Decatur County lists surplus property bids, schedules budget and solid waste meetings

Decatur County is turning old county property into potential cash while also lining up the meetings that will shape trash service and next year’s spending. The county scheduled sealed bids for a 2004 Chevrolet 1500 assigned to Solid Waste, 44 light fixtures removed from the Fairgrounds Building, a Grasshopper lawnmower and a Lexmark lawnmower, with the opening set for April 13 at 10 a.m. in the Decatur County Mayor’s office.

The truck listed for surplus carried VIN 1GCEC14Z54Z232025, and the mix of items showed more than one county department clearing out equipment and materials that no longer fit current use. For a small county government, that kind of sale can do two things at once: recover a little money for public accounts and free up space that would otherwise stay tied up by aging property. The notice also underscored how closely Solid Waste operations and county facilities are linked in Decatur County’s day-to-day budget picture.

Solid Waste remained on the county calendar in its own right. The Decatur County Solid Waste Board was set to meet April 16 at 5 p.m. at the Decatur County Courthouse, keeping oversight on the agenda as the county handled equipment, contracts and operational needs connected to trash collection and disposal. Earlier, the county’s Feb. 23 budget committee agenda had already pointed to larger pressures ahead, including emergency 60-day debris removal and debris monitoring contracts for ice-storm debris, a solid waste contract, the Ag-Plex Fairground Project and a broadband-ready communities grant.

The county then turned to the next budget cycle. The Decatur County Budget Committee scheduled a meeting for April 20 at 5 p.m. at the county clerk’s office, 22 West Main Street in Decaturville, to discuss the FY27 Decatur County Budget. The county’s notice included public-comment rules that allow each speaker three minutes, with public comment capped at 15 minutes total, giving residents a formal chance to speak on spending priorities before decisions harden.

The notice also laid out disability accommodations and said the county does not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, disability or handicap, or national origin. Mayor Mike Creasy is listed on the county website, and the mayor’s office phone number is 731-852-2131. Decatur County Clerk Melinda Broadway is listed at PO Box 488, Decaturville, TN 38329, with phone number 731-852-3417. In a county of 11,435 people, according to the 2020 census, these are the meetings where public money, public property and public services stay close to the ground.