By Terry Schrimscher, For the Tribune
ARGO – The Argo City Council met for the second regularly scheduled monthly meeting Monday night, May 22. The Council covered much of the agenda during the work session and moved quickly through the regular meeting immediately following.
One of the main items on the agenda involved filling the empty seat on the City Council, which was declared open after the April 17 resignation of Dusty Stinson, who also served as Mayor pro tempore.
Each applicant for the position in attendance at the meeting was given a few minutes to speak. After hearing a brief talk from some of the applicants for the position, the Council voted 3-2 to appoint Rick Hopkins to the vacant seat.
Hopkins is a long-term resident of Argo who currently works as the Director of Parks and Recreation for the City of Springville. He also serves as Senior Pastor at Good Samaritan Baptist Church in Birmingham.
“Currently, I oversee over a $1.3 million budget with the city of Springville for the parks and recreation department,” Hopkins said. “I also oversee over a $100,000 per year budget within my church budget.”
Hopkins is a 2019 graduate of Leadership St. Clair County. He lives in the Mountain Oaks subdivision.
“Anytime I can do anything to support and build St. Clair County, that’s my heart,” he said. “I also love the community of Argo and Springville. We share a lot of the same schools and we share a lot of the same parks and sports systems, but my hometown is Argo.”
Hopkins said Argo is a great community and one of the safest communities in the state. He also made the point that Argo needs to focus on smart growth. “The question is, how do we protect this community while also preparing for the future in a wise way?”
In other business, the Council approved a resolution authorizing the firm Goodwin Mills Cawood to begin the engineering studies on the turn lane from US Hwy 11 and County Rd. 6, also known as Argo Margaret Road.
The Council also authorized the Argo Police Department to establish a bank account to hold funds confiscated during police business.
City Clerk Tiffany Westbrook turned in her resignation effective Friday, June 2. The Council voted to place Court Clerk Casey Bethune in her position on the Planning and Zoning board.
The next meeting of the Argo council is scheduled for June 12, at 5 p.m. A second public hearing on zoning is planned for June 20.