Greenfield Officials Sworn-In

New City Recorder Hired

SWEARING THEM IN - General Sessions Judge Tommy Moore (right) administers the oath of office to the recently elected and re-elected Greenfield City Board members (left to right) Mayor Cindy McAdams and Aldermen Jeff Hansen, Mark Galey (incumbent), Leanna Stephenson (incumbent) and Jaye Massey (vice mayor).

CHANGING JOBS - Greenfield City Recorder Callie Smithson (left) has accepted another position at UT Martin. The Greenfield City Board voted to hire Jerica Spikes (center) to fill the vacant position. Mayor Cindy McAdams (right) praised Callie for doing an excellent job as City Recorder and noted Jerica has completed all certifications necessary to assume the role.

BY DAVID FISHER

david@magicvalleypublishing.com

Greenfield City officials that were elected or re-elected in the Nov. 8 municipal elections were sworn-in minutes before the Greenfield Board meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 13.

General Sessions Judge Tommy Moore administered the oath of office to two newcomers, Aldermen Jeff Hansen and Jaye Massey. Incumbents re-elected were Alderpersons Mark Galey and Leanna Stephenson. Mayor Cindy McAdams, who ran unopposed, was also re-elected.

The Board appointed Alderman Massey as vice mayor, because he received more votes than any of the other aldermen candidates seeking office.

Greenfield’s eight aldermen are elected to four-year terms in office. The aldermen positions are staggered, with four members being elected every two years. This ensures that at least half of the Board members are experienced in the operation of city government.

Alderpersons up for re-election in 2024 are: Donald R. High, Kelly Keylon, James Roy Pope and Chris Turbyville.

The mayor only votes to break a tie when aldermen are evenly divided.

New City Recorder

In other Board action, City Clerk Jerica Spikes was appointed Greenfield City Recorder to fill the position left vacant by Callie Croom Smithson, who resigned in order accept a job as business manager over the Department of Agriculture, Geosciences and Natural Resources at UT Martin.

Callie’s last day as Greenfield City Recorder was Friday, Dec. 16. She starts work at UT Martin on January 3, 2023.

Callie says she plans to spend the two weeks between jobs with her husband, Ty Smithson, her one-year-old daughter, Landry, and family.

The Board praised Smithson for her outstanding performance during the four years she served as City Recorder.

Mayor McAdams said, “Callie’s done an excellent job for the city. I’d like to thank her for doing so many good things for our town and keeping us above the water. I’d like to thank you so much for what you’ve done.”

“I appreciate the City for putting your trust in me the past four-and-a-half years,” Callie said. “Leaving is bitter-sweet. I know it’s in good hands with Jerrica. I’ve come up with crazy ideas for community events and things. It’s been great working with everyone.”

Mayor McAdams stated Spikes, who has 15 years of experience as a city clerk, has completed all of the certification requirements for the job of City Recorder and is well positioned to do the job. “She knows the ins-and-outs and Callie has been a great trainer.”

“Jerica will do a great job,” Callie said. “The City will have an honest, smart and trustworthy person.”

Police Chief Replacement

Filling another vacant City position was also discussed.

The Board was reminded that Greenfield Police Chief Joey Radford retired Dec. 2 and someone needs to be hired to fill the position. Alderman James Roy Pope made a motion to hire Assistant Police Chief Danny Smith as interim chief, providing MTAS has no problem with it. However, Alderwoman Kelly Keylon suggested the Board wait to hear from MTAS before making the appointment, and Pope’s motion failed for lack of a second.

Keylon moved to not discuss hiring an interim police chief until hearing from MTAS. The motion was approved by a unanimous vote.

On Alderman Pope’s recommendation, the Board approved giving Assistant Police Chief Danny Smith a 50 cents per hour pay raise, retroactive to the date he assumed the role of assistant chief. This resulted in applause from the audience, indicating their support for the pay raise.

City Audit Report

The Board heard an audit report from Chloe Humphrey of the auditing firm of Cowart, Reese and Sergeant, concerning the audit of the City of Greenfield’s financial records for the year ending June 30, 2021.

According to Humphrey, the audit indicates there are no current year findings against the City.

“We had another great year,” Humphrey said. “I’m really sad to see Callie go. She’s been great to work with. But I’m excited to be working with Jerrica. I think she’s going to be a great fit for the position.”

Humphrey stated the City’s net position has increased from approximately $7.9 million to $8.5 million, making the effective net income $565,000.

According to Humphrey, there is $309,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funding, which will show up in the budget as revenue once it is budgeted, to be spent.

Additionally, Humphrey noted the City has paid off all outstanding debt, which she said is an outstanding accomplishment.

Tax Revenues

Mayor McAdams reported local sales tax collections for November were $32,814.79, which represents an increase of $4,862.52 from the previous month’s tax revenue totaling $27,952.27.

During the same period, state sales tax revenue amounted to $20,113.36, which is $693.29 more than October’s collections totaling $19,420.07.

Department Reports

In department reports, Fire Chief Bob Dudley stated that during the month of November, Greenfield Fire Department responded to nine calls for service. He said that due to the dry weather conditions, the firefighters were dispatched to extinguish three rural fires. “I’ll have a full, annual report next month,” Dudley said.

Parks and Recreation Director Chris Fulcher reported approximately 58 youngsters participated in the football program, which ended in November. Fulcher announced he would drop off signup sheets at Greenfield School for Pee Wee Basketball. The signup deadline is Jan. 6. He also noted the restrooms at the park have been remodeled. Additionally, Fulcher reported the tools for preparing the ballfields have been delivered, and if funds are available, he plans to build a shed for storing the equipment. Fulcher mentioned replacing the wooden sign at Callin’s Field and restoring the batting cage to working order. He stated he is also looking into replacing the park sign with a larger sign.

Keylon suggested asking local citizens to donate used equipment, such as gloves and other items so children who don’t have certain items they need to play sports could play. It was suggested the equipment could be dropped off at City Hall. Pope stated adults could also offer to sponsor some of the youngsters by paying their fees.

“I’d like to congratulate the Boys and Girls Jr. High Teams for winning the conference championship last night,” Mayor McAdams said. It was noted the last time both teams won the championship was in 1986.

Senior Citizens Center Director Marilyn Pugh said, “Our attendance is up every month.” She reported a group of seniors attended a show at a playhouse and ate at the Cracker Barrel Restaurant. She also stated there is a potluck meal at the Center every month and watercolor classes are available to the seniors. After looking into purchasing a van for the center, the mayor stated nothing has turned up yet. She said no used vans are available and new vans are too expensive. The only other options, said the mayor, are renting a van, which costs $350 per day, or traveling by private vehicle.