Lansing aldermen seemed to be playing musical chairs at this month’s meeting, but instead of having too few chairs, one remained empty.
Following Steve Greer’s resignation in August, this month Mark Goss stepped down from the board. This would have left two vacant seats but Dylan Lightfoot was sworn in and joined aldermen Brenda Reeves, Mauvine Shepherd and Jack Brown along with Town Clerk Bernice Prestwood and Mayor George Rembert at the table.
One of the first orders of business was discussion of the decision to replace the traffic light with a three-way stop. Ann Rose of the Greater Lansing Area Development Committee said that she thought a second three-way stop “would be the key to get traffic to slow down through town.” Rembert said, “I would personally rather not have two three-way stops,” because it might be difficult for drivers leaving the grocery store. This issue will be discussed further at a later date.
Emergency management coordinator, Patty Gambill was present to witness the adoption of the High Country Regional Hazard Mitigation Plan which enabled the area to be eligible for federal disaster relief funds.
Tim Church, water resources director, explained that Lansing paid penalties related to the analysis of a new well due to the specific window of time during which the analysis was to be completed. “It’s frustrating because it’s a technicality…public health and safety were not compromised,” Church said. “It was just a matter of timing.”
Rose spoke to the board about the possibility of purchasing land to become part of the town park. She suggested several uses for the land including extending the walking trail, adding a second stage for the Ola Belle Reed Festival, installing raised gardens, and providing additional parking for area businesses.
Rose said, “I’d like for [GLAD’s] efforts to be approved of by the aldermen so we could all work together on this.” She said that federal parks and recreation grants could provide the majority of the funds and the project would rely on private donations for the rest.
Shepherd said that some funding could probably be obtained through health and wellness, as the organization is “really pushing for people to take care of themselves…I think it’s a good thing.”
Other matters discussed at the meeting included a memorial for former mayor Jason Ring, bids for snow removal, hauling trash from a residential property, and adding a drainage pipe on the walking trail.
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