45:00] anybody that would love to like get in
[45:01] on the fundraising or the support to
[45:03] make this happen, we're always welcome
[45:05] to [clears throat] that, but I
[45:05] appreciate you guys being um supportive
[45:08] of this. Yes, ma'am.
[45:09] >> Do you like KASA? Do you all run the
[45:12] same path?
[45:13] >> Um sometimes there's overlap, not
[45:15] always. CASA only gets involved when the
[45:16] kids come into foster care. Um, and so
[45:19] that definitely happens sometimes, but
[45:20] we also see a lot of cases where the
[45:22] offender may not live in the home. Um,
[45:24] and so, um, so, so yes, sometimes, but
[45:28] not not on all of our cases.
[45:31] >> Yeah.
[45:41] I will say
[45:44] investigator.
[46:03] I think the first time I had heard about
[46:05] it, Casey, you were telling me about it,
[46:07] but it was because Stephen had to drive
[46:09] down at like midnight
[46:11] >> and take like an eight-year-old girl
[46:13] that had been sexually abused down to
[46:16] the child safety center and and was
[46:17] there all night and and it was just like
[46:21] I'm like that that happens, you know,
[46:23] and but then now I know it happens a lot
[46:26] and it's it's a sick world that we live
[46:29] Yeah.
[46:30] >> And so just to know that if we're only
[46:34] seeing, you know, 30% of the kids that
[46:37] they can be seen and if we put that here
[46:39] and we could be seeing 100 kids instead
[46:42] of 50, I just think that's that's such a huge thing that we can do.
[46:51] » Thank you, ma'am. All right. Thank you.
[46:53] I put my card on there, so if you have
[46:54] any follow-up questions, feel free to
[46:57] >> Thank you.
[47:02] safe travels back. You pro you might not
[47:03] want to stay for the whole meeting.
[47:05] [laughter]
[47:10] >> Thanks, Darby.
[47:12] Okay, next up, the budget amendment for
[47:14] 2025.
[47:20] And there's a resolution.
[47:27] And I think we decided that we don't
[47:28] have to read all the numbers.
[47:36] Any volunteer for the resolution
[47:38] reading?
[47:44] » Just the resolution.
[47:51] » Thank you.
[47:54] >> And this is um Resolution 2026.
[48:00] Resolution amending the municipal
[48:01] budget. Resolution number 20262.
[48:04] Amendment number one. A resolution
[48:06] amending the budget for the city bud 12
[48:09] months beginning January 1st, 2025 and
[48:12] ending December 31st, 2025,
[48:15] appropriating money for each item of the
[48:17] expenditure therein provided for and for
[48:19] other purposes. Whereas the city has
[48:21] determined that it is necessary to amend
[48:23] the city's budget for the 12 months
[48:24] beginning January 1st, 2025 and ending
[48:26] December 31st, 2025. And whereas it is
[48:30] the finding and conclusion of the city
[48:32] council that the attached exhibit A of
[48:34] the proposed amendment appears to be
[48:35] accurate and necessary for budgetary
[48:37] purposes.
[48:39] Now therefore, be it resolved by the
[48:40] city council of Heaver Springs,
[48:41] Arkansas, section 1, that the budget for
[48:44] the city of Haver Springs, Arkansas for
[48:45] the 12-month period beginning January
[48:48] 21st, 2025, and ending December 31st,
[48:51] 2025, is hereby amended in part as set
[48:53] out in the attached exhibit A, which
[48:55] exhibit is incorporated herein as if set
[48:58] out word for word and figure 4 figure.
[49:01] Section two, the respective funds for
[49:03] each item of expenditure proposed in
[49:04] this amendment to the city's budget for
[49:06] 2025 are hereby approved and adopted for
[49:08] the operation of the city of Her
[49:10] Springs, Arkansas by the city council on
[49:11] this date and constitute an
[49:13] appropriation of funds which are
[49:14] lawfully applicable to the items
[49:16] contained within the amendment. This
[49:18] amendment may be altered or revised by
[49:19] the action of the governing body and
[49:21] unpledged funds may be subsequently
[49:22] appropriated to another purpose except
[49:25] as prohibited by law.
[49:28] Section three, the [clears throat] mayor
[49:30] or her duly authorized representative
[49:32] may approve for payment out of funds
[49:34] appropriated by this amendment or
[49:35] otherwise approved by the city council
[49:37] for these purposes or may disapprove any
[49:39] bills, debts or liabilities asserted as
[49:41] claims against the city. Provided,
[49:43] however, that the execution of all
[49:45] contracts and conveyances and lease
[49:46] contracts shall be performed by the
[49:48] mayor and city clerk for recorder when
[49:49] authorized by a resolution in writing
[49:51] approved for approved by a majority vote
[49:54] of the city council present and
[49:55] participating. Section four. If any
[49:57] provision of this resolution or the
[49:59] application thereof to any person or
[50:01] circumstance is held invalid, such
[50:03] invalidity shall not affect other
[50:04] provisions or applications of the
[50:06] resolution which can be given effect
[50:08] without the invalid provision
[50:09] [clears throat] or application. And to
[50:11] this end, the provisions of this
[50:12] resolution are declared to be separable.
[50:16] >> Thank you, ma'am. You did a great job.
[50:19] >> And this also gets published. So if
[50:21] anyone, you know, wants to look it up on
[50:24] record to see all the numbers, they can.
[50:29] Okay. Now I need a motion.
[50:31] >> Make a motion to approve the budget
[50:33] amendment.
[50:33] >> Thank you, ma'am.
[50:34] >> Second.
[50:35] >> Thank you, sir. Any discussion?
[50:39] Okay, Miss Vicki, when you're ready.
[50:44] >> Yes.
[50:56] » Motion carried.
[51:00] Next. Um, city clerk and attorney
[51:03] salary.
[51:06] Ordinance.
[51:08] Is this one?
[51:10] I need to read it.
[51:11] >> Yes, please. Ordinance number 2026-1.
[51:15] An ordinance establishing the salary of
[51:17] certain municipal officials in the city
[51:19] of Hebrew Springs and for other
[51:20] purposes. Be it ordained by the city
[51:22] council of the city
[51:25] springs, Arkansas as follows. Section
[51:27] one, the salary of the city clerk is set
[51:29] to 10,294,56
[51:31] cents per year. Section two, the salary
[51:33] of the city attorney is set at 48,69,046
[51:37] cents per year. Section three, the
[51:39] effective date of this ordinance shall
[51:41] be January 1st, 2026. Section four,
[51:44] severability in the event that any
[51:46] portion provision subject section or part of this ordinance is
[51:50] later ruled to be inval in validity
[51:53] shall not affect the other provisions of
[51:55] this ordinance which could be given
[51:57] effect without the invalid portion or
[51:59] portions and to this end the provisions
[52:01] of the ordinance are declared to be
[52:03] separable.
[52:08] » Thank you.
[52:13] I just need a motion.
[52:18] » Okay. Now, we learned at conference.
[52:19] What's that? What's that term?
[52:21] [clears throat]
[52:23] » We read it once.
[52:25] >> Yeah.
[52:31] » No, we've always said
[52:33] >> it was a dword. Well, that way I think
[52:35] it was diminished that you can uh you
[52:38] only have to read it once.
[52:46] Yeah, I should have wrote that word
[52:48] down.
[52:48] >> We've done that.
[52:50] >> We have
[52:53] » just say suspend the rules.
[53:06] » Adopt the ordinance. Write
[53:09] [laughter]
[53:11] it down.
[53:11] >> Thanks, Louis.
[53:17] » Okay, Vicki, when you're ready,
[53:24] >> Yes.
[53:43] Motion carried. That's what it was.
[53:46] >> Okay. Next, we got the DAB contract.
[53:53] » No, just approve it.
[53:54] >> Just need a motion to approve it. Motion
[53:56] >> we approve it. It's not changed. No,
[53:58] sir.
[54:00] I'll
[54:00] >> second.
[54:01] >> Yes. Thank you.
[54:09] But it was laying in alley, I believe.
[54:19] » When you're ready.
[54:21] >> Yes.
[54:33] Motion carried. Next, we have the
[54:36] contract for the Humane Society.
[54:42] » Thank you.
[54:43] >> Second.
[54:47] » Now, Lewis, I will say that um on this
[54:50] contract,
[54:50] >> this
[54:51] >> Yes, this one changed, but we just
[54:54] swapped it in the line item so that they
[54:56] get
[54:58] >> still the same total.
[54:59] >> It's still the same total. Correct.
[55:01] >> Right. But the contract went up $1,000.
[55:04] Um, so we took it out of the other line
[55:06] item because we haven't spent as much in
[55:07] that one.
[55:10] Uh, I had Lewis as a and was there a
[55:13] second?
[55:14] >> Thank you.
[55:17] >> Yes, ma'am.
[55:18] >> Yes.
[55:26] [clears throat]
[55:28] » Yes.
[55:30] Motion carried. Thank you. Uh, Cherlo
[55:34] Heritage Council contract.
[55:39] » Same as
[55:39] >> same amount. Yes, ma'am.
[55:42] >> Make a motion to approve.
[55:43] >> Thank you.
[55:44] >> Second.
[55:45] >> Thank you. When you're ready.
[55:49] >> Yes.
[56:03] >> Motion carried. Next we've got the
[56:06] senior center.
[56:08] >> Are they doing better than they were? I
[56:10] mean,
[56:11] >> financially, are they better off than
[56:14] >> I don't think so.
[56:14] >> They came to us once before asking for
[56:16] additional help,
[56:17] >> right? Um they're trying to have more
[56:20] fundraisers. Um, I got a call from Jerry
[56:22] Holmes today and they want to do another
[56:24] fish fry um in February. So, I think
[56:27] they're still on the struggle bus.
[56:32] However, their number has not changed.
[56:36] >> What do y'all think about $2,500?
[56:39] >> I think we should have done that at
[56:42] budget time
[56:44] if we were.
[56:45] >> Okay. I mean, that's when we would up it
[56:49] if we're going there.
[56:50] >> I can put that in the notes for next
[56:52] year.
[56:54] I mean, I'm sure they'd be glad to have
[56:55] it.
[56:56] >> Hadn't used the services yet, but I'm
[56:57] getting close. [laughter]
[57:01] » Need them meals on wheels. [laughter]
[57:04] >> I would say it's very worthwhile to add
[57:08] in next year's budget discussions.
[57:09] >> I make a motion we approve it.
[57:12] >> Thank you. Thank you.
[57:18] Vicki, when you're ready.
[57:22] >> Yes.
[57:32] » Motion carried.
[57:34] Vicki, will you make me a note to put
[57:36] that in my
[57:39] budget packet? Thank you.
[57:43] Okay. Next. Spraville Falls.
[57:58] » Got a motion. Do I have a second?
[58:00] >> Second.
[58:01] >> Any questions? [music]
[58:04] >> Okay, Miss Vicki.
[58:09] >> Yes.
[58:23] >> Motion carried. Next, um we've got a
[58:26] quick little add-on. Um Miss McFersonson
[58:28] was going through our ordinances to get
[58:31] them um codified for the year and we
[58:33] need to make some uh date changes on
[58:35] ordinance 2025-1 and 2025-03.
[58:41] I just needed approve to let the minutes
[58:43] reflect that we made those changes.
[58:46] Um at the end where it's got 2024, we
[58:49] didn't change it to 2025 when we updated
[58:52] it.
[58:55] » I make a motion that we update those
[58:58] >> just for the date.
[58:59] >> For the date.
[59:00] >> Thank you.
[59:07] » It was a tie. It was a tie between Amy
[59:10] and JP. [laughter]
[59:11] >> I didn't hear you the other one.
[59:13] >> It was Amy. JP said it was Amy.
[59:20] » Yes, ma'am.
[59:22] >> Yes.
[59:33] » Motion carried. Next we have open mic.
[59:36] Anybody like to address the council?
[59:42] » Mr. Kendrick.
[59:49] » My name is Thomas Kendrick. I'm running
[59:51] for circuit judge, division 2. Uh that's
[59:54] our family court division. So it does
[59:56] our domestic relations docket, which is
[59:58] basically divorces, guardianships, and
[59:59] adoptions. It also runs our drug court
[1:00:02] program. I work as a public defender.
[1:00:04] So, I've I've been involved in our drug
[1:00:06] court program since 2013 when Judge Kip
[1:00:08] was running the program. And one of the
[1:00:11] issues that we have in our community and
[1:00:13] all over our district, and this is stuff
[1:00:14] people know, is we have a problem with
[1:00:16] drug addiction. I have clients all the
[1:00:17] time that I go see in the jail. They're
[1:00:19] in on meth charges. Their kids are being
[1:00:21] raised by their grand, you know, by
[1:00:22] their parents or other family members.
[1:00:24] And Arkansas is one of the top states
[1:00:26] for grandparents and other relatives
[1:00:28] raising grandkids. And that's because of
[1:00:29] drug addiction. And so the only thing
[1:00:31] that our courts really have to to
[1:00:34] address that is our drug court program.
[1:00:36] When Judge Kemp was running our program,
[1:00:38] it was a really successful program. Did really well. Uh pro heard
[1:00:42] prosecutors talk about it back then that
[1:00:44] it was really successful. Since then,
[1:00:46] you know, he ran for the Supreme Court
[1:00:47] in 2016. Judges have kept it going since
[1:00:49] then. It's really been on a decline
[1:00:51] really the last six to eight years. The
[1:00:53] last couple years it's really uh
[1:00:55] accelerated kind of in the decline in
[1:00:57] sort of the management of the program.
[1:00:58] And I can give an example. We used to
[1:01:00] have 30 to 40 participants in the
[1:01:02] Independence County Drug Court. Today
[1:01:04] it's three. We've only got three people
[1:01:06] in the program and there's a lot of
[1:01:07] reasons for that that I I'd be glad to
[1:01:09] talk to people about and get into, but
[1:01:11] uh I don't want to take up too much of
[1:01:13] the evening here. Um but I'm the only
[1:01:15] candidate running for division 2 that
[1:01:16] has experience working in our drug court
[1:01:18] program. It's why I decided to get into
[1:01:20] this race because I saw I saw kind of
[1:01:23] the writing on the wall. There's two
[1:01:24] other candidates that are running in
[1:01:25] division two. Their announcements, they
[1:01:27] didn't talk about it at all. Also, I
[1:01:28] said if someone doesn't get out there
[1:01:30] and champion this program, then we could
[1:01:32] lose it. And I think that's a real
[1:01:34] possibility. And I don't say that to be
[1:01:36] alarmist, but uh you know, I for
[1:01:39] example, I've had lots of pro
[1:01:41] conversation with our prosecutors. They
[1:01:43] just feel like the program right now is
[1:01:45] not as effective as it could be. And and
[1:01:47] I can give an example of that is we've
[1:01:50] actually got two judges running the
[1:01:52] program now. So, Judge McPaden is our
[1:01:54] judge over division 2. He was over the
[1:01:56] program a couple years ago. He wanted to
[1:01:58] give it up and he asked our district
[1:01:59] court judges if they were willing to do
[1:02:01] it. You know, Judge Wright does Cleaver
[1:02:03] in Stone County. He declined. Judge
[1:02:05] Taylor, who is our independence and
[1:02:07] Fulton County judge, agreed to. So, we
[1:02:08] actually have two judges running the
[1:02:10] program, which makes it impossible for
[1:02:12] there to be consistency across the
[1:02:14] district. Uh there's there's no there's
[1:02:16] no consistency. And so, our prosecutors,
[1:02:19] like when I talk to them, they say,
[1:02:20] "Hey, if we can't have predictability
[1:02:22] and consistency in the program, why are
[1:02:24] we going to put people in it?" And so
[1:02:26] the need in our community for this is
[1:02:28] still there because we still have a lot
[1:02:30] of of issues with drug addiction
[1:02:31] families that are struggling with that.
[1:02:33] And so if you don't have a plan for how
[1:02:36] to fix that and get that program back to
[1:02:38] the way it used to be, get the numbers
[1:02:40] in the program up and really make it
[1:02:42] effective and get our prosecutors and
[1:02:43] our law enforcement on board, then
[1:02:45] you're really not qualified to run for
[1:02:47] division 2 in my opinion. Uh we used to
[1:02:49] have a veterans treatment component in
[1:02:51] our drug court because we have a lot of
[1:02:52] veterans in our district that struggle
[1:02:54] with drug addiction. That uh program was
[1:02:56] started again by Judge Kimp because he was really big uh proponent of
[1:03:00] helping veterans who struggle with drug
[1:03:01] addiction. After he again ran for the
[1:03:03] Supreme Court, the judges after him left
[1:03:05] those agreements with the VA laps. So we
[1:03:07] lost several years ago our veterans
[1:03:09] treatment sort of track in our drug
[1:03:11] court program. So we don't have access
[1:03:12] to those VA resources like we used to if
[1:03:14] there are veterans in the program. Uh,
[1:03:17] another reason that we see a lot of uh,
[1:03:19] repeat criminal behavior and a lot of
[1:03:21] our families in our district are
[1:03:22] struggling with mental health issues.
[1:03:24] And right now, if you've got a family
[1:03:25] member that's got a mental health issue
[1:03:27] where they're a danger to themselves or
[1:03:28] to others, you have to go through
[1:03:30] there's a civil um, petition process to
[1:03:33] file for a civil commitment that's kind
[1:03:34] of ownorous on people. You get into
[1:03:36] court and then if you're lucky, maybe
[1:03:38] the judge will order a 7-day commitment
[1:03:40] to a hospital and sometimes that can
[1:03:41] help stabilize people and get them out.
[1:03:43] that there's a need really for more
[1:03:46] long-term uh care and treatment for
[1:03:48] families that are dealing with family
[1:03:49] members who have mental health issues.
[1:03:51] It would be difficult, I'm just going to
[1:03:53] be honest about it, it would be
[1:03:54] difficult in our district to start like
[1:03:55] a mental health treatment court. Uh
[1:03:57] there are some there's one in Little
[1:03:58] Rock and one in Jonesboro and sort of
[1:03:59] the bigger cities have those resources.
[1:04:02] We're we're much more spread thin, you
[1:04:04] know, with our population density. So,
[1:04:06] that would be hard, but I think our
[1:04:08] family court should be doing more. And
[1:04:09] that's something I'm willing to take on
[1:04:11] to try and address that need because it
[1:04:13] is a real need. And I and at the end of
[1:04:15] the day, really, I think our family
[1:04:16] court should be doing more to help
[1:04:18] families in our district than it's
[1:04:20] currently doing. And that's why I've
[1:04:21] gotten into this race. I work at the
[1:04:23] public defenders office. That's what
[1:04:25] I've always done. I've represented, you
[1:04:26] know, I've had thousands of cases over
[1:04:28] the years. I've tried jury trials. I've
[1:04:29] done appeals. I've done arguments before
[1:04:31] the Arkansas Supreme Court. I spent
[1:04:33] years in juvenile court advocating for
[1:04:35] uh children in our district. Primarily
[1:04:37] that was in Isert County. Uh and I do
[1:04:39] primarily court and independence in
[1:04:41] Isert County, but I'm in Cleverstone and
[1:04:42] Fulton a bunch as well. So I have the
[1:04:44] experience to do it and I have the
[1:04:46] vision uh of how I think that our family
[1:04:48] court could better serve our community
[1:04:50] and the families in our community. So
[1:04:52] that's why I got into this race and I'll
[1:04:53] be glad to to stick around afterwards if
[1:04:55] anyone wants to talk to me. But thank
[1:04:57] you for giving me a few minutes to to
[1:04:58] talk with you.
[1:05:01] 30s were finally
[1:05:04] down.
[1:05:10] » No. No. And it's and I will just say
[1:05:12] just since uh since since Mr. Short
[1:05:13] mentioned that is of the other two
[1:05:15] candidates that are running in division
[1:05:16] 2, they either don't talk about drug
[1:05:18] court or on the rare occasion they do,
[1:05:20] they downplay it. There was a a forum
[1:05:23] last week in Independence County that
[1:05:24] you can go watch online. It's on White
[1:05:26] River Now's Facebook page. And one of my
[1:05:28] opponents, Miss Byer, she talked about
[1:05:30] how there was 400 open cases in the
[1:05:33] domestic relations docket. And then she
[1:05:34] said there's only 25 cases in our drug
[1:05:37] court program districtwide. So, as you
[1:05:38] can see, the bulk of the case load is in
[1:05:41] the domestic relations docket. And to
[1:05:43] me, that's that's the problem. If you
[1:05:44] don't have a plan for how to get those
[1:05:46] numbers up and really utilize the
[1:05:48] program we have, we're going to lose it
[1:05:50] because people are already talking
[1:05:51] about, well, hey, we're spending all
[1:05:52] this money on this program and there's
[1:05:54] only three people in the Independence
[1:05:56] County Drug Court. Why are we doing
[1:05:57] that? That's a waste of money. And once
[1:05:59] people start talking that way, you're at
[1:06:01] risk of losing that program if you don't
[1:06:02] really write the ship and get it back.
[1:06:04] So that's why I got in the race. That's
[1:06:06] what I'm I'm talking about everywhere I
[1:06:08] go. And uh and I hope uh I hope that uh
[1:06:10] y'all will consider me um and consider
[1:06:13] me for March 3rd. Thank you so much.
[1:06:15] >> Thanks, Mr. Kendrick.
[1:06:18] >> Announcements. We have some winter
[1:06:20] weather coming.
[1:06:22] Oh, anybody else for open mic?
[1:06:26] Okay, back to the winter weather.
[1:06:28] [laughter]
[1:06:30] Uh, what was Billy saying about it this
[1:06:32] morning about the wet the snow coming
[1:06:34] in?
[1:06:35] >> Oh, Friday afternoon.
[1:06:37] >> Yeah.
[1:06:38] >> So, it's projected like
[1:06:40] >> like maybe up to seven to nine inches.
[1:06:42] >> Yeah.
[1:06:42] >> I mean, you were posting about it, too.
[1:06:44] >> So, everybody just
[1:06:46] >> Yeah,
[1:06:46] >> I know. It keeps going up. So, y'all
[1:06:48] just be prepared for that.
[1:06:50] >> So, when will
[1:06:56] Yeah, exactly. If you have to ask, just
[1:06:58] stay home.
[1:06:59] >> Go get your milk and bread.
[1:07:02] [laughter]
[1:07:04] » Yeah,
[1:07:05] >> I'm sure the street
[1:07:06] >> I might not be able to make it to work.
[1:07:08] [laughter]
[1:07:10] >> Does anybody have anything else?
[1:07:14] >> Okay, motion to adjurnn. Thank you.
[1:07:18] Thank you.