Officer receives life-saving award during council meeting
A Tahlequah police officer, during a Monday, June 3 meeting, received an award for his actions during a domestic violence incident that involved a man who was threatening self-harm.
Officer David Trammell received the award for his actions during an April 15 domestic violence incident. The suspect fled the scene before officers arrived and Trammell eventually located the man, who was threatening self-harm as he held a broken bottle to his neck.
"Officer Trammell distinguished himself that night by imploring exceptional tactics, exercising sound judgement beyond the normal demands of duty to preserve the life of another, someone who was in volatile situation" said Police Chief Nate King. "Officer Trammell deployed his Taser to stop the self-harm. [It's] not very often we get commended for using our Taser for a life-saving award."
In other business, the board approved the proposed 2024-2025 city budget and most employees will see a pay increase.
Mayor Suzanne Myers had read from her budget letter that was addressed to city councilors and city residents during a May 20 meeting. Myers said the proposed budget represents collaborative efforts made by the city's department heads, the finance director, the departmental administrative staff, the city administrator, the city treasurer, and the mayor.
"In an effort to acknowledge their tireless efforts and willingness to go above and beyond, and be on the scope of their workload, we are pleased to include a three percent across-the-board raise for all full-time employees and some administrative change to certain employees' pay," Myers said.
During Monday's meeting, City Administrator Taylor Tannehill told the board that small adjustments needed to be made for the finalized budget.
"We've prepared a balanced budget for the council to approve. If there were a motion tonight, I would recommend the modifications of increasing - we had a couple of errors; salary of the code enforcement officer by $500 and that change, not increasing the revenue side [so] the offset would come out of the stormwater fund and the remainder out of the reserve for the professional services," Tannehill said.
Treasurer Marty Hainzinger said he's reviewed the budget several times and the minor adjustments are not "material."
The board gave its nod to authorize the mayor to negotiate with Help In Crisis for the purpose of using American Rescue Plan Act funds for transitional housing.
Councilors voted to adopt the Citizen Participation Plan as part of the city's application for the Community Development Block Grant 2024 Small Cities Program. They also approved a resolution that will facilitate and administer the Small Cities Community Development Block Grant 2024, if awarded.
What's next
The next Tahlequah City Council meeting is tentatively slated for Monday, June 17 at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.
