By MELINDA J. OVERSTREET
for Glasgow News 1
The Glasgow Common Council approved two grant applications and a new lease on the police department’s substation along Park Avenue.
The initial lease for the substation was only for a few months and no rent was charged as a sort of trial run, but Glasgow Police Department Chief Guy Howie has been very pleased with the response its had in the neighborhood and noted previously that service calls to a nearby apartment complex, which is within visual range from the parking lot of the shopping center that houses the substation and had been something of a trouble spot, have decreased significantly since the opening of the secondary GPD location in June.
The new term for the property owned by the Lessenberry Family LTD Partnership, 113 Park Ave., is for three years, and the rent is $550 per month.
In other new business, with all members present, the council gave its unanimous nod to the first reading of an ordinance that formally closes a portion of what had been designated as a public way, Fifth Street, off Grand Avenue but was never used as a public street. Ownership of the property is to revert to the two adjoining properties.
The grant applications, which were approved by unanimous votes on resolutions:
— for hazard mitigation funds totaling $500,000 for severe-weather saferooms in Gorin and Weldon parks, with a $65,000 local share, $375,000 federal share and $60,000 state share, and
— safety funds totaling $3,000 for the purchase of two mower discharge kits ($698) for the Department of Public Works, a moving target for the GPD shooting range ($4,750) and certified playground inspection training for the Parks and Recreation Department, with a $3,000 in-kind match from the city.
The council also unanimously approved second readings of three ordinances:
— amending the Planning and Development Ordinance that is in Chapter 152 of the Code of Ordinances, primarily addressing fencing, tiny homes and short-term rentals;
— rezoning approximately 0.37 acre at 203 McKenna St. from medium-density residential (R-2) to general business (B-2); and
— changing the ordinance relating to occupational taxes and fees to raise the initial business license cost from $25 to $50 and creating an option for transient businesses.
A municipal order was also approved that adopted a supplement to the city’s code of ordinances, and notices was provided to the council by the mayor of an executive order he had approved adopting changes to the GPD’s standard operating procedure regarding missing persons and of intended appointments of Peggy Bates and Melba Richardson for two-year terms to the Renaissance Steering Committee.
As the meeting was concluding, County Clerk Helena Chase Birdwell announced the offices for which elections will take place in 2024, including Glasgow’s two-year-term council seats, with the filing deadline for most being Jan. 5, and she briefly discussed the turnout for this year’s general election earlier this month.
In addition, Matt Mutter, chairman of the Barren County Veterans Association, recapped some of the local Veterans Day events and said the first round of banners honoring local veterans that were posted around the Glasgow Public Square came down Monday as Christmas décor was going up, and preparations are under way to get the next round of banners selected so they can be posted early next year.
The meeting, which was livestreamed via YouTube by the Glasgow Electric Plant Board, may be viewed in its entirety anytime at this link.
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