City Commissioners Vote to Hire Skelton As City Manager; Approve Budgets

During its regular monthly meeting on Monday, June 11, the Sallisaw board of city commissioners voted unanimously to offer the city manager position to Keith Skelton, who has served as acting city manager since the resignation of Clayton Lucas in December. Contract negotiations will take place at the July meeting.

Commissioners also approved the $53 million budget for fiscal year 2018-2019. Mayor Ernie Martens commended Skelton and his staff for a well-organized budget summit and comprehensive budget proposal.

In other business, the board approved the contract for professional engineering services with Neel, Harvell and Associates for $10,100 for sanitary sewer system improvements in the Roy Frye Jr. Industrial Park, and approved the law enforcement mutual aid agreement with the Sallisaw Police Department and the Sequoyah County Sheriff’s Department.

Also approved was a request by the Sequoyah County Sheriff’s Department to purchase three 9MM tactical weapons deemed surplus equipment of the Sallisaw Police Department. The sheriff’s office will purchase the weapons for a total of $2550, and the police department will use the funds to purchase new rifles for their department.

The city’s fireworks restriction ordinance was changed, repealing the former and authorizing a new Chapter 66, Article 1, Section 66-9, which now states that fireworks may only be discharged within the city limits on January 1, July 1 through July 4, and December 31, and only between the hours of 10 a.m. to midnight on those days.

The mayor appointed Becky Mayo to the Sallisaw Library Board for a three-year term, and lease purchase renewals for a track hoe excavator, dump truck and Mack truck with overhead body packer were approved.

Agreements between the city and Sequoyah County District Court, Black Diamond Aviation, SAC Counties Nutrition Project, Sallisaw Main Street, Sallisaw Chamber of Commerce and Sallisaw Lumber Company were approved. An agreement for impoundment of animals with the towns of Gans, Gore and Vian were also approved.

Pam Cloud, Managing News Director

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