The town of Fort Smith might use round $4 million from $14.635 million in remaining proceeds of a voter-approved gross sales tax to pay water and sewer bonds. The bonds had been paid off in September 2022, however the tax was required to proceed till December 2022.
“Over the lifetime of the bonds, the gross sales tax generated funds in extra of the quantity required for the yearly bond funds so town was in a position to repay the bonds within the third quarter of 2022. … Through the fourth quarter of 2022, October by way of December, the ¾% gross sales tax plus bond escrow funds generated $14,645,239,” Fort Smith Metropolis Administrator Carl Geffken famous in a memo to the Fort Smith Board of Administrators.
The advice from metropolis workers was to make use of 100% of the proceeds on required federal consent decree work, Geffken famous in his memo.
After years of failing to keep up water and sewer infrastructure to federal requirements, town entered right into a federal consent decree with the U.S. Environmental Safety Company (EPA) and U.S. Division of Justice in late 2014. The consent decree required town to make an estimated $480 million value of sewer upgrades over the course of 12 years.
On Could 7, 2020, the EPA and the Arkansas Division of Environmental High quality (ADEQ) agreed that town has proved that the sewer enchancment program can be “inordinately costly, accordingly, certified for an extra 5 years of implementation time.” The town obtained an extra 5 years added to the 12 within the order to implement modifications.
However on Tuesday (Feb. 28) throughout a Fort Smith Board research session, Metropolis Director Kevin Settle mentioned the surprising funds give town “a as soon as in a era alternative” to make substantial enhancements to the bathhouse and different amenities on the Creekmore Park pool. Settle proposed utilizing as much as $4 million for Creekmore pool renovations.
The pool is the area’s solely Olympic-size outside lap pool, and features a diving facility, a shallow-depth splash space for smaller kids, public loos, and lifeguards.
The ability is getting old, and the bathhouse – which incorporates showers, and altering areas wanted for swim meets – has for years been a part of enchancment and renovation discussions. An preliminary draft of potential pool and related facility renovations by Crafton Tull, and engineering agency, contains an estimated price ticket of as much as $15 million for a number of phases of labor. Geffken mentioned Tuesday {that a} first section, which would come with an entire bathhouse rework, has a price ticket of round $5.5 million.
Director Lavon Morton agreed with Settle, saying he was “anxious to do one thing concerning the bathtub home,” however needed to “absolutely commit” $10 million of the surprising tax proceeds to consent decree work.
With Tuesday’s assembly being a research session, no motion was taken. Geffken and metropolis workers will expedite the continued research of Creekmore pool enchancment plans and return at a future board assembly with extra definitive prices and plans, and data on the best way to use cash that could possibly be accessible by the Parks Division for the work.