During Monday’s regularly scheduled meeting, the Tallapoosa City Council shared several updates and passed resolutions to move forward with several city projects.

Tallapoosa Mayor William “Pete” Bridges announced that the building that previously housed Preferred Rubber will soon be demolished by Triton Industries, Inc. to make way for the new CVS building.

“They will probably take six to eight weeks to finish the demolition,” Bridges said.

JK Lockwood of Atlanta has been awarded the construction contract, and the mayor says CVS hopes to open its doors between March and June of 2010.

In the City Manager’s Report, City Manager Philip Eidson requested that the council approve a resolution to send the Memorandum of Understanding to the Georgia Department of Transportation so the city can move forward with its plans for sidewalk and landscape improvements to Alabama Street, Highway 78 and Lyon Street. The work is being funded by a DOT TEA grant of $325,000, and a memorandum must be sent to the DOT and approved before work can begin. The council approved the memorandum.

The council also unanimously approved a referendum to allow the city to apply for an ARC grant, which would then be used to supplement half the cost of drilling two new wells for the city.

“If we get the grant, we will be able to use the grant funds rather than the city funds for the wells,” Eidson said.

Eidson also proposed the city change its telephone service provider from AT&T to Deltacom.

“We’ll be changing over a period of six years,” Eidson said. “With this service (Deltacom), we’ll get more service, new phones, faster Internet, we get to keep our old numbers, they will service the Recreation Complex and we get a better long-distance plan.”

The city currently pays $2,111 a month to AT&T for their service. Deltacom will charge the city $2,150, which Eidson says is a much better deal considering the improvement in services. The council approved the change in telephone providers.

Eidson also updated the council on the progress of the Gateway project at the Interstate 20 exit, stating that a contract was to be awarded this week.

The city also approved a motion to move forward with the city-sponsored construction on Robertson Avenue and Kiker Street to improve water drainage on those streets. The council then approved a resolution to renew their contract with Segas, the city’s natural gas supplier. The contract was renewed for another five years.

In the Better Hometown Manager’s Report, Kate Gardener announced that two new businesses have opened in town: LV Nails and Tallapoosa Home Health.

Gardener also invited anyone interested in helping with the city’s 150th birthday celebration on Labor Day weekend of next year to call her at city hall and sign up. There are 14 committees that need to be filled. The next meeting set for all organizers of the celebration is set for the first Tuesday in October.