Work Session Sets Plans For Property Use, Improvements
At a work session Thursday evening, the City Council plotted a course for property purchases and sales, negotiate new leases and complete projects now in progress. While the scope of the two-and-a-half-hour session was sweeping, official action was postponed until Monday's regular business session.
While the topics of discussions were varied, the council wove a theme of progress through the fabric of the meeting. Of the topics discussed, the one with the largest price tag was the old Southside Elementary School building. City Clerk Bill Fann said the council was ready to vote to declare the property salvage and put it on the market until spring. If there are no takers the building and surrounding property will be sold at auction.
Fann said the city had been offered $500,000 for the entire facility, but it had been appraised at $879,000.
This is the property currently being vacated by Mountain View.
Fann said he had been instructed to prepare and ordinance to declare the old City Barn as surplus property. The land and the building will be offered for sale with a $150,000 price tag.
In other revenue-generating measures, the council will be eyeing the leases at the old Piedmont Hospital and Nursing Home building. The structure is currently occupied by the Dr. Maher Gao medical offices and Shine-N-Stars juvenile home. While specific figures were not available, Fann said the leases had not been updated in from two to four years.
The county will join with the city in purchasing a building on the north side of the present city offices. The county has never contributed to the financial cost of having offices here, and recent negotiations have led to an agreement to buy and remodel the former PCA Insurance building. The structure is currently owned by Jerry Masters, and city workers are remodeling it for expanded city and county offices. County officials say they will have a 50-percent share in the purchase price of the building.
At Monday's meeting, don't be surprised to hear the council agree to purchase the medical and equipment now located in the Crawford Clinic Building. Fann said the city would also look at some of the office equipment in the building. While the medical equipment could be used to attract doctors to opening a local practice, the office equipment could be pressed into service in city operations.
Fann said the council instructed him to open negotiations to buy the building formerly occupied by Dr. Tony Davis' dental practice. The offices are connected to the building housing the current practice of Drs. Rey and Joy Gavino, and could be used for an expansion of that practice or adding another doctor, Fann said. A Huntsville banking firm is currently administering the property.
While most of the council discussions dealt with buying, selling and renewing leases on existing property, other discussions dealt with improving existing structures.
Fann said the 48 plexi-glass windows at the Civic Center need replacing with more energy-efficient portals. He outlined a play whereby the work would be done in two or three stages, and would take several months.
The Public Safety Building on West Ladiga Street been in need of a roof for many years. Fann said the building was one of many city structures that had a leaking flat roof. According to the clerk, plans call for replacing the current building cover with a "hip or gable" roof to avoid the recurrent problems related to a flat roof.
Fann also reported that the paving project is completion Ladiga Street, and work on paving McFarland Street was scheduled to begin before press time this week.
The Piedmont Public Library is one of the city buildings that suffers from problems related to a flat roof. Fann said the city had budgeted the replacement of the library's roof with a roof structure similar to that of the Public Safety Building,
The council discussed quotes on constructing railing around the memorial area of Veterans Memorial Park.

James Spann Gives Science Lesson To Sixth-graders At Piedmont Middle School
Sixth-grade students at Piedmont Middle School got a special treat Thursday morning when a noted TV meteorologist visited the school to give them a lesson on the weather and techniques of television weather forecasts.
The school faculty arranged in October for ABC 33/40's James Spann to come to the school while the students are studying the weather in their science classes.
Spann began his presentation by telling the students that while he is a television personality, his job is chief meteorologist and his training in science enabled him to have such a position.
"On a normal day, I am only on television for three minutes, three times a day," he said. "It's only during times of bad weather that I appear for longer times."
Armed with a laptop computer and video screen, Spann explained the techniques he uses daily. With photographs of lightning strikes, weather balloons and weather maps, he explained how he uses modern techniques to predict Alabama's weather.
As he presented one of the first slides, he asked the students what type of cloud was pictured. Cries of "cumulonimbus!" rang out throughtout the media center. Cloud types had been covered in the earlier weather studies.
"We learned that they send up big balloons with parachutes on them to test the weather," said Casie Moore, who claims to be Spann's biggest fan. "The balloons have barometers and stuff in them."
Spann kept the students' attention using terminology appropriate for their grade level. He explained the Doppler radar system to the youngsters by comparing it to the way a car sounds as it races around the Talladega Speed Track. The car does not change the sound it makes; the sound changes in the ears of the listener as the frequency of radio waves strikes the eardrum. This, said Spann, is the basic idea behind the Doppler system.
After his presentation, the students and faculty presented Spann a Piedmont Middle School tee-shirt and a cake.
Later in the day, the students were featured on the "kid cam" during Spann's portion of the ABC 33/40 5 p.m. report.
"It was all very exciting," said Moore. "We just kept talking about him after we went back to class."

Strictly Personal
Don't Be A Prophet Of Doom, Take Time To Look Around...
This column is dedicated to the pessimists and doom-sayers who always claim Piedmont is dying. If only they had sense enough to look around them.
It was only last week that Mayor Charlie Fagan remarked about the on-street parking in the downtown area. On North Center Avenue, there was not a space to be found. Some of that was due to the opening of the Solid Rock Cafe. That's right, an eatery has returned to town, and I have heard some rave reviews on their specialty coffee, reuben sandwiches and chicken salad.
Concerning the downtown area, I am aware of negotiations to purchase, remodel and open one of the downtown eyesores. It is getting difficult to find space for a store or office in the downtown area. Ten years ago, no one would have guessed this be a problem for our business district.
There are also some business expansions on the Bypass. Searchlights have been visible in the night skies for several days and have caused some comment. The lights are coming from the Auto Factory Outlet lot next to Jeff's Barbecue/Raceway.
In about another week, the car sale will move to another of its dozen locations in Alabama. The curbstone philosophers will point and say, "That didn't last long. It's just another failed business." I can hear it now, and I wanted to prepare you for it. Again, it isn't true.
The operation is owned by a car dealer in another city. According to his representatives, the sale goes to one of its locations with a crew of 20 employees and some late model used cars. Because the owner has a dealership, new cars may also be offered. The company puts on a huge advertising campaign covering much this part of Alabama and going into western Georgia.
Hundreds of people respond to the ads, and I have talked to a couple of folks who saw vehicles they wanted, but waited a day before they inquired about the price. In both cases, the wait removed their chance of buying the vehicle. They had already been sold.
When the local sale closes, it will move to another location, but it will return here in about six months. This cycle will continue for some time, but what does it mean to Piedmont? First, there is the increased tax revenue. These people are selling a lot of cars, and there is city tax on each vehicle. That means more money for city operations for you and me. The less obvious benefits are many. For instance, the 20-member crew has to eat at local restaurants. The gas for those cars must come from local pumps. Some of the hundreds of folks who come here to shop for cars may also visit a local restaurant, service station or store during their visit.
The sale is providing a financial shot in the arm for the city and many of our businesses, and this will be repeated each time the event comes to town.
There is still another group that has taken an option on purchasing some Bypass property, and plans call for a multi-million-dollar development. There's nothing definite on this project, yet, but the city is actively pursuing it and I'm optimistic on the plan become a reality. If it comes to pass, I think you will all be pleasantly surprised.
Before going any further, however, I must tell you it isn't a Wal-Mart.
I did a recent column in which I mentioned the quality of life in Piedmont, due to the fine people who reside here. In other columns I have referred to this city's beautiful natural setting. The object of this column is to discuss the status of our commercial community. Each year, the sales tax revenues show a healthy growth. Each year, the number of businesses increases. These are not huge increases, and there are some failures, but the net result is a slightly larger number of businesses each year.
All in all, Piedmont's commercial community is showing a healthy growth, not only in sales, but in number. This can be verified just by looking around. It's a plain as the nose on your face.
Most of us can see this growth, but there are still the prophets of doom that speak with certainty from their thrones at local restaurants. They rant that the city is dying while sipping coffee. Nothing can change their minds, so I won't try to confuse them with the facts. To the rest of us, though, we can be proud of the direction in which our city is headed.