By Hamilton Richardson
Elmore/Autauga News
Top Photo: Council President Lora Lee Boone hears comments by Prattville Mayor Bill Gillespie during Tuesday’s council meeting.
The authorization to issue millions of dollars in General Obligation Warrants for the City of Prattville’s parks was a major topic of deliberation Tuesday night at the regularly-scheduled Prattville City Council meeting.
Two items appeared on the Consent Agenda for the meeting including a resolution to authorize signatures of city officials with River Bank and Trust, Trustmark National Bank, First Community Bank of Central Alabama and Hancock Whitney Bank, and a resolution to declare various weeded lots to be public nuisance, order their abatement and to set a public hearing.
After the Consent Agenda was approved, the group moved into its agenda items, the first of which was to authorize the mayor to have the weeded lots abated.
The next two items were ordinances authorizing the issuance of money for the city’s parks.
The first addressed the issuance of $9,885,000 in General Obligation Warrants, Series 2022-A, for the Parks and Recreation Department Tier I Park Project. The second was the issuance of $3,235,000 in General Obligation Warrants, Series 2022-B, for the Parks and Recreation Department Tier I Park Project.
Councilman Albert Striplin, when the vote was held to approve the two items, commented to Council President Lora Lee Boone that residents in his district had informed him that they did not support the measures and so he would be opposing them.
When the body voted on the park ordinances, Striplin voted no but the measures were approved by the rest of the members.
The next agenda item was a resolution to authorize the mayor to enter into an agreement with Sain Associates to acquire rights-of-way for improvements on Fairview Avenue from North Memorial Drive to Jasmine Trail for ALDOT Project No. STPMN-0015 in an amount not to exceed $59,920.
Another resolution involving Sain Associates was next with a measure authorizing the mayor to enter into an agreement with them for ALDOT Project No. STPMN-A203 (939) for preliminary engineering for widening and resurfacing of CR-75 (McQueen Smith Road) from SR-3 (U.S. 31, South Memorial Drive) to CR-2 (Cobbs Ford Road) in an amount not to exceed $269,715 (Net cost to city not to exceed $53,943).
The next four resolutions authorized the release of funds for the purchase of the following—
–2022 ¾ Ton Dodge Ram Crew Cab Truck for the Urban Management Division of the Public Works Department (cost not to exceed $27,356.80)
–2022 ¾ Ton Dodge Ram Crew Cab Truck for the Wastewater Division of the Public Works Department (cost not to exceed $27,356.80)
–30KW Generator and a 200-amp Transfer Switch from Electric Generators Direct for the Wastewater Division of the Public Works Department (cost not to exceed $13,466)
–Manure spreader for the Wastewater Division of the Public Works Department (cost not to exceed $23,558)
A measure that ended up being a talking point for residents toward the end of the meeting was a resolution which allowed the city to take ownership by way of Quitclaim Deed from the Autauga County Board of Education of North Highland Park.
The next item also involved North Highland Park as well as Spinner Park and Lo Pickett Park as the council approved $1 million of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds for improvements to the three parks.
Another $1.5 million was also approved from ARPA for local street paving projects throughout the city.
Resolution 13 amended the FY2022 Budget and authorized the mayor to enter into an agreement once again with Sain Associates for preliminary engineering design work for the expansion of Sid Thompson Drive in conjunction with Project Mayfield (cost not to exceed $150,551.97).
The last two measures on the night’s agenda included the amending of the FY2022 Budget to recognize debt proceeds and related issuance costs for the Series 2022-A and 2022-B General Obligation Warrants and to set a public hearing to rezone property located inside city limits along South Memorial Drive (Highway 31) from B-1 (Neighborhood Commercial) to B-2 (General Business).
Once the agenda items, which were all approved by the council, had been covered, residents from the community took time to discuss concerns about the North Highland Park project with the group before the meeting was adjourned.
