The City of Clarkson is working on plans for a new basketball court, which will be located in the city’s park.

At the group’s regular monthly meeting on Monday night, Mayor Bonnie Henderson announced that Clarkson Drug Store has now donated a total of $6,000, which will be used toward the ball court.

In addition to those funds, for which the group expressed heavy gratitude, Henderson said she hopes the city will be awarded a Land and Water Conservation Grant, which would go toward the project as well. This grant, which is through the Department of Local Government, would be a matching grant, meaning that it would effectively double whatever funds the city was willing to put into the court.

Henderson said that the group applied for the grant some time ago, and while a recipient has already been chosen, the applicants have not yet been notified of whether they were awarded.

“We should hear back any time now,” she said.

Discussion also continued over the city’s desire for a new community/government building which would house the city hall offices and be available for rental by the general public for occasions and gatherings.

The group considered combining this building with another purpose, such as a senior’s center of a location for meals on wheels to operate. They considered the fact that such additions might help them to receive additional grant money for the project.

“I think it would be a boost to the town. We need new, exciting things going on and if there’s going to be a time to do it, the time is now,” Henderson said.

Council member Kay Gibson, who fully supports the project idea, added, “I think ti would pay for itself.”

The group was unanimous in their support for the idea, and is willing to keep the project small in order to more easily make it happen.

Henderson said that she would be looking into financing options, though no formal plans are underway, and the group is still in the very early planning stages.

In other city news:

- During this first meeting in their new terms, council members chose a Mayor Pro Tem to serve for the next two years. Council member Scotty Gore was unanimously voted in.

- Each member of the group was placed over a particular division of the city’s business for their two-year term. Keith Higdon will look over the sewer division, while Kay Gibson handles the fire department, Scotty Gore oversees roads and sidewalks, Bob Vincent heads up the parks division, and Mayor Henderson oversees the police department.

- The council voted to approve the purchase of two new computers for City Hall. Two of the office’s three computers needed to be replaced, according to City Clerk Alicia Hayes, who said that they would be reusing their current monitors and keeping the third computer for now. The cost of the purchase is estimated to be approximately $1,500.