LEWISBURG W.Va. (WVDN) – The Lewisburg City Council meeting for December was held on Dec. 19 in the Paul Cooley chambers. It was well attended by over a dozen citizens. Two issues were most interesting for these guests.
Hammer Cycles bike shop was represented by Clay Elkins and Nicole Falk with a request for a letter of support in their seeking grants to construct a skills course in Dorey Miller Park. The location being considered is currently blocked by water project supplies but will be available come next summer and could be two years before the skills course would be constructed.
There are six acres, including a vertical climb area perfect for the skills course, “a biker playground for kids,” said Elkins.
Also mentioned is the plan for Hammer Cycles to move their business to Lewisburg proper, sometime in January 2024. They will be operating out of this Lewisburg facility but continuing their group rides and trail work in White Sulphur Springs.
The Council approved the statement and without providing any financial commitment, they will operate as a pass-through for grants sought by Hammer Cycles.
A Video Lottery Funds grant was requested by Greenbrier East Choir for travel expenses to two locations. They have had an expected grant fall through, so all of a sudden, they are short of funds to get the choir members to these planned competitions.
Amanda Buker spoke to the Council and she also introduced a choir member who spoke. The urgency for the funds is part of the need, since most fundraising has been going on for quite a while, and then all of a sudden there is an unexpected shortfall.
Attendance to these choir competitions can benefit the students involved when it comes time to apply for college scholarships, the participation in choir competitions is listed as an activity achieved in high school. Most of these students missed out as sophomores due to COVID-19 cancellations and this is their senior year and last chance to compete on a state and national level.
The city council agreed that this school based activity was so valuable that part of the request was granted. Currently, the video lottery has $13,500 in funds.
The City Council granted $3,000 for a trip to Charlotte North Carolina, a national competition chosen to replace the Florida one that is lost now due to funding lapse.
Another $4,000 will be granted for the trip to Charleston for the All State competition, for which 19 of the students from Greenbrier East have been selected. There is a difference in the funds required for these competitions due to housing and meals.
The third interesting presentation came during the public comment at the end of the council meeting. Ross German and Lance Syner spoke about their wish for a street-identifying sign on Stratton Alley.
The post office and some deliveries do acknowledge there are shops located on Stratton Alley, but there is no map that does nor a phone app that locates the street for potential customers.
The Shops of Stratton Alley could benefit if there were some guidance to help customers find their location. City Manager Misty Hill suggested this may be accomplished two ways: on the Kiosk which will have a locator map similar to a mall map and will actually be situated at one end of the “walking” Stratton Alley, also some artwork with an artsy sign pointing the way to Stratton Alley could be painted on a building.
These were suggestions coming from an extended conversation between the city manager and the business representatives. There will be more discussions to help them formulate a solution for helping customers find them.
Other future considerations that City Manager Misty Hill mentioned to the council are the Kiosk construction estimate of around $7,000 and the sign entering the City of Lewisburg looks like $21,000. These estimates include electric hook-ups and brickwork. A formal final estimate involving all the expected costs will be available after the New Year.
Greenbrier Historic Society requested from the Arts and Recreation Grant program $1,500 for the Shanghai Parade and their request was approved by the council.
Water Project payments were made to vendors totaling $3,154,379.91 and a change order by J.R. Allen Company was also approved for $33,354.16. The change order came as a result of discoveries during the installation of the pipeline through Lewisburg to Fairlea finding unexpected branches which no longer were needed and closing those off.
The Enterprise lease for city vehicles was reviewed and two older vehicles will be retired and sold at auction in the spring. In their place, the city will lease a 2023 450 dump truck for $7,500 down and a lease on $18,317,23. This dump truck should be adequate for the tasks that the older vehicle could not handle and will be a great benefit to the city use.
A conditional use application for 395 Maple Street was given a public hearing, owner and Council Member Franklin Johnson excused himself from the room completely to allow any public comment during the hearing. There was no opposition, so the conditional use permit for a 3+ bedroom air B&B was approved.
When Franklin Johnson returned to the podium, he was very pleased and expressed his joy in learning about the city and its many public works and fire and police departments. He learned this since being on the council because he is present for every council meeting now. But he says he is thrilled to live in a city with safe streets and safe drinking water.
