Martel LCUB consolidation a work

Martel, LCUB consolidation a work in progress

Jeremy Nash news-herald.net

Consolidation of Martel Utility District with Lenoir City Utilities Board will have to wait a little longer.

MUD board members met Oct. 22, but left with no decision after a key document was not ready in time for consideration. Now the consolidation target date is January 2020.

Lenoir City Council on Oct. 28 approved the second and final reading authorizing the execution, delivery and performance of an agreement between the city and Martel. Council also moved forward with establishing a separate utility department called Martel Utility Department and forming an advisory committee for the department. Members have not yet been assigned.

“It’s going to be pushed back I think for ease of just pushing everything,” Shannon Littleton, LCUB general manager, said. “I think they’re wanting to relax for a minute and make sure everyone is reading it thoroughly of the document. If Martel had called a special called meeting that would have essentially been just a little bit of a week earlier than their regular scheduled meeting, so we agreed, ‘Just don’t jump through a lot of hoops. Let’s just do it on a regular scheduled meeting and proceed as planned with the (Nov.) 26th and the (Dec.) 19th.’ I think we were beginning to do a lot of unnecessary work just to try to get a seven- or eight-day jump on time, which it really didn’t matter.”

Martel board members will now look at the document at their next meeting at 4 p.m. Nov. 26, Mark White, Martel board member, said.

The delay also pushes back the public necessity hearing with Loudon County Mayor Rollen “Buddy” Bradshaw.

Lenoir City Mayor Tony Aikens said that date is now set for 6 p.m. Dec. 19 at the Lenoir City Municipal Building.

“The good news is that I think we were not looking at our calendars as closely as we should there,” Littleton said. “The issue that was throwing us off is the notification of the hearing of cities and utilities. It’s not really any of the work that Martel or LCUB is doing, it’s the notification of the other surrounding cities and utilities. You have to do that within no less than seven and no more than 15 days notification of the law and that was the one that was really throwing us off. We were concerned if it went over into December that the county mayor would not have any dates available to hear this matter, but obviously he was gracious enough to hear us on the 19th. So it looks like we’ll be able to stay fairly close to the same schedule we were on.”

Greg Reed, Martel board member, hopes to soon have all the details settled.

“That would make sense to settle everything by Jan. 1 so that everybody’s on a fiscal year that would end up Martel’s fiscal year, so it would be good to have it all done by then,” he said. “... I just think things need to be correct and that everything is right to start with as we go into it.”