Council - Regular Meeting

House Representative, Mr. Carrie Underwood, and then we'll follow it by the pledge of allegiance. Mr. Underwood, thank you. Thank you very much for the chance to open in prayer. I appreciate that a lot. Let's pray together. God, I thank you for your blessings. God, we know that all good things come from you. And we thank you. We recognize you for that. Guide us and direct us in ways that we can say that we do the things that are good for the people that we live and work for and good for the glory of God. And I pray this in Christ's name. Amen. Amen. I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Mr. Light, if you'll call the role. Be happy to. Council member Hendris here. Council member Dixon here. Council member Bowling here. Council member Spence here. Council member King absent. Council President Simmons here. Madame President, we have five council members in attendance and therefore a quorum is present.

Thank you very much. At this time, we'll get the approval of the agenda, but we did add one uh which will be 12D and it is a um to apply for an a grant for a grant for the Alabama Historical Commission and there is it is a no matching funds. So, if we can um and we removed removed 11 W. Oh yes, and we did remove 11 W. So, at this time we can get a an approval a motion. So move second. Motion by Mr. Spence, second by Mr. Bowling. All in favor of the motion. 50. Motion carries. Thank you very much. At this time, we'll have a message from Mayor Tyler.

Miss Simmons, thank you very much. I I don't have a whole lot to uh to say today other than last Friday was a great day for the Scholes area with the announcement that is coming in with the the new jobs at Hrien over there. At this time, it's important for the city of Florence and Lardell County as well to be ready to capture some of the growth that's coming. So, we're working as a city with the department heads to hopefully uh forecast streamlining our permitting process, some of our infrastructure needs, and we're going to begin developing a plan how we can prepare ourselves for rooftops people living here and and prepare ourselves to be more attractive for some some retail recruitment because that's the part that that we want to capture uh very quickly. At this time, I don't want to delay him any longer. I would like uh Representative Carrie Underwood to come back. I think he has a proclamation that he would like to uh to present. You come to this this microphone right here. Representative Underwood.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Thank you, councel, for the chance to speak for just a second. I don't have anything more than 35 minutes, so it won't take long. 3 to 5 is where I live. Uh before I say anything else, since we brought up Friday, I want you to I want you to know, and this is not an assumption or a possibility, but the city of Florence played a major role in what happened Friday, not only in in the study of the company coming here because they want a good environment for the people who work for them. Okay. So, that's that's a subject of importance, but also in in the way it was shaped, you know, leading up to the days of the vote that um that Florence played a major role. And I want to say how much I appreciate my relationship with you as a council and with this city as a whole and with our mayor uh and that um we could work together so well in making this happen. this was absolutely a a Lauderdale and Florence thing and and your your your name your your status as an anchor city matters to all of us and it and it helped make Friday happen. So I wanted to say that before I got into this as well. So thank y'all for you know doing what you do and doing it so well. So um there is a resolution that was passed that was introduced by myself and um Representative Harrison, Representative Pettis that passed both houses. though it's a house joint resolution which means it's signed by the governor and it is in recognition of something that the city has been awarded is at the federal level. So I just got two two short things. I don't read the entirety of it because it's kind of boring, right? You don't like to hear the whereasses, but I I want to read just a little bit at the very top that says the National Community Development Association, which is the federal entity, has recognized the city of Florence and the Office of Planning and Community Development for its innovative approach to community development by awarding what is called the 2026 Audrey Nelson Community Develop Achievement Award for the Literacy Gardens at the Florence Lauderdale

Public Library. Now if if um if I remember right that was the grant was maybe 120,000 but the city through um the library friends of the library and various businesses and associations raised more than that uh I think to the tune of I don't know two or $300,000 in addition to so that's the commitment that we're looking for uh when it comes to decisions for grants stuff like that and so um here at the bottom says that we hardily congratulate the city of Florence and the office of planning and community development for receiving this 2026 Audrey Nelson Community Development Achievement Award for its impactful literacy gardens project and we offer this resolution in tribute to its remarkable efforts and uh this is signed by Secretary of State West Allen and and Governor Kavi as well. So, I present this to you as a state of Alabama saying, "We recognize your work and we thank you for being so community-minded."

Thank you'all very much. Thank you. Miss Simmons, I'm I've got one more proclamation that I may read a little more of, and I would like to ask Caroline Coleman, if you would please come forward and stand next to me while I present this. We are proud of uh of Miss Coleman and and I want to present a proclamation to her regarding uh her platform when she was Miss Tennessee Valley. I think I said that right. Is that right?

So let me read this proclamation and present this to Miss Coleman. says, u whereas longitudinal research demonstrates that personality and character related traits measured in childhood remain remarkably consistent into adulthood, influencing long-term behavior, relationships, and life outcomes. And whereas nationally, initiatives such as Be Best, launched by First Lady Melania Trump, highlight the importance of teaching children positive qualities such as kindness, respect, and emotional well-being. And whereas in Alabama, the Youth Leadership Development Program promotes leadership, service, and strong character among students across the state. And whereas while programs like these exist, character education is often overlooked in broader education conversations, research shows that character qualities such as perseverance and social intelligence account for approximately 19.7% of the variation in positive classroom behavior and 23.9% of the variation in overall school achievement among students. And whereas Caroline Coleman has chosen to help close this gap through her community service initiative entitled Character Counts: Becoming the Best Version of You, which focuses on bringing intentional conversations about honesty, respect, responsibility, and kindness directly into classrooms and communities to build our leaders of tomorrow. And whereas Miss Coleman's goal to reach children at the heart level can clearly be seen not only by this initiative, but also by her development of a children's book about character education and promoting and donating books and media that encourage internal values. Now therefore, I, Ron Titler, mayor of the city of Florence, Alabama, recognize and proclaim the

month of April, 2026 as Character Counts Month in the city of Florence in honor of all those working to instill honesty, integrity, and positive decision-making in our children. And in recognition of Caroline Coleman's outstanding leadership and service in advocating for such an important cause, let this proclamation serve as a reminder that every child has the opportunity to learn values that empower them to become the best version of themselves. I'd like to present this to Caroline Coleman. Thank you so much.

Oh, sorry.

There's a microphone. It's all yours. Oh, wow.

Well, I just want to say thank you so much for this honor. And I know proclamations are something that y'all take a lot of time to do. And so I am so thrilled and honored to have this and for April to be the month for character education. It's something that is often overlooked for children in our state. And I've as being Miss Tennessee Valley, I've really had the opportunity to go into classrooms and speak with these young children about um these character qualities that really turn into habits. And so I just want to thank y'all so much for this honor. I love being Miss Tennessee Valley. I was Miss Una um earlier this year or last year. um I was miss and I've fallen in love with this community and especially Florence. I love Florence so much and so having this honor is just something I'll remember forever. So thank y'all so much. That's all I have to say. Thank you, Mayor Tyler, and congratulations, Miss Caroline. Okay, at this time, we don't have any um reports from any department heads. Thank any standing committee reports. Okay, we don't have any public hearings. All right, at this time, we'll have uh business from the floor pertaining to the items on the consent and the regular agenda. You'll have a fiveminut time limit. If you will come to the podium, state your name, and we'll start to my right. Okay. In the middle. Okay. There being none, Mr. Lighty, if you'll read the consent agenda, please. All matters listed within the consent agenda have been distributed to each member of the Florence City Council for reading and study are considered to be routine and be will be enacted by one

motion of the council with no separate discussion. If separate discussion is desired, that item may be removed from the consent agenda and placed on the regular agenda by request. Thank you. Do I get a motion to approve the agenda? Motion. Second. Motion by Mr. Bowling, second by Mr. Spence. All in favor of the motion. 50. Motion carries.

Thank you. Now, if you'll read the regular agenda. Item A under the regular agenda is an ordinance dealing with the fee schedules for Cox Creek Tennis Courts and Royal Avenue Tennis Courts. Do I have a motion for immediate consideration? So moved. Second. Motion by Mr. Hendrick, second by Miss Dixon. All in favor of the motion. 50. Do you hear a motion for the adoption? Motion. Second.

Motion by Mr. Bolan, second by Mr. Spence. Any discussion? All in favor of the motion. 5-0. Motion carries. Item B is a contract with General Maintenance Contractors of East Alabama Incorporated for gas main replacement phase one for in the amount of $596,250 from budgeted funds. Do you hear a motion for immediate consideration? Motion second. Motion by Miss Dixon, second by Mr. Bowling. All in favor of the motion. 50 Z. Do have a motion for the adoption. So move.

Second. Motion by Mr. Spence, second by Mr. Hendricks. Any discussion? All in favor of the motion. 50. Motion carries. Item C is a resolution agreement with Marsh Mlen agency renewal of the city of Florence's property, equipment, and liquor liability insurance in the amount of $494,943 from a budget of funds across several departments. Do I hear a motion for immediate consideration? So moved. Second.

Motion by Mr. Hendrick, second by Mr. Bowling. All in favor of the motion. 50. Do I hear a motion for the adoption? So moved.

Second. Motion by Mr. Spence, second by Miss Simmons. Any discussion? All in favor of the motion. 5. Motion carries. Item D, which was added, is a resolution to apply for an ETF grant from the Alabama Historical Commission in the amount of $74,542. No f no matching funds were required for this grant. Do I have a motion for the immediate consideration?

Motion. Second. Motion by Miss Dixon, second by Mr. Bowling. All in favor of the motion? 50. Do I hear a motion for the adoption? So moved. Second. Motion by Mr. Hendricks, second by Miss Simmons. Any discussion? All in favor of the motion. 50. Motion carries. That's all I have, Miss Simmons.

Okay. The general business will be making those appointments for the building and property maintenance board of appeals at the next council meeting. Um, and so at this time we'll have business from the public with the five minute time limit. We'll start to my right. Council members, accidents involving east scooters have climbed sharply in recent years with riders and pedestrians alike suffering from collisions with vehicles, ebikes, escooters, emops and pedestrians. Uneven terrain, cracks, pothole and small halt and escooter potentially causing the router to be thrown off and end up in the path of a vehicle. In response to the rising number of injuries associated with electric scooters and so on, jumping from fewer than 30,000 in 2020 to 118 plus in 2024. Many K12 school and college campuses have implemented bans or restrictions of their use. It is advised that children under 16 refrain from riding or operating electric scooters or ebikes on public street and roads. Riding escooters or ebikes on streets at night posit significantly significant risk due to reduced visibility. Therefore, riders must utilize white front light, rear and brake light, rear and brake lights and wear reflective gears to minimize accidents. It is Oh, I missed a page. I'm sorry. Okay. Furthermore, escooters should be prohibited on roads with speed

limits exceeding 25 miles an hour unless designated bike lanes are available. Escooter riders should walk their escooters through crosswalks following pedestrian protocols. To enhance safety, escooters operators should pro possess possess at least an instruction permit before legally riding. Compliance with local traffic regulation, including stop sign, traffic light, pedestrian crossings, and signaling signaling when changing lane is essential for both escooter, ebikes, and electric moped. Additionally, escooters should be equipped with brake lights, tail lights, and turn signals. Okay. Um, now why am I addressing these issues? Last year in front this building uh when I on my way to attend the city council meeting there was a scooter with probably 15 16 year old uh young man riding here and he had no helmet and he was listening to music and uh just switching lane and just going you know as fast as he could and the last two weeks I saw one Robertson and one on Derby. No lights, changing lane, just traffic, no not obeying the traffic uh signals, the traffic lights or stop signs. So, it is crucial to consider the implementation of city ordinances aiming at ensuring the safety of all road users. Uh it just I mean uh and summer is just starting. I mean you I can see the motorcycles more and more motorcycles on the road and there's going to be more and more ebikes more and more scooters mostly downtown mostly

downtown and they don't I mean traffic lights and signal um stop sign that you know they don't abide by them. So to uh for the safety of everyone just please consider passing some ordinances to control this those issues. Thank you.

Thank you. Anyone else to my right? Hello, my name is David Carson. I live in Florence. I provided um identification to the um city clerk over here. Um I do not tell my address in public due to security reasons. I guess I'll start. I was not able to attend the meeting last month when this council voted to give yet another large handout to UNA. I'm here today to talk about that. Like the previous council, you sold us sold us out to a local special interest group for political gain. That's exactly what happened, by the way. While would it be continuously be so hard to convince a council not to hand out hundreds of thousands of dollars for what seems to be absolutely nothing? When I and others rightfully criticize these handouts, the only real comeback I hear is just how valuable UNA is to Florence. The argument only works if UNA would be in danger of shutting down if we didn't throw local tax dollars at them. This is obviously not the case. UNA is loaded. UNA recently had a fireworks show just for the hell of it while the rest of the city is struggling. What did the taxpayers get for the millions we have thrown away to UNA in recent years? Does the city get any percentage ownership of the building this handout supposedly is helping pay for? Considering UNA has been operating here for a better part of two centuries, I hardly doubt they they're going to all of a sudden make a change in the local job market. Do you think if we wait another hundred years, something will change? This handout, from what I can tell, is a taxpayer funded investment in

each of your political careers. The local unofficial UNA lobbyist group, Friends of UNA, made campaign contributions to mayor, to the mayor, and other council members. Surely, there are all sorts of other political connections and favors UNA can offer politicians who give them what they want. I guess some of the new council members can look forward to be on the good side of UNA and all the benefits that come with that. And guess what? You're going to need it. You showed your allegiances loud and cleared with this handout. You could have tabled it for at least one meeting, but everyone fell in line. We voted out most of the last council largely because of obvious corruption like this. The simple fact is this. UNA has too much power over local politics and handouts like this is just makes just makes it that much more obvious. If we are going to be tied to the hip to UNA, let's make it official and create a whole city department called the Department of UNA. If the taxpayers are going to be forced time and time again to give UNA money, I want some kind of elected representation on some UNA boards. What's up with these handshake government um gentleman agreement type deals that this city does with UNA? like the unofficial $3 million end amount we agreed to give UNA without any kind of official paperwork or contract attached to it. How about the amount of money UNA is supposed to contribute to street projects on their campus that was conveniently left out of any written agreements? Was this another handshake agreement? This trust me bro pattern of money and agreements going back and forth is not professional and reeks of corruption. Most of my points were said at the meeting last month. How the jobs how how the jobs can come here first for the training to mean any how the job should come here first for the training to mean anything. How there's no end date to

these handouts in writing. You know what you are doing. You know what you did. You sold us out. Were any of you paying attention to why we voted the last bunch out? Right now, I see little difference between this council and the last. If there's any meaningful difference outside of more photo ops, I would like to hear it. I have so many more points to make, but I only have 5 minutes. You have one minute remaining.

So, let me wrap this up. I seek the answer to one question to each and every one of you sitting up here in your closing comments. Here's my question. I'll make it very simple, so listen closely. My question is, do you acknowledge that there is corruption in Florence City government? Yes or no? I'll ask one more time. Do you acknowledge there is corruption in Florence City government? Yes or no? Even if you completely ignore this question, that will be an answer in and of itself. Thank you. Anyone else to my right

in the middle? Thank you, President Simmons, and to the council mayor, to all that can hear my voice as I express my freedom of speech. I didn't come with enticing words of men's wisdom, but I come in the demonstration of his power and spirit. That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. How be it, we do speak wisdom, but not the wisdom of this world that come to not. But we speak the wisdom of God in the mystery. For eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has it entered into the hearts of men what God has prepared for them that love him. For we have the mind of Christ. Jesus said that thieves cometh not but to steal, to kill, and destroy, but I am come that you they might have life and have life more abundantly. We don't need any more war machines in Florence or in the United States of America. It's time for you to decide what side you on. Are you on the devil's side? Are you on the Lord's side? I'm on the Lord's side. That means I win. I have the victory that overcomes the world, even my faith. We don't need any more war machines. We don't need anybody

love to kill people. They clap their hand when people die. We need more health care. We don't We need people to be able to vote. Women to be able to vote. Are we just really trying to get back to the place where we going to make America great again by intimidation, bullying, raping, killing people when they don't agree? Uh we going to stick to the United States Constitution, freedom of speech, freedom press, freedom of protest. Are we going to continue to do right by this country? Because see, when you do wrong, wrong going to come to you. If you do right, right will come. You do good, you will experience good. But if you're able, you're going to hell. Thank you.

Thank you. Anyone else in the middle?

Randy Gay, 234 Robin Hood Drive. I had no intentions whatsoever to say anything this evening, but based on what just transpired, let me say this, okay? I have nothing but honor and respect for every one of you that are here. My concerns, well, let's see. There were nine of us from an intercessory prayer team that yesterday after church, we came down here and marked our places out and walked around the city of Florence for the direction of the Holy Spirit with the word of God and protection for all of the council members and the mayor of our city. I believe we've got some good people. I believe we got some people in that council and our mayor that are born again believers in Jesus Christ. And if you're a born-again believer in Jesus Christ, that means that I'm your brother and you're my brother or you're my sister. And it is not my job to stand here and point my finger at you, not just one time, but two times now to basically say either you line up with a certain way or you're going to hell. That's not appropriate. It's unacceptable. It's not permissible for a word of encouragement. You have one judge. His name is Yeshua Hamashiach, Jesus Christ. And for those that don't know him, let me tell you some of his attributes. His love for you is greater than the heavens above the earth. His mercy, the mercy of God is the attribute of God that takes away from us what we deserve, which is hell and torment. The mercy of God is inexhaustible, but yet it is renewed

every single morning. His faithfulness is unfailing and his grace is ever abundant and bountiful. So to you city council members and you mayor and you gentlemen that are here, the Lord bless you. The Lord keep you. May his favor and good. And by the way, one of these southern sayings that's very common, have a blessed day. Anybody ever heard that? Anybody ever said it? Well, if you look at the original Hebrew and/or Greek in the Bible, that word blessed means have a may the supernatural favor and limitless goodness of God be upon you. So to the mayor and the council people and all of you people here, have a blessed day in Jesus name.

Thank you. Anyone else in the middle? Okay, at this time we'll have our council member uh members report starting with Mr. Hendricks.

Thank you, Madam President. Uh as always, I'd like to start with thanking everyone that came tonight, watched tonight. I'd particularly like to thank uh Representative Underwood uh for the the proclamation he got from the governor for our department of planning and community development. From there, once again, I'd like to move my thank yous to the electricity department for what they did for us last week. Uh, while we were in Washington, I know we had uh violent storms, uh, had a tornado in the county. Uh, I I kept up with the outage map while I was gone. I touched base with some of my groups while I was here, and I could just see the power coming on every hour, and I really appreciate what they did, uh, working around the clock. Um, speaking of our DC trip, uh, a couple of the big topics while we were up there with the National League of Cities, one, the focus nationally is on attainable housing. You know, we have a housing crisis in this nation and we have a a major crisis with affordable housing. So that's a a big push uh nationwide that uh that I feel confident will trickle down to Florence and can positively uhffect affect us all. The other I'm a little more excited about uh because of of what we've all experienced nationwide and that's bringing civility back to local government. And they challenged us to do that. And that, you know, that means being civil with one another, being civil with the public, and the public being civil with us. and they challenged everyone in the room with a grassroots movement to start with that locally and let's see if we can drive it all the way to Washington. And I would love to see that happen. U so anyway, I hope to hear more about that from our

council president and our mayor as we move forward. Um I'd like to uh remind everyone of April 4th. That's the Saturday prior to Easter. There is a 10:00 a.m. walking tour of the Florence Cemetery that will uh the be hosted by Harry Wallace. And there's also a uh walking tour by Billy Warren for the historic district on Walnut Street. Uh also starting at 10:00 a.m. I've done both of those and I would encourage you to do so as well. I'm going to try to catch one or both parts of one or both just as a refresher because they are so enjoyable. Uh, moving on to Friday and what happened in Barton. Um, I just don't think enough can be said. Uh, I don't think any of us yet know the impact and and and the the how transformational this is going to be for the shows and it's and it's going to be great for the city of Florence and the county that we live in. Um, I know we're going to see the rooftops. I know we're going to see the retail, but something else that I hope we see, I think there's a great opportunity for our authority and our county commissioner, our county commission to partner with CEDA and with the defense companies that are over in Huntsville. We've got this brand new workforce development center out there and a career development uh center for the high school that can become along with the a center that's being built out there, our mini defense park similar to the research park and some of the things they have around the arsenal in Huntsville. So, I truly encourage uh those partnerships as we as we move forward. And I will end with uh wishing everyone a happy Easter. Thank you, Miss Dixon.

Yeah, I don't have um too much other than, you know, thank you for the recap of Washington DC. Kind of gave a a a good overview. Um I walked away um with a little bit no more knowledge about what can be done with our um unhoused and unsheltered community. uh talked a lot about um water and our water infrastructure and our sewers. That was talked about a lot. And again, the housing shortage, I think the number they gave us countrywide um we have a shortage of 4 million um housing units that were short. So um I will tell you this, we are having the same struggles in Florence that are across the nation. So, they're not unique to us. Um, and there are great people trying to do great things to help um solve some of these problems um legislatively and those things trickle down to us here as a local government. So, I um look forward to seeing some of those things and and I think I know our future is bright, especially with um Hrien coming in. Um, and uh, that was really exciting to see that and hear of what that can bring to our community. And I will tell you this, I believe that we better get prepared. I think we need to prepare ourselves. Um, there's a lot that we can do here in Florence to prepare. And um, as a council, I would hope that we will put our heads together and and come up with some direction in in ways that we can be prepared as that comes about. Um, also a very happy Easter and a great big thank you to our um, electricity department as they um, took care of things. We were I I I will say all of us were looking at our hey look this this

many um, houses got their power back and and we really did watch that map. was kind of fun to be able to do that um from so far away and just see the power come on um throughout the day. And so, thank you to them. Again, happy Easter. Um may you remember um all that your savior did for you. Thank you, Mr. Bowling.

Thank you, Miss Simmons. Uh like to start with, uh you know, congratulations to our planning department. I mean, that's a such a great honor. Um, and I appreciate Representative Underwood to be here to present that to the city. Uh, uh, Miss Caroline Coleman, she already had to leave, I guess. But, you know, wow, that was, uh, amazing to hear and we appreciate that proclamation, mayor. Um, I I'll speak a little bit about um, DC. for me. Um, on on Tuesday, we were able as a council and a mayor to have, uh, Robert Adholtz's ear and fight for Florence and talk to him about Florence and Florence only. So, that was a huge impact for not only for us to be able to do that, but for our citizens that we represent as well. um there with Hrien coming. Um I there's a lot that that we have to do to fight for Florence and and that's what we did on Tuesday and and it was so impactful to me and I I'm sure for everybody else to be able to uh sit there with our congressman and and and and fight for our city. Also with Adrien coming one of the things that Senator Toberville said in his speech was our great grandkids. this will impact our great grandkids and and that's how big of a um how big of a deal this is for our community. Uh it's not just for Barton, Alabama. It's not just for Muscle Scholes or Sheffield or Tuscambia or just Florence. It's for the Scholes area, mainly Florence, Lauderdale County. And and and something else that was talked about was, you know, you think of auto manufacturing, you don't do everything under one roof. Automanufacturing is is split off into many. My my wife, that's what my wife does for a living. So I I know firsthand what it's like. You have

little pockets here and there making parts to and sent to uh the main plant. And that's what Hrien is going to bring to this community also where we're going to have little pockets of manufacturers all around the Scholes area here in Florence and everywhere. Uh and sending parts to Hrien and Barton and uh so it's a huge deal. Um that was a cool event and um we uh I think we all had a good time there. It was a lot of a lot of good messages and um and a very good event. Um I'll end with this. I I I do appreciate the electrician department again. I mean, they did just a a fantastic job and and we appreciate all of our city workers for anytime that happens, man. You know, that's who you're calling and and they're out there working and we appreciate what they do. Uh have a happy Easter, everybody. And uh appreciate it.

Thank you, Mr. Spence. Well, I'll echo as well is um something I ran on was for the generations and this is what happened last Friday in our community for Northwest Alabama was huge. We all got to witness that the everyone that's sitting up here. So, it's vision and extends beyond today and it goes into tomorrow and it shapes what our future is for this whole Northwest Alabama territory, this region. So big things for Florence, rooftops, spin-offs, things like that that are going to happen for this area and the economy, you know, um something that, you know, stands out that we all want, you know, what's best for for Florence. So um also I want to thank um Representative Underwood for coming tonight and doing the proclamation.

Okay. Um, also thanks to the electricity department um for what they did while we were gone. Um, thank a few of us were ready to get on a plane and come back if we had to. So, um, thank you for what they what they did for each and every one of us. Um, be looking for a community meeting in District 5 in April. Probably be the third week in April. Um, so I'll be putting that out soon on social media and sharing it with Rachel and she'll get that out for us and, you know, things like that. So, just want to wish everybody a happy Easter. Thank you for our to our city employees what they do in each and every day and those who came out tonight and those who are watching um via YouTube. Thank you.

Thank you. Want to say thank you to everyone that's here u this evening. I also want to say thank you to Representative Underwood uh for coming and sharing a proclamation and also offering us in our invocation. Uh when the ask was he did it without hesitation. So, I want to say thanks uh to him for that. Um, on April the 11th, going to be hosting an event called Hidden Treasures of Our Youth, and it falls in line with what Miss Caroline um said, the characters of um I forgot exactly how she said it, but character education, I think that's what she said. And and it's ironic that it's going to be the month of April, and that's exactly when the event's going to take place in April. So, it falls in line. And Miss Caroline, if you're listening or if anybody listening to her, I will be giving her a call to see if she can make an appearance over there to make an appearance to spend some time with our children. They're going to be the ages of 5 uh to 11. That's going to be talking about that and some of the things that she said that she um works on. That's some of the things that we're going to be doing with the kids and everything. It's free to them. There's no charge uh to them whatsoever. Also want to say congratulations to Miss Natalie Channon. She's going to be moving her business is right now it's in industrial park but she's coming to downtown Project Threadways and that her ribbon cutting is going to be April the 1st. So everybody if you have an opportunity do come. It's at 302 West College Street which is the old JC Ham uh building on College Street which is right there by the Social Security office. So, um, just want to welcome her to the city of downtown and certainly that's considered down district one. So, we appreciate her coming. Also want to say congratulations and thanks to our um electricity department. They do such a fine job and we always want to say kudos and shout out to them. Also, we want to also we had all types of weather, thunderstorms, tornadoes, and our very

own councilman, Miss Dixon, her property, her home, one of her homes was impacted by that. It got hit by a tornado and tore up some things there. So, we just ask that you all, as she's preparing with her family, her husband to put her property back together, you all keep her in your thoughts and your prayers because I know that's a task. She was in DC watching pictures as her property was damaged. So, we stuck with her. We had her back. So, y'all keep her in your thoughts and prayers there as they put their life back together. U right there. Want to say we're in embarked upon spring break. Enjoy yourself. Get out. And to everybody, especially to our young people, make wise and young um wise and appropriate decisions. Be careful what you He gave me a thumbs up out here. Be careful the decisions that you make. Um, be buddy system. Don't wander off. That's for anybody who's listening. Don't wander off. Stay with your stay with your party. Stay with your buddies. Um, with that, happy Easter to everyone. We're having a big Easter egg hunt which is going to be on next well, April the 4th uh at Lewisville. And it's for everybody. If you can hear this, if you see it, you are welcome to come. It's for everybody. Everybody is welcome. and it's at uh 105 Puit Street uh right here in Florence over there by the WC Handy Child Development Center. It's going to be in that field. So there's multiple churches that's involved with it. So it's not just for the West Florence. If you can see this, hear this, please, you are welcome to come and share with that. Um I have to echo again what Mr. Hendrick said about the civility. I had mentioned that before. Civility is so important on how we treat our fellow mankind. So please everybody take consideration. It's okay to disagree but we can also disagree and be respectful

with that. So while we were in DC again that was talked about and I did I think I may have leaned over to a mayor. I hope we can do that proclamation as well. Um but each person will be accountable with how you treat your fellow neighbors. Um excuse me. the word accountability.

Okay. All right. And I think that's about um that's about it. Mr. Bolan spoke on how we was able to meet with our congressman. So I was excited to be able to talk with our congressman and also with our senator. We had a time to spend and share with them to share as he stated to share our needs and our wants. So hopefully some of that will be coming to fruition. And last Friday it was just phenomenal. It was phenomenal. And it is going to be a spin-off. So everybody embrace the good that you can always find good in every situation even though it may look doomed but if you look deep enough you will find good in every situation. So that was a blessing to us blessing to our our region to our city and to many of those who going to be impacted including all of us. So that's all I have. If anybody have anything else all right we'll stand and be dismissed. Those of you who are going on vacation be safe traveling grace and we're going to ask Mr. Spence, if you'll close us out with a word of prayer.

Father God, we just thank you for this day. We thank you for your many blessings, Lord Jesus. We thank you for your grace and your mercy, Father God. And we just pray for for our city. We just pray a hedge of protection around the city of Florence, over our state, over our nation, over the world, Lord God. And I just pray for direction that we look to you that you may increase and we decrease, Lord God. That we seek you out in every decision that we make for this city and what's coming up. and and we just thank you, Lord, and we give you all the praise, glory, and honor for it's in your name we pray. Amen.