LaFayette Superintendent George Green receives Hero Award
Published 8:00 a.m. Saturday, August 17, 2024
Since George Green became the community’s jack of all trades, the city of LaFayette has had greener pastures. This week, Green traveled to Monroeville to accept the Main Street Alabama Hero Award for his hard work with LaFayette Main Street.
Green has served as the city’s Street, Sanitation and Cemetery Administrator since 2013. During those 11 years, he has taken on many different responsibilities.
At nearly every event or unveiling in the city, Green is sure to be found somewhere in the crowd, either pitching in as a construction worker, supporting street events, or overseeing street and building maintenance.
From installing new culverts to repairing roads to checking buildings for lead and asbestos, Green and his crew have a lot of work ahead of them. But the work doesn’t bother them, says Green. In fact, with a dedicated team behind him, he strives for continuous improvement every year.
“My main goal is to improve the city’s infrastructure,” he said.
Although he has a background in construction, Green has not been idle over the years. He also became a licensed industrial electrician and a certified asbestos and lead paint inspector. All of these skills have been put to use for the betterment of the city.
In recent years, the city has seen a resurgence in community events and small business development, from the Chambers County Community Health and Wellness Center to the naming of LaFayette Main Street to the Equitable Neighborhood Initiatives (ENI).
“LaFayette is open for business,” Green said. “It takes a community to grow.”
LaFayette Main Street is an organization dedicated to revitalizing economic development and tourism in the downtown area. Over the past year, its director, DeAnna Hand, and committee members have worked closely with Green on projects such as the Portraits of Honor, the city’s new welcome sign and the downtown benches and receptacles.
“George Green was instrumental in the development of LaFayette Main Street,” Hand said.
LaFayette residents who enjoy mingling on the square on Friday nights can also thank Green and his crew for helping organize the Food Truck Festival.
“I wish we could have done some of the things they do ourselves,” Green said. “Main Street does a fantastic job. And that makes it really easy for anyone who is trying to improve our city, and that motivates us to try even harder to want to support them.”
Green and his team’s craftsmanship can be seen at the Chambers County Community Health and Wellness Center, where they worked hard to complete a brand new pavilion sponsored by the Coosa Valley RC&D.
Another upcoming project that excites Green is the renovation of the old city park. Thanks to the efforts of the city and ENI, new walking paths and playground equipment will be created.
Green also invests a lot of time in his public works projects for the city. He said he wants to do as many improvement projects in-house as possible to save the city time and money.
However, these projects also benefit Green’s team by expanding their skills and creating a more independent community.
Although no city could function without them, public service sometimes goes unnoticed by citizens. What many citizens may not realize is that it is only a department with 12 employees. Still, Green also praised his team for their hard work.
Green said his drive for excellence stems from the good work ethic he learned from his family, especially his mother, and he hopes that will rub off on the rest of the city.
“It kind of rubbed off on my guys,” Green said.
Green said that one thing that makes his job easier is that he has good cooperation and communication with the mayor and city council. He will continue to work toward his goal of getting the city’s infrastructure into better shape.
