By Dexter Hinson, Staff Writer
Thursday, February 4, 2010 — During the public concerns portion of the Norwood Town Council meeting Monday night, residents made it known that those who come to the town to sell their goods for profit should be assessed some type of fee.
Representing Norwood Business Association, Jeff Irvin distributed information to the council concerning the group’s disposition on the matter.
Irvin said that it would be in the best interest of the town in general to pass an ordinance on yard sales and itinerate peddlers.
This would require sellers who are not from the town to fill out a form and pay a fee.
“I don’t want to run them off. I just want the city to benefit from it,” said Irvin.
Many in attendance, including commissioner Harold Thompson and police chief Randy Smith, agreed that dealing with these type of vendors is often a problem and that handling it as soon as possible would be a good thing.
Town Administrator Dwight Smith noted that peddlers are currently assessed a fee of $1 and that if the council chooses to increase it, they would do so at a special meeting to be held later in the month, where a draft of the proposed documentation will be available.
Other topics discussed during the meeting included the purchasing of new Christmas decorations to hang in the town, which will be available at a significant discounted rate from various companies until the end of the month.
A committee of interested and nominated people was approved, with commissioner Beverly Johnson serving as chair. They will soon meet and will also give a presentation at the special meeting.
The vacant seat on the council last held by Alphonzo Rush was also discussed.
Smith spoke of a list of possible prospects that had been suggested or had made their interest known.
This list will be available for the council’s review at their next meeting so that they may make a decision as to who could replace Rush, who died on Dec. 26 during his term of office.
A special meeting of the council is scheduled for Feb. 17 at noon to further discuss timely matters.
