BY TRACY LEE TATE
Special to the Times
LAKE BUTLER—The City of Lake Butler is in the process of selecting and purchasing some new playground equipment, primarily for Lakeside Park, making use of a grant made by the Union County Department of Health designated for the updating and replacement of American Disabilities Act adaptive and inclusive playground equipment.
The total grant amount is $50,825.62, half of which will be paid upfront to help purchase the equipment. The city will have to match that amount at the time of purchase but will be reimbursed with the other half of the grant funds upon project completion.
Lake Butler Public Works will handle the site preparation and installation of the equipment and will be responsible for its care and maintenance in the future. The city is responsible for pulling any necessary permits for the project.
The equipment must be ordered and paid for by May 15, 2024, so the city will temporarily shuffle some funds from the city’s General Fund to pay for its temporary match on the purchase.
Both Budget Analyst Dave Mecusker and Interim City Clerk Hayden Page agreed that the money would be available to be loaned to the Special Projects Fund, created to handle grant money, which must be sequestered from other city funds, and then be repaid when the second half of the grant funds were disbursed.
Commissioner Annette Redman made a motion to approve the loan of funds in the amount of $25,412.81 from the General Fund to the Special Projects Fund for the park revitalization project, with the motion seconded by Commissioner Fred Sirmones and passed unanimously.
Water park, bowling alley
In another recreation-related discussion, Fred Sirmones, Jr. talked about the Recreation Board that the city once had and dissolved in 2017. Mecusker gave the history of the matter, as he was City Manager when the board was disbanded. At one time, the city and county worked together on recreation and park maintenance but were advised by legal representation that it was not a good idea to combine forces. Hence, the city dissolved its board and put the care of public works under the auspices of Public Works.
Each year, the city makes a $5,000 donation to the county recreation department to compensate for city residents’ use of its facilities. Vice-Mayor Melissa Hendrix stated that, due to the city’s current financial condition, it could not afford to give any more. Sirmones, Jr. then outlined plans for creating more varied recreational opportunities for city and county residents, including a water park and a bowling alley. Commissioner Rondoll Huggins thanked Sirmones, Jr. for his presentation but asked that the board provide a visual outline or business plan to examine it.
In other business…
The fact that the county had a city fire truck, apparently left in the fire department building, which the city granted the county the use of when it (the city) dissolved its fire department. The county has maintained the truck and done extensive repair work to keep it available for use. It was recently discovered that the vehicle’s title was still in the city’s name, and the ownership issue resulted from a misunderstanding between the city and the county. Since the city no longer has a fire department, Redman made a motion, seconded by Hendrix, that the title to the vehicle be signed over to the county, and the motion was approved unanimously.
Smoking, vaping banned
The board heard on first reading an ordinance that would ban smoking and vaping in city parks. Hendrix had asked that the ordinance be approved and adopted after the Lake Butler Middle School Students Working Against Tobacco club members presented the proposal to the board at a previous meeting. She said that the club had agreed to pay for the signage, and all the city would have to do was post the signs after the ordinance had passed on second reading. Hendrix’s motion was seconded by Redman and passed unanimously. Redman did raise the concern that certain people might not obey the ordinance and wondered how it would be handled. City Attorney John Maines responded that when it was discovered that someone was not complying with the rule, they would be asked to leave the premises. The ordinance will have its second reading at the regular December meeting of the commission and, if approved, will become official and enforceable.
