THOMASVILLE — In a unanimous vote Monday, Thomasville City Council approved the Remington Avenue streetscape plan, authorizing staff to proceed with detailed engineering drawings.

The streetscape includes Kern Street, which merges with Remington. Four-laned Kern would be reduced to two lanes. The project would result in street, sidewalk and design improvements along Kern and Remington to East Pinetree Boulevard.

The projected cost of the streetscape is more than $4 million. Kenny Thompson, city planner, told the council engineering plans will establish the cost.

In related Monday action, Council member David Hufstetler made a motion to approve submitting an application for funding from the Georgia State Road and Tollway Authority for the streetscape project. Council member Todd Mobley provided the second to the motion. The vote was unanimous.

The application will include a grant request for 45 percent of construction costs and a loan to pay for the other 55 percent of construction costs.

In a second related unanimous vote, Mayor Pro Tem Terry Scott made a motion, with a second by Council member Jay Flowers, to approve a resolution for submitting an application for funding of the Georgia State Road and Tollway Authority for the city community trail project.

The application will request a grant to fund 50 percent of trail construction costs and a loan to pay for the other half of the project, which is expected to be a little more than $1 million.

The Monday meeting agenda authorizes the city manager as the signatory on the two grant/loan resolutions.

In presenting the items to the council, city engineer Wayne Newsome named the mayor as signatory. Council votes followed.

After the meeting, Newsome said he changed the signatory to avoid conflict with what a resident said about who should sign the resolutions.

In the citizens to be heard portion of the Monday meeting, Matt Kirkley told the council the city charter states the mayor shall sign written and approved contracts or ordinances and other instruments executed by the city that require a signature.

To make a change would require amending the charter, said Kirkley, who addressed the council on the same subject at a council workshop last week.

“To avoid any delays, I said the mayor,” Newsome said, adding that he was not instructed to make the change.

The process is simplified by changing the signatory to the mayor, Newsome said.

“That way, nobody can raise an issue with it,” the city engineer said.

He said the grant/loan applications must be filled by Oct. 15.

City Manager Alan Carson, who is out of the city, was not at the Monday meeting.

Senior reporter Patti Dozier can be reached at (229) 226-2400, ext. 1820