During the most recent City Council meeting held of July 18, City Councilman John Brown gave an impassioned plea urging citizens to sign up for the city’s emergency notification system, CivicReady. It is a free service provided by the city that the Councilman stressed could potentially save lives.  He touted the recent flood that happened in Texas as an example.  “By now, everyone is aware that on July 4, residents in central Texas experienced a catastrophic flood event. (The most recent death toll is 135 with 3 still missing).

“We the governing body of the city of Grambling have an emergency communication system to warn residents of emergency situations such as tornadoes, hurricanes, catastrophic flooding, interruption of public services, road closures, etc. We put this in place because we care about you, your family, your friends, and your neighbors.”

Which is why he and the City Council have set up four Civic Ready sign-up days to be held Aug. 5-6 and Aug. 11-Aug. 12 from noon – 1 p.m. and 5-6 p.m. to try to bolster the number of city residents able to receive the emergency notifications. 

“It only takes three to five minutes to sign up.  All you need is your cell phone.”  He said.

The councilman went on to say that only around 4% of city residents are enrolled in the program presently which troubles him.

“We only have around 240 people signed up right now, out of roughly 5,000,” Brown said. “I, along with our mayor and City Council, are saddened by the low participation number involved with this free service. We need more to be signed up for the good of everyone. Please get the word out about these sign up days and let’s work together to try and keep everyone as safe as we can.”

Also, during the meeting, Mayor Alvin Bradley announced that they have chosen Hunt, Guillot & Associates (HGA) of Ruston as the firm who will develop the comprehensive 10-year Master Plan the City held bids for a few months ago.   The plan as reported here a few months ago, will address various aspects of the city’s future, including economic development, housing growth, transportation, and university partnerships.  The plan will also focus on revitalizing Main Street and improving accessibility throughout the city. 

Other business the City Council addressed in the meeting was to approve a resolution to keep property tax millage rates the same for 2025.

“We’re not going up on any millages at this time, so basically, our taxes will remain the same as we move forward,” said Mayor Alvin Bradley. 

Also, Councilman Jerry Lewis proposed adding a second garbage truck for the city. “With only one truck, when that truck breaks, we have to either bring someone else in to run our garbage pick-up routes, or we have to rent the equipment.”  He also said that he and Public Works Director, Eric Caldwell have located a truck that could work and with that truck, they have also offered a payment plan.

He said he hopes to get it all done and bring it back to the Mayor and Council so that it can be voted on.

Last but not least, the City Council approved the hiring of Ronnie Skinner for the Grambling Fire Department.