December 1st Mayor and Council Meeting Notes

Monday, December 8th, 2025

The Dalton Mayor and Council met on Monday, December 1st for their first session of the month. The meeting was relatively brief, with an agenda that included changes to plans for renovations at the Dalton Municipal Airport and action on several new alcoholic beverage license renewals. The highlight of the evening, however, was a recognition for the North Georgia Soccer Academy's U-13 2012B Team which won a 2025 US Club National Championship earlier this year.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO OF MONDAY NIGHT'S MEETING

The North Georgia Soccer Academy's under-13 squad won the 2025 National Championship in Denver, Colorado, defeating a team from Texas 5-0 in the championship game. The NGSA recently celebrated its 10th anniversary training soccer players in the Dalton area. 

Caption: Members of the North Georgia Soccer Academy's National Champs posed with the Dalton Mayor and Council Monday night

"In the national final, we played a team from Houston, Texas. And before the game, the coach kinda made fun of me a little bit, and our team," said Coach Kerem Daser, the NGSA's founder and CEO. "He said, 'you guys are in Atlanta, right?' And I said, 'no, we're from a place called Dalton, Georgia.' So I think he will remember that city."

"I want to thank the City Council for letting us come," Daser, who is better known as "Coach K," said. 

"We are really, really proud of you all," Mayor Annalee Sams said as she presented a certificate of recognition to the team for their accomplishment. 

To watch the presentation for the national champs, click here. 

The Council heard the first reading of Ordinance 25-24 Monday night. The ordinance would rezone a tract of land at 913 Riverbend Road from heavy manufacturing (M-2) to rural residential (R-5). The rezoning request was made by Wayne Burgess of Burgess Family Investments, LLC in order to build a duplex on the property. Whitfield County Zoning Administrator Jean Garland noted that the property is the third parcel in the surrounding area to come before the City Council for similar rezoning this year. Planning staff and the Dalton-Whitfield County Planning Commission both recommended approval of the request. To view the commission meeting recap, click here. To view the planning staff analysis, click here. Because this was the first reading of the ordinance, no action was taken. The ordinance will be considered for a vote by the Council after a second reading at a future meeting. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

During the meeting, the Council voted to: 

• Approve 143 alcoholic beverage license renewals - 137 of the renewal applications were submitted without changes. The six renewals that included changes were for changes such as adding a new designated agent or a change to the name of the establishment. One renewal included an additional license. To view the list of renewal applications, click here. The Council voted 3-0 to approve the renewals. Councilmember Nicky Lama recused himself from the vote because his business was among the renewal applicants. Mayor Annalee Sams typically votes only in the event of a tie. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve Change Order #1 for the Dalton Municipal Airport Taxiway Rehab Project - Because of additional areas of undercut required in the areas underlying the project, additional stone wrapped in geotextile fabric was needed for remediation. The addition of the stone will not change the project budget as the new line items in the contract are being paid for by cost underruns in the project. To vierw the change order, click here. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the change. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve Change Order #7 for the Dalton Municipal Airport Hangar Development Project - The change to the contract includes additions of new sheet metal to cover drywall firewalls in the hangars for added durability, new fire doors which were not included in the original plans due to an error, and additional conduits for future utility installation as well as an added downspout drain for rainwater runoff. The cost for the changes is $20,780.83 which is being covered by the original project budget thanks to cost underruns that were created by earlier change orders for the project. To view the change order, click here. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the change. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve a donation of real property - Resolution 25-25 accepts a donation from OP 2115, LLC through its managing member Octavio Perez of a 1.47 acre tract of land near the intersection of Harris Street and 3rd Avenue. The Council is authorized by OCGA 36-37-2 to accept donations of real property. City Administrator Andrew Parker told the Council that City staff believed accepting the land donation was a good opportunity to preserve a natural area to avoid water runoff issues that would be caused by the property's donation. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the donation. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

The Mayor and Council will meet Tuesday, December 9th in a special called work session at 4:30 pm in the 2nd floor east conference room at City Hall to discuss municipal board and commission appointments. The next scheduled Mayor and Council meeting will be Monday, December 15th at 6:00 pm in the City Council Raymond A. Elrod Council Chambers. 

Click "Play" in the window below to watch Monday night's meeting