OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

St. Albans City Council Meeting - December 2, 2025

City Council Meetings — Tuesday, December 2, 2025
BodySt Albans, West Virginia
SessionCity Council Meetings
DateTuesday, December 2, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 36:39

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Lord Heavenly Father, we thank you that we're able to gather here, Lord.

0:04

Lord, as we're in the holiday season, Lord, I pray for those that have a hard time through the holiday season, Lord, whether they lost a mother, a father, a spouse, or a son or a daughter, Lord.

0:16

Pray that you're able to come for him, Lord.

0:19

Lord, we're also getting ready to celebrate the birth of Jesus, Lord.

0:23

Thank you for sending him into the world.

0:25

Not to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be sick, Lord.

0:30

Please help us and guide us through this meeting, Lord.

0:32

Your name I pray.

0:34

Amen.

0:36

Officer Alkins, can you lead us in your pledge, please?

0:39

I'll play.

0:47

One nation.

0:50

Indivisible.

0:53

Alright, we'll call this meeting St.

0:55

Alden City Council.

0:57

The order for Monday, December 1st, uh 2025.

1:04

Praise and recognition, please.

1:06

I got one.

1:08

Who said that?

1:09

I did.

1:10

Bill.

1:10

Okay.

1:11

Councilman Knox.

1:15

Thanks to the uh St.

1:16

Almond High School boys basketball team for sponsoring the buses for the hay rides and uh and thank Kenal County for the school providing the school buses.

1:26

Very good.

1:27

Yes, sir.

1:28

It's uh correcting position.

1:30

We didn't do this last time, and that's I my fault.

1:33

I forgot to even acknowledge it, but uh just wanted to give I don't know if we need to do a moment of silence, was moved on, but uh we had a uh longtime uh uh councilwoman uh former vice mayor uh pass away uh a couple weeks ago, Patty Chandler.

1:52

Um she's obviously in a better place with Eddie now, but I felt uh that we needed to at least address that and address all the good that she did for our community.

2:03

She's up there telling Eddie what to do right now, but you know that you never record two things.

2:13

First off, uh Herman Hartle is pointing out that uh credit to Herman first off for being probably the most active citizen in the city of St.

2:22

Alvin.

2:23

I agree outside of that, he was pointing out the the recognition for Andy Eads and the public works for the sidewalk repairs that were done on 2700 block of Roosevelt Avenue.

2:35

Um so good job on all the folks for the public works department and councilman for for getting that done.

2:42

And I point out Herman because that he doesn't live in A at all.

2:45

Right.

2:46

It's not his that's not his neighborhood.

2:47

So he's just out when he sees something.

2:49

He he helps out.

2:50

So credit to him on that.

2:52

And then uh credit the council for since 2017, most I've ever been around for Festival of Lights and Kevin, there's the festival of lights.

3:04

I'm sorry, they they're always begging and asking for that.

3:08

So last or on Friday was a huge turnout for council.

3:12

Five or six of us, yeah.

3:13

Uh I think six and you were the seventh.

3:16

Yeah, yeah.

3:17

Yeah.

3:17

So that really a good turnout of so really credit on that on that this year.

3:21

So good job, guys.

3:22

Very good.

3:23

Any other praise and recognition?

3:25

That's the one I was gonna talk about.

3:27

I I want to I want to praise Brian Morrison with Parks and Red.

3:31

You know, they did a display, light display for the uh fallen minor uh Steve Lipscomb, I think was his name, but also for all fallen uh uh minors, but then he came back after the National Guardsman lost her life, all right, and did a display, and it's up there now.

3:57

So I wanted to recognize uh uh Brian Morrison for further work that he does on developing and uh making those displays.

4:09

Yeah, he started doing that about four years ago, I think.

4:12

The guy that used to do it got unable, and then they've really gotten good at it.

4:16

Yeah, they had technology has helped just their ability to.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural███████████████████████████████████35%
Public Safety██████████████████████████26%
Arts And Culture███████████████15%
Personnel Matters██████████████14%
Pending Litigation██████6%
Zoning Ordinances████4%
Summary of Proceedings

St. Albans City Council Meeting - December 2, 2025

The St. Albans City Council met on December 2, 2025, with opening prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance. The meeting included praise and recognition, approval of minutes, old business on a lease agreement, new business on police training policy and holiday schedules, financial approvals, and reports on community events. No public comments were made.

Praise and Recognition

  • Councilman Knox thanked the St. Albans High School boys basketball team for sponsoring buses for hayrides and thanked Kanawha County for providing the school buses.
  • The council acknowledged the passing of former councilwoman and vice mayor Patty Chandler, noting her long service to the community.
  • Recognition was given to Herman Hartle for his active citizenship and to Andy Eads and the public works department for sidewalk repairs on the 2700 block of Roosevelt Avenue.
  • Council members praised the high attendance of city council at the Festival of Lights event.
  • Brian Morrison was recognized for creating light displays honoring fallen miners and a National Guardsman.
  • A council member thanked the city for including a nativity scene in the Festival of Lights and for continuing to open meetings with prayer.
  • Public works was commended for hanging lights on telephone poles on Sixth Avenue.
  • Leaf pickup services were appreciated by a resident.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Minutes (November 17, 2025): Approved unanimously.

Old Business

  • Update on Lease Agreement with Kanawha County Board of Education (McKinley Middle School Property): City attorney Mike reported that the Board of Education agreed to add the city as a named insured under the city's policy. However, the Board requires $1 million in property damage liability, while the city currently carries $500,000. The city will obtain a cost estimate to increase coverage. The issue will be updated at the next meeting or the first meeting in January.

New Business

  • Resolution Adopting SAPD Operational Policy and Procedures Regarding Training (Including Physical Fitness): The resolution establishes standards for training and physical fitness. After discussion, the council clarified that officers hired before January 1, 2026, are grandfathered from the new physical fitness requirements. Concerns were raised about the chief of police being the sole authority to offer alternative exercises for injured officers; some members suggested a committee, but others noted that civil service grievance procedures provide recourse. The resolution passed unanimously.
  • Request to Observe Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve Holidays: The original proposal set a half-day on December 24, 2025, and a full day on December 24, 2026, with half-days on December 31 for both years. Councilman Knight moved to amend the 2025 Christmas Eve to a full day, noting the state's half-day and that December 26 is already a holiday. The amendment passed, and the motion as amended carried.

Finance Committee Recommendations

  • Approval of Payment of Current Invoices: $25,770.63 approved.
  • Demolition of Property at 2843 McCorkle Avenue: $44,000 approved, contingent on the city obtaining ownership. Discussion included the potential use of a land reuse agency, which is still being formed.
  • Payment to Arcanna Industries for AI Services: Approved for AI-based updates to the city’s digital records (meeting minutes, agendas) at an initial cost plus a monthly fee of $2,300.

Reports and Announcements

  • Festival of Lights Statistics: Walkthrough first night: 439; hayrides: 863; cars first weekend: 1,299; Santa House visitors: 528.
  • Upcoming Events:
    • December 6: Christmas Market on Main Street (4–7 PM), Christmas parade (3 PM), tree lighting and storefront lighting (6 PM), luminaries at dark, boat parade (6:30 PM).
    • December 9: Business After Hours at the train depot; St. Albans High School girls basketball home opener.
    • December 13: Historic home tour; Winterfest at Roadside (3–6 PM).
  • Committee Meetings: Public Works Committee December 3 (8 AM), Finance Committee December 8 (4:30 PM), City Council December 15 (6:30 PM), MUC December 16.

Key Outcomes

  • Minutes approved.
  • Police training policy adopted with grandfathering for current officers.
  • Holiday schedule approved with full day on Christmas Eve 2025.
  • Lease agreement update to continue; cost estimate pending.
  • Invoices, demolition, and AI services approved.
  • No public comments; meeting adjourned.

Meeting Transcript

Lord Heavenly Father, we thank you that we're able to gather here, Lord. Lord, as we're in the holiday season, Lord, I pray for those that have a hard time through the holiday season, Lord, whether they lost a mother, a father, a spouse, or a son or a daughter, Lord. Pray that you're able to come for him, Lord. Lord, we're also getting ready to celebrate the birth of Jesus, Lord. Thank you for sending him into the world. Not to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be sick, Lord. Please help us and guide us through this meeting, Lord. Your name I pray. Amen. Officer Alkins, can you lead us in your pledge, please? I'll play. One nation. Indivisible. Alright, we'll call this meeting St. Alden City Council. The order for Monday, December 1st, uh 2025. Praise and recognition, please. I got one. Who said that? I did. Bill. Okay. Councilman Knox. Thanks to the uh St. Almond High School boys basketball team for sponsoring the buses for the hay rides and uh and thank Kenal County for the school providing the school buses. Very good. Yes, sir. It's uh correcting position. We didn't do this last time, and that's I my fault. I forgot to even acknowledge it, but uh just wanted to give I don't know if we need to do a moment of silence, was moved on, but uh we had a uh longtime uh uh councilwoman uh former vice mayor uh pass away uh a couple weeks ago, Patty Chandler. Um she's obviously in a better place with Eddie now, but I felt uh that we needed to at least address that and address all the good that she did for our community. She's up there telling Eddie what to do right now, but you know that you never record two things. First off, uh Herman Hartle is pointing out that uh credit to Herman first off for being probably the most active citizen in the city of St. Alvin. I agree outside of that, he was pointing out the the recognition for Andy Eads and the public works for the sidewalk repairs that were done on 2700 block of Roosevelt Avenue. Um so good job on all the folks for the public works department and councilman for for getting that done. And I point out Herman because that he doesn't live in A at all. Right. It's not his that's not his neighborhood. So he's just out when he sees something. He he helps out. So credit to him on that. And then uh credit the council for since 2017, most I've ever been around for Festival of Lights and Kevin, there's the festival of lights. I'm sorry, they they're always begging and asking for that. So last or on Friday was a huge turnout for council. Five or six of us, yeah. Uh I think six and you were the seventh. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So that really a good turnout of so really credit on that on that this year.

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