MoCo Commission Announces Plans to Roll Back Millage Rate

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At their regular monthly meeting on September 9, the Montgomery County Commission announced that they will set the County’s millage rate at the rollback rate of 14.8570 in a special session on Monday, September 30, at the Montgomery County Government Annex, located at 251 S. Richardson St. in Mount Vernon.

According to the County’s 5-year tax history, the net tax digest in the county has increased by $8,061,304, which has generated enough revenue that commissioners feel they do not have to raise the millage rate. By leaving this rate at 14.8570, commissioners expect to levy $3,249,623 total, which is a 3.97% increase – totaling $123,980 – from last year’s levied taxes.

During the regular monthly meeting of the Commission on Monday, September 12, the commissioners agreed to hold a called meeting to officially set this rate on September 30.

Also, during the meeting on September 12, the commissioners discussed selling a building currently being used by The Refuge Domestic Violence Shelter to the Shelter for $1, as a part of an agreement previously made between the Shelter and the County. The commissioners agreed to have the county attorney draw up the necessary paperwork for the transaction, and to go forward with the sale.

Commissioners agreed to cease renting the Montgomery County Senior Center to the public, as they stated that the facility is rarely rented, but when lent to the public, things within the facility were often damaged. “The Senior Center is a place for seniors, and they should be able to have their own place and it to be respected,” Commissioner Ginger Morris commented.

The Commissioners changed the meeting date for a regular monthly meeting for November, moving it from Monday, November 11, to Tuesday, November 12, because of Veterans Day.

Montgomery County Recreation Director Kendall Bennamon also provided the commissioners an update on activities at the Recreation Department, as he said that the fall sports season has begun, and the County currently has four soccer teams, two flag football teams, a 10U football team, and a 12U football team. “We also have around 45 cheerleaders, ages 3-12. What we are trying to do at the rec department is to cover all of those ages, which is why there is such a wide range of ages.”

Bennamon said that uniforms for participants had been ordered and that several new helmets and shoulder pads were purchased for the football program. “We’ve had issues with cracked helmets and mildew on the shoulder pads because we store the equipment at the recreation gym, which does not have ventilation. I’ve talked with [Montgomery County High School Football] Coach [Kaream] Hess, and he is going to help us store our equipment closer to their facility in the coming years until something can be done,” Bennamon remarked. “I’m thankful we were able to get new gear for our facility. It was much needed.”

He informed the commissioners that the recreation teams are currently split between J.M. Fountain Park and the Montgomery County High School track field, so he and a few contracted employees often go back-andforth from location to location. He also requested that prior to next season, the commissioners explore the possibility of buying a new lawnmower for the Department.

Three members of the public addressed several concerns they had with the commissioners at the end of the meeting.

Kirstin Brown spoke to the Commission about a safety issue with the ditch in front of her house on Mt. Vernon-Alston Road. According to Brown, the ditch is 19 feet deep at its lowest point, and has caused issues for the past two years. She said that she previously notified the County of this issue and was placed on the list for work orders, but the matter has not been solved.

“We repeatedly asked when this was going to be taken care of. It has washed out our fence and we have to replace fence posts. We have had someone almost fully land their car in there. I have had baby goats fall in there that we have had to climb in there and get them out. We had giant moccasins down there. There are trees growing in there. Every two months, I reported it. I have text messages with (former County Manager) Brandon Braddy where we went back and forth about it. Then, they switched people, and we were told in February that we would be responsible for paying to have it done, which I am not doing because that’s not my property,” she said.

Brown said that she has been told a variety of things, such as that she must wait until over 100 other individuals’ work orders are completed, the County does not have the equipment to complete the work, and that there is no funding in the budget to complete the work. Most recently, Brown’s work order has vanished from the County’s list, the homeowner informed the commissioners.

“Someone is going to end up getting killed in the ditch in front of my house,” she emphasized. “It’s beyond frustrating.”

Commission Chairman Leland Adams told Brown that he personally would go look at the ditch and would further investigate the situation.

Linda Page spoke to the Commissioners about her thoughts on the public’s lack of ability to speak during work sessions. “It concerns me that especially in the work session, that we are not allowed to speak. I attend the Board of Education regularly, and that is pretty much an open forum as long as you are respectful and you don’t get out of hand. It seems to me that we need feedback,” she commented.

She explained to the Commissioners that during her teaching career had she silenced her students when they were in her classroom, those students would not be involved in politics and government today. “I allowed them to be part of the discussion. I allowed them to be part of the assignments that we made. I let them kind of help the course move along at the rate best for that particular class,” Page stated.

According to Page, purchasing microphones to use during work sessions and meetings and live streaming meetings would also help to keep the public involved and informed of county operations. “This is government. I am government. Everybody in this room is government. We elected you. So, our desires and opinions should have some credence. The group that is here today is not the only group that cares. There is a large group, but they don’t come out. Many of them work; they can’t get out here. I have had more people ask me, ‘Would you please tape it, because we don’t get to see it?’ That’s an easy fix,” she told the commissioners.

Page also addressed the commissioners regarding the Recreation Department, as she asked them to consider moving from the current Department location at J.M. Fountain Park to a space that could be constructed elsewhere. “We have to find someone to say, ‘That place is a pit – we love our children more,’” she remarked.

Joel Hussey commented about recent decisions, as he suggested some additional ideas.

“The Refuge building agreement – I think that lady does a wonderful job over there, and they provide a great service. I think the county should honor their agreement. In addition to that, if for whatever reason they cease to operate or exist, I think the county should put in the agreement that if that occurs, they sell it back to the county for $1,” he began.

Hussey then addressed the county’s intent to accept the rollback millage rate, as he said, “On the taxes, thank y’all for consideration on the millage rate. I would charge the County and the School Board to look at lowering taxes – what does that entail? What does that take? I think that could be great for our County.”

Lastly, he asked that the Commissioners look into the possibility of allowing prison detail teams to pick up trash prior to the county workers’ mowing of roadside grass in order to help create a cleaner look in the County.