Cullman Fire Rescue Chief Edward Reinhardt, Firefighter of the Year Lt. Jason Lamb with his son Nathan, EMT of the Year Chase Cornell, and Councilman Andy Page / W.C. Mann
CULLMAN – It was a joyful meeting Monday evening as the Cullman City Council recognized the achievements of two members of Cullman Fire Rescue (CFR), celebrated the careers of two of the department’s veterans, and welcomed a special guest.
The council introduced the CFR staffers who earned the Cullman VFW’s EMT and Firefighter of the Year awards:
EMT of the Year Engineer Chase Cornell has been with CFR since 2012 and holds apparatus operator, aerial, hazmat, fire instructor and smoke diver certifications. The recommendation letter submitted by his captain stated that Cornell “always works well with his crew and other agencies at medical scenes, is very knowledgeable about patient care and providing a high level of care, no matter the severity of the incident.”
Firefighter of the Year Lt. Jason Lamb has been with CFR since 2011, after serving with the Jasper Fire Department. He holds apparatus operator, rope, structural collapse and advanced EMT certifications; and his nomination letter noted that, “due to Engineer Lamb’s high level of performance as a firefighter and engineer, his technical skills and positive attitude have enhanced his crew’s response capability.”
The council also recognized Tim Richards and Greg Smith, who are retiring from CFR. Both are 18-year veterans. Richards attained the position of engineer. Smith was noted as one of the founding members who helped create the department’s EMS division, and retires as the EMS division chief.
Before the council got down to its regular business, President Garlan Gudger had one more guest to recognize. Hannah Jacobs, daughter of Mayor Woody Jacobs, got to include in her day’s birthday celebration an invitation to stand before the council and audience while everyone present sang “Happy Birthday” to her.
In regular council business, the council unanimously passed all five requests on its agenda, although one was amended with certain provisions first.
1. A request from WWTP Superintendent Jeff Adams to purchase road base materials and asphalt paving for a pump station access road from Jones Brothers Paving in the budgeted amount not to exceed $14,880.
2. A request from Ronald Stevenson of 2906 Leighsdale Ave. SW for a special event permit to stand and minister on the sidewalks of Cullman on Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. until 6 p.m. (actually only once or twice each week). This request was amended: the permit will only be extended to the end of August, when it will be reviewed; Stevenson was instructed to notify the Police Department ahead of time about when and where he will be ministering.
3. A request from Carl Malin of Calvary Apostolic 1st UPC for a special event permit to hold Family Fun Days on July 29, 2017 from 11 a.m. until 7 p.m. and on July 30, 2017 from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. around their church located at 303 Clark St. NE.
4. A request from Ron Lamon of Vinemont Baptist Church for a special event permit to hold a Community Walk from Mary Carter’s Store to Depot Park on August 12, 2017 from 10 a.m. until noon to support suicide prevention and awareness.
5. A request from Cali Tidwell of Desperation Church for a special event permit to hold the annual Fireworks Festival in Heritage Park on July 4, 2017 from 5 p.m. until 10 p.m. While it did not affect the request, CFR Chief Reinhardt noted that the request will still have to be approved by the state fire marshal before an event permit can be issued.
Two ordinances were also passed:
1. Ordinance No. 2017 – 15 to vacate and surplus a city-owned sidewalk directly north of Rumor’s Deli that received a favorable report from the City of Cullman Planning Commission that this is consistent with previous requests. This will allow Ponder Building owner Quick Development to acquire the strip and install an elevator that will open the upper floors of the building to public use.
2. The second reading of Ordinance No. 2017 – 16 to rezone 1006 Second Avenue NW from M-1 Manufacturing District to B-2 Business District that received a favorable recommendation from the City of Cullman Planning Commission. The City Planning Commission noted at its meeting that the previous Manufacturing district zoning should have been changed when properties around the site were converted years ago. The retention of that zoning was a simple oversight.
The council tabled a request to rezone a vacant lot located at the corner of Denson Avenue SW and 3rd Street SW from CBD Central Business District to R-4 Residential District, at the request of the property owner. That request had received an unfavorable recommendation from the Planning Commission.
The council gave a first reading to two proposed ordinances:
Ordinance No. 2017 – 18 to annex the property located at 451 County Road 1467 owned by Pam and Jerry Cason into the city limits of Cullman, Alabama as R-1 Residential District that received a favorable recommendation from the City of Cullman Planning Commission.
Ordinance No. 2017 – 19 to annex the property located at 48 County Road 497 owned by Virgena Thornton into the city limits of Cullman, Alabama as R-1 Residential District that received a favorable recommendation from the City of Cullman Planning Commission.
As these were first readings, no action was taken at this meeting.
The council finished its business by passing two resolutions:
Resolution No. 2017 – 82 to award bid R-01784 for tree services at 16th Street SE to the lowest responsible bidder, Reeve’s and Son LLC, in the budgeted amount not to exceed $1,850.
Resolution No. 2017 – 83 to enter into a professional services contract with Ballew Building Company, Inc. for project management services in the budgeted amount not to exceed $25,000.
The Cullman City Council meets on the second and fourth Monday evenings of each month at 7 p.m. in the Cullman City Hall auditorium. The public is invited to attend.
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