Forrest Hills Subdivision in Athens will soon get its entrance road repaved the traditional way, but the back side of the subdivision will be the test case for a new kind of pavement seal coat that will extend the life of the paving 10 years.

Public Works Director James Rich shared the plan with City Council members during their regular meeting Monday. The seal coat with some aggregate added, which looks and feels like a truck bed lining, is used in Atlanta, Nashville and recently in Albertville, Rich said. He said he hopes the city will be able to use the technique on many more roads in the city, such as the parking lot at the Sportsplex and the entrance road to Canebrake Subdivision. Roads must be in a certain condition for the process to work.

Rich said the pavement from Nick Davis Road to the clubhouse is not in good enough shape for the seal coat. That portion will have to be repaved. He said the seal coating is only a little bit disruptive, taking about three hours to cure. That means less heavy equipment in the neighborhood.

The council authorized the mayor to issue a task order to Reed Contracting to pave Forrest Hills Subdivision entrance road from Nick Davis Road to Deer Ridge Lane at a cost of $30,000.

Seal coating the back side of the subdivision will cost less than $50,000, where it would have cost $150,000 to $200,000 for traditional paving, Rich said.

In other matters Monday, the council:

• Held a public hearing on whether a structure at 1511 Pine St. is unsafe, constitutes a nuisance and should be abated. No one spoke in opposition during the hearing. At the request of Code Inspector Bert Bradford, the council agreed to declare the home unsafe and to allow demolition of the property. However, it will first allow the owner to try to save the property, a request made by Bradford.

Bradford said he will monitor work on the property closely and make sure the owner sticks to a timeline for improvements.

• Held a public hearing on the city’s intent to apply for Community Development Block Grant funds through the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs for drainage improvements in the area of First Avenue and around Athens Elementary School;

• Approved the purchase of a John Deere 60G compact excavator with a cutting head from Tri-Green Equipment Co. for $69,058;

• Approved the purchase of a Kubota M5111HDC tractor from H&R Agri-Power for $52,900;

• Approved travel expenses for the Electric Department for Electric Cities event for a total of $946;

• Approved a resolution to contract with Morell Engineering to provide land survey services and topographic data at a cost of $2,500 for the proposed Athens recreation facility;

• Approved a resolution to authorize the Mayor’s Office to apply for a grant of up to $25,000 to replace the Athens Water Department’s aging fluoridation equipment. The cost of the upgrades will be about $19,000, said Water Services Manager Frank Eskridge;

• Approved a resolution to buy $70,000 worth of new and replacement residential garbage carts for the Public Works Department;

• Approved a resolution rejecting the sole bid from Altec Industries Inc. of Birmingham for an articulating telescopic aerial device with service body, cab and chassis and approving the negotiated price of $123,186 from Altec. The old truck was wrecked and the insurance payment will cover a new one; and

• Approved an ordinance abandoning the sewer easement at 1104 Vaughn Drive.