About Fayette County news. (Fayetteville, GA) 2009-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 16, 2023)
A2 Fayette County News Wednesday, August 16,2023 Sheriff Reports Arrests The following arrests and charges were recently reported by Fayette County Sheriff s Office: Natahjah J. Anderson — terroristic threats and acts; misdemeanor battery. Matthew W. Price — felony probation/parole violation. Jarrod O. Carter — ag gravated assault; posses sion of firearm/knife during commission of crime; misdemeanor open container. Rashaad D. Daniels — possession of weapon by convicted felon; misde meanors DUI of alcohol, open container, taillight violation, and license plate requirements. Reid A. Graham — sec ond degree criminal dam age to property; misdemeanors harassing communications, two counts of criminal trespass, and stalking/first offense. Alfred D. Harris — sec ond degree criminal dam age to property; kidnapping; misdemean ors battery (Family Vio lence Act), third degree cruelty to children. Nickole J. Holmes — obstruction of officer. Jessica S. Jaquess — felony probation/parole violation. Devontae Johnson — drug possession/sale/man ufacture. Evlio S. Nixon Jr. — drug possession/sale/man ufacture; misdemeanor possession of marijuana less than one ounce. Shantrice N. Redfield — drug possession/sale/man ufacture. PTC Millage, Continued from Front since 2021. “Just to quantify, what does that translate to? If we had kept the millage rate at 7.178 mills for next year, that translates to about $4.1 million less taxes levied by the city annually if we hadn’t been doing these re ductions over the years,” Salvatore explained. “Cur rently, that 1.135 millage re duction that we’ve done over the years is saving the average homeowner about $230 a year.” The city’s total millage rate is near the middle com pared to others in the county, he said. According to graphics provided by Salvatore, the Town of Tyrone has the highest total millage rate at 30.753, followed by the City of Fayetteville with 30.440. Peachtree City is next with 30.337, followed by Brooks with 29.071, and Fayette County overall with 27.864. Two additional public hearings will be held re garding the millage rate. Both will be held on Thurs day, Aug. 17, at 9 a.m. and at 6:30 p.m. Following the presenta tion, PTC Mayor Kim Lear- nard opened public comment, where Peachtree City Council Post 2 Candi date Suzanne Brown was HOUSE FOR RENT • In the city of Fayetteville • Well-kept • 4 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms • Basement, 2-car garage . NO PETS Available 09-01-23 $2300 - call 770-460-7110 • Locally Owned • 7 floor Plans • Home-Cooked Meals • Housekeeping & Laundry • Saltwater Pool • Wellness Programs • Activity Programs • Assisted & Respite Care • Transportation • Dedicated Team • LPN on Duty CALL MIRNA TO SCHEDULE LUNCH WITH US! 105 Autumn Glen Circle Fayetteville, Georgia 770.461.0039 azaleaestatesfayetteville.com the only citizen to take the podium. Brown highlighted the impact that the millage rate could have on residents and citizens who are financially burdened by the millage rate increase, the property tax increase, or both. “If you want to show compassion and empathy for the financial burden of all of the citizens inside the city, then I think you must roll back the millage rate, even if it’s just a slight amount to show that you hear what people are feel ing,” Brown said. Councilman Frank De- stadio began the discussion following public comment, highlighting that he is “very sympathetic” for citizens who are living in Peachtree City with a fixed income, but does have concerns about the proposed millage rate. “The thing that concerns me is what I’ve been harp ing on for a long time, and that’s the amount of mainte nance that we have in the city,” Destadio said. “You know, every time I turn around, I see another build ing that’s got problems, and if we don’t address those problems, things are just going to get worse and worse and worse.” Destadio highlighted roadwork that needs to be done in the city, as well as cart path repairs needed, but added that the council should also keep taxes steady for citizens who re side in Peachtree City. Destadio emphasized that citizens want the amen ities that make Peachtree City nice, such as pickleball and tennis courts. These amenities lead to a “hard balance” that is placed on a proposed budget for the city, according to Destadio. “I really feel on both sides. I want the city to look good, but I want the city to be able to get something for, you know, ‘don’t be raising taxes on ‘em all.’ So I’m really torn,” Destadio added. “But I would like to see us try to balance it as best we can.” Councilman Clint Hol land followed Destadio, not ing that although he sees that Peachtree City is fis cally sound, he does not necessarily like the budget that is implemented to maintain it. “But that’s unfortunately the reality of the times we live in with a 13.6 percent inflation rate with the cost of everything going up,” Holland said. “Whether it’s gasoline or whether it’s our home cost, our electricity, our food - it’s all going up.” Holland agreed with De stadio that staff needs to maintain the amenities that make up Peachtree City and that if they do not address the maintenance of these amenities early, it will simply get worse. Holland also said he believes that council should move for ward with the proposed mil lage rate. Councilman Phil Prebor agreed that the issue rests on the upkeep of facilities in recent years. Prebor high lighted that the longer the city waits to maintain the fa cilities, the more expensive it will be. Councilman Mike King referenced the recession in 2012, and that during the recession, there were many things in the city that did not get fixed or adjusted. King emphasized that the recent special purpose local option sales tax revenues have been used to maintain and improve facilities and fund the police and fire de partments that help keep Peachtree City safe. “It’s a bargain to live in this city,” King said. Tyrone Millage, Continued from Front The second public hear ing held during the meeting gave the opportunity for cit izens to speak regarding a homestead exemption act, and one citizen spoke on the topic, asking for clarification about filing documentation and how the millage rate applies to the county. “So, we establish our mil lage rate, which is a reflec tion or a percentage of what the county establishes as your property taxes,” Dial explained. “And so, if that changes each year, then the dollar amount that you’re taxed would change. It could go up or it could go down, but our millage rate stays the same, which is what we con trol.” Given that there were more questions from the concerned citizen, Dial in vited him and his wife to come to staff offices so that they could answer all their questions thoroughly and completely. The next speaker during the meeting highlighted that the county had increased taxes each year, but the town of Tyrone had not increased or decreased the millage rate in 16 years. The citizen in quired about whether Dial anticipated an additional change in the taxes for the county and how it would cor relate to the millage rate, as well as what citizens could do at a county level to curb the tax increase. “The county has public hearings, just like here, so I would say communicating at public hearings, but at a county level, and going through the appeal process. But to my knowledge, there’s not much more citizens can do,” Dial said. Dial also pointed out that one of the reasons why prop erty taxes were so high was due to the increase in fam ilies that want to live in the town, for a various number of reasons. Questions continued throughout the duration of the meeting, but given that it was a public hearing, no decisions or votes could be made. The next public hearing for the millage rate is sched uled for Thursday, Aug. 17 at 7 p.m. Chamber, Continued from Front Ferguson discussed the cur rent working environment for elected officials in Wash ington D.C., and the policies and bills in the works that will affect small businesses. Additionally, he touched on the importance of the gov ernment’s duty to uphold na tional defense and funding the military. Ferguson also discussed the impact of inflation on families, interest rates, and small businesses. He touched on the environment he feels is needed for the economy and small businesses to thrive moving forward. “If you’re an American business, you want the right tax environment, you want the right trade environment, you want the right regulatory environment,” Ferguson said. To conclude his presenta tion, Ferguson held a ques tion-and-answer session with attendees. k*t_ * ^ l)<m r.lt‘t j « I your leg pain Find relief from: ( • Varicose • Spider Veins • Leg Swelling • Tired, Achy • Heaviness or • Restless Legs at Night • Itching, burninj • Leg ulcers K TRUFFLES VEIN SPECIALISTS A v 874 W Lanier Ave. Fayetteville, GA 30214 678-833-1444 trufflesveinspecialists.com FAYETTE COUNTY NEWS P.0. Box 96, Fayetteville, Ca. 30214 Phone: 770-461-6317 ■ fayette-news.net Award-winning member of the Georgia Press Association and the National Newspaper association. The Staff: Luke Haney Editor, Digital Media Coordinator • support@fayette-news.net Leah Banks Investigative reporter • leah@fayette-news.net Jennifer Lyons Legals, General Manager • jennifer@fayette-news.net Brigitte Greer Advertising Consultant, Staff Writer • bgreer@fayette-news.net Debbie McClain, Publisher, Co-owner Bridge Turner, Editor in Chief, Co-owner Fayette County News (USPS 188-420) is published Wednesdays for in county rates of $40 yearly. Georgia out-of-county is $50, and out-of-state is $60. Published by Upson Newspapers, Inc., 219 Thomas Street, Thomaston, GA 30286. Periodicals postage at Fayetteville, GA, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Fayette County News, P.0. Box 96, Fayetteville, GA. 30214. Our Goal: Fayette County News is proudly published for the citizens of Fayette County and East Coweta by Upson Newspapers, Inc., owned and operated by Debbie McClain and Bridge Turner. Our goal is to produce qual ity, community-oriented publications of which our readers can be proud. We will attain that goal through diligence, teamwork, and dedication to printing the truth in an accurate, fair, balanced, and objective manner. Our Policies: Signed letters to the editor are welcomed and encouraged. We do not edit for content, only grammar, spelling, and punctuation when necessary, as designated by Associated Press style guidelines. Unsigned, li belous, or profane letters will not be published. Please limit letters to 400 words or less and to only two letters per month. Liability for errors in ad vertising will not exceed the space occupied by the error. We reserve the right to edit all submitted materials. The Meeting Place Fayette County Board of Educa tion meets the fourth Monday of the month at 7 p.m. Fayette County Commission meets the second and fourth Thurs day of the month at 5 p.m. Fayette County Planning Com mission meets the first Thursday of the month at 7 p.m. Fayetteville City Council meets the third Thursday of the month at 6 p.m. Fayetteville Planning Commis sion meets the fourth Tuesday of the month at 6 p.m. Fayetteville Work Session meet ing on the last Tuesday of each month at 9 a.m. at Fayetteville City Hall. Peachtree City Council meets the first and third Thursday of the month at 6:30 p.m. Peachtree City Planning Com mission meets the second and fourth Monday of the month at 7 p.m. Tyrone Town Council meets the first and third Thursday of the month at 7 p.m. Tyrone Planning Commission meets the second and fourth Thurs day of the month at 7 p.m. Tyrone Downtown Devel opment Authority meets at 9 a.m. on the second Monday of the month. Brooks Town Council meets the third Monday of every month at 6:30 p.m.
