Board bans bikes at Sportsplex

* Big Creek submits $174K grant application; Bruce sets Clean-Up Month.

By Mack Spencer

Monitor-Herald

Vardaman aldermen have banned bicycles from the Parker Sportsplex.

Also out are skateboards and pets, all in a bid to make the area safer for the Sportsplex's primary users, baseball and softball players and spectators.

The walkways between the fields and space for seating are rather narrow, making the pedestrian-only policy in the Sportsplex the most sensible.

In other business:

* The board elected to disconnect a phone line that allowed remote monitoring of the main water well.

Instead, town workers will be able to check the monitoring program online. The cost of the monitoring system will drop from $481 per year to $300.

* Dixie Regional Library System notified the board that town librarian Jo Anne Blue will retire in June.

* Public works director Eddie Alford's new insurance coverage was finalized.

* Expenses for attending the Mississippi Municipal League conference in July were approved.

* Clerk Barbara Tedder will attend court clerk training on domestic violence issues in July.

Elsewhere:

Big Creek

Aldermen approved applying for a $174,000 grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The grant will fund a new tanker truck for the volunteer fire department, with a 2,100-gallon tank and up to 500-gallon-per-minute pump. The town will need about $8,750 to complete the cost of the truck.

Mayor Dwight Devall said he expected to hear FEMA's decision on the grant by fall.

The town is also anticipating the arrival of a free bulletproof vest for drug dog Sheba. The vest, a $1,250 value, is being donated by a charity that specializes in providing vests for drug dogs.

The board heard a report that the park received its spring cleaning, and the town walking track has been resealed.

Bruce

Aldermen set Clean-up Month for mid-May to early June. Two bins will be rented for citizens to use for disposing of household waste.

An identity theft prevention policy was tabled.

Police chief Stan Evans will attend the chiefs' conference in Biloxi.

The board held a recess meeting Tuesday night to discuss properties in need of clean-up.

Pittsboro

Public works director Charles D. Mahan is pulling meters around town for evaluation. The board is considering installing digital meters, which can be read remotely.

The board also approved sending Mahan to any necessary training.

Town T-shirts will be reordered soon. For more information, call Town Hall.

The board approved expenses for anyone who choose to attend the Mississippi Municipal League convention in July.

Derma

The board accepted a $15,285 bid for installation of a warning siren for the town.

A contract between the fire department and the board of supervisors on fighting fires outside the town limits was approved.