The Baileyton Board of Mayor and Aldermen discussed purchasing a new operating, ticketing and reporting system for the Baileyton Police Department during its meeting Tuesday night.
The board currently uses a system known as Justice One, which is a system that Baileyton Mayor Jamie Tilson said Tuesday that the state government no longer supports. He noted the system is not longer “backed” by the state, and state law enforcement officials do not want law enforcement agencies using the software.
He noted that Baileyton Police Chief Bruce Halliburton recommended that the town purchase the Watson reporting software from the company DataDriven.
The system would allow the town to exchange information with the Greene County Sheriff’s Office and Town of Greeneville Police Department easily. Tilson noted that Baileyton Police Department would no longer be “siloed” as far as the information it had access to.
The department also currently has to make duplicate reports, one in Justice One and one in TITAN (Tennessee’s Integrated Traffic Analysis Network) through the Tennessee Highway Patrol. Watson records reports that automatically enter the integrated network.
Currently, the town pays around $600 per month for its reporting software, which would increase by about $400 according to Tilson once the Watson system is purchased. He noted that the town would also purchase four new phones and small printers for the police department at a cost of about $400 each. He noted that purchases would be funded through the department’s drug fund. The town may also explore grant funding for the purchase. He state that he was not sure when the purchase would be made.
He noted that he felt the new reporting system would be “beneficial” for the town.
SEWER PLANT ISSUES
The town’s sewer plant is having issues with high levels of oils, fats, and grease, also known as total dissolved solids (TDS).
William Dunbar, the plant operator, spoke to the board Tuesday and said that the plant was also having issues with groundwater, but that the replacement of parts of the system was helping the groundwater infiltration issue.
However, he noted the oils, fats, and grease in the plant, is adhering to surfaces, causing clogs, and can kill the good bacteria in the plant if the situation worsened.
Dunbar said that the state currently only monitors total dissolved solids in plants, but that beginning July 1, 2027 plants must begin reporting the amount of dissolved solids in their plant to the state. Levels that are too high could result in a find of up to $10,000 for each occurrence.
He stated that currently the plant would be considered out of compliance. Total dissolved solid levels are not supposed to exceed 500 mL, but currently the plant is at at 756 mL. He noted that the plant averages about six weeks in compliance out of a seven month period.
“This is something that needs to be taken care of pretty quick,” Dunbar said.
He noted that any establishment in Baileyton selling food should be required to have a grease trap, pumping records for the grease trap and photo documentation of the pumping.
Dunbar said that would be the main driver in helping the plant manage dissolved solids.
Tilson noted that the town recently had to clean out a 100 yard section of sewer line at a cost of over $7,000 due to wet wipe, paper, plastic, and glove being flushed at the Pilot gas station. He noted that the town was communicating with Pilot in an effort to have the business install a trash trap in their system that would catch debris before it entered the town’s sewer system.
At the conclusion of the meeting, the board met in closed session.
