Elmore City Council members have asked the mayor to begin looking for a city administrator to oversee the town’s municipal departments.
The council approved the action during their regular meeting Oct. 14.
Though the position is unusual for an aldermanic form of government, City Clerk Lisa Rollings said it is provided for by Elmore City ordinance.
The ordinance, passed in 2021, allows for a city administrator to be appointed by the mayor, subject to confirmation by the city council. The position is to be compensated by an hourly wage set by council.
During the Oct. 14 meeting, council members set the initial compensation for the position at $1,500 per month, according to Rollings.
“What we want is better communication between departments. We just have so much going on right now,” Rollings said. “The administrator will oversee all the city departments.”
Council members also convened an executive session during the October meeting to discuss the appraisal of city-owned ball fields near Elmore City Lake being considered for sale to the Elmore City-Pernell school district.
After returning to open session, council members tabled an item to negotiate the sale price with school officials to allow the school district time to consider what they will offer for the property. The item is expected to be revisited at a future meeting.
Council members also approved an ordinance amendment adding a section on disposal of animal waste. The amendment makes it a violation to allow a dog, cat, horse or other animal to defecate on public property, or private property without the permission of the property owner, without immediate removal of the waste by the animal’s owner.
The Council heard a report from CHASE Dog Rescue regarding their contract with the city to provide animal shelter services. Under the contract, which was implemented earlier this summer, Elmore City pays the rescue $1,000 per month to house up to seven animals, with new animals cycling through as dogs are adopted out. The problem has been slow adoptions have prevented the shelter from being able to make adequate room for new intakes.
Following the report from CHASE, council members voted to continue the contract and asked the dog rescue to come back with another quarterly report in three months.
Under the Elmore City Economic Development Association meeting, council members considered approval of invoice #10 for the contractor for the city’s new ambulance station. Rollings said the station is nearly complete. The project, which is funded primarily by a USDA grant, could see some slight delays in funding due to the government shutdown, according to Rollings, but she said the delays are not expected to be significant.
EMS personnel have said they expect the station could be in service by the end of this year.