Civic Corner: Board of Aldermen Recap – February 15, 2022
By Ricki Garrett, PhD, Alderwoman at Large
The Mayor and Board of Aldermen had an interesting and productive discussion at our Monday night work session related to the ongoing drainage issues in the city of Clinton. Ward 3 Alderman Chip Wilbanks had asked about the possibility of doing a city-wide study of the drainage, and, in response, our Consulting City Engineer Bill Owen provided a report to the Board.
The report included a map of the multiple streams in Clinton, a draft of what the study could potentially include, and information on a study previously done in Clinton. For those whose property is being flooded, this is a matter of great importance. For the Mayor and Board, it is also of great importance, but it is much more complicated than one would imagine.
First of all, over ninety percent of the property in Clinton is private, which means that the only way we can do work on it is through property acquisition. In fact, the reason the last study did not result in any meaningful change is because the City was not able to acquire the necessary property to accomplish the work.
Secondly, if the City makes a change in one part of the City’s drainage system in order to fix a flooding problem in one area, then it may possibly cause an even worse flooding problem in another part of the city. Also, if the City acquires property, then that property is the City’s responsibility from then on.
Finally, there is the cost of doing the study, as well as the cost of fixing any problems that the study uncovers. We will need grant funding to accomplish all of that.
However, in a desire to determine what some of the major problems are and to, hopefully, be able to address them, the Board voted in its meeting Tuesday evening to move forward to authorize our engineering firm WGK, Inc. to initiate the planning/investigation required to estimate costs for provision of a comprehensive city-wide stormwater/drainage plan.
Also in Tuesday night’s meeting, the Board of Aldermen approved the ordinances adopting the 2018 Codes produced by the International Code Council.
The Board also approved the purchase of equipment for the Public Works Department and awarded Hemphill Construction Company the work for the Trailwood Drive Sewer Repair.
The Board authorized the mayor to execute a letter for legal services between Clinton and the law firm of Watkins & Eager related to the Big Black River Sewer Project. The Boards of both Raymond and Bolton were also approving this item in order to move the project forward.
In other news, our Municipal Court Judge, Steven Boone, and his wife will be leaving Clinton in June to go to Brazil, in service to their church for the next three years. Our City Attorney, Will Purdie, will be serving as both the City Attorney and the Municipal Court Judge. He will serve as a Pro Tem Judge between now and June and then assume the fulltime role in June.
Finally, in an effort to improve the appearance of the six miles of right-of-way along I-20 in Clinton, the Board approved an experimental planting of Morning Light Maiden Grass. It is an award-winning ornamental grass with a fountain-like appearance, which, in the late summer to early fall, displays red plumes.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Space will be provided in each issue of The Clinton Courier to the Board of Aldermen for a recap of each meeting. Aldermen are asked to volunteer to provide this recap for the Courier.
