April 21st Mayor and Council Meeting Notes

Tuesday, April 22nd, 2025

The Dalton Mayor and Council met Monday night for their second session of April. The meeting agenda included the second budget amendment for 2025, and a pair of zoning ordinances among other items. 

CLICK HERE to watch video of Monday night's meeting

Downtown Development Authority Director Candace Eaton opened the meeting with an announcement of the Georgia Cities Week Celebration scheduled for Friday night in Burr Park. Georgia Cities Week is an annual celebration sponsored by the Georgia Municipal Association to raise awareness of the role municipalities play in making residents' lives better. Friday night's festivities will run from 6:00 pm until 8:00 pm and will include live music from the Buckner Brothers Band as well as equipment displays from City departments and staff. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

The Mayor and Council voted to approve a pair of alcoholic beverage license applications. The package beer and pouring beer license for Carniceria y Taqueria Diaz at 1121 S. Thornton Avenue and the package beer license for El Recreo Market at 222 E. Morris Street were both approved by a unanimous 4-0 vote of the Council (Mayor Sams typically only votes in the event of a tie). To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

The Mayor and Council also heard the first reading of Ordinance 25-09 to amend the City Charter. The ordinance will amend Article 1 by granting the Dalton Municipal Airport the ability to enter into lease agreements or contracts that last longer than five years, which is the current limitation on such agreements imposed by the City Charter. This change will allow the airport to enter into ground lease agreements for the construction of hangars by private individuals. The new amendment will grant the airport the ability to enter into lease agreements or contracts for terms not to exceed 35 years. You can click here to read the ordinance. Because this was the first reading of the ordinance, no action was taken by the Council. The Council can take action on the ordinance after a second reading at the next meeting of the Mayor and Council. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

Also at Monday night's meeting, the Mayor and Council voted to: 

• Approve Ordinance 25-10 to rezone 112 N. Spencer Street - The ordinance rezones the tract of land at 112 N. Spencer Street from transitional residential (R-6) to neighborhood commercial (C-1). The property was originally zoned for commercial use and the building there has been vacant for quite some time. The owner wants to use it for commercial purposes. Planning staff and the Dalton-Whitfield County Planning Commission both recommended approval of the rezoning request. To read the staff analysis of the request, click here. To read the Planning Commission's review, click here. To read the ordinance, click here. Ordinance 25-10 was heard for a first reading at the April 7th meeting of the Mayor and Council. The Council voted 4-0 to enact the ordinance and rezone the property. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve Ordinance 25-11 to annex the property at 1304 Frazier Drive into the City of Dalton - The ordinance annexes the unincorporated Whitfield County property at 1304 Frazier Drive into the City of Dalton as a medium density single family residential (R-3) property. The property is currently part of an unincorporated Whitfield County island surrounded by property that is in the City of Dalton. Planning staff and the Dalton-Whitfield Planning Commission both recommended approval of the annexation request. To read the staff analysis of the request, click here. To read the Planning Commission's review, click here. To read the ordinance, click here. Ordinance 25-11 was heard for a first reading at the April 7th meeting of the Mayor and Council. The Council voted 4-0 to enact the ordinance and annex the property. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve FY2025 Budget Amendment #2 - The second budget amendment of 2025 was made to fund the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) budget and also to adjust the budget for a partial loss of a wrecked City vehicle. The budget amendment also accounts for a $25,000 donation that was made for the Burr Park stage roof extension. The CIP projects will utilize $1,986,590 of the previous year's fund balance. To review the budget amendment document, click here. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the budget amendment. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve a building assessment for 210 N. Pentz Street - The City-owned building at 210 N. Pentz Street is leased by the Dalton Little Theater. The proposal for a comprehensive architectural, structural, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing assessment of the building is to give the City a full view of the condition of the property in keeping with best practices before entering or renewing a lease. The assessment will be performed by March Adams & Associates Engineers in partnership with Gregg Sims, Architect To review the proposal for the work, click here. The contract will cost $23,550 to be paid from the operations budget. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the assessment. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve an overhead door maintenance contract - The maintenance contract with DH Pace-King Door Company locks in guaranteed labor and equipment pricing to maintain the overhead doors at various City department buildings. DH Pace-King Door Company was the highest scoring bidder to the request for proposals for the work. To review the contract, click here. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the contract. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve a contract extension with GDOT for airport hangar funding - GDOT Contract #45 to provide funding for the hangar development project at the Dalton Municipal Airport was set to expire in June 2025. The extension is a 12-month extension to cover construction work on new hangars which is set to begin soon. To view the supplemental agreement, click here. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the extension. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve Change Order #1 on the hangar development project - The change order changes the manufacturer for the new T-hangars which are set to be built at the Dalton Municipal Airport and also modifies the design. The changes will reduce the cost of the project by $105,235.15 and also reduce the wait time for materials by approximately six months. To view the change order, click here. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the order. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 
• Approve Task Order #12 for inspection services at the Dalton Municipal Airport - The permit for the construction of the new hangars requires a 7-day inspection by the engineering firm of record, Croy Engineering, to show that the contractor is complying with designated erosion control measures. The inspection will cost $1,991.33 and be paid from the hangar development funds. To review the task order, click here. The Council voted 4-0 to approve the task order. To watch this portion of the meeting, click here. 

The Mayor and Council's next meeting is scheduled for Monday, May 5th at 6:00 pm in the City Hall Council Chamber. 

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