The Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon cutting Monday, June 28, for the city’s new Sanitation Department building. Employees were joined by city council and Chamber officials for the event. Shown are, from left, Mayor Jim Staff, Brandy Giger, Jerome Webster, Eunice Johnson, Terry Rostchild, department manager Calvin Grace, Timothy Raines, Shawn Lassiter, Bradley Woods, Chris Harrison, Brian Burkett, Johnny Green, Emilee Waters, Anna Norton, Noah Graham.
By DON FLETCHER
News Staff Writer
Finally, more than 18 months after the project gained city council approval, the City of Atmore’s Streets & Sanitation Department has a new home.
The roughly $1 million project, a 6,800-square-foot metal building with new access points and more parking for employees, got the green light from council members in December 2019.
The official ribbon cutting ceremony was held Monday, June 28, for a building whose opening had been anticipated in late January or early February of this year.
“The pandemic slowed things down,” said Calvin Grace, who has a 34-year tenure with the city, including the past five as director of streets-sanitation. “We knew it would take a little longer because of the pandemic. It was a slow go, but we got there.”
The new building allows Grace and his 16 employees more room to work and better conditions in which to work.
“We’re glad to get in,” he said.
The department had operated for years out of the former Rogers Tractor Company building on East Ridgeley Street, just a few yards from the new site.
The former headquarters will be renovated to mitigate several problems, including leaks in its roof, and will be used for storage. The city’s recycling collection point will still be located at the pole barn currently being used, but on the shed’s opposite (eastern) side.
Atmore-based Triptek Construction, which submitted a bid of $956,400, was the project’s general contractor. Grace said the local company bent over backward to accommodate his and the city’s needs.
“Triptek did an excellent job,” he said. “They worked hard to make sure that things were done like we wanted.”
He also expressed his appreciation to the city officials who worked to make the new building a reality.
“I want to thank Mayor (Jim) Staff, the city council, City Clerk Becca Smith and Codes Enforcement Officer Greg Vaughn for overseeing the project and making it a success,” he said.