Daphne is moving forward with its study for a potential independent school system, after city council members voted last week to select the firm to conduct the study.
Councilman Robin LeJeune made the motion to select K-12 Criterion Group as the council’s choice of firm to conduct the study.
“I motion we accept the proposal from K-12 Criterion Group, especially in light of their willingness to work with the city to give us the financial data upfront,” LeJeune said. “I think that’s a great way to work with us.”
K-12 Criterion will conduct the financial study for the city’s possible independent school system first, which would allow the city to halt the rest of the study if the numbers didn’t come back in a positive way for the city.
“They came up with a unique opportunity to phase this study to do a majority of the financial study in a time period of eight to ten weeks,” Daphne Mayor Dane Haygood said. “This would give the council an opportunity to stop and not expend further funds if they so desired. In absence of the council turning down the rest of the study, they would continue on for the full sum of $68,500.”

Mayoral veto
At the meeting’s start, Haygood announced to the council that he had issued a mayoral veto against a recent ordinance passed by the council that had amended and slightly increased the city’s garbage collection fees.
Haygood said there was some ambiguity in the language of the ordinance that caused him to exercise the veto.
“There was some discussion about the date when it would become effective,” Haygood said. “Out of an abundance of caution and willingness to protect the public, I vetoed it so it could be reconsidered.”

Possible Johnson Road development
During the public comments portion of the meeting, several residents of the Daphmont subdivision raised issue with a potential commercial development that could be placed near their homes.
Developers have asked the city to rezone a 5.8 acre site at the corner of Highway 98 and Johnson Road that could be used for a 24-hour gas station and drive-through restaurant.
Daphmont resident Jewel Lawson said she had several major concerns about placing such a development there.
“It could create a lot more traffic onto the area of Johnson Road and create a more dangerous traffic problem there,” Lawson said. “That street is not wide enough for those large trucks that may be coming in and out to make the swing in and out of that driveway.”
Lawson said she hoped Daphne council members would make considerations for a stricter level of zoning for that area, as she said many neighborhood residents did not want those kind of commercial developments at the entrance to their homes.
Nearby neighbor Anthony Sampson agreed.
“We’re here to ask for something that’s more of a family neighborhood fit,” Sampson said. “A 24-hour gas station just doesn’t fit. We’re not interested in having at the mouth of our subdivision that type of business.”
Sampson said neighbors were willing to entertain other possible ideas for commercial opportunities at that site, but said they did not agree with the ones currently proposed.