By Ray King
Pine Bluff Mayor Shirley Washington on Monday removed the interim tag from Police Chief Lloyd Franklin Sr.
During her State of the City address, which came before the regular meeting of the City Council, Washington said Pine Bluff “has been in very good hands” and she offered Franklin the job which he accepted.
After the meeting, Washington was asked what prompted her decision to offer the job to Franklin.
In her address, Washington said city revenue has been on a steady path and is now the highest it has been in decades. She attributed that to an increase in quality health care for Southeast Arkansas, as well as expansions at Tyson Foods, high paying jobs at Good Day Farms, and the Saracen Casino.
She described the state of the city as strong, but said it is important to keep a focus to prevent the city from going backward.
During the regular meeting of the council, a resolution waiving competitive bidding and hiring SAK Construction to make emergency repairs to a pipe located in the Splash Park was approved without dissent.
Those repairs are projected to cost $97,920 and when Council Member Joni Alexander questioned the price, City Treasurer Greg Gustek, who served on committees that worked on the Splash Park said the pipe was under the building at the park and was a part of the “100-year-old sewer system.”
Resolutions reappointing Mary Ann Lee and Thomas E. Brown to the Historic District Commission were also approved.
