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Mayor Dale Berry called the meeting to order. Pledge of Allegiance. was followed with prayer by Belinda Berry, Minister to Children and Education at First Baptist Church Magee.
The Mayor reported that the Grand Slam Snowball Tournament held at the Sportsplex the weekend of February 17-18 was attended by more than fifty teams. “These tournaments bring money to our city,” stated Berry.
The flag located on the medium in front of Zips will be lighted.
A request to donate 3 acres of land to the city located near McNair Spring was discussed. Attorney Bruce Smith will draw up necessary paper work.
Mayor Berry announced that Magee is getting another red light and additional frontage road. The specifics of the addition are not available at this time.
A continuing water problem at 2nd Avenue SE seems to be related to a structure located near the street. The city will contact owner who lives out of town for permission to do drainage work.
The Mayor reminded the public that the City league has first claim on all fields at the Sportplex.
Minutes and claims docket were approved.
LauraLyn Barr, president elect of the Magee Chamber of Commerce, came before the board asking for the budgeted money for the Chamber of Commerce. The city budgets $10,000 per year for the Chamber. The motion passed.
LauraLyn also requested an additional $5,000 to $10,000 for the Chamber. Mayor Berry stated that no additional money is available at this time but would be considered for the 2019 budget.
The 155th Armored Brigade Combat Team, consisting of 120 soldiers, will participate in a Parade down Main Street on March 15th. Following the parade, the soldiers and their families
will gather to hear a speaker and eat lunch. The lunch will be provided for soldiers and family by Farm Bureau. Time of parade and place to gather was not available at this time.
The situation of overnight and all day parking at the Highway 49 Shopping Center (located in front of Auto Zone) was discussed . The Mayor reported that the parking lot is privately owned property. Vehicles can not be left in that area over night. Police Chief Randy Crawford was instructed to contact anyone who is parking vehicles in the area to remove them immediately. Plans are in the works for a restaurant to locate in the parking lot and 18 wheelers and cars for sale could deter the project moving forward.
The Board voted to officially close the city of Magee’s swimming pool.
(See article)
The mayor and board continued a discussion concerning the closing of the TVC (prison ). The mayor stated that from all indications, we are losing the prison. “We have operated a prison in that area for 35 years and we have been good land lords,” explained Berry. The building has 102 beds and serves 9 areas. (See article). The cost to replace this workforce will be $300,000 to 350,000. The prison will close in May.
Illegal use of water and electricity at the airport was discussed. No campers will be allowed on airport property. Only people who rent hangers at the airport are allowed use of water and electricity.
Fire Chief Charlie Valadie reported on work being done by the fire department to be sure all fire hydrants are in working order as well as any new structure has adequate water coverage in case of a fire. Fire protection (hydrants, water pressure, etc) is 40% of the fire rating for a city. Trinity Village, a subdivision located off Raleigh Road, has met all fire protection requirements. Cypress Pointe, subdivision off 11th Avenue) has not met all requirements.
Chief Randy Crawford introduced two people to be hired as part-time officers: Kathy McMillan and Robin Williams. Both applicants are certified. The board voted to hire McMillian and Williams.
LauraLyn Barr, president of Keep Magee Beautiful, came before the board to secure recognition of the newly formed organization. The board accepted the organization and will draw up a resolution recognizing the group.
The board approved $195 for Bobby White, city maintenance, to attend a seminar in Jackson March 26-29. The board approved the water loss report.
The city has $220,000 budgeted for paving. $16,000 of the budgeted money will be used to pay engineer Buddy Wolverton to over see the paving projects. The board and mayor were in agreement that having Wolverton to be sure all projects were completed as intended with top grade asphalt was well worth the money. Streets to be paved: Trinity Village
Cypress Pointe (contingent on water lines being ran)
Hilton Drive
Education Dr
Goodwater Rd in front of school
1st Street SE
4th Street SE
4th Street SW
4th Avenue SW (1 block)
The Mayor expressed his desire to pave all the streets but was impossible at this time. The city will work toward improved streets one street at a time.
Meeting was adjourned.
