The Monticello Planning Commission held their monthly meeting at 6 p.m. on Thursday, February 15. The roll was called and all commissioners were present except Jay Jones. Following the roll call, commissioner Lou Lambert led an invocation, and the minutes from the January meeting were approved.
Acting chairman Nicholas Akers called for old business and the proposed truck route ordinance was brought up. Monticello Police Chief Carlos Garcia and Monticello Fire Chief Eric Chisom were on hand to discuss some potential issues with the current draft of the ordinance.
The first issue that Garcia mentioned was that the ordinance wasn’t specific enough when about truck drivers who live inside the city limits. As the ordinance is written, it allows for a truck driver to park their truck at their residence without restriction. Garcia stated that the ordinance needs to be re-worded. He stated that drivers should be able to park the truck at their homes, but fully-loaded log trucks and full-size semi-trailers should not be permitted on the city streets. Most of the city streets aren’t built to handle the weight, and they also are too narrow to allow for parking or turning if needed.
Garcia also stated that he felt that the penalty portion of the ordinance needed to be adjusted. He said that the minimum fine should be raised from $50 to $200. Fines would then be on a scale from $200 to $500.
Another issue that Garcia pointed out is that there are some city streets with bridges on them that cannot take the weight of a loaded truck. Chisom pointed out that the roads that will comprise the proposed truck route are all state and country roads that don’t have these types of bridges, so there was no need to address that at this time.
The commission suggested that City Attorney Whit Barton draft a second version of the ordinance that limits trucks over a certain limit to state highways and county roads, rather than specifically designating each road that they can drive on. Mayor Akers noted that certain businesses operate within the city limits. These businesses require trucks to operate their business, and certain exceptions would need to be made to not hinder their business operations.
In the next order of business, Fire Marshall Dale Jones gave a report. He stated that in January 15 permits were issued for a total of $1,052. He stated the month was slow due to the weather, but that things will get better.
The commission also elected the 2024 officers. Stephen Coburn was elected as Chairman, Jay Jones was re-elected as Vice Chairman, and Nicholas Akers was re-elected as Secretary. The commission also voted to meet at 6 p.m. on the second Tuesday of every other month. The next meeting will be held in April.
