Good evening and welcome to the Fort Smith City Board of Directors meeting.

On this May the 5th 2026.

Keep in mind these meetings are being televised live for the benefit of our residents who can't be with us in person.

And so with that, we'll have an invocation and pledge.

And Director Christina Savage would you leave us in the pledge?

Let's pray together.

Lord, what a privilege to gather together tonight.

The citizens and directors and Lord just coming together, thinking about the opportunities you have in front of us, the things you've given to us, what a blessing they are.

We don't take them for granted.

Lord, we pray that you continue to bless us so that we can continue to be the community that you have put in our hearts to be.

Help us to have compassion, help us to have a passion, to continue to be the city that you have made us to be in this time.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

Underground individuality and justice for health.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Madam Kirk, would you please call the role?

Directors Rego.

Here.

Good.

Kim?

Here.

George Kit Savis.

Christina Kitsavis.

Here.

Settled.

Martin.

Here.

Thank you very much.

Just I'm I'll ask if there's any board member or director, well, directors that may have an item of business not already on the agenda.

Okay.

Seeing none, we'll ask for approval of the April 21st regular meeting.

So moved.

Second.

Thank you.

All in favor?

Aye.

Okay.

Thank you very much.

Mayor, before we begin, I'll just let every staff the board know the staff know I'll be asking for an update on the sulfuric acid spill that happened in the meeting.

So just give Jeff and his team opportunity to get ready for an update.

I emailed them today asking the same thing.

Okay, thank you.

Okay.

Very good.

Thank you.

At this time, something new.

We're going to go to the Citizens Forum and keep in mind matters that will be discussed are matters to those involving the city government.

Madam Clerk, you're recognized.

Okay.

Uh first in Citizens Forum, and we have Nancy Rainey.

Each will have five minutes, and she has uh there's being spread around some information to pass out to each everyone.

Good evening.

Nancy Rainey, 8108, Adam Drive, Fort Smith, 72903.

Thank you for the time to talk about the proposed citywide fogging again.

Um regarding the fogging of permethrin, it's a non-selective insecticide.

So it the non-targeted impact.

This is a summary of what I discussed with y'all on this March 17th meeting.

The non-targeted impact kills bees, butterflies, moths, lightning bugs, and other pollinators.

It has it causes ecosystem disruption in that it kills natural mosquito predators like dragonflies, damselflies, and frogs.

It has high toxicity to aquatic life.

It's highly toxic to frogs, fish, and crustaceans through runoff.

Public health risks.

That's the good insects also.

It is also ineffective in that it can lead to a rebound effect where insect populations surge, insect like as in mosquitoes, surge later because their natural predators have been killed off by the permethrin spray.

And then the meeting proceeded.

So at the conclusion of the March 17th meeting, the board voted the 6 to 1 on a motion to focus efforts on public parks, congregation spaces, main waterways, thoroughfares, and an opt-in for residents.

I would like to point out that public parks are where people take their children and pets to learn and play, and where people go to relax and enjoy nature.

Children learn about birds and insects, the ones we like and the ones we don't like.

They learn to fish and enjoy the beauty of nature and the space to play freely.

Parks are where people go and enjoy the bird songs, the croaking of frogs, the smelling of the blossoming flowers, and playing in the grass.

From the National Pesticide Information Center, I know that's page one of a four-page document that I printed and somebody has it turned in.

In the water column, the half-life of permethrin is 19 to 27 hours.

If it sticks to sediment, it can last over a year.

There's a lot more data available about mosquito fogging, but I will stop here and ask you to consider the environment you want your kids and grandkids to be playing in.

Thank you.

Okay, thank you very much.

Next we have Carol Lee Jarvis.

Hi, I'm Caroline Jarvis with my reading glasses.

I can't see any of you.

Um, and you know, I I find that we're called the natural state, and so I feel that we should protect nature.

Um kind of in a timely manner.

Um I want to talk about how nature can help us clean up our environment.

Um there are some native species in Arkansas, like the big blue stem, um, swift grass, uh, green bulrush are just some of the native plants.

Um there's also trees like the willow and the poplar that not only clean toxins out of the water, but also out of the soil.

They clean up heavy metals, they manage lots of contaminants.

Oh, I'm sorry.

I also the birches will do that.

Um there are aquatic plants such as cattails, um bull rush I already in reeds that will even clean ammonia out of the water.

Um places it's because it's an invasive species, it's not allowed, but also water lettuce will clean up.

Um white clover cleans the soil, uh sunflowers, Indian grass.

Um, and those will clean up not only pesticides that have that are having residual effects, but it also helps clean up radiation isotopes.

Umglish ivy will clean mold spores out of uh the air as long as well as and sorry, airborne fecal particles.

Um there are also nitrogen fixants that will help the soil, including clover, alfalfa, um, and any uh legume in the legume family.

Um if anybody wants any more information about how to clean up the soil, uh there is the Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, New York that actually has what they call the eco machine.

They have done such a great job that the city of Rhinebeck actually is now having them work on their water purification and control.

Um there's a way for two minutes.

There's a way that uh we can keep our community clean by encouraging not only this the city but citizens to plant to plant plants and trees that will help keep our soil and our groundwater, our soil and our water clean for all citizens.

Thank you very much.

Next we have Crystal Cadelli.

Good evening.

I appreciate the time tonight.

Tonight I want to talk about a leadership, accountability, being proactive instead of reactive.

So starting with Fort Smith has known since at least 2010.

We have serious concerns with our aging water transmission lines.

These are not small issues.

These are critical lines that impact the long-term reliability of our water system and waiting until is not a plan to wait until there is a failure.

We have state funding opportunities available, including the ANRC, water and wastewater funding programs.

These programs offer major benefits to communities, including grants, low interest loans, possible loan forgiveness, and in some cases, projects that may be a hundred percent funded.

If you look at the list, every single major city in Arkansas has at least one project that is on that list.

Up to I would say half the cities in Arkansas that have submitted for at least one project.

Fort Smith has submitted zero.

Those are the kinds of opportunities we should be aggressively pursuing before asking residents to carry more of the burden.

We have a grant writer.

That position should not simply exist on paper.

The city administrator and board of directors should receive a monthly grant report showing what funding has been researched, what has been applied for, what was awarded, what was denied, and what opportunities are available.

We need proactive leadership, not reactive decision making.

The same applies to third party expenditures, including legal and engineering spending.

We continue paying outside attorneys significant hourly rates at around 250 an hour.

When the city is paying by the hour, what keeps outside council focused on protecting citizens and preventing costly legal issues instead of simply reacting after the damage is done.

Patting billable hours or benefiting from problems that should have been prevented.

Leadership should be acting with intent, focusing on continuous improvement, finding ways to cut costs, work more efficiently.

Examples would be the return on investment of beefing up our engineering department, or looking at an in-house council option.

I understand that projects like ACME Brick or the Consent Decree would need out we would need outside help for.

I see that we're declining instead of growing.

You can look around even the small cities in Arkansas.

They're growing.

Their population is growing.

We're staying flat.

We need a change.

Whether it's a change in government or a change in leadership, we need a change.

Thank you.

Next, we have Dan Williams.

Good evening, board.

I'd like to give y'all some praise to give citizens the opportunity to come speak at the beginning and instead of the end.

So thank you for my five minutes.

I'm actually, I think gonna finish early, so I've got just a few things I'd like to share.

I went to the business expo, and there was a hundred booths, uh, a lot of people there, a lot of a lot of interaction.

I got to meet uh Major Nathan Sobey there from the 188th.

Uh, and getting to meet different people.

One of the things in especially meeting with him, uh, there was a concern that he brought up, and I just thought I'd bring it up now.

Um, the concern was that uh dealing with our airport, the having a protective system to protect the airport and the base from drones if we were to be under attack like security, and that was a concern for not only the airport but for the ports.

I don't know which one of y'all might want to look at that, but I thought it was an interesting comment that he brought up, and I think it's serious because we're not just known in our nation now, we're known throughout uh the world now is having this system here, and so I think it kind of puts us on the map and the radar with the tension that's in the world today, and so I really appreciate it if someone would look into that.

Uh I thought the business expo was handled very well and I really enjoyed it and got to meet a lot of people.

That evening that uh we had the Steel Horse Rally.

Uh that was uh quite a success.

Lots of uh police was in there and they were doing their job.

I talked to many of them, uh, lots of families, lots of children, lots of interaction, and and I was really happy about that.

Um the other thing I'd like to give you kudos about uh the water lakes are down to 15, is what I saw.

Uh it used to be several hundred.

That was the whole reason I got involved almost three years ago because of the water lakes.

I had a water lake in my front yard for seven years before it got fixed, and I knew it had to be costing us money, and so uh it's it's great to see at least that being uh some progress there.

Um the other thing I'd like to ask you to check into.

We haven't heard anything on the RCOM water uh connection.

We haven't had an update or any kind of I'd like to I'd like to find out a little bit about that.

And I would uh several months back, there was other water contracts with other cities around that uh that we heard about, but it'd be nice to get an update on that also.

Um I guess the the last thing I'd like to remind you is that it's uh Mother's Day weekend, so don't forget your mom's.

Thank you.

Next we have Amanda Lancart.

Good evening.

I'm here to speak about the city's mosquito fogging program.

I want to begin by thanking Directors Kemp, Good, and Martin for making sure this program came back before the vote the before the board for a vote.

I spoke here a few weeks ago, and I want to briefly recap the research for anyone who wasn't at that meeting.

I'm not a scientist.

I'm a resident who became concerned enough to spend the last several weeks reading the peer-reviewed literature on this topic while planning a wedding that is now four days away, because I believe our health and the health of future generations depends on decisions we make before the consequences become obvious.

The published science on the compound Fort Smith is using links it to brain and nervous system damage in children at general population exposure levels, a threefold increase in cardiovascular death risk over roughly 14 years, suggestive evidence of carnes carcinogenic carcinogenic genicity, the EPA's own finding, and the measure and measurable testosterone suppression in men at real-world exposure levels.

Testosterone governs energy, mood, fertility, and long-term heart health.

A University of Toledo neuroscientists who study this compound put it plainly.

It's what they fog in the streets for most mosquitoes.

These chemicals might not be as safe for children and pregnant women as we once believed.

These findings come from peer-reviewed research, meaning independent scientists verified the work before publication, published in journals including J AMA Internal Medicine and Environmental Research among the most respected in their fields.

This is a portion of what the science says.

It is not exhaustive.

These aren't four separate concerns.

Every resident in the spray zone faces all of them simultaneously, and they accumulate over a lifetime.

People already carry background pyrothroid loads.

This program adds to that without a single confirmed mosquito-borne illness in Sebastian County to justify it.

When I ask residents for evidence that fogging is effective or that it isn't harmful, what I receive is anecdotal.

I've done this for years, and I'm fine.

I still see fireflies.

But these are not the basis this decision should rest on.

The harms documented in the research are not immediately visible.

They build over time, across populations and data.

A child's developing brain doesn't send a signal the night the trucks fog.

Cardiovascular risk accumulates across years.

Hormonal disruption doesn't announce itself.

The same is true for the species we depend on.

The Western monarch butterfly population hit its second lowest count ever recorded this past winter, just 9,119 butterflies, down from more than 200,000 the three years prior, and a fraction of the millions millions observed in the 1980s.

The U.S.

Fish and Wildlife Service proposed listing monarchs as threatened in December 2024.

At least 14% of assessed North American firefly species are now threatened with extinction, with pesticide use listed among the primary cause.

These declines don't happen in one backyard in one evening.

They happen across decades in data most of us never see.

The same way you don't watch your nails grow, but they do.

One firefly in your yard last Tuesday is not evidence the population is stable.

It's evidence there was a firefly in your yard last Tuesday.

The science is real, published, and reviewed.

Anecdotal reassurance is not a counter to that.

It's simply a different kind of information, and not the kind that should guide a public health decision affecting every resident in this city.

At the February study session, the city's own public works department acknowledged they cannot confirm this program is effective and that there isn't good data to support it.

We are accepting documented harm in exchange for a benefit that cannot be verified.

Rice fields flood directly into the city of Jonesboro, Arkansas, every summer, leading to heavier mosquito pressure than Fort Smith faces.

They manage it through surveillance and threshold-based response.

Same state, same client, same climate, no calendar schedule.

I also reached out directly to the city of Fayetteville.

Their response was straightforward.

The city does not fog or treat for mosquitoes.

Instead, they direct residents to remove standing water, use natural repellents, and treat water features with mosquito dunks.

Fayetteville is not alone.

Across Arkansas, cities are managing mosquitoes through education, source reduction, and larviciding, rather than calendar schedule truck spraying.

Fort Smith has the opportunity to join them, choosing science over convenience and habit.

Fort Smith has more resource resources than I do to get this right.

Dr.

Tanya McKay, professor of ontomology and department chair at Arkansas State University, has an active research partnership with Jonesboro, built specifically around mosquito surveillance and integrated management.

That expertise exists in this state.

A pause is what makes pursuing it possible.

Pause this program, expand larvaciding, the CDC's recommended primary strategy, which is cheaper and more targeted.

And at the June budget meeting, commit to a surveillance-based ecosystem first program for 2027.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next we have Chris Ridgway.

Good evening.

My name is Chris, and I'm a Fort Smith resident, and I'm here to talk about the mosquito fogging program.

I want to be straightforward.

I'm not an expert on this topic.

I'm a regular guy who started reading the research because this affects where I live.

And I want to share what I have.

I'll start with the product label because this is an activist literature.

It's the manufacturer's own document.

The label for control 3030 says it's extremely toxic to aquatic organisms.

The runoff from treated areas may be hazardous to fish in aquatic life.

And that it is highly toxic to bees with permithrin on vegetation remaining toxic to bees forging on treated plants the morning after application.

It requires applicators to prevent drift to sensitive areas.

But at the February study session, the city acknowledged that the drift cannot be controlled.

The residents who said it no are going to be exposed regardless.

The label says that it shouldn't happen.

The city says it can't be prevented.

That's a structural problem.

No adjustment to spray times will fix this.

A single bat eats up to a thousand mosquitoes an hour.

The fear about bats and kids and pets is understandable, but bats aren't aggressive animals.

Actual transmission risk requires direct contact with a grounded bat, which is rare.

I'd hate to see a good ecological decision get walked back because of a fear that doesn't hold up to the data.

The instinct behind the bat houses was right.

There's a 2025 study from Xerces, I think I said that right, society, that measured actual insecticide levels in residential yards during mosquito spray programs.

Fogging spreads chemicals, exposure widely across community, and the chemicals that land on vegetation wash off into storm drains, and storm drains go into the river.

Fort Smith is a river city.

The USGS has documented exactly how that process works in systems like ours.

Here's something I don't think gets enough attention.

Mosquito predators don't bounce back the way mosquitoes do.

A female mosquito lays hundreds of eggs at a time, and larvae can become adults in about a week.

Dragonflies spend one to three years as aquatic nymphs before they emerge.

When you spray, you hit both.

But mosquitoes recover in days while predators take seasons or years.

A repeated calendar program may be making long-term problem worse by removing the natural systems that keep populations in check.

And there's another long-term cost worth naming.

Applying except insecticide broadly without surveillance data to guide where and when contributes to pesticide resistance over time.

The program may be making future mosquito control harder, not easier.

Something else worth noting.

Fort Smith's own website tells residents that most effective methods to reduce mosquito-borne illness are removing breeding sources using larvacides and community education.

That's the city's own public health guidance.

Yet the majority of the program's budget goes to fogging.

The city's guidance and the Sydney's spending are pointing in opposite directions.

Fairfax County, Virginia, right outside of Washington, D.C.

Sits on the Potomac River.

Dense humid summers, real mosquito pressure, and their health department's policy, they don't spray.

Not for nuisance mosquitoes.

Adult as sighting is only used when uh surveillance confirms actual disease risk at specific location.

Instead, they run regular larva siding of public stormwater sites, conduct seasonal mosquito trapping and disease testing throughout the county, and focus on public education, source reduction, and source reduction.

Over a million people that made that choice not because mosquitoes aren't a problem there, they are, but because the data told them a calendar schedule wasn't the right response.

Fort Smith has committed 84,000 a year to this program.

That budget doesn't have to be wasted with a pause.

It can be redirected.

Citywide BTI larva siding, mosquito surveillance and trapping, a public dunk distribution program that puts larvacide directly in a resident's hands for bird baths and gutters.

These are the approaches the CDC recommends.

They target mosquitoes before they are ever flying.

That's a better use of the same money.

And I'll close with this.

The most visited outdoor destination in the world.

Tens of thousands of people every single day in a Florida swamp in the heat manages mosquito populations without routine truck adults adult asciting, surveillance, source control, biological tools, natural predator support.

That's Disney World.

Not because they can't afford to spray, because they found it's not the most effective long-term approach.

Thank you.

Next we have Eric Wideman.

Good evening, everybody.

Thanks for letting us speak at the beginning.

I really appreciate it.

I was able to tour the acne brick site a week ago Monday.

Maggie got it set up.

Her and Sarah showed me the beautiful view and the possibilities that such a site could afford the city of Fort Smith.

It was very very impressive.

I also asked for a copy of the phase one ESA report.

That's similar to an environmental impact study.

It is actually an environmental side assessment report.

2001 Old Greenwood, Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Prepared for the city of Fort Smith.

Prepared by GTS Inc.

Geotechnical and Testing Services.

1915 North Shiloh Drive, Suite 1, Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Back in November 23.

I had also asked uh who is in charge of the environmental impact study, and I was told it was Western Arkansas planning and development.

I got to thinking that night and I went and looked at the board members.

Mr.

McGill is a board member.

I think that's the Fox Guard in the Hen House.

Okay, but I but I handed you there, that's page five of the report, section 1.4, paragraph B.

Just a second here.

Okay.

This phase one ESA was non-evasive in nature, and sampling of air, water, sediment, and soil was not a part of the scope of the assessment.

Consequently, opinions and collusion conclusions concerning the possible presence of heavy metals, petroleum, hydrocarbons, polycarbonated bifennels or other regulated hazardous substances at the target property, are based on readily available and published information, personal interviews, and site specific features noted during the site reconnaissance.

On page 13 of the report, it refers to knowledgeable person interviews.

No knowledgeable person was available for the interview.

So I don't think this was a complete complete site assessment.

You didn't test the soil, the air, the ground, and while we were there.

No construction should be done until it's complete.

There has been no chance for the citizens to go over this to the best of my knowledge.

You haven't divulged that to us.

You haven't studied the old dump yet?

How you need to have to be breaking the old dump?

Okay.

So this is a site or a stormwater retention pond, is what you're talking about.

How can the site hold water if it's being filled up with dunk truck dump trucks full of dirt?

How can you fill a full glass?

I know the dump trucks could be hiding something, that's why the soil samples hadn't been done yet.

Maybe you'll do them after they get covered up with dirt.

And when was when was there was there a chance for public involvement in this?

Or is there scheduled to be one?

Could you repeat that question?

When was or is there going to be a chance for public involvement?

Yeah, absolutely.

In phase one.

Yeah.

I mean, there was there was public open houses and all that kind of stuff that um that was available for the public, correct?

I mean, I don't know exactly what what the date was, but it was yes, for yes, for input into the uh design.

The design concepts for the for the park for the master planning, yes.

Was it a phase one environmental site assessment discussed or available at that point?

This doc this document that you have, I think is available, yes.

Okay, so when's phase two gonna be done?

That's undetermined.

All right, thank you all very much.

Thank you.

Next we have Shane McKinney.

I wonder what board members you're gonna try to call it early.

Um hi guys.

So uh we're working very hard to gather petitions.

I know you guys are aware of that.

Um I wanted to talk about something that I don't think everybody is aware of on the board, and that is the difficulty and the effort it takes for citizens to sign a petition.

Sometimes we think about this as just like going to a vote and and voted a voting booth, but that's one day, it's well advertised across the city.

Um your employer's gonna give you time off, you get a little sticker afterwards.

But when somebody comes out to sign one of our petitions, they're having to go out of their way.

They're having to make special, we're trying to make it as easy easy as possible, but they're having to go out of their way for this.

So over this weekend of gathering signatures, I spent over 20 hours getting signatures of the steel horse rally.

I had a lady show up uh pushing a guy in a wheelchair that had a torn ACL and MCL.

He wanted to come sign the petition.

He had to arrange somebody to drive him.

Um I had somebody show up on their way to the emergency room, their kid was hurt, and she sent me a message later.

It turned out the kid had a broken leg.

She literally stopped.

She this was so important to her that she stopped on her way to the ER and took the time to sign this.

It is an incredible amount of effort for us to keep pushing this burden upon the citizens.

And I don't want that to be undermined.

Sometimes I feel like, oh, well, 1500, 1800 signatures, we're actually closer to 2,000 now of 2600.

We're almost to the same number of voters that showed up for our last election.

This is very significant, and I don't want this to be played as a small thing.

We have no financing.

We're doing this entirely grassroots.

We've used markers for all of our signs except one that was given to us by a sign company.

We're printing off our own sheets.

We have no employees that are paid.

This is entirely volunteers that are wanting to make this happen, and citizens that are going out of their way to sign.

This is not some huge conspiracy where we've got a hundred thousand dollars to spend.

We could probably seek donations, but we chose to make this grassroots.

We chose to make this small, and we chose to make it so that it was very clearly coming from the people.

But I don't I don't want this to be belittled because we have a smaller number than what maybe you think that we should have at this point.

We have till July 21st to gather these signatures.

We have a lot of time.

We're already almost there.

And we're not going to stop.

We're we're not going to stop.

But I would ask the board to consider taking some of the burden off of the citizens of Fort Smith, taking some of that burden away, and looking towards expediting the vote on the next.

I know we can't do it until after the study session.

I'm aware of that, but I'd like to make sure that this doesn't get put off again because it does create a huge burden, not just on myself, but on the citizens themselves.

And the next thing I'd also like to say is that it's already been made very clear to us that there will be a legal battle that happens after we submit these.

So that what the city is going to be looking at is months of trying to fight over which signatures from which address, and if this person is a Fort Smith citizen, and if the wording of the petition is perfectly in line.

When it's very clear the citizens understand what they are signing up for, having months of legal battles just to try to get this on a vote and all the court and everything that goes with it, I think is in nobody's best interest.

It's clear that the citizens want change.

We can see that.

It's clear that there's a push for this starting to happen.

I don't think anybody here can't see that happening.

I would just encourage us to make this as less as low on the pain level to get to a vote of the citizens.

And in November, the citizens can decide.

We aren't going to try to force this on any citizens.

The citizens get to come show up and vote like anything else, and they can pick what's happening.

This isn't a bad thing.

It's not a conspiracy.

Some of the people supporting us may be angry at times.

They may be the kind of people that get upset at times, but that's not all of us.

Most of us are just ordinary folks like you guys.

And uh we want to see good things for Fort Smith, but we want the Fort Smith citizens to have the opportunity to choose this.

It's not since the 70s that the Fort Smith citizens have gotten to choose their government type.

It's not since the 70s.

So I think it's time we get a chance to make this choice again.

So I would encourage you all.

Let's uh make sure that this next one happens and then we can get this vote as quickly as possible so citizens can start spending their time on other more productive things.

Thank you.

Next we have Amy Williams.

Good evening, board.

I am Amy Williams.

I live here in Fort Smith, and I've lived here for a long time.

I enjoy living here.

I wanted to take a moment to personally thank you for the work done on the water tower.

If in fact the city had anything to do with this, which water tower?

The one that got sprayed by the drones.

Multiple have been sprayed by drones.

Nice.

Well, the one on Old Greenwood, the red and white one.

Um I've spoken constantly to people in the community and even to board members about this condition.

I can't tell you how wonderful it is to look at the skyline now and see the landmark that we are proud of.

With graduation approaching and the Steelhorse Rally getting through uh bringing tens of thousands of visitors into our area, the timing is perfect for a long time.

The tower has been a nasty eyesword that didn't represent our community.

Now it serves as a bright, clean beacon that makes a great first impression.

I also want to acknowledge the method that was used by Edwards Gutter and Cleaning.

I know in earlier comments about this project.

The estimate for painting a water tower was about three million dollars, which is a daunting figure for anyone and everyone.

However, I'm glad to look at the newer solution.

I saw the video on Facebook, and it's been getting lots of views showing how a powerful drone could spray and do the job.

After seeing that actually happen and work so incredibly, that was wonderful.

It proves that it can be the beautiful town and be smart with our budget at the same time.

A clean skyline changes the morale of a city.

Thank you for listening to my concerns and for choosing a solution that was both effective and innovative.

It truly makes a difference.

We still have another old water tower on uh on Greenwood that could be cleaned.

We have a great gorgeous city.

I enjoy living here, and I enjoy being an active and member of this community.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Next we have Chris Cadelli.

Good evening, board, and and uh I would like to echo the others that thanked y'all for the opportunity to let the citizens uh speak first.

Um I'd also like to echo Dan's uh request for an update on the um Arcoma water situation.

I think the citizens deserve to know if we're subsidizing any of our neighbors' water.

Um I'd also like to start by thanking the awesome folks working their tails off collecting petition signatures to force a ballot measure proposing a change in government from the current city administrative form to the more commonly used strong mayor council form as a concerned citizen.

It's been exciting to watch the level of voter interest in signing the petition.

You know, as Shane mentioned earlier, it is an inconvenience.

Um we certainly appreciate the folks that have that have that have signed the petition uh to send this to the voters uh in November.

I think it's vital Fort Smith change its form of government to a better to better align itself to the same form of government nearly all the cities we compete against for economic growth already utilize.

Our current form of government makes it very difficult as a citizen to pinpoint who's actually running the city.

Anytime we have a win, there's plenty of folks lined up for to take credit and for photo ops, but when there's a challenge or a loss, it's usually crickets or finger pointing in one direction or another.

This current system makes it too easy to transfer blame.

I hope the board will have a thorough study session next week with an impartial council available to answer any questions that that may arise from the directors.

I hope the study session results in a motion and a second to place this issue on the next regular meeting that results with at least four directors voting to send this ballot measure on to the people in November and let the people decide.

I just don't think the board doing that is controversial.

I don't think the board, you know, voting to do that either affirms any one director's uh advocacy advocacy for that or against it.

It just simply sends it to the people, let the people decide.

And what let the cards fall where they may.

If the voters want to change in government, they'll vote for it.

If they don't want it, it'll fail.

And we just continue on, you know, we move on.

Um it's clear that the serious effort being made to collect signatures will be completed in the very near future, and the board should recognize this and just send it to the people.

I appreciate your time.

And last we have Glenn Forte.

Good evening, folks.

I'm gonna start with the city assisted administrator.

I've talked to him over a year ago.

He promised in his voice in this room and told me he would call me.

But he promised me.

When I talked to him in March of 26, he told me it never happened.

When I speak, I tell nothing but the truth.

And people that work for this city know it's true because it sticks to the ceiling, it sticks to the wall, it sticks to your shoes you walk on.

I don't lie, and I don't like being jerked around and lied to.

And you know you lied to me, Dakeman, and I'm asking you tonight to resign.

You're a disgrace to the city and the taxpayers for the record.

I go on to the chief of police now.

I've asked for a conference for three and four years.

I'm denied.

He's out of uniform.

How the hell does the public know who he is in this room or in the city without wearing a uniform?

Why am I being denied to speak to him and have a meeting?

He's another piece of work, and I'm asking for him to resign.

And I have quite a few issues with the police department here.

Some of them are being investigated.

A neighbor of mine had surgery in 26.

She was involved in a hit and run accident, and the Fort Smith Police Special Department was involved.

And they let her go with no paperwork, no police report.

Because the police department and some of the officers, I say some, not all, are on the take.

Now it's being investigated.

It's pretty sick what goes on here.

It's very sick.

I have a situation, someone runs a used car business.

They park across the street on my driveway.

I can't get in, I can't get out.

I can't call this director over here, which is mine.

Rico, he won't return a phone call.

He doesn't like a headache or a problem.

He's a disgrace.

He should resign tonight.

And I speak nothing but the truth.

And I'm not very happy with the way I've been addressed and served here.

But I will say there's a couple of troopers here that take care of business for Glenn.

I got a dry out.

One of them, Maggie Rice.

One of them, Sherman God.

Another one, Lee Kemp came to my aid over on Townsend Avenue with a convicted sex offender and a molester and a money launderer, both convictions.

His name is Christopher Delopoulos.

He pays city employees bribes, he pays the cops bribes.

I have proof of it.

That's going to be a big case here.

And a lot of fish like you people are going to go down.

I'm not going to name you people tonight except the administrator and the chief.

You people need to resign because the records will show how you do tax pay is wrong.

And police officers like you, Digman, are on the take.

Okay.

And I'm tired of being abused and a lie to being a senior citizen, Digman.

You need to resign tonight.

And you should return your paychecks.

And I'm also going after the old city administrator because you and him are partnering crime, breach of employment contract, having a job center, people appointed to the city to work here.

I haven't even got into the slides yet.

I'm doing an audit as I speak to you people.

And that is not going to be a very good case for you people.

It's sad and it's sick.

And I will show there was payoffs and bribes.

And I do know very well what I'm talking about.

Oh, the other thing, Digman, you jump in with the lady to go and pinch me in the hallway and don't say a word and interrupt the conversation I have with Jimmy Johnson.

Have a lovely day.

You're a miserable person.

Thank you, folks.

That's all that I've signed in to speak in the Citizens Forum.

Thank you.

At this time we'll go to the first item on the agenda.

Thank you, Mayor.

The first item tonight is a resolution approving the year 52 community development block grant budget, the year 22 Home Investment Partnership Act program budget and authorizing the submission of the program year 2026 action plan.

Speaking to this item as Director of Community Development, Candice Kabucci.

Candice?

Good evening.

April 9, 2026, the community development advisory committee held a public hearing.

Held a public held a public hearing to discuss the community development block grant funding for 2026 and the amount of 772,874.

The home portion of that funding came to 367,054.

And I'm happy to entertain any questions.

Thank you very much.

Madam Clerk, are there any citizens' comments on this item?

None indicating.

Motion to adopt the resolution.

Second, thank you.

Comments from the board.

Director Neil Martin.

Sixth and E.

Sixth and E, thank you.

Yes, actually that is in the process of going to the title company right now, and we expect a groundbreaking hopefully within the next month.

Okay.

And so they'll at that point they start building.

Yes.

Okay.

All right.

Thank you.

Director Rigo.

Thank you, Mayor.

I just want to say uh to Candace and your team and to anybody who's here or who's watching or who's taking part from uh each of these agencies and entities that um utilize this funding.

I just want to say thank you for the hard work that you put in uh on the front lines of some very very challenging and difficult issues.

Uh the work is hard.

Uh the challenges are many, and I know that we're grateful uh for the work that you all do.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Any other comments from the board?

Director Good.

Thank you, Mayor.

Cannonis, I'll also just piggyback off the director's comments.

I know the CEDAC puts in a lot of personal time in the evenings, even on the weekends, to hear some of these uh individuals, nonprofits, you know, present.

Um so just if you don't mind for the board, please thank them for their service.

Absolutely.

Thank you.

Any other comments?

Okay, seeing none, please call the roll.

Directors Rico?

Yes.

Good.

Yes.

Kim?

Yes.

George Kit Savage.

Christina Kitsavis.

Yes.

Settled.

Yes.

Martin.

Yes.

It's approved.

Seven in favor and zero opposed.

Item two.

Item two is a resolution requested by the board at the last regular meeting that will suspend public works mosquito fogging operations until further notice.

Director of Public Works, Matt Meeker is available for questions and address this item.

Thank you, Mr.

Dingman.

I'm here to answer any questions.

Okay.

Thank you, Matt.

We've we've heard uh public comments, or there any other comments, Madam Clerk.

We do have six individuals that have signed in to address the board.

Uh first being Carol Lee Jarvis.

Hello again.

Um I am for suspending the spring.

Uh personal one personal reason I have asthma and it bothers me every season.

Um there are ways to uh battle against mosquitoes.

Um the bat houses were brought up.

Uh that's very effective in Minnesota.

Um also dragonflies or any predators.

Um thing that I noticed while in Japan in uh around the rice fields that there were very low amounts of mosquitoes but very high amounts of dragonflies.

There are other ways to mitigate mosquitoes in public places, such as in the city parks and city spaces to plant lavender, rosemary, basil, uh citronella grass, and marigolds, just to name a few.

Uh ones that can be planted in yards and probably not in public places, garlic.

Uh mosquitoes hate garlic.

Um just you know uh including education and insert into the to the water bills um campaign to tip and toss.

Um there are more effective ways uh if spraying were an option.

There are natural ways.

Um, and other people have brought up um you did the additive to the water for the larva, the larvicides.

Um natural predators, again, dragonflies, bats, swallows, um, other winged things.

Um people have touched upon it, and I have a personal reason for not wanting any extra pesticides in the environment is because I lost my oldest daughter because she got cancer from environmental pollutants.

So please, please for future generations.

Stop the spraying.

Thank you.

Next we have Crystal Cadelli.

Good evening again.

Um I'm against the widespread mosquito spraying.

Um I understand the concern around mosquitoes.

Um, we are not a uh an area that has mosquito borne illnesses.

Um at the very most, they're annoying and um you know not fun to sit outside uh and get bit.

But I think spraying chemicals into the air affects everyone and everything in its path.

Residents cannot avoid what is being sprayed over their neighborhoods.

That raises concerns for children and pets, people with breathing issues, um, issues with pollinators like butterflies and bees.

Realistically opting out is pointless for residents if surrounding streets uh are being sprayed.

In my opinion, the compromise for both would be for the city to do a better job at advertising that they offer free repellent and um make it easier for residents to have access to it, maybe put it at multiple locations.

Um the other thing that I will say is focusing on mitigating our water issues, working on our drainage water breeds mosquitoes, and we have hundreds of residential areas and residences that are dealing with standing water because we have poor drainage.

It would also uh generate revenue for the city, all the residential properties that we acquired because of flooding.

We could then sell them and generate revenue.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next, we have Amanda Lancart.

I won't take too much more time.

At the February study session, the city's public works department acknowledged it cannot confirm this program is effective and that there isn't good data to support it.

The CDC and EPA don't recommend calendar schedule adult deciding.

They reserve it for a confirmed disease threshold that Sebastian County has not crossed.

The chemicals already purchased don't need to be discarded.

They should be held in reserve for exactly what the CDC and EPA recommend, a documented disease threat.

That's not a reason to keep spraying on a calendar.

It's a reason to stop until the threshold exists.

EPA registration does not mean safe.

The EPA itself has flagged this compound for carcinogenic potential in endocrine disruption.

Those findings don't disappear because the program is convenient.

What this board does tonight is decide whether Fort Smith acts on convenience or on evidence.

The federal standard is evidence.

The ask is a pause, expanded BTI larvaciding, and a commitment to a data-driven program by 2027.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next we have Chris Ridgway.

Hello again.

Nobody here tonight is asking Fort Smith to ignore mosquitoes.

We're asking the city to stop using a method it has acknowledged that it cannot confirm works and use that pause to build something better.

The chemicals are purchased and can be held for when a confirmed disease threshold actually warrants their use.

The budget can shift towards surveillance and larva siding.

The city gains the ability to make decisions based on the data instead of a calendar.

I want to be accurate about something that came up in the last meeting.

A personal observation was offered that fire flies are still visible during regular spring and presented a reason not to be concerned.

That kind of observation is understandable, but population level harm to beneficial insects isn't something that you see from your backyard on any given evening.

It shows up over years in data and right now.

Fort Smith isn't collecting any.

A pause is how you find out what's actually happening.

A vote to pause tonight is what we want.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next we have Chris Cadelli.

Thank you.

And I I too oppose this uh widespread uh spraying based on all this great research and data these other great citizens have brought to the board, so I echo their sentiments and and would hope that this is suspended.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And last we have Joe Elskin.

I am so proud to be in Fort Smith tonight with all of this education.

I'm just yeah.

I mean, all the facts are there.

I think if you could have said you were going to vote in favor of eliminating this ahead of time, you would have missed all that information.

Okay.

I'm impressed with these people.

Um I have I'm yes, I'm in in favor of stopping it.

My husband has lost his hives from uh uh yeah, spraying.

Um all I all I ask is just to emphasize what somebody said.

You can do education because people don't remember standing water, they don't remember that you can get those.

I think you can get the the uh lava side dunks free from the city.

Thank you.

Wonderful evening.

Thank you, Joe.

Madam Clerk.

That's all for Iowa.

Thank you very much.

Just time we will entertain a motion to adopt a resolution.

So moved.

Second.

Thank you.

Comments from the board.

Mayor.

Director George DeSavage, Director Kemp, and then Director, we'll go right down the line over here.

Okay, Mayor.

I have a I've been thinking about this, and it's about I think it's about 50-50 residents in Fort Smith or four again.

So here's what I was thinking.

Why don't we?

I want to make a mo I want can I make a motion right now?

Sherry?

That's let's hear from all of them.

Oh, okay.

And then you can well go ahead.

Okay, I'm not making an official motion, but I want to put this on the November ballot.

Let the people vote on it.

Either you're against fogging or for fogging, and this would be the end of it.

So you all take it any way you want.

Okay.

Thank you.

Director Kemp.

Thank you, Mayor.

Um thank you for those that have presented here tonight.

I I think one of the things I wanted to just give opportunity to and appreciate our colleagues here tonight, uh, listening to them, and is just a lot of times people don't follow city conversations tightly.

And when we did pause for a window in time to give people to give feedback, that just to be fair to the board, there wasn't a lot of feedback.

And then when this got put forward, then we did get some feedback.

And I think this is about pausing and just coming back to listen tonight.

And I'm curious to see the the colleagues at that.

Um Mr.

Meeker, if you could have a question for you, and then a few comments, and I'd love to circle back to me after I listen to colleagues more.

One res uh resident I did hear from works over uh for a business right over there by Mill Creek.

And uh specifically, it's like you know, it's loading trucks that are going out for delivery, they got a lot of workers there, and uh it was pretty heavy, significant mosquito usage.

Or there they're inundated with mosquitoes over there.

Is there any efforts that we could do with Mill Creek, particularly even around where those businesses are on 28th Street?

If we see that perhaps we just need to, there's puddles of water that are not flowing that could be treated, or is there areas like that that we could maybe be more targeted by sending voice to?

Yes, as you alluded to, obviously in the creek itself where there's moving water.

I mean, there's not a need to treat that anyway, and and we wouldn't be treating that, but we can go to those areas and uh especially those areas like that where there's uh uh large amounts of water or potentially large amounts of standing water around those areas.

I mean that's something we've done at the past as we have personnel that goes out and meets with the property owners or the business owners and and looks around at the area for standing water and uh puts out mosquito dunks and everything uh to assist with the situation.

That's something we've done for many years actually.

Does that help when like you go out, say you're got near where the UPS, you know, where they stock trucks and things and they're getting inundated and you go out there and you see standing water and you do a mosquito dunk there for that standing water?

Is it effective?

Yes, I believe it is, and uh that's what we hear from the residents is that get them.

That the residents that get them like them and and uh they feel they're effective.

Okay.

The other thought I had was when we hear about native plants and trees, we have the beautify Fort Smith group that is you know addressing situations and focusing on areas, and I I just wonder, I know they even had some funding, but if there was some sort of modification to this, perhaps we could still take an active approach seeing if beautify Fort Smith would be willing to take us on and planting in certain things, and then I another one I wonder about is uh can you release dragonflies?

I mean, I hear us talk about it.

I don't know if you're if there's anyone that sells dragonflies that you can release into an ecosystem if they take three years.

Do you know anything about either that I do not know?

I don't either.

Uh and then one thing I would ask you whether there is are you aware do we have a bat house?

I know you talked about it moved and did it get removed, or do you know if we still have active bat houses?

I'm not for sure.

I mean, Sarah may know uh Sarah says okay.

Okay, because I was just gonna say if it is concerning for people to see at the bathrooms, then perhaps we could relocate them to more inconspicuous spots so that it doesn't look like you're seeing like the bat house on the bathhouse.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mayor.

Um let me begin by uh thanking you, Mr.

Meeker, for your consistency on addressing the issue out of the multitude of emails that we've gotten from individuals either wanting to remain in on the program or out of the program.

Um the ones that I've been copied in on, you have answered them all.

Apparently, you're using the map where they are referencing and get back with them individually.

So I want to thank you personally for the work that you've done on this individually.

Thank you.

Secondly, I want to um thank a couple of people for their comments.

Matter of well, I think all you guys for your comments for sure, but um Mr.

Ridgeway made some comments that actually uh stuck with me.

Um so appreciate you guys being here.

And uh there was another comment made um by citizen in the uh citizens forum, and she said we have expectations, and that was the premise initially that had me supporting continuing the fogging program, because as I stated before in an open meeting, we have citizens that have expectations.

They have told me in years past and currently that they are taxpayers and they want us to do something.

That something now that we have you know more science, we had the science before, but the fact of the matter is, you know, I'm not a professional at it, you know, and I can relate it to um what we dealt with with um chlorine.

You know, there was plenty of science on both sides of the issue about chlor chlorine and chlorine on our water.

And we stayed with stand with the uh chlorine, regardless of what some of the science said on either side.

But because I am a believer that people do expect something from us as a board and the citizens, uh that something does not necessarily have to be the fogging.

If we commit to doing, as Pastor Kim said, some type of modification of our program, I'd be all for that, but we have to give our citizens you know something.

We have to be that force.

We can't ask beautify Fort Smith to carry the load.

You know, we already have uh expenditure, you know, for this.

So I think what we need to do is let the experts uh decide, you know, how the best way we can go about doing the dunks, the the foliage.

Uh the we have bat houses.

We've had the bat house, is it multiple bath houses at at Caroline Cross Park?

It's been for years, right?

Sarah's back there shaking her head.

So, yeah, we can continue, as I've said before, to multitask.

We can do several things at once.

So I think we need to do that.

Thank you.

Director Rigo.

Thank you, Mayor.

Uh, you know, I'll just start out by saying, as I've always had uh have about this topic, um, I think in the six years I've been on the board, this is a top one or one A issue that I've heard feedback on.

Uh it's almost innumerable, uh, the feedback I've heard, and it's as has been mentioned by uh some of my colleagues very, very, very evenly divided on this topic.

I would say a 55-45 spread at most.

Uh and it's been an interesting journey because of course we've gone uh we went from the mid-1960s through 2024 spraying for mosquitoes.

Uh we had a pause or or a cessation of that in 2025.

I think it's fair to say, mainly driven by budgetary concerns.

Uh when departments were asked to find ways uh expenditures that can be reduced, Mr.

Meeker brought that one forward as a possibility for us to consider.

Uh, and I believe by a five to two vote, uh myself and Director Good um objecting, that went forward with a suspension for 2025.

Um heard lots of feedback, as I said, fairly evenly split in 2025 about what to do, what to bring it back, or what was possible about bringing it back.

Uh Director George Kitsavis and myself asked to have this place on a study session.

I think probably for the same reason, George, a lot of feedback.

Uh we're informed by our finance department that we were in the budgetary position uh to be able to resume the program if we so desired.

And less than two months ago, on a six to one vote, we decided to resume the program.

And so, you know, kind of an interesting yo-yo back and forth.

Uh, and I think that's something that uh we kind of have to consider about how we govern ourselves.

Uh, you know, what is the the perception we're giving on on whether or not something is settled or decided, uh particularly in such a short, short span of time.

Um there is information and there is science on both sides of this issue.

Um you know, I'll do the little Paul Harvey rest of the story.

Umethrin is on the World Health Organization's list of essential medicines.

Uh it's a top 400 commonly prescribed medication in the United States.

The United States Army treats BDUs, the camos that the soldiers wear uh with the chemical when they go for uh deployments.

Um it's regulated uh and reviewed by the EPA as a pesticide that treats mosquitoes and ticks, and it's regulated and reviewed by the Fed Food and Drug Administration uh for treatment for head lice and scabbies.

And so, you know, I I don't I can't support what's in front of us tonight, um, mainly because I think I have uh no belief that if we just pass this as written uh without some more meat put on this bone, I don't have any belief that anytime soon any one of us is gonna raise uh our hands to put pen to paper for what the comprehensive plan is going to be for the city to play an active role in addressing the mosquito challenges.

And so I I can't support what's here tonight because it's it's I think it's just at minimum uh a permission structure to not have anything happen uh during this summer season, and it it it just uh makes it more and more political the closer we get to election season on a closely divided issue, and I think that we should uh personally stick with the decision that we made less than two months ago.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Uh Director Neil Martin.

Um I would like to look at uh whether other options are available to us.

Um I was the one that asked the question do we have any data around the effectiveness of it?

Um I would like to initiate something that does have a that we can measure effectiveness on it.

Um so that's that's my position on this.

Director Settle.

Thank you.

Matt, if we do pause this tonight, um hard would be to keep the equipment up and running in case something popped up in the next year or two years to we said all of a sudden we had a health issue, we had to pop up and start again.

Would it be difficult to do?

Or would you mothball the equipment?

No, I mean we we'd be able to we'd be able to keep it up for I mean for a while.

I mean, we we fired it back up this year, got it going.

So okay.

Uh to George, your your comment you made before we about the making a motion.

Tonight we're voting on to suspend or to keep it where it is.

To make a motion like that, my suggestion would be to make a motion, get a second to put it to a study session and ask legal counsel is that something that's available for the citizens to vote on because it's a state constitution that allows certain things to be voted on.

Yeah.

So my my my thinking tonight is if it's something you want to do after the vote happens here.

Then we make a motion to do that and then put it to a study session and allow.

If there's a second, then allow the the city attorneys to get involved.

So thank you.

Director Christina Savage.

Oh, Colby is here.

Colby, do you know is that something that can be voted on?

I think the I I know the Constitution reserves to the to the voters the power of initiative and referendum.

And so you know that's that's the direct way to get uh a municipal question on the ballot is you know, one the citizens initiate a measure by which they want the citizens to vote.

Uh or two, if this board passes something uh that the citizens don't like, they can do a referendum process and they get a a referendum question on the ballot, and then the citizens vote up or down.

Do we want to uh you know do away with that legislation?

I'm not aware, as I said here, whether the city can submit this question, whether the board could go and submit this question of you know fogging uh to the voters.

I'd have to look into that.

My my gut reaction is I don't think it can, um, but but I can get you an answer.

But it could be citizen-led.

Citizen can certainly lead an effort uh you know to initiate, meaning to initiate a a a uh legislative matter that that enacts uh mosquito fogging or or refers to the voters to strike down uh uh an ordinance that's passed by this board to you know to strike down a a fogging operation.

Okay.

Mayor Yeah, I I'm not I'm not done.

Uh you know, I I really I I don't have um a real strong position on this either way.

I see uh, you know, we've gotten feedback both ways and I see it from both sides.

I'd be I'd be fine with um you know pausing tonight and um uh you know letting people see if that's something they want to get a petition together for.

Um, you know, I thought maybe we kind of worked it out when we talked about it the last time, letting people opt in instead of it being forced on them to opt out.

You know the the one thing I worry about is um there are people who want this, and I I think it's gonna become an issue of the people who can afford it.

They're calling Mosquito Joe, they're calling um the other bug bug uh people.

And uh, you know, it kind of becomes a question of the people who want it and can afford it will get it, and the people who can't afford it won't.

And um, you know, I never like to see that, but you know, I'm in favor of of pausing it now.

And if uh you know people want to bring it back around, I suppose that they can uh get a petition together.

Thank you.

Director Josh Gasavis, and then we'll go direct to Kemp and then directed good.

So Colby, you're saying that if I make a motion to place this on the ballot or or even place it on a study session or the next board of meeting, that's not legal?

No, no, no.

I I think the board can absolutely you can make a motion to put it on a study session.

The board can look at this question.

Uh I can give you a more definitive answer of can the board of directors itself place this on a ballot for the citizens to vote on.

So I I think I think that's your process to go.

And once the study session comes around, we can look at this issue more carefully and uh get you, you know, the the the what I know to be at that point would be a sure answer.

Okay.

So I don't can I make a motion now?

Oh I'll make a motion now.

Can we vote on this item first and let you make this vote on this?

Okay.

Thank you.

Okay.

Any other comments from the board?

Director Kemp and then Director Good.

Thank you, Mayor.

Just while you're here, Mr.

Meeker, since we have this treatment, is it only usable via air?

Or can it can it be put on a ground safely as well?

There's different ways of applying it, but I mean what we're set up for is is for the the uh fogging, the coal fogging operation.

Well, is it possible that there could be any way of giving residents this treatment in addition to the larva side?

Uh I that would involve us doing that on private property.

Um I I'd have to ask Colby on that.

I I don't.

We don't want to.

I'm not sure what that looks like either.

I don't understand.

If if we have the larva side, I guess I'm just saying is it if somebody needs where they're not near water but they're inundated with mosquitoes, could we look into a way where they can get some sort of help besides knowing that there's no water to treat around them, but they are inundated to the spirit of uh Ms.

Ms.

Cadeli, you know, offering free repellent, you know, I that's a just an it's a real idea.

I think it's uh a thought that comes to my mind or how to make it available besides something besides just larvacide, because if there's not water, is there some option that can be available for them?

And we're talking about you know, a budget of eighty thousand dollars.

I mean, surely there's a way that we could help, you know, in some other way besides just larvacide and waiting on the water.

I think the one thing I want to say in in in response to uh my colleague Director Rigo here, I definitely uh share your sentiment about not creating a structure where there's nothing taking in action.

I definitely uh share your sentiment about not creating a structure where there's nothing taking an action and so uh even if this is successfully paused and you know we go to the ballot or find out whether what we can do there, I still think we should be taking positive action, and so I don't want this to be a reason to to not take any action, but truly look into the ideas that have been offered up.

Uh thank you director good.

Were you in the queue?

Thank you.

I was yeah, um thank you, Mayor, and thank you, Director Kemp, because you actually just spoke to what uh I was thinking and what I wanted to speak to.

Uh a pause would be to pause our current programming.

That means we have nothing in place to continue, and that's not where we want to be.

So, Mr.

Meeker, how much uh longer in this um spraying season do we normally spray how long?

We go through mid-October.

Okay.

Thanks.

Or just we're just pausing the fogging.

The fog, correct?

Correct.

Just follow.

Okay.

Director Rigo and then Director Christina Kassavis.

Uh thank you.

I you know, I would just like to uh take a moment to make uh a motion uh to do two amendments to the resolution that's in front of us tonight.

Uh the first amendment would be under section two where it says distribution to the public of larvacide pellets for areas of standing water shall continue as needed.

I would like to insert distribution to the public of information regarding uh larvacide pellets for areas of standing water shall continue and strike as needed because I think it's been stated there are some people who you know don't know so that would uh uh direct and encourage administration to to beef up uh public information about that, and then uh I would like to add a section three uh directing administration uh to present to the board of directors uh an alternative um proposal for addressing uh mosquitoes, you know, to include uh some of many of the many things we've talked about tonight.

I would like it section three to direct administration to present us with an alternative proposal uh for addressing uh mosquitoes uh no later than the 16th of June.

So second okay.

We've got uh a couple of amendments on the floor, and those are those are packaged, so yeah, okay.

Did you get those sharing?

Okay, directors good.

So we're voting on the amendments on the amendments on chairs and chairs amendments to uh they've got a bash to two.

Okay.

Yes.

Kemp?

Yes, George Kitsavis?

No vote.

Christina Kitsavis, yes.

Settled, yes, Martin?

Yes, Riga.

Yes.

The motion passes uh six in favor and one opposed.

Now we need to vote on the uh resolution as amended.

Madam Clerk.

Directors Kemp?

Yes.

George Git Savis?

Abstain.

I'm sorry, abstain.

Christina Kitsavis.

I I still had my hand up to ask the question.

I'm sorry.

Um Matt, is there any difference between what we spray and what Mosquito Joe sprays?

Is it is there a different chemical makeup?

That I don't know.

I don't know exactly what he sprays, but I'm assuming it's a permethrin type product.

But there's those other things out there, there's other products out there, but most fog with permethrin the reason I ask is because I've I've received some feedback from people that think we're banning all mosquito spraying.

So the the private companies will still be spraying, is that correct?

That's correct.

This is just for the city.

Um when we made the decision about two months ago to let people opt in.

How many people have opted in a I don't have that number right off the top of my head, but it's been a bunch.

Okay.

Maybe it's a lot.

I you know, it's definitely north of a hundred.

Okay.

Okay, that those are my questions.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mayor.

Um Director Cassaves just made me think of another question.

Um, Matt, would you know if the pesticide we're using right now is is regulated at all by the EPA?

Are we any kind of regulations?

It is, yeah.

It's it's uh it is regulated.

It was in that information that I um that we had provided to the board before, but it's it's not to the extent of how to put it other other pesticides precise.

But yeah, it's not a it's not a completely unregulated chemical.

So thank you, sir.

Okay.

Mr.

Mayor, I I believe it would probably be uh appropriate to restart the vote series on file passage.

Okay.

Okay.

Uh we are voting on the amended resolution.

Madam Clerk.

We're gonna we're gonna start over.

Okay.

Yes.

Okay.

George Kittsavis.

Christina Kitzavis.

Yes.

Settle.

Yes.

Martin?

Yes.

Riga.

No.

Good.

Yes.

The motion passes.

Five in favor, one opposed, and one abstention.

Okay.

Thank you very much.

We go to item number three.

Well, we remember what about my motion now?

Can I make am I not allowed to make a motion?

Yeah.

It is.

Okay.

I want to make a motion.

Like I said, already to place this on the next day session to be discussed to put it on the November ballot.

No.

Okay.

All right, thank you.

Thank you.

Item three.

Item three is a resolution regarding an easement acquisition for 2018 SSA Remedial Measures Project 21-17-C1.

Director of Engineering Todd Midgee will speak to this item.

Thank you.

This is for a correction of a property owner on an easement for a consentary project.

The offer price of $100 for a temporary construction easement is not changed.

It's just a simple owner update.

Okay.

Thank you.

Any citizens' comments, Madam Clerk?

None indicating.

Okay.

Motion to adopt a resolution.

So moved.

Second.

Thank you.

Any other comments on that item?

Okay.

Please call the roll.

Directors George Gittsavis?

Yes.

Christina Gitzavis?

Yes.

Settled?

Yes.

Martin?

Yes.

Rico?

Yes.

Good.

Yes.

Can't approved.

Seven in favor and zero opposed.

Just now we'll go to the consent agenda, Mr.

Dingman.

There are seven items on tonight's consent agenda.

We have a resolution authorizing the city's participation in the process to secure a building resilient infrastructure and communities brick grant from FEMA for the purpose of addressing stormwater mitigation at the former ACME property.

We have a resign resolution designating a portion of North 23rd Street as Jalen Williams Court.

We have a resolution designated a portion of North 25th Street as I j Isaiah Joe Court.

We have a resolution awarding a contract for roof repairs at the Mazard wastewater treatment plant.

We have a resolution authorizing acquisition of easements related to racetrack road waterline improvements, project number 24-15.

A resolution accepting as complete and authorizing final payment to Goodwin and Goodwin for the utility relocation project number 23-10-C1 and a resolution authorizing a multi-year contract with the Mars Company for software license maintenance calibration and certification of the city's water meter test bench.

Okay.

Thank you very much.

Is there any item uh in the consent agenda you'd like to pull for?

I'd just like to make comments on B and C.

That's all.

Comments on B and C okay.

Anything else?

F and F.

Okay.

Let's go to uh B and C.

See if there's any citizens want to speak.

Yes, on item 4A.

Okay.

We have Alan Deaver and Tracy McKenna to answer questions.

Okay.

Okay.

And then we also to speak is Eric Widman.

Okay.

On which item?

I'm sorry, 4A.

Okay.

Thank you.

Good evening, everyone.

This is going along pretty smoothly here.

Uh I understand that the stormwater retention is essential and needed.

I think ESA, ESA or EIS needs to be complete, including sampling of water, sediment, and soil.

We're all aware.

Were y'all aware that this has not been done?

Were you aware that the sediment, soil and water was not tested in the phase one of the environmental impact study.

No.

Why not?

Yeah.

If if I might, the uh and I'm I might ask Ms.

McKenna to address the items of the environmental impact study.

I don't believe that the actual testing of the soils and such is part of an environment of a phase one environmental.

Um Ms.

McKenna will be able to address some of those uh those specifics.

Yeah, go ahead.

Go ahead.

If I may though, point of clarity, since he has just about a minute, uh 20 seconds when he's when he asked the question.

Perhaps he may finish his comments and then we'll answer the questions.

Thanks, Lee.

Well, I've got just to me ask.

I think it's against I'm I'm no lawyer, but I think it's against EPA regulations to start construction until an EIS is complete.

Moving dirt is construction as far as I know.

It could be hiding pollution.

Please complete this.

I would also like to request an outside entity perform this.

You guys keep moving forward with projects without considering possible costs.

That's what what I'm why I'm doing this.

I think you just constantly move ahead with stuff without considering what potential cost could be.

So you want to ask FEMA for a grant, as far as I know, without complying with EPA regulations.

Ms.

McCaffrey, if you wouldn't mind under introducing yourself.

Yes, absolutely.

Um Tracy McKenna, I am the director of community and economic development at the Western Arkansas Planning and Development District, better known as Wapadity.

Um just to clarify um the comments regarding the phase one assessment from the GTS company.

Wapadity was not aware of that.

Um we actually had no involvement in that assessment.

Um so much so that we came to the city to ask if we could use our EPA Brownfield's assessment grant to do an assessment at the ACME property.

We actually engaged with the city and got approval from EPA to do that with our consultant Terracon.

So I actually have a phase one assessment conducted by Terracon, who is our consultant for our EPA grant, that does indicate that additional testing is needed.

Um as well as typically phase ones never have any sort of testing done with them.

They are just a background research document.

Um so it was not surprising to me that GTS did not have any testing in their document, but it was surprising to me that it indicated no additional testing.

So again, like uh the one that we conducted with Terracon with our funding did indicate that additional testing was needed.

We've actually moved forward with that process with EPA and are working on getting a quality assurance plan to do the phase two at that property, and all of that is at no cost to the city.

That's all fully funded through our EPA Brownfields grant.

So we do have it slated to be actually soil tested um as part of an actual full phase two at that property.

Do you have a timeline on that?

Uh so the um because it is involving EPA and federal funds, there are those additional steps we have to go through.

So uh Terracon had indicated to me that they would have their quality assurance plan, um, also called a co op to me this week, and then when I get that to EPA, it'll probably be another couple of weeks before they approve it, and then I'll be able to release Terracon to start doing their work on the phase two.

So it's it's ultimately a part of this project that phase two.

It's a part of the ACME brick site, like it's not necessarily tied to the FEMA brick application directly.

But it's it's tied to what we're trying to do with the property.

Thank you.

With the property.

Okay, any other questions for her.

Okay.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Okay.

And then also we have Joe Elskin to speak on item 4A as well.

Short and sweet guys.

Um, I just wanted to really applaud Chris Hoover's work on finding um the BRIC grant and getting us qualified in that are yeah, assuring that we'd be one of the possibilities.

And also your collaboration with Western Arkansas Planning and Development District, and that because that collaboration is is valuable, and I'm really hopeful that um some of the people who are worried about pollution from an area that's been there and been uh assessed as a um uh possibility that they'd worry about other pollution too.

But thank you for your work.

Thank you for tonight.

Okay.

That's all.

Okay, thank you.

I've got a comment on B and C.

I'm sorry.

I got a comment on BNC.

Go ahead.

Mayor, I think this is a fabulous idea.

Honoring two uh fabulous uh individuals.

Uh both that are actually playing tonight uh in Oklahoma City.

Uh game starts in a few minutes.

So I think this is a great thing, and I'm assuming that once this is if it does get approved tonight that we'll have some big uh rip cutting this summer with all them players in around.

And I think uh this is just a great thing, and um I'm glad we're doing it.

So right now we're it we're coordinating um events around the street uh designations and it would be really nice if they brought a championship.

I wasn't gonna say nothing, so I was just gonna be like I think we ought to coordinate it around the next parade we have for them winning their second MBH.

We know I'm not gonna jinx it, but they start the Lakers tonight.

Sound good.

Yes, very good, Mayor.

Very good.

Anything else on the consent agenda at F.

Yeah okay so um unidentified utilities were discovered conflicting with the proposed main alignment.

Can you explain a little I I think I heard about this but I kind of want a little a little more background.

Absolutely in the digging near the the GMC dealership there's identified some private utilities back through there for uh electrical high voltage electrical yeah uh irrigation and such and I worked with the property owner uh at Harry Robinson Harry Robertson himself to come up with an idea to get it around there so that we didn't have to impact this yeah I spoke with him about this and it was basically water was going to be running over electrical it was gonna be next to it next to it so it was we did it was private electrical is that what it was yes sir okay and so it wasn't in any of our plans no how far into the project did we get before it was identified and was that him that identified it us I mean kind of how the how that do you I'm going through the schedule of my mind so I came on board on January 5th met with him on January 12th ish.

Okay.

Um Deputy Administrator Rice and I met okay him out there and the contractor Goodwin and goodwin had potholded this area and found maybe it's not the best idea to try to disturb that so the contractor maybe starts alerting us to it yeah and our our design consultant was on board as a construction consultant too as an inspector and they they kind of worked with us.

Okay worked out pretty well okay I just when I when I heard about it it was um uh a little concerning so thank you for the clarification okay thank you are there any other questions or concerns about any other items on the consent agenda if not we'll entertain a motion to adopt the consent agenda I'll make a motion and accept it accept it thank you there are no further comments madam Kirk please call the role directors Christina get saves um abstain on F yes to everything else settled yes Martin yes Rego yes good yes Kim yes George get zapis yes motion passes seven in favor and zero opposed with the exception of item uh four F which was six in favor zero opposed and one abstention okay thank you very much this time we will go to the official forum uh a couple of items we had a great uh steel horse rally um great weather uh Fort Smith downtown was full of people and uh they were really enjoying themselves and uh I don't know if the chief is still here but I didn't hear of any major incidents downtown and that's been traditional that we don't have problems major problems.

The Fort Smith uh airport uh I'd like to report on the fact that they have completed uh their um um joint use agreement with the Air Force uh and the it will create approximately four hundred and thirty thousand dollars a year uh to our airport uh for that agreement so uh that's good they've been working on that for quite some time and also finally I'd like to recognize uh a couple of residents in our city uh Fort Smith Historical Society has been recognized uh by the State Historical Society um and our society received the Walter L.

Brown award at the state meeting of historical societies uh at the state conference this year and this particular award recognizes uh the journal that they produce uh as the best historical journal uh in the state of Arkansas if you get a copy of that and it highlights some great uh rich history uh Fort Smith and and the area and also um point out that uh Professor Billy Higgins was recognized uh for one of his articles um about the best family history he wrote an article uh concerning the the uh history of Percy W and Nelly Darby uh great article with that we'll start with uh director Neil Martin yeah so um I I don't know what what I was listening to but I heard Dennis Snow on the way over here some recorded thing and I think he said about 200,000 people came down I think that's the biggest one we've ever had it felt like it was the biggest one we've ever had like it is there was a lot of people running around I hadn't been into PAPAs in years and years and years my wife needed to use the restroom we walked in there it was it had to be against fire code it was there was so many people in there and don't listen to that don't listen to that Darrell but I mean it was it really was it was pretty cool to see all those people down there.

We walked in there, it was it had to be against fire code.

It was there was so many people in there.

And don't listen to that.

Don't listen to that, Dara.

Um but I mean it was it really was it was pretty cool to see all those people down there.

And I think he he also said that um the number of incidents that involving law enforcement arrests, things like that were similar to a normal weekend.

Meaning there wasn't much.

There wasn't much of uh you know bad activity out there.

So I mean there were cops everywhere.

Um I felt safe.

So it was really good.

So that was that was really cool.

Um let's get an update on the the chemical spill.

I I know a lot of people have reached out about that.

Um questioning, you know, is there is there a chance it's hurting our drinking water?

Um is it you know, we we saw the the the story on on the news about some fish dying and things like that.

So kind of give us an update.

Uh are we at risk?

Is this is the public at risk?

Those got some.

First, first I want to introduce Lance McAvoy, director of water resources and also uh tag team in his meeker on this response.

Um so the water in the pipelines are safe.

Um there was no intrusion into the drinking water, so that I I want to let everybody know that was safe.

Um the fire department worked to try to maintain containment as much as possible from the storm sewer and drainage.

However, it did find its way into our sanitary sewer as well.

We did notice a large pH drop at Pea Street, and we are in the process of evaluating our pump stations.

Um I'm gonna speak for Matt if that's okay.

Uh the manholes and pipes are also being assessed to ensure that there's nothing left in them because we actually have one pump station we're pulling the pumps this week to make sure that they're not damaged.

Meaning that that gets in there, eats it, it's eats up the insides and risk.

Um at one point in time, what was coming out of the building had a pH of zero.

Yeah.

Um based on uh was it 1835?

I'm sorry, what was it 1835 sulphuric acid?

Um I know that at when I asked the question of the gentleman that was there because I was on site for a while, um, he said it started out at 94 percent pure.

That's it's 1835.

Yeah, so um you know he he I had to do a lot of conversion because he was using the old bomb A scale, which Kevin will understand you can ignore everything.

That's not nerd out here.

Let's just let's get to where we're at today.

Um DEQ has has taken kind of charge of this along with um the Sebastian County emergency management team that was on site uh Saturday.

Um staff did talk to DEQ.

Uh my understanding is ODEQ, Oklahoma, because it is flowing into Oklahoma is now involved.

Uh we have had a report that the Choctaw Nation is involved, and because it did cross the state line, um EPA, federal EPA is now involved in this as well.

As of 11 o'clock today, where it was going over into Oklahoma, the pH and the the stream that was impacted was still around one, which is very acidic.

I'll uh yield I do have some car concerns about our our drainage system, just uh uh the section uh near where the release was of uh uh concrete channel.

Uh it was obviously the the chemical spill, the acid was leaking up, it would have got underneath the concrete there, as you can see concrete joints when we were out there, it was just you know you could see it coming up through the joints uh into the water, and when sulfuric acid, you know, when it gets combines with reinforced concrete, it's not a it's it's not a good thing, and with that concentration, it could uh uh damage structurally those that um uh I mean it's not gonna something that's gonna fail immediately, but it's something that's gonna uh cause degrade faster over time.

So have we have we uh if you only know have we started using like a um a basic slurry or just pure water and start flushing the systems constantly?

And I'm not talking just a few gallons, I'm talking hundreds of thousands of gallons easily to start DEQ.

We were actually going to begin doing that.

DEQ told us not to because then we are liable for pushing the slug load downstream.

I'm not talking about the stream, I'm more talking about our pipes.

Our pipes, um so where we where we're at, we're checking the pH at pump stations.

However, there were solids associated with this as well.

Um and if we start cleaning the pipes, then where do we dispose of the things?

So we are actually having and Matthew contacted.

You talk about the sulphuric acid mixing with something to create a solid.

Yeah, so we're actually having uh Matt, you you want to talk about the email you sent today?

Sorry.

Sure.

I and I emailed the company earlier today, uh, the the cleanup company, the lady, the lady that's in charge of the clean up effort, cleanup efforts, and uh uh advised them that we had uh found evidence that it had gotten into our sanitary sewer system and uh that we'd be getting back to them with with a uh map and locations for their man holes and our lines because I mean they're obviously uh the cleanup's gonna have to be addressed on that as well.

I I I just want the public to understand, and I appreciate that that uh a pH of a seven is water, basic water.

PH of one is you know this is pH of four, Dr.

Pepper is so when you hear pH of zero and one, there's a there's a point to where it's just gonna be there all the way down to the high sulfuric acid and stuff like that.

So I still think we should flush our system.

I truly do.

I understand what we're doing, but the faster you can flush that with water, the less that the sulfuric acid deteriorates against the the housing of the pumps and the pipes.

Um I'm hoping most of this is PVC, but it's probably not, is it?

It's probably old pipes that we've got in there, sewer line pipes.

Well, and and I I'd have to get in uh input from Lance on that too, because and I don't mind us doing that, we can do that.

Uh but uh my only question would be uh the treatment facility is making sure we're not uh causing any issues with that.

I mean you have to you have to just you can't flush 100,000 gallons, I'm sorry, but at one time you've got to just slowly break it through.

Yeah, um we actually did see um starting about nine o'clock Saturday night until about 2 a.m.

a large decrease in pH.

Uh normally what we have coming into Peace Street is around six, it dropped to 3.5.

And that's with the dilution of everything that was flowing with it.

So my other question is um probably if you can't answer it, I if there's any vegetation going on, but how does something leak that much?

Was this in a tanker?

Was this on a tank?

Was it in I mean how it was in a tank or was it in a storage tank on site?

This was my understanding, these were in tote type tanks inside a building, and while they were doing something with it, one of them uh lost containment, it lost secondary containment and began to drain some of the other tanks that were connected to it.

So we're talking like two thousand gallon totes.

Uh again, I was not I did not go into the case.

Yeah, I think we should understand that because a secondary containment should have covered this.

Yes, it should be.

I know there's places that have secondary containment and their tanks, and that's what's designed to do.

And so if it failed, I might I could understand maybe two thousand, maybe four thousand, but not to the numbers being said.

That that that screams something else is going on.

So I would ask if there's any more information to this board of how that happened because if there's not something in the books, there should be something in our books and storing chemicals in a containment system better than just letting it get to the road.

And I fully agree with you on that.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Okay.

And so just for clarification, um, water's safe.

We can drink water, no issues with that.

The only challenge would be with our sanitary sewer system that the lines could be degraded in such that that had to be replaced significantly sooner, but no necessarily any um the impact to the citizens and the asphalt could be well correct.

But uh that's one thing we've stressed, and uh matter of fact, on Saturday when it was going on, uh we went personally door to door knocking on doors, everybody we could letting the residents know that backed up to the creek.

Do not get in the creek.

Don't let your kids in there, don't let your pets in there, you know, stay away from the creek.

Yeah, but uh is there any immediate danger to them?

No, no, there is not, but they just don't they still don't need to get it.

Stay away from it, yeah.

Stay away from it.

And so they they may, I mean, they may have a uh uh smell if they go out there near it, you know, they may smell that sulfurous smell and everything, but I mean that in and of itself is not a danger, but they just need to stay away from it.

And we're we're gonna be fine uh finding more inform out more information.

We're gonna be meeting with we've got a meeting Thursday with Sebastian County Emergency Management of uh multiple individuals with the city, and we're gonna be gathering more more information uh uh and uh on what has occurred and also the response.

Yep, thank you.

Okay, thank you.

Chief Clerk, I saw you coming up.

You have anything you want like to speak upon?

I know your team was very involved in that, so thank you.

I did not go inside either, but talking to the weapon, the mass destruction team, it looked like an explosive force.

One of the tanks exploded, bay doors were blown out at the bottoms, ruptured the piping connected to the others, and then they all they said there's very little left in the contain in the containers, what was left of them, but there was one specifically that typically that's that tie of sulfuric acid is in double wall piping.

So that'd be interesting to find out if it's in double wall piping or not, because that high sulfuric acid should be in double wall piping.

Meaning standards, standard standard is double wall piping.

Yeah, yeah.

Okay, thank you.

Thank you very much, for the update.

Thank you.

Any other questions for our team?

Okay, okay, thank you.

Thank you.

Well, thank y'all for your efforts on Saturday on your weekend.

Thank you.

I appreciate it.

Okay.

If there's mayor, I I'd like to report on some good things for the Citizens Forts Center.

Absolutely.

So this past weekend, I'll talk two things that happened.

Our uh volleyball enforcement junior volleyball team uh went to Areno, Nevada, 18 year olds and represented the city of Fort Smith.

Uh that team and the Liberty Division finished 21st in the nation uh against some great teams throughout the United States.

So that's a great thing for the for the team there with 18 year olds that graduate in seniors.

Also this week in a cabot, there were four teams that qualify for nationals, or 13 year old one teams elite, 14-1, 16-1.

And my daughter finally qualified 17-1 national team, elite teams going to Nashville.

So we're excited going to Indianapolis this summer, represent the city of Fort Smith.

Girls from all over from Charleston, Fort Smith, Lovaca, Greenwood, Alma, Hackett are all representing the city of Fort Smith, and it is a great thing.

Fantastic.

Um the uh Parrot Island audit, we got an update.

We'll be wrapping up soon within the next week or two.

Forvis is close to finishing their field work, and there's just a few items out that have not been submitted by ARM.

Um it looks like they're from an earlier report.

We got um some concerns around the concessions, which are um concerns that I had shared, but hopefully we'll we will know something soon.

Thank you.

Director Joy to say, Yes, sir, just a couple things, Mayor.

Jeff, tell me something those slides.

Will they comply with the FAA requirement of high high yes?

We were not gonna put a big strobe up there or nothing like that, or no.

The the airport's aware they've they've taken care of the FAA requirements.

Okay, the other thing I got a call from an engineer, and he said, has anybody checked the integrity of those slides that have been sitting for two years on the ground?

They're fiberglass, they're they're made to that's right.

And there's a test called a TAP test, TAPT test that made that will measure the resin per square inch in those slides.

And if the resin has starting to separate, then that would degrade the slide.

Is any of it uh in other words?

I don't want to put them up and then all of a sudden, well, wait a minute, we got a problem.

Sure.

Well, all of that will be uh and to the specific test you're talking about.

I I don't know that specifically.

But uh you know that we have uh professionals on uh on under contract for putting these slides up that are aware and and have and are used to putting the slides up, so they'll they will touch all of those for safety.

Right, I don't either thank you.

Uh director.

Thank you, Mayor.

Just two things.

Um I was gonna ask administration.

I had a resident call me today, uh, just an elderly resident talking about that the water bill payment reception boxes at the libraries have been removed.

Are we do we know or at least the one at the bottom of Fian Hills, the Miller branch?

Can we check on that or see if we can have those considered to be reinstated or something?

They were they were kind of frustrated because they're like, is this I gotta pay online?

Is that the only way?

Or is there other ways that we can have this?

We'll check that out.

We've talked about that before and didn't do it, so I'll check it out.

I remember seeing one recently.

So yeah, that's why I thought so too.

And then he said he went there and it was so maybe that one particular one needs to be serviced.

The other one is is there an update from administration about the bids for Miss Laura's house?

Yeah, that uh actually we we got bids on April the 13th on the siding.

Uh we got and that I believe we'll have a recommendation coming to the board at the next meeting for approval.

Fantastic.

Thank you, Mayor.

Director Good.

Thank you, Mayor.

Yep, this is a couple of comments.

I want to talk about um our staff's professionalism.

I'll start with um the condition of the pavilion uh downtown.

Um, I've been in there several times and have noticed way up high spider webs and things that need to be cleaned.

Um it was pointed out by one of our staff actually that um that he wanted to address it and it's been taken care of.

It looks immaculate.

Um so thank you, Parks Department, for that.

Uh other thing I just wanted to say that you know, I think that the majority of our board members believe wholeheartedly that our staff, particularly our management staff, are professionals in their fields.

You know, that's why we have board members that don't act like we are the professionals uh in those fields.

Do we rely heavily on those individuals?

Yes, we do.

Why do we?

Because they have the day-to-day information that we don't have.

Um some of the comments were made about um like our grants, our grant writer.

You know, Grant Writer does a wonderful job.

You know, do I know every grant that he's applied for?

No, but we do know that he's worked as weight and salt in the amount of grants that he's brought to the city of Fort Smith and still working on some.

Um and we'll continue as well.

Um I wanted to speak to the water tower cleaning that was uh mentioned earlier.

You know, that was done by um Lance McAboy and the water resources team.

So thank you, uh Lance McAvoy and the water resources team for getting out there doing some great work.

Um some of the other things about uh the grants, you know.

I I remember um and I don't know if if Lance is still here, but I know um oh there he is.

Um you guys talking about oh we don't qualify for some of the some of the grants for specific reasons.

Act 605 is one of them.

Uh and some of and some uh some other um financing uh possibilities that were brought up this evening were uh uh loan programs and not really grants.

Am I speaking incorrectly on that?

Okay, just and and you don't have to come and speak to that.

I I know that you have both you guys have, but just wanted to mention that that's why we rely heavily on our professional staff for a lot of the information that we get.

And just speaking on uh the grants, uh thank you for the due diligence that we've been doing.

Uh the staff has been doing on the BRIC grant.

Um again, I I can't say enough about you know why we give our staff members such amount of praise.

You know, it seems like every instant every instance that we have come up that you know, someone is not satisfied with the way the board handles uh what we've done.

We have staff that we can go to and get information and verify while we move forward.

Granted, some things are unforeseen, and that does happen.

You know, are our staff uh perfect?

No, they're not, they're human just like us, but I guarantee you they're more professional at what they do than what we do, than what we know.

So I just wanted to thank all of you guys for what you do.

Director Rigo.

Yes, sir.

Uh I just want to say really quickly, um, there were three just uh extraordinarily fun uh events that were super well attended uh throughout the weekend in Fort Smith.

Um Steel Horse Rally, of course, uh the Clydesdales come into town for Bell Point's 80th anniversary uh and the carnival at IC.

And I, you know, I just want to personally shout out, and I know I I speak for all of us, um tons and tons and tons of volunteers work hours upon hours upon hours, essentially all year round, to make tremendous things like that happen uh for the community.

And so to anyone who played any part, large or small, in those three events that my family and thousands upon thousands of families enjoyed, uh thank you very much for pouring your heart and soul uh into all three of those things because they were all fantastic.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Dean.

No, sir.

Okay.

All right.

If there are no further comments, entertain a motion to adjourn.

So move.

Second.

Thank you.

All in favor?

Aye.