Martin informal meeting covers C.E. Weldon Building and Soybean Festival updates
By Benita Evans
Press News
Martin’s board will address well water issues, fire service fees, and court fees at their formal meeting Monday evening. Mayor David Belote reported that the C.E. Weldon Building has been cleaned. The rubbish-free building is now to the standard required by the insurance provider. Belote also reported that TLM is set to submit a draft roof report to him on April 13 for the former library building.
City Attorney Kirk Moore updated members on the City Charter. Moore said, The Speakers of the House and Senate have approved and signed the legislation to change the city charter; it is now on the Governor’s desk. After gubernatorial signature and administrative processing, the legislation will be sent back to City Hall. The board may consider the charter at next month’s regular meeting or via a special called meeting. Library Director Katie Parr accepted a new position as Regional Services Coordinator at Ohio River Regional Libraries; the city’s library remains under her broader regional umbrella in northwest Kentucky. Her last day is Friday. The library board approved Jenny Claiborne as interim director during the search for a new director.
The board will vote on an emergency expense. Public Works Director Randall Winston reported to the members…The city operates four wells; the water plant requires at least two operational wells, and peak demand may require three (e.g., main breaks, summer drought). Well #4 failed. After contractors pulled the well and evaluated the pump, they indicated that rebuild costs would be more than a new pump. The estimate for the new pump is $44,700. Winston also told the board that he could not find paperwork that showed the last time the wells were cleaned. He asked the board to approve the cleaning of the well for $16,500. The cleaning process includes pre and post-camera inspections, swabbing/brushing, surge-and-pump cycles to clean the pump column and well casing screens, followed by installation of a new pump with stainless steel pipe/shaft. It was added to the Monday agenda.
The Soybean Festival will continue, however, with stipulations from the Finance Committee. The first stipulation is that no funding will come from the city’s general fund; all city contributions must come from the tourism fund. Second, and a key condition, is that all festival expenses not covered by the tourism fund must be paid for by the festival itself through sponsorships, gifts, vendor fees, and admission fees. The festival is scheduled to run from Wednesday, September 9th, to Saturday, September 12th, with a “Faith and Community Night” on the first day.
The first reading of Ordinance 2026-04 to amend zoning for Mobile Home Parks was put on the agenda. This will create a new R-5 Mobile Home Park Residential District and zone existing mobile home parks into this district. Future mobile home parks would require rezoning requests, giving the Planning Commission and City Board control over locations.
Fire Chief Jamie Summers proposed a fee structure for hazmat incidents, illegal fires, false alarms, and adjustments to rural fire protection fees. Summers also suggested an increase in fire subscription fees. Paid subscribers (county, not city limits): Increase from $750 to $1,000. Non-subscribers: Increase from $2,500 to $3,900 due to personnel recall and other associated costs during rural responses. Grass fires: Flat rate of $750 regardless of hours.
Police Chief Phillip Fuqua proposed an increase in municipal court costs to cover increased operational expenses. He stated that current municipal court costs have been set at $65 for 32 years, while the costs of operating the court have risen significantly. A regional study of comparable areas in northwest Tennessee showed that court costs for a basic citation (e.g., 5 mph over the speed limit) ranged from Martin’s low of $83.75 to nearly $200, with the median cost of $134.00. He is asking the board to increase the city’s court cost from $65 to $115. This would bring the total cost for a basic citation to $134, aligning with the regional median.
Finally, the board will revisit the nepotism policy. The previous nepotism policy was entirely deleted, leaving no current language in place. Moore offered to provide the board with examples of policies from other cities to help inform the discussion. The board will attempt to have drafted language for a new nepotism policy, including a grandfather clause, ready for the upcoming Monday meeting
Martin’s formal meeting of the Mayor and Board of Aldermen is set for Monday at 5:15 p.m. in the City Courtroom.
