November 17th Mayor and Council Meeting Notes

Tuesday, November 18th, 2025

The Dalton Mayor and Council met on Monday night for the third time this month, including last week's specially called session. The agenda was highlighted by a vote to adopt the 2026 General Fund Budget, as well as a special recognition for members of the Dalton Municipal Court's staff. 

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO OF MONDAY NIGHT'S MEETING

The 2026 General Fund Budget was presented for public consideration at a special called meeting of the Mayor and Council on Monday, November 17th. The 2026 budget forecasts expenditures in the amount of $49.82 million dollars which is an increase of 7.5% over 2025's budget. The budget also forecasts revenues in the amount of $49.02 million which is an increase of 5.81% over 2025. However, as Mayor Sams pointed out, that does not necessarily mean that a millage rate increase would be needed in 2026. If the City's revenues do not exceed that projection, the budget calls for the projected shortfall to be balanced by a transfer from the City's fund balance. 

Caption: Dalton Municipal Court Clerks Patricia Velasquez, Diana Lira, Nallely Torres, and Misty Wimpey pose with Court Administrator Jason James and Councilmember Steve Farrow, liaison to the court, during Monday night's Mayor and Council meeting

"(We've) taken a conservative approach to sales tax collections," Mayor Annalee Sams said during the discussion of the budget. "As we looked and we project out for next year, we're holding that number flat but what historically we have seen is sales tax collections have grown. That's just an example of the conservative approach we've taken when it comes to revenues. The other question I think that we have to look at as a takeaway is, 'will there be an anticipated tax increase next year on the citizen?' And the answer to that is no, that is not anticipated. It's quite possible that there will be revenues that will come in that are higher than expected which would offset the transfer in from the fund balance." 

The Council voted 4-0 to adopt Resolution 25-24 which adopts the 2026 General Fund Budget. To watch the discussion of the 2026 budget, click here. 

The Georgia Municipal Court Clerks' Council (GMCCC) sponsors a certification process for court clerks that includes a seven-part training process. To earn the certification, court clerks must complete training and pass a test proving proficiency in each of the seven areas. On Monday night, the Mayor and Council recognized four of the Dalton Municipal Court clerks who have earned their certification: Misty Wimpey, Nallely Torres, Patricia Velasquez, and Diana Lira. 

"This is a newer program that was released by GMCC in late July," said Jason James, administrator of Dalton's Muncipal Court. "Out of about 1,000 municipal court clerks across the state, 57 have completed the entire program, and 5 of them are in the City of Dalton. That's just something to be proud of." 

To watch the recognition for the Municipal Court, click here. 

Margaret Thigpen, Dalton's director of tourism, presented an update on tourism's economic impact in September and October. Thigpen reported that they were two slower months when compared to earlier in the year, but that the tourism numbers are still ahead of 2024's numbers. This month will bring the last of a series of softball tournaments which have consistently brought visitors to town throughout the year, allowing tourism staff to calculate year end data to be presented to the Council. Thigpen also told the Mayor and Council that the Dalton Convention Center will soon kick off their celebration of the United States' 250th anniversary in 2026 with a display of Christmas ornaments decorated by more than 600 children from Dalton and Whitfield County's public and private schools. To watch Thigpen's presentation, click here. 

The Council also heard the second reading of Ordinance 25-23 which would have rezoned a tract of land at 1506 E. Morris Street from general commercial (C-2) to rural residential (R-5). However, the Council voted 4-0 to deny the request after a recommendation against the rezoning from the Dalton-Whitfield Planning Commission. The request to rezone the property was made by CKD Properties and Investments in order to redevelop the property. Commercial buildings that used to stand on the property have been cleared and CKD Properties has proposed building two duplex residences on the property.  The Dalton-Whitfield Planning Commission and staff recommended denial of the request because all of the property surrounding the parcel is zoned and developed for commercial use. The Joint Comprehensive Plan calls for all property in this area to remain zoned for commercial use if it has road frontage on E. Morris Street. While rezoning the property for residential use would not cause any immediate negative impact on surrounding property values, but it would place a burden on those property owners to create 20-foot buffers to separate from the residential property. To read the recap of the Planning Commission meeting, click here. To read the staff analysis of the request, click here. To view the presentation on the property including zoning maps of the surrounding area, click here. Monday night's vote came after a first reading of the ordinance at the Mayor and Council's November 3rd meeting.. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

The Mayor and Council also voted Monday night to: 

• Certify the results of the 2025 Municipal Election - Resolution 25-26 certifies the results of the municipal election held in Dalton on November 4th, 2025 (and during an early voting period that preceded election day). The election results had Nicolas "Nicky" Lama winning reelection as Ward 2 representative and Steve Farrow winning re-election as Ward 4 representative to the City Council. Bill Mayo and Manuel Meza won election to the Dalton Board of Education. The election also had three ballot measures dealing with homestead exemptions from ad valorem taxes, and all three passed. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the resolution and certify the results. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve a contract for the replacement of the metal roof on the Public Works Department main office building - A bid process for the contract to replace the roof on the main office building for Public Works at 535 N. Elm Street was won by CGS, LLC. The contract cost is $140,195.62 which is being paid from the Public Works Department's 2025 Capital Improvement Projects budget. To view the contract, click here. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the contract. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve a traffic control change for no on-street parking on Castle Road/Loveman Lane - The change, which prohibits on-street parking from the intersection of Emery Street to the cul de sac terminus of the roadway, incorporates existing no-parking zones and extends them the entire length of the road. While some portions of the roadway do meet sight-distance criteria for on-street parking, the Dalton Police Department and Dalton Fire Department have expressed concerns for pedestrian safety when parked vehicles obstruct sight lines and emergency vehicle access. The Dalton Public Schools bus service has also reported problems passing the roadway when cars are parked on the street. Castle Road resident David Elrod spoke during the public comment period to advocate for the no-parking change (click here to see his commentary). To view the documentation in support of the change, click here. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the traffic control change. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve a project timeline extension for the hangar development project at the Dalton Municipal Airport - Work on the project began in April 2025, and the completion of the project was scheduled to take 180 days. While two of the three hangars is substantially complete, the contractor has requested a 65-day extension for completion of the T-hangar building due to delays in delivery of the project steel and also adverse weather conditions. The Airport Authority recommended approval of the extension. To view the contract extension, click here. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the extension. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

Mayor Sams closed Monday night's meeting with an announcement that City of Dalton offices and non-emergency services will be closed on Thursday, November 27th and Friday, November 28th in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. 

The next Mayor and Council meeting will be Monday, December 1st at 6:00 pm in the Raymond A. Elrod Council Chambers at City Hall.