The town of Ferriday will pay architect Chris Williams $20,942 for designing the new Ferriday Community Center on First Street.

The board of aldermen held a special meeting Friday to vote on whether or not to pay Williams.

Work on the community center stopped recently after conflicts between the town and the architect.

Mayor Gene Allen said earlier this month that the city had paid Williams but that Williams said he had not received payment.

Friday, the board voted to pay Williams the $20,942 under the condition that Williams drop the late charges he said the city owed.

“He will ask the contractors to do the work and he will do what he needs to do,” Allen said at the meeting.

Williams originally charged the city $46,000, including late fees and other charges accumulated since 2002, Allen said.

The board gave Allen authority to sign the check “on the grounds that (Williams) restart work and do what needs to be done,” he said.

Ferriday began planning in October for restoration of downtown buildings, including a community center and business incubator, a building where start-up businesses can lease space.

The community center will cost $1.069 million, mostly paid for by HUD and USDA grants.

The start date for construction of the building was scheduled for after Jan. 1.

Also at the meeting, Allen announced that requests for proposals for repair of the town’s water tank have all been received.

The town needs to obtain an engineering report before bids can be accepted, though, Allen said.

The announcement was to “let you all know where we are and that we’re not just dragging our feet,” Allen said.