The Carroll County Budget Committee put its initial stamp of approval on pursuing a grant to fund new gear for county firefighters, as well as a bid to improve emergency communications in the southern section of the county, during an Oct. 30 meeting at the Carroll County Office Complex.
These committee decisions, however, will still have to be approved by the full Carroll County Legislative Body in the form of resolutions during the Nov. 9 meeting.
Jennifer Zimmerman, grant writer and project administrator with the Northwest Tennessee Development District, spoke at both the Budget Committee meeting and the preceding Rural Fire Committee meeting regarding Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding that is being made available through the CARES Act.
Zimmerman said that the county could qualify for up to $420,000 in funding with a 10 percent match – money that can be used to purchase one new set of turnout gear for each of the county’s volunteer firefighters and two new emergency breathing apparatuses for each county fire department.
According to quotes obtained by County Fire Chief Terry Bradshaw, all the gear and breathing equipment, along with a five percent administrative fee for her agency, would come out to about $410,000, which would put the county’s matching amount at around $41,000.
County Mayor Joseph Butler pointed out that much of the turnout gear currently used by county firefighters is old, worn, and outdated.
“In my opinion, this is the best way to address a critical need,” said Butler.
Zimmerman said that, statistically, the county has about a 50-50 chance of getting the grant due to high competition, though she added that those who make those decisions tend to favor projects that will improve public safety in low income areas.
“A lot is based on need assessment and the number of people served,” she said.
Zimmerman said the grant application must be submitted by Feb. 26 of next year, but before that, a lot of paperwork has to be completed and an income survey must be conducted for households in areas served by the fire departments – a door-to-door task she recommended be done by the firefighters themselves.
She said they should find out whether or not the county has been approved for the grant in September or October of 2021, then they should be able to bid it out in early 2022 and get the gear several months later.
• • •
On Butler’s recommendation, the committee gave initial approval to a $106,000 bid from B & E to provide and install communications equipment on a tower to be set up in the Westport area.
The also agreed to pay American Antennas $40,000 to take an old communications tower from outside the Carroll County Jail and set it up at the designated site.
Butler said this money will be reimbursed to the county from CARES Act funding that has already been allocated.
Committee member Johnny Blount commented that the southern part of the county is mostly a dead area when it comes to radio communications for emergency responders – something that could create dangerous situation and a possible liability for the county in the future.
The committee also made it part of the motion to use remaining CARES Act money as salary reimbursement for county employees participating in COVID response and mitigation.
Discussion was also conducted on possibly aiding the City of McKenzie in a project to improve its emergency radio communications system, though committee members generally agreed to wait until more information regarding costs and options is available before making a decision.
The committee also approved two budget amendments to account for $1,350 in unbudgeted expenses for the replacement of failed computer equipment in the Veterans Services and Register of Deeds offices.
