August  2023:  Response from the Town for Records

Here is the response from the Town's attorney, Bradley Hicks of Stone Crosby, PC.   He tells the Town Clerk not to fulfill my open records request, although I am not sure why the request is not valid under Alabama's Open Record Law.   SB 196 is a bill passed by the Alabama Senate to strengthen the FOIA laws in Alabama - widely noted to be among the weakest in the nation.     Ultimately it may take a judge to get records from the "most charming town in Alabama" (as long as you agree with whatever the Mayor and her Councilmen want to do). 

Hannah Driskell

Town Clerk

12191 Magnolia Springs Highway

Post Office Box 890

Magnolia Springs, Alabama 36555

Phone: 251-965-9888

Facsimile: 251-965-9889

Email: clerk@magnoliasprings-al.com

Office Hours: Monday – Thursday 8:30 am – 4:30 pm

Friday 8:30 am – 12:30 pm

 

From: Brad Hicks <bhicks@stonecrosby.com>
Sent: Monday, August 21, 2023 5:09 PM
To: clerk@magnoliasprings-al.com; Mayor Kim Koniar <mayor@magnoliasprings-al.com>
Subject: RE: Ken Challener Letter 8/18/23

 

Hannah,

 

I’m sorry that Dr. Challener continues to harass you regarding his purported Open Records Act request. You certainly don’t have time to deal with all this on top of your job duties. He is incorrect, and you can continue to ignore his requests as I have advised you to do.  You are not in violation of state law. He has no rights under Alabama’s open records law so his accusations and threats are irrelevant. Furthermore, I don’t believe S.B. 196 has been passed by both houses of the legislature and signed by the governor; thus, it is not law.  Finally, FOIA does not apply to the Town’s records, and I’m not sure why he thinks it does.

 

Please let me know if you have any questions.

 

Best regards,

 

Brad


August 2023:  Public Records Policy

Resolution2023-14:  Public Records Policy

In response to requests for information for this website the Town of Magnolia Springs has adopted a brand new Public Records Policy.  Now mind you there is an Alabama Freedom of Information Act (or Open Records Act) as well as a Federal Freedom of Information Act.  Neither of those is good enough for the Town of Magnolia Springs - they need their own policy!  Of course they cannot override the state or the federal government....but why not try?   The following requests are pending with the Town of Magnolia Springs (without answer to date - some are more than 3 months old):

The Town has thus far refused to acknowledge the requests, provide information, or respond in any way.  So much for the claim of transparency noted on their website.  This is the least transparent government around.  These are clearly highly sensitive documents that must be withheld from prying eyes.   How dare the public question what they are doing or who made the decisions!!  That information might be held against the current Mayor and Councilman in the upcoming election!

July 2023:  Amending the Business License Fees

"I think myself that we have more machinery of government than is necessary, too many parasites living on the labor of the industrious. Government big enough to supply everything you need is big enough to take everything you have ... The course of history shows that as a government grows, liberty decreases. The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first." ~ Thomas Jefferson

Ordinance 2020-04 Amending Business License Fees

Should the Mayor approve a disaster declaration, the Business License Fee shall be $1000 for a speical local disaster business license fee.  This is depending on the Mayor's declaration, and shall not be more than 270 days or until the Mayor declares the disaster over. 

Of course we want to limit the good people coming to Town to help after a hurricane!!!  This is how you discourage people from coming to Magnolia Springs to help clean up and repair the Town.  Certainly Magnolia Springs needs the revenue.   There are already licensing, bonding, and insurance rules for a business in Alabama - why delay the recovery efforts?  Florida is really good at this - the blue tarps are still there two years after the last hurricane.   Ensuring people are licensed and insured is one thing, profiting on the disaster and delaying the recovery is another. 

July 2023:  Ordinace to approve a Cannabis Dispensory in Magnolia Springs:  2022-09

One last chance with MaryJane

Hoping to cash in on the growing Marijuana trade:  Ordinance 2022-09 Authorizing a Medical Cannabis Dispensary in the corporate limits of Magnolia Springs!!

This ordiance allows and encourages the placement of a Cannabis Dispensory within the corporate limits of Magnolia Springs.  The stated goal is to "bring new employment opporunties to the citizens of Magnolia Springs and much needed business tax revenue.   

The Myths of Marijuana

June 2023: No Thru Trucks!!!

Our greatest enemies, the ones we must fight most often, are within.  Thomas Payne

No Thru Trucks

....that portion of Magnolia Springs Highway north of Highway 26 and south of Gates Avenue....any commercial vehicle with three or more axles or 3 or more axles of a truck and trailer combination, having no delivery or  pick-up in the designated area, or which does not have a home base of a licensed place of business in the designated area...will be fined $100 and up to 5 days in jail, a second offense......

This ordinance does not apply to any applicable state highway


Let me get this straight - no through trucks on the Magnolia Springs Highway, which is  County Highway 49, but it is not applicable to County Highways???????   Seems a bit of conflict....Not sure The Town can regulate the highway, but then again can a city ignore the county, state or federal government?  Anarchy for sure.  We should direct the trucks down Gates Avenue, since they must turn off the Magnolia Springs Highway before the truck gets south of Gates.....I am sure the "Othersiders" are gonna love that (but are they really part of Magnolia Springs)???

No country can be called free that is governed by an absolute power; and it matters not whether that be an absolute Royal power or an absolute Legislative power, as the consequences will be the same to the people. - Thomas Payne


June 2023:  Destruction, repair or alteration of nonconforming use, structure, and signage

From Zoning Ordinance 2010-06

No building, structure, or signage which has been damaged,  repaired or altered by any means to an extent of more than fifty percent (50%) of the fair market value of the building, structure or signage immediately prior to damage, repair or alteration, shall be restored except in conformance with these regulations, and all rights as a nonconforming use or structure are then terminated.

So if the next great flood damages your house, or a tornodo from the next hurricane takes your house away you better make sure you conform!  The zoning regulations of Magnolia Springs are an exhausting 99 pages.  The Town would like to tell you how tall, how wide, what style window, porch, roofline, fence and vegetation you are going to use.   Of course none of this would hold up in court, since this is not a Home Owners Association!  Private property owners did not agree to any such restrictions, and property rights in the Great State of Alabama are quite strong.   Is it REALLY necessary to have 99 pages of regulation for a town of 400 annual residents and  830 homes???  Would most persons not rebuild the home they know and love?   

June 2023:  An ordinance Permitting and Regulating The Operation of Golf Carts on Certain Streets within the Town of Magnolia Springs

Ordinance 2017-01

"it is in the public interest, and if properly regulated will promote the public health, safety, and welfare of its citizens...." by regulating their use of golf carts:

There must have been a golf cart crisis, what with all those high speed golf carts clogging up local roadways!  Maybe their were rumors of impending golf cart races, or perhaps warring golf cart gangs....Thus Magnolia Springs needed a Golf Cart to protect the citizens from themselves and ensure their welfare.   Of, and by the way, buy and annual golf cart permit from the Town, have the golf cart inspected, make sure it has turn signals,  a windshield, operational brake lights (two required), and operation headlights (two required).   The valuable time of the local Sheriffs Office was recently seen stopping an errant Golf Cart that drove across the TOWN'S sidewalk to get safely across State Rt. 49.....Illegal operation of a golf cart may incur a civil penalty of $50. 

May 2023 Ordinance Amending the Rules of Procedure

Ordinance of the Week

Ordiance 2008-14

"The public shall not be allowed to address Council while in session without permission of the presiding officer.  Public participation wil be limited to a maximum  of three persons per sublject discussed at a meeting, and  3 minutes per person.  The persiding officer, in their sole discretion, can allow changes to those limitations."

Wow!  If the community is very concerned about matters before the Council they are not allowed to speak?  How very un-American!.  What, too much input from the denizens of Magnolia Springs?  Worried the meeting will go too long on a matter of great concern to the citizens?  For a town of 800 residents, have of them part time, it seems wholly unreasonable not to allow the people to express themselves  to their elected officials in a public form.  Where is that transparency the Town claims to have??

May 2023: Regulating Yard/Garage Sales

Ordinance of the Week

Ordinance No  2008-06

An Ordinance Regulating Yard and Garage Sales


No yard/garage sale shall be conducted for more than two consecutive days.   No yard/garage sale

may be conducted by the same persons more than once every 6 months

Garage sales may only be heard between the hours of dawn and dusk

Signs  may be placed only in the yard where the sale is conducted

Signs may not be larger than 24 x 36 inches and no more than two signs are permitted per sale

There will be a $10 Yard/Garage sale permit fee collected by the town of Magnolia Springs for each sale.

Wow!! $10 to hold a yard sale.  No more thant two consecutive days!  Only two signs - please don't try to direct anyone actually to your sale.  No signs out at the end of the road.  No signs out on the highway, or the gas station! This is just not going to be a very successful sale - but then again maybe that is the point.  Maybe, just maybe, the Town of Magnolia Springs does not want yard or garage sales???

May 2023:  Update to the Zoning Ordinance

The Town of Magnolia Springs has decided you cannot have any signs in your yard that might detract from their vision of "beautiful".   This ordinance is not only an massive overreach of government, but likely also illegal.  In all 50 state of the great United States of America you are allowed to express your opinions freely.  This includes signs - particularly so when expressing a political belief.   As written this ordianace would apply to all signs:  business signs, for sale signs, delivery instructions, private property signs, no trespassing signs, family names or crests, historic markers......where would it end?  What about those political signs when running for office?

What right would the town have to come onto private property and remove a sign?  Again, likely not legal without a court order.  At the least this ordinance is intimidating to the good people of Magnolia Springs, and at worst illegal.    Town meetings are the second and fourth Tuesday of every month at the Community Center at 5 pm.  Come voice your concerns!