The city of Fultondale could eventually own the property formerly occupied by a long-time veterans group.

On Monday, the Fultondale City Council authorized Mayor Jim Lowery to negotiate with the Hawkins B. Carter American Legion Post 255 to purchase the land at Decatur Highway and Stouts Road. The American Legion, as well as VFW Post 10250, met at the post for several years until the building was heavily damaged by a tornado in April 2011.

The building has been torn down, but the North Jefferson Veterans Memorial remains at the site, including marble walls engraved with the names of deceased veterans.

Lowery has said he would like to expand the park to include memorials for firefighters and police officers.

“For the use they have planned for it, I think it would be great,” said American Legion Post 255 Commander Ron Johnson.

The American Legion has been meeting in Tarrant since the tornado, and will soon move to its new location off of New Castle Road in Fultondale.

The new building should be completed in a couple of weeks, and the American Legion is hosting a grand opening on April 27, the two-year anniversary of the tornado.

In other business, the city council:

• authorized Lowery to enter into a contract with the Alabama Department of Transportation for lighting upgrades for Interstate 65 at the Walker Chapel Road exit, from mile marker 266.71 to 267.79. The $1.5 million project will be paid for by state and federal grants, with the city paying only the utility price for the lights

• approved a business license for the Purple Skirt Boutique, to be located at 1810 Decatur Hwy., Suite 116

• repealed Ordinance No. 580 and established a penalty for failure to pay a fine through the municipal court in the city. Officials said the measure was an upgrade to language in the ordinance

• repealed Ordinance No. 508 and established new guidelines for erosion and sedimentation control for the city. Officials said this was also an upgrade to language in the ordinance.