SHEPHERDSTOWN – The Shepherdstown Town Council discussed upcoming events in town and the success of the busy summer business season with community members during its regular monthly meeting on July 10.

“I just looked at the last 40 people at the visitor’s center, and not one of them was here for CATF,” said Shepherdstown Visitors Center Director Marianne Davis.

However, Davis said she does anticipate the center’s summer traffic slowing down after the Contemporary Theater Arts Festival ends this month.

“A lot of our public events are slowing down right now. After CATF, of course, we’ll experience an identity crisis,” Davis said, with a laugh.

Davis said the center has made several changes this month, including to its website search engine, which now allows visitors to search by their interests and cross-interests.

The council brought up its one major business update, regarding the lamp posts it wants to place along the New James Rumsey Bridge.

“I received information on Saturday evening from Delegate Mike Folk that the contract to put the lights up on the bridge is now waiting to be signed. Buying the lights is really the responsibility of the West Virginia Division of Highways, but they’re so short of funds, we thought we would go ahead and buy the lights, and just let the department put them up and maintain them along the bridge,” said Mayor Jim Auxer, mentioning the lamp posts will look similar to the ones on Shepherd University’s campus.

Auxer also mentioned the need for someone to lease the Mecklenburg Tobacco Warehouse, citing the need to get some profit from the building, because its flood insurance costs have now reached $4,000. He said the building was last used as a business office.

In other business:

– Shepherdstown Centennial Lions Club manager Michael Sholl discussed the club’s upcoming first annual Roaring Car Show on Sept. 2, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The show will be open to all vehicles, and will be located at Shepherd University’s Parking Lot A.

The vehicle registration cost will be $10 if registered by Aug. 26 or $15 if registered after Aug. 26.

The majority of the event’s proceeds will go toward buying a diabetes dog for a young boy with diabetes, a cause the Berkeley Springs Lions Club is also raising money for.

– The council approved Sholl’s request to close the road between the lot and White Hall during the event.

– The council approved Shepherdstown Public Library Associate Director Christy Hagerty’s request to close King Street from the road to the alley behind the library during the library’s summer movie nights.

– The council also approved Two River Treads representative and Freedom’s Run Race Director Katie Thompson’s request to hold Freedom’s Run in Shepherdstown again this year. The one change Thompson plans to make in this year’s race, will be more portable toilets available along the race route, and less stationed in front of Town Hall.