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By EMILY SPARACINO | Staff Writer

MONTEVALLO – The Montevallo City Council honored a local business owner on Monday, Feb. 14 for reaching a milestone in his career.

Walt Czeskleba, owner of Czeskleba TV Service, received a proclamation declaring Tuesday, Feb. 22 as “Walt Czeskleba Day” in Montevallo to celebrate his 50 years in business.

Czeskleba graduated from Montevallo High School in 1968, and attended electronics school in Birmingham and vocational school in Childersburg for two years.

Czeskleba worked at a TV shop in Alabaster while attending school, and after completing school, he opened Czeskleba TV Service in Montevallo on Feb. 22, 1972.

The business was first located in a small storefront on North Boundary Street and soon moved to a storefront on Middle Street.

Czeskleba relocated the shop to its current location on Main Street in 1975.

The City Council approved another proclamation designating Arbor Day 2022 and recognizing the Arbor Day Foundation naming Montevallo a Tree City USA for its commitment to effective urban forest management.

“I’m glad to see us still being recognized as a Tree City,” Mayor Rusty Nix said.

To achieve Tree City USA status, Montevallo met the program’s four requirements: forming a tree board or department, creating a tree-care ordinance, having an annual community forestry budget of at least $2 per capita, and an Arbor Day observance and proclamation.

“Tree City USA communities benefit from the positive effects that an urban tree canopy has year after year,” Arbor Day Foundation President Dan Lambe wrote in a press release. “The trees being planted and cared for by Montevallo ensure that generations to come will enjoy a better quality of life. Additionally, participation in this program helps cultivate a sense of stewardship and pride for the trees the community plants and cares for.”

The Montevallo Arbor and Beautification Board will hold its annual Arbor Day event on Saturday, Feb. 26 from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Montevallo Recycling Center.

As a part of the Montevallo Tree City Experience, the board will have tables set up outside, under tents, if necessary, where residents may pick up bare root tree seedlings for free.

The seedlings available should include Red Maple, Pecan, Silky Dogwood, Water Oak, American Snowbell, Bald Cypress, Possum Haw and Ashe Magnolia.