March 16th Mayor and Council Meeting Notes

Tuesday, March 17th, 2026

The Dalton Mayor and Council held their second of three meetings in March on Monday night, and their first as a newly formed panel of five members. Newly elected Councilmember Julie Locke was sworn in as part of the meeting's agenda. Locke won a special municipal election last week to succeed Nicky Lama as the Council's Ward 2 representative, following his resignation to run for Congress. 

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO OF MONDAY NIGHT'S MEETING

Locke was sworn in at the start of Monday night's meeting after the Council voted unanimously to certify the election results. Whitfield County Superior Court Judge Cindy Morris administered her oath of office. Even though she officially joined the Council on Monday night, she recused herself from voting on several items of the agenda because she had not yet had time to familiarize herself with some matters before the Council. Following the meeting, the Council hosted a reception in her honor in the City Hall lobby. 

Caption: Judge Cindy Morris (leff) administers the oath of office for City Councilmember Julie Lock (right)

The Council held a second reading of Ordinance 26-02, regulating vape and tobacco stores within the City of Dalton. The ordinance was crafted following a January 5th work session to study the issue and also a first reading of the ordinance was held on February 2nd. The ordinance originally restricted the amount of vape stores that would be licensed within the City of Dalton and also restricted where they could operate, among other measures. During discussion of the ordinance at the first reading, however, Councilmember Steve Farrow expressed a desire to study the possibility of not allowing any new vape store licenses in the City. The version of Ordinance 26-02 presented Monday night prohibits standalone vape and tobacco stores (defined by the ordinance as any business whose principal business activity is the sale of any tobacco product, alternative nicotine product, consumable vapor product, etc. or any combination thereof) within the City limits. Existing vape and tobacco stores will be allowed to continue their operations. Cigar bars, convenience stores, or other businesses that sell such products as less than 25 percent of their business would not be affected. To read the ordinance, click here. The Council voted 3-0 to enact the ordinance. Mayor Sams typically votes only in the event of a tie and Councilmember Locke recused herself from most votes. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

The Councll also heard the first reading of Ordinance 26-05 to issue a $130 million utility revenue bond on the behalf of Dalton Utilities to be used in the construction of a 56.8 megawatt natural gas electricity generation plant. In January, the Council approved a resolution authorizing Dalton Utilities to pursue issuance of the utility revenue bonds. DU CEO John Thomas noted that only the utility's future revenues are pledged to back the bond, meaning that neither City funds nor the City's faith and credit would be affected. The City's borrowing power is also not affected by the bond. Because this was a first reading, no action was taken on the ordinance. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

During Monday night's meeting, the Council also voted to: 

• Approve further participation in the National Opioid Settlement - The City of Dalton has participated in recent years in the National Opioid Settlement, receiving settlement funds to be used to mitigate the impact of opioid addiction and abuse in the community. Additional pharmacy or drug companies who had been remnant defendants have recently agreed to settle their lawsuits and Resolution 26-06 allows the City to participate in those settlement agreements and receive additional funding to support opioid addiction programs in the community. The Council voted 3-0 to approve the resolution. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve a property easement with Mountain Ridge Baptist Church - A surveyor recently discovered a lost cemetery near the south bypass at Howell Drive. The cemetery dates back to the 1800s and after research, it was learned that the cemetery belongs to Mountain Ridge Baptist Church. However, there is no clear property easement to allow access to the cemetery property across City-owned land used by Dalton Utilities. Resolution 26-08 grants a 20-foot easement to allow access to the cemetery.  The Council voted 3-0 to approve the resolution. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Grant landlord's consent to the assumption of an easement agreement for a cell phone tower at Raisin Way - The City granted a property easement in 2025 to Verizon Wireless to provide access to build a cell phone tower near Raisin Way. Verizon has transferred that interest to The Towers, LLC, and the landlord's consent approves the transfer of the existing easement to the new company. The Council voted 3-0 to approve the agreement. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve an agreement for the development of real estate near Haig Mill Lake Park and the Mill Line by Blackthorn House, LLC and Charles Whitener - Blackthorn House, LLC and Charles Whitener own a tract of land adjacent to the Mill Line and Haig Mill Lake Park near the intersection of the north bypass and Thornton Avenue. The tract is approximately 50 acres. When the Georgia Department of Transportation built the north bypass, GDOT acquired rights of way to property along the path and made them limited access, therefore accessing the property in question is extremely difficult. The agreement calls for Blackthorn House, LLC and Charles Whitener to build a new access road to the tract of land which can also be used as an access point for the park and the Mill Line Trail. Blackthorn House and Mr. Whitener will bear all of the costs for the construction as well as the construction of a parking lot and new trail head adjacent to the roadway. To read the agreement, click here. The Council voted 3-0 to approve the agreement. It must still be approved by GDOT before it can be enacted.  To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Army Corps of Engineers for the removal and replacement of the Underwood Street bridge - The Underwood Street bridge spanning Mill Creek near Rushmore Drive will be removed and replaced later this year. There is also a second bridge that is no longer in use next to the current bridge which has become dilapidated and unsafe. Because that unused bridge is old enough to be considered historic in nature, the Army Corps of Engineers has a series of steps that must be taken to remove the dilapidated bridge as part of the overall project. To read the MOU, click here. The Council voted 3-0 to approve. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve the GRPA Boost Grant for the Dalton Parks and Rec summer camp program - The DPRD was recently awarded a $35,000 grant from the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association for use to support the department's after school programs and summer camp programs. The grant does not require matching funds. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the MOU for the grant (Councilmember Locke joined the vote). To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve an amendment to Kimley-Horn's contract to administer the Hangar Development Project at the Dalton Municipal Airport - Kimley-Horn serves as the construction administrator and performs inspection services for the hangar development project at the airport. The Council recently granted an extension on the completion date for the project, and the added time also required an extension to Kimley-Horn's agreement. The extension costs $68,950 and is being paid from the GDOT Construction Contract #45. The Council voted 3-0 to approve. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve a contract for design and construction phase services on the approach light system project at the Dalton Municipal Airport - The Dalton Municipal Airport is performing a rehab project to update its approach lighting system. The contract with Kimley-Horn calls for them to provide construction drawings, bid phase services, contract administration, and construction observation and inspection services on the project. The contract costs $224,284.41 to be paid from GDOT Construction Contract #48. The Council voted 3-0 to approve the contract. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve a professional services agreement with Bion Security for the Information Technology Department - The IT Department has an existing agreement with Bion Security since 2021 to provide cybersecurity services in blocks of professional services. The cost of the contract extension is not to exceed $80,000 a year and is paid from the department's operating budget. To view the agreement, click here. The Council voted 3-0 to extend the agreement. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve FY 2025 Budget Amendment #6 - This budget amendment is the final budget amendment for the 2025 budget. It adjusts for some additional revenue from hotel-motel taxes and also adjusts balances in the funds but does not reflect any additional costs or expenditures. To view the budget amendment, click here. The Council voted 3-0 to approve. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

Mayor Sams announced that the Mayor and Council meeting of April 5th, 2026 has been canceled and rescheduled for Monday, March 30th at 6:00 pm in the Raymond A. Elrod Council Chambers at City Hall. 

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