June 16th Mayor and Council Meeting Notes

Tuesday, June 17th, 2025

The Dalton Mayor and Council held their second scheduled meeting of June on Monday night. The relatively short agenda included the extension of the Dalton Police Department's agreement to provide School Resource Officers for the Dalton Public Schools and also a pair of contracts for the upcoming 4th of July celebration.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH MONDAY NIGHT'S MEETING

The Mayor and Council approved two rezoning ordinances on Monday night. The first, Ordinance 25-13, rezones the tract of land at 323 N. Hamilton Street from transitional commercial (C-4) to general commercial (C-2). The request by Alex Vital and John Davis Battle Ridge Land Company was to accommodate use of the property as an event center as well as a children's play area. The first reading of the ordinance was held at the June 2nd meeting of the Mayor and Council. The planning commission and staff both recommended approval of the request. To read the summary of the planning commission meeting, click here. To read the staff analysis, click here. To read Ordinance 25-13, click here. The Council voted 3-0 to approve the rezoning (Councilmember Tyree Goodlett was not present and Mayor Annalee Sams typically only votes in the event of a tie). To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

Caption: City Councilmembers Dennis Mock, Nicky Lama, and Mayor Annalee Sams listen during a staff presentation at Monday night's meeting

The second rezoning ordinance, Ordinance 25-14, rezones a tract of land at 632 Oxford Street from transitional commercial (C-4) to limited commercial (C-1A). The request by Kelly Roy was to allow for the possibility of placing a short-term rental property on the lot. Because of the small size of the property and the limited setbacks from neighboring properties, the uses for the property are extremely limited. The first reading of the ordinance was held at the June 2nd meeting of the Mayor and Council. The planning commission and staff both recommended approval of the request. To read the summary of the planning commission meeting, click here. To read the staff analysis, click here. To read Ordinance 25-14, click here. The Council voted 3-0 to approve the rezoning. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

The Council also heard the first reading of Ordinance 25-15, which would amend Chapter 50 of the City Code of Ordinances by amending Section 50-209 captioned "minimum requirements for erosion, sedimentation, and pollution control using best management practices." The change is to correct a scribner's error that was discovered when reviewing the code. It corrects a reference to "50-208" which should have read "50-209." To read Ordinance 25-15, click here. Because this was the first reading of the ordinance, the Council took no action on the ordinance. It will be considered after a second reading at the next meeting of the Mayor and Council. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

The Council also voted to: 

• Approve an agreement with the North Georgia Fair Association for the 4th of July celebration - The Dalton Parks and Recreation Department's annual Independence Day celebration will once again include a professional fireworks show. The fireworks will be fired from the North Georgia Fairgrounds, and this agreement is a lease to use the Fairgrounds for this purpose. The Fair Association is providing the use of their facility at no cost to the City, and the agreement outlines the requirements for use. To read the agreement, click here. The Council voted 3-0 to approve the agreement. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve an agreement with the American Legion for 4th of July parking - The agreement with American Legion Post 112 is for the use of their parking lot for public parking for the 4th of July celebration. The agreement outlines the terms of use for the parking lot and a hold harmless agreement. The City is paying $500 for the lease of the parking lot, which is being paid from the Parks and Recreation Department budget for the event. To view the agreement, click here. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve the School Resource Officer (SRO) contract with Dalton Public Schools (DPS) - The Dalton Public Schools system has requested 8 SROs for their schools, and the DPD is providing the officers requested by DPS. The Dalton Police Department will be reimbursed by DPS at 75 percent for the salary, benefits, and training for 7 officers and at 50 percent for one officer. To view the SRO contract, click here. The Council voted 3-0 to approve the contract. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve Budget Amendment #3 for FY 2025 - The budget amendment was requested by the Finance Department to account for additional LMIG (Local Maintenance & Improvement Grant) funding from the State of Georgia for paving and resurfacing of City streets, a termite treatment that was required at City-owned Emery Center and Dalton-Whitfield Day Care buildings, the contract with Arcadis for the design master plan for the West Hill Cemetery columbarium project, an audit by Estes & Walcott of the City's hotel-motel taxes, and demolitions by the City of structures under the Nuisance Abatement Program. In total, the added cost to the budget is $72,300. To view the budget amendment document, click here. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

The meeting concluded with an executive session to discuss real estate matters. Portions of Mayor and Council meetings held in executive session are not open to the public. After the end of that session, the Council returned to open session and adjourned without taking any action.

The next Mayor and Council meeting will be held on Monday, June 30th at 6:00 pm instead of its typical date on the first Monday of the month in July. The change was made to allow City staff to enjoy the 4th of July holiday. 

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