By RUBY KEARCE
The Ponce De Leon (PDL) Town Council met for its regular monthly meeting on Thursday, Oct. 19, at Ponce De Leon Town Hall. The meeting began with the swearing in of Ashely Johnson, who will be taking Marrilyn Haney’s spot on the council after her recent resignation. Johnson attended high school in Ponce De Leon and has been known to volunteer for the city of PDL; she recently spent time volunteering at the Collard Festival. Council member Zach Williams made the motion to elect Johnson as the new member of the council with Councilwoman Kim Mason seconding it at the September City Council meeting. Town Clerk Jessica Harris administered the council oath of office.
Fire Chief Remmel went before the council to announce the dates for the Ponce De Leon Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department’s annual Halloween Haunted FireHouse on Oct 20, 21, 27, and 28. There was a $5 admission for adults and children above the age of 11, with the proceeds going to department related issues.
The fire department is also kicking off the Christmas Blessings Program and will be accepting Christmas Help applications until Friday, Nov. 17. The requirements for a child to receive Christmas help are that the applicant be the parent or legal guardian, that the child live in the parent or legal guardian’s home, and that the family lives within Holmes County. If these requirements are met, those in need may reach out to Public Relations Lt. Gynell via the department’s social media page.
The Howard Group has given the city of PDL permission to place Christmas lights at the Triangle and behind the old Hardware Store at the center of town. This is part of the the city’s finding a way to continue to decorate the city for Christmas now that they are no longer allowed to string lights on power poles (as in previous years).
Town Clerk Harris updated the council on the dump truck that was previously deemed as surplus at a previous meeting. A sealed bidding will be held for the dump truck. A sealed bid is when an individual interested in buying the dump truck puts their bid into an envelope and the city waits to open all bids on the date of the deadline. Whoever has the highest bid wins the auction.
A PDL resident who lives on Magnolia Street approached the council requesting that a few “child at play” signs to be placed on the street. Magnolia Street has seen an uptick in traffic, and this resident is one of the only ones who live on the road and has noticed a problem with people speeding or driving recklessly through Magnolia Street. A motion was passed for the placement of the signs.
During Council member Kim Mason’s report, she announced that PDL Athletics would be hosting a dance for the local youth at the old PDL gym that Friday night, Oct. 20. During town updates, Harris announced that all three Big Boss Stores, Dollar General, Family Dollar/ Dollar Tree, Tom Thumb, Wayne’s Grocery, and the Town Hall of PDL will be handing out candy on Halloween night. Harris also announced that town hall will be accepting new unwrapped toys for boys and girls ages 0 to 12 for Santa to distribute. The donation box can be found in the at Town Hall. Business hours for drop off are Monday through Friday 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., and monetary donations are also welcome. Santa is set to make a visit to PDL’s Town Hall on Saturday Dec 16, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.