Friday, December 28, 2001
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Friday, December 28, 2001 |
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Fairburn at center of area's growth By JOHN
THOMPSON
Fairburn officials learned how fast their town was growing this year. This year's proposed $11.5 million budget is double the city's budget from 1993. City Manager Cox explained the increase was due to the phenomenal growth that has occurred in the area and said the city's employment force has grown from 50 to 73 in the same time frame. Included in this year's budget is a 2.5 percent raise for city employees. The budget does not include a requested three new police officers and also calls for very few new capital requests. Cox said the city receives most of its budget funds from sales tax, and sales tax growth is expected to be only 4 percent next year, instead of the normal 7 percent in a more robust economy. The biggest increase in requested funds this year is the city administration, which is up $256,000. Cox said nearly $190,000 of the increase goes to pay for the increased number of inspections the city has to do for developments. Cox's budget crunching and growth projections backed up Mayor Betty Hannah's assesment of the city earlier in the year. She said she was happy that Fairburn's cable and Internet service is adding new subscribers and said that Union City had just signed up to join the system. The city continued to grow by leaps and bounds and Hannah pointed to the 700 acres the city has annexed during 2000. The city also is adding new residents as the Meadow Glenn project on Ga. Highway 74 continues to build new multifamily and single family residences. Although many residents are finally discovering the city, she feels the city is growing at a manageable rate and praised the staff for their work. The busy state highway also will be the site for a major shopping center in the future, she added. The city's Police Department has recently formed a bicycle patrol unit that will help in community policing and getting into areas that cars have difficulty navigating, she said. "It's been a good year and we've faced a lot of challenges," Hannah said.
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