BY MELISSA PYLE
Telegraph Staff Writer
Bradford Health Department’s Iana Patterson, representing Bradford Community Partners, told Lawtey council members last week the city will be hosting the newest Patterson was excited to Community Health and Wellness Resource Hub once a month.
The hub will be at Tatum Bros. Park recreation building on the second Thursday of each month. The grand opening is Dec. 14 from 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Patterson said it has been a long-term goal to bring the team of community partners, businesses and volunteers to “bring resources to local neighborhoods and address the barriers to people in secluded areas”.
There is no appointment necessary and some of the services offered at the grand opening of the new hub are the UF mobile unit, Meridian Behavioral Healthcare, Elder Options, United Way, Hope Florida, and Feeding Northeast Florida will be presenting a cooking class at the opening.
Patterson encouraged the council to get the information out to the Lawtey community so that the resources offered will reach as many people as possible.
The Resource Hub needs individual volunteers, and Patterson stressed the need for organizations like churches, businesses and local governments to volunteer to help citizens navigate the services offered. Patterson said they do have a Facebook page where people can find out more information about what is being offered at the hub each month. (Search for Bradford Community Partners Health and Wellness Resource Hub.)
Generators, signs and security
There were two other public comments, each addressed Lawtey safety concerns. Citizen Mercier asked about the generators owned by the city, one at the water treatment plant and one sitting by the city building. He wanted to make sure they are routinely serviced. City Clerk Lisa Harley responded that they are serviced regularly. Later in the meeting Harley said she does need to call the electrician to service and connect the generator that would provide emergency power to city hall.
Mercier also asked about new street signs. He wanted to know if they could “be proactive in getting the signs made through the state” instead of waiting to order them when there is a crew to do the work of installation. He suggested that signs are not going to take up too much space and could be stored in one of the buildings. Harley said there was no room to store signs in any of the city buildings. Councilwoman Debra Norman suggested using recreation building storage for this purpose, Harley said it was too full, but space could be made there if the recreation storage area was cleaned out.
Mercier concluded his remarks by also requesting they include “old business” on the agenda. He would like updates to be given on issues brought to the council in previous meetings, as well as progress done on resolving them.
Citizen Vyunda Strong wanted an update on safety issues she previously presented to the council. Strong expressed great concern for the security of the city’s water treatment plant. She suggested that without a good locking door and security system, the Lawtey water system is open to attacks.
Mayor Jimmie Scott responded by saying there is a grant out to help small communities update water systems. Strong suggested simple and inexpensive fixes that can be done immediately. Scott said they could begin routine security checks as well as analyze the security of the current locks and doors, per Strong’s suggestions.
Legal fee reimbursement
One item of lengthy discussion on the agenda was the request for the reimbursement of attorney’s fees. Councilwoman Amy Blom made a motion to approve the request, but Councilwoman Virginia Warner wanted to address Councilwoman Emily Hoffman and the city attorney, Aaron Dukes, about the high costs and the validity of them being reimbursed.
Warner said she was only questioning the fees because they seemed high and were for a filing that was dismissed due to its lack of merit. Dukes stated that the fees were fair for the services rendered and Hoffman responded that the only reason she had to hire an attorney was to respond to an ethics complaint by five other people. Hoffman said each of the five complaints had to be addressed separately and this explained the higher amount.
Hoffman explained that she did not start the investigation and said it frustrated her that city time and money was used to file these complaints and investigations.
After much discussion, the fees were voted to be submitted for an insurance reimbursement, but the city has a $2,500 deductible. The total for the fees charged was $4,770.
Housekeeping
The remainder of the meeting was used to discuss some basic housekeeping issues like the purchase of a new office computer, sidewalks, and tree removal. The request for the purchase of an office computer was approved at $2,200.
Streets and sanitation gave an update on the sidewalks that have been in the works for years. The council voted to adopt the interlocal agreement with the county for the sidewalk design. The plan is to design and install sidewalks on Park and Adams streets. These sidewalks will provide safe walking access to the school.
The tree bid was presented and approved at $53,900. The trees are in danger of falling in future storms and the need to remove them is an immediate safety concern. There was a total of eight bids submitted. Terry McCarthy Tree Services was selected for the tree removal job. Harley said the company stated they could start work as soon as possible.
The police department presented the cost of front-end repairs completed on a 2019 Dodge Charger. These repairs were approved at the price of $1,846. The department also thanked the Pink Lady Auxiliary for the donation of emergency kits.
