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GRANT APPLICATIONS ON QUORUM COMMITTEES’ AGENDA

By Ray King/OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 11:52 PM CST

With no dissent, committees of the Jefferson County Quorum Court gave their approval to a series of grant applications that will provide money for a number of organizations during meetings Tuesday night.

All the applications will be voted on Monday when the county’s full legislative body meets for the regular monthly meeting.

Funds from the 2009 General Improvement Fund were made available to various agencies, including several volunteer fire departments in the county who want to upgrade their services.

Those grants include a request from the Highway 15 Volunteer Fire Department for $27,557 to add a bay to the existing fire station to store equipment currently kept in the main building.

The Linwood/Moscow Volunteer Fire Department is seeking $20,259.92 to buy additional equipment, including automatic external defibrillators (AEDs), while the Hardin Volunteer Fire Department has requested $21,291.90 which will be used for equipment including hoses, a foam applicator, gas monitor, and turn out coats, pants and boots for firefighters.

The Swan Lake Volunteer Fire Department has asked for $40,000, to be used to add an additional fire truck storage building, to include space for a training room, kitchen and office. All of those funds will come from the Arkansas State Department of Rural Services Fire Protection Grant.

An application for $100,000 for Hestand Stadium was also recommended for approval, with the money to be used to re-roof the building, repair electrical outlets and bathrooms, and to add 26 new recreational vehicle hook-ups, including water, sewer and electrical connections.

A $50,000 grant for the Arkansas 2-1-1 call center to provide 24-hour service, seven days a week for disaster and emergency assistance was also recommended for approval, also using money from the state general improvement fund.

The only item on the agenda requiring the use of county funds, with the exception of operating funds for various offices, is a $34,689 appropriation that would be used to buy three radar units for Arkansas State troopers who work in the county, which was also recommended for approval.

A report from Troop E of the State Police, which includes Jefferson County, showed that troopers wrote 2,808 speeding tickets last year, an average of 208 per month, and that generated $210,600 in fines.

Regarding operating funds for county offices, a $35,000 appropriation for the Circuit Clerk’s Office, and a $3,000 appropriation for the JP Levying Court to cover their expenses, which includes the cost of publishing ordinances and resolutions in The Commercial were recommended for approval, as was a $2,500 appropriation for the First Division of Circuit Court for maintenance and operational expenses.

A $25,000 request from the county clerk’s office was tabled until next week because of questions about how some of the funds were to be spent, or if they had already been spent without prior approval from the court.

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