Council approves landscaping agreement, expands PJ | Decatur

The median at the south end of the Hudson Memorial Bridges will look nicer, and the map of Decatur police violence will change.

PJ’s landscaping project and expansion were among several items approved by the city council during a morning meeting on Monday.

The council unanimously approved agreements with the Alabama Department of Transportation that allow the city to design and maintain the median at the intersection of US 31 / Sixth Avenue and Alabama 20 / Wilson Street.

Mayor Tab Bowling said the landscape plan has not yet been drawn up, so he does not yet know how much improving the appearance of the median will cost the city. A schedule for the project was not available on Monday.

The council agreed to wait for the median after the landscaping is complete. Parks and Recreation director Jason Lake said the city will pay a contractor $ 5,400 a year for maintenance.

The contract also includes the maintenance of the now vacant land in a former oil change shop on the corner of Moulton Street and Sixth Avenue. The Decatur Downtown Development Authority is currently building the property in a small park.

The landscaping of the median at the bridges eliminates part of a beautification plan for Sixth Avenue that a consultant, Volkert Inc., is currently working on.

Volkert is working on a plan to beautify Sixth Avenue from the Hudson Memorial Bridge to Delano Park.

An ALDOT grant of $ 100,000 is paying for the plan that aims to make this city entrance more welcoming to visitors and developers.

Volkert is expected to give a talk on the proposed plan in early 2021.

In another action the council has:

• An immediate vote was passed unanimously to adjust police force by 77.5 acres with annexation of 91 acres for two new Morris subdivisions in Southeast Decatur. Assistant Prosecutor Chip Alexander said the change in police jurisdiction was inconsistent with the new acreage in the city as part of the jurisdiction violated Priceville police brutality. Councilor Billy Jackson abstained, while the other four councilors voted to change the jurisdiction of the police.

• Renewal of a memorandum of understanding with the Decatur City Schools in order to continue to use the new high schools in Austin and Decatur as storm protection.

• Approved a $ 7,800 amendment contract for the renovation project of the former Sterrs Boys and Girls Club, which will become the new tutoring building for Decatur Youth Enrichment. Community Development’s Allen Stover said the change order was for removing and replacing tiles with asbestos.

• Accepted the planning committee’s recommendation to rename Silver Crest Drive Southwest to Onizuka Drive Southwest. The street is named after Col. Ellison Onizuka, who died when the space shuttle Challenger blew up on January 28, 1986. The street name change is in line with other streets named after astronauts who died in the Challenger accident.

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