Although the big issue for Linden City Council members and the city’s residents was talks of the group home housing, the Council had its regularly scheduled meeting yesterday after things calmed down.

Upon approval of the minutes from the Council’s last meeting, Mayor Pat Vice talked about what improvements needed to be made in the city and most of them focused on fixing the playground area and athletic fields around George P. Austin School.

“If children are going to play over there we need a backstop and fencing,” councilman Dennis Breckenridge said. “If 185 kids will be out there, we need to help them out a little on this.”

But fencing for the athletic and recreation area wasn’t the only thing the fields could use, councilman Alvin “Butch” King said.

“We need more lighting. We have to get some street lights and some lights for the park area,” King said. “Having better lights up there will deter people from doing things they shouldn’t be over there.”

The council also agreed having the area well lit in the afternoons will allow children to play longer and get more enjoyment out of the fields.

“But Terry (Gosa, GPA principal) is doing a good job over there,” Breckinridge added.

The police officers and fireman from the Linden emergency response teams received a pat on the back for a job well done when the train cars went off track last week.

“They did a wonderful job on the train cleanup,” Vice said.

For the past few days an electronic speed detection device met drivers on Highway 43, to slow down speeders entering the city, and according to Linden Police Chief Jeff Laduron, it works.

“We have a speed trap on loan for a few months and right now it’s set up right out there,” he said as he pointed outside City Hall. “We just wanted to see how it would work and you can tell a big difference because people are slowing down. We’ll move it around the city and possibly look into purchasing one.”

The Council also agreed to reopen Ralph Abernathy Circle after councilman Neal Jackson suggested removing the dirt piles blocking the road to stop from having to go around the city to get to a destination.