The Andalusia Public Library will reopen its doors to the public on Monday, October 5, for the first time since the pandemic began, but with new safety rules in place.
Mona Simon, who took over as interim director of APL when Karin Taylor retired this summer, said the library staff has been providing curbside service for its patrons for months but looks forward to having them back in the building. The following guidelines will be in place:
• Patrons must wear masks, which will be provided for those who do not have one.
• Social distancing will be observed, with only 15 people allowed in the library at one time.
• To allow access to all, patrons will be asked to limit their visits to 30 minutes.
• The computer lab will be limited to eight stations while social distancing rules are in effect. Patrons are asked to reserve computer time, which is limited to 30 minutes per patron, by calling 222-6612.
• Patrons are asked to use the front and side (handicapped ramp) entrances. The back door will remain locked as the area is reserved for continued curbside service for those not yet comfortable entering the library.
• The Children’s Library and the Dixon Room will remain closed for now, as gatherings are still limited by Gov. Kay Ivey’s Safer at Home Order.
• The reference and genealogy room also will remain closed for now.
Simon said that the library staff is reserving the first hour of each weekday, from 8 a.m. until 9 a.m., for senior citizens. The library will be open to the general public from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Simon said the library staff, assisted by City of Andalusia employees in the Planning and Development division, has used the time the facility has been closed to the public to do cleaning, painting, upgrades and reorganization. Just this week, the carpet is being cleaned throughout the facility. Safety shields and barriers have been added to each desk area for the protection of staff members during the pandemic, she said.
Hand sanitizing stations also are in place for the convenience of patrons and staff members, she said.
Simon said the Interlibrary Loan Librarian (ILL) has returned all borrowed books from lending libraries and is opening ILL for requests.
“This is a very important function,” Simon said. “Patrons requesting older or specialized books the library does not have the funds or room for can get them through Interlibrary loan.”
The City of Andalusia’s Adult Activity Center and Senior Nutrition staff members are seeking sponsors for their Praying Hands program.
The staff organizes the gift drive for homebound senior citizens each fall, making sure that no seniors are forgotten at Christmas.
Adult Activity Center director Sonja Godwin said Gov. Ivey’s restrictions on senior centers across the state in light of the pandemic make it slightly more difficult to get the drive organized, but she and other staff members are determined to find ways to make the drive work.
Gov. Ivey ordered all senior centers closed in March, when the state first shut down public places in an effort to contain the pandemic. Although much of the state has reopened, the governor’s current Safer at Home Order allows senior centers to offer delivered or take-out lunches, but no social gathering.
“Typically, we ask people to come by and pick up an information sheet on a senior from our Praying Hands tree,” Godwin said. “This year, we are seeking helpers to make Christmas special for 45 individuals, all of whom are 60 years or older and are homebound.”
The senior adults were asked to complete questionnaires about their Christmas wishes, and the AAC staff is asking adopters to participate in one of two ways.
“You can call our office at 222-6891 to choose your praying hands revealing a homebound senior’s wishes,” Godwin said. “We ask that you spend no less than $40 per person.”
Alternately, she said, individuals can make a financial contribution and the AAC staff will shop for the senior adults. Gifts should be dropped at the Adult Activity Center no later than Monday, November 30.
For additional information, call Godwin at 222-6891 or email her at .
Andalusia will become a city of even more lights this Christmas, when the city will expand the snowflake decorations added on the bypass last year.
The Andalusia City Council last week approved the purchase of 100 additional eight-foot snowflakes. Mayor Earl Johnson said 2020 marks the second year of a three-year project to add the decorations to all of the business portion of the bypass. Last year, lights were installed on the western portion. This year, lights will be added from the Hwy. 84/Hwy. 29 intersection near the Covington Mall, east to the intersection of East Three Notch/Hwy. 29 and the MLK Expressway (near Piggly Wiggly).
Next year, the mayor said, the lights will be extended to Walmart.
The Covington Veterans Foundation will conduct sales of veteran tribute banners for display in November from Mon., Sept. 28, through Fri., Oct. 9.
The project began last year, when the Foundation sold more than 240 of the banners, which are to be displayed annually during the month of November in downtown Andalusia.
“We were thrilled with the response we received last year,” CVF Chairman John Vick said. “We have already had inquiries about adding banners and are pleased to announce this year’s sales. This tribute to our local veterans in the public space brings attention to the service and sacrifice of these individuals. We can never thank them enough for their services to our country.”
Vick said the CVF also is selling tribute banners for current active duty military personnel this year.
The Covington Veterans Foundation will display all banners in Andalusia. However, it also has entered an agreement with the City of Opp to duplicate banners of Opp area veterans which will be displayed in that city’s downtown area.
The banners are $100 each and include a photograph of the veteran. The banners will be used each year.
Forms can be downloaded from the Covington Veterans Foundation Facebook page or the City of Andalusia’s website. They also are available in the Covington County Veterans Service Office in the County Administration Building, in Andalusia City Hall.
Banners can be purchased on the third floor of the Andalusia City Hall between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Sept. 28 through Oct. 9. A high-quality photograph of the veteran in uniform should accompany the form and payment. Because of COVID-related production and shipping delays, the deadline cannot be extended.
Click here for a form. For additional information, contact Michele Gerlach at 428-1143, or email .
East Three Notch Street could get an update designed to slow down traffic and add bike lanes if the City of Andalusia is successful in its pursuit of ATRIP II grant funding.
The city council on Tuesday approved a resolution in support of the grant application. The project plans, drawn by CDG, include planning and resurfacing the existing roadway, updating existing traffic signals, and adding new traffic striping and configuration from the Court Square to the MLK Expressway.
City Clerk John Thompson explained that the proposal calls for the current four-lane configuration to become two lanes with a center turn lane and bike lanes on each side. The bike lanes are part of the city’s long-term plan for downtown redevelopment.
Mayor Earl Johnson said the bike lanes would help make downtown more livable, but also make the sidewalks on East Three Notch Street safe.
“We have an awful lot of fast traffic on East Three Notch,” Johnson said. “But we don’t have enough police officers to keep them slowed down. This should help that problem.”
The project, if approved, would total $1.5 million. The city would be responsible for only 10 percent of that total.
ATRIP II is an Alabama Department of Transportation-administered transportation infrastructure grant program for projects of local interest created in the Rebuild Alabama Act of 2019.