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By DONALD MOTTERN | Staff Writer

PELHAM – It was a night focused on education and the establishment of a new business location in the city of Pelham as the Pelham City Council met for its first regularly scheduled work session and meeting of the month on Monday, April 1.

The Council began the evening with a work session focused largely on the subject of education and carried out interviews for Pelham Board of Education Place No. 1. Current incumbent Bob O’Neil, whose current term is expiring, was among the four total candidates interviewed for the appointment.

The interview process went back to the original ranking system typically used by the council when interviewing for such positions and saw candidates Markus Snowden, Judy Mannings, Angelyn Huguley and O’Neil all sit for separate and uniform interview sessions where each answered the same prepared questions.

The council plans to announce its decision on the position by the end of the month, with whomever is selected being sworn in for the new term on June 1.

Immediately following the interviews, the Council also heard an update from Pelham City Schools Superintendent Chuck Ledbetter on the status and current trends of the school system.

“It is always a pleasure to be able to talk about Pelham City Schools,” Ledbetter said. “I have told you all many times, and I will continue to say it, we have the greatest educators anywhere of any place that I have ever seen—any place that I’ve ever been.”

Ledbetter cited multiple qualities during his speech he felt lent Pelham its greatness, focusing first on the community and what he referred to as the Pelham family, but also later extended credit to the district’s focus on the sectors of academics, arts and athletics.

“People want to be here,” Ledbetter said.

Ledbetter further stated that the school system currently projects the student population to remain steady for the foreseeable future with a projected one percent average growth for the next 10 years.

“That’s healthy,” Ledbetter said. “We can manage that.”

The current student population of Pelham City Schools is 3,418 students, which has held relatively steady now for the past two years.

Ledbetter also hit among many topics that those in the school system view as positive trending metrics, such as PCS now offering dual enrollment courses in participation with nine higher-level schools and universities.

Ledbetter also touched upon the district’s focus on numerous arts programs and that PCS has achieved an A-grade ranking from Niche rankings and has also attained the seventh place ranking as most diverse school district in the state, the 12th district with the best teachers in the state and an overall ranking as the 12th best school district in Alabama.

Following Ledbetter’s update, the Pelham City Council unanimously passed its consent agenda, which consisted of the following:

• Approval to participate in the state’s 2024 “Back to School” Sales Tax Holiday for the weekend of July 19-21. The resolution also stated Pelham’s intention to partake in all future “Back to School” Sales Tax Holidays until rescinded by the Council.
•  Entering into a marketing agreement with WBRC Fox 6 to secure the title sponsorship in WBRC Fox 6’s Summer Staycation campaign set to run from May 31 through July 29. This was a budgeted expense for the 2024 fiscal year.
• Accepting a bid from Tren-Tray, Inc. for the Aaron Road-Kristen Circle Water Main Replacement Project. This was a budgeted expense for the 2024 fiscal year.
• Accepting a proposal from Champion Electric LLC to convert lighting in the courtroom to LED lighting. This was a budgeted expense for the 2024 fiscal year.
• Accepting responsibility for the electrical bill only for one new streetlight at 1713 Woodview Lane. This was a budgeted expense for the 2024 fiscal year.
• Accepting a proposal from Gillespie Construction for storm sewer repairs to include the replacement of corrugated plastic drainage pipe at 212 Stonebrook Lane and the replacement of concrete valley gutters and driveway affected by the construction. This was a budgeted expense for the 2024 fiscal year.

 

The city also recognized a proclamation from Mayor Gary Waters that declared the month of April 2024 as Sexual Assault Awareness month throughout the city and specifically acknowledged the work of SafeHouse for helping those in the community facing such crimes and other matters dealing with domestic violence.

“Thank you for the opportunity to be here this evening and your commitment to SafeHouse,” SafeHouse Executive Director Janelle Sierra said. “SafeHouse has been a part of Pelham for almost 35 years and your continued annual financial support plus your public stance against violence in our community is an important example to everyone here and is always appreciated.”

Among the most awaited measures to be passed by the Council in some time, the Pelham City Council also unanimously passed and approved an agreement between the city and Jacks Family Restaurants, LP for the purchase and sale of real estate that will see the construction of a new Jack’s restaurant near the Pelham Tractor Supply. Following the conclusion of the vote and council comments on the measure, a short round of applause broke out among those in attendance.

“Jacks has been around Pelham for a long time and we are proud to have you all as a partner and we look forward to the positive impact you will have on our community,” Councilmember Rick Wash said.

The Council further approved the following resolutions:

• Approval of a job description and pay grades for the position of assistant city manager within the Administration Department that was previously reviewed and approved by the Pelham Personnel Board.
• Approval of a job description and pay grades for the position of senior financial analyst within the Finance Department previously reviewed and approved by the Pelham Personnel Board.
• Approval of a job description for the position of assistant emergency medical services director within the Pelham Fire Department previously reviewed and approved by the Pelham Personnel Board.