East Central Planning and Development Project Coordinator Lynetta Cooksey presented an updated project deadline for a walking trail to be located at ESCO Park to the Newton City Council at their regular board meeting last Tuesday night.
Two years ago the city received a grant for the .58 mile long (3,062 feet) walking trail in the amount of $120,000 from the Recreations Trails program. On September 30 the city received an extension of 9 months on the project, Cooksey said. The project will require asphalt, appropriate signage and lighting and has an approved budget of $150,000. The city is required to put in 20 percent or $30,000 of that cost. Cooksey also advised the board that the city would have to complete the project in its entirety first and then submit a request for reimbursement for the cost. Since the city has been working to cut costs and remain within a strict budget, some council members questioned how long reimbursement on the project would take. Cooksey advised that reimbursement could generally be expected within 30 days of a request and that the $30,000 from the city could come from in kind matches such as the hours that city employee worked on the project and city equipment used on the project.
Alderman Michael Hillie suggested that the Newton County Board of Supervisors might be able to lend the city use of some of its asphalt laying equipment to which Cooksey said the same reimbursement for in kind services would apply. City Manager Jay Powell said that an engineer had already created a plan for the project and the board agreed to ask Cooksey and Public Works Director Gary Turner to meet with the Board of Supervisors to determine what the board might be able to contribute to the project.
It was also noted by Cooksey that the trail would be inspected yearly, and the city would be obligated to keep up the project in perpetuity.
The council also held the first public hearing on dilapidated structures. The owner of a home on West Church Street reported that Alderwoman Tomeka Drummond and some other volunteers had helped him clean up the area around his porch. He also stated that he was still looking for a contractor to rebuild the porch on the front of the house. Turner said he and some of the city employees finished work on Friday and on their own time helped the homeowner clean up the property to help the owner show that he was making progress on the property clean-up. The council agreed to revisit the matter during their December 20 meeting.
City attorney Brian Mayo said the second property on 801 South Main that was set for hearing did not receive a legally sufficient returned signature on the certified letter sent to the homeowner. The hearing was reset for December 6.
In other business the board approved the following:
- building handicapped access ramps on the Wade Park Pavilion
- hiring Chester Thompson at the rate of $13 per hour for the street department
- hiring Evelyn Bender as a part-time employee at the rate of $653.85 bi-weekly
- addressing N. Pilate street sewer smell
- requesting to borrow Newton Municipal School District’s line painter
- approved seeking a free assessment to consider the possibility of installing electric vehicle charging stations near the interstate
- discussed on going minor repairs to the Depot
- discussed relocating purchasing and relocated security cameras in various locations around the city.
The next regularly scheduled meeting of the council is November 1 at 5:30 p.m.
