Some budget requests can't wait

Heather Mullinix, Crossville Chronicle, Tenn.
·2 min read

May 15—As members of the Cumberland County Commission budget committee fielded proposals for the upcoming county budget, they found several items that just couldn't wait.

The committee recommended moving forward with replacement of an aging server for the Cumberland County Clerk's office and an HVAC unit that has been taken out of service at the Cumberland County Community Complex.

"It was leaking gas into the building," County Parks and Rec Manager Donnie Moody told members of the budget committee May 5. "We're going to have to replace it."

But the county budget won't be approved until some time in August — and summer is just around the corner.

"It's going to be in the 80s next week," said Nancy Hyder, 2nd District commissioner.

Moody said the unit was about 30 years old. His budget has about $5,700 left in a budget line for HVAC repairs, but that won't likely cover a new unit.

"The building is able to function without it," Moody said. "It just puts more stress on the other units."

County Maintenance Supervisor John Doddroe said, "The unit you're talking about is a mess ... It's a must-must.

"As far as whose budget — it needs to be fixed."

Cumberland County Mayor Allen Foster said the county maintenance budget has taken on several such projects.

Members of the committee encouraged Foster to work with Doddroe and Moody on replacing the HVAC unit and, if necessary, returning to the committee for a budget amendment before the end of the fiscal year June 30.

"We've let that go," Rebecca Stone, 3rd District commissioner, said. "We need to replace that ASAP."

County Clerk Jule Bryson said he needed a new server. Funds are available in a restricted technology account.

The issue was noted during a recent software upgrade where the techs said the server was "weak." The server is 11 years old.

"It's not on my capital request," Bryson told the committee. "It just came up the last few weeks."

Heather Mullinix is editor of the Crossville Chronicle. She covers schools and education in Cumberland County. She may be reached at hmullinix@crossville-chronicle.com.