Algood Denies Wall Street Closure Proposal For Hope Church

Algood City Council unanimously voted against the closure of Wall Street from Main Street to 5th Avenue.

Mayor Lisa Chapman-Fowler said the original request from Hope Church came in so the church could increase the parking area and construct a park for the community. She said a recent traffic study concluded that more than 2,000 cars traveled on Wall Street over a period of 10 days.

“I’m concerned about the number of cars that will be shifted and the traffic that will be placed on that road,” Chapman-Fowler said. “Especially when we talked about school times.”

Chapman-Fowler said that the closure came with a positive recommendation from the planning commission. However, City Administrator Keith Morrison said the official traffic study had not been conducted at that point.

“When the request had come in initially we had not done an official traffic count yet and we had found some old data and we took it back to the planning commission and the planning commission decided to go ahead make the positive recommendation but asked that before it get to you all that we get traffic numbers to go with it,”  “Because there mixed emotions about how much traffic there was. Some thought there was more than others.”

Chapman-Fowler said while Hope Church is a great community partner, it is not in the best interest of the city to close this road. She said at this time, it does not seem in the interest of the city as a whole to close the road.

Councilman Ron Graves said after hearing the numbers from the traffic study, his opinion changed on the closure of the street.

In other business, the Algood City Council approved on second reading the Fiscal Year 2023 budget.

Morrison said the change between the first and second reading for was employee salary increases. Morrison said anyone making less than $21 will get an increase of $2. From $21 to $30 an hour will see an increase of $1.75, and those making more than $31 got an increase of $1.50 an hour.

The penny rate was set at .36, the same as last year. 

Council also approved a rezoning for a parcel located across from White Plains Academy from general commercial to high-density residential. Chapman-Fowler said the developer has proposed an additional 24-units to an apartment complex near the area. She said Codes Enforcer Bob Lane will work with the developer to ensure storm water runoff regulations are met.

Chapman-Fowler said the proposed development had recent positive feedback from those in the area.