Smyrna Mayor Mary Esther Reed with Marines stationed at the Smyrna Volunteer Training Center and a sailor from the Navy Operational Support Center Nashville. The servicemen were presented with a letter of appreciation for their work with the Honor Guard and other activities for the dedication of the Capt. Jeff Kuss Memorial. 

The most sensitive item on the agenda for the Sept. 11 Smyrna Town Council meeting was a consideration on the first reading of an ordinance that would increase, for the first time in more than 20 years, the monthly salary of the mayor, vice-mayor, and Town Council members.

After a lengthy discussion, the ordinance was approved on first reading. The process will involve a public comment session and a second reading and vote.

The mayor, vice mayor and council positions will not receive a raise until after the Nov. 6 election. The positions have not seen a raise since Smyrna’s charter changed from commissioners to councilmen on March 14, 2000, and for an unknown period before that.

The salary for the mayor for the past 20-plus years is $7,200 per year. The salary for each council member over the same time remains at $4,800 per year. The proposal, in line with a pay comparability study of other Tennessee towns, would raise the mayor’s salary to $21,600 per year, and raise the council members’ pay to $12,00 per year per member.

The Smyrna Town Council meeting started with a presentation by Public Works Director Tom Rose concerning the “I-24 Smart Corridor Project” that local communities along Interstate 24 are working on with TDOT, with a goal of making travel more predictable on the ever-busier segment of interstate through Murfreesboro, Smyrna, La Vergne and into Nashville. The primary goal will include installing sensors that will be able to measure traffic volume and make suggestions where motorists can use connector roads to U.S. 41. In Smyrna, that would include the I-24 Exit 70, Almaville Road/Lee Victory Parkway link to U.S. 41, and the Exit 66, Sam Ridley Parkway link to U.S. 41.

Marines from Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 23rd Regiment, stationed at the Smyrna Volunteer Training Center and a sailor from the Navy Operational Support Center Nashville were presented with a letter of appreciation for their work with the Honor Guard and other activities for the dedication of the Capt. Jeff Kuss USMC Memorial.

The council approved on first reading an ordinance allowing the Smyrna Town Court Clerk to hire a collections agency to more efficiently collect delinquent court costs, fines, and fees.

The council also discussed property owned by AMC Theaters on Plaza Drive, near the Smyrna Event Center that could be used to expand the Smyrna Event Center and Smyrna Outdoor Adventure Center complex.