Marathon session: I-69, storm water debated during three-hour gathering
 

By Brett Wainger, The Millington Star
July 15, 2006

One I-69 forum, two contested ordinances, three beer permit requests and a pair of critical neighborhood association presidents added up to a nearly three-and-a-half hour evening of city politics Monday night.

A town hall meeting devoted to the proposed Interstate 69 kicked off the evening at the Millington Civic Center, followed by the July meeting of the Millington Board of Mayor and Aldermen and a convening of the city's beer board.

I-69

More than 160 people attended Monday night's forum, which Mayor Terry Jones organized after attending an impassioned discussion of the proposed interstate last month at Lighthouse Fellowship Assembly of God.

A panel including Steve Chipman, Tennessee Department of Transportation project manager for Segment 8 of Interstate 69; state Sen. Mark Norris, R-Collierville, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee; TDOT Spokeswoman Pamela Marshall; Martha Lott, coordinator of the Memphis Metropolitan Planning Organization and Jones answered questions submitted on cards by audience members.

Chipman identified the various stages in the route approval and land acquisition processes and said the state would make decisions about the precise route and which properties would be purchased during a design phase, which would be preceded by public hearings.

Norris touched on an appeal process that residents could pursue if they are not satisfied with “fair market value” prices offered by TDOT. Lott spoke to perceived benefits in air quality, which she said would result from a reduction in traffic congestion following the construction of I-69.

But Millington businessman and Shelby Forest resident Terry Roland was unimpressed. Roland said the panelists avoided several tough questions, such as what part lobbyists played in the selection of the west routes and what will happen to Lighthouse Fellowship Assembly of God in Millington, which could be separated by the Interstate from its school, Lighthouse Christian Academy.

Saying that he has collected 4,000 signatures in Shelby County alone in opposition to the western route for I-69, and more signatures in four other counties affected by the interstate, Roland called the forum “more rigmarole.”

Storm water



ordinance

During the board of mayor and aldermen meeting, city leaders approved the second readings of ordinances that would establish and fund a storm water utility. The ordinances are designed to bring Millington into compliance with the federal Water Quality Act and would assess fees to property owners at a rate of $2.50 a month for residences, with a sliding scale for commercial property owners.

The mayor had previously proposed a $3.50-a-month fee for residences, but said he cut that expense, by dividing funding for a city engineer position between the storm water and economic development funds.

Alderman Linda Carter, who cast the lone votes in opposition to both ordinances, said several loose ends should be tied before the legislation is finalized.

“We need to have everything in place, so that when we are gone and the ordinance is still in place, that our intentions are still in place,” she said.

Carter questioned whether fee exemptions should be given to schools and city buildings, and whether the utility staff should have authority to adjust property owners' rates.

Aldermen also discussed options for collecting storm water fees, which, unlike utility fees, would be assessed to the property owner regardless of whether the property is in use.Jones said city attorney Barbara Lapides is investigating whether the storm water assessments could be attached legally to city property tax bills.

Also at the meeting:

- Several members of the Jordan's Crossing Homeowners Association sought to draw attention to conditions on Shipp Road, which connects the subdivision to Highway 51. Association President Joe Creel gave city leaders a flyer, with pictures of vegetation growing over the road, damage to the road and slow-draining retention ponds beside it. Alderman Keith Barger advised other board members to travel Shipp Road and review conditions there.

- Freddie Hodges, president of the Pleasant Place subdivision, asked for assistance in improving retention ponds there.

- The Millington Beer Board unanimously approved a request to sell beer for on-premises consumption at the Millington Pig at 8412 Highway 51 and a request to sell beer for off-premises consumption at Penny Pantry at 7768 Highway 51.

- The beer board unanimously rejected a request to sell beer for off-premises consumption at the Navy Road Deli & Market at 4970 Navy Road. Board members said the store's manager, Abdo Ali Sabeha, submitted an incomplete application.