By Nathan Prewett, For the Tribune
MOODY – The City of Moody is looking to possibly establish an independent municipal school system after approving a feasibility study during a meeting on Monday, Aug. 14.
The study was approved unanimously for $54,500 and will be done by Criterion K-12 Consulting. Doctors Frank Costanzo and Phill Hammonds – both retired superintendents – from the group were there to explain their role.
“We do not make a recommendation if you do or do not make a school system,” said Hammonds. “What we do is gather tons of data, primarily financial, so you know what it will cost to not only start – if you decide to go in that direction – a quality school system, but to sustain it.”
He said that they plan to start the study in the next couple of weeks and that it will take an estimated 120 to 150 days to complete.
The request to do the study was made by Councilman Nick Rutledge, who said that city school systems tend to be listed high among the state rankings every year.
“I think it gives you better control over your student/teacher ratio,” he said. “You know, you can lower that number whereas in a county system you’re kind of restricted to what they can do.”
After the council passed all of the items on the agenda, Mayor Joe Lee opened the floor for public comments, to which a resident, Candice Jackson, spoke up about the condition of the roads along Annie Lee Road, saying that it has caused complications for her family and her neighbors.
“We’ve got friends that don’t want to come visit,” she said, adding that it’s unsafe. “There are some spots that are so deep you really just have to wait on another car to pass because you can’t travel. You have to stop or you’re going to severely damage your vehicle.”
Mayor Joe Lee said that it is a city road and that he and the city government have been in talks with the St. Clair County Commission to address the road and get it fixed. He said that the commission had $800,000 in the budget to help pay costs and the estimate cost for the city is $1 million, though the county is anticipated to bring in tar and gravel for the “soft spots.”
“But it’s going to be a process,” he said. “Everything moves slow when you’re working with the state to try and reimburse the county for the money they put in.”
Lee said that they would stay in touch with the commission and suggested that the citizens in the area contact them as well.
Department heads gave their reports for the month of July. The Moody Police Department recording 1,294 calls, 29 traffic accidents, 173 citations, 128 completed reports, 64 misdemeanors, 24 felonies, 13,676 miles driven by police vehicles and $20,800 spent on vehicle maintenance.
The fire department recorded 141 total responses, six fires (two vehicles, two residential, two woods, grass or rubbish), 14 public assists, 11 lift assists, 25 false alarms, two mutual aids. The average dispatch to enroute time was one minute, 43 seconds and the average dispatch to arrival time was seven minutes. There were 68 annual inspections, 12 re-inspections, and one fire pump inspection.
In other business, the council:
- Approved a request from Police Chief Reece Smith to advertise for hiring a certified or non-certified officer,
- Approved a request from Parks and Recreation Director Mike Staggs to purchase a floor scrubbing machine for $2,796,
- Approved a request from Fire Chief Larry Horton to renew the yearly maintenance contract for the medical equipment for $3,240,
- Approved Horton’s request to purchase disposable medical supplies for $6,000,
- Approved Horton’s request to purchase leather radio straps for the new radios for $3,500,
- Approved Horton’s request to have the graphics updated on E-1, E-2, and R-1 $2,300, and
- Approved Lee’s request to have Leeds Water Works relocate a water line on O’Barr Road for $4,000.
Meetings are held on the second and fourth Monday of every month at 6 p.m., at Moody City Hall, on 670 Park Ave.