By Crystal McGough
PINSON – The Pinson City Council held its regular council meeting at the new tornado shelter located beside the Palmerdale Homestead Community Center and Palmerdale Fire District Station 1, on Thursday July 7, at 7 p.m.
The council applied for grants to build the shelter after tornadoes caused significant damage throughout local communities in 2012.
“Some of you may remember, we applied for a federal grant a few years back,” Mayor Hoyt Sanders said. “The emphasis on the grants at the time were after the many tornadoes we had in the country, particularly in the South, particularly in Alabama. The purpose of the FEMA grant was to place storm shelters near the location of first responders and in communities, availing to the surrounding community. So FEMA came out, did a population count – obviously we’re next door to the fire station – and approved this site for a 100-person shelter. So we’re very excited about that!”
Photo by Crystal McGough
The storm shelter is made of solid concrete, yet appears to be made of red brick, matching the PHCC building next door.
“Although they are more or less standard, there are some options, and one option that council accepted, although it is solid concrete, the brick pattern is stamped into the texture of the outer concrete and we matched the brick color, as close as we could, to the 80-year-old plus Palmerdale Community Center,” Sanders said. “I’m very pleased with the way it has blended with the integrity of the community center campus. We’ve invested a great deal over the years in the community center here – roof, air conditioning and any other repairs – so I’m glad to see such a nice blend.”
Sanders said that, for projects like this, FEMA determines the size and capacity of the shelter based on the number of nearby residents.
“FEMA put forth the agreement where we could have a 100-person (shelter) here next to the fire department, and also available to the residents of Palmerdale, many of whom – particularly the original homesteads – don’t have basements,” he said. “So it’s a wonderful addition to this community. We certainly hope we can add more in the city as the FEMA money becomes available in the future. … We sincerely hope to do more, but you must start somewhere.”
Following the regular council meeting, the mayor and city council cut a ribbon and allowed guests to do a walk-through of the shelter, while maintaining social distancing restrictions.
Photo by Crystal McGough
Palmerdale Fire District Assistant Chief Richard Archer was present at the ribbon cutting, representing the fire district.
“I think the storm shelter is a very good addition to the community,” he said. “Not only is it great for the community with people that don’t have basements, where they can’t get to a safe place or a sheltered room inside their house; it also affords us the ability to have a place to come because the fire stations do not have a storm shelter built in them, so this will greatly enhance our safety in times of a weather-related emergency with a tornado. So I think it’s a great addition and I think it’s going to serve the community well.”
During the regular council meeting, the Pinson Council unanimously approved a motion to purchase a Lazer Z Series mower from Argo Power Equipment, Inc.
“What we try to do is buy a new Z-Turn mower every year,” Sanders said. “You see those guys on the mowers on the highways and the schools and parks and up here (at the PHCC). Buying one every year kind of keeps one in rotation so that we don’t have a year down the road where we have to buy three or four.
“Now we are changing one little thing to improve our efficiency. We’ve been using 5-foot deck mowers, and this is actually a 6 (foot). So, particularly for big spaces up here, fields and even, of course, the roads, that will give us several more percent of mowing efficiency.”
The cost of the mower totals $12,100.
“Our budget has held very strong,” Sanders said. “We do have even road monies that are available for that purchase.“
The council also held a first reading of an agreement with Jefferson County for reimbursement of COVID expenses through the CARES act.
According to the agreement, “the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act (Cares Act) was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Trump on March 27, 2020 … to cover necessary and unbudgeted expenditures incurred March 1, 2020 through December 30 2020 due to the COVID-19 public health emergency.”
“The way that has been structured, because Jefferson County contains 500,000 people or more, the primary, frontline COVID reimbursement monies flow through the county,” Sanders said. “We then apply with the county, not the state, as is true in other counties, and then we will be reimbursed for various COVID expenses.”
The agreement states that Jefferson County will pay the “contractor” (city of Pinson) an amount not to exceed $330,558. The funds are only to reimburse non-budgeted COVID-19 expenses such as personal protective equipment, cleaning and sanitation supplies and services, medical supplies, efforts to support workplace safety and teleworking initiatives.
“Let the record reflect that has been first presented. Mr. Black (attorney for the city of Pinson) and the county attorneys are further reviewing.”
The next meeting of the Pinson City Council will be Thursday, July 16, 2020, at Pinson City Hall. Pre-council begins at 6:30 p.m. and the regular meeting begins at 7 p.m.
