TOWN OF TALLULAH FALLS
STATE OF GEORGIA
REGULAR MEETING
FEBRUARY 9, 2017
MINUTES
The regular monthly meeting for February 9, 2017 of the City Council of Tallulah Falls, Georgia was called to order at 6:03 p.m. by Mayor Pro-tem Deb Goatcher.
- Mayor Pro-tem Deb Goatcher
- Councilperson Bill Coldren
- Councilperson Larry Hamilton
- Councilperson Teri Dobbs
- Police Chief Bill Goatcher
- Fire Captain Mike Early
- Town Administrator/Clerk Patti Polk
OTHERS PRESENT:
See attached sign-in list. (for attachments, contact Town Clerk)
A Motion was made by Councilperson Dobbs to accept the minutes of the January 5, 2016 Regular City Council Meeting and Special Called Meeting on February 6, 2017. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Coldren and passed unanimously.
A Motion was made by Councilperson Dobbs to accept the February 9, 2017 Regular City Council Meeting agenda. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Coldren and passed unanimously.
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher acknowledged the new Tallulah Gorge State Park Manager, Jennifer Jones. Ms. Jones gave a brief introduction and work history experience with Vogel State Park. Ms. Jones stated she and Assistant Park Manger, Jessica James Weems, were available anytime for questions, comments, or concerns.
Police Chief Bill Goatcher asked about having a concession stand and kayak rentals at the beach area. Ms. Jones responded these items are being discussed internally with DNR but will not be available this summer.
Attorney Report:
Attorney Stockton presented his follow up to several questions asked by the Town regarding water lines. For Demorest water lines along side of 441 that are within the Tallulah Falls city limits, it appears the Town is unable to collect franchise fees from Demorest. However, he has asked Debbie Jacobs with Rabun County to research further. As for securing a permit to run the Demorest water lines through Tallulah Falls city limits, only the State can regulate; not the Town. Stockton confirmed an employee or elected official of the Town is unable to represent on the Rabun County Water & Sewer Authority.
Attorney Stockton commented on the title search for the dock property where the old Town Hall was formerly located. He is working with Lisa McCall who is currently retooling her search based on some historical information provided by Councilperson Hamilton.
Attorney Stockton gave an update on the MuniCode City Ordinance codification project. He is currently reviewing the MuniCode suggested model rules of procedure to replace the Roberts Rule of Order for meetings. MuniCode advised the files of the new code have been turned over to their editors for proof preparation.
Attorney Stockton will follow up on the amended contract for the Habersham Radio Agreement. He believes it was sent but needs to confirm and follow up with Habersham County.
Fire Report:
Attached hereto and made a part hereof. (for attachments, contact Town Clerk)
Fire Captain Mike Early stated considerations being given toward purchases with the recent $2,000 donation from Rabun County. The fire team is thinking of using the money for air packs/air bottles.
Captain Early announced current Fire Chief, Robbie McCutcheon, will be stepping down from his position in June 2017. There have been a few names suggested for his replacement but nothing official.
Police Report:
Attached hereto and made a part hereof. (for attachments, contact Town Clerk)
Police Chief Bill Goatcher discussed the bids received for the new all-wheel drive 2016 Charger patrol car. The lowest bid came in $94 less and was awarded to local dealership, Jackie Jones, out of Cleveland, Georgia. For a complete set up, the amount will be $30,700, less the $3,500 trade value for the Crown Vic. The final invoice will be paid from Police Fleet and SPLOST funds.
A Motion was made by Councilperson Coldren to authorize the purchase of the 2017 Charger patrol car and allow the $3,500 trade in of the Crown Vic. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Dobbs and passed unanimously.
Chief Goatcher stated the Town received two bids were received for e-Ticketing software and were discussed during the February 2, 2017 Council workshop. The Town’s current vendor, Eagle Advantage, came in significantly lower than Courtware. As such, the new patrol car to be outfitted with the Eagle software.
Mike Early with Early Consulting explained he is working on a requote with Eagle Advantage to solidify the necessary hardware so that all can be installed in the new patrol car upon purchase as well as the existing truck fleet. In addition to the purchased hardware, there will be an added monthly fee of $80 for AT&T data WI-FI contract, an increased annual fee paid to Eagle Advantage in the amount of $2,400, and a $100 increase monthly to the technical support agreement with Early Consulting.
A Motion was made by Councilperson Dobbs to authorize up to $10,000 for the installation and adjusted contract amounts with Eagle Advantage and Early Consulting. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Coldren and passed unanimously.
Financial Report:
Attached hereto and made a part hereof. (for attachments, contact Town Clerk)
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher stated the extension filed with the State by Mixon & Associates for the Town’s annual financial audit was approved. The original date to be completed was December 31, 2016 but Mixon needed more time to finish. The new date for filing is June 30, 2017.
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher advised three (3) bids were from local banks on a matured $100,000 CD currently held with United Community Bank (UCB). Two bids came in at .15 APR from UCB and Rabun County Bank; a bid of .6 APR came in from Oconee Federal Savings & Loan.
A Motion was made by Councilperson Hamilton to move the $100,000 CD to Oconee Federal. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Coldren and passed unanimously.
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher stated two other CDs need to be bid as well. Both are currently held with UCB. One matured 2/5 ($22,631.05) and the other will mature on 2/12/2017 ($6,214.96). Assuming Oconee Federal will give the same .6 rate, a motion is needed to move those CDs to Oconee Federal too.
A Motion was made by Councilperson Hamilton to move these two CDs to Oconee Federal if they will give the same .6 APR. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Coldren and passed unanimously.
Water Report:
Attached hereto and made a part hereof. (for attachments, contact Town Clerk)
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher stated Jim Aton from Hayes James Engineering presented a cost benefit analysis at the Council workshop held on February 2, 2017 where he asked for sign off on the work order for next steps in moving forward with the water withdrawal from the lake. Based on the workshop discussion, the Council is postponing the motion to move forward until further information is collected.
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher commented on the February 2, 2017 workshop discussion regarding the City of Demorest and their interest in partnering with the Town for the surface water withdrawal permit project. Demorest continues to contact Councilperson and Water Commissioner Teri Dobbs for updates on Council discussion.
A Motion was made by Councilperson Hamilton to authorize Councilperson Dobbs to speak on behalf of the Council regarding the project. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Coldren. Councilperson Dobbs abstained. The Motion passed.
Street Report:
None
Public Safety Report:
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher discussed the resources required from the Town’s Fire and Police Departments to support the rescue efforts associated with Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Tallulah Gorge State Park. With spring upon us, it’s important we try and work with DNR on this issue.
Councilperson Teri Dobbs stated she would like to speak with State Representative, Matt Gurtler, during an already planned trip to the Capitol on February 14, 2017 regarding this issue as well as following up on previous letters sent to DNR regarding the Old Ranger Station and Georgia Department of Transportation (DOT) regarding the sight distance safety issue at the Terrora Building.
A Motion was made by Councilperson Hamilton to authorize Councilperson Dobbs to speak to Gurtler on behalf of the Council regarding the DNR and DOT issues. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Coldren and passed unanimously.
Mayor’s Comments:
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher stated a Town Hall Meeting was held on January 19, 2017 where public comments were received and will be considered as upcoming projects. An open house is being planned for early April and will serve as an opportunity for residents to tour the newly renovated Town Hall and hear from the newly elected officials on outlined goals for the Town.
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher stated the Special Called Meeting held on February 6, 2017 was to accept the resignation of Teri Dobbs from her Council position effective at the close of business on February 14, 2017 to run for the position of Mayor. As such, an amended election call to include Mayor and Councilperson is needed. The qualifying period is February 15 through February 17, 2017. The fee for Mayor is $27; Council is $18.
A Motion was made by Councilperson Coldren to authorize an amended call to include Mayor and Councilperson. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Hamilton and passed unanimously.
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher stated the normal November election call has been made for two Council seats which ran in the Northeast Georgian on January 27, 2017. The qualifying period was stated correctly as being August 21st through August 25th but there was an error in the Council salary. The correct Council annual salary should have reflected as $600 with qualifying fee of $18 rather than a salary of $480 and $15 qualifying fee. Tammy Whitmire was notified of the error immediately and will correct.
Mayor Pro-tem announced the reappointment of the following Town Employees and asked for a motion to accept.
- Patti Polk – Town Administrator/City Clerk/Court Clerk/Finance Officer
- Bill Goatcher – Chief of Police/Water Superintendent
- Matt Nall – Full time Police Officer
- David Cannon, Tracy Payne, Dave Shanks – Part time Police Officers
- Robert A. Sneed – Municipal Court Judge
- Mixon & Associates – Accountants/Auditors
- Allyn Stockton – Attorney
A Motion was made by Councilperson Dobbs to accept the reappointments. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Hamilton and passed unanimously.
Mayor Pro-tem stated the Archway Project discussed in the February 2, 2017 Council workshop needed a motion to accept the proposal for facilitation of establishing the vision, mission, and values for the Town.
Town Administrator, Patti Polk, advised the Council she spoke with Archway representative, Sharon Liggett, on expanding the scope of the Archway proposal to include feasibility studies on food and retail shops in the area. Ms. Liggett indicated they would not be able to conduct a feasibility study but did provide several retail analysis reports to be distributed to the Council.
Chief Goatcher commented he would like to incorporate the future water growth of the Town into the development of the mission and vision statements.
A Motion was made by Councilperson Dobbs to accept the proposal from Archway to establish the vision, mission, and values for the Town. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Coldren and passed unanimously.
Open Floor:
Dermatology Physician Assistant, Peter Gray, introduced himself and advised he and a partner are interested in purchasing the Terrora Building for professional purposes. The dermatology group has more than a decade of experience and client base of over 20,000 patients.
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher advised Mr. Gray he should speak with real estate agent, Pepper Kelly, after the meeting.
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher requested an executive session at 6:41 p.m. to discuss real estate.
Mayor Pro-tem Goatcher called the regular Council Meeting back to order at 7:24 p.m. and announced the Council discussed real estate.
A Motion was made by Councilperson Coldren to advertise the Terrora Building with a 10% buyer’s premium, allow Town Administrator, Patti Polk, the flexibility to insert dates for advertising/bidding, and pay 10% commission to agent, Pepper Kelly. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Dobbs and passed unanimously.
A Motion was made by Councilperson Hamilton to amend the previously accepted Special Called Meeting minutes from February 6, 2017 to remove the reference to an executive session since all discussions were held in the regular public session. The Motion was seconded by Councilperson Coldren and passed unanimously.
Councilperson Coldren made the Motion to adjourn; seconded by Councilperson Dobbs. The Motion passed unanimously.
The meeting adjourned at 7:35 p.m.