A&P commissioners talk controversial sign plans

The Bryant City Council voted Thursday to dissolve the city’s Advertising and Promotion Commission and repeal the A&P tax following the commission’s approval of a recent land purchase.

During a special meeting Monday, the commission approved the purchase of a 3-acre tract of land on Interstate 30 near the

Flip Flop Flea Market at a cost of $645,000. The commission’s future plans included putting a welcome sign on the property and then developing or selling the unused property.

The recent meeting of the commission was the first gathering of the group since the council voted in May to terminate the commission’s president and treasurer.

“It is my belief that the council did this action (terminating the president and treasurer) to send a message to the A&P Commission to be more diligent and forthcoming in their operation. Based on this proposed property transaction, I do not think the A&P Commission heard the message. As a result, the only solution to this issue I can come up with is to repeal Ordinance 2017-38 which established the A&P Commission, dissolve the A&P Commission in its entirety and repeal the collection of future A&P taxes,” Scott said during the council meeting.

Alderman Carlton Billingsley, who served on the commission, was the only alderman to vote against the council’s action to dissolve the commission. Alderman Lorne Gladden, who also served on the commission, was unable to attend the meeting because of a family matter, he said.

Following the emergency special meeting of the council Thursday, Billingsley and Gladden spoke with The Saline Courier about the proposed plan for the sign and the reasoning behind the purchase.

“There was no ill thought,” Billingsley said.

The sign project has been in the works for a weeks. The commission’s biggest challenge was finding available land. The commissioners liked the proposed land near the Flip Flop Market because people driving through would have had three available exits to take in Bryant after the sign, Gladden said.

Before deciding to purchase land, Billingsley said the commissioners researched leasing property or having the land donated. The owner of the proposed property did not have the land on the market since he was planning to develop the area but had stopped progress thinking he was selling the tract to the commission, Billingsley said.

Billingsley called the sign a “legacy project” that the city could have been proud of 25 years from now.

Even though the project had not yet been designed, the commissioners had a preliminary plan for “something grand.”

“I want this to be firstclass for a first-class city,” Billingsley said.

Commissioners planned for the welcome sign to be a monument-type sign which also included a digital sign used to feature Bryant businesses and events. The commissioners planned to sell advertisement on the sign to offset the maintenance and operational costs. With this plan, the sign would pay for itself, he said.

“As a business owner, I want to stretch the money as far as we can,” Billingsley said.

With this project, Gladden said the commission was “thinking outside the box” in hopes of attracting more visitors to Bryant and increase tax revenue.

After the sign was constructed, the commissioners were planning to sell unneeded property or develop the area for something that would attract visitors to the area, Gladden said.

With approximately $778,000 in the commission’s account, the land purchase would have used a majority of the available funding, but the commissioners took this into account before approving the purchase.

“It’s a lot of money … there’s no doubt about it,” Billingsley said.

By buying the property with cash, the commissioners would not need to secure a loan for the project, he said.

“It was for Bryant. It was a good, legitimate project,” Gladden added.

Billingsley believes that there was no “ill intentions” by city officials or commissioners, but noted that city officials were aware of the project before it was approved by the commissioners.

“They were not upset until it was in the paper (The Saline Courier),” Billingsley said.

Even though the commissioners and council disagree about the project, both Billingsley and Gladden said the council’s action Thursday will not change how they interact with other aldermen in the future.

“I appreciate the job they do but we can’t be divided … We need to work together to make the city better,” Billingsley said.

All meetings are open to the public and attendance is encouraged.