Mayor's weekly blog
Weekly Letter - Monday, April 21, 2008 - Tuesday, April 29,
2008
I send greetings to you from the Mayor's office.
I hope you and your family have had a good weekend. I know you
had things to go to in Athens this weekend, and if you didn't
see the car show on the Square or the barbecue cook-off at the
Rodeo grounds, you missed it all. I have talked with so many
folks who were pleased with the events in town this weekend, and
they are expecting more good leisure time activities to be
provided for them and their families in the future. I appreciate
the host of people who dedicated their time and effort to see
that our weekend events were successful. I cannot begin to name
everyone, but when you see anybody that you know assisted with
them, please thank them for all of us.
Monday morning was busy at the office getting ready for several
meetings this week related to annexation of property in the
county. This continues to be a hot subject for our community and
we are doing what we can to protect what we have.
The City Council and the County Commission met today for a
quarterly meeting and discussed several items. Annexation, the
rock quarry proposal for the Tanner area, and the city and
county governments working together for a new library were among
the items discussed. This combined meeting will be held once
each quarter to give all the elected officials a chance to know
what is happening in all parts of our community.
Monday afternoon Tom Hill, Ron Marks, and I met with a landowner
to discuss the possibility of annexation of properties into the
City of Athens. This was a good meeting and our discussions were
centered were about the need of the owners, and the needs of our
city. I found during this visit that some members of this family
were people I had known as a child in elementary school.
We made another visit to talk with landowners about the same
subject. This was an extremely nice family that I had never met.
I have known for many years their excellent reputation, and I
certainly enjoyed the visit we had with them.
Monday evening Kay and I went to see Asa, our grandson, play
baseball at the Sportsplex. He and his team played hard, but
lost the game. Asa always gets a little upset when his team
loses. These boys have just turned nine or ten, and they are
starting to develop some baseball skills. They will get better
very soon, and by age thirteen will be showing some great skills
with the baseball. There was a huge crowd attending the games,
and the concession stand was doing a land rush business with
hamburgers, hot dogs, and popcorn.
I saw Jack and Linda Baugh at the ball park. She had a complete
hip replacement eight weeks ago and is doing very well
recovering from the surgery. She said she feels so much better
since most of the pain she has suffered is gone. Since I had a
hip replacement myself, it always makes me happy to see other
folks make the decision to have it and get rid of the terrible
pain. Jack and Linda are good folks that our families have known
for many years. I hope she continues to do well.
Tuesday morning was spent in the office catching up on
correspondence that comes to the Mayor’s office. It does take a
lot of time to find out the problems citizens have, and then
follow up with the correct Department to see if the problems can
be solved to their satisfaction and in a timely manner.
Tuesday at lunch Kay and I ate at LuVici's Restaurant. We always
like to eat at this place. Jerry Sandlin makes us and everyone
else feel welcomed in his place. I always like to browse inside
U.G. White after I eat there. Someone recently asked me if I had
ever been to Harrison’s Hardware on the courthouse square in
Huntsville. Harrison ʼs is a neat store and somewhat of a
museum. I asked that person if he had ever been to U.G. White in
Athens. Huntsville doesn’t have anything over Athens.
The remainder of the day I stayed in the office and talked with
several Department Heads and citizens about various items of
business.
Wednesday morning I attended the Limestone Health Facility’s
Volunteer Breakfast. This was a nice meeting that is a thank you
for the volunteers who have helped in any way with the elderly
citizens who live here. Mary Nell Clem coordinated this
breakfast, and it was very successful. David Hunt, owner, and
his staff welcomed the crowd and thanked everyone for all they
do for the residents of the facility.
Later in the morning, Ron Marks and I visited a land owner to
discuss recent annexations of their property. We learned a great
deal from this owner, and it made us understand more fully that
every person has reasons for whatever decision they make. I had
assumed that most people have decided for or against annexation
for about the same reason, but that is truly not the case.
This afternoon Kay and I carried flowers to place on her Mom and
Dad's gravesites in Pulaski. They are buried in the Memorial
Garden Cemetery as you enter in to Pulaski on the south side of
town. After placing the flowers on the graves, we rode around
Pulaski for a short while to see what is going on in this lovely
city. We enjoy visiting there because Kay's Mama grew up there,
and there are a lot of kinfolks still in the city. Kay attended
grade school there for a couple of years before moving to Athens
when her Dad began work for the Army on Redstone. She has a
first cousin who operates a pawn shop on the courthouse square
in town.
Late this afternoon Kay and I stopped at Chick-fil-a for a
sandwich. The place was covered up with parents and kids who
were on their way to Church. I saw several kids reading their
Bible lessons while having supper. We saw Joan Orman, her Mom,
and her grandchildren having supper. Joan’s granddaughter
Kaitlan is a dear friend of our granddaughter, Alex. That makes
her a dear friend of our family, and we always enjoy having her
in our home.
I went to choir practice tonight. We had a great practice
tonight getting ready for our Heaven Concert at Church on Sunday
night. We have great music ready for the concert.
Thursday morning I visited with Hugh Ball and Jeannette
Dunnavant at the Chamber to talk about business related to
tourism.
Thursday at lunch I attended the Annual Chamber of Commerce
Lunch. A large crowd attended and saw several local people
receive awards. Jimmy Swanner, a local builder and developer,
was selected as Limestone County Citizen of the Year. Mark
White, owner of Taco Blanco Restaurant, was selected as the
Business Person of the Year. Stanley McNatt, Sheriff's
Investigator, was selected as Public Servant of the Year. Jim
Patterson, Board Member of the Limestone Veteran's Museum, was
selected for the Tourism Award.
Dr. Denver Betts from Athens State University became the new
Chairman for our Chamber for the next year. Dana Lee Jennings,
Director of the Alabama Mountain Lakes was the main speaker for
the meeting. She delivered a great address about the impact of
tourism in our state and local community.
Thursday evening I went to Anderson to the Fish Creel Restaurant
for the Elk River Development Board meeting. The business we
attended to tonight was the regular business of the Rural
Village, and there was nothing controversial about the meeting
tonight.
The Board did vote to recommend approval from TVA for a marina
near the mouth of Elk River and the Tennessee.
The Athens High ROTC Program had its awards night this evening,
and Harold Wales stood in for me as a presenter of awards. I
appreciate him filling in for me. This ROTC program is
excellent, and I wish them the best of luck for the future.
Friday morning I went to Marie's Restaurant at Jones Cross Roads
and talked with some of the local farmers about the annexations
going on in south Limestone County.
I had meetings this morning with Tom Hill, Ron Marks and Harold
Wales related to several items of our city's business.
Harold told me he had talked today with Aaron Johnson, our
former Pastor at First Baptist. Aaron is now at a Baptist Church
in Kennesaw, Georgia, north of Atlanta. We have been keeping up
with Aaron's health condition from Church in recent days. Aaron
had a tough battle with cancer several years ago, and this
current problem does not involve cancer. It will, however,
require the removal of the colon. Aaron will be down for a
while, and will be very weak, but he has a strong Savior walking
beside him to give him all the strength he will need. I want to
ask all our citizens to pray for Aaron and his fine family
during this time. Aaron, Denise, and his children have meant so
much to all of us in Athens. We do miss them while they are
working in Georgia.
I met this morning with Councilwoman Milly Caudle, James Rich,
our City Engineer, and a homeowner to discuss a drainage problem
in the Sanders Street neighborhood. We walked around several
blocks looking at the problems, and James suggested solutions to
relieve the drainage problem that has existed in this
neighborhood for many years.
I had lunch at Mac's today with Evan Thornton. We saw Jamie and
Gloria Cooper as we were leaving. I had a Mac’s hamburger, and
it was a great burger. I recommend it to anyone who likes
burgers.
This afternoon I met with two people to discuss annexations that
are occurring in the South Limestone area.
The Relay for Life was held in the Sportsplex tonight and I
think it was one of the largest crowds ever. I understand that
more money was collected this year than any other, and it
exceeded all expectations. The amount collected was over
$105,000. The City Team raised around $2500 from our little
group. This City Team did a lot of work for the fundraising, and
I’m proud of them. Several survivors of the battle with cancer
told their story to those gathered tonight. Jimmy Gill, District
3 Councilman was one of these people who have fought it very
hard. This has become one of the largest events for our
community over the past few years.
Kay, Dinah, and I went to dinner tonight with the Whitts to the
Wagon Wheel Restaurant between Decatur and Moulton. This is
about two miles from the newest Whitt's Barbecue Store. This was
my first time to eat here. It is a bit like Oh Bryans. We
carried the Whitt's granddaughter Stella with us, and she
behaved very well. She is now one year old and is developing her
own personality. I think she is being spoiled very well by her
Whitt grandparents and aunts.
We came back to the Whitt's house for a visit, and Mark and I
watched a John Wayne movie, "The Horse Soldiers".
Saturday morning I went to the Square and observed the cars
being placed for the big show that is taking place today. There
was a little rain falling, and we were all wondering if it was
going to cause a lot of folks to stay home today.
Kay and I had breakfast at home before going to the Square to
see what was happening with the car show. This was the
biggest car show I have ever attended. I was surprised at
how many local folks had cars in the show. I think everyone who
attended could have recommended one of the cars as their
favorite. I was asked to select a car as the Mayor’s Choice.
That was certainly a chore, but my selection was a white
Thunderbird. The Thunderbird was introduced by Ford during my
teenage years, and it sort of represents, in my mind, my
growing-up years.
One event I did not get to attend this weekend was at the Middle
School auditorium. It was a reunion for members of a black
church, and a huge crowd attended. I think this is the same
group who have been here before, and it involves a lot of music
during the weekend.
I later went to the Sheriff's Rodeo Grounds to attend the
barbecue cook-off, and to also act as a judge for the contest.
We judged the Shade Tree Cooks, and it was interesting to be a
judge. We did get some good chicken and ribs to eat, but these
people are serious about the competition, and we had to do our
best to judge each entry upon its own merits, rather than
compare it to the other entries.
Kay and I made two freezers of ice cream tonight to have
tomorrow for our dear son Daniel's birthday. The actual birthday
was the 23rd, but we had to wait until the weekend to celebrate.
Sunday morning Kay and I went to Sunday school and Church. We
had a good class from our teacher, Larry Hicks, and Brother
Jenkins had a good sermon for us all. Our choir did well and we
will be back tonight for a concert. The music will be about
heaven.
Robert Lambert gave a good short talk at our Church this morning
about the Gideon Bible program. He has been a Gideon for
twenty-five years, and is president of the East Limestone Gideon
Association.
All of our kids came for lunch around 2:00 today. We had
decorated some of the house in Auburn colors for Daniel's 34th
birthday lunch. I grilled great steak and hot dogs. Whitney
brought baked potatoes; Kara brought salads, Dinah made deviled
eggs which is one of Daniel's favorite foods, and Kelly,
Charles' friend made cupcakes with dreamsickel icing. All of it
was delicious and we enjoyed our food and fellowship.
I had to be at Church this afternoon at 4:45 to get ready for
the concert. We had a full house that included visitors from
many Churches in town. Our choir did a series of songs about
Heaven, and the youth ensemble also sang a great gospel quartet
song, "The First Day in Heaven". This program is one of the best
I think we have ever done. I had so many folks tell me how much
they liked the music. Anyone who paid me a compliment, I asked
to come and join our choir so they could sing with the best
choir in town.
I saw Don and Helen Killen at the concert. They had come to the
concert because their son, Thomas, sings with the choir. Helen
and I claim to be cousins. My uncle married her Mom, and they
became our family. She has a great family, and there are several
grandchildren and I think a few great-grandchildren.
I want to ask everyone to pray for our friend, Carolyn Stair who
will be having breast surgery Tuesday morning at 6:30 a.m. at
Athens Limestone Hospital. Carolyn and Tom are members of our
Sunday school class, and we are concerned about her at this
time.
The City Council met on Monday night for a regular meeting. The
work session began at 4:00, and Carolyn Crow from the Spirit of
Athens Committee addressed the Council about problems the
businesses have had due to utility work in the alley on the
north side of the Square. The Council also discussed the subject
of impact fees on the development of lots within the city.
The following items of business received action by the Council
during the regular session:
Public Hearing 1. Rezoning for Swanner's at Tanner-Highway 31
South- This is property located across from Country Club
Sub-division that will be family residences in the future. Jimmy
Swanner spoke in favor of the rezoning and no one spoke against
the request. The Council approved the Ordinance to approve the
rezoning of the property
Public Hearing 2. Rezoning at Hine Street and Brownsferry Street
. This hearing was held because the owner of the property
appealed to the Council the decision of the Planning Commission
to deny the rezoning request.
The owner of Royal Funeral Home in Huntsville, who also owns
Mason Funeral Home in Athens, spoke in support of the rezoning.
Royal Funeral Home wishes to build a new funeral home on this
property. Mike Bailey of Athens also spoke in favor of the
rezoning. Josephine Woodson spoke against the rezoning of the
property and asked the Council to keep the area all residential.
There were several interested people attending to represent both
sides of the issue. The President of the Council asked for a
motion on the issue and none were made. The request for rezoning
failed for the lack of a motion.
Public Hearing 3. Revisions to zoning ordinance regarding bill
board signs. The request for this revision was made because of a
hardship of a landowner who had billboards removed from the
property due to the State of Alabama ʼs condemnation of his
property. Steve Carter spoke for the landowner in favor of the
request as did a billboard business representative.
The Council approved the request to revise the Zoning Ordinance
REGULAR CALENDAR
A. Approved a Resolution to set a Public Hearing on May 27, 2008
at the regular Council meeting for the rezoning request of
Athens Hotel Partners, LLC for property located south of Highway
72, south end of Kelli Drive.
B. Approved a Resolution to declare surplus items for public
auction. This auction will be held at the Sportsplex on Friday,
May 2nd, 2008. This is equipment that the city does not need or
has replaced with new equipment.
C. Approved a Resolution to re-organize the Police Department to
add two Police officers.
D. Approved a Resolution to adopt revised organizational chart
for the Public Works Department.
E. Approved an Ordinance to add the four new job titles to
create a concrete crew for our list of classified positions.
F. Approved a Resolution to adopt job descriptions for a new
concrete crew for the Public Works Department.
G. Approved a Resolution to change the May 26, 2008 city council
due to the Memorial Day holiday.
H. Approved a Resolution to appoint Gary Hill, a resident of
Council District 1, to the City of Athens School Board.
I. Approved a Resolution to appoint Pat Waldrop, a resident of
Council District 2, to the City of Athens School Board.
J. Tabled a Resolution to waive the water tap fees for Limestone
County Rails to Trails for a park in Piney Chapel. (Tabled from
4-14-08)
K. Approved an Ordinance concerning penalties for offenses
involving graffiti. (Tabled from 4-14-08) This will allow the
City Court to impose a minimum fine of $500 and ten hours of
community service on any person convicted painting graffiti on
any property in the city.
L. Approved a Resolution to approve a pole attachment agreement
with Comcast of Alabama, Inc.
M. Approved an Ordinance granting a franchise to Comcast of
Alabama, Inc.
N. Approved a Resolution to approve an SRF Loan application for
the new Wastewater Plant.
O. Approved a Resolution to approve travel expenses of $3,047.16
for the Water/Wastewater
Department.
P. Approved a Resolution to approve the Alabama Department of
Environmental Management (ADEM) report for calendar year 2007.
Q. Approved a Resolution to approve an asbestos survey at
Trinity School in the amount of $2,000. This will be taken from
District 3 project funds.
R. Approved a Resolution to authorize the Mayor to enter into a
contract with Stephen Ward and Associates for the re-roofing at
the Recreation Center.
S. Approved an Ordinance to set qualification fees of ten
dollars for candidates seeking the office of Mayor and
Councilmembers.
T. Approved a Resolution concerning athletic tournaments at the
Recreational Facilities.
U. Approved a Resolution to approve an appropriation of $74,000
and $132,000 from the Water and Wastewater Department Capital
Infrastructure Fund for upgraded water and sewer line
construction within the Village at Piney Creek Subdivision.
V. Approved a Resolution to auction the property vacated by the
move of Fire Station 2 to the new facility on Lindsey Lane.
The Council members had a lively discussion with a citizen
related to his desire to see the Council impose an impact fee on
every lot developed in Athens. The impact fee would be used by
the city to meet the growing revenue needs the city will have in
the near future. This is a sensitive issue that has been
discussed before, and has also made its way into the local
newspaper's Letter to the Editor section. The Council members
feel the writer of the letters has embarked upon a personal
crusade against particular Council members. The writer feels he
is asserting his rights as a citizen to speak his mind at public
meetings and in the local paper.
I have been reading a book written by C.S. Lewis entitled, "Mere
Christianity". I would recommend this book to anyone. Mr. Lewis
is a deep thinker and writer, but this book is one of the best I
have ever read due to his ability to approach the deepest of
subjects in a manner I can understand. He is the author of the
books, Narnia, that were written for children many years ago.
Tuesday morning I had an appointment with Dr. Sandlin to have my
eyes checked. He did a thorough examination due to my having a
diabetic condition. He found no problems with my eyes, but I had
a few problems for a while due to the dilation for the
examination. I had to call Ron Marks to sit in for me at WKAC
for the regular radio program. I could not see to drive for a
while. I went home for lunch and rested for a while.
I met with three or four people this afternoon to discuss
problems and items of business for the city. I also met with our
Economic Development Director about a prospective industry. I
met late this afternoon with our Public Works Director to
discuss the work in his department.
I guess this is enough for this time. Be sure to attend the
National Day of Prayer Thursday at noon on the east side of our
Courthouse. Take care and I'll see you next time.
Mayor Dan
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