By Sherri Blevins
On August 7, 2023, Skeeter Logan, Chairman of the Rainsville Planning Commission, visited the Rainsville City Council meeting to express his opinion on the role of the Planning Commission and Council in accepting subdivision streets.
Chairman Logan explained that for the past two years, his Commission has been reviewing the City’s subdivision ordinances adopted into law. He said he also obtained from the Alabama League of Municipalities a 555-page document they have produced relating to council organizations, parliamentary procedures, basic municipal powers, territorial jurisdiction, revenue power, and other pertinent issues covering all aspects of municipal government.
Logan said, “After watching the last Council meeting, my concern is the adoption of subdivision streets in what we call Peaceful Acres.” Logan read an excerpt from the abovementioned document about street and road adoptions. He read, “…A town council may only accept streets after review by a municipal planning commission, Section 11-52-34 Code of Alabama 1975.” Logan continued reading a more detailed explanation of the requirements for a street to be accepted. One important step he mentioned was for a Professional Engineer (PE) licensed by a state board of registration to practice engineering, to examine the street or road, and ensure the project meets the required standards.
Logan indicated that a PE had not approved the streets in question and that problems with the roads needed addressing. To listen to Logan’s complete statement, visit MVN’s Facebook page and watch the August 7 Rainsville City Council work session.
After Logan completed his statement, the Councilmen, Mayor, and Logan discussed the acceptance of the roads in question. Councilman Blevins presented the Council and the Chairman with the information he found on the topic. Blevins explained that he had spoken to the subdivision builder and his wife about Peaceful Acres. Blevins asked if the Planning Commission had accepted the roads because he knew the process had started several months ago. The builder’s wife indicated that the process was still not complete. Blevins then asked if the builder had obtained the signature and approval for the subdivision’s acceptance from a PE. She said he had, and the paperwork had been turned in to the City in 2022. Blevins asked the builder for a copy of the paperwork, and after a few weeks, he received it. Blevins presented a copy of the reports to the Mayor, Council, and the Chairman. Andrew Cooper, PE with Cooper Engineering and Construction, LLC, signed and created the reports. The first report was dated October 13, 2022, and it contained pictures and explanations of corrections the builder needed to make to bring the roads up to code. Blevins then provided everyone with a second report dated November 14, 2022, stating that the referenced items needing to be addressed had been satisfactorily completed, and he recommended the property for acceptance.
Blevins said his understanding was that the paperwork had been turned in. Mayor Lingerfelt and Chairman Logan stated that they had not seen a copy of the report from Andrew Cooper, and they felt there were still problems that needed to be addressed that Engineer Sam Phillips had discovered and reported to the builder.
Chairman Logan then concluded, “My concern is that the procedure outlined by law hasn’t been followed. Whether it dates back to 1980 or what, if Alabama state law says it needs to be reviewed by the planning commission, it is our job to ensure these specifications are met. When they are, then we recommend to you all to accept it.”
Most of the Council agreed that the correct steps should be followed. During the regular meeting, the Council voted four to one to reject accepting the roads until the Planning Commission reviewed Cooper’s documents and discussed the road acceptance. The Council also agreed to set a special meeting to revisit the street acceptance after the Commission’s meeting. The Commission then met on August 9, and the Council met on August 10.
The Planning Commission conducted more research on the requirements and tabled the issue until more information could be gathered. Chairman Logan reported the committee’s findings during the Council’s special called meeting. After a lengthy discussion, the two groups better understood the process for approving subdivision street acceptance and agreed to do further research for future projects. The Council did accept the roads in Peaceful Acres as City streets with the provision that the developer would guarantee the work for an additional year after the required year guarantee and make agreed-upon repairs.
During the regular meeting, the following items were approved:
• Travel/training requests for Donna Johnson to attend a court conference
• Hiring Richard Goldin as a patrolman at $17.05 per hour
• Hiring Kevin Willoughby and Blake Edwards as CDL Drivers at $16.58 per hour
• $8,200 to JSU’s band to perform at the Rainsville Christmas Parade on November 30, 2023
• $500 sponsorship for Cub Scout Pack 184
• $100 sponsorship for DeKalb Shrine Club
• $2,500 for repairing a scoreboard at the Rainsville Field of Dreams
• $4,360 to Dan Patterson for a sound system in Rainsville City Park
The next regularly scheduled meeting is on August 21, 2023.