Several elected officials with the City of Milton recently took time to reflect upon this past year and share some expectations for 2016. From removing the Confederate Battle flag from the city seal to repaving and repairing city streets in need, the council had an active 2015.
Council Member Alan Lowery was happy to find a compromise in replacing the Confederate Battle flag on the city seal with the First National flag of the Confederacy, also known as the Star and Bars flag.
“It’s not often that you make everyone happy,” Lowery said.
While supporters for keeping the controversial flag on the seal stated the importance of the historical aspect of the flag, opponents saw the flag as a sign of hatred.
Lowery also mentioned the repair and repaving work of Alabama and Dixon Streets as an accomplishment for the city. The repair work also made fellow Council Member Ashley Lay’s list of accomplishments for the city in 2015. Both Lowery and Lay say this will hopefully be the first of many repaving projects for years to come.
The road repair initiative began with Alabama and Dixon Streets in which the city spent $250,000 to refurbish and repave the roadways. Lay also listed the nearly $1 million dollars in grant funding will be used for enhancing several city parks, including Gill Bass, Lucille Johnson and Carpenter’s, along with the beatification project along Dogwood Drive. This initiative will continue into 2016.
Another proud accomplishment for the city this past year was reviving the city’s youth council, an effort headed by fellow Council Member Mary Ellen Johnson. Johnson hopes the youth council “exceeds and set examples for other municipalities to follow in the state of Florida and throughout the nation.”
One of the main goals of the city’s youth council is to develop leadership opportunities for middle and high school students, involving themselves in problem solving opportunities for the city, Johnson said.
Among other prospects for 2016, many of the council members want to continue their efforts in working with the Board of County Commissioners in bringing a new courthouse facility to downtown Milton. Another popular listed item is attracting new business developments to properties within city limits.
Johnson also mentioned working further with the Florida Department of Transportation in finding the best possible solution in alleviating traffic on U.S. Hwy. 90 in downtown Milton. In addition to finding funding sources for a new wastewater treatment plant, Lay also plans to further develop relationships with legislative delegations on the state and federal level in order to find support in funding projects like the much needed treatment plant and developing the riverfront Master Plan.
Lowery, a former Milton firefighter, also wants to work with the city in securing additional funding for the Milton Fire Department.
In addition to thanking fellow council members for their due diligence and hard work this past year, Johnson also thanked the citizens for their continued input.
“Citizens are happy and not afraid to reach out and share ideas for quality growth and development,” she said.
Council Member Lloyd Hinote said citizen input can be very beneficial to help the council in adding entertainment venues and athletic developments available to the city.
Hinote is also appreciative of how the council has worked together as well.
“We are seeing a unity in the city and that is something we desperately needed,” Hinote said.
For the purposes of this article, all of the council including Mayor Wesley Meiss were contacted by email and phone for comment. However, due to the holiday deadlines, several of the council members were unable to comment as of this edition. We plan to include their comments in an upcoming edition.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Members of Milton City Council share thoughts on 2015, expectations for 2016