May Board of Aldermen meeting gives citizens few definitive answers

Several New Albany citizens came before the May Board of Aldermen meeting on the evening of May 2, 2017, some not for the first time. Most received no concrete action on their issues.

• Ms. Dianne Jones wants speed bumps on her street in the Meadow Lane area. She gathered signatures from the community with the hope that it would be enough support to convince the city that the area is unsafe for residents and children due to reckless drivers disregarding stop signs and the speed limit.  Unfortunately, the petition did not meet with the board’s requirements, but they did provide a short-term solution: the Chief of Police will assign officers to the area and get aggressive with traffic tickets. If the results are less than desired, the city could follow up with strategically placed rumble strips and further assessment.
• Mr. Mark Pipkin, proprietor of Pop’s BBQ, requested permission to set up his food truck on the parcel of land near the park adjacent to Fred’s. His request was put on hold due to pending ordinances that are still being planned and written out by board members.
• A canine complaint by Mr. Nelson Byrd livened the meeting up a bit. Mr. Byrd is a resident of Punkin Center, where apparently, he is unhappy with a neighborhood dog who is allegedly barking nonstop. Animal control and the police have both been involved and could find no out-of-the-ordinary barking, but Mr. Byrd insisted there, indeed, was a problem to be addressed. He was advised to follow procedure where the matter could wind up in criminal court.
• A familiar matter came up when, as previously instructed, Ms. Carolyn Spight was back before the May Board of Aldermen meeting with her request. Ms. Spight was advised in the April meeting to return in May with her mobile home request, due to the absence of her representative, Alderman Kevin Dale White.

Ms. Spight attended April’s board meeting requesting to replace her existing aged mobile home on Bratton Road with a new mobile home. The problem with the request that particular zone doesn’t allow manufactured housing and her existing housing was grandfathered in. However, the ordinance does allow a variance with the requirement being that the owner comes before the board and makes the request. That is exactly what Ms. Spight did last month, but White, her alderman wasn’t present and the other board members suggested she return so that he could hear and help make the decision. Understandable.

Heeding the boards’ recommendation of return, Ms. Spight once again presented her request at the May Board of Aldermen meeting, with Alderman Kevin Dale White present. White moved that the board accept Ms. Spight’s appeal to improve her existing home with a new one, but could not even get a second on the motion.

The board advised that the request go before the zoning committee, which actually has no authority to say yes or no, but can only make recommendations. So once again, Ms. Spight left the meeting with still no answers concerning her housing.