St. Albans City Council selected a lot at the corner of Walnut Street and Washington Avenue as the site for a new outdoor fitness studio.Photo byGMSV

ST. ALBANS, W.Va. -- St. Albans City Council members have selected a potential site for a new municipally-owned outdoor fitness studio.

On Tuesday, Ward 7 councilman Andrew Eads proposed a city-owned lot at the intersection of Washington Avenue and Walnut Street. The lot is one-tenth of an acre, officials said, big enough for the proposed 38 feet by 76 feet studio.

“It’s [in a] neighborhood central to walking,” council-at-large member David Rucker said during the panel’s Sept. 3 regularly scheduled meeting. “Part of your exercise is getting there.”

Council members said the lot offers additional space that could be used for more than just exercise equipment.

“[The city] could put a bench there that people could sit on and relax between workouts,” Rucker suggested.

The site’s location, just blocks from nearby Kanawha Terrace, factored into the council members’ decision.

“People not familiar with St. Albans can get to it,” Ward 4’s Brian Kloosterman said. “It’d draw some people [to the city].”

Other lots considered for the outdoor fitness studio were the site of the former St. Albans Jr. High School and the Hansford Center.

Eads motioned to accept the lot at Washington Avenue and Walnut Street for the project. Council members voted unanimously to proceed with the studio at that site by voice vote, with no nays heard.

St. Albans Mayor Scott James, left, listens as city attorney Mike Del Guidice, right, speaks at the Sept. 3, 2024 city council meeting.Photo byCity of St. Albans

Possible litigation in broadband project

Also on Tuesday, council members gave the go-ahead for city attorney Mike Del Guidice to proceed with any needed litigation in response to a yet unsatisfied broadband project.

City officials said Hurricane-based Alpha Technologies has already received partial payment for the project but has not met the terms of their agreement. The city has asked for a return of payments, minus expenses for any work already completed.

“We told [company representatives to] give us our money. And, let us know what [they] spent,” Del Guidice told council members. “They gave us some receipts, but they were very minimal. They showed us a couple of diagrams that they did, but they still have not shown us how much of this money they spent.”

Del Guidice said that he and other city leaders, including St. Albans Mayor Scott James, have proposed a meeting with Alpha Technology representatives this week to discuss the matter further before pursuing further action.

“We will negotiate in good faith before any litigation,” Del Guidice said Tuesday. “We're waiting to hear back from them.”

Council members accepted the motion for the attorney to proceed with litigation, if necessary. The motion was passed unanimously by voice vote with no nays heard.

Other motions

Several other items were addressed by the council on Tuesday. Motions made by the panel include:

• The approval of invoices totaling $20,530.70;
• The awarding of a bid to West Virginia Tractor Company for the purchase of a garbage truck for $199,864.30; and
• The purchase of $3,092.46 worth of playground equipment to replace a slide and other play structures destroyed at a city-owned park in an auto accident earlier this year.

Council members also gave their OK for the city to seek bids for an operational study for the city’s Fire Department and appointed Della Dawn Epling to the St. Albans Housing Authority Board. Epling will fill the unexpired term of Priscella Bass, who has resigned. Her term runs through July 3, 2028.

St. Albans City Council’s next regularly scheduled meeting is set for 6:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Council Chambers.

Michael Ramsburg is a Kanawha County communities reporter. He can be reached at ramsburgreports@gmail.com or by calling 304-370-3067.