City Manager Ron Williams and Mayor Sonny Nobles recognized Finance Director Joanne Luther for her 31 years of service to the City of Live Oak.

LIVE OAK, Fla. — At the Live Oak City Council’s regular meeting Tuesday, it was greeted by several city residents with questions regarding high water bills.

City resident Norman Crawford said that his water bill was usually in the $150-$170 range but two months ago it jumped to more than $300 and his current bill is more than $800.

He said that he has not noticed a leak and city employees who came out to check the meter did not notice the meter spinning to indicate a leak.

City Manager Ron Williams said the meter has been changed and sent off for malfunction testing.

Williams added that the new meter will be checked regularly.

Stacy Chauncey, the property manager and resident of Silas Oaks Apartments, said one of her residents had a water bill of more than $1,000.

Chauncey said the resident has been out of town for most of September and prepared by turning the water valves off before leaving.

According to Chauncey, the apartment’s maintenance workers checked the apartment and her water was off and the meter was not spinning.

She said when the water was turned on, the meter was checked and appeared to be working correctly.

“We have had an increase (in water rates) so the water bill is going to be a little higher but that is a pretty significant increase,” councilman Frank Davis said. “I want us to get to the bottom of it. I don’t want anybody to have to pay an $800 or $1,000 bill.”

The city has a water leakage adjustment policy in place to help residents with water bills that are high due to a water leak.

Davis said he thinks the requirements seem a little high for people to meet.

According to the policy, excess usage, due to a property-side leak, must exceed the normal usage by at least 1,000 percent to qualify for an adjustment.

The council asked all of the residents to meet with Williams to solve the issue.

No insurance deal

Lee Harvard, of B.W. Helvenston & Sons, no longer intends to seek a contract for his consultation services with the City of Live Oak.

Harvard stated that he has been working with the city on insurance matters for the past 40 years without a contract but Williams required one after becoming city manager.

A contract was presented to the council in February. At that meeting, Harvard agreed to the contract with some changes and it was going to be revised and returned to Harvard for finalization.

Harvard said that contract was never finalized.

At the September meeting, Harvard said he could not work with Williams, he wanted to work with City Clerk John Gill as he has been doing in the past.

At that meeting, the council expressed concerns with not having the city manager involved in the insurance matters.

“I do want to take this opportunity to publicly thank the Chairman Bennie Thomas for all that he has done in his efforts to support me in these last 13 months when this issue came up,” Harvard said.

He also expressed thanks to Gill.

“I have for the past 40 years tried my best to give the city my best efforts in handling your insurance program,” Harvard said. “I will close in saying this will not be the last time you will see me.”

He added that now that he no longer has a working relationship with the city he will attempt to attend every city meeting “to scrutinize the performance of the mayor, city manager and anyone else involved.”

Pay Schedule Change

The council approved a change to the city employees’ pay schedule.

The city employees are currently paid weekly but starting in January 2018, employees will be paid bi-weekly.

“We are continuing to work on areas we can be efficient and productive,” Williams said. “We can try to move the city forward in a fashion that is positive and in consideration of our financial limitations.”

Finance Director Joanne Luther said this change would free up her staff for at least a day and a half every two weeks to work on other projects.

Community Planning Month

Mayor Sonny Nobles presented a proclamation declaring October as Community Planning Month.

“Every year I recognize our planning department,” Nobles said.

The proclamation states that community planning provided an opportunity for all residents to be meaningfully involved in making choices that determine the future of their community.

Nobles presented the proclamation to the city’s Development Manager George Curtis.

“George, thank you so much,” Nobles said. “You got a reputation around here for your good work.”

Government/business forum proposed

Davis proposed a government/business forum to discuss ideas on how to help Live Oak prosper.

Davis added that he wanted the forum to be productive and not be a complaint session.

Thomas, the council president, agreed that the forum would be a good idea.

He added many people have issues when trying to open a business.

The council and city manager will work together to decide on a date for the forum.

Luther recognized

Williams recognized Luther, the finance director, for her 31 years of service to the City of Live Oak.

“This city’s staff is, quite frankly, second to none,” Williams said. “I’ve worked with a lot of Finance Directors and I have not found anyone more concerned about the financial integrity of this city than Mrs. Joanne Luther.”