Owens VFD requests land for new station
Mar. 11—What to do with the old Owens Elementary School campus on Alabama 99 has been a regular topic of discussion at Limestone County Board of Education meetings. Part of the campus houses Alabama Connections Academy, and a roofing project was included for the 2021 portion of Limestone County Schools' five-year capital plan.
At Tuesday's work session, Owens Volunteer Fire Department said they have an idea for another part of the site — turning the old ballfield into a new fire station for the department.
"We have been looking for several years to acquire some land to build a new station," Tommy Toone, an emergency medical technician and paramedic who volunteers with Owens VFD. "As with most of Limestone County, (Owens is) growing, and we've outgrown our station."
Toone said the former school site is ideal because it's on a stretch of the highway with a turn lane, there's a fire hydrant already at the site and there's "even a flag pole." Additionally, the area is near a hill that could be converted into a new community storm shelter.
"I don't know if y'all are aware of the old storm shelter inside Owens," he said. "We still man it. Any time there's bad weather coming ... we have members there. It doesn't have electricity or running water, but we're still there, and the community relies on that building."
Toone and Owens Fire Chief Andy Pylant explained the current storm shelter is in such disrepair that it would be easier and more cost-effective to get a grant and build a new one, something they are willing to do.
"We would like to get a grant, if we could get some of that land to build a new station, to also build a new storm shelter," Toone said.
Finally, building a new fire station and storm shelter would mean clearing the area to such a degree that a helipad could be installed, meaning first responders wouldn't have to transport medical or trauma patients all the way into Athens.
"We think there's a lot of use that could be done if we could get some of that land," Toone told board members, but he added that getting a new fire station built would be their primary goal.
Board member Bradley Young said he wanted a more detailed layout of the department's plans for the area and how much area they would need for the station, shelter or landing zone before he could fully commit to anything. He suggested the VFD speak with LCS Superintendent Randy Shearouse outside the meeting, while board member Earl Glaze said research into any stipulations related to the land would be necessary before a vote on the issue. He said in some cases, property deeded to a school system must be used for school purposes, and to not do so could open the door for the property owner to reclaim ownership of the property.
Other business
In other business, board members approved the following during Tuesday's meeting:
—East Limestone Athletic Association's use of the Creekside Primary athletic fields from April 1 through June 30 for softball and baseball practices and games;
—Tanner Youth Softball's use of the softball field through May 28 for softball practice and games;
—Personnel actions, including a new itinerant speech language teacher position, a retirement, eight resignations, a transfer, three contracts, a contract correction, four new hires, two leaves of absence, 59 supplements, four volunteers and a 10-day suspension without pay;
—Clements High's purchase of 108 HP Chromebooks;
—Renewal of annual partnership with Alabama Supercomputer Authority;
—Permission for employees to use COVID-19 leave for absences while quarantined or positive for COVID-19 without having to use sick or personal leave;
—Renewal of two memorandums of understanding between LCBOE and Limestone County Emergency Management Agency; and
—Agreement between LCBOE and Brustein & Manasevit PPLC to provide technical assistance on federal education programs.
Visit bit.ly/LCBOEagenda to view a detailed agenda, including a complete list of the personnel actions. The News Courier will have additional coverage from Tuesday's work session in a future edition.
