City approved for intake valve loan

PRESCOTT – Christmas came early for members of the Prescott City Council at the December meeting Monday night, as council members exchanged gifts with one another.

Once the meeting began, the council was informed the city has been approved to get financial assistance from the Arkansas Department of Agriculture in the amount of $3,047,705.75 from the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, with a loan and principal forgiveness up to $349,649.25. This would allow the city’s water department to move the intake valves in the river to a more secure position.

Kiron Browning, with A.L. Franks Engineering, said the firm and city have been working on this for a while, and the city has been battling this problem for years. A lot of the problem, he said, is due to age, but the river also changed course and the main channel shifted and brought sand into the intake valves. He told the council there was nothing wrong initial design of the system and it worked fine until the river changed course.

Perry Nelson, superintendent of the Prescott Water and Sewer Department, said the system was originally installed in 1964 and worked until 2014 when the river shifted. He told the council the city has looked for other options for financing a change, including contacting Congressman Bruce Westerman’s office to try and get the Army Corps of Engineers to dredge the area. Questions were raised about paying the loan back. Nelson said this will be done by a bond issue to be paid monthly.

Brown said the loan would be for 20 years at 4 percent interest and established for a water increase of 143 percent if the city is unable to repay the loan. However, the final rate increase will be done at the closing as the city needs to have a rate study done to determine what the water rate should be for customers.

Nelson pointed out the mayor needs to acknowledge receipt of the loan by the end of the year, but this doesn’t obligate the city to accept it as this is just the start of the process. A new design will have to be drawn up and the state will also have to approve the project.

Brown said by moving the intake valve further down the river and putting in a pump not affected by sand, it should solve the problem for the next 20-30 years. He added the city can back out of the project at any time before documents are signed for the loan, but could be responsible for other fees incurred.

It was asked what would happen if a business came in requiring more water than the city could currently provide. Nelson said the system can handle two million gallons per day at this time and if such a business came to Prescott, the size of the plant would have to be increased. The council was also told the city’s holding pond has enough water for 30 days in case of emergency.

Nelson said his department has been relying on “quick fixes” to keep things going while working toward a more permanent fix. The question was asked if this proposal would be a permanent fix. Brown said no one can control what the river does. In the end, the council voted 7-1 to move forward for the loan.

The council approved amending the 2023 budget after being told the profit would be reduced from $254,000 as originally thought to slightly more than $200,000 because there were some unforeseen expenses.

Carl Dalrymple, city accountant, said he has a tentative budget for 2024, but it’s not ready yet as he’s trying to figure out how to report the SWEPCO payment. At this time, he told the council, there’s a projected surplus of $255,591, but this could change. He pointed out items will be moved and combined for some departments, with the city no longer paying utilities for the Depot Museum, Nevada County Rescue Unit and Nevada County Fairgrounds.

A committee was formed to interview candidates for city attorney. The seven-member panel will start interviewing in January and consists of Perry Nelson, Bruce Bean, Larry Jones, Jr., Mary Godwin, Ivory Curry, Satarra Williams and Howard Austin.

There was also discussion of the barking dog issue. Prescott Mayor Terry Oliver said Ordinance 2 of 2002 states it is illegal for owners of dogs to allow them to disturb the peace with their barking. Currently, there is a fine of $5 to $25 per offense. However, the council agreed this isn’t enough and the fine needs to be raised. Tyler Hicks, with the Prescott Police Department, said Hope’s ordinance also requires owners to have all of their dogs vaccinated for rabies or they could be fined. He agreed to check into Hope’s animal control ordinance and report back to the council. Questions were also raised about how many animals a person can have at their home.

Jamie Hillery, executive director of the Prescott-Nevada County Chamber of Commerce, said the Chamber is finished with its activities for the year, having held the Christmas parade, several coffees and Breakfast with Santa, along with adopting 69 children from the Giving Tree project.

Ann Jordan, Police Chief, said one officer graduated from the Arkansas Law Enforcement Training Academy (ALETA) Friday and another will be going in January. She said the department’s Blue Santa program went well Saturday and made a lot of children and parents happy as 40 children received gifts. This couldn’t be done, she added, without the help of the community and donations given.