Ward 2 town hall brings questions of housing, trash and firearms to city attention
Apr. 28—Nearly 30 people attended an Anniston town hall meeting for City Council Ward 2 to discuss a variety of issues including vacant houses, quality of life, community pride and crime.
The Thursday night meeting at Carver Community Center was Councilman Demetric "DD" Roberts' first town hall since he was elected in 2020.
Roberts welcomed everyone, saying the format was to "hear from the people" and to allow anyone to comment or ask questions. Various city department heads, along with City Manager Steven Folks, attended to help answer questions and concerns.
Vacant houses, pride and trash
Ward 2 resident Willie Byrd spoke about the condition of the city as he saw it during his time as a census taker in west Anniston.
"I was so broken-hearted to see the amount of houses, buildings that were just absolutely falling down, not taken care of, in miserable shape," Byrd said.
Byrd said his grandson lives next door to a state-owned house that's fallen by the wayside with overgrown vegetation.
Roberts told him that one of the reasons for some of the vacant houses is when a house is sold for back taxes the original owner has three years to reclaim the property through right of redemption.
Byrd said that he's an "upset homeowner."
"One thing that really, really upsets me is people that have no pride and evidently we do not have a way of taking care of things," Byrd said. "I have driven around District 2 and I can not tell you the number of front yards that have refuse, trash, cars, mud you name it and that's in the front yards."
Roberts acknowledged the housing problem and said the heirs of the original owners are at fault.
"To your point you're right, as I drive around Ward 2 we have a housing problem, we have a problem where a lot of these houses have been abandoned, what I have found in my limited research is a lot of people have passed on and left the house," Roberts said.
Byrd asked everyone in attendance if they were interested in making Ward 2 a better place prompting Roberts to suggest that Ward 2 residents could form a Anniston Changers type group to improve the area.
Roberts said it's tough to come up with solutions and described a situation where a group could clean up an area of trash one day and in the next few days the litter returns.
"That's not a city government problem, that's a problem from the constituents, you're right, we do need to take pride in our area but I can't make you have that," Roberts said.
Roberts told the group there is an online form on the city's website where residents can report nuisances.
Wayne Spikes told Roberts he is doing a great job as a councilman. Spikes said he's lived in west Anniston since 1985 and shared his thoughts about the dilapidated houses that pepper west Anniston.
"A lot of people that sit in this room are elderly, when these people pass away these houses are left to those children, these children are not going to pay that mortgage, some of these houses have second and third mortgages on them because that's what they left," Spikes said.
"I don't want my children living on the west side, it's contaminated, everybody knows that," he said.
Spikes predicted that in 10 years west Anniston will no longer exist.
"How you fix that, I have no idea but we're living in contaminated areas, we're living in dilapidated houses and everybody knows that those young people that live in those houses right now, because their parents or grandparents passed away; they're not taking care of those houses," Spikes said.
Roberts appreciated Spikes' insights.
Gloria Crook voiced her concerns about high grass along the city's rights of way.
"Sometimes that grass is almost as high as that stop sign," Crook said.
Roberts said that anytime a person sees any grass, limbs or trees obstructing traffic signs to let him know.
"Those are safety issues, and whenever I call in a safety issue it's generally handled before I can get by and check and see," Roberts said.
Crook singled out an area of concern across the street from the Easy Riders Motorcycle Club property.
"That man needs to clean that place up," Crook said. "We need to clean this stuff up, we can't have a good neighborhood for other people bringing us stuff in the neighborhood junking it up," she said.
Fire Marshal Jason Brown told Crook that the property across the street from the motorcycle club is being addressed.
"They know they've got to clean that up, we're working on a time frame because it's gotten way out of control," Brown said.
Potholes
Jerry Glover had several concerns including potholes along city streets.
"Potholes are creeping up everywhere. Some roads are wearing out," Glover said.
David Arnett, Anniston public works director, said if a motorist discovers a pothole to call public works and or go online to report it.
"We have one guy out there fixing potholes, that's all we have, we get work orders every morning and they go out and fill potholes everyday," Arnett said.
Are we OK?
Glover asked a weighty question about the state of the city itself.
"Economically, are we OK, the city and us, are we OK," Glover asked.
Folks answered his question with enthusiasm.
"We're more than OK, we're fine," Folks said. "The pandemic was a blessing and it was a curse because we were able to make sure we did things the right way and made sure that we did not let the pandemic hurt us so badly."
Folks, a 28-year employee of the city, said the city has a comprehensive plan to guide the city even after he and the current mayor are gone. He added that he never looks at the city by wards but instead of what's best for the whole city.
Folks said that old houses are being torn down and the city is looking at ways to build new homes in west Anniston.
In south Anniston, 13 affordable homes are being built and the paving of the city's roads is ongoing.
"We have paved more roads this year than we have in the whole 28 years I've been in Anniston," Folks said.
Folks stressed that partnerships with the county, water authority and other entities are essential to help improve the city.
"We have not forgotten west Anniston," he said.
"But what we're concentrating on now is what can we do that impacts everybody and makes everybody look good when somebody comes in here and says, 'I want to be here,'" he said.
"We're doing a whole heck of a lot and you ain't seen nothing yet," Folks said.
Crime, guns and solutions
Glen Ray said families are hurting from recent violence and hopes there can be more police patrols.
"What are we going to do with our young people? They're going around shooting and thinking it's OK like it's OK Corral," Ray said.
Roberts, who was wearing a Stop The Violence T-shirt, said he is personally tired of the shootings in the city and addressed the issue.
"These young guys got what they call 'switches' so all they are doing is pulling the trigger and they're spraying, you turn a semi-automatic weapon into an automatic weapon. And they close their eyes and just shoot," Roberts said.
Roberts said that anyone caught with a modified and illegal weapon should "have the book thrown at them."
On Friday, police Chief Nick Bowles said via a message to The Anniston Star that the police department has seized several illegal guns with switches installed over the past year.
Roberts said he will participate in any meeting that has to do with the resident safety.
"Because even in the Joyview Heights neighborhood you hear more gunshots now than you ever have," Roberts said.
Folks said that since pistol permits were eliminated by the Alabama Legislature, it has created problems with policing.
"Police don't know who has a gun now," he said.
"The police are out there beating the ground doing what they are supposed to do," Folks said.
Michelle Blue, a new resident to Anniston, questioned what the city is doing to try to give young people something to do to curb illicit activity especially since summer is approaching.
Folks said the city has many programs and events to involve young people including a spring break program, a summer job program, Good Choice program that offers scholarships and the YES program (Youth Empowerment for Success).
The city also holds a Stop the Violence event, Something To Do on Sundays program and Anniston Changers, Folks said.
Roberts said that the Wiggins Community Center offers a STEM program and a newly completed mountain bike trail at Randolph Park Elementary School.
"It's time for us to bring our community together and start holding each other responsible and accountable because what happened, we've dropped the ball on our kids," Roberts said.
Once the two-hour town hall was over Roberts reflected on the meeting.
"I was very overwhelmed at the amount of people that came out — I think it was a big success," he said.
Councilwoman Ciara Smith will hold her town hall meeting next Thursday, May 4, at 5 p.m. at the South Highland Community Center located at 229 South Allen Ave. Roberts said he plans to attend.
Staff writer Bill Wilson: 256-235-3562. On Twitter @bwilson_star.
