By Julie Johansen
A new business license was the first order of business at Huntington City Council meeting on Wednesday evening. The business, located at 170 North Main Street, is the Caritas Charity Fund and will feature real estate activities, including renting and selling of homes.
The next item on the agenda was a public hearing regarding the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) for the funding cycle 2020 and 2021. This grant can be used for city projects and is for cities with low to middle incomes. There were no citizens in attendance to comment, so the hearing was closed.
Action was then considered for Resolution 26-2020 to reestablish an enterprise zone in Huntington. The previous zone was expiring and the council felt that it was important to the businesses already established and would attract new businesses to the city. This will give tax breaks and credits to those businesses. The resolution passed unanimously.
A utility account that had multiple accounts on a single meter was changed to one billing for the accounts all on the one meter and in one building. This will streamline the billing for the city.
Continuing the discussion of the city’s code book from previous meetings, the council reviewed Chapter 5, Section 5. This section details the requirements and use of fireworks. Huntington City Zoning Administrator Gary Arrington and City Recorder Janeen Hansen previously reviewed the section and made recommendations to the council. The matter was tabled to the next meeting so that the council could study the changes before voting.
Next, the mayor announced that the city’s Christmas party will be a drive thru to get food and see Santa with as little contact as possible. It will be on Dec. 2 at the firehouse. The Huntington Youth City Council will help fill the Santa bags for the party and be there to help distribute them.
It was asked that citizens continue to social distance, wear masks and look out for their neighbors. The Mayor also requested help with a survey needed for the CDBG. It was then reported that the code enforcement officer is still working to remove unlicensed trailers from the street as he works to have the streets cleared for snow removal.
The maintenance crew announced that they are busy putting up the city’s Christmas decorations. They also have the trucks ready for snow removal. The animal control officer reported that there are still outstanding tickets and citizens who did not show up to court. One dog that was apprehended is still at the pound waiting for fees to be paid.