Vol. 140
No. 31
28 Pages
2 Sections
rpl WED
j[ SEPTEMI
Commerce News
Wednesday
SEPTEMBER 21,2016
www.CommerceNewsTODAY.com
50 Cents COVERING THE COMMERCE AREA SINCE 1875
James Wascher
Wascher
named
permanent
city manager
James Wascher’s sev
en-month tenure as Com
merce’s interim city manager
ended Monday night.
Following a 16-minute
closed-to-the-public session,
the Commerce City Coun
cil unanimously authorized
Mayor Clark Hill to execute an
employment contract making
Wascher the permanent city
manager.
He will be paid $102,500,
plus a vehicle allowance.
Wascher, 38, joined the
city’s finance department on
Sept. 28, 2009 as an account
ing manager. He was pro
moted to finance director in
2012 and when Pete Pyrzens-
ki resigned as city manager
in February, he was named
interim city manager while
the city council began a
search for a new manager.
In April, the council called
off the search and gave the
position — still on an interim
basis — to Wascher.
Wascher is pursuing his
master’s degree in pub
lic administration through
Arkansas State’s online pro
gram. A native of Washington
(state), he holds an account
ing degree from North Geor-
See “Wascher” on 3A
Contact Us
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INDEX
Church News 5B
Classified Ads 6-7B
Crime News 6-8A
Obituaries 15A
Opinion 4A
School 8-11A
Sports.... 1-4B & 10B
Social News. 13-14A
MAILING LABEL BELOW
Tigers to
begin region
schedule
— Page IB
Book sale
this week at
the library
— Page 13A
Young 'criminals'
Triston and Braidon Fielding of Commerce find out what it was like to be
caught and transported by a U.S. Marshal Saturday during Art in the Park at
Hurricane Shoals Park. For more festival photos, see page 16A.
Change in tax collection
fee to cost city schools $57K
BY ALEX PACE
Local property tax collection fees will soon
be uniform in Jackson County. The Jackson
County Board of Commissioners approved
Monday night setting a two-percent tax collec
tion fee for all cities, fire boards and boards of
education.
That move will cost the Commerce City
School System $57,300 this year.
The BOC will have to officially set rates with
each municipality through intergovernmental
agreements. The board proposes to keep the
two-percent rate for a three-year period.
The county collects a commission from
local municipalities and other agencies to
assess, collect and distribute property taxes.
The issue of unequal rates was brought up
by the Jackson County Board of Education. At
an August BOE meeting, chairman Michael
Cronic questioned BOC member Dwayne
Smith on why the county school system was
being charged more than the two city school
systems.
Cronic said the county BOE is charged 2.5
percent of the total ($750,000 per year) and the
two city school systems were paying $1.50 per
bill ($6,000 each).
Under the uniform two-percent commis
sion rate, the county school system would pay
$544,400; Commerce City Schools would pay
$63,200; and Jefferson City Schools would pay
$162,900.
The new rate will start in the 2017 fiscal year
since some municipalities have already set this
year’s budget.
The BOC also approved a contract with
Jackson County Tax Commissioner Candace
Taylor and the City of Maysville for the collec
tion and distribution of municipal taxes.
The contract shows Maysville will pay $1
per parcel to the tax commissioner and $0.50
per parcel to Jackson County. That rate will
change as the uniform tax rate goes into place
in 2017.
Gillsville Annexation Opposed
Also at its meeting, the BOC approved a res
olution opposing a proposed annexation into
Gillsville. Three property owners on Diamond
Hill Road in Jackson County are requesting to
be annexed into Gillsville.
Two of those applicants, Terry Dale and
Ray Turpin, spoke at the meeting Monday and
asked the BOC to reconsider its opposition.
Gillsville Mayor Larry Poole said the city has
received over a dozen annexation requests
recently. He said the annexations were started
because the residents want the city to repre
sent them.
“We really are just a little, laid back, farming
community that tries to keep together as a
town, which is sometimes difficult with the
state and all their rules and regulations,” said
See “BOC” on Page 3A
City's 2016
tax rate to
drop slightly
School tax rate slips; city
keeps same property tax rate
The Commerce City
Council finalized the city’s
2016 property tax rates Mon
day night.
As advertised, the city
kept the tax rate at 4.02
mills, the same as last year.
In addition, the council rat
ified the Commerce Board
of Education’s tax rates of
19.139 mills for maintenance
and operation and three
mills for school bonds.
Because the BOE M/O
rate rate is down from 19.845
mills last year, Commerce
residents will pay slightly less
in property taxes this year.
Mayor Clark Hill called the
ratification of the school tax
rates a “housekeeping mat
ter,” telling the city council:
“We just have to ratify it.”
City To Buy Sewer
Inspection System
In spite of a plea from activ
ist Tim Redmond to accept
the lowest bid, the council
unanimously approved the
expenditure of $139,500 for a
truck-mounted sewer camera
system that will enable the
city to do in-house inspec
tions of its sewer lines.
The city has budgeted
$80,000 a year for inspec
tion services and expects to
recoup its investment in less
than two years.
Redmond asked the
council to consider a trail
er-mounted system that was
bid at almost $34,000 less
than the bid the council
accepted. He suggested that
the city use one of its many
pickup trucks to pull the trail
er-mounted camera system.
Intersection To
Be Reconfigured
The council also voted to
reconfigure the intersection
of Scott Street at Waterworks
Road.
To cut down on high
speed traffic going onto
Scott Street from Water
works Road, the city will
See “Council” on 3/
Planners to consider
annexation of 42 acres
The Commerce Planning Commission will consider a
developer’s request to annex 42 acres for the construction
of 42 single-family houses.
The planning commission meets Monday, Sept. 26, at 6
p.m. in the Peach Room of the Commerce Civic Center.
Planning director David Zellner said J.P. Squared, LLC, of
Winder, wants to build houses from 1,600 to 1,800 square
feet after annexing the Whitehill Meadows subdivision,
located on White Hill School Road about a half mile off U.S.
441. The property is currently zoned R-l in Jackson County
and would be rezoned to R-2 in the city.
The subdivision has five houses already built. Those
lots, plus a sixth lot, will not be subject to the annexation or
rezoning request.
The planning commission will make a recommendation
on the zoning/annexation and the Commerce City Council
will act on that recommendation on Monday, Oct. 17, at 6
p.m. in the Commerce Room of the Commerce Civic Center.
most
MOST
miiiim
mi nnouno
INVOLVED
Favorites at Commerce High School
Commerce High School announced its Senior Favorites
last Friday. Chosen by members of the senior class are,
left to right, best all around, Madison Rodriguez and Dalton
Flint; most athletic, Anna Hardy and Cole Chancey; most
likely to succeed, Kendell Moon and Ethan Leffew; most
involved, Shelby Crane and Austin Black; most talented,
Mary Young and Trevor Young; friendliest, Jalen Walton and
(not pictured) Karen Merlos; most unforgettable, Garrett Ash
and Genesis Wilson; and most dependable, Drew Bell and
Brandi Herrrin.
