Earlier this week the Summerdale Town Council held its work session meeting for November. No action was taken at the meeting, but all issues that were discussed will be on the agenda for the regularly scheduled town council meeting Monday.

The city’s comprehensive plan, which is at least 25 years old and declared out-of-date, was discussed. The town was approached by an individual who is willing to take an in-depth look at the town’s plan and see where the plan can be improved and updated to make it more useful for the town. Many on the council were in agreement that the town’s comprehensive plan is out of date, which leaves the town with no definitive direction. The plan’s state also means when property which has been annexed since the plan was drawn up is zoned there was no plan made for that area, so it ends up being guesswork as far as what the town wants the area to turn into later.

The council has not budgeted any funds to update the comprehensive plan, but the council will discuss the possibility of hiring someone to take a look at their plan. The individual who has offered his services to the town understands that the town does not have a lot of funds to allocate to revamping the comprehensive plan, but he said getting paid was not a top priority for him.

“I am here to help if I can, I think it is important to have a good plan in place. While it is slow right now, now is the time to plan for when it comes back, and it will come back.”

Mayor David Wilson said he had no problem considering the possibility of hiring someone to update the town’s comprehensive plan. Wilson also expressed hopes that grants could possibly be found to help pay someone to revamp the town’s plan.

In other town news, the police department has almost completely moved out of its old station and into the new Summerdale Municipal Complex. This week the police department expected to finish moving everything out of the old station to make room for a new tenant. The council hopes to rent out the old station in the near future.

The town also plans to enact a new policy which will no longer allow most town employees to drive vehicles owned by the town home or outside of the town’s limits on a regular basis. According to a rough estimate by the town, $1,000 is spent each month on mileage that is not related to town business. The new policy is expected to go into effect in January. Wilson plans to have meetings with town employees to explain the new policy and and why it has become necessary due to the town’s economic outlook.

The town is also finalizing plans for sidewalks as part of a Safe Routes for School Grant from the Alabama Department of Transportation.

The council is also expected to vote on the budget for the new fiscal year Monday. The most recent version of the budget discussed on Tuesday totaled $1,8 million. The total budget is $239,000 less than last year’s budget and includes no fireworks and no special projects. The lower budget, according to the council, is due in part to a decline in revenues. The proposed budget also includes $50,000, which will be pulled from reserve funds to balance the budget. 

The town council will hold its November meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Monday