Gadsden City Council approves business licenses, ordinances and event contracts; proclaims Colonel Ola Lee Mize Day

The Gadsden City Council on March 25 unanimously adopted a package of ordinances and resolutions that approved a restaurant retail liquor license for CJ's Crab Shack, changed a fire-department staffing provision, authorized two summer concert contracts and awarded a bid for a 77-foot commercial Christmas tree, and voted to oppose two pending Alabama Senate bills.

The business votes were the meeting's most immediate items: council members approved CJ's Crab Shack LLC's application for a restaurant retail liquor license at 514 Broad Street; adopted an ordinance amending City Code section 50-34 to make certain fire-department staffing decisions the responsibility of the fire chief rather than the assistant chief; approved two event agreements for the summer concert series paid by a sponsor; and awarded bid No. 3597 to Jubilee Decor LLC for a 77-foot commercial outdoor Christmas tree to be funded by mayor's-ball proceeds and grant money, not general-tax revenues.

Why it matters: the licensing and contracting votes affect downtown retail and events planning, the fire-department ordinance clarifies local staffing authority, and the council's resolution opposing state legislation signals a unified municipal response to proposed changes to business-license rules from Montgomery.

Votes at a glance

- Alcoholic beverage license: Resolution approving CJ's Crab Shack LLC (doing business as CJ's Crab Shack) at 514 Broad Street for a restaurant retail liquor license — adopted by voice vote (motion carried). No roll-call tally was recorded in the transcript; action…