As often happens, dissension over a zoning change was on the March 7 agenda of the New Albany Board of Aldermen.
Stout and Stout, a commercial real estate developer, had asked the city Planning and Zoning Board to approve a zoning change for a parcel of land near the 1500 block of South Central Avenue. The change would allow the developer to construct eight houses on the land rather than six. The single-family homes would each be about 1,400 square feet.
The city Planning and Zoning board had approved Stout’s request. In a public hearing at the March 7th board meeting the aldermen heard from property owners who object to the change. The primary objection seemed to be the fear that the proposed new houses would be rentals rather than occupied by owners. After a brief discussion, the aldermen affirmed the decision of the zoning board, approving the change.
In another planning and zoning matter, the board granted a variance for a fuel dispenser setback for Wild Bill’s at 400 Highway 15 North.
The aldermen approved requests from several city departments to sell at auction surplus property, mainly old motor vehicles.
The board approved several requests from New Albany Lights, Gas and Water Manager Bill Mattox including:
Payment of $182,837 to Atwell and Gent Engineering Services for design services for the electrical department.
Approval of the low bid of $70,465 for the purchase of a Bobcat Compact Excavator.
The next meeting of the New Albany Board of Aldermen will be at 5:30 p.m. on April 4.
New Albany Lights, Gas, and Water (NALGW), the city-owned utility company, is open today at its new headquarters on Main Street.
The New Albany Police Department is expected to move into its new quarters on the east side of the same building early in the coming year.
It took a little more than three years from concept to reality, but the city’s elected leaders and the management of NALGW brought it all together.
NALGW sign on new headquarters building on Main St.
When the Fred’s retail chain went bankrupt in 2019, Mayor Tim Kent made an offer to the federal bankruptcy court for the 17,000 square foot building. The offer was rejected, and the court sold the building and several other former Fred’s properties to a single buyer. Then the city was able to buy it from that new owner for $600,000, less than its appraised value.
The plan was to house both NALGW and the city police department in the same building.
Once the real estate deal was closed, the job of converting the old Fred’s building into a new municipal complex was turned over to NALGW Manager Bill Mattox.
There were some snags, including an original architect’s estimate that was more than the city was willing to spend. Another huge factor was the radical increase in the costs of most building materials, which was blamed on the COVID pandemic. The first bids from contractors were rejected as too high.
Mattox and the Mayor worked with the architect to reduce the cost, and the work was finally awarded to Roberts Builders, Inc., a general construction company based in Ripley.
Bill Mattox told NEMiss.News on November 22, the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, that he thought there was a good chance NALGW could move into the new building on Main Street before the end of the year.
He got it done. NALGW occupies their new quarters as of Dec. 27. Mattox told NEMiss.News Monday evening, December 26, “We plan to open at 8 am. I’m sure there will be some bumps in the road throughout the day, but I think we’re about as ready as we can be at this point.”
Mattox has built a reputation as the “make it happen guy” in New Albany. Mattox, Mayor Kent and the Board of Aldermen deserve commendation for having the vision and drive that made this nice new municipal building a reality.
https://i0.wp.com/nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/NALGW-open-in-new-location-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C627&ssl=16271200NEMiss.Newshttps://nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/nemiss-full-logo-300x77.jpgNEMiss.News2022-12-27 00:28:042022-12-27 00:28:04NALGW open for business Tuesday, Dec. 27, in new location
Linemen for New Albany Lights, Gas, and Water (NALGW) worked all night in the rain and lightning, trying to keep lights on in the sprawling service area.
The storm had caused scattered and isolated power outages early Tuesday evening.
The situation got radically worse about 10 p.m. when NALGW Manager Bill Mattox got a phone call from TVA headquarters in Chattanooga.
“They told me they had major problems with their TVA transmission lines that bring all the electricity to New Albany,” said Mattox. “We immediately lost power to several of our substations, and up to 60 percent of our customers may have been without power for a little more than an hour.’’
Mattox did not know as of Wednesday evening what had caused the TVA lines to fail Tuesday night. He said such transmission line failures sometime take more than three hours to repair, so was relieved that NALGW crews were able to work with TVA and get some substations back on line before midnight.
NALGW crews continued to work on scattered reports of power lines down and making sure the substations continued to be supplied by TVA’s transmission lines.
About 3 a.m., crews thought the storm was about over and got ready to wrap up for the night.
Then, about 3 o’clock the storm felled a big pine tree over power lines near the Stokes Store on Highway 15. The falling tree broke down the power lines strung to seven utility poles, causing another power failure for hundreds of customers served by those broken lines.
After having worked all day and all night, the NALGW linemen then worked until about 9:30 a.m. Wednesday restoring power to that part of the service area.
Joe Wilson tells us last night’s storm delivered about three inches of rain to his gauge in north New Albany.
Union County Emergency Management Director Curt Clayton told NEMiss.News he was not aware of any injuries or major damage “other than a few trees down” in Union County.
Northeast Mississippi was more fortunate than other places in the Southeastern U.S. Two people were reported killed when the storm struck their home near Montgomery, Alabama.
More than 40,000 customers were still without electricity late in the day Wednesday including 25,000 in Alabama, 12,000 in Tennessee and 4,000 in Mississippi.
Please share any thoughts, comments or questions in the Comments section below!
https://i0.wp.com/nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/2187C73B-2BCF-4950-9EAA-013B62C29FC3-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C756&ssl=17561200NEMiss.Newshttps://nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/nemiss-full-logo-300x77.jpgNEMiss.News2022-11-30 22:32:122022-11-30 22:46:54NALGW linemen worked through the night trying to keep the power on
The new Municipal Complex in downtown New Albany is nearly complete, and part of it may be occupied before the end of the year.
The Municipal Complex will be occupied by the city-owned New Albany Lights, Gas, and Water (NALGW) and by the New Albany Police Department (NAPD).
The entrance to the New Albany Police Department will be on the Carter Avenue side of the Municipal Complex.
The entrance to NALGW will be on the Main Street (north) side of the building.
The NAPD entrance will be on the Carter Avenue (east) side of the structure.
NALGW General Manager Bill Mattox told NEMiss.News Tuesday, Nov. 22, that exterior work on the parking area will be among the last items to be finished. Interior work is substantially complete.
Mattox said he expects both NALGW and NAPD will occupy their new quarters early in the coming year. NALGW may actually be able to move in before the end of December.
The 17,000 square-foot building was formerly occupied by the Fred’s retail store. It became available when the Fred’s store chain went bankrupt in 2019. The City of New Albany acquired the building and its surrounding parking area for $600,000.
Costs for the renovation are expected to total something over three million dollars.
Workers were busy Monday removing old asphalt paving in preparation for installing the new parking area on the north side of the building.
The extensively renovated building is owned by NALGW. NALGW will lease back to the city the portion of the structure that will be occupied by the police department.
NALGW is governed by the New Albany Board of Aldermen and is subject to the regulations of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), which is also the supplier of the city’s electricity.
https://i0.wp.com/nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/City-of-NA-Municipal-Building.jpg?fit=1200%2C553&ssl=15531200NEMiss.Newshttps://nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/nemiss-full-logo-300x77.jpgNEMiss.News2022-11-23 13:00:582022-11-23 13:00:58New Albany’s new Municipal Complex nearly ready for occupancy
Jimmy Dean Whitten thanked the Board of Aldermen Tuesday evening for the privilege of serving for many years as a New Albany police officer.
Whitten was seriously injured while serving with the New Albany Police Department (NAPD) on Friday, June 5, 2020. After 30 months of treatment, Whitten’s doctors have determined that he will not be able to return to police work. Tuesday evening he thanked the board for the support he has received during his partial recovery and expressed his love for the community. Whitten had served as a Union County deputy sheriff before joining the NAPD. He was honored earlier this year with a citation for valor for the incident in which he was injured. See: https://newalbanyunionco.com/jimmy-dean-whitten-honored-for-valor/
As is customary when NAPD officers retire, the aldermen unanimously approved a request from Police Chief Chris Robertson that Whitten be allowed to keep his 40 caliber Glock 22 semi-automatic service weapon. Whitten has been told he faces additional surgery for his injuries.
During its Tuesday meeting the board approved requests from New Albany Lights, Gas, and Water (NALGW) Manager Bill Mattox for payments to contractors or new contracts on projects he is managing. The board approved a payment request to Roberts Construction of $280,751 for ongoing work on the municipal building renovation of the old Fred’s property.
The board approved a request from Mattox for a $2.05-million dollar contract with Night Hawk AMI for automated metering services. The board also approved a request for a contract not to exceed $2.55-million with a Starkville engineering company for work on NALGW’s developing high-speed internet service. All requests were approved on 5-0 votes by the aldermen.
Parks and Recreation Director received unanimous approval to buy a new commercial lawn mower. The mower will be purchased under the State of Mississippi contract for $12,012.
Code Enforcement Officer Eric Nichols told the board of actions by the Planning and Zoning Board. Cook Daycare, which operates an adult daycare service at 611 Moss Hill Drive, had asked the board to change the zoning of its property to a less restrictive commercial zoning classification. The daycare currently operates under a conditional use permit. Owners of homes in the single-family residential neighborhood opposed Cook’s application for commercial zoning. The Planning and Zoning Board denied Cook’s request. It is possible that Cook will appeal the Zoning Board’s decision to the Board of Aldermen.
The next meeting of the New Albany Board of Aldermen will be at 5:30 pm on Tuesday, December 6th.
https://i0.wp.com/nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Jimmy-Dean-Whitten.jpg?fit=1200%2C653&ssl=16531200NEMiss.Newshttps://nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/nemiss-full-logo-300x77.jpgNEMiss.News2022-11-03 02:09:562022-11-03 02:09:56Jimmy Dean Whitten thanks aldermen for privilege of serving as police officer
Two local officials briefed NEMiss.News this week on work done over the last few years to promote local economic development by improving internet service in Union County.
Sam Creekmore IV, who has represented Union County since January 2020 as the District 14 State Representative, and Bill Mattox, general manager of the city-owned New Albany Lights, Gas, and Water (NALGW) told us about the work they have done.
NALGW Director Bill Mattox
Because of a fluke in a law passed by the Mississippi legislature many decades ago, long before anyone dreamed of the internet, NALGW is one of three municipally owned utility companies in the state that cannot become an internet service provider (ISP). State authorities have held that, because the legislation chartering New Albany’s municipally-owned utility company did not specifically authorize NALGW to be an ISP, NALGW is still prohibited from providing internet service to its customers.
Creekmore, joined by 7th District State Senator Hob Bryan of Amory, introduced identical bills in their respective chambers during the 2022 session that would have allowed NALGW to provide internet service. Both bills died in committees.
However, State Representative Scott Bounds of Philadelphia and Representative D’Keither Stamps of Learned introduced House Bill 1029 to “create the Broadband Expansion and Accessibility of Mississippi (BEAM) Act” to oversee distribution of state and federal funds in portions of Mississippi that are “unserved or underserved” by existing broadband services.” The bill passed the state House and Senate and was signed into law by the governor on April 14, 2022.
Sally Doty, a Brookhaven attorney and former state senator, was appointed by Gov. Tate Reeves to head the BEAM program, controlling the expenditure of several hundred million federal dollars for broadband expansion.
Creekmore and Mattox have made numerous visits to the governor, Director Doty, and others in their efforts to secure improved broadband services in Union County. Improved internet service is considered vital to sustaining economic development.
Last week a plan was announced that would ally NALGW with ACE Fiber of Corinth to provide high speed internet service. Under that agreement NALGW would build and own the new fiber optic cable in its service area and would lease it to ACE, which would operate the broadband internet service.
https://i0.wp.com/nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Doty-and-Creekmore-ED.jpg?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=16001200NEMiss.Newshttps://nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/nemiss-full-logo-300x77.jpgNEMiss.News2022-09-29 00:15:252022-09-28 23:34:17Creekmore, Mattox tell of work to assure economic development by providing high speed internet service
Residents of New Albany and all other customers of New Albany Lights, Gas, and Water (NALGW), will finally have true high-speed internet service available starting next year.
The result of several years of work by Northern District Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley, NALGW General Manager Bill Mattox and others, installation of fiber optic cable for high-speed internet service is scheduled to start early in the coming year.
The service will make available 10 gigabit symmetrical broadband service throughout the NALGW service area, including New Albany and large parts of Union, Benton, Tippah and Marshall counties. This is approximately ten times the internet speeds that are now avail from internet service providers in the service area.
NALGW General Manager Bill Mattox in his office in New Albany.
Bill Mattox told NEMiss.News Friday afternoon, September 23, that the broadband service will be available to every home and business throughout the NALGW service area – without an installation charge. Installation charges for rural customers in the four-county area may now run as high as $2,000, if furnished by the companies that now provide minimal internet service speeds.
High-speed broadband service for rural and small town Mississippians has been the intense focus for Northern District Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley for the last several years. Presley has worked continually with federal, state and local agencies and many thousands of rural families and business now have high speed internet as a result.
A joint announcement yesterday by NALGW and ACE Fiber of Corinth gave further details of the new service coming next year. Here is the full text of the announcement made Friday:
Two years ago, ACE Fiber had just begun deploying fiber broadband services to its membership in Alcorn County. Today, ACE Fiber and The City of New Albany Light Gas and Water (NALGW) are pleased to announce a partnership to bring network services to all NALGW electric customers in New Albany and parts of Union, Benton, Tippah and Marshall Counties.
The internet service provider, currently serving nearly 7,000 subscribers in Alcorn County, was one of the first service providers in America to offer 10 gigabit symmetrical broadband to 100% of its service territory.
After completing the mainline build to envelop the entirety of Alcorn County in less than two years, the for-profit, wholly owned subsidiary of Alcorn County Electric Power Association has its sights set on increasing the scale of its network operations by utilizing excess fiber that will be built by NALGW for the purposes of grid modernization.
“We are very fortunate to have an opportunity to scale our network by leveraging the infrastructure that will be built by New Albany Light, Gas and Water,” said ACE Fiber’s CEO, Eddie Howard. “The partnership we are creating will benefit both Alcorn and Union Counties, respectively.”
The sentiment is shared by NALGW, “This project offers a lot of promise for our electric system,” said Bill Mattox, NALGW’s General Manager. “In addition to constructing a network to facilitate our grid modernization efforts, all of our customers will now have access to world class broadband service at an affordable price. We are very appreciative to our Mayor and Board of Aldermen for having the vision to pursue this project.”
Alcorn County Electric Power Association is one of seventeen electric cooperatives in Mississippi that formed either a subsidiary or a division, with the purpose of providing broadband services to their electric membership.
As of the end of August, those cooperatives have invested over $650 million, running over 21,000 miles of fiber-optic cable, and serving over 80,000 homes and businesses.
“We have seen that the fiber infrastructure that is being built by the electric cooperatives has proven to be superior to what the incumbent providers have been offering for far too long,” said Sean McGrath, Chief Financial Officer with ACE Fiber. “New Albany and Corinth are very similar in a lot of ways. We feel like we had a good game plan for Corinth and that we can replicate that in New Albany by offering a world-class internet service, backed up by a customer service experience that is second to none.”
Both parties hope to begin the initial design and architecture of the network by the fall of 2022. It is believed that fiber services to New Albany and surrounding areas could begin as early as the third quarter of 2023.
“Working together with local leaders, we have searched and searched for a permanent solution to get high-speed internet service to every customer of New Albany Light, Gas and Water for several years,” said Northern District Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley. “Once again, we see how community partnerships solve problems. This partnership with ACE Fiber both closed the digital divide for NAGLW customers and makes good financial sense for everyone involved. I’m honored to have worked alongside these two good organizations. We can now say, without hesitation, that help is on the way.”
https://i0.wp.com/nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Brandon-Presley-and-Bill-Mattox.jpg?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=16001200NEMiss.Newshttps://nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/nemiss-full-logo-300x77.jpgNEMiss.News2022-09-24 11:22:292022-09-24 11:22:30FINALLY: true high-speed internet service will be available in 2023 for folks in Union County, parts of surrounding counties
A hearing about next year’s city budget and condemning a dilapidated house were among the items before New Albany Board of Aldermen on September 6.
The budget hearing was sort of a non-event in that no aldermen and no one else in the room had any comment or questions. The board unanimously approved the budget at the end of its Tuesday evening. NEMiss.News will publish more detail about the budget in coming days.
Next on the agenda was a property hearing.
A man faced with having his house condemned and torn down, tried to explain his situation to the New Albany Board of Aldermen.
Farris property on S. Central Avenue.
Ray E. Farris told the board that lawful title to the property at 1300 South Central Avenue was a tangle of legal issues. He said he thought he was to inherit the property under the terms of the will of his late mother.
However, Farris said he does not have a clear title to the property. While the exact nature of the snarled ownership did not become clear Tuesday evening, Farris implied that part of the problem was a lack of cooperation from relatives, who may also claim some ownership interest.
Code Enforcement Officer Eric Thomas told the aldermen that the Farris property is not “fit for human habitation.” He said the house is so dilapidated that it would cost more to fix it that it would be worth.
Farris agreed the house was in bad shape, but said, “All it needs is new floor and a new roof.” He said he was actually living in a garage attached to the house and had been paying the annual property taxes out of his pocket.
Code Officer Thomas said he had been working to get something done about the house since 2017, and all possible owners he knew of had received legal notification that the city would move to condemn and demolish the property.
The board voted to give Ray Farris one more month to make progress on fixing the problems with the house, However, he was told the board would act to condemn the property at its October 4 meeting if no significant progress had been made.
Other business before the Board included:
Builder and developer Terry Young told the board he was moving forward with plans for Albany West, a planned community he intends to build on property west of Park Plaza Drive. Young said he expects to present the completed plans for Albany West to the board at its November meeting.
Bill Mattox, manager of the city owned New Albany Lights, Gas and Water (NALGW), asked the board to approve a payment for work on the renovated NALGW building to Roberts Construction for $208,650. The board approved that payment.
Another payment for $56,430 to Eubank Construction for work on the Moss Hill Drive Pumping Station was approved.
Police Chief Robertson asked the board to approve spending $130,666 for furniture for the new police department headquarters, to be located in the old Fred’s Building being renovated by NALGW. The board approved the request for the furniture, which will be purchased under the state contract.
The board had asked for bids work to resurface the tennis courts at the tennis complex. The city received only one bid, which was 32% higher than the estimates provide by the city’s consulting engineer. That bid was rejected and another request for bids will be sent out.
The next regular meeting of the New Albany city board will be at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, October 4.
https://i0.wp.com/nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Ray-Farris-addreses-City-Board.jpg?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=16001200NEMiss.Newshttps://nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/nemiss-full-logo-300x77.jpgNEMiss.News2022-09-07 04:20:062022-09-07 04:20:06New Albany Board rejects bid for work on tennis courts
A NALGW crew working under difficult conditions to restore power. 8-9-22
UPDATE, 3 PM, TUESDAY, AUG. 9: Linemen and other workers from New Albany Lights, Gas, and Water (NALGW) stayed with it until all NALGW customers had power restored. The last customer that lost power had it back on at 2:30 a.m today, Tuesday.; most had power by 1:35 a.m. Line crews worked in sometimes heavy rain and with lightning and thunder popping all around them until they finished the job. THANKS, GUYS!
Several hundred New Albany homes and businesses lost electrical service when a thunderstorm swept through early Monday evening.
The intense, fast-moving storm struck New Albany about 7:30 pm.
Trees and tree limbs blew down, carrying power lines with them, in scattered parts of the city.
Baptist Memorial Hospital-Union County lost power, but power at the hospital was restored within about an hour. Most of the damage was in the city’s Historical Northside residential district. Large trees were down across several northside streets. NALGW crews had to clean up trees before they could start repairing downed power lines.
A NALGW crew working under difficult conditions to restore power. 8-9-22 Most of the Northside was still without power as this story was posted, about six hours after the storm hit.
NALGW Manager Bill Mattox said crews would work until power is fully restored.
Union County Emergency Management Director Curt Clayton told NEMISS.News shortly before midnight, that he knew of no injuries or significant property damage anywhere in the county.
The upside of this story is that large portions of Northeast Mississippi received much needed and substantial rain.
https://i0.wp.com/nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/2187C73B-2BCF-4950-9EAA-013B62C29FC3-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C756&ssl=17561200Nan Shiverdeckerhttps://nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/nemiss-full-logo-300x77.jpgNan Shiverdecker2022-08-09 01:22:172022-08-09 14:57:41Fast moving thunderstorm leaves damage, power outages in New Albany
Bob Barber of the Orion Group told New Albany Aldermen during their July 5 meeting, “We have come to the end of the process.”
Barber referred to the work started five years ago to develop a comprehensive plan for the city. During 2018 the Board of Aldermen retained the Orion Group to take a professional look at the city’s zoning code and assist city leaders in anticipating and planning for the city’s future needs. The comprehensive plan was the first item on the board’s July 5 agenda.
Numerous meetings and more than $100,000 in professional fees to Orion Group went into the development of the highly detailed plan. Barber was telling the city board it was time to adopt the comprehensive plan that had been five years in development. The Orion Group had finished its work..
City attorney Regan Russell recommended that the board delay acting on the comprehensive plan until it resolved what the city’s position was going to be on the legal sale of marijuana. The city’s comprehensive zoning would have to specify where marijuana dispensaries could be located and other rules sellers of medical marijuana might be required to follow.
Marijuana was the second item on the July 5 agenda, which read “Cannabis hearing cancelled.” Several opponents of allowing medical marijuana to be sold in the city were present at the meeting, apparently believing they would be heard. It was unclear as to why the hearing was not held on July 5, but it was rescheduled for the August 1 meeting of the board.
District 3 State Senator Kathy Chism, a leader of the opposition to the legal sale of medical marijuana, asked for assurances that the hearing would be held in a room larger than the city council chambers, the occupancy of which is limited to 31 people. The board agreed that the marijuana hearing would be at the Magnolia Civic Center, which can accommodate many more people.
Thus went the first two items on the city board’s July 5 agenda.
Next on the agenda were hearings on condemned houses at 605 Baker Street, 610 Baker Street, 614 Baker Street and 609 Martin Street. Tiffany Johnson, who said she was an owner and manager of the four properties, asked the board for additional delay in tearing down the dilapidated houses. Ward 3 Alderman Kevin Dale White pointed out to Johnson that the city board had been patient for a couple of years and the time has come for the houses to be torn down. Johnson promised that the house at 614 Baker would be torn down by Sept. 30, 2022.
Left to right are: Ward 1 Alderman Parks Smith, Ward 2 Alderman Drew Horn, Alderman-at-Large Keith Conlee, Ward 3 Alderman Kevin Dale White, Ward 4 Alderman Will Tucker, Mayor Tim Kent and Code Enforcement Officer Eric Thomas.
Eric Thomas, the city’s code enforcement officer, was honored last month as Mississippi’s “Building Official of the Year” by the Building Officials Association of Mississippi. He was recognized and commended by the board for this honor at the July 5 board meeting.
Bill Mattox, manager of the city-owned New Albany Lights, Gas, and Water, asked for and received approval for a payment of $356,014.25 to Roberts Construction for work done on the old Fred’s building, which is being renovated to serve as headquarters for NALGW and the New Albany Police Department.
Mattox also asked for and received approval for the purchase of one 2,500 KVA pad-mounted transformer from Arkansas Electric Cooperative for $67,207.
Chase Jeter, director of the New Albany Parks and Recreation Department, told the board the city had received two bids for building a “spray park” in the Park-Along-the-River. The board approved the lower bid of $194,738.
The board approved increases in two fees for services provided by the solid waste department. The fee for the weekend use of a “trash truck” was increased from $75 to $125. The monthly fee for residential garbage service was increased by two dollars to $11.95 per month.
The next meeting of the New Albany Board of Aldermen will be at 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, August 1.
New Albany developer Terry R. Young disclosed initial plans to build a new Master Planned Community on property his family owns near Interstate 22.
Young described the plans to the New Albany Board of Aldermen during the board’s meeting at city hall, Tuesday, June 7.
Young said the new development would be known as “Albany West” and would include single and multiple family housing, as well as retail space, restaurants and space for professional service providers. Much planning work for Albany West has already been done by architects and engineers, but Young emphasized that the conception of the development was still in its early stages.
The “main street” for Albany West would be the street now known as Virginia Way that runs west from Park Plaza Drive between Tractor Supply and El Algave Restaurant. The development is planned as a “walkable” community.
Young said the “downtown” part of the new development would be a mixture of two and three story buildings with retail space on the ground floors and residential space on the upper floors.
Free standing cottages, which could be occupied by retirees, would be built around a commons area in another part of the Albany West development.
The Albany West community would have an amphitheater for outdoor events and a chapel that could be used as an event center.
Young said he would return to city officials in future months with further details, including permitting needed to assure that the new development conforms with New Albany planning and zoning regulations.
The Tuesday night agenda included condemnation hearings for residential structures located at 604 Booker, 605, 610 and 614 Baker Street, and 609 Martin. However, the manager of several of the properties was said to be ill with coronavirus and unable to attend the hearing. Therefore, aldermen deferred action on these items until their July meeting.
New Albany Lights, Gas, and Water Manager Bill Mattox submitted pay requests for several projects he oversees including. The board unanimously approved requests for:
$58,581 for the street lights project.
346, 987.50 to Roberts Construction for the Municipal Building Renovations.
$197,925 to Eubank Construction for the Moss Hill Drive pumping station.
Additionally, the board approved a request from Mattox to purchase 18 voltage regulators for a total amount of $491,850. The regulators are from Siemans, and are for the new electric substation.
A group opposed to Mississippi’s new medical marijuana law asked to be on the board’s agenda to speak against allowing the sale of medical marijuana in New Albany. The board allowed the group 15 minutes to speak. Five speakers shared the 15 minutes. They were Kathy Chism, Scott Maxey, Lori Sharam, Sue Morrison and Bill Thurman. The same five, and several others, appeared before the Union County Board of Supervisors to oppose the sale of medical marijuana in the county on April 26, 2022.
The arguments the group made to the city board were essentially same as the ones they made in April. Several Southern Baptist clergymen spoke against marijuana at the April 26 meeting, but none of them spoke to the city board Tuesday night. A link to NEMiss.News articles about what was said at the April meeting may be found below.
The next meeting of the New Albany Board of Aldermen will be at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 5.
https://i0.wp.com/nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Terry-Young-at-City-Board-6-7-2022.jpg?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=16001200NEMiss.Newshttps://nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/nemiss-full-logo-300x77.jpgNEMiss.News2022-06-10 01:31:432022-06-10 01:35:27Developer Terry Young presents initial plans to City Board for Albany West, a Master Planned Community
What started as a landscaping project led to a break in a major water main and two days of work for New Albany’s utility and fire departments.
NAFD employees assisting with water main repair. Photo: courtesy NAFD
Monday morning, May 9, workers for the Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) were removing shrubbery from the state right-of-way at the intersection of Highway 30 and Bankhead St. (Highway 178). The MDOT workers apparently realized their work was near a water main, so contacted New Albany Lights Gas and Water (NALGW) for assistance.
NALGW crews and equipment went to the location to assist the MDOT workers. While digging around the water line to remove the shrubbery, a large piece of rip rap rock was dislodged and fell onto the eight-inch fresh water main, breaking it. (White limestone rip rap rock weighs about 1.5 tons per cubic yard).
A geyser of water and mud erupted when the rock broke the water main, interrupting water service to that part of town. NALGW crews repaired the break in the main.
Then it was discovered that a second break in the eight-inch water main had had occurred in a spot that was not accessible to NALGW equipment. A private contractor with specialized equipment was then called to the scene.
NALGW Manager Bill Mattox said city workers and the private contractor worked until midnight Monday night repairing the damage and getting water service restored.
Meanwhile, water service was curtailed to many customers, including Baptist Memorial Hospital-Union County (BMH), which is about 200 yards up the hill from where the water main was broken. Because of the critical nature of the work of the hospital, an emergency water line was run to the hospital by the New Albany Fire Department (NAFD) and BMH personnel.
New Albany Fire Chief Mark Whiteside told NEMiss.News Tuesday, “Their chillers were low on water. Last night (Monday) we went up there and put water in their chillers.”
Water pressure problems continued at the hospital into the day Tuesday. “Tuesday morning water pressure at the hospital was low,” said Whiteside. “We connected a five-inch fire hose to the hospital’s water system so their system would work.”
Workers & equipment at the broken water main work site.
Whiteside said although damage to the water main was believed fully repaired, the five-inch fire hose into the hospital’s system would stay in place until sometime Wednesday to assure a back-up if further problems develop.
https://i0.wp.com/nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Water-main-break-feature.jpg?fit=1200%2C596&ssl=15961200NEMiss.Newshttps://nemiss.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/nemiss-full-logo-300x77.jpgNEMiss.News2022-05-10 23:37:282022-05-10 23:37:28New Albany city crews worked to repair a broken water main and assure water service to Baptist Hospital
