Some of the business owners in downtown Luverne would like to see the “Two Hour Parking Only” signs return.

At the Sept. 14 Luverne City Council meeting, Councilman Randall Parker brought up the fact that many downtown merchants wanted the signs to be visible again. At the Sept. 28 meeting, the subject was brought up again, this time by Councilman Merrill Sport.

“It’s a city ordinance, but it’s not posted, so that’s not helping anybody,” Sport said. “I’ve seen a car that’s for sale just sitting there for days, and a tractor trailer took up several spaces for a long time—I’m getting a lot of complaints about the length of time people are leaving their cars parked downtown in front of the stores.”

Sport noted that when the Crenshaw County Economic and Industrial Development Authority had business meetings, vehicles were parked in the First Baptist Church parking lot, which was a “good thing,” he said. However, Sport added that there wasn’t a good place to put the signs back up.

City engineer Morris Tate said that the signs could be placed on the old light poles up and down South Forest Ave.

“We might be able to bolt the signs to the poles,” Tate said.

Sport suggested that the “Two Hour Parking Only” words could be stenciled directly onto the poles if they could be easily visible, possibly using red or white paint.

The Council took no action on the matter that Monday night.

In other business, Building Inspector W.A. Neal presented copies of the costs of cleaning the property located at 223 West Third Street. The total costs were $2,281.50. This included an estimated cost of hauling dirt onto the lot and covering holes. The Council agreed to approve the charges at the next regular meeting, thus allowing the homeowner until next year to pay the charges.

The Council approved a motion to pay Montgomery Asphalt $84 per ton for 200 tons to level the bridge ends and for patching on Mt. Ida Rd. The total, $16,800, will come out of the gas tax money, according to City Clerk Charlotte Flynn, who reported that the City does have the money to cover the costs.

The next regular meeting of the Luverne City Council will be Monday, Oct. 12, beginning with a public hearing at 4:30 p.m.