GOVERNMENT/POLITICS A4 | OUR COLUMNISTS A6-7 | YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS A11 | BUSINESS A13
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powell
VOL. 50, NO. 11
MARCH 14, 2011
INSIDE FEATURED COLUMNIST BETTY BEAN
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Commissioners of the Hallsdale Powell Utility District inspect the utility’s new headquarters, now under construction on Cunningham Road in Halls. The building was designed to last for 50 or 60 years, said chair Jim Hill, and it is utilitarian with concrete floors, exposed beams and geothermal heat. The current building, constructed in 1969, will be torn down. Commissioners are: Sandy Lifford, Kevin Julian and Jim Hill. Photo by S. Clark
Did Haslam shirk his duty? See GOVERNMENT, page A-5
R.I.P. FOUNTAIN
CITY
Dr. Jim Tumblin on Ross Smith, annexation and the ‘funeral’ of 1962 See page A-7
NEIGHBORHOOD BUZZ
Chris Newsom Memorial Tournament Sponsors are needed for the third annual Chris Newsom Memorial Tournament to be held Monday, March 28, through Sunday, April 3, at Halls Community Park. Sponsorships are between $250 to $1,000 and include personalized banners and T-shirts. Info: Erin Warwick, 877-783-5279, 599-6418 or e_warwick@hotmail.com.
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HPUD rates increase, but growth is slowed By Sandra Clark Water and sewer rates will increase in April, but not by as much as projected by Hallsdale Powell Utility District’s rate model. Commissioners sent staff back to the spreadsheet last week, recessing the meeting to tour the new headquarters. Chief Financial Officer James Smith sharpened his pixels to produce an increase of 3.5 percent on water and 5.5 percent on sewer which will equate to an increase of $4.40 per month for a 5,000 gallon user.
Water only customers will see an increase from $44.62 to $46.18 for 5,000 gallons ($62.57 to $64.75 for 7,500 gallons). The increases will be reflected on the April billing. The rate model had projected the 3.5 percent increase on water with a 7.5 percent increase on sewer. Smith said rates are debtdriven and the utility is required by state law to make a profit. Revenues are influenced by weather; a rainy season results in decreased water use.
Commissioners will review the finances in September to ensure that the increases were adequate. President/CEO Darren Cardwell did not oppose the reduction in projected rates, but he stressed, “Our overall plan has worked and is working today.” Cardwell said HPUD will pay down $10 million in debt principal and $4.6 million in interest in the upcoming fiscal year. Other increases are fuel costs and electric utilities. HPUD pays $2.6 million a year for electricity.
Tindell’s role part of new look in trustee’s office
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By Larry Van Guilder
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Knox County Trustee John Duncan III recently announced that his office has collected $228 million in property taxes through the February payment deadline, setting a record for the office. Chad Tindell, hired by Duncan to be the office’s fulltime delinquent tax attorney, has played a significant role in that accomplishment. “When you take a job, you need to make a difference,” said Tindell, who was in private practice for 20 years before joining Duncan’s staff. For veteran observers of the trustee’s office, that difference is something more than just the savings in tax dollars and more efficient processes Tindell’s hiring brings to the table. For years the office contracted with a private attorney, Albert Harb, whose firm earned millions from a 10 percent delinquent tax add-on fee.
In November 2007, when the Shopper-News took a critical look at the operations of the trustee’s office under then-acting Trustee Mike Lowe, former Tindell Knox County Law Director John Owings estimated that an in-house attorney and a paralegal could handle delinquent tax collections for about $150,000 annually. Tindell’s salary of $106,905 combined with that of tax assistant Linda McGinnis actually falls below Owings’ estimate. “Albert did a good job,” Tindell says. “Any lawyer in the county would have taken it. But it makes tremendous sense to have a full-time attorney in a major metropolitan office. “When you’re full time in the office, you get an overview.”
That overview is resulting in better ways to do business. Tindell notes, for example, that about 13,000 taxpayers must be notified when the delinquent tax suits are filed. Under the previous system, 15 to 20 employees would be involved in preparing and printing out labels, a process that took several weeks. The office now contracts with a printing company that accomplishes the job in two days, saving $45,000 in labor and an additional $2,000 in postage. Tindell participates in weekly meetings with the trustee and other senior staff members. He says morale has “soared” under Duncan: “People in the office are happy to come to work.” And Tindell points out another change for the better under Duncan: “No one in the office now has a (legal) problem,” a reference to alleged embezzlement by one of former Trustee Fred Sisk’s employees.
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HPUD completed its 57th consecutive month without a violation at the wastewater plant on Beaver Creek Drive in Powell, despite heavy rains during February. Commissioners hope to be in the new headquarters by May. It contains two drive-thru windows and a community room that is accessible to restrooms and a kitchen. Vehicles and equipment will be housed in a separate operations center. The district’s next meeting will be 1:30 p.m. Monday, April 11.
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Tindell says he has “reached out” to other municipal tax attorneys around the state with a goal of forming a statewide association. About 45 attorneys gathered in Nashville for a discussion a few weeks ago. Tindell has drafted bylaws and expects the first formal meeting to take place this summer. “We can learn from other counties and share information,” Tindell said, which will help in crafting best practices here as well as in trustee offices around the state. Tindell’s duties aren’t restricted to filing suits for delinquent taxes. He’s active in reviewing blighted properties, has assisted in setting up payment plans for delinquent taxpayers and routinely interacts with his professional counterparts in Knoxville city government. While acknowledging that “working for the government is different,” his work philosophy is simple: “Always find ways to make things better.”