28-05-2025
Irondale recognizes Citizen Engagement Institute graduates
The following article is written by Terry Schrimscher for the Trussville Tribune:
IRONDALE, Ala. (Trussville Tribune) — Members of the 2025 spring class of the Citizen Engagement Institute attended the Irondale City Council meeting on May 20 to commemorate the conclusion of the course. Only a few of the 20 members were able to attend the meeting.
This was the 7th graduating class since the program began in 2021 and more than 155 people have completed the informational series designed to increase voluntarism in the city.
'I got the opportunity to attend the dinner for the graduation ceremony. It was the first one I'd ever been to and that was a ton of fun,' said Council President David Spivey. 'When they go through the graduation, they get to do what they refer to as their 30 second elevator speech. They get to come up there and talk about what they all learned and everybody had something different.'
The purpose of the Citizen Engagement Institute is to educate citizens on the functions of the city government. Attendees hear presentations from different departments, learn about budgets, and interact with city leaders with the intention of encouraging citizens to engage in the community through boards, volunteer opportunities or even future candidacy for office.
'It was really cool to see the value this class provides to our citizens. I encourage anybody to get on board with the next class,' Spivey added.
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In other business, the council approved three items on the consent agenda. The first item made a change to the city's employee manual. The change repealed the Alcohol-Free Workplace Policy and replaced it with a new substance abuse policy.
The second item on the consent agenda approved the allocation of $20,000 from the current fiscal year discretionary fund of Mayor James D. Stewart, Jr. to Studio By The Tracks for services to adults with special needs and to create a community and career path for those individuals.
The third item was moved to the regular agenda and was intended to establish a training guide for citizens appointed for service on municipal boards. After much discussion, the item failed and is expected to be revised for a future meeting.
The final on the regular agenda was a public hearing on a zoning request. The request to rezone property located at 1799 Grants Mill Road from A-1 Agricultural to C-2 Commercial did not face opposition in the hearing. The property was recently annexed by the city and zoned agricultural but the planned Subaru dealership needs the land rezoned for additional parking. The motion was approved.
The next meeting of the Irondale City Council will be held at 6 p.m. on June 3 at Irondale City Hall. An agenda for the meeting can be found on the Irondale website prior to the meeting.
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