Beautification Board

Gulf Shores Beautification Board Minutes of Meeting August 14, 2013 Present for the meeting: Evelyn Sanders, Steve Burrow, Rodney Powell, Camille Warren, Mary Wayne Gilmore, Carolyn Doughty, Mark Acreman, Harlan Harrison, Jennifer Watkins, and Jimmie Van Valkenburgh. The meeting was called to order by Evelyn Sanders, Chairman, at 8:33 a.m. The minutes of the July 10, 2013, meeting were approved as written with a motion made by Steve Burrow and seconded by Mary Wayne Gilmore. Rodney Powell, 2014 Arbor Day Chairman, has contacted David West about the 2014 activities for Arbor Day and reported they will be available next month. Steve Burrow, Beautification Award Committee, announced that Traditions will be the next recipient of the Beautification Award. This will be presented after the September 11th meeting. Rodney Powell reported on the website and the following ideas for additions to the website were presented: Gulf Shores High School Greenhouse, Museum Butterfly Garden, a list of website links, update the website and make it more user friendly, and a quarterly planting idea guide. New Projects discussed were the Arbor Day Poster Contest and the having a Hazardous Materials Pick- up Day. Harlan Harrison, Landscape Supervisor, reported that the East Beach Exit project has been completed with a total of 18 palms being planted. The new Fire Station Project has been completed and a Fire Department Open House is planned for the future. A new greenhouse at Gulf Shores High School will be constructed with footers being poured rather than a concrete floor. Fall plants will be started soon. Mark Acreman, Director of Public Works, stated that street resurfacing projects will begin soon. City Council has given permission to tie the Bike Trail from Ft. Morgan to Walmart and behind Brunos and in front of Walgreens, north and south. Javelin and Hammer Toss areas will soon be completed at the Sportsplex Track for future events. SEC Fest is this weekend and is being sponsored by the CVB of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. A grant has been received to do work on the bridge at West Fourth Street. Gulf Shores will be working with the Department of Transportation to coordinate projects and open up green space and eliminate a lot of asphalt in the city. Work is being done on a ten-year Capital Outlay for Gulf Shores with Cindy King of the Accounting Department. Carolyn Doughty, Council Liasion, reported that the new Justice Department could cost around $20,000,000. Different traffic routes are being considered for entrances to the public schools. The City is spraying for mosquitoes beginning at 4 a.m. There are strict ADEM Rules that have to be followed.  2 Thanks to Janice Childress for preparing the materials that were given to the Board about the Tree City USA Application for Recertification and the Tree City Growth Awards for 2012. These will be helpful when compiling this year’s information. Thanks to Mary Wayne Gilmore for passing out helpful information to the Board about trees and plants that are suitable for our area. Jennifer Watkins, Planning and Zoning, reported that name tags had been ordered for the Board members who did not currently have one. She stated that each City facility will have a new identification sign, copies of which were presented in a handout. Earlier she had presented the Board members with a well-organized notebook to help explain their purpose and duties. Thank you Jennifer. With no further business, the meeting was adjourned. The next meeting will be September 11, 2013, and then travel to Traditions to make the Beautification Award. Respectfully submitted, Jimmie Van Valkenburgh