JOHN COFFELTEditor

A recently awarded ARC Downtown Grant that will in part help fund irrigation for the landscaping on the square has hit a snag when the second call for bids has gone unanswered.

According to Manchester Finance Director Lisa Myers’s report at the Nov. 21 Finance Committee Meeting, no bids had been submitted for the program because the cost of the project is too low.

The committee approved to instead going out and getting three quotes for the project.

Myers said that Codes Department Director Brittany Fiske had reached out to vendors urging them to submit bids.

Because the project is over $10,000 it is required by policy to be bided out. Expenses under that can be authorized by the mayor’s signature.

“The street department is having the same difficulty,” she said, “having people bid on striping the road.”

Myers and the board will at the January finance meeting address raising the amounts for expenses that need bidding out.

Chairman of Finance Joey Hobbs, who also serves as a County Commissioner, said that the county has recently change its rules conceding bids to set that amount at $50,000.

“At the county, we were having the same problems,” he said, “and we couldn’t get anybody to participate. It takes forever. We have a grant to do this and we can’t get it done.”

Police equipment purchases approved

The Finance Committee also approved a series of purchases by Manchester Police Department that will be funded by revenue streams not from the city coffers.

Police Chief Bill Sipe and Assistant Chief Adam Floied requested the approval of the purchases of an in-car camera system and radar systems for new patrol cars. The total for those, $21,894, will come from the drug fund.

Using grant money, the department will purchase additional camera systems with funds from the Tennessee Highway Safety Grant. Using grant money from Violent Crimes Intervention Fund, the department will purchase two new Motorola radios for the patrol car and 10 Tasers to fully outfit all the department’s patrol officers with the non-lethal weapon.

John has been with the Manchester Times since May 2011. John has won Tennessee Press Association awards for Best News Photo and placed in numerous other categories. John is a 1994 graduate of Tullahoma High School, a graduate of Motlow State Community College and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Middle Tennessee State University. He lives in Tullahoma, enjoys painting, dancing and exploring the outdoors.