The Lilburn City Council met on Monday, Feb. 11, for its monthly work session and regular meeting. Here is a quick run-down of what the major happenings were.

1. Website Redevelopment Contract

Lilburn City Council passed authorized a contract with Kansas-based CivicPlus. The vote was 3-1, with Thomas Wight opposed.

The contract is for a total not to exceed $32,262. This includes $24,296 for redesigning the website, and $3,983 for website hosting. The city will pay approximately $10,754 in equal payments over three years. 

In addition to the above work, CivicPlus also has agreed to redesign the website a second time at the end of their three-year contract.

There were 12 companies who submitted proposals for redesign of the city's website. Of those, costs ranged from $6,000 to $66,000, according to city staff.

At least two of those companies were local with lower bids, according to Wight. Young confirmed their proposed costs were lower, however staff and other council members believed CivicPlus had the best experience to get the job done.

The website redesign is expected to take six months, officials said.

2. Community Garden Takes Off

During his public comments, Mayor Johnny Crist said that soon a sign would go up indicating the area of the community garden. The garden will be located in the field across from Lilburn City Hall parking lot on the opposite side of the railroad tracks.

Crist also said that there were 50 plots in the garden that are being leased on about an acre of land. According to the Lilburn Community Garden website, plots range from $40 a year to $60 a year.

In addition to the plots, courses on gardening, utilities, and some tools would also be available. Mulch and compost would be available sometimes, as well. Also members of the community garden will have the opportunity to sell produce at the Lilburn Farmer's Market.

The grand opening of the community garden is Saturday, April 20. The ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned for 10 a.m. that day.

For more information, see the community garden's website and Facebook page. 

3. Mid-Year Budget Update

In the work session, city staff provided an update on the mid-year budget. According to officials, the city has spent about 50 percent of its budgeted expenditure total, and this is on par with previous years. In addition, the city is down in revenue -- by about $50,000. This is, in part, because of drop in revenue from business licenses. At this time, city staff did not recommend an amendment to the current budget.

Patch has requested the complete breakdown of the mid-year budget, and will share that information when it is received.

4. Public Art Agreement

For the second month in a row, this agreement was postponed. The mayor said he wanted to give the Lilburn Art Alliance more time to decide how it would like the city to proceed. Perhaps, he added, a local artist could end up being the city's choice for providing a rendering for the project.

However, the city already has retained Dave Govedare, a resident of Chewelah, Wash., as the artist. Govedare has been paid $5,000 as a design fee. He has provided renderings, but neither the mayor nor the Lilburn Art Alliance were thrilled by it, officials said.

The decision about how to move forward was approved by an affirmative vote of three council members. Wight abstained and voiced some concern that the city already had paid Govedare $5,000 -- money the city will not get back.

5. Community Development Block Grant

Council voted to approve funding in the amount of $150,000 for a sidewalk along Hillcrest Road toward Indian Trail Road. The vote was unanimous, 4-0.

You also might be interested in reading:

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• County Approves Funds for Pedestrian Safety Along Lawrenceville Highway
• Gwinnett Transit Upgrades Affect Lilburn
• Annual 'Birthday Tax' Being Replaced by Title Tax
• City Touts Highlights from 2012

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