The Monday Duck Hill Board of Alderman Meeting was packed with information and was relatively fast paced, as Mayor Al White kept the meeting moving to respect the time of all present. The first major topic on the agenda was concerning the Public Works division of Duck Hill. Mayor White reported that he had met with Lawrence Central about grants to fund an infrastructure project to update the water valves in town. He gave a general update on the progress of all grants that the Board is in the process of applying for. He also informed the Board of a relatively recent gas line that was repaired after being struck by lightning in a storm.
Following this, Board Attorney Adam Kirk gave his report on the progress of obtaining the ownership of the schoolhouse. He reported that a new deed, corrected according to a survey conducted by Joe Sutherland of Sutherland Engineering and Survey and town engineer for Duck Hill, had been drawn up and would be presented to Montgomery County School District Board of Education at their next Board meeting. The new deed will require the approval of the Board of Education for it to become the new valid, legal deed.
In addition to this matter, the Board once again discussed matters of Code Enforcement in town. Mayor Al White informed the Board he had received a report from Michael Moore, the Code Enforcement Officer, prior to the meeting. As the Board discussed the matter, Attorney Kirk once again suggested the route of specifying ordinance infractions to help residents bring their properties into compliance with the code. Kirk encouraged communication between the Code Enforcement officer and the public. Alderwoman Morgan Eskridge suggested the use of deadlines to prevent such topics from being repeatedly discussed at Board meetings and to promote progress in the matter. The Board voted for a deadline of March 29 for code enforcement letters to be sent out, so that Code Enforcement Officer Moore can have his progress evaluated at the next Board meeting on April 8. It was also made clear to the Board and the attending community members that the Code Enforcement Officer is not required to attend meetings, as he reports directly to Mayor White.
Next on the agenda, Kim Cooley addressed matters of public safety she has found in the town. Firstly, she reported to have received a quote of $200 per speed bump from her research, stating it would be roughly $1,600 for the 8 speed bumps requested on neighborhood streets. She offered help in labor of installing said speed bumps, should they be funded by the town. She then questioned where the money could come from, to which Mayor Al White replied that currently the projects involving city infrastructure was taking up most of the budget.
Mayor Al White suggested Ms. Cooley take down tag information and report it directly to the Police Chief, to which she replied, “I have the former Police Chief, and it is literally the same people every time.”
The Board stated they would need input from Town Engineer Sutherland about placement of speed bumps and the pricing disparity.
Secondly, in her report Cooley suggests a barricade be put up on the main strip between the old pool hall and grocery store where awnings are dilapidated. She states it is a danger for pedestrians who walk down the path and suggests caution tape or some other form of blockade to deter walkers from taking that path. Alderwoman Eskridge stated that she was currently working on a more permanent fix with the business owners. Third on her agenda, she addressed the Board with a request to consider closing the “Corner Café” behind City Hall, as she claims it is a threat to public safety and is incorrectly zoned, as it was originally zoned as a bait shop and now functions as more of a club.
“In July of last year, I called 10 times,” she stated. “The most pressing issue is that it is illegally zoned. You have a club surrounded by houses.” She continued “And I know it’s an unpopular opinion for people who live around here but if we’re truly going to put in the effort to revitalizing this town, we’ve got to cut all the personal ties and do it.”
“So right now, we are only hearing from one person.” Mayor White interjected.
The board asked Police Chief Gholston about the area and if they had frequent calls, to which he replied, “The only calls we get every now and then is the music.” He continued, “As far as shutting down, they shut down pretty easily.”
Lastly, Cooley brought attention to potential missed revenue in citations, wanting a reason for the lack of citations given. She requested more police presence within the neighborhood areas of Duck Hill.
Last on the overall meeting agenda, the Board heard from Alderwoman Shernell Everett-Brown who proudly reported her search for the Duck Hill town charter concluded with its recovery. Alderwoman Everett-Brown presented a copy to Board Attorney Kirk for his keeping. In addition to this matter, she also suggested the Board do better with information and suggested the formation of a Steering Committee to assist the Board in hearing and addressing people’s concerns. City Clerk Lasonja Sizemore was delegated to take the name and phone number of those interested in contributing to the committee. The Committee would be limited to 2 attending Board members, to prevent legal issues, and would be open to community members interested.
In other business, the Board:
• Approved the Claims Docket.
• Approved the Minutes of February.
• Agreed to a salary raise for the Police Chief position, making his salary the same as the previous Police Chief.
• Accepted Fire Chief, Michael Woods’, request to purchase a new air compressor for one of the fire engines.
• Agreed to a request made by Mrs. Cheryl McNeal to use the Duck Hill gym on March 31 for a town easter egg hunt.
• Approved the purchase of an ad at the price of $220 for the upcoming Winona Times annual Profile Edition.
• Received crime report from Police Chief Gholston, which was requested by Cheryl McNeal to become a regular part of the meeting.
• Briefly addressed loose dog issues in town, looking into code enforcement for the issues.
• Heard from Alderman Caldwell who reported about reaching out to the county for help in an asphalt project.
• Heard from Alderwoman Eskridge on requesting a quote for fixing the sidewalk down the main strip in front of the pool hall.
