City council will continue to learn more about land use options
News August 4, 2021
HIAWASSEE, Ga – Hiawassee City Council agreed to move forward with learning more about land use and potentially zoning options for the city.
After attending a planning and land use class to learn more about the options on the table for cities, the council wanted more information before making any lasting decisions.
“It was a very good class. It was a lot of information poured out very quickly and it’s hard to digest all the information very quickly,” said Councilmember Jay Chastain.
Councilmember Anne Mitchell added she thought it provided the opportunity to “correct some of the growth” and was excited about the opportunity.
Chastain and Mitchell also agreed it would take a lot of discussion before putting anything into place.
Chastain thought the best plan would be if the city ever decided to move forward with more planning, zoning, or land use procedure, then it should be placed on the ballot as a referendum for the people to decide.
The city attorney explained that several cities have placed referendums on the ballot, not related to statutes like alcohol. So, he wasn’t going to advise that a referendum wasn’t a possibility.
“We’ve got to do lots of prepping beforehand,” Chastain stated. “We’ve got to draft what we’re going to attempt to do.”
Currently, the council is just discussing whether they want to move forward with the discussion or drop it entirely.
“I agree with Jay. It’s going to take a lot more community involvement, educating, and research before we decide to go down this direction,” Councilmember Amy Barrett commented.
Mitchell asked for information about how long the process would take and offered to attend as many informational sessions as she can to gain a better handle on the issue.
Young Harris has a zoning policy in effect.
The biggest area in Hiawassee that could benefit from a planning or zoning policy would be the business district. The measure could potentially prevent storage units from being developed along Hwy. 76. However, all of Hiawassee would be zoned either as a business district, residential district, or commercial/industrial. It must be a continuous area for the entire city limits. In some cases, a mixed-use area can be acceptable.
Towns County unincorporated isn’t currently considering a zoning policy. Most residents are against any zoning or planning ordinances.
“I don’t want people telling me what I can do or what I can’t do on my property is what people’s biggest concerns are,” Councilmember Nancy Noblet explained.
They all agreed that they wanted to learn more before implementing or dropping the planning and zoning discussion.
Salaries are an issue for public safety
Hiawassee Police Chief Paul Smith explained it’s becoming difficult to find individuals to fill officer positions. The main reason for this difficulty is pay.
“There’s a couple of officers I’ve spoken to, trying to get them to leave their current department to come work here, but we’ve had trouble so far,” Smith explained. “The ones I’ve spoken to we can’t match their pay.”
Neighboring departments are paying $4 more an hour. The starting pay for an officer with no experience is $14.26. They are looking for an overnight officer, so the pay is slightly more. Towns County deputies are paid around $3 more an hour.
Hiawassee Police Chief Paul Smith
Hiawassee Police Department does include a benefits package too.
Smith added that the police training conference he recently attended said this is an issue across the state.
Chastain said it might be time to look at the pay scale for public safety officials.
“I hate that these guys and girls have to put their life on the life for me. It breaks my heart that we’re all about this other stuff, but when it comes to our police department, I feel like that somewhere in the budget. It may not be water or sewer but somewhere in that budget surely to God, we can find money that can go to y’all,” Noblet stated.
One course of action to pay more police officers more would be raising taxes, but the council wants to review the budget first.
Hiawassee earns good opinion for 2020 audit
News January 30, 2021
HIAWASSEE, Ga – Rushton and Associates gave the city of Hiawassee a clean or unmodified opinion for their 2020 audit. It’s the second year in a row that Hiawassee received this rating.
The 2020 audit showcased how city revenues dropped and expenditures increased for the year too. Revenues were down $55,012 (5.4 percent). Expenditures were up $73,922 (8.8 percent).
The following revenue areas decreased for the year:
- Motor Vehicle Tax – $49,779
- Franchise Tax – $12,447
- Intergovernmental Revenues – $56,457
However, four departments increased revenue:
- Property Tax – $13,360
- Local Option Sales Tax – $10,402
- Alcohol Beverage Tax – $6,296
- Fines, Fees, and Forfeitures – $24,352
On the expenditure side, the administration increased by $82,997 due to capital outlay.
The unassigned fund balance grew from 2019 to 2020 to $389,653 or 47.6 percent of expenditures. The city has 5.1 months of operating expenses on hand in case of emergencies. It’s recommended to keep at least three months of expenditures stored away.
Copy of the Hiawassee general fund 2020 audit.
In 2020 the city also paid off one loan in the amount of $697,996 and paid $287,585 in principle on other loans. Since 2017, they reduced the debt by 41 percent. Currently, $2,694,778 in debt is still outstanding.
Hiawassee received $47,000 in CARES Act Funding, $3,000GMA Safety Grant from LGRMS, $68,000 USDA Rural Development Grant for the Paris Building, $17,000 LMIG grant from GDOT, and $8,000 mural grant.
Water and Sewer
The water and sewer operating revenue grew by $279,015 (14.4 percent). $114,559 came from a payment made by the water treatment plant. According to Rushton and Associates CPA Chris Hollifield, the remaining amount, $164,456 came from revenue growth.
Operating expenses for 2020 increased by $69.352 (4.2 percent). From 2019 to 2020, operating income shot up by $209,663.
Water Treatment Plant
Revenue for the water treatment plant decreased by $12,211 (1.65 percent) and expenses increased by $192,110 (46.4 percent). The payment made to water and sewer accounted for the majority of the change. In 2019, the water treatment plant made $327,838 in income. In 2020, the plant’s income was $123,512.
Copy of 2020 water and sewerage fund audit.
Police Year in Review Report
In 2020, Hiawassee Police Department filed 274 reports, issued 308 warnings and 325 tickets. It made 75 arrests: 10 misdemeanor drug offenses, 18 felony drug offenses, 44 other misdemeanors, and 3 felonies.