Daniel Prince
Robert Garner to serve as Mayor Pro Tem
At Tuesday’s Union City Council meeting, Robert Garner was elected Mayor Pro Tempore. Council unanimously passed a resolution to provide local matching funds for electric upgrades and improvements to the water treatment plant. The city is applying for a grant through the Appalachian Regional Commission. The grant is $750,000 and requires a 30% local match. City Administrator Joe Nichols recommended a 35% local match, which council agreed to. If the city gets the grant, the amount of the local match would be $410,000.
Council also voted to change the guidelines for the Community Change heating and cooling assistance program. In September 2019, council had voted to cap the utility customer assistance vouchers at $50 each. The fund balance was getting low, and council wanted to ensure the Community Change fund would remain active year-round and be able to assist as many customers as possible. In the three years since, the fund has built back a healthy fund balance, and City Finance Director Laura Hembree recommended that council go back to a $100 cap on vouchers starting in January. It was noted that those receiving assistance from the Community Change Program must have participated in the program for at least six months. Salvation Army and Carolina Community Actions help to qualify individuals for help. Each organization can only issue 25 vouchers per calendar month. Council voted to continue the assistance program for another year. Pamela Garner Sloss abstained from the vote, which was otherwise unanimous. In fiscal year 2022, the Community Change Program generated $18,572.94, and it assisted 176 customers in the amount of $7181.38.
We’ll have more highlights from the meeting in tomorrow’s newscast.