Monterey officials awaiting a resolution signature from Governor Lee to begin the formal process of creating a city administrator position.
Mayor Alex Garcia said the city board must approve the change with a two-thirds majority vote once the resolution is signed. Garcia said the goal is to have the new contractual position filled and active by the start of the new fiscal year on July 1.
“I can tell you from experience, the mayor position, I’ve been putting in about 20 hours a week on top of my 40-hour a week job, on top of my business, it’s a lot,” Garcia said. “The mayor, as well as every other board member gets $500 a year in compensation. So, I really think we need a city manager to take on the day-to-day, everyday roles.”
Garcia said a special call meeting could be held this month to address the the new City Administrator position. Garcia also said the upcoming budget must also account for the new position, which will require a higher salary allocation than current roles.
“This is better for the city,” Garcia said. “It gives you continuity of government.”
Garcia said other municipalities like Cookeville and Algood have seen success after moving to a city manager system. Garcia said having a full-time professional overseeing operations daily will lead to more efficient government functions.
“With eyes on it every day, I think that things’ll run smoother, more efficient and eventually it pays for itself,” Garcia said.
Garcia said the city is currently facing the necessity of a property tax rate increase to balance rising costs and to fund quality-of-life projects. Garcia said the city previously raised taxes by three cents three years ago, but noted that one penny only generates approximately $5,600 dollars in revenue.
“We can’t keep the same tax rate and expect to buy the same products and expect to do the same things for the same amount of money,” Garcia said. “When everything else has gone up. All our costs have gone up. So, I think a tax rate is inevitable.”
Garcia said the loss of revenue from the Perdue chicken plant closure has forced the city to use savings to cover expenses for the past year. Garcia said the Tennessee Comptroller’s office could intervene and mandate even higher rate increases if the city remains in a deficit for two consecutive years.
“If we don’t do something this year, the Comptroller’s office will come in because if you’re in a deficit for two years, they’re gonna raise the rates,” Garcia said.”And people aren’t gonna like it when they raise the rates. Because they’re not only gonna raise the rates to cover our loss, they’re gonna raise the rates for to cover it for next year.”