Politics & Government
City Council Talks Streets, Finalizes Budget
The mayor and Board of Aldermen address citizens' concerns before hammering out the budget details.
The mayor, Board of Aldermen and employees of the hammered out the final adjustments to the fiscal 2012 budget and addressed concerns about street closures during Monday evening's work session.
The budget, which has been several work sessions in the making, will leave the city with a balance of $41,039 at the end of the year and a use of fund balance of $50,598.
Money in the budget is being allotted for changes to Carruth and School streets. Citizens from the affected areas came to a public comment session before the City Council retired to chambers for the budget meeting.
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“How are they going to widen the road by without buying the property?” James Baker, who lives in the 4500 block of Spring Street Extension, said before the meeting. “It's a 30-foot drop to the fire station.”
The plan, according to City Manager Brian Bulthuis, is to abandon the northern portion of Carruth Street. Access to the Carruth Street Marietta Housing facilities would be from Cowan Road.
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Additionally, the section of School Street between Bell Street and Cherokee Street will be closed to vehicle traffic and converted into a public walkway. The specific section of School Street mentioned on the agenda for the public hearing is to be abandoned to make a driveway for the home at the intersection of Cherokee and School streets.
The overarching goal of the School Street project is to connect it with Lemon Street and create a four-way intersection there. School Street will then curve around Bethel A.M.E. Church, which will receive a new parking lot in the renovation project.
A few citizens, mainly from the Bethel community, voiced concerns about the School Street project. Concerns included the steepness of the curve at Bethel, the tree on the property and the lack of current sidewalks in the area. According to the council:
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The steepness of the curve around Bethel will be made gentler.
The tree on the property will not be affected by the new parking lot. If the proprietors of the church want the tree gone, that is their prerogative.
Sidewalks will be included in the School Street project. Additionally, with the opening up of School Street to two lanes and the larger Bethel parking lot, school buses will have an easier time turning around in the tight confines of the area. The council expects a new bus stop to be designated at the intersection of School and Cherokee streets.
Some citizens did not understand what all the new changes meant for them, so Alderman Tim Houston stayed after the meeting to explain the situation to them.
Condensed items from the budget meeting are as follows:
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The Marietta firm of Moore and Cubbedge will continue to provide auditing services for the city for an additional three years. Seven total offers were fielded, with four moving on to the next phase. The three least expensive firms were given interviews. Moore and Cubbedge earned the contract because of the firm's history with the city; the time lost in training a firm unfamiliar with the city's books would have negated any savings. Moore and Cubbedge also has an outside group that audits its audits every two to three years to ensure correctness.
Alderman Bob Weatherford expressed his desire that the city rejoin the Chairman's Club at the Cobb County Chamber of Commerce. He argued that most of the aldermen's personal expenses come from Chamber meetings, which would be wiped out if Acworth rejoined the club. Although the entry fee is $2,100, Weatherford reminded the board it has spent hundreds of thousands on new police cars without batting an eye. “It boils down to 'Do we want to be there or not?' ” he said.
Kevin Wilson, the city's information technology manager, set aside $28,000 in his department's budget for a new mail server, the current once being installed in 2004. Wilson said the figure is a “worst-case scenario,” owing to the new licensing fees Microsoft is placing on its mail server connections. Alternative products are being looked at, such as applications from Google and Zimbra.
The Historic Preservation Committee, which asked for $2,500 in additional funds, will be denied the increase because it has not depleted its current fund balance. The committee's projects will continue, including a $500 study for an as-built plan of the old depot.
The Parks and Recreation Department is spending $17,000 in an effort to normalize working hours for its part-time employees and converting one part-time position to a full-time position.
will be rolled into .
A discussion began on the merits of renovating or rebuilding the restrooms at . A renovation would include resealing, putting in new stalls, raising the ceiling height and improving the ventilation in the restrooms. Although a plan won't be looked at until fall, Bulthuis suggested the city spend the money instead of waiting for SPLOST II funds, which are still three to four years away.
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The Cobb Department of Transportation has announced that SPLOST I projected revenues were overestimated by $386,000. Spending cuts may be in store for the Senator Russel Avenue and Main Street projects.
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The city has received some complaints about the tax assessment estimates the county just sent out. Those estimates do not include local exemptions, which is why the estimates are higher than normal.
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The budget will be up for a public hearing at the June 2 meeting of the mayor and Board of Aldermen. The budget must be approved by the second council meeting in June.
The minutes of the meeting will be available here after the council approves them.
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