First thing I did on Council was to get DAPC off the shelf and working to help fill those stores among other things.

Get with them, dapc@peachtree-city.org. They are developing business associations in each shopping center, working with Community Development on an advertising system to allow banner promotions on lamp poles along streets, kiosks in the City for advertising space, online website promotion, working with center owners to get redevelopment, as in Braelinn, and filling the Baby Kroger or getting them to exit the lease to free it up for an anchor store, aid from Georgia Tech in development ideas, joint promotions with Tourism, Airport and Chamber of Commerce, membership in retail and other associations to promote PTC at conventions and similar.

There has been fruit from some efforts. New customer have been attracted from Coweta due to promotion efforts.

What is needed from the small business owners is participation.

For an authority only brought back online January of 2008 they are doing great work in this terrible economy.

Speaking for myself I have been working on it. There are also changes in several areas I want to make that will enhance the effort. But that would take new majority on Council to get them done.

Their budget is currently $35,000 plus contributed support. That needs to increase as the grow.

No, you won't get help from the FCDA on small stores. They only do large new business development, like NCR, which does help small business by recruiting consumers to the area to work.

We are not Cobb. Bear no resemblance.

Don Haddix
PTC Councilman
Post 1
donhaddix.com

They can kiss it. I'm spending 25% of what I used to spend at Kroger. It's not so much they decided to close the small store, it's the fact want to control the new lessee with an iron fist. I realize it's their right to do that, but it's my right to tell Kroger that there are other stores out there, and I'm shopping with them.

It is totally unfair for Kroger to keep that little store at Peachtree Crossing in PTC closed.
I'm sure those other tennants didn't sign rental contracts thinking the landlord would tie in with Kroger into such a contract.

I suppose maybe Kroger leased it for a fixed number of years and the owner gets his money but he may lose all of the other tennants.

It is the same as buying out all of the competitors!

With grocery stores that could be very true, Spyglass.

But would it not be a great victory if someday something like that happened? So, they have to try.

Don Haddix
PTC Councilman
Post 1
donhaddix.com

needs to hear from the citizens of PTC. No one wants to see Kroger gone from the area, but give another store a chance where Kroger failed.

I also agree, it's a good thing for the City to be working on.

Yes on COLA. I believe the burden has to be shared. The employees have taken hits in loss of Merit Raise, doubling of insurance contributions, reduction of leave, sick and vacation times and more. So no one can say they have not been hit financially.

We have put no financial cost onto the citizens so far. This cost would be about $27 a year on the average home worth $272,000 (new number as of August).

Yes, I support continuing the SPLOST. No SPLOST and I will be asking the taxpayers what they want, stoppage of road and golf cart path work or a 1.5 mil increase just to do repairs only or at least 1.9 to do the repairs plus some expansion work.

Yes, I support the .244 because it will not stop taking from the Reserve but it will give a bit of a cushion to not do bigger tax increases later.

We have about 5 million available in the Reserve, not 9.2 as some are claiming. Taking more than small amounts at a time will lose us our bond rating, meaning annual debt maintenance costs will increase.

To try to pretend we can function out of the Reserves without major reductions in service is just not a reality. We could fund one year only that way only.

At a meeting today the County gave their projections that 2010 we are all going to get hit hard. Even with the hold on their tax increase they are projecting a 10% LOST tax decline in 2010, which is 4% more than they budgeted for. On property tax they are projecting flat to negative increase to the tax digest.

There is no alternative that will not, in the near term, financially impact all of us. Impossible.

We have to be prepared for several more years of fiscal problems now. 'Kicking the can,' as Logsdon keeps saying, got us into a tighter than needed situation now. We have to work on all fronts to find the best balance of what will get us through with the least negative impact overall.

Figure out where you want to see the impact, meaning taxes, loss of service, etc, and let me know. But there will be impact.

Don Haddix
PTC Councilman
Post 1
donhaddix.com

What is the basis for PTC’s COLA? Since social security has stated no COLA, I think for 2 years, because the cost of living has theoretically dropped, what would determine PTC’s rate?

COLAS are farces!

There has been inflation which would increase people with COLA rights, like SS.

A group of statistics jugglers come-up with a number everyone can approve of for the budget. It has little to do with costs of everything. Same way defense budgets are prepared!

In the 70s we had up to 15% inflation but COLAS never went up anywhere near that much. They simply "adjusted" the numbers not to include "radical" things.

And yes the President could speak up on such things even though he probably hasn't even been involved or informed. However if it is wrong or right he is responsible.

And to call the rate for two years is illegal and impossible.

The Wall Street bankers will get their percentage based on the real numbers! Workers won't, nor retired people.

Also there are those who feel retired people do not deserve COLAs, including the military.

That is one of those formulas I have not memorized it.

But, if it indexes at zero then they would get zero.

Merit is a fixed range. COLA is flexible.

The $247,000 was just a refernce from the last time.

Don Haddix
PTC Councilman
Post 1
donhaddix.com

You are never going to get it!

Why are you supporting public servants continuously instead of the rest of the voters?

Get with it---you will need to raise taxes again next year if you don't start now reducing expenses and head counts!

They should be glad to have an easy job with a good pension---15% are out of work many places!

While we can agree that costs are to be shared, COLA approval is not (or at least shouldn't be) an automatic assumption for government employees. Perhaps its there because it is THEY who write the budget proposals. We both know that is not the case for the private sector. This economic downturn affects all of us including those employed by government, and to imply that they have been hit hard enough, simply will not hold water. Just another opinion.

No financial cost to the citizens thus far, you jest, who do think has been paying these local taxes anyway? I realize that I easily piss more than $27.00 away on a given day, but it's mine to do with as I choose not someone at city hall. The SPLOST, well were we not misinformed about the last one? Surely, if it were to go away the sky would not fall, nor would school buses cease to roll.

Can this community survive without adding the .244? It can and will just like our city government can be forced to live within its means, you did, I did, and every responsible citizen of our town does now so I would say that "staff" has to accept reality.

Please understand that "kicking the can" can also mean not making the necessary cuts in staff (other than police and fire). Very little has been done to date and I trust that under your administration much of the "deadwood" will go away. With several more years of this austere economy ahead, what alternative do you have? We the citizens are fed up with a bloated city government, waning public services,and an elitist Council.

The time is past for managerial prowess, what Peachtree City needs is leadership. Lead, follow, or get the hell out of the way!

Let's both roll up our sleeves and make it happen first by getting you elected.

I agree nothing is assumed to be automatic.

In your position you also know there is a balancing act going on all the time. The question we are disagreeing on, somewhat, is how to achieve that balance.

Let us face it, driving down disposable income, private or public sector, is one of the fastest way to reduce municipal budget incomes and company profits. Short term gain with long term loss.

Also, companies cutting wages at locations X often make their profits elsewhere, so they really don't care what they do to the location X economy. Cities don't have that luxury.

That gets into the area of the Feds and State assuming too many powers away from locales and getting into our business in extremely expensive ways. We need reforms there, but until then I am stuck with the status quo avenues to pay for what people expect and being able to deliver it in a effective way.

Our employees are part of our community. I fear descending into an us and them mentality. Not good.

Yes, citizens pay taxes. What I meant was that after all the cutting done we need to begin smoothing out expectations, operations and more. So, in regards to the financial impacts to the Budget relating directly to the economic down turn all the costs have been born by the employees, none on the citizens, yet, as increases to the already long term existing tax cost levels.

I am trying hard to get the efficiencies in place and keep us going so that when it gets better we can maintain efficiencies, get postponed issues up to date and then cut taxes lower than what they were before, not spend more. That is my goal.

Yes, it is your money. But no, we are a community and there are community wants and needs that require government to do them. Yet another balancing act between too utopian and too anarchist.

As for the school buses still rolling, that is where the bulk of your taxpayer dollars from property tax go plus ESPLOST. PTC actually gets very little of the whole by percentage.

And sorry, we were not misinformed on the last one. I was fully aware the East and West By Passes were in the proposal voted in. It was fully in the presentations before the vote. They were in the visuals and in written proposals. The PTC portion had no problems except for being over specific on projects, thus not allowing us to move funds to a higher priority project within the confines of road and golf cart approved uses.

Sorry, Mike, kicking the can as implying there have not been job eliminations is inaccurate, there have In example the Asst. City Manager slot is gone. If we find more those will be gone as well.

If there is bloat now I am not sure where it is.

But let me qualify that. There is bloat in the paperwork and similar requirements placed on us by the State and Feds. Absurd amounts of time, materials and money consumed doing what has to be done by law. Just not in personnel.

Also, if you mean job inefficient employees being retained, that is a whole other issue and you know I am all for cleaning out any we find.

Let me close with I agree the time for the political gamesmanship is long past by. And you know I get in there neck deep and don't defer leadership to a Staffer who is trying to figure out the politically correct answer.

Staff is Staff. Let them do their jobs. Leadership is leadership. As you say, lead or step aside for someone who will lead.

Working on the getting elected part.

Don Haddix
PTC Councilman
Post 1
donhaddix.com

you're not running against Logsdon.

That said, I was in favor of a slight tax increase so we could have kept the City looking nice, landscape wise. The secondary streets are getting rougher and rougher looking. I cut more and more grass around my area just to keep Fishers Luck looking halfway decent where it is near my house. The neighbors are thankful, but they blame the City for letting things decay.

I am not running against Logsdon, agreed. I am running against Plunkett.

That was background for how we got here, thus what I am dealing with. It is also the position he is taking for the vote on the .244, which is pertinent to this issue because it will impact 2010. I fear he has Plunkett persuaded from her pro stance to his anti stance, more for election reasons than reality reasons.

You have pointed out one of the contradictions I have to deal with. The old don't increase my taxes but don't cut my services, which includes giving certain personally preferred services priorities over others. Or increase to whatever it takes which creates a collision with the no tax increase citizens.

Some get mad over grass, some Rec and some Library.

If everyone's priorities were met then nothing would be cut. A non reality in these times.

Wish I had a great answer that made everyone happy.

Don Haddix
PTC Councilman
Post 1
donhaddix.com

You have to realize that cutting staff or salaries is NOT always also cutting services!

That assumes things can't be done any more efficiently either by reorganizarion or better work output.
Is there a problem with firing government people like these by force reduction? Does it have to be by seniority or can one fire those who can't do a new job, etc.?

Mr. Haddix,

Where are your spending priorities? Say top five to ten things you think we should spend money on in PTC. I know salaries are a big chunk and benefits, but what about other services like police and fire? How would you rank them?

Observer

All equal top priorities:
Fire
EMS
Police
Code Enforcement

Benefits are not changing from the cut position. COLA relates to balancing compensation, performance and fairness.

Administration is a must that is included with in each area as needed.

Don Haddix
PTC Councilman
Post 1
donhaddix.com