Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Gurdon Curfew Now Permanent

Gurdon's curfew is now permanent and in effect for those 17 and under.

The Gurdon City Council approved the second and third readings of the ordinance at its regular monthly meeting Monday, Oct. 9.

By passing the emergency clause, the panel was able to put it into immediate effect.

Now, those young people age 17 and below must be off the streets by 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and midnight Friday and Saturday.

The council also passed the sewer rate increase ordinance. This ordinance was read at three different meetings before finally being passed.

However, it wasn't as if the city had any choice in the matter as the lending agencies involved required the increase.

When the rate hike will go into effect is not known at this time.

The council had a full agenda before getting to the ordinances.

The night started with Harold Hurst, manager of the Gurdon Water and Sewer Department letting the people know International Paper wasn't "given" free water.

IP, he said, got in a jam during the dry spell and had to run an inch-and-a-half meter from a pond, pumping 77,000 gallons of water on the timber on its lot.

Hurst said IP will be billed for the water the company used and did nothing illegal when it pumped the water from the pond.

City Marshal David Childres told the council a transmission was needed in the older Ford patrol car, though he hadn't priced the cost of repairs.

He was given approval to get the vehicle repaired anyway, and will amend the budget at the end of the year as the Gurdon Police Department only has $43 left in its budget for maintenance and repairs.

Additionally, he told them a new vehicle for the GPD would cost around $21,000 through state bidding.

Gurdon Mayor Rick Smith said the new car would also be a Ford Crown Victoria. The GPD has $11,000 in the city fines 2 account, which can be used for equipment.

He suggested using $10,000 from this fund and taking the rest from the city's emergency contingency fund. The council agreed.

Jim Caldwell, street superintendent, said the citywide cleanup went well at the end of September.

In fact, he said, there were seven bins full of metal and appliances, weighing between 50,000 and 60,000 pounds. Fourteen truck loads of furniture and other items were hauled to the Clark County Class IV landfill, with another 14 loads of lumber, limbs being hauled off for burning.

The drive procured 137 car tires and 14 big truck tires, he said, along with 24 car batteries.

Overall, the street department responded to 204 work orders by residents during the week-long cleanup, with some places having three or four truck loads.

The metal and appliances were taken to Southwest Recycling in Hope, where it was sold for scrap.

Smith reminded the council about the city having to make a decision where the street department shop would be located as the property owner where it now is wants to sell the land.

The city, Smith said, has been offered the option of purchasing the lot for $15,000.

However, he said, the city does have other options. Two years ago the council approved buying a plot of ground by the Post Office from the Boy Scouts of America.

This has been where the street department has been storing gravel and equipment.

Smith said there is a piece of property directly behind this one with a large shop on it and the owner wanting to sell.

It will most likely cost more than $15,000, he told the council. An appraisal has been requested and if the city has the money, Smith said, it will make an offer based on the appraised value.

However, the city will soon have to make a decision to either buy the land the city shop is on now, tear the building down or purchase a different plot of ground for it.

The shop, Smith said, is wood frame with metal siding and can't be moved, but the biggest obstacle will be the city having enough money to buy the other property.In the mayor's report, Smith told the council about four amendments on the ballot for the Nov. 7 General Election.

Amendment 1, he said, is supported by the Arkansas Municipal League.

This amendment, if passed, would allow cities and counties to go into debt for up to five years on purchasing equipment.

Currently, the law requires cities and counties to pay off all such purchases within 12 months.

Under this proposal, cities couldn't spend more than 5 percent of their assessed property value, while counties would be limited to a cap of 2.5 percent. This is to insure responsible spending and keep such entities from building irresponsible debts.

Amendment 2 is the state's property tax issue. Under it, property taxes would be lowered somewhat, but the sales tax would be increased to offset the loss of revenue.

Arkansas is among the lowest in property taxes in the nation, but ranks in the top 15 or 20 where sales tax is concerned.

Amendment 3 would abolish the municipal court system, Smith said, and take such cases to circuit court.

The fourth amendment on the ballot deals with abolishing the tax on used cars. It has been proposed by Fort Smith attorney Oscar Stilley, who pushed for abolishing property taxes two years ago.

Should this amendment be passed, Smith said, it would cost Arkansas $164 million per year for at least two years for a total of $328 million overall.

This is because the amendment has a rider which would require any tax increases to be voted on by the people of the state during general state elections held every two years.

The effect of this amendment passing, Smith said, would result in cities and counties losing $200 million, colleges and universities losing $27.5 million and public schools being hit with a loss of $96.4 million annually.

The Arkansas Municipal League opposes this issue.

Gurdon's council agreed to support Amendment 1 and oppose the rest.

The council also approved the annual millages, 5 mill for the city from property tax and 0.4 mill for the fireman's pension fund.

Smith said the 5 mill should generate about $46,000 this year, while the pension fund should received around $3,700 from the 0.4 mill.

These are not new taxes, but existing ones being rolled over. State law requires they be approved on a yearly basis.