By ALEXANDER SIMONE

Staff writer

Florence city council received a surprise blessing at Monday’s meeting when members voted to go ahead with gym floor repairs at the community building.

The combination of insurance deductible and the new floor material will cost between $33,000 and $37,000.

Of that, $11,000 will be paid from the money market fund, which was an existing fund from years prior that no one on the current council knew the purpose of, Warner said.

The remaining money will come from a capital improvement fund.

While audience members were unhappy with the decision, councilman Trayce Warner said the expense was necessary to get the gym in working order.

“The building has no value to us if it can’t be used,” she said. “If we have to invest money to use it, that’s what we have to do.”

Use of the gym generated $1,500 for the city last year, but a new floor also is important if the city decides to rent or sell the gym in the future, Warner said.

“That’s always a thought in the back of our minds,” she said. “It is a big liability. We spend a lot of money just insuring it. It behooves us to invest so we don’t lose any potential the building has.”

Main St.’s deteriorating theater building was also a subject of concern Monday.

“That’s dangerous to people who are on the sidewalk,” Warner said.

The city has made contact with property owners, but results have yet to be seen.

Main St. is also in need of repair.

The repair, of 100 feet of curb and gutter, would cost $6,000, which Warner said could be paid for through the city’s highway fund.

“That can only be used on streets, and it may have to do with streets that connect to the highway,” she said. “Luckily, Main St. connects to a highway.”

The city is also responsible for repairing curbs and gutters. Sidewalks fall to property owners.