Athens City Council ready to talk Christmas for new holiday parking.
Athens City Council will be looking past Halloween and will discuss Christmas shopping days at this Monday's meeting.
Councilwoman Michele Papai, D-3rd Ward, said the traditional holiday parking may not be in place this year in Athens.
"Most generally, what we've done is allowed free parking on certain shopping days between Thanksgiving and Christmas," Papai said.
Council will be re-evaluating how often Athens offers free parking and may be switching it up this year, she said.
Councilman Jeff Risner, D-2nd Ward, said changes will also be introduced for the new municipal tax code for Athens.
"Someone in the tax office noticed something was contradictory," Risner said.
The ordinance is about 50 pages long, Risner said, adding that he wouldn't be surprised if others changes come up as well.
Risner said the Finance and Personnel Committee will introduce a plan for the non-union employees' vacation accrual.
"I'd like to wrap things up and have something ready to present next week," he said.
The Armory on the north end of Court Street will also pass into its second phase of renovation with an assessment from the Environmental Protection Agency.
Councilman Steve Patterson, D-At Large, said phase one was to determine whether or not an in-person inspection was necessary.
"They'll just come get samples and test them," Patterson said.
As many of the older buildings in the area, the Armory is suspected of having asbestos rot in the boiler room as well as lead-based paint, he said.
Council will also put forth a one-reading resolution to initiate an in-depth look at a new spot for the Athens Farmers Market, Patterson said.
"It would strictly be doing a more thorough exploration of the dog park area," he said.
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