Centerton council adopts two ordinances, property-tax resolution and approves fleet, cemetery and personnel items

Centerton—s City Council on Oct. 14 adopted two ordinances that revise the municipal code and approved a routine tax-collection resolution, while also clearing several operational items the city says are needed for routine maintenance and upcoming capital outlays.

Ordinance 2025-51 repeals a cable-franchise provision from the municipal code that dates to 2009; the city said the state has issued franchise authority since 2013, so the change is housekeeping to remove an outdated section. Ordinance 2025-52 adds Chapter 16.16 (impact fees) to Title 16 of the Centerton municipal code to codify an impact-fee ordinance the council previously passed but that had not been placed in the codified code. The council also adopted Resolution 2025-37 authorizing the Benton County collector to collect property taxes and distribute funds to local jurisdictions for calendar year 2025 (to be collected in 2026).

The council approved the following operational items during the meeting: - Authorize continued payment to contractor Larry Hearn for cemetery mowing at $230 per mowing, paid from the cemetery trust fund established when the city took over cemetery operations in 2014. Staff said the trust balance is sufficient to cover the contract for several years; the transcript recorded the trust fund amount as approximately $50,000 (not specified to the dollar). - Adopt three personnel policies carried forward from the prior meeting (the packet and employee manual definitions were made available in the council—s shared Dropbox; staff will provide the final versions). One policy discussed by council members included timekeeping; an "active allowance" policy was also listed among the items. - Authorize ordering/leasing four Ford F-250 trucks for public works and two Ford Explorers for city use; staff recommended ordering now because vehicle delivery lead times are three to four months and the purchases are accounted for in the draft 2026 budget. - Accept routine minutes and financial reports included in the meeting packet.

Votes: The transcript records roll-call or voice votes in which all members present supported the listed ordinances and measures. For Ordinance 2025-51 the roll call recorded: Cliff/Cliff/Jeff Thompson (name variant in transcript), Wendy Henson, Josie/Jesse Reesch (name variant), Joshua Hagen and Cody Miles recorded as voting "Yes." For Ordinance 2025-52 the roll call recorded: Bill/Jeff Thompson (transcript name variants), Wendy Henson, Chelsea Reed, Joshua Hagen and Tony/Cody Miles as voting "Yes." Resolution 2025-37 recorded a similar unanimous roll-call vote. Other operational items were approved by voice vote with an "Aye" majority noted in the record. (The transcript contains several name variants and occasional partial names; the article reflects names as they appear in the meeting record.)

Why it matters: The ordinances and resolution update the codified code and complete routine fiscal housekeeping. The fleet and contract approvals ensure continuity of services (cemetery mowing, public-works vehicles) and are timetabled to match supplier lead times and grant/budget availability.

Provenance: The ordinances, resolution and votes are discussed in the meeting transcript beginning at 00:06:10 (Ordinance 2025-51), continuing at 00:07:42 (Ordinance 2025-52), and 00:08:53 (Resolution 2025-37). The cemetery mowing discussion begins at 00:10:01 and the personnel policies at 00:12:34. Vehicle-leasing discussion begins at 00:14:43.

Ending: The measures passed at the Oct. 14 meeting are routine code cleanup and operating approvals the city says are needed for ongoing maintenance and upcoming capital planning; staff indicated the vehicle orders and cemetery contract are budgeted and will proceed as authorized.