Aldermen saw a full house as they heard from a few guestspeakers and discussed hangars, waste and upcoming events duringTuesday ‘s meeting.

The Brookhaven Lincoln County Airport will see a few minor upgradesas the city will use a $98,000 multimodal grant from theMississippi Department of Transportation, with a 1 percent match,to replace some existing hangar dirt floors with concrete.

“We want to bring these hangars up to standards with all theothers,” said Mayor Les Bumgarner.

The grant, which can only be used to fund specific purposes, willhelp the city replace six dirt floors in some of the airportshangars. Once the flooring is improved, the mayor said he hopes togo back and renovate the same six hangars.

The updates to the hangars, however, are not expected to occur fora few years.

The mayor hopes to fund the construction by carrying over a yearlyMDOT grant, which is based on population, until there is enoughmoney to cover the costs of construction. The mayor said the grantaverages around $150,000 a year.

Bumgarner thinks the improved flooring for the six hangars couldattract additional flyers and could result in a few extra dollarsfor the city.

“They’ll want to go to the nearest best hangar they can get, it’skind of competitive,” said Bumgarner. “The nicer the hangar youhave, the more rent you can charge.”

The mayor hopes the dirt floors will be replaced aroundApril.

Lincoln County residents will get a chance to properly dispose ofwaste material thanks to a decision by the board to open thelandfill on April 2 from 8 a.m. until noon for residentialhazardous waste day.

“This is the place to dispose of hazardous materials properly,”said Public Works Director Steve Moreton.

The hazardous waste day, requested by Lincoln County resident andMaster Gardener Homer Richardson, will be funded through a grantand will come at no cost to the city. Some of the materialsresidents will be able to dispose of include tires, paint andbatteries, and the event will also be supervised.

Car enthusiasts can breathe a sigh of relief after the board agreedto reserve the two downtown parking lots along Railroad Avenue onMarch 5 for Ole Brook Cruisers.

“We hope for beautiful weather and a chance to show off ourbeautiful downtown,” said Cliff Brumfield, Brookhaven-LincolnCounty Chamber of Commerce executive vice president, who requestedthe reservation.