Friday, August 22, 2003

Fairburn holds budget retreat

By LINDSAY BIANCHI
Special to The Citizen

The Fairburn City Council held a budget retreat Monday to look at the past year's achievements and the coming year's challenges.

Mayor Betty Hannah started the proceedings with a show of thanks to staff member Robbie McDuffey by awarding her a "gold star" for her excellent work on securing 100 percent of Fairburn's business licenses.

"You are the first one to ever do that," the Mayor said as she presented a beautiful gold star ornament to her surprised employee.

City Administrator Jim Williams then took the reins from Mayor Hannah and ran through a quick review of the previous fiscal year.

"Morale is good," Williams said. "The finance department is well on its way to functioning where it should." He went on to report the strengthening of the City Hall staff and its smoother flow in handling paperwork. He touched on the curtailing of residential development which he said was "totally out of control."

Williams went on to mention improvements in the Lightning Community. Habitat for Humanity has been involved with four new houses in the area. Preparation of a new fire service contract and newly acquired contracts for electrical service to Adessa and S.C. Johnson facilities were stressed as well.

The council did not stop to rest on their laurels but continued on with the concerns of the immediate and near future. Covering the general administration first, state required budget formats, purchasing procedures, new billing and collecting tactics, and a public relations and information program were all hit on briefly.

With a final emphasis on pay increases for the city's lowest paid employees, council members moved on to questions of planning and development.

Promoting a balanced development and a better preparation of plans were high on the list. Thoughts on creating a more appealing entrance to town were also entertained.

The police and courts were up next for discussion. State certification took precedence but did not eclipse other important needs such as crime prevention and a new indigent defense program to provide legal council for those who need it.

Relocation of court facilities to City Hall met with some debate as did upgrading the Police Department facilities. With space at a premium right now the solution is an immediate concern.

Public works got a going over due to the increasing amount of work being done by an undermanned team.

"We need to do a much better job. Some areas are going untouched." Williams stated.

Storm water management was discussed in the water and sewage phase.

"I feel like we are well ahead of the curve," Williams said in reference to the state of Georgia getting ready to "lower the boom" on it various community's water policies. Possibility of a storm water utility were bandied about without conclusion

The meeting ended with a discussion of cable and Internet expansion. A decline in revenue this year and projected costs for next year may force the city to sell and get out of the cable business. A preliminary budget summary was handed out for the Council's consideration and will be workshopped before the numbers are finalized.