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May 5 - 11,2016 » Page 2A
Avondale Estates mayor and commissioners discuss compensation
by Carla Parker
carla@dekalbchamp.com
The Avondale Estates
Board of Mayor and
Commissioners is one of
few city mayor and city
council boards that do
not receive monetary
compensation, according
to the Georgia Department
of Community Affairs.
Avondale Estates is the
only city in DeKalb County,
with the exception of
newly established Tucker,
that does not pay its
mayor or commissioners,
and some are looking to
change that. The mayor
and commissioners had
their first reading of the
compensation ordinance at
the commissions meeting
on April 25. The board
previously discussed
the ordinance at a work
session.
According to the
ordinance, if it is approved
by the board, the mayor
would receive $600 per
month—$7,200 annually—
and the commissioners
would receive $400 per
month—$4,800 annually.
Decatur commissioners
received the same annual
amount in 2015 and
Lithonia’s mayor received
$7,800 that same year. If
the ordinance is approved
by the board it will become
effective Jan. 1,2018.
Mayor Jonathan
Elmore said the stipends
will help cover city work-
related expenses, such as
city calls and to help pay
for childcare while board
members are at meetings.
“For me it’s time
away from the family, it’s
time on the phone, it’s
babysitters,” Elmore said.
“It’s just to help offset that
without submitting detailed
expense reports with
calls listed, which turns
into a nightmare for [city
manager] Clai [Brown]
and his [staff]. So it’s the
easy way out, but it’s the
easy way out that almost
every city does.”
Mayor Pro Tern Terry
Giager said he opposes
the ordinance.
“I have no problem
with the expense side of it,
but if this is voted in and
it’s mandatory I will not
run again,” Giager said
during the March 23 work
session. “The only way I’ll
vote for it if it’s optional.”
One Avondale Estates
resident said he was in
favor of the ordinance,
while others opposed.
“I’ve spoken in favor
before because of the
amount of time you put
in,” Joe Anziano said. “I
know you ran for office not
knowing or not expecting
to be compensated. It’s
a small amount of money
[for] five brains that spend
so much time working on
what’s good for the city
and what’s right for the
city. I don’t think it’s out of
order at all.”
Kerry Quinn is one of
the residents who opposes
the ordinance.
“I don’t see why
suddenly we have to
begin paying for this when
we’ve always had well
qualified citizens willing
to do this as part of their
civic responsibility,” Quinn
said. “I think going from
nothing to $100 a week is
excessive.”
Resident Peggy Roney
said she was worried
that the stipends would
be covered by taxing the
residents. Brown said that
is a possibility.
“There is going to be
two years of planning
on where the money is
actually going to come
from,” Brown said. “It can
come from a lot of different
sources such as taxes.
We won’t know that until
we start doing the budget
for 2018, which would be
August of 2017.”
“I’m surprised that
people are asking for this
so soon because we’ve
had lots of people who
wanted these positions,”
Roney said. “It’s never
been done before and
people did accept it as
DeKalb County B0E approves
$300K radio purchase
by R. Scott Belzer
sbelzer@dekalbchamp.com
The DeKalb County school system
recently spent $300,000 on radios for the
DeKalb County Police Department.
The purchase was approved during a
board of education work session held April
18. The $303,218 purchase will see 75
new radios for a digital system upgrade for
the department, which is scheduled to go
into effect in January 2017.
The price for each radio is
approximately $4,043 after add-ons. The
deal was made with Motorola Solutions.
The last system upgrade came to the
department in 2009.
Chief Donald Smith of the Office of
Public Safety presented the item to the
board on the grounds that the “upgraded
equipment is essential to the Department
of Public Safety radio communications for
safety and emergency purposes.”
“The DeKalb County Police
Department mans and relays basic
police, fire and emergency transmissions
for DeKalb County as well as DeKalb
school police,” Smith said. “The
department is transitioning to a new
digital system effective January 2017.
According to DeKalb PD, that’ll be the
‘drop dead’ date where they won’t have
any communication.”
Other rationale listed on board
documents includes noting that the
school system is composed of 136
schools with 14,000 employees and more
than 100,000 students.
“The Public Safety Department
is charged with providing security for
each site,” reads the agenda item. “It is
necessary that digital communication
equipment be compatible with other
systems for important updates and
emergency notifications.”
Avondale Estates is the only city in DeKalb County that does not
compensate its mayor and city commission.
their civic responsibility
to participate in city
government.”
Elmore said he
understands that some
residents do not support
the ordinance.
“It not a lot of money,
so it’s not really about
the money,” Elmore said.
“We’re following what other
cities are doing. We looked
statewide and most cities
do it and it’s right around
that amount of money. It’s
nothing extravagant.”
Notice of Public Hearings May 16 & 19, 2016
Notice is hereby given that the Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit
Authority will hold public hearings for the purpose of considering the
Proposed Fiscal Year 2017
Operating and Capital Budgets
Including Elimination of the Holiday Group Fare One-Day Tickets and
Proposed Bus Service Modifications for Aug. 6, 2016
for the following routes:
Route 3: Martin Luther King Jr. Drive/Auburn Avenue; Route 4: Thomasville /
Moreland Avenue / MTC; Route 13: Fair Street / Mozley Park; Route 15: Can
dler Road /South DeKalb; Route 51: Joseph E. Boone; Route 117: Rockbridge
Road / Panola Road; Route 125: Clarkston / Northlake; Route 181: Buffington
Road / South Fulton P/R; and Route 191: Justice Center / Hartsfield International.
All route information, a video with Hearing information and
comment forms are available at www.itsmarta.com
Mon, May 16
Mon, May 16
Thurs, May 19
Fulton County
Govt. Center
Conference Room
141 Pryor Street
Atlanta, GA 30303
Community Exchange:
6-7 p.m.
HEARING: 7 p.m.
hiding MARTA: Routes 32,
49, 55, 74 & 186.
Clayton County Govt.
Office Board Room
112 Smith Street
Jonesboro, GA 30236
Community Exchange: 6-7 p.m.
HEARING: 7 p.m.
Riding MARTA: Bus mutes 191, 192,
193 & 194 from the Justice Center exit
at Tara Bivd and Smith Street for a 0.5
mile walk due to construction closure of
Smith Street.
Maloof
Auditorium
1300 Commerce Drive
Decatur, GA 30030
Community Exchange:
6-7 p.m.
HEARING: 7 p.m.
Riding MARTA: Walk one block
west of Decatur Rail Station.
Copies of the proposed Budget and Bus Service Modifications will olso be available for public viewing at MARTA's Headquar
ters Office of External Affairs, 2424 Piedmont Road, N.E. Atlanta, Georgia 30324 during regular business hours, Mon-Fri
8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For formats (FREE of charge) in accordance with the ADA and Limited English Proficiency regulations contact, (404)
848-4037. For those patrons requiring further accommodations, information can be obtained by calling the Telephone
Device for the Deaf (TDD) at 404 848-5665.
In addition, a sign language interpreter will be available at all hearings. If you cannot attend the hearings and want to
provide comments you muy: (1) leave a message at (404) 848-5279; (2) write to MARTA's Office of External Affairs, 2424
Piedmont Road, N.E. Atlanta, GA 30324-3330; (3) complete an online Comment Card atwww.itsmarta.com; (4) or fax
your comments no later than May 26, 2016 to (404) 848-4179.
All citizens of the City of Atlanta and the counties of Fulton, DeKalb, Clayton and Gwinnett whose interests are affected
by the subjects to be considered at these hearings are hereby notified and invited to appear at said times and places and
present such evidence, comment or objection as their interests require.
martaw
Keith T. Parker, AICP, General Manager/CEO