mike_s
Contributor
Looks like the city council is getting sneaky after all the divers showed up at a previous meeting.
The council voted to have the land surveyed as a precusor of doing the land
swap deal with the water board, who wants to use the former dive quarry as
a wate source for the city.
Though they haven't ruled out diving in it, it looks like they are not going to wait on the proposals from the diving community (vendors) for use of the quarry.
It looks like this is a "done deal" as they said they have a consensus of the coucil
members for the land swamp
Here's the news story
http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/news/113991221911310.xml&coll=1
Madison considers land swapTuesday, February 14, 2006
By KEITH CLINES
Times Staff Writer kclines@htimes.com
City Council to survey quarry, declare it surplus
MADISON - The Madison City Council agreed Monday night to survey the city-owned quarry property, as a precursor to a land swap with the city's Water and Wastewater Board.
The council also instructed city attorney Anne-Marie Lacy to prepare an ordinance declaring the property surplus and to amend a draft land-swap agreement with the Water and Wastewater Board for consideration at the next council meeting.
At Monday's meeting, council members discussed declaring the property surplus and how quickly it could rezone it from a general industrial zoning district to an agricultural district. Councilman Tommy Overcash said the council can suspend its rules at the next meeting and vote on the ordinance declaring the quarry property surplus.
Scuba-diving enthusiasts last month packed the council chambers asking the council not to swap the property. The group wanted the city to explore other avenues that would allow divers and others to continue using the site south of Interstate 565.
The water board wants to swap 58 acres it owns on Balch Road for the quarry and use it as an emergency water source. The quarry covers about 28 acres of the 105-acre quarry and park.
The city would, in turn, use the Balch Road property for recreation.
Councilman Larry Vannoy said after talking to other council members and Mayor Sandy Kirkindall the consensus was to make the swap.
"I think everybody's ready to move this forward and make it happen," Vannoy said.
No one from the scuba diving community attended Monday night's meeting.
When Councilman Jerry Jennings asked if the council could rezone the property before swapping it, he was told the legal advertising requirements for rezoning the property would add weeks to the process.
"Delay, delay, delay," Councilwoman Cynthia McCollum said.
Vannoy said the water board can ask to rezone property after it takes ownership. Vannoy, Kirkindall and Councilman Steve Haraway make up a majority of the five-member Water and Wastewater Board.
The board will discuss the proposal at its next meeting - Monday at 5 p.m. at its office at 101 Ray Sanderson Drive.
The council Monday night agreed to Kirkindall's proposal that he coordinate the land surveys for the city and the water board and they split the combined cost of the two surveys.
The council voted to have the land surveyed as a precusor of doing the land
swap deal with the water board, who wants to use the former dive quarry as
a wate source for the city.
Though they haven't ruled out diving in it, it looks like they are not going to wait on the proposals from the diving community (vendors) for use of the quarry.
It looks like this is a "done deal" as they said they have a consensus of the coucil
members for the land swamp
Here's the news story
http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/news/113991221911310.xml&coll=1
Madison considers land swapTuesday, February 14, 2006
By KEITH CLINES
Times Staff Writer kclines@htimes.com
City Council to survey quarry, declare it surplus
MADISON - The Madison City Council agreed Monday night to survey the city-owned quarry property, as a precursor to a land swap with the city's Water and Wastewater Board.
The council also instructed city attorney Anne-Marie Lacy to prepare an ordinance declaring the property surplus and to amend a draft land-swap agreement with the Water and Wastewater Board for consideration at the next council meeting.
At Monday's meeting, council members discussed declaring the property surplus and how quickly it could rezone it from a general industrial zoning district to an agricultural district. Councilman Tommy Overcash said the council can suspend its rules at the next meeting and vote on the ordinance declaring the quarry property surplus.
Scuba-diving enthusiasts last month packed the council chambers asking the council not to swap the property. The group wanted the city to explore other avenues that would allow divers and others to continue using the site south of Interstate 565.
The water board wants to swap 58 acres it owns on Balch Road for the quarry and use it as an emergency water source. The quarry covers about 28 acres of the 105-acre quarry and park.
The city would, in turn, use the Balch Road property for recreation.
Councilman Larry Vannoy said after talking to other council members and Mayor Sandy Kirkindall the consensus was to make the swap.
"I think everybody's ready to move this forward and make it happen," Vannoy said.
No one from the scuba diving community attended Monday night's meeting.
When Councilman Jerry Jennings asked if the council could rezone the property before swapping it, he was told the legal advertising requirements for rezoning the property would add weeks to the process.
"Delay, delay, delay," Councilwoman Cynthia McCollum said.
Vannoy said the water board can ask to rezone property after it takes ownership. Vannoy, Kirkindall and Councilman Steve Haraway make up a majority of the five-member Water and Wastewater Board.
The board will discuss the proposal at its next meeting - Monday at 5 p.m. at its office at 101 Ray Sanderson Drive.
The council Monday night agreed to Kirkindall's proposal that he coordinate the land surveys for the city and the water board and they split the combined cost of the two surveys.
