GRAY
Gray City Council members approved brewery production and sales with a split vote during the first meeting of 2024.
The Jan. 8 meeting was called to order by Mayor Ed Barbee, with all council members present except Councilman Benny Gray. Councilman Terrell Fulford attended the meeting via conference call.
The mayor began the meeting with comments of a fantastic 2023 and a positive beginning for the new year.
Old Business was first on the agenda with the only item the second reading of an ordinance to allow a brewery in Gray. Mayor Pro Tem James Collins made the motion to adopt the ordinance, and the vote to approve was 3-1 with Councilman Terry Favors opposed.
Work on the ordinance began in June but stalled in August when its second reading and adoption were postponed indefinitely. The ordinance was brought back up in September by Collins, who asked for there to at least be a vote on its approval or denial.
Another first reading of the ordinance took place at the Dec. 4 council meeting, and a few final changes were made following the Dec. 18 committee meeting. City Attorney John Newberry explained at the committee meeting that Gray does not have a zoning code that would allow a brewery. He said the addition of the zoning in the city would be the next step for anyone wanting to open a brewery.
New Business
Council voted to change the date of its All Committees meeting to Jan. 22 due to the Jan. 15 Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
Items 2-6 were resolutions, and all were approved unanimously. The first resolution was to adjust the city budget to include $57,440 in LMIG funds and add the expense of $57,440 for street patching.
Council renewed the moratorium on sewer connections with the next two resolutions authorizing the use of $19,949 from the police department confiscation fund and $42,340 from ARPA funds.
The final resolution authorized the renewal of the city’s Statewide Mutual Aid and Assistance agreement with GEMA and Homeland Security.
Agenda item 7 unanimously approved a contract with McNair McLemore Middlebrooks and Co. for the city’s 2023 audit, and the final item was approval of a beer and wine license for The Lazy Frog, located at 300 West Clinton Street.
The next meeting schedule for City Council is its All Committees Meeting Jan. 22.
