County Seeking School Traffic Officer
by: Dwayne PageJan 27, 2025
The county needs a school traffic officer to fill a vacancy.
Through a longstanding agreement, the City of Smithville, DeKalb County Government, and the DeKalb School District, share in the annual cost of paying two traffic control officers in the school zones mornings and afternoons (during the school year) at Northside Elementary School and at DeKalb Middle School/DCHS. The positions pay $20 per hour. The county makes the hires.
According to County Mayor Matt Adcock, the schedule is approximately an hour and half in the morning and an hour and a half in the afternoon during school traffic hours. It is approximately 25 hours every two weeks. Payment is received bi-weekly. “The county is looking to fill the position immediately. If someone is not hired we will have one school without an officer,” said County Mayor Adcock.
National Weather Service to Recognize DeKalb County as “StormReady”
by: Dwayne PageJan 26, 2025
The National Weather Service Monday night will recognize DeKalb County as being “StormReady” during the monthly county commission meeting.
A representative from the National Weather Service will present County Mayor Matt Adcock and the county commission with a certificate officially confirming this designation.
“DeKalb County has been working through a process with 911 and EMA to get DeKalb County storm ready certified,” said DeKalb Emergency Management Agency Director Charlie Parker. “We have met all the requirements. The National Weather Service is coming Monday night to present a certificate of recognition that we have checked all the boxes to become storm ready county. It shows we are working to protect citizens through our local emergency planning committee. We also have some of our factories, businesses, schools, and the hospital on board with this also to do more storm preparedness,” said Parker.
For a county, business, building, or organization to be designated “StormReady” they must have provided emergency managers with clear-cut guidelines on how to improve their hazardous weather operations. To be officially StormReady, a community must:
•Establish a 24-hour warning point and emergency operations center
•Have more than one way to receive severe weather warnings and forecasts and to alert the public
•Create a system that monitors weather conditions locally
•Promote the importance of public readiness through community seminars
•Develop a formal hazardous weather plan, which includes training severe weather spotters and holding emergency exercises.
The county commission will meet at 6:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the county complex.
December Local Option Sales Tax Collections for County Down a Bit from November
by: Dwayne PageJan 26, 2025
DeKalb County’s local option sales tax collections for December were down from November but stronger than December 2023.
According to the Tennessee Department of Revenue, DeKalb County collected $175,759 in December, down from $182,150 in November but better than $168,325 taken in during December 2023.
Local option sales tax collections in December were up in two of the four towns in DeKalb County compared to November and up in all four towns from December 2023.
In Smithville, December collections were $394,435, down from $399,755 in November but stronger than $392,126 in December 2023.
Alexandria’s collections increased from $32,316 in November to $33,091 in December and were better than December 2023’s collections of $29,672.
Dowelltown brought in $4,135 in December compared to $3,318 in November and $3,510 in December 2023.
Liberty’s dropped from $24,356 in November to $12,961 in December but increased from $12,527 in December 2023.
Net collections of local option sales taxes for the county and cities combined in December were $620,384, down from 641,897 in November but up from $606,162 in December 2023.
December sales tax collections reflect previous month activity.