by Janice Daniel
Mayor and Council of Villa Rica met for their monthly work session Tuesday afternoon, November 12, 2024, at 1:30 p.m. Council Members Matthew Momtahan and Anna McCoy were absent.
A Consent Agenda was prepared as follows:
- 2025 Regular City Council Meeting Schedule, which is changed so that the Work Session is at 10:00 a.m. on the first Tuesday of each month, and the Regular Meeting is at 6:00 p.m. on the second Tuesday of each month, with the exception of April, where the Work Session will be on 3/25/25 at 10:00 a.m. and the Regular Meeting on 4/1/25 at 6:00 p.m. Public Hearings for Millage and Budget Workshop will be 8/19/25 at 10:00 a.m., 10:30 a.m., and 6:00 p.m. as well as 8/26/25 at 6:00 p.m.
- Abandonment of the utility/sewer easement obtained 12/9/2000 on Hickory Level Road, since it is no longer needed for public use.
- Extension of the temporary moratorium on vape shops, tattoo parlors, and pawn shops set by council on 5/14/24 for another 180 days while staff works on text amendments to make appropriate changes as needed.
- Reopening of Meadowlark Drive with the following conditions:
a) developer will be responsible for construction needed
b) developer will be responsible for construction costs
c) extension shall be built to city street standards with full curbs and gutters
d) developer will submit full engineering drawings that shall be approved by staff prior to construction
e) extension to remain a private drive until such time as inspected/accepted by council as a city street
Mayor Leslie McPherson asked if the new development will benefit from Meadowlark being open. City Building Development Deputy Director Nic Griffin advised that the civil plans had always intended to have a rear exit, which was also required by the fire marshall.
- 2025 City Holiday schedule which is the same as last year but reflecting actual dates.
- Approve agreement and resolution for participation and purchase of the First Responder PTSD coverage as required by Georgia House Bill #451 which was approved in May of 2024 and goes into effect on 1/1/25.
- Approve acceptance of the $3,500 Carver High Experience grant from the University of Alabama.
- Approve purchase of four Motorola APX-4000 portable radios for the Villa Rica Police Derpartment at a budgeted amount of $14,500.16.
- Approve purchase of items needed to equip a Special Response Team to respond to critical incidents within the City of Villa Rica at a budgeted cost of $83,806.35.
- Cancel design proposal for Right-In Right-Out intersection configuration at Commerce Drive and Georgia Highway 78 due to discussions between Bobby Elliott and Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT). Since this is a state highway, GDOT advised that they already have slated a plan which includes a round-about with a median extension at this intersection in 2027, and anything the city had done in the meantime would be torn out by GDOT at this time, and would be a waste of city funds.
- Approve TAD fund spending of $72,896.80 for asphalt paving of the community parking lot at E. Church Street and N. Carroll Road by Magnum Paving. City Streets Department has already prepared the surface for paving.
- Approval to begin testing of low pressure sewer systems in areas not feasibly accessible by the city’s gravity sewer system; such testing to be performed by the contractor and witnessed by staff on low-lying properties which will require a pump and pipe to connect with the city’s gravity system. Description of the test and installation of such low pressure sewer systems shall be item D in section 405.7 of the City’s Development Regulations.
- Approve a Shoreline Lift Station Redirect Change Order at an amount of $140,000 due to significant rock drilling and removal requirement at the pipe location.
- Approve replacement of an old high service pump, shaft, impeller and casing at the city’s water treatment plant for a budgeted cost of $17,535 by Hydra Service, Inc. This pump being out of service is causing extra wear and tear on the two remaining pumps.
- Approve a traffic engineering report at the intersection of West Bankhead Highway and Rocky Branch Road, required by GDOT to determine if a midblock crossing is warranted and what traffic control would be warranted based upon GDOT’s guidelines. Cost is $6,000 for Falcon Design to collect data and document traffic volumes, growth rates, crash analysis and an alternative analysis in accordance with GDOT standards.
Griffin presented an update to council on the downtown parking lot and WIC building. He said staff has graded four different sections of the property: the sidewalk/street area, the green space area, parking lot, and a bio-retention basin. Staff has received three (3) bids for the sidewalk and curb work with a labor cost of $9,953.75 and around $15,000 for concrete and related material. Georgia Power will provide lighting at a cost of $14,800 and $135.28 monthly, and council approved the asphalt work in today’s consent agenda. Lastly, fencing and landscaping is projected at a cost of around $25,000. All monies will come from the TAD fund and total cost is estimated at $173,150.
Griffin included a report on the WIC building construction costs, including painting, flooring, electrical installation, data cable installation, underpinning, retaining walls, plumbing tie-in, etc., coming to around $20,000, mostly done in-house.
Griffin also presented an update on the design, renovations and progress of the downtown development services building, and the downtown basketball gym of the city’s 2023 purchase of the Worldwide Church property. He said staff began in the gym and fellowship hall with various roof repairs, an intense cleaning, electrical, plumbing and HVAC repairs to make these buildings a safe environment to occupy. After all renovations to the gym, the recreation department has already started producing revenue for the city through rentals for various events and a multitude of camps. It will also be utilized for basketball practices for all ages since backboards are now retractable and adjustable and there is a poured rubber floor to attract more sports and events, such as pickleball.
The renovation of the development services building was a full re-build with the exception of the outside walls and foundation, a great portion of the work performed in-house. Griffin said the city had approved a total remodel cost of $398,868 for both buildings, and that being managed and performed internally, which equates to $22.92/square foot, gives these buildings a combined valuation of $3,541,600.
Mayor McPherson commented how wonderful it is for the city to have such talented and skilled staff, and how much money it saves to not have to hire outside construction companies for this work.
In Public Comments, three people spoke to the mayor and council:
Josh Evans, in reference to the re-opening of Meadowlark Drive, said the people in the neighborhood he has talked to are in favor of the re-opening, and they want to keep the speed bumps on Clearview Street, which have been effective in traffic calming. Evans also said he has been installing low pressure sewer systems for 30 years, and he thinks staff needs to do more research into how difficult this is to maintain.
Greg Roberts thanked the mayor and council for revising their meeting schedule, but said 10:00 a.m. is not good for working people. He also thinks the work sessions are non-productive meetings since, a lot of times, the council have not had enough behind-the-scenes conversations. He also said the Public Comments should be at the end of the regular meetings after citizens have heard applicants speak about their proposed projects.
Amy McCoy said that, by holding private meetings, the council is denying people their First Amendment Rights.
Mayor McPherson advised that hand-delivered notes will be used to get the word out about the first community meeting.
