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City Departments
Mayor
and Board of Commissioners
Sweetwater is a home-rule municipality governed by a Mayor
and Board of Commissioners. The Mayor and five Commissioners
are elected in Citywide election every two years for four-year
staggered terms. Three Commissioners are elected in one election
cycle and the Mayor and two Commissioners in the other cycle.
Each Commissioner is designated to be in charge of a City
Department during an organizational meeting following each
biennial election. The Commissioners also designate one of
their number to serve as Vice-Mayor. The Board is presently
organized as follows:
City Recorder
The City Recorder is hired by and responsible to the Mayor
and Board of Commissioners. Her office also includes the City
Clerk and an Accounting Clerk.
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Major responsibilities
of the Recorder's Office include:
- Chief financial officer of the City
- Human resources administrator
- Collect all City taxes and fees
- Clerk of the City
- Recorder of Commission meetings and actions
- Repository of all official City records
- Grant application
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Mayor | Contact the Mayor
The Mayor is elected to
a four year term, with the present Mayor having taken office
in 2009. The Mayor is responsible for the daily operations
of the City, preparation of the five-year Capital Improvement
Program, and preparation of the annual City budget. He also
serves on several boards and commissions as an obligation of
his office. Weekly department head meetings allow all departments
to cooperate and work together and often generate initiatives
on needed City services and policies.
Fire & Rescue
Department
Sweetwater
Fire/Rescue is a combination department with thirteen full-time
and fourteen volunteer firefighters. One fire hall is located
in the downtown area of Sweetwater and a second is located
in the northeastern quadrant of the City. The second fire
hall also houses a 24-hour per day EMS ambulance service crew
and a permanent on-site crew for UT/Lifestar helicopter transport.
All full-time firefighters are certified as First Responders.
Public education programs and service programs for children
and the elderly are important work of the firefighters. Their
hard work and commitment is evident in the City's Class 5
ISO rating.
Planning
& Development
This personnel also serves as support staff to the Historic
Zoning Commission, Planning Commission, Board of Zoning Appeals,
and the Tree Board. Much of the City's grant activity is coordinated
through the office. They also administer the safety program
of the City. The tourism department, led by Commissioner Sam Moser, has redesigned the city brochures, which are
placed at the Welcome Centers throughout the State and at
Sweetwater's Depot and Visitors Center located in the downtown historic district.
The City of Sweetwater is currently under the 2012 International Codes for commercial and residential construction (building, plumbing, mechanical, energy efficiency, existing buildings), the 2010 Federal ADA, and 2011 Electrical Codes.
For questions about building
permits, Planning and Development, or other planning and development
issues, please Email
the Planning and Development department or
call (423) 337-9678.
Street Department
Richard Jenkins
Street Superintendent |
Billy G. West
Streets Commissioner |
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For problems with animals running at large in the City Limits,
or for information on free pet adoptions,
please contact City
Hall at (423) 337-6979.
The
employees of the Street Department maintain and service all
public streets and alleys in the City. They are also involved
with the planning and constructing of new streets and paving
projects. Brush and demolition collection and disposal, streetscape
maintenance and improvement, a household oil reclamation project,
and animal control enforcement are other areas where the Streets
Department works hard every day to improve our City.
For information on brush and demolition materials pick-up,
please contact the City Garage at (423) 337-7225.
Parks
& Recreation
Our Parks and Recreation Department has recently achieved Tier 1 Benchmarking. This department also keeps busy by maintaining all city buildings.
We anticipate that the next several years will bring major
renovations and additions to our parks and recreation facilities. The department is proud to announce the re-opening of Engleman Park, after the recent renovation, provided in part through a state LPRF grant, which added a new pavilion, parking, ADA accessible facilities, and a playground, designed with children ages 2- 5 in mind.
This department is responsible
for the parks and recreation facilities of the City, including:
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Police
Department
The Sweetwater Police Department is a major force in the effort to make Sweetwater a wonderful place to raise a family.
Contact
Information | Email the
Sweetwater Police Department
The Sweetwater Police Department, headed by Police Chief
Eddie Byrum is a proactive force in the Sweetwater Community. A captain, 3 Detective, and 16 full-time officers, 11 auxiliary and part-time officers, and a TIBRS certified clerk work diligently to keep Sweetwater safe each day.
All full-time
officers are post-certified, radar certified, CPR certified,
and required to attend 40 hours of in-service training annually,
with special instruction in their chosen fields.
Patrol Captain Gary Newman facilitates training programs,
is a child seat technician, and along with the 3 patrol sergeants,
helps direct the 12-hour patrol shifts. The department includes
D.U.I. Instructor, Brandon Cansler; a domestic violence instructor, Sergeant John Brewster;
5 CPR instructors; 2 PR-24 instructors; a 5-man seasonal bike
patrol unit; and an ESU team for tactical and high-risk operations.
Sergeant Detective John Scruggs and Detective Kevin Watson head investigations; Kris King serves as firearms instructor, and several officers are certified for methamphetamine investigation. The department is an active participant in the Meth Task Force. Detective Marty Kyle serves as the Narcotics Officer, and is available for educational presentations for civic and school groups. SPD trains and supervises the School Resource Officer team to provide school security officers in the Sweetwater City School system K-8th grades.
Numerous educational programs include bike safety, the Eddie
Eagle gun safety program, several drug awareness programs,
and the Stranger Danger program. The detectives head up the
Fingerprint America program, which provides child identification
kits for local school children.
Sweetwater
citizens make up several programs supervised by the SPD. There
are currently 9 participating Neighborhood Watch programs.
SPD has a Citizen's Police Academy, which is a 10-week training
program to give citizens an inside look at the SPD. Graduates may become members of
the Citizen's Police Academy Alumni Association, which is
headed by an elected President, and SPD liaison. The Citizen's Police Academy Alumni Association assists
the SPD with citywide functions, such as parades, festivals,
and car shows. They also assist in the organization of the
nationally award-winning "National Night Out" program, headed by SPD Sergeant Daniel Johnson.
City
Court
The
City Court is established by ordinance to hear and resolve all
citations for violations of City ordinances. The Court does
not exercise General Sessions or Juvenile jurisdiction. The
Judge is elected by the Mayor and Board of Commissioners and
serves at their discretion. Regular Court sessions meet on the
third Wednesday of each month at noon at the City Hall.
City
Attorney
The City Attorney is chosen
by the Mayor and Board of Commissioners and serves at their
pleasure. The City Attorney attends all regularly scheduled
Board of Commissioners meetings, advises department heads and
the Mayor on legal issues of the City, attends City Court as
needed, and represents the City in courts of general jurisdiction
if required.
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