The Hinesville City Council authorized submission of three community development applications during its Thursday meeting.

Michelle Lane, a grant writer with the Hinesville Community Development Department, presented three grant applications, beginning with a request for authorization to submit Hinesville’s 2012 Annual Action Plan to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The entitlement grant is $220,451 in allocations.

An application for a $62,779 Fire Prevention & Safety Grant also was approved for submission. The grant requires that the city provide 10 percent of the grant in matching funds. Finally, the Georgia Municipal Association Safety & Liability Management Program grant for $14,243 also was approved.

Other action items approved by the council included approval of the final plat for Liberty Park’s blocks 5 and 6 and preliminary approval for Griffin Park’s phase V. The council agreed to revisit extending the moratorium on LED or electronic stanchion signs at its May 17 meeting.

The council also agreed to change its meeting dates for July.  The Independence Day holiday precedes the scheduled July 5 meeting, and an out-of-town planning workshop was scheduled July 19-21, which conflicts with the council’s July 19 meeting. The council agreed the only July meeting will be  July 12.

The council heard a quarterly report on the Alcoholic Beverages Consumption on Premises and the quarterly Alcohol & Food Sales Reports for Class I, II & IV alcoholic-beverage license holders.

Mayor Jim Thomas talked about his recent trip to Washington, D.C., for Fort Stewart’s receipt of its fifth Army Community of Excellence award and Commander in Chief award. The ACOE included a check for $500,000 to be used by the installation for quality-of-life improvements. He added though that the installation will no longer be allowed to compete for the ACOE for two years.

City Manager Billy Edwards noted in his report that P.C. Simonton & Associates received bids for construction of the Bryant Commons amphitheater. Since the lowest bid was $180,000 above the budgeted cost, they were working with the lowest bidder to lower costs estimates.

The council also looked at the rescheduling of a ceremony renaming Cochran Drive as Veterans Parkway. The ribbon-cutting ceremony had been scheduled for May 1 but was postponed. Edwards suggested they reschedule to May 24, but when Thomas confirmed with the Department of Public Works that the city did not have the new signs, the council agreed to wait to set a ceremony date when the signs were received.