Mickey Starling
reporter3@greenepublishing.com
The Tuesday, June 11, meeting of the Madison City Commission opened with special recognition given to Madison Health Department Administrator Kim Albritton, whose organization has funded much of the construction and upgrades to local parks throughout the community. “We work very hard to have safe spaces and activities for our youth,” said Albritton while receiving her award.
During, the public comments portion, Madison County Development Council Executive Director Doug Brown summarized a report from Retail Strategies, who recently provided research and analysis of ways to improve business traffic through the downtown area. Next, George Wheeler and Jackie Johnson, representing Madison First Methodist Church, asked the commission to consider selling a portion of the city’s right-of -way that surrounds their property. The church plans to build a ramp and extend the steps at the front entrance for easier accessibility. The commissioners walked over to the property in question to get a first-hand view of what was being requested. When the commissioners returned, they voted unanimously to gift the small amount of property to the church.
In new business, Caleb Perla, with Powell and Jones CPA, gave the audit report for fiscal year 2023. Commissioner Byron Poore asked Perla about the “commonality of inter-fund transfers” in small communities, especially related to Perry and Madison, since Perry’s audit had no mention of deteriorating financial situations, even though they also often transfer funds from the enterprise fund to the general fund to cover expenses. Perla reported that Perry is larger than Madison and their financial status has not gotten bad enough to warrant receiving notice of a deteriorating financial condition. Perla cited Madison’s deteriorating financial condition primarily because there is little funding for future and unexpected situations that may arise. He recommended the city set a limit on transfers so that needed funds for future expenses would begin to grow.
City Manager Jerome Wyche was pleased to present two low-bid proposals, both from Scruggs Company, for paving projects for Shelby Avenue and Washington Street. Both bids were less than funds allocated from the Department of Transportation’s SCOP grants. The commissioners voted unanimously to approve the bids. Next, Wyche proposed using $17,300 in TIF funds to repair city sidewalks damaged by Hurricane Idalia. Again, the proposal was unanimously approved by the commission.
Wyche went on to advise the commissioners to be prepared for the possibility of “some strong language” from citizens as paving projects begin. It is possible that three projects will be underway simultaneously for Horry, Washington and Shelby Avenues. “This will certainly cause a lot of inconvenience, but the repairs are necessary,” said Wyche.
The next meeting of the Madison City Commission is set for Tuesday, July 9, beginning at 5:30 p.m. All meetings are held at City Hall, located at 321 SW Rutledge St., in Madison.