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Votes at a glance: Blount County Commission approves grants, budget adjustments, confirmations and a rezoning
Summary
At its Jan. 16 meeting the Blount County Board of Commissioners approved a juvenile court grant application, budget increases for the sheriff's office and elections, confirmed several appointments and adopted a zoning map change for a parcel on U.S. Highway 411 South.
The Blount County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 16, 2025 adopted several items that the commission and staff described as routine budget, personnel and land-use matters. Key votes included a $100,000 juvenile court grant application, a $17,567 award to purchase a portable light tower for the sheriff's office, a $55,000 increase to the elections budget and a zoning map amendment for a portion of a parcel on U.S. Highway 411 South.
What passed
- Juvenile court grant application: The commission approved submission of a $100,000 state grant request to support a safe-baby court coordinator position and a salary supplement to the juvenile court services director. Motion by Commissioner Wells; second by Commissioner Carver. Vote recorded as 16 yes; motion carries. No local match required.
- BCSO JAG funds (Resolution 25-1001): The commission accepted $17,567 in award funds from the Department of Justice JAG program to purchase a portable light tower for case and incident response. Motion by Commissioner Michaels; second by Commissioner Acard. Vote recorded as 16 yes; motion carries.
- Elections budget increase (Resolution 25-1002): The commission approved a $55,000 appropriation from fund balance to increase the elections worker budget line for fiscal year 2024-25. Motion by Commissioner Wright; second by Commissioner Carver. The elections administrator explained the current fiscal year was budgeted at a one-election level but contained two elections, creating a shortfall. Vote recorded as 16 yes; motion carries.
- Zoning map amendment (Resolution 25-1013): The commission approved amending the county zoning map from S (suburbanizing) to C (commercial) for a 19.345-acre portion of a 34.832-acre parcel located at 3652 U.S. Highway 411 South (tax map 90, parcel 18). Motion by Commissioner Carver; second by Commissioner Giles. Vote recorded as 15 yes, 1 abstain; motion carries.
- Confirmations and committee appointments: The commission confirmed mayoral appointments to the budget committee (Jared Anderson, Nick Bright, Mike Kaylor and Sharon Hannam) by a recorded vote (13 yes, 3 abstain). The commission also confirmed the mayoral appointment of Dr. Gene M. Cavilio as county medical examiner (16 yes). Nominations were completed for the commission rules committee and appointments were adopted (12 yes, 4 abstain).
- Other resolutions: The commission adopted Resolution 25-1015 reaffirming opposition to diverting public K-12 funds to private use (15 yes, 1 no).
How the votes were recorded
Most budget and grant items were adopted unanimously or by large majorities; where abstentions were recorded the clerk announced vote counts at the time of each action. Several motions were seconded and moved without extended discussion; the elections budget item prompted questions from commissioners and an explanation by the elections administrator that the deficit resulted from the fiscal-year budget having been set at a lower (one-election) level despite two elections occurring in the year.
What didn't change
The adoption of the items listed above does not itself change zoning ordinances, staffing or departmental rules beyond the specific appropriations and confirmations approved. The rezoning action will take effect according to county procedures for map and zoning updates.
Full list of principal actions adopted at the Jan. 16, 2025 meeting (excerpt)
- Agenda adoption: Motion to set the agenda as published (16 yes). - Consent calendar adoption (16 yes). - Budget committee confirmations (13 yes, 3 abstain). - County medical examiner confirmation of Dr. Gene M. Cavilio (16 yes). - Juvenile court grant application, $100,000 (16 yes). - BCSO JAG equipment purchase, $17,567 (16 yes). - Elections budget increase, $55,000 (16 yes). - Zoning map amendment for 3652 U.S. Highway 411 S (Resolution 25-1013) (15 yes, 1 abstain). - Resolution 25-1015 (opposition to diverting public K-12 dollars to private use) (15 yes, 1 no).
The commission also conducted nominations and confirmations for internal committees and received a number of ceremonial items and public comments. Several items that had drawn extended discussion on zoning and property rights were addressed separately in the meeting and will be transmitted to the planning commission for review where appropriate.
