By By Lee Weyhrich
The city of Atmore is receiving an emergency grant from the Natural Resources Conservation Service to clean out the city's congested drainage system, Mayor Shell said at the city council meeting Monday afternoon. "NRCS is issuing a grant to approve work on storm drains," Shell said after the meeting.
The city was given 10 business days from last Friday to begin work in order to receive the grant, Shell said. The council voted unanimously to take emergency bids to clean the drainage system from Owen Street to Z-Tel. Work is to begin on that area this Friday at 3:30 p.m.
In other council business Swann's Foods, a company that sells meals and ice cream out of delivery trucks, applied for a business license in order to market their food in Atmore. The council voted to deny the license based on recommendations from the mayor and questions posed by councilmen Jim Staff and John Watkins.
"What we would like to have (Swann's) do if (it) would like to do business in Atmore is establish a building based business in the city," Mayor Howard Shell said.
Shell went on to say that the only business currently operating as a truck-based business is an ice cream truck.
Watkins and Staff's concern was the city's ability to regulate sales tax. According to Shell the city does not currently have a way to monitor sales tax on businesses such as Swann's.
Watkins motioned that until such time as the city has a way to monitor sales tax a business license for Swann's should be denied.