The City of Andalusia will be closed on Thursday and Friday, Nov. 27 and 28, in observance of Thanksgiving. 

Thursday's and Friday's garbage routes will be picked up on Monday, Dec. 1. 

Tuesday's and Wednesday's routes will be picked up on Tuesday, Dec. 2. 

Please have your garbage out early. For additional information, call 334-222-3316.

Parents and grandparents can look forward to many magical hours in Andalusia’s new Heritage Park, thanks to the Andalusia City Council’s Tuesday decision to add a carousel to the downtown venue.

The carousel, which is 38 feet in diameter, is being custom designed for Andalusia. It will feature 32 standard horses, two ADA accessible chariots and a detachable wheelchair ramp.

In addition, there will be 10 reindeer that can be changed out with horses at Christmas, as well as six other animals that can be mixed in – a lion, tiger, elephant, giraffe, zebra and ostrich. Lighting and sound systems also are included, and the city also is purchasing a cover to protect the carousel in the event of a storm.

The Council on Tuesday accepted a low bid of $569,000 from Barrango MFG for the carousel, which includes installation and training. This bid was $274,000 less than the next lowest bid.  Funds for the carousel were included in the city’s 2022 bond issue.

As spokesman for Barrango said it will take six to nine months to build the carousel, which means it should be in place in the new park in late 2026.

Mayor Earl Johnson said the city has not worked out all of the details of when the carousel will be available for use, but he expects rides to be free or a nominal expense, with rentals available for special events. The procedures will not be unlike those used in the city’s other park facilities, he said.

In unrelated business, the council:
• Had the first reading of an ordinance to allow Sunday alcohol sales in the city limits beginning at noon. Passage of an ordinance requires two readings before a vote is taken, unless there is unanimous consent to pass it immediately.

• Approved a 6 percent cost of living pay adjustment for city employees.

• Postponed until Jan. 20 a planned hearing on Econo Lodge’s business license, based on the assurance from attorneys for Dixitkumar Patel that he would move off the premises until a criminal case against him is resolved.

• Reappointed Beth Woodard and Jimmy Black to the City of Andalusia Industrial Development Board and Elizabeth Benet to the Andalusia Public Library Board.

• Renewed its contract with Emerald Coast Utilities Authority for processing the city’s recycling materials.

• Accepted a bid from Andalusia Ford for four new police vehicles.

Members of the Andalusia City Council on Tuesday joined developer Frank Thomas, who with his partners is developing the Cottages at Packer Field, for a groundbreaking.

Thomas is a Montgomery housing developer. His partners in the project include Julian Boyd, Chase Allen, Billy Cotter and Kathleen O’Ferrell.

The partners plan to build 22 new rental houses in the first phase of this development, and will add additional houses in the future. There will be a mix of 2-bedroom and 3-bedroom houses, that will be leased at market value. The houses should be available by early spring.

Mayor Earl Johnson said he could not overstate the importance of this project.

“We have needed new, modern housing for years,” he said. “We have lost potential economic development prospects who would have located here if we had had available housing for their employees.”

City administrator John Thompson noted that the property had been held in a trust for years, and the city had permission to use it for sports practices.

“When it came on the market, Sue Wilson reached out to let us know about it immediately,” he said. “It was the perfect, flat space to build new housing, with access to infrastructure already in place.

Thomas said the cottages will have hardie board exteriors, granite countertops, and stainless appliances.

Tina Caskey, regional manager of Regency Multifamily, which will manage leasing for the development, said that she already has units in other communities leased to people who work in Andalusia, but live elsewhere because they could not find housing here.

For leasing information, email , or call 334-766-1926.

Robinson Memorial Park will soon have brand new playground equipment, thanks in part to a $400,000 Community Development Block Grant.

The grant was awarded last year. On Tuesday, the Andalusia City Council accepted Struthers Reaction, LLC’s low bid for the new equipment, which will be placed just north of the current playground in the historic park. The playground designers said it is designed for ages 2 through 12.

The city will absorb a portion of the $585,650 in costs for the new equipment, which is expected to be delivered in early 2026.