City Approves Moving Forward with $3.1M Ritz Expansion; Shelter Board Reinstates Roberts

In news from the Toccoa City Commission, during yesterday’s work session, held at 3 p.m. at City Hall, Commissioners held a discussion with the project architect and construction team regarding revisions to the planned scope of work for the expansion of the Ritz. 

Due to estimates coming in several million dollars above the total grant funds awarded for the project, work has been done in the past weeks to reduce the scope of the work, and at yesterday’s work session, an adjusted cost estimate was presented that would result in the project costing $3.1 million as opposed to approximately $4 million dollars – roughly $2 million more than grant funds awarded for the project. 

During the following regular City Commission meeting at 5 p.m. commissioners voted, in a split vote, to award the bid and move forward with the project, directing staff to secure a loan for the approximate $2 million needed to cover expenditures above the grant funds. 

Also during yesterday’s city meeting, a motion by Commissioner Michelle Jaimieson to withhold funding for the city’s share of the Humane Shelter Director’s salary passed in another split vote. The motion was made due to the city receiving no responses to the letter sent by consensus of the City Commission to the shelter board, asking them to reconsider their vote to continue to pay the director, Jeff Roberts, during his suspension and advising that funding would be cut if they did not reconsider. 

In a meeting of the Humane Shelter Board immediately following the City Commision meeting, a motion by board member Chuck Wright, seconded by board member Terry Carter to let Roberts go due to job performance concerns failed to pass, and a following vote to reinstate Roberts to full work status passed in a split vote. 

Also at yesterday’s City Commission meeting, City Manager Fredda Wheeler read the city’s proposed Fiscal Year 2025 budget into record. As previously reported by WNEG News, the total of the Proposed Fiscal Year 2025 Budget for all Funds is $2,941,843, and includes a rate increase for property tax of 0.8 mills, sewer rate increases of $2.00 per base, water and sewer tap fee increases, solid waste service increases of $2 per rollout or 10% on commercial accounts, and Natural Gas increases that would bump the residential base rate from $11 to $20, the commercial/industrial base rate from $22 to $50, and the interruptible service base rate from $201 to $300, plus a proposed incremental increase of $0.03 per CCF.

According to the draft of the resolution that would be approved when commissioners approve the budget in June, the $53,956,965 FY 2025 proposed budget includes:

General Fund: $12,445,267 

Water/Wastewater Fund: $17,489,916

Natural Gas Fund: $14,263,449

Solid Waste Fund: $  4,392,311

Lake Toccoa Facilities Fund $     494,449

Total Operating Funds $46,085,392

 Reserve Fund Budgets $ 2,941,843

Special Revenue Funds Budget $ 4,929,730

Total Proposed FY2025 Budgets for All Funds $53,956,965

WNEG News will provide a detailed report on the Ritz expansion, the Humane Shelter and the budget, along with other matters discussed and acted on by the City Commission, in tomorrow and Friday’s news broadcasts.