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During its December meeting, the Linden City Council approved Public Works Director Terry Tyson purchasing the majority of necessary materials to replace the light poles at Scott Park’s Babe Ruth Baseball Field for $74,000 from Musco Lighting.

To cut down on costs, the city will be performing the labor in-house, though a Musco Lighting representative will “see us through the project,” according to Tyson.

“We’ll have to do some trenching and lay new power lines to each pole, and we’ll have to set the bases and then he will assist us from there,” he said.

The current price also does not include the cost of renting equipment or electrical wires for the project.

The council first approved Tyson’s pursuit of replacement in September 2018 for an estimated minimum cost of $100,000.

Tyson also informed the council that bids for the city’s lagoon project, which will add a new lift station and a new pump station, replace discharge valves and build a chlorine contact chamber, would open Thursday, Dec. 6 and said that a decision has yet to be made as to whether the winning bidders will haul or pump out sludge from the first cell of the two-cell lagoon.

He also said that the department had some sampling done in advance to make sure the sludge could be land applied.

“It’s $30 a ton to take it to the landfill, so it saves a lot of money there,” Tyson said.

Other items discussed by the council include the following:

• Moore said that he has received several requests for speed breakers on various roads in Linden, but said that “we can’t afford to put them everywhere.” Regarding the speed breaker to be placed on Martin Luther King Drive, Police Chief Robert Alston said that he has picked out a location just past Hillcrest Estates to place it.

• Councilman Byron Vice announced that he has received complaints from residents of McNider Drive in the Sycamore Gardens subdivision about poor state of roads in the area. Moore informed him that the area does not qualify for grants because 51 percent of residents are not below the moderate income. Tyson also said house count plays a role in qualifying for grants. He told the council that the grant the city applied for to blacktop roads in Linden was turned down.

• Christmas bonuses for city employees will not be funded. Moore said he felt it was not appropriate due to the city’s finances.

• Councilwoman Jan Cannon told the council of trash and weeds at the fence at the Marengo County Public Library. Moore said actions would be taken to clean it up.

• held executive session.

• Moore recommended the mobile exam center site for the upcoming National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which will be in Marengo County in February and stay through April, be placed in the parking lot of Linden Fun Factory with permission from the owner.

The Linden City Council meets the first and third Tuesday of each month, at 4:30 p.m., at city hall.

(This article originally appeared in the Wednesday, December 19 issue of the Demopolis Times.)