Tuesday's agenda: bids for North Lamar and a $1.5 million Old Taylor Road signal, a food truck rules hearing and a 140-home sewer request. 5 p.m., City Hall.

The Oxford Board of Aldermen will be asked Tuesday to put two road projects out to bid. One is a $3.5 million rebuild of North Lamar Boulevard. The other is a new traffic signal at Old Taylor Road and Chucky Mullins Drive.

The board meets at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 20, in the City Hall Courtroom. The agenda and the 108-page agenda packet are on the city’s meeting portal. The board will also hold a public hearing on rules for food trucks.

North Lamar and Old Taylor Road

City Engineer John Crawley is asking permission to advertise both jobs for bids, according to his memos in the packet.

  • North Lamar Corridor, Phase 1 ($3.5 million budget). The full project would rebuild North Lamar from Price Street to Molly Barr Road, with a multi-use path and on-street parking. Phase 1 runs from Molly Barr Road south to the Lamar development. It includes work at the North Lamar, Ivy Road and Varner Loop intersection.
  • Old Taylor Road at Chucky Mullins Drive ($1.5 million budget). A traffic signal and “associated geometric improvements” at the intersection.

A third memo asks to let the Street Department work overnight in December and January on the Oxford Square crosswalk lighting project. That work would include lane and sidewalk closures. The memo said exact hours would depend on weather, holidays and special events.

Food truck rules up for a public hearing

The board will hold a second reading and public hearing on an ordinance, Case #3340, that adds a new “Mobile Vendor” section to the city’s Land Development Code. Planning staff recommend approval.

The new section sets rules by how many vendors share a lot in the business, corridor, urban, institutional and planned-development districts:

  • One vendor on a lot: a permitted use, with no parking required
  • Two to four at once: a special use, with a site plan showing the parking provided
  • Five or more at once: a special exception, with five parking spaces plus one per 100 square feet of seating

Any vendor in a suburban multifamily district would also need a special exception. Lots with more than one vendor must submit a site plan. The city may require restrooms, shared seating, parking or bike facilities.

Many operating rules carry over from the city’s existing mobile food vending ordinance, adopted in 2016 and reprinted in the packet:

  • trucks and carts must be on private property, with the owner’s permission on file
  • hours are 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. Monday through Saturday and 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday
  • no alcohol, no speakers, and no spot within 20 feet of a bus stop or 10 feet of a fire hydrant
  • a permit costs $275 a year per vehicle or cart

The same ordinance also changes the code’s sections on townhouses, accessory dwellings, group care homes, equipment screening and site plan review.

A 140-home subdivision outside the city

Walker and Walker Enterprises LLC is asking to connect a proposed subdivision, Magnolia Bend, to city sewer. The memo describes about 140 single-family homes on County Road 405 in Lafayette County.

Because the land is within a mile of the city limits, the development would have to follow the city’s Land Development Code if the board approves, the memo said. The developer would pay for any upgrades to city sewer and water.

Also on the agenda

  • Gunsmoke retires. The board will consider a proclamation for the retirement of Gunsmoke, a horse in the Police Department’s Mounted Unit. The draft says he began service in 2010 and has served more than 16 years, often around the Square. Since 2020 his side profile has been on the unit’s insignia, known as the Gunsmoke patch. A separate item would accept the donation of a horse to the department.
  • Fire hydrant rule. A first reading of a fire code change would require fire department connections on buildings to be within 100 feet of a hydrant. Fire Chief Joey Gardner’s memo said that matches the 50 feet of hose from hydrant to truck plus 50 feet from truck to building.
  • Patterson Place, Phase 2. A one-lot plat on about 7.8 acres near Bobby Street, west of the Western Hills subdivision. Western Hills residents raised traffic and safety concerns at the Oct. 12 Planning Commission meeting. The commission unanimously recommended approval, adding a condition that no road work happen without further board action. The plat marks the Bobby Street connection as a “No-Build” zone.
  • mTrade Park. $14,590 in extra design work for the Indoor Practice Facility, and an agreement for 3D Memphis Lacrosse to run lacrosse tournaments at the park.
  • Transit. The mayor would sign the 2026-27 federal 5311 rural transit agreement for Oxford University Transit.

What it means for you

  • Speak on food trucks. The public hearing is your chance to comment before the board votes. Attend at 5 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall, 107 Courthouse Square.
  • Drivers on North Lamar and Old Taylor Road: advertising for bids is the step before a contract. Construction dates will come when a bid is awarded. Current closures are on our road construction page.
  • Need help to attend? The agenda lists the city’s ADA coordinator at 662-232-2350.
  • Thinking of opening a food truck? Our building permits and zoning guide explains how Oxford’s zoning districts work.

Source: City of Oxford Board of Aldermen agenda and agenda packet for Oct. 20, 2026, published on the city’s CivicClerk portal.