Mr. Jim McCormick was honored for his many years of service to the DeKalb County School system at Thursday night?s meeting of the Board of Education. McCormick, who is retiring at the end of the month, has worked with the DeKalb County School system for nearly 40 years. The board presented him with several gifts, including a plaque and a rocking chair. Board chairman Johnny Lattimore made the presentation.
McCormick thanked all of the board members, and all the people he has worked with over the years in the school system.
In other business, the board approved consent items, including the application for Local Consolidation plan, Title I, Parts A, C, & D; Title II, Parts A & D; Title III, Part A; Title IV, Part A; Title V, Part A; and Title VI, Part B for fiscal year 2007 and the federal budget. The board approved a partnership agreement with L,B,J, & C Head Start, and approved all fundraisers and school budgets for the 2006-07 school year. The board also approved the pay calendar for the upcoming year.
Meanwhile, a wage and labor issue, regarding Teresa Miller and Jennifer Nixon was tabled until the board can look further into the issue. The board was to schedule a workshop for later in the month to discuss the issue. Also tabled was a claim by the law office of Sue Puckett-Jernigan, seeking some $17,000 for services rendered prior to McCormick?s tenure as Director of Schools. Board member, Keith Garrett, made a motion to table this issue, so the board can get more specific details on the claim. The issue will also be discussed at the workshop later this month.
DCHS Principal, Kathy Hendrix, gave the board a report on the Gateway Test results for the school.
Director McCormick gave his monthly personnel report. Those who have been employed for the 2006-07 school year include: Michelle Fontanez, teacher at DeKalb County High School; Larry Steffee, teacher at DeKalb County High School; Christine Rivers, teacher at DeKalb County High School; Kyle Rivers, teacher at Northside Elementary School; and Rolando Navarro, teacher at DeKalb County High School.
The board also approved an overnight trip request for the DeKalb County High School Band to attend a band camp at Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville, July 23rd through the 28th.

Bankruptcy Trustee John C. Mclemore has filed a motion to amend Cumberland Insurance Group’s minimum purchase price of the B. Don James Insurance “book of business” from $200,000 to $175,000.
Under terms of the original agreement, Cumberland Insurance Group committed to pay 45% of its gross renewal commissions or a minimum of $200,000 for the Smithville, Woodbury, and Sparta businesses of B. Don James & Sons Insurance Agency.
McClemore now wants the original order amended because “from the date of the sale, Cumberland Insurance Group, LLC and the Trustee had problems securing the book of business controlled by the Sparta branch. According to Mclemore, the manager there was determined to keep that business for himself. He left the employ of the Debtor and joined another insurance agency, taking with him sufficient records from the Sparta office to allow him to solicit from the customers assignments of the administrative rights to their policies. This was done despite the best efforts of Cumberland Insurance Group, LLC and the Trustee.”
According to Mclemore’s motion, ” it is the opinion of the Trustee that he was unable to deliver to Cumberland Insurance Group, LLC the book of business maintained by the Sparta branch and there should be an adjustment in the minimum purchase price required of Cumberland Insurance Group, LLC.
Mclemore, in the motion, states that Cumberland Insurance was able to generate gross commissions of $364,405 with $9,305 of that coming out of the Sparta branch. As a result, 45% of the gross renewal commissions generated $163,982 for the bankruptcy court.
Mclemore further stated, “It is the opinion of the Trustee that given the circumstances, the minimum purchase price should be reduced from $200,000 to $175,000.
Some say the motion should not be granted because it is unfair to the other companies that bid on the business and that it could potentially reduce the money available to the creditors.
A hearing on the motion is scheduled for June 24th at 9:00 a.m. in Nashville.

The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department found about two ounces of crack cocaine Friday night after executing three search warrants at three separate locations, and while no arrests have yet been made, Sheriff Lloyd Emmons says the investigation continues and evidence will probably be presented to the August term of the Grand Jury.
The search warrants were drawn up after officers learned that crack cocaine was being sold in DeKalb County. Upon executing the search warrants, Emmons says two ounces of the drug were found at one of the homes along with a small amount of money, but no drugs were found at either of the other two locations.
Sheriff Emmons says the crack cocaine that officers found had an estimated street value of six to ten thousand dollars.
According to Emmons, the drug may be coming out of Wilson County and being transported here. “The TBI is aware of the investigation and the players in this case may very well be some of the same people the TBI arrested in a major sting a few years ago in another county and were given probation.”
Emmons says crack cocaine, a highly addictive drug which is as dangerous as methamphetamine, could make a comeback here unless it is dealt with by law enforcement.

The Smithville Board of Mayor and Aldermen has denied a request by Jimmy Lewis, operator of the Smithville Golf and Swim Club, to reduce his rent from $2,500 to $1,250 per month in consideration for his making major improvements to the irrigation system at the golf course.
Alderman Jackie Rigsby, during Monday night’s regular meeting, made a motion to grant Lewis’ request but it died for the lack of a second.
Lewis, with his former partner Darryl Counts, was granted a five year extension of his lease agreement along with a five year renewal option only a few months ago as a consideration for his commitment ” to expend the sum of one hundred thousand dollars in order to dig a second well, to install a sprinkler system for the fairways, and to purchase golf carts”.
Under the previous agreement with the city, Lewis had the golf course and swimming pool leased until 2012 at a rate of $2,500 per month. Under the amended agreement, Lewis was granted an extension of his lease through 2017 at the same rate of $2,500 per month, with a five year renewal option. The monthly rate can be renegotiated in 2017.
Lewis says he has already spent more than $84,000 on the golf course and swimming pool and he now needs some help from the city.
Lewis says the volume of water needed to supply water to all the fairways cannot be supplied by the well that now exists and that two new wells are required. He says the holding pond that the golf course now has does not have the capacity to hold the volume of water needed so it will need to be enlarged or a new pond will have to be dug.
Lewis, three weeks ago, requested a reduction of $1,500 per month in his rent for sixty eight months until the irrigation improvement project is paid off, starting in June, 2006 through January 2013, which would have been a loss of revenue to the city of $102,000.
City aldermen, during the last meeting on May 15th, asked Lewis to obtain more bids on the proposed project and they would consider his request.
Lewis presented eight sealed bids to the city board during it’s regular meeting Monday night and the Mayor and Aldermen reviewed them during a recess. Lewis also revised his request from three weeks ago, asking that the rent be reduced by half, to $1,250 per month.
City officials told Lewis that by taking the lowest bids on each project (digging the pond, well, and installing the irrigation system), the cost to him would be between $93,000 and $94,000, well under the $100,000 he had committed to spend himself under the extended lease agreement.
Alderman Rigsby, in making the motion to cut Lewis’ rent in half, said he thought the city should help him since he had made so many improvements to the golf course. ” I can see the advantages. The golf course means so much to the industries coming in here. It brings more people into town. They spend money when they come into town. It’s (golf course) picking up all the time, membership is picking up.”
However Alderman Aaron Meeks countered that the city should not help a for profit entity at the expense of the city taxpayers. ” We just passed a budget in which we are going to take almost $715,000 out of the surplus to balance the general fund budget. Plus another $395,000 for sanitation services that are not funded. And now we’re talking about giving $100,000 to a for profit operation that will be coming out of the taxpayer’s pockets. Whether you take it out at $1,250 a month or $100,000 at a time, it’s still coming from the taxpayers.”
Rigsby responded, ” We’re not talking about taking it all out at once, we’re talking about taking $15,000 a year.”
Meeks replied, ” That’s okay, it’s still coming out of the taxpayer’s pockets.”
Rigsby answered, “That’s absolutely right”.

A total of 424 people voted early in the Smithville Municipal Election from May 31st through June 15th at the courthouse.
Election Day voting will be from 8:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. at the courthouse.
A mayor and two aldermen will be elected on Tuesday, June 20. The positions are currently held by Mayor Cecil Burger and Aldermen Steve White and Jackie Rigsby.
Taft Hendrixson and Jerry Hutchins’ Sr. are running for mayor.
Candidates for aldermen are Incumbents Stephen White and Jackie Rigsby and challengers Cecil Burger and Alford Webber.
Each of the terms is for two years.
Call 597-4146 for more information.

The Smithville Board of Mayor and Aldermen adopted the new 2006-2007 budget on first reading Monday night.
The new budget totals $5-million 122-thousand 699 dollars. Under the new spending plan, the property tax rate will remain the same at 68 cents per $100 of assessed value.
The new budget calls for the water and sewer rates to remain the same. City water customers will continue to pay $3.50 for the first one thousand gallons of water usage plus $3.50 for each additional one thousand gallons of usage. Rates for customers outside the city limits are 50% higher. The rate the city charges the DeKalb Utility District is $1.70 per thousand gallons.
City sewer customers, under the new budget, will continue to pay the flat usage rate of $3.62 plus $3.25 per thousand gallons thereafter.
Water tap fees for customers inside the city limits is $400 for a three quarter inch water line and the sewer tap fee is $400 for a four inch sewer line. If the lines are larger, the fees are cost plus 10%. For customers outside the city limits, water tap fees are $525 for a three quarter inch line and $525 for a four inch sewer line. Again, if the lines are larger, then the fees are cost plus 10%.
The proposed budget calls for city employees with up to four years of service to get their automatic step pay increases as defined in the wage scale plus a 3.9% cost of living increase. City employees with more than four years of service, who have topped out on the wage scale including salaried employees, will only get the 3.9% cost of living increase.
When the fiscal year started July 1, 2005, the general fund was projected to be $531, 815 in the red by June 30, 2006, but by eliminating unnecessary spending during the year, city officials have revised the deficit projection down to $147,364.
The General Fund would actually show a surplus of $102,636 by the end of the month, however the cost of operating the city’s sanitation system comes to $250,000 a year. Since the city has no garbage collection fee for customers, the general fund must absorb the cost, thus creating the $147,364 deficit. Funds from the city’s surplus must make up the difference
City officials are projecting that the general fund will show a deficit of $714,655 by June 30, 2007 unless spending can be held in check again during the year. If not, then the city may have to use more of the money from the surplus to balance the budget.
The water and sewer fund, at the beginning of the fiscal year on July 1, 2005, was expected to finish with a surplus of $273,413 by June 30, 2006. The projection now is for the fund to show a surplus of $570,061. However, the water and sewer fund is expected to finish the new budget year on June 30, 2007 with a deficit of $67,594, unless spending can be controlled.
Proposed capital outlay expenditures in the general fund for the new year come to $550-thousand dollars. Specific projects are as follows: Financial Administration- $7,500 including $5,000 for a computer upgrade and $2,500 unspecified; Parks and Recreation- $15,000 unspecified; Public Works/Buildings and Grounds- $15,000 unspecified; City Hall Building Alteration per ADA- $8,500 including $5,000 for handicapped rehabilitation and $3,500 unspecified; Fire Protection- $375,000 to begin the first phase of a proposed expansion of the fire hall; Street Department- $65,000 including $25,000 for sidewalk improvements, $10,000 for downtown beautification, and $30,000 unspecified; Police Department- $39,000 including $25,000 for a police car and $14,000 unspecified; Swimming Pool- $10,000 for capital repairs; Airport- $10,000 unspecified; Animal Shelter- $5,000 unspecified; Sanitation Fund- $130,000 including $125,00 for a truck&bed and $5,000 unspecified; and Drug Fund- $5,000 unspecified.
Proposed water and sewer fund capital outlay expenditures include $15,000 for a pickup truck for the sewer plant, $20,000 for an update of sewer plant equipment, $25,000 for an update of the water plant and engineering fees, and $20,000 for a sewer rehabilitation camera.
Although these capital outlay projects are budgeted, they all may not be funded during the year.
Second and final reading action on the budget will follow a public hearing at the next meeting on Monday, June 19 at 7:00 p.m. at city hall.