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Hochatown trustees hear treasurer's report and administrator update on roads, grants and fire department steps
Summary
Trustees received a treasurer's report showing improved revenue, heard a multi-part administrator update on road repairs, easements, grant applications and fire-department formation, and authorized staff to continue recruitment for a fire chief.
At its meeting, the Hochatown Board of Trustees received routine financial figures and a lengthy administrator's report covering road maintenance, easement work, grant applications, hiring and fire-department formation.
Treasurer Charles reported monthly figures including lodging-tax receipts of more than $380,000 and sales tax receipts of $424,792, which he said represented a large month-over-month increase. He noted elevated expenses tied to recent large contracts.
Town Administrator Adam gave a multi-topic report. He detailed completed and in-progress road repairs (Pilot Fish, Cedar Creek Estates, Pecan Bend, Penner Road and work on Stevens, Mangrove and Mahogany roads), emergency repairs at Camp Ranch Road, and a near-term public-safety concern where water is undermining a portion of the Timber Ridge subdivision road.
Adam said the town is preparing easements to acquire maintenance responsibility for several private roads (KanataBee Trails and Willow Bend among others) and that easement drafts will be circulated to property owners. He said staff are compiling cost estimates for paving candidate roads and have prepared contingency plans should grant funding be delayed.
On grants, Adam listed three pending applications: a packet-listed "Keto REIT" grant for paving Hochatown Road (estimated $100,000'$200,000 contribution), an OWRB economic development grant for water and wastewater planning (up to $100,000) and an ODOT CIRB application for Camp Ranch Road. He cautioned the CIRB timeline was uncertain and might be awarded quickly or placed on a multi-year backlog.
Adam also reported that five proposals were received in response to the town's comprehensive-plan RFP and that 38 applicants applied for a police position; materials have been uploaded to a shared drive for trustee review. He thanked state and regional fire officials for assisting the town with legal and procedural work on forming a new fire department and said an AHJ letter and memorandum of understanding had been executed and submitted for review.
In executive session, the board authorized the town administrator to continue pursuing candidates for a fire chief and confirmed the administrative assistant's full-time employment status under contingencies discussed in closed session. Trustees recorded roll-call votes for both personnel actions.
Adam also invited residents to a community river cleanup scheduled for Sept. 22 at Skipper Rock Kayak and Canoe at 9 a.m.
The meeting closed out routine items and scheduled follow-up work; staff were directed to prepare final contract details with the vendor approved for short-term rental collection and to return to the board with procurement paperwork where required.
