GOOD HOPE — The Good Hope City Council showed their support for the community Monday night when its members presented local organizations with donations that were included in the city’s recently-passed budget.

Good Hope’s schools and several local organizations had representatives at the meeting to accept the donations from the council, which included $1,500 to the Good Samaritan Health Clinic, $1,000 to the Margaret Jean Jones Center and $3,000 to Cullman Area Mental Health. The city’s schools also received their usual donations, with $14,000 going to Good Hope High School and $4,000 each going to Good Hope Primary, Elementary and Middle Schools.

Other donations the council gave to community organizations were $2,500 to Cullman Caring for Kids, $1,500 to Cullman County Soil and Water Conservation District, $2,500 to the North Alabama Agriplex, $1,500 to the Cullman County Emergency Management Agency and $8,975 to Cullman County AirMedCare Network/ Air Evac.

“The council votes on who we give the money to, so I wanted them involved in giving the donations,” Good Hope Mayor Jerry Bartlett said. “We have a good council and they love to support the community.”

In other business, the council approved a resolution to enter into an agreement with the Retail Strategies Consulting Firm to help find businesses that could be interested in some of the city’s available land, particularly along Interstate 65’s Exit 305.

“We’ve got our property up here, and we haven’t had a serious bite on it yet,” Bartlett said.

The agreement cost $12,000 out of the city’s economic development fund, and Retail Strategies guarantees 10 serious contacts with restaurants, hotels or any other companies that may be looking to expand and will seriously consider Good Hope.

One problem Good Hope faces is proximity to Cullman and everything that located there. According to City Planner Corey Harbison, Retail Strategies can reach out to some of the companies that don’t have anything in the area.

“I think that we’re going to have to do something to think outside the box,” he said. “They may come up with something that we haven’t thought of.”