July 31, 2023

Police Advisory Review Committee Moratorium, STVR Tax Rates, and More

JULY 25 CITY COUNCIL HIGHLIGHTS

The Agenda Session recording can be found here.

• The council discussed the temporary moratorium of the PARC ordinance due to changes in state law.

• The council discussed the possibility of taxing short term vacation rentals at the commercial rate of 40% (as opposed to the current residential rate of 25%). The change would bring in up to $253k in revenue each year. The ability of municipalities to tax STVRs as commercial properties was recently upheld by the Tennessee Court of Appeals, but is likely to go to the Tennessee Supreme Court for further review.

• The council heard a presentation from the new Administrative Hearing Officer, who is tasked with hearing violation cases related to Short Term Vacation Rentals and litter.

The Business Session recording can be found here.

• The council approved a request to rezone 2155 and 2136 West Shepherd Road to R-T/Z (final reading).
• The council approved an amendment to the city ordinance governing the Fire and Police Pension Fund board of trustees (first reading).
• The council deferred a request to rezone 1111 North Hawthorne Street to R-T/Z to August 8 (first reading).
• The council approved the allocation of American Rescue Plan funding:
  • $20k to Prison Prevention Ministries for youth early intervention programs.
  • $6k to DeSti Foundation for educational programming.
  • $5k to United Community Action Alliance for seniors' health, wellness, and information.
  • $3k to Woodmore Elementary School Family Resource Center.
  • $15k to Second Missionary Services, Inc. for educational outreach programs.
• The council confirmed the appointment of Blake Wright to the Animal Control Board.
• The council approved the expansion of an agreement with Purpose Point Learning Academy for early learning access expansion, increasing the budget by $150k, for a total of $900k.
• The council approved an agreement between the Federal Highway Administration USDOT and TDOT for end-to-end support for Integrated Smart Electric Grid and Transportation System Management.
• The council confirmed the appointments of Matthew Stovall, Tim Goldsmith, Valerie Smith, Jonathan Dean, Nandini Makrandi, Dixon Settler, and Courtney Cochran to the Public Art Commission.
• The council approved 6 routine purchases, including a $800k purchase of Transportation Planning Services from Kimley-Horn & Associates.
• Three citizens addressed the council. You can watch the full comments here.

The meeting minutes can be found here.

AUGUST 1 CITY COUNCIL HIGHLIGHTS

The Proposed Meeting Agenda can be found here.

• The council will vote on an amendment to the city ordinance governing the Fire and Police Pension Fund board of trustees (final reading).
• The council will vote on a number of rezoning cases (first reading, see agenda for full details).
• The council will vote on a moratorium on certain sections of the Police Advisory Review Committee ordinance in order to comply with state law (first reading).
• The council will vote on an initial resolution authorizing the issuance of up to $46M in general obligation bonds.
• The council will vote on the appointment of Brenda Nunn, Dan Mayfield, and Christie Morris to the Beer and Wrecker Board.
• The council will vote on a number of contracts for Public Works and Wastewater. See Agenda for details.

AUGUST 8 CITY COUNCIL HIGHLIGHTS

The Proposed Meeting Agenda can be found here.

• The council will vote on a number of rezoning cases (final reading, see agenda for full details).
• The council will vote on a moratorium on certain sections of the Police Advisory Review Committee ordinance in order to comply with state law (final reading).
• The council will vote on an amendment to the general pension plan (first reading).
• The council will vote on a number of rezoning cases (firsteading, see agenda for full details).
• The council will vote on an amendment to the Short Term Vacation Rental ordinance (first reading).
• The council will vote on the allocation of $35k in American Rescue Plan Funds to Olivet Baptist Church for youth programming.
• The council will vote on the appointment of Chip Bake and Harriette Stokes to the Metropolitan Airport Authority.
• The council will vote on the appointment of Reginald Jordan to the Stormwater Regulations Board.
• The council will vote on the appointment of Lee Helena to the Form-Based Code Committee.
• The council will vote on the appointment of Cynthia Coleman to the Passenger Vehicle-for-Hire Board.
• The council will vote on two Planned REsidential Unit Special Exception permits (see agenda for full details).
• The council will vote on a Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-Saving Transportation Program Grant from the US Department of Transportation.
• The council will vote on a ~$1.1M contract wil Alfred Benesch & Company for engineering services related to the Shallowford Road widening project.