Albany City Council held a longer than usual regular meeting last Tuesday evening, November 3 with all members present and a couple of local residents expressing concerns and asking questions relating to the city’s water quality and the grant which will place an SRO (School Resource Officer) in the school district.

Pastor Larry Jones first addressed the council about a letter residents had received earlier this year pertaining to a notification of a MCL violation at Albany Water Works. The letter, sent by the local water department, notified water customers of the violations, the findings and what was being done to correct the situation.

That letter showed testing results between April and June at levels that “exceeds the standard, or maximum level MCL, for THM (Trihalomethanes).” The standard level is 0.80 with the city’s system showing 0.83.

Jones, who has been undergoing chemotherapy for colon cancer, said the letter raised questions in his mind about the quality of the water and referred to the letter that had been mailed to city water users, with his primary concerns being, “If you have a severely compromised immune system, have an infant, are pregnant, or are elderly, you may be at increased risk and should seek advice from your health care provider about drinking this water.”

Another aspect the letter noted was, “People who drink water containing trihalomethanes in excess of the MCL over many years experience problems with their liver, kidneys, or central nervous system, and may have an increased risk of getting cacner.”

Jones told the council he felt that TTHM runs the risk of causing cancer and was a possible cause of people getting the disease, not only through drinking water, but absorption through the skin over time.

Albany Mayor Nicky Smith said that since that test, the average THM in the city water system was 0.72, below the minimum standard and the water being supplied by the system was good water.

Water plant manager Lanny Bowlin also noted the city was constantly working to keep the water levels safe and noted that if at any time such levels would go too high, the EPA would order the system shut down.

It was also noted there were various reasons why the levels could fluctuate, including high water temperature among others.

Jones indicated he wouldn’t be as concerned if not for the fact it was reoccurring, saying the city had issued such notifications at different times in the past. He requested the city try and find a solution that would have a more permanent fix to the problem.

Gary Norris then addressed the council and Mayor Smith in particular, with questions about the School Resource Officer grant recently obtained by the city to place an SRO in the school district.

The first question Norris had was the placement of the SRO being at Clinton County High School, noting that school already had an safety officer (Mike Sinclair) in place and asked if in fact the mayor had requested in the agreement with the school board to have the office placed at CCHS, which the mayor said he did.

Norris also questioned a portion of the grant that had indicated five percent of the children in the district were in “rehabilitation,” asking how the AD District had come up with those statistics and indicated that number couldn’t be correct and further questioned why the Lake Cumberland Area Development District, as opposed to someone local, had written the grant application.

Mayor Smith told Norris that it was, in fact, a city grant and that the new SRO, Russell Decker, was hired by and would be an employee of the city. “Basically, he is a city police officer,” the mayor added.

Norris then noted the high school already had an officer that may be terminated as a result of the newly hired SRO, who begins his duties November 16. Norris also questioned whether the SRO could also go to other schools.

During a review of the grant agreement, the mayor and council members noted that the new School Resource Office would be “based” at CCHS but could, in fact, go to other schools as needed. “He can be moved around,” Mayor Smith said.

At one point, Norris indicated it appeared the AD District was “giving false information” about the rehabilitation rate and said it looked like falsification of records to obtain a federal grant.

Mayor Smith told Norris that the person who wrote the grant application for the AD District was a retired Kentucky State Police officer and said he would have that person to get in touch with Norris to answer his questions pertaining to the matter.

Following the discussion, the mayor also noted that the second and final reading to accept the grant for the SRO was “down” on the agenda, but asked the council if they would like to move the matter up for a vote.

Council member Brad Thrasher then made a motion to approve second reading and accept the grant, the motion then passed by unanimous vote.

The council then opened bids on a surplus 1998 Chevy truck and on a motion by Councilman Leland Hicks, voted to accept the high bid from McArthur Stockton of $926.

The council then approved second and final reading of a budget amendment to include $7,500 toward the park repaving project, which is now complete.

RUSSMAR Company representatives then presented an approximate 20-minute video on the natural gas system and pipeline safety.

It was noted during the presentation that about 140 residential and business customers in Albany are now on the natural gas system.

RUSSMAR officials, as well as the city, also urge anyone who may plan on doing any digging on their property to first notify the city or gas company to make sure there are no underground gas lines where the digging will take place.

Also during the meeting, a representative from the LCADD passed out information to the council about the “Giving Tuesday and Senior Services Fund” and deadlines for grant applications and amounts that could be applied for through the Land & Water Conservation Fund, Recreation Trails Program and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) programs.

Prior to adjourning, council person Tonya Thrasher thanked everyone who took part in the fourth annual “Boo Fest” on the square on Halloween night, estimating about 500 children had visited the downtown area to trick-or-treat that evening.

The next regular meeting of Albany City Council is scheduled for Tuesday, December 1 at 5 p.m. at city hall and is open to the public.