Blairsville City Attorney David Barrett

The Blairsville City Council (Council) convened on Tuesday, March 4, 2017 at 6 p.m. for the regularly scheduled monthly meeting. Mayor Jim Conley and City Council Members Rhonda Mahan, Martha Cone, Buddy Moore, Betty Easter, City Attorney David Barrett and City Clerk Kaye McCann were present. Council Member Tony Dyer was absent. Department heads Darren Harper of the Downtown Development Authority, Jody Cook of Wastewater Management, Officer Michael Baxter of Blairsville Police Department and Larry Stevens of Water Treatment attended.
Harper reported, “There has been an uptick in businesses looking for a place to expand in Blairsville.” He said he’s had inquiries from two businesses currently located in Blue Ridge (GA) that are looking to get out of Blue Ridge. He said his contacts cited infighting (within city/county govt.) and (inconveniences due to) construction as reasons for people looking for new places to invest their dollars; and, he said, Blairsville is high on the list. Harper said the biggest challenge in Blairsville is that there are so few buildings available to place people/businesses in the downtown area. He said “the word on the street both in Hiawassee and in Blue Ridge is that we all get along. People have been watching us from afar. A lot of business owners are coming to Blairsville to do shopping, to go dining out and they’re scoping us out in the process”.
Conley broached the subject of employee insurance and turned it over to McCann. McCann said when new employees are hired, they are offered life and short-term disability insurance through Georgia Municipal Association (GMA) with Greater Georgia Life Insurance. In a notice GMA sent on another matter, they informed the City that a minimum level of individual employee life insurance and short-term disability insurance is supposed to be paid for by the employer (City). McCann said she contacted GMA for guidance because she knew that the City had been offering employees short-term disability insurance as an employee paid option, currently $18 per month. She said according to the 2012 declaration page (Council approved this insurance in January 2012) of the insurance policy, it is stated that this insurance is mandatory and is supposed to be paid for by the City. McCann said the significance of this is that the City will need to add short-term disability to all current employees as far back as 2012 and pay the insurance company for it. Additionally, she said, the City will have to reimburse all current and past employees as far back as 2012 who had taken the insurance and paid a monthly premium. Conley said there is no question about paying Greater Georgia Life for unpaid premiums and reimbursing employees for the short-term disability insurance they carried. He said the question now is whether the Council wants to continue carrying short-term disability insurance for its employees. The Council agreed that this is a great benefit for City employees. Moore made a motion that the City keep the policy as is with short-term disability for employees paid by the City at a rate of approximately $6,000 per year. The motion carried unanimously.
Conley opened the floor for public comment on the First Reading of Ordinance No. 2017-02 to amend Ordinance No. 2016-02 to Regulate the Sale of Alcoholic Beverages in the City of Blairsville, Georgia to add a section regulating brown-bagging of alcoholic beverages for holders of an alcohol license. No public comments were forthcoming, but discussion ensued as to how the Council overlooked this area of Prohibited Activities as mirrored in the Union County, Georgia Code. Union County, Georgia – Code of Ordinances, Chapter 10, Article III, Sec. 10-81 (k) states: Brown-bagging of alcoholic beverages, that is, to allow anyone to take any alcoholic beverage into any public establishment, such as a restaurant, or to any licensed special event, is hereby forbidden at any time and on any days in any establishment or special event where anyone holds an alcohol license under this article. This means no BYOB to your favorite restaurant or function where the owner of the premises holds an alcohol license on any day of the week including Sunday. No one on the Council knows how this section of the Alcohol Ordinance was missed or deleted. Conley said this section was there when the original Alcohol Ordinance was first established. Ordinance 2017-02 will more than likely be adopted by the Council after the Third Reading, which is legally required procedure for adoption of ordinances.
Conley asked the Council to consider the proposed Cook Street Water Line Replacement Project. He said the construction cost estimate is $85,000; engineering cost estimate is $34,000 which includes $9,000 for contingency. He said the project would run from Hood Street to Shoe Factory Road and includes three new fire hydrants. Moore made a motion to approve the project. The motion carried unanimously. The bid process will now move forward.
Stevens reported that a Sanitary Survey was conducted by the Environmental Protection Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (EPD) in February. He said the survey indicated the water tanks are due for their five-year inspection and that the bases at the water plant need rehab. Conley said he is aware of these issues and a plan is in the works for the rehab and other concerns and that outside contractors would be needed for this project because of the nature of the concrete work required. Conley said the project will be more than simple maintenance and that there are SPLOST funds available to fund it. This project “is not going to be cheap”, he said.
Conley asked the Council for their input on the issue of bringing water and sewer service to a commercial property on (Pat) Haralson Drive in light of the disclosure that Notla Water has agreed to provide water to the City at the discounted rate of $2.50 per 1,000 gallons. It was noted that the City would realize income by selling the water to the commercial customer at the current City rate. Moore asked if the service would be available to both commercial and residential customers, to which Barrett responded that it could be if he changed one word in the tentative agreement. Conley responded that, since there are no residences on that particular stretch of (Pat) Haralson Drive, the agreement should be left as is. Conley also noted the fact that, under the current Ordinance, the City could not provide sewer service to any customer that does not also have water service because the City would lose money by providing only sewer service. Moore also asked about the possibility of future requests for sewer and water farther along Pat Haralson. Barrett answered it would be cost prohibitive to run sewer any farther. The Council concluded that since both the City and the commercial customer would benefit by the City extending water and sewer service to the commercial location on Pat Haralson Drive, they would go forward with the project; a motion to that effect was unanimously approved.
There has been a problem with semi tractor-trailer trucks attempting to navigate downtown Blairsville and causing damage to other vehicles and to Blairsville property. Conley said he and Barrett have met and discussed this issue and are still in the process of developing a Truck Ordinance that will address this problem. He said he will, hopefully, have something more on this issue by the next City Council Meeting.
Baxter reported February was generally slow for the Police Department with “a little over 6,400 patrol miles”. With nothing else to report, he invited everyone out to the Hope House Super Chef Cook-off event that will be held at the First United Methodist Church (on Hwy 515, west of Blairsville) on Saturday, March 11, 2017 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Information for the Cook-off can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1316213908425029/.
The Council approved the 2017 Georgia Downtown Affiliate Network Memorandum of Understanding with the Georgia Department of Community Affairs for the Downtown Development Authority.
The Council approved both Managing Agent Change Applications. One for Convenience Stores, Inc. dba Blairsville Marathon at 16 Bracketts Way by Michael Davis; and one for Copeland’s LLC at 17 Merchants Walk by Ahleah Eberhard.
The Council approved an Occupational Tax Certificate for Old Mountain Electronics, LLC at 60A Rogers Street for Shawn Jinkerson and Ronny Benfield.
The Council also approved Occupational Tax Certificates and Sign Permit Applications for Chapman and Chapman, PC at 49 Pruitt Circle for Lisa Strickland; Pam’s Back to Nature Health and Wellness Store at 294 Hwy 515 W, Suite G for Pamela Stanfield; and BDRGA Investments, LLC, dba Blue Mountain Vapor and Apparel at 253 E Hwy 515, Suite 1-C for Roger Craig.
With no further business to conduct, the Council then adjourned.