Cardwell aldermen mull sewer, payroll tax problems

The Caldwell City Council Thursday decided to return the city sewer system to full strength and to correct back payroll tax problems.

The council passed a motion to pull money from the sinking fund to repair a motor for the sewage system.

Harvey Beasley, Cardwell water commissioner, said Cardwell has three lift stations.

He said one of two pumps at station one is down, and the other has to be checked every six to eight hours to ensure it is still running. The pumps clear the sewage out of the city to the lagoon, but the missing motor is putting a strain on the system.

The pump is to be repaired by the Douglas Electric Company in Manila, Ark., at the estimated cost of $2,200-2,400.

The council set a tax hearing for Thursday, Aug. 21 at 4 p.m.

It was mentioned several times that budget cuts needed to be made to balance the budget.

Discussion on budget cuts were put off until the Aug. 21 meeting to move the meeting along and to give the council members more time to go find areas to cut on their own.

A large part of the budget problem came from back payroll taxes from 1998, 1999 and 2000.

Cardwell City Clerk Erma Branum said the city had paid the back taxes, but still lacked $6,700 in fines for the back taxes.

The council decided to ask a CPA if there was a way to lessen the fines. The council also will ask the CPA if there is a way to combine some city accounts to lessen the paper workload.

The council also asked City Attorney Terry McVey to update and revise the city vehicle stickers ordinance for approval in a later meeting.

The ordinance, entered into city records on a hand written page in the late 1970s, would force anyone spending the night in town with their own vehicle, even one night, to buy a city sticker for the vehicle.

It also asks for $1 for violations. The council viewed the fine as low for a current city violation.

The council voted to join Dig-Rite as well.

Dig-Rite is an underground information collection for use any time a dig is planned to avoid underground lines, whether power, water, cable, sewage, or otherwise.

Dig-Rite has no membership fee. The only charges incurred will come in $1.25 increments for each dig site check.