By Trent Moore

Staff Writer

Mayors from eight of the ten local municipalities recently took the time to briefly discuss their plans for 2009 at a Chamber of Commerce luncheon.

West Point Mayor Kenneth Kilgo, South Vinemont Mayor Melba Patton, Holly Pond Mayor Herman Nail, Hanceville Mayor Kenneth Nail, Good Hope Mayor Corey Harbison, Garden City Mayor Harden Davis, Fairview Mayor Randall Shedd and Baileyton Mayor Johnny Dyar all shared their thoughts for the future.

Colony Mayor Morris Fitts did not attend the event. Dodge City Mayor Perry Ray was unable to attend due to health issues.

Kilgo offered an update on the recently completed West Point sidewalk project.

“Last year we had the federal sidewalk project and we’ve seen that to fruition,” he said. “It connects all of the school campuses and runs through our small business district.”

He also noted that the town is working to establish a sewer, with hopes of encouraging both business and residential growth.

“We’re bidding our extended sewer project soon,” Kilgo said. “We’re going to give West Point an introduction to infrastructure ... We also have a commitment from Jack’s Family Restaurant to come in once it’s done.”

South Vinemont Mayor Melba Patton said the major local project in her town is a new sports complex for the community, which is slowly moving forward.

“We’ve chosen an architect for our new sports complex, and two and a half months ago we purchased 32 and a half acres,” she said. “We’re planning five ball fields, a concession stand and the sports complex, with 189 parking spaces. ... We’re a small town, and we’re moving forward steadily and slowly.”

Herman Nail, recently elected mayor of Holly Pond, said he hopes to keep his town moving forward.

“For one, we’re trying to keep our infrastructure up-to-date,” he said, referring to the town’s approximately 20-year-old sewer system. “For our future needs, we want a new town hall. We love the old one, but it really needs some updates. That all depends on the economy, though.”

Hanceville Mayor Kenneth Nail said he has tried to institute a more transparent, cooperative local government with his administration.

“We are new leadership with new ideas, working in a spirit of cooperation,” he said. “We’ve appointed different committees, and made sure to put a regular citizen on each committee ... We also now have work sessions prior to all our meetings and encourage citizens to come out and be a part of that.”

Nail said the town is also working to finish some park projects left over from the previous administration, as well as looking into the viability of turning the old National Guard armory into a community center.

“We’re in the process of completing the concession stand at the park, and once we pay for that we’ll be very proud of it,” he said.

Corey Harbison, Mayor of Good Hope, noted recent decisions made under his administration to encourage business growth.

“We’ve already lowered our business licenses to encourage and keep our businesses in town,” he said.

The town is also working with the Cullman city water department to expand some water lines in the town.

“We’re working to get the right of ways to take care of that,” he said.

Garden City Mayor Harden Davis briefly noted that the town will spend 2009 partially focused on repairing damage caused by recent flooding to the town park.

“Our River Park got a lot of rain, and we lost a bit of real estate down there,” he said. “We’re working to fix that back up and add electricity and running water to the park.

Davis said the town also hopes to add a community center in the future.

“That’s another thing we’re working on,” he said.

Randall Shedd, Mayor of Fairview, said he hopes his town will be able to work with the Alabama Department of Transportation to improve some traffic issues.

“We want to revamp the intersection at the school, and we think this is the year to do it,” he said, noting the route where Wesley Avenue meets Welcome Road.

The town has also applied for grants to add lighting to the town park walking trails and extend the town sidewalks.

Baileyton Mayor Johnny Dyar said the recently launched local senior center is the top priority going into 2009.

“Our most important goal in Baileyton is to get senior citizens involved,” he said.

Dyar added that his town is planning three major projects for 2009.

A new tee ball field is in the works, as well as plans to clear and re-plant trees at the town park and maintain the recently launched senior center.

“We’ve got a lot of goals ahead of us,” he said. “At the park, we want to come back later and re-plant trees for veterans and loved ones.”

An ongoing initiative to mail monthly town council meeting minutes to all residents — something Dyar stressed during his election campaign — is also going strong, he said.

“We want to keep the people informed and the only way to do that is to mail it straight to them,” he said. “We’ve had some complaints, but I’ve got four years left, so we’re just going to keep shooting it to them.”

City of Cullman Mayor Max Townson and Cullman County Commission Chairman James Graves are scheduled to give their thoughts on the new year at the February 27 luncheon.

‰ Trent Moore can be reached by e-mail at trentm@cullmantimes.com, or by telephone at 734-2131, ext. 225.