Meridian residents will not be able to travel along 25th Avenue between 5th and 6th streets after the city announced dilapidated buildings are causing a public safety threat.

In a City Council meeting Tuesday, Mayor Jimmie Smith told the board the closure was a precaution to keep the public safe.

“We have buildings falling, and it’s dangerous,” he said. “So we want to make sure we take precautions to protect the public.”

Smith said the street would be closed until further notice, and motorists and pedestrians would need to find alternate routes.

In more positive business, Smith told the board the city’s sales tax collections had increased for the twelfth straight month. Over the past year, he said, the city has seen an increase in sales tax of more than 14 percent.

“Our sales tax has constantly been going up,” he said.

The City of Meridian’s preliminary budget for fiscal year 2022 shows the city expects to collect about $15.5 million in sales taxes over the next year. Any additional funds the city receives could be allocated by the city council.

In other business, the Meridian City Council:

•accepted a $500 donation from Citizens National Bank for Candy Crawl 2021;

•accepted a $250 donation from Hill Real Estate Group for Candy Crawl 2021;

•approved a bid of $11,025 from Jessica Smith for purchasing the city’s Clydesdale horses;

•set a millage rate for Meridian Public School District of 62.1 mills, or about $22 million, for FY22;

•set a millage rate for Meridian Community College of seven mills, or about $2.4 million, for FY22; and,

•set the City of Meridian’s FY22 millage rate at 50.84, or about $17.8 million.

The city council will hold a special called meeting at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 28, 2021 to finalize and approve the budget.