SYLACAUGA — The City Council and Mayor Sam Wright continue negotiations with Avondale officials in an effort to purchase the company’s local holdings.In a work session Tuesday, Wright, council President Doug Murphree, Councilmen Ken Horn, Henry Looney and Harold Ward discussed the property and what future steps may be taken.
One of those steps is asking Avondale officials for more time to consider options regarding the property, Wright said.
“We are interested in the property, but need more time in an effort to carefully look at all the aspects involved in buying the property. We want to make sure Avondale understands we are interested in the property, but we need more time to let our folks think about this,” he said.
Murphree said this is an investment for the city that is going to make a positive impact, yet the council needs time to study this purchase.
The city has made Avondale an offer on the property, which includes the plants, administrative office and hundreds of acres of land.
The administrative office includes the furniture but not office equipment.
City officials have toured the Avondale property, but Looney said more time is needed to make a final decision on purchasing it.
Horn agreed the council needs to make sure everything is in order with all the property prior to making a decision and more time is needed to do that.
The city also wants a phase one environmental study of the mill property.
Ward said Avondale, the Comers and the Felkers have been a vital and integral part of the city’s history, where four generations worked nearly 100 years, sharing excellent work ethics.
“It is my honest opinion that Avondale owners owe it to these dedicated workers and to all of our God fearing citizens and we, the council, owe it to our God fearing citizens to responsibly explore potential, practical and progressive development bringing paychecks to our citizens,” Ward said.
He said the city is prepared and has been negotiating in good faith as to the possible acquisition of Avondale’s 682 acres inclusive, its 50,000 square foot general office on a 19 acre site, 72 acre state permitted landfill, 12 water wells capable of producing more than one million gallons of water a day, a one million gallon storage tank, various holding ponds, a sewage treatment plant and more than one and a half million square feet of space in Eva Jane, Catherine and Central cotton mills, which sit on a 58-acre site.
Ward said Avondale owners must realize no government entity, especially a local one such as Sylacauga, can responsibly move on something this big without doing careful homework, employing those with specific experience in these respective areas “because it is over our heads. First we must clearly determine exactly what it is we are buying, what we plan to do with it, and the city must simply understand the who, what and when of such a big business deal while crossing all our ‘t’s’ and ‘i’s’, which legally we should do.”
Ward said the Avondale property deal is pretty much a “hero or zero situation.”
“We, the council, want to prudently have an appraisal, have a study done to answer our environmental concerns, which is a hurdle any responsible buyer would do, as well as listen to our experienced attorneys, which we have hired. Hopefully, Avondale owners will allow us reasonable time as we deal in good faith on this and to allow us to do the environmental study within the next 90 days,” Ward said.
In another matter, the bid for the drainage project from West Fourth Street to West Eighth Street came in $188,000 above budget, said Kathy McHugh, a consultant with Roth, McHugh and Associates.
Wright said he thinks the city’s Street Department can do the project using the grant money and city funds.
The city recently amended its 2004 grant for drainage improvements in the downtown area through the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs.
The city received a $500,000 grant from ADECA from Community Development Block Grant funds several years ago to solve drainage issues in the area, while providing $282,400 in local funds.
Wright said he, Street Department superintendent Tommy Woolley and city planner Tom Rumsey met last week about the project.
“I think we can do it. We’ll have to keep some employees on the project and not pull them away, unless it is an emergency,” Wright said.
McHugh said the city must finish the project no later than March 30, 2007, based on the grant requirement.
“If we can stay on the project, we can do it. I would need more concrete people to work on the larger areas of the project. The key is staying on it,” Woolley said.
Wright said it just made sense for the city employees to do it.
The budget for the project is $596,000.
The council will have to reject the bids submitted and order materials for the project at its next meeting.
The city would have 120 days to complete the project.
The city will also have to work with the Utilities Board on water, sewer and gas lines.
