Of the people,
Home of subscriber Dan Huie
By the people, For the people
TUESDAY, December 1, 2015 / Vol. 1 Issue 8 / 75 cents
JPs pass voluntary tax for new library A voluntary tax for the new Van Buren County Library brought some questions from a justice of the peace at last month's meeting of the Van Buren County Quorum Court. The ordinance to levy the voluntary 1 mill tax on real property to equip and furnish the new library passed by a 7-1 vote on Nov. 19. JP Mary Philips had some pointed questions about the proposal before the vote. "Is there a re-
al need for this tax?" Philips asked, noting that a mandatory 1 mill tax on real property for the library already is in place. "If they don't want to pay it all they got to do is say, 'I don't want to pay it,'" JP James Kirkendoll said. Philips wanted to know what the projected revenue from such a voluntary tax would be and if there was a chance it might become a non-voluntary one. No one had a projection but said a sim-
ilar tax for soil conservation brings in $15,000 to $16,000 annually. Kirkendoll said it would have to go before voters to become a mandatory tax, and "at that time, it probably wouldn't pass." JP Dale James likened the tax to tipping at a restaurant -- figure the percentage then pay it if you want. Philips wondered if this tax request would lead to other agencies making the same request, say-
ing, "There are a lot of things that could use a voluntary tax." Librarian Karla Fultz said the Library Board suggested the voluntary tax rather than requesting a millage increase. She said earlier at the meeting that the old building is still up for sale after the bid they received was not satisfactory. The building is appraised at $195,000, and County Judge Roger Hooper said an acceptable price must be at least 75 percent
of that. Philips voted against the voluntary millage increase, and the ordinance proposal passed 7-1. JP Randy Story was not at the meeting. The new library should be completed around Christmastime, Fultz said. Also at the meeting, the Quorum Court: * Heard that the county's insurance policy premium will increase by $50,000 for 2016. Hooper said he will sign the pa-
pers with Scarberry Insurance in the next few days. * Was told to bring their audit books to the next meeting, after most said they forgot them this time. The JPs will go over the state legislative audit on Dec. 17. * Passed the annual school millage tax, which is set at 36.8 mills for Clinton; 38.6 mills for South Side; 35.5 mills for Shirley; 33.5 mills for Quitman; 32.75 mills for Marshall; and 33.6 mills for Westside.
Mobile home destroyed in fire
Homecoming royalty Mary Considine was crowned Senior High Homecoming queen at Shirley recently. Mary is the daughter of Kenneth Considine and Shelley Wheeler. She was escorted by Benton Berry, the son of Brian and Sandra Berry. The Junior High queen is pictured on Page 12.
A mobile home in the Barrens Community near Clinton was destroyed by fire Sunday, Nov. 22. Forty-one firefighters responded to the fire at the home of Lisa Stout, according to Choctaw Fire Department Chief Lamar Harvey. He said a boy at the home was taken to the hospital in a non-life threatening condition. No further information on his condition was available. The cause of the fire, Harvey said, is undetermined. The fire was reported by Stout around 7:30 a.m. Nov. 22. Trucks from fire departments including Choctaw, Burnt Ridge, Damascus, Fairfield Bay, Bee Branch and Culpepper responded. Some of the tankers stood by at the nearby Johnson Hole to carry water to the scene as needed. This was part of the newly created county Tanker Task Force. The tankers carry 1,000 to 3,000 gal-
A mobile home in the Barrens Community near Clinton was lost in a fire Sunday, Nov. 22. lons of water at a time and refill at designated points. Using alternate water sources eases pressure on fire hydrants.
The departments making up the Tanker Task Force are: Alread, Bee Branch, Botkinburg, Burnt Ridge, Damascus,
Dennard, Choctaw, Culpepper, Fairfield Bay, Highway 110, Gravesville, and Shirley.
--In brief--
It's Christmas in Clinton -- From 1-5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 6, local merchants will be open for shopping, and cordially invite area residents to drop in for their open houses. Events include flash sales and pictures with Santa at the Clinton Fire Department. There will be prizes, deep discounts, refreshments and more. Sid King and the KHPQ Jambulance will be on the move with a live broadcast from store to store. It's a great opportunity to support your
local merchants and shop local.
Winners - The Voice of Van Buren County congratulates the winners of its November contests. Jo Smith of Clinton won a one-year subscription to The Voice by correctly identifying the location of a photograph in the Where in the County Is This? contest; and Vickie Overbey of Clinton was the winner of a $25 gift certificate from Rose's Country Fabrics for the winning entry in the Word Find puzzle. Their names were drawn from dozens of cor-
rect entries in the contests. The Voice would like to thank everyone who participated. The next round of puzzles starts with this issue, and we have another great prize to win in a new contest. See Page 7 for details. Letters, we need letters -- Attention first-grade teachers in Van Buren County. The Voice is planning to publish Letters to Santa from first-graders throughout the county. Send them to voiceeditor@ artelco.com, mail them to The Voice/ P.O. Box 1396/Clinton, AR 72031 or
bring them by our downtown Clinton office at 260 Griggs St. Please leave the letters just like the kids wrote them. Ballot position draw -- The Van Buren County Election Commission will hold a public meeting for the purpose of drawing names for ballot position for candidates in the 2016 Preferential Primary and Nonpartisan Election. The meeting will be at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015, at the Van Buren County Courthouse Annex. It is open to the public.
This gingko bilboa tree outside Arkansas Telephone Co. in downtown Clinton shows off its fall colors. The ginkgo is the oldest known species of tree on earth with its fossils dating back 270 million years, according to gingkotree.com. There are only a few of these trees in Van Buren County.