Baxter County Friends of the Taxpayers

MEETING NOTES

BAXTER COUNTY FRIENDS OF THE TAXPAYERS

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2007

BCFT Director Frank Kaye called the meeting to order at 1:00 pm at Redeemer Lutheran Church.  Treasurer Ken Blade gave the following report:  beginning balance was $334.96, deposits of $179 (dues & donations), withdrawal of $7.50 (room rental), leaving a balance of $506.46.

Minutes of the previous meeting:  We were contacted by Sam Ghianni several days ago, who said that the dues structure we adopted at the last meeting ($15 for 1^st person in family, $10 each for any additional members) was not precisely what he had proposed.  He would be unable to attend today’s meeting, so asked another member to present the issue for discussion.  That member also was absent; since there was not a quorum present, no further action could be taken at this time.

City Committee Meetings:  Still need people to attend the various meetings each month.  Chuck Barnes volunteered to attend Street Dept meetings, and Ken Blade will go to Parks & Rec meetings.  For schedule, please see the “Local Government” page on the BCFT website (http://bcfriendsofthetaxpayers.org/), or call 424-6235.  The monthly schedule has been revised somewhat, so please be sure to check with us or call City Hall (425-5116) if you have any questions about meeting times/places.  Notice was also made that a previously scheduled Water & Sewer meeting that had been cancelled due to illness had been reset for March 1^st at 4:00 pm.

Parks & Recreation:  Ken Blade reported that he and Lorraine have been going to the pool regularly for about 2 years, but ran into trouble last year when the 9-10 am adult swim was eliminated to give the swim teams more time/room for their practice sessions.  The adult swim slot was moved to late morning, when the temperature and sun make it much more uncomfortable for seniors.  Ken would like to take several members with him to talk to the Mayor about the issue.  He objects to having the schedule changed on a whim and the perception that the kids were more important than the seniors.  Frank said that Parks & Rec Director Jackie Leatherman will have to find a way to balance the needs of both groups and find a compromise.  He also said that he has talked to the P&R committee and Mayor, and gets the impression that they’re more amenable to the idea of a covered pool than they used to be.  We still need to get the city & community & county working together on the project.  Frank told Ken to take a few supporters and visit the Mayor.

At the recent P&R committee meeting, it was reported that the attendance at the Youth Center continues to increase; baseball use is growing by leaps and bounds.  Jackie has received wish lists from all the parks’ user groups, as requested; this helps the department see what the community perceives as priority issues.  On the department’s wish list:  resurfacing of the pool is not on the list; the department’s new mower was at the top.  Frank said that in the committee meeting on the 13^th, and at the youth group meeting at the YC, he discussed the use of grant money for capital improvement items with Jackie; she is aware that the grants are out there, but has not yet made full use of this option. 

Chuck asked whether the high school pays the park department for use of the ball fields.  Fank said that they do not, but they do provide in-kind contributions and free labor & materials for necessary projects (ex., the fences at the Keller Softball Complex are currently being moved at no cost to the city).

Lorraine asked whether council members have the opportunity to read over all the handouts from the different departments in advance of council meetings when decisions have to be made.  Frank told her that City Clerk Cindy Wynn has their packets ready for pickup on Tuesday afternoons before every council meeting.

Airport:  Jim Bond reported that the impression around town is that BCFT is opposed to having an airline come in to the regional airport (likely because of our presence at recent airport commission and quorum court meetings on the subject).  Jim tried to explain to the person who brought the issue up that all we’re opposed to is the improper use of taxpayer dollars, specifically in regards to the hangar that’s now under construction at the airport.  Many involved don’t see that it is being built with tax dollars – but Frank explained that following the money trail shows that the money in that fund came from the sale of the county nursing home, which was originally purchased with proceeds of the sale of the nursing home in Midway – which was built with tax dollars.  The biggest problem is not that the tax money is being used, it is that the money is being used as leverage to put a private enterprise (the airport’s fixed base operator) out of business.  If the issue should be placed on the agenda for the next QC meeting, Jim will call the JPs again and plead our case by making that one point.

Also, please remember that the FBO issue has absolutely nothing to do with bringing in a new airline to the airport – they are two completely separate issues.

A&P Tax reform bill (HB1365 – Requiring Voter Approval of Certain Tax Levies):  our bill is on the deferred list at the moment, but we will send an e-mail to Johnny Key to ask him to put it back on the agenda for discussion.

Farmers Market:  John Miskelley reported on his trip to the statewide Farmers Market conference in Hot Springs.  Over 30 markets were represented.  He said that he saw and heard a lot of things going on in the state that are in violation of AR Code.  The recent public meeting at City Hall regarding the farmers market had about 60 people in attendance; only 3 were against his proposal for the market.  He has been asked by 2 council members to draft a proposed ordinance: wants no resellers unless they’re segregated from the growers; resellers must have business license (which means they need to collect and remit sales tax).  The mayor has a call in to the Attorney General asking for an opinion on this issue; he hopes it can be handled in the ordinance.

New Business

Neal Wheeler presented an idea for growing our membership.  He suggested that we each send out copies of the minutes and a membership application to others a week or so ahead of the next meeting date.  Suzan brought 75 already prepared mailers to share; Frank suggested that instead of mailing them, we talk to people face-to-face and invite them to join us.

Chamber of Commerce Business Expo (May 12 at fairgrounds):  Jim asked whether BCFT was planning to have a booth at this event; cost is $150.  No decision was made.

The Pass-the-Bucket collection was $10 (thanks, everyone!)  This money goes toward our hall rental, postage and copying costs, newspaper ads and other administrative expenses.  Four more members paid dues during/after the meeting.

Meeting was adjourned at 2:40 pm.  Next meeting is scheduled for Saturday, March 31, 2007, at 1:00 pm at Redeemer Lutheran Church, Hwy 5 North.

Suzan Kaye, Secretary
Friday, March 23, 2007