By BRIANA HARRIS / Staff Writer

PELHAM – The Pelham City Council accepted a $5.97 million bid from Blalock Building Company for the construction of the city’s recreation center at a meeting on Monday, Sept. 19.

The approval of the bid comes two weeks after Mayor Gary Waters voiced disapproval at a Sept. 6 work session about the process of designing the city’s new recreation center. Waters said he had not been included in the planning process.

On Thursday, Sept. 8, the City Council and Waters met with the rec center’s architect from Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood to review the building plans. The mayor, Parks and Recreation Director Billy Crandall and the City Council collectively decided what aesthetic features would be included on the interior of the two-story rec center.  After the meeting, Waters said he was satisfied and pleased with what he saw.

They agreed to include a wood finish on a wall at the entrance of the rec center, bleachers in the gym, a monument sign outside of the center, and decided what type of rail would be placed around the upstairs track.

City Council President Rick Hayes said the city has increased its reserves by about $10 million in the last four years, putting the city in good financial shape.

“We’ve put ourselves in a position to where we don’t have to borrow a dime,” Hayes said.

The city has grown its reserves from just over $27 million to about $38 million since 2012, Hayes said. He said the feat was accomplished in part by refinancing loans to get lower interest rates, which allowed to city to save money.

The city hopes to have the rec center completed and the majority of the new library’s exterior constructed by the time the new middle school opens in August 2017 so that there isn’t any major construction happening in the vicinity of students.

“The completion of the city center is going to be a wonderful thing for our children, it’s going to be a wonderful thing for our seniors and everyone in between,” Hayes said.

At the end of the meeting, Waters presented a proclamation recognizing Sept. 26 as Family Day. In August, Gov. Robert Bentley signed a proclamation recognizing Family Day statewide.

In other business, the council:

-Approved a special use permit for AT&T for modifications to the existing tower facility at 5050 Beabout Drive.

-Approved a special use permit for T-Mobile for modifications to the existing tower facility at 5010 Oak Mountain Drive.

-Accepted a donated trailer from Colonial Pipeline for the Pelham Fire Department.

-Approved the reappointment of four residents to the Pelham Beautification Board.

-Tabled a resolution to revoke the business license of R & R Millworks and Granite, LLC.