The Blytheville City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to appraise the former City Cleaners, 210 S. Second St.
Local businessman Tommy Abbott asked the Council if he could purchase the building from the city in case the future Highway 18 overpass forces him to move his current Delta Auto Parts business, located at 119 West Ash.
Delta Auto Parts, along with Connealy Rentals, The Sharecropper Restaurant and others, are in the proposed path of the overpass.
The city paid $25 for the old City Cleaners building, but it should appraise for "a few thousand," Blytheville Mayor Barrett Harrison said.
Abbott wants "to get ahead of the game" in case he is forced to move.
He said he enjoys being downtown and plans to fix up the run-down, abandoned building, something that would benefit both the city and his business.
"It's in very rough shape," Abbott said. "The roof has been burnt several different times. There's debris all in it. Somebody has stripped all the electrical, all of the air conditioning out of that building. It's quite an eyesore. The good thing is you can't see it right now because of my building and also Connealy's building sitting in front of it. However, when the road comes through, that building is going to be about 30 feet off of the right-of-way. I've come up with this proposal that I think will be a good deal for the city and a good deal for me as well."
He said he has spoken with a company that says it can do the necessary work.
"It's going to be quite expensive to get it turned over, but it's going to be quite expensive for me to move anywhere that I move," Abbott said. "I can make it into a nice-looking building to serve my purposes as well as help beautify the city."
He added he needs to get his plans together fairly soon because of all the potential renovations, including a new roof.
"I've been informed, with some authority, that probably within the next month they (the Highway Department) would start making offers (on the current properties in the proposed path)," Abbott said.
Harrison said there is still an ongoing effort to make the overpass path south of Delta Auto Parts.
Abbott said if the Highway Department should go that route, he would contribute any additional proceeds he made from the City Cleaners building to the city.
He added staying in his current building would be ideal.
Harrison said there is no official word on which route will be used.
Councilwoman Carol White said the city should wait to sell the property until it knows the official route.
She said if the route went through Abbott's current building, she would encourage the city to give it to him.
Harrison told Council members before they could sell it, the building must be appraised.
"If you sell it, you just have to try to get what it's worth," Harrison said. "That's your responsibility to the taxpayers."
In other business, the Council:
-- Heard from Water Department manager Matt Mosley that one of the city's better wells is out of service. C&B Drilling Company estimated it will cost $92,000 to fix the well. A new well is estimated to cost $300,000. Mosley said the well quit producing water about three weeks ago. He has turned in an insurance claim, but didn't know if the well would be covered. Mosley said the department is looking for a used motor, which would be cheaper than a new one and arrive in faster. A new one would take 12 weeks, he said. The city has six more wells, and Mosley noted the city should be OK for the short-term as long as another well doesn't malfunction.
-- Unanimously passed a measure beefing up an ordinance that prohibits unauthorized entry and operation of motor vehicles on the concrete runways and ramps and facilities of the Blytheville Municipal Airport and the Arkansas International Airport. Harrison said the ordinance allows the airport to become eligible for grants.
-- Read an ordinance for the second time extending the time limit for the Deferred Retirement Option Plan for firefighters from five years to 10.
-- Heard from Tim Nelson of Vector Disease Control. Nelson said Vector is geared up for mosquito season. It has larvicide some areas and plans to do more shortly.
-- Heard a Parks and Recreation report from Councilman Monte Hodges. Recently, the Parks and Recreation Committee discussed moving the goal posts from Cypress park to the new Missco Junior League Football Field. The Missco scoreboard is currently stored at the Blytheville Youth Sportsplex and will be erected at the new Missco field. Hodges is checking into bleachers for Missco. Hodges said Walker Park manager Bob Bailey noted things are going well at the park. The Walker Park pool is slated to open Memorial Day weekend. The tennis court has new tennis nets that will be put up. Hodges' committee also heard from Marcus Martin about some ideas for the Ninth Street ball field property. Martin told the committee Tenaris would be interested in helping with future projects. The committee met new Heritage Museum director Leslie Hester, who updated it on the progress of the museum.
-- Heard from Councilwoman Shirley Overman that Monday the Finance Committee went over a lot of information about the first quarter, but didn't have the revenue/expenses figures. She said the committee found several items it needs clarification on from the finance department. She plans another meeting later this month.
-- Heard from Councilwoman Shirley Connealy that she is asking the Arkansas Department of Health Cosmetology Section to check on local nail salons to ensure they are sterilizing their equipment. Also her Health and Sanitation report, Connealy said more people are recycling, which saves landfill space. However, she said it is counter-productive if the county continues to allow other counties to dump their trash in the landfill, which she called the biggest hill in Mississippi County.
-- Heard from Blytheville Police Chief Ross Thompson that his department is trying to get a vehicle for community service. One option could be using the inmate van, which is used dually to haul inmates to the county jail and for community service transportation. Thompson said doing arraignments from the county jail via satellite is in the works and it would cut down on transportation cost as well as free up the van for community service.
mbrasfield@blythevillecourier.com