The Brundidge City Council approved a resolution at its Tuesday meeting for application for an ADECA Economic Development Grant for the city’s North Industrial Park.

City Manager Britt Thomas said the grant was actually for two projects involving Magnolia Vegetable Processors with an investment of $8.7 million.

The grant project would include water and sewage to the industrial site and also a loop road that will serve the facility.

Magnolia Vegetable Processors will provide 80 new jobs within a 30-month period.

The total cost of the construction of the water and sewer project and the loop road will be $424,881 less than the grant application of $250,000 for a subtotal of $174,881.

Engineering, administrative and other costs will be $84,587. Southern Classic Food Group will make a cash contribution of $90,294 to the project.

Thomas said the City of Brundidge will own the water and sewer lines and have the responsibility of the loop road for 10 years. Then, that responsibility will be turned over to the industry.

Mayor Jimmy Ramage said the grant, if approved, will assist the city in taking the water and sewer lines deep into the 222-acre North Industrial Park, therefore, making the park more prepared for future growth.

Thomas had good news for the council related to the city’s sales tax. “A big item,” Thomas said.

The city’s sales tax for the year, through June was $375,000, which was an 8 percent increase over the same nine-month period in the previous fiscal year.

“If things continue in this way, we are on track for a $500,000 year,” Thomas said. “In all the years that I have been here, we have never reached the half-million-dollar mark in sales tax.”

Thomas said the city is experiencing growth, and he feels good about the future of Brundidge.

In other business, Thomas said the situation with the city’s remediation park has seen some daylight.

The plans for the remediation of the recreation park have been submitted to the National Park Service for more than a year. Thomas said he had started to think maybe the plans had been lost in the shuffle.

“But they are sitting on the desk of ADECA in Atlanta and, it just so happens that a Brundidge man, Scott Stewart, is in the chain of command. He said more detail might be needed on the map for the park. We should know something in about two weeks. Maybe then we can get the remediation of the park off our plate.”

Years ago, the city sold the park to a local industry. Several years later, the city was notified that the park was constructed with grant funds and would, therefore, have to be remediated according to the terms of the grant.

Thomas told the council the floors of Brundidge Station are in the process of being completely redone. The facility is rented Thursday through Sunday so the work will not be completed until the following week.

Thomas introduced, Barbara Smith, a new employee in the city’s accounting department, to the council.

Smith comes to the city from the Human Resources Development Corp. in Enterprise, a non-profit organization.

“We are extremely proud to have Barbara here at City Hall,” Thomas said. “She is highly qualified and will be an outstanding member of our staff.”

The Brundidge City Council meets at 4 p.m. the first and third Tuesdays of the month at Brundidge City Hall. The meetings are open to the public.