A speed limit sign located on Logan Street near the intersection with Veigl Ave. As of Tuesday, June 24, there were no speed limit signs posted on Veigl Ave. Patrick Camp | The Cullman Times

A city of Cullman resident urged council members on Monday, June 23, to enforce speed limits near her home on Veigl Avenue due to the frequency she said motorists have been endangering residents and pedestrians.

Tammy Caldwell told the council that she had moved from Birmingham, Alabama into her home on Veigl Avenue around four years ago. She said she has been overwhelmingly happy with the relocation, with the exception of the number of speeding motorists near her home.

Caldwell said she began noticing the number of speeders increase around two years ago. Last year, she said she contacted officials with the city of Cullman Police Department and while she said one officer did briefly patrol the area, it did little to resolve the issue.

She said she became discouraged after several additional attempts to contact other local officials, until several weeks ago when she witnessed a neighbor using a motorized wheelchair nearly be hit by a car she estimated to be driving between 50 and 60 mph.

“If I hadn’t seen them out of the window and screamed at him to look out, he would have died,” Caldwell said.

Caldwell urged the council to consider installing speed bumps or other deterrents along Veigl Avenue in order to address the issue.

“If my niece’s children playing out front and we’re watching them, I think ‘What would happen if that person lost control of their car?’ They could kill us all if it went up on the sidewalk,” Caldwell said.

Caldwell said she had spoken to Police Chief Joey Duncan prior to the meeting and council president Jenny Folsom, along with Mayor Woody Jacobs, promised that patrols would increase in the area immediately.

Another resident, Elizabeth McDowell, also spoke about her similar concerns and encouraged the council to consider several mechanisms for addressing what she considered to be traffic strains on the city’s infrastructure due to its increasing population. These included: speed bumps near city parks, a round-a-bout at the intersection of Katherine Street and Main Avenue near the Publix shopping center and a pedestrian bridge over U.S. 278 near West Elementary School.

In other business the council:

— Approved a special event request from BreeAna Nelson of Desperation Church to host a family night event on July 23 from 4 p.m. until 8:30 p.m. at Depot Park.

— Approved a special event permit from Tommy Warhurst of Good Samiratian Health Clinic to host a Caring for Cullman Health and Wellness Fun Day on Sept. 13 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. at Veterans Drive SW.

— Approved a special event permit from Taylor Jonson of United Way to host a pickleball tournament on Oct. 4 at Ingle Park.

— Entered a contract with St. John and Associates for sanitary sewer collection system improvements.

— Updated policies for Police Traffic Homicide Investigators.

— Applied for state and federal funds for airport improvement projects at Cullman Regional Airport.

— Approved a local match of $734,760 to Appalachian Regional Commission grant funding for an airport hangar.

— Re-zoned the Nguyen and Ha property located on Miller Street from R2 to B2 district.

— Re-zoned the Industrial Development Board property located at Hwy. 69 and Hwy. 157 from M1 to B2 district.

Patrick Camp may be reached by email at patrick.camp@cullmantimes.com or by phone at 256-734-2131.