By DAVE HAMRICK
dhamrick@thecitizennews.com

Eckerd Drugs will have to find some other way to deter burglaries at its new Fayetteville store... the City Council won't allow a locked gate to be rolled down over the store entrance at night.

Council members cited the same reasons that members of the city Planning Commission used for turning down the store's request last month — it just doesn't look good.

“It projects an image to the citizens that is very negative,” said Councilman Larry Dell. “It does convey the wrong signal to the public in my opinion,” agreed Councilman Al Hovey-King.

Scott Moore, regional construction manager for Eckerd, said the company installed a gate at the new store not knowing it needed city approval. The old Eckerd store was victimized last fall by “smash and grab” burglars, he said, as was Eckerd's store at Gingercake Road and Ga. Highway 54.

Burglars simply toss a rock or concrete block through the plate glass front, grab as much merchandise as they can and take off before police can be alerted, he said.

“It's a widespread thing and it goes in cycles,” he said.

But other businesses don't seem to be having that problem in Fayetteville, said Hovey-King. “I don't believe there's a rash of this smash and grab at other stores in the city,” he said.

Mayor Kenneth Steele suggested the company find an alternative. “You would be better served with silent alarms and a video system,” he said, adding that police response times in downtown Fayetteville are about a minute and a half.

Moore argued that the gate should be allowed because it is only on the store at night. “Our people are here 24 hours a day,” said Steele.

Council unanimously denied the firm's request for a variance to allow the gate.

In other business, council:

Declared surplus a huge load of computer equipment and supplies, office equipment and spent police cars with plans to turn the items over to a Riverdale auction company.

The city normally sells its surplus equipment in a joint auction with the county Board of Education, but acting city manager Johnny Roberts suggested trying the local company to move the items more frequently. Used equipment simply takes up too much space in city offices, he said.

Approved a beer and wine license for Tony Husein, who said he hopes to close the purchase of Milano's Restaurant today. Husein said he will keep the restaurant under the same name, at least for now.

“I like this town very much,” said Husein.

Approved a new roof and a traffic trailer for the Police Department. Bids on the roof came in at less than half the $35,000 budgeted for the repair, so council agreed to use the rest of the budgeted funds, $14,065, for the Kustom Signals SMART (Speed Monitoring Awareness Radar Trailer).

The sign can be towed to various places around town and will alert passing motorists to the speed they are going.

Amended its budget to reflect midyear adjustments. A $195,000 increase in the water and sewer fund represents the biggest part of the change.

The money will come from the fund's reserves, to pay for $35,000 in system improvements and to cover the cost of extra water the city had to buy from Fayette County last fall when its water plant was shut down due to drought.

Adopted a revised zoning map. City planning staff put together the new map to reflect zoning changes over the last few years.

Delayed until May any action on the proposed reversal of an earlier rezoning decision concerning the Landrum property on Ga. Highway 54 east. The property was rezoned from a residential category to office-institutional, but city officials say the owners have not complied with provisions of the new zoning.

City citations against owners of the property for alleged violations of zoning laws were scheduled to be heard late last month, but the case was continued until April 27.

Councilman Walt White voted against tabling the reversal. He wants to go ahead and do it.

” Appointed former mayor Mike Wheat to the Fayette County Development Authority. Wheat served on the authority in his capacity as mayor, and agreed to continue now that he has retired.