Voters in Caddo Valley will be able to decide in May whether or not they want to pay a tax for the construction of a city-owned water treatment plant.
The Caddo Valley City Council held a special meeting Tuesday in City Hall to consider two ordinances, the first of which set the tax rate that would fund the engineering and construction of a treatment facility. Alderman Shawn Cowart was absent.
The Council recently voted to hire Summerford Engineering to oversee the construction of the $4.2 million water treatment plant.
Ordinance 2010-3 spells out that, if the ballot is passed, a 1-cent sales tax will be levied within the city limits of Caddo Valley for the purpose of paying off a bond for the plant, and that the tax will cease at the time the bond is paid off. Mayor Alan Dillavou said he did not know when the bond would be paid off, but noted that the city paid off a bond for the city’s $2 million sewer system in less than half the time the note was written for.
“We had it paid off in about 15 or 16 years,” Dillavou said of the sewer bond issue.
Before Recorder/Treasurer Sarah Roberts read the ordinance, Dillavou ignored questions from Frank Rippeto, a resident/business owner, who later said his concern was that the city should look into attaining matching funds from the state for the plant’s construction.
Dillavou, however, contended that the state Health Department would oppose the city building such a plant because it already has a viable water source. The city currently buys its water from Arkadelphia. He and Charles Summerford said they have spoken with different agencies that said the state and the health department would put up “road blocks” to prevent the city from getting any grants. Summerford said the ordinance voted on by the council Tuesday allows the city to pay a lower interest rate, and added that getting funds from the health department for a plant would necessitate a “certificate of need.”
The Council unanimously adopted the ordinance after suspending the rules and listening to all three required readings.
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Voters in Caddo Valley will be able to decide in May whether or not they want to pay a tax for the construction of a city-owned water treatment plant.
The Caddo Valley City Council held a special meeting Tuesday in City Hall to consider two ordinances, the first of which set the tax rate that would fund the engineering and construction of a treatment facility. Alderman Shawn Cowart was absent.
The Council recently voted to hire Summerford Engineering to oversee the construction of the $4.2 million water treatment plant.
Ordinance 2010-3 spells out that, if the ballot is passed, a 1-cent sales tax will be levied within the city limits of Caddo Valley for the purpose of paying off a bond for the plant, and that the tax will cease at the time the bond is paid off. Mayor Alan Dillavou said he did not know when the bond would be paid off, but noted that the city paid off a bond for the city’s $2 million sewer system in less than half the time the note was written for.
“We had it paid off in about 15 or 16 years,” Dillavou said of the sewer bond issue.
Before Recorder/Treasurer Sarah Roberts read the ordinance, Dillavou ignored questions from Frank Rippeto, a resident/business owner, who later said his concern was that the city should look into attaining matching funds from the state for the plant’s construction.
Dillavou, however, contended that the state Health Department would oppose the city building such a plant because it already has a viable water source. The city currently buys its water from Arkadelphia. He and Charles Summerford said they have spoken with different agencies that said the state and the health department would put up “road blocks” to prevent the city from getting any grants. Summerford said the ordinance voted on by the council Tuesday allows the city to pay a lower interest rate, and added that getting funds from the health department for a plant would necessitate a “certificate of need.”
The Council unanimously adopted the ordinance after suspending the rules and listening to all three required readings.
