The Clifton Forge Town Council held their regular meeting this past Tuesday night, October 10, to discuss several items on the docket including department reports, a request from the Clifton Forge Shrine Club to “close the streets and provide the same level of support as in years past for the Clifton Forge Fall Foliage Festival,” approving the final concept for the Jefferson School building, and the “relocation and design of the Clifton Forge Food Pantry.”
After a brief prayer and the saying of the pledge of allegiance, it was time to get down to business. Mickey Bowyer was the first to address the council and audience members. Bowyer is the chairman of the Clifton Forge Shrine Club who was present to talk about the upcoming 53rd annual Fall Foliage Festival scheduled for this weekend, October 20th-22nd.
Bowyer said in his presentation, “We certainly request that the city will work with us, as they always have in the past. We’re excited about it. I’ve been working on spots. We’ve got about 105 spots and I think we’ve got ‘em all sold this year, so we’re looking for a big crowd, great weather, and a lot of people in the community support us and we really appreciate that, especially you guys [Clifton Forge Town Council]… It goes to a great cause and that’s what it’s all about for us. We just got to talk to this young lady sitting right here [Jennifer Bailey] and found out that her daughter spent 18 years at the Greenville Hospital, in Greenville, South Carolina, the Shriner’s Hospital… it’s great to have someone from our community that we’ve helped support, so we’re excited about that from all of ya’ll. Thank you.”
Glenn Perry, also with the Clifton Forge Shrine Club, was up next to speak, simply requesting permission from the Council to have the Fall Festival this year. The Council later voted and approved to close the streets down and hold the 53rd annual Fall Festival next weekend.
Up next on the agenda was the approval of the minutes, department reports, and the Clifton Forge Shrine Club’s request to close the streets next weekend for the purpose of holding the 53rd annual Fall Foliage Festival. All items were voted on and approved unanimously by the Council.
The council then focused their attention on approving the design for the redevelopment of the Jefferson School Building. City Manager Chuck Unroe stated, “Mr. Mayor and members of the Council and folks attending: you should have a copy, it was on the table for everybody to pick up when they came in of the final rendering of the conceptual drawing for the redevelopment of that property. We have been working on this for a little bit over a year through a grant that we received from the Virginia Housing… We’ve had three meetings, the very first of which was a meeting where we all went in and toured the school building…” From himself to public works to code enforcement and community stakeholders, Unroe said many were involved in the tour, likely to ensure the safety of the building for the purposes of the redevelopment.
“That progressed to a preliminary conceptual drawing that was presented in July at a public meeting held on the front lawn of the Jefferson School building. There were some things that needed to be considered after that meeting, from input and comments and suggestions that we received from the community,” Unroe stated. Following the suggestions, a new design was drafted and presented at a later public meeting on the Jefferson School lawn. “…The community seemed happy with the design that was given, so I’m here tonight asking the Council to approve this concept…”
The plan for the Jefferson School building is multi-purpose and will feature computer access, desks, Wi-Fi, study rooms, restrooms, small kitchenette, a functioning gymnasium, stage, and venue for community events. Locals and school kids alike will be able to access the internet from the facility who may not otherwise be able to afford or access it from home. Additionally, the food pantry will be relocated, and the current area turned into a parking lot. It is set to be a three-stage process. With the grants and tax credits applied, the project should cost around $3 million, according to Unroe. The council unanimously approved the design and project.
City Manager Chuck Unroe then introduced Debbie and Armend West, the managers of the Clifton Forge Food Pantry. The Wests have been managing the food pantry for the past 20 years, tirelessly and generously volunteering their time for the community. However, in December of this year, a woman by the name of Evelyn Cooper will be taking over the management of the food pantry.
Unroe then addressed the food pantry and how they would be accommodated going forward. “The food pantry provides an invaluable service to the community. We need to take care of them. We need to make sure that they have a permanent place to be and you’ll see on the far right-hand side of this drawing a new building… the plan currently is to let the food pantry remain housed in the double-wides that they’re in now while the construction of the new building is being completed, then they will be able to move into the new building…”
Council then unanimously voted to allow Unroe to prepare the RFP to recruit potential developers for the Jefferson School building for the redevelopment project. As of right now, things are moving forward, full steam with the plans for the Jefferson School building.
Afterward, Unroe made a few brief comments. Then Pam Lightfoot from the Lion’s Club spoke on what the club does, also addressing their ice-cream fundraiser which allows them to “help pay for eye exams for the citizens of Alleghany.” Next, council members made their comments, mostly consisting of thanking the Shriners, attendees, and Wests for all their hard work over the years. Finally, the town council meeting came to a close. At that time, a closed session was held after the room was cleared.