CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – (CLARKSVILLENOW) Clarksville Mayor Joe Pitts wasa recent guest speaker at the Clarksville Kiwanis Club. One of the first things the mayor did was to say that he was grateful for the more than 1,300 city employees who care about what they do and work very hard to make our city better.
Pitts talked about the city budget process which is currently underway and said there is a cash reserve of about $31 million and the city’s fund balance, or rainy-day fund, is about $28 million. He added he is hoping to improve on both of those figures this year. “Our tax rate has remained unchanged for at few years at $1.24 with no plan to change it this year,” said Pitts.
“One of the headwinds we’ve got is about $200 million worth of projects that need to be done, mostly roads, so we’re trying to figure that out,” Pitts said. One of those road projects the mayor mentioned was the Northeast Connector, connecting Wilma Rudolph Blvd. to Trenton Rd.
The process to acquire right-a-way for the project is going on now and Pitts said they are also looking at a leg between Wilma Rudolph and Ted Crozier Blvd. to help relieve traffic. That would make that road stretch from Trenton Rd. to Ted Crozier Blvd. and relieve some of the stress.
“If you’ve been anywhere in our city over the last few months, traffic is a mess, so we’re going to begin to address that,” Pitts said. He added that another area that is in need of work is the intersection of Whitfield Rd. at Needmore Rd. and Trenton Road is on the Tennessee Department of Transportation’s (TDOT) list for widening and intsalling sidewalks. The mayor added he hears a lot about the need for sidewalks around Clarksville.
When it comes to downtown, the mayor said the city is working with the county to enhance parking opportunities and conversations are underway with the Roxy for a performing arts center.
The old Frosty Morn building is something the mayor said needs to be taken care of. A structural engineer is currently looking at it to see if there are any parts of the building or property that can be saved. If not, it will cost $1.2 million to tear it down and clear the site.
Pitts shared that he is having regular meetings with Montgomery County Mayor Jim Durrett, Director of Clarksville-Montgomery Schools Millard House, and President Alisa White at Austin Peay talking about things that need to be taken care of in the community.
The mayor added that they are also working on discussions with Fort Campbell to strengthen the relationship between the two communities.
The mayor ended by saying, “Our vision for the city is to be innovative, to be creative, to be driven by customer service and to make sure that we’re dynamic in responding to the needs of this community.”