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106 Governors Square, Suite A
Peachtree City, GA 30269
770-461-2225
THE TRUTH SINCE 1886
FAYETTE COUNTY
NEWS
f ay ett e-news, net
Vol. 152, No. 4
Wednesday, January 24, 2024
$1.00
DPH Confirms
Measles Case
in Atlanta
ATLANTA - The Georgia
Department of Public Health
has confirmed a case of measles
in an unvaccinated resident of
the metro-Atlanta area.
The individual was exposed
to measles while traveling out of
the country, according to offi
cials. DPH is working to identify
anyone who may have had con
tact with the individual while
they were infectious.
Measles is very contagious
and spreads through the air
when an infected person coughs
or sneezes. The measles virus
can stay in the air or on surfaces
for up to two hours after an in
fected person has left the room.
Measles symptoms appear
seven to 14 days after contact
with the virus and typically in
clude high fever, cough, runny
nose, and watery eyes. Then a
rash of tiny, red spots breaks out.
It starts at the head and spreads
to the rest of the body.
Measles can be prevented
with the MMR (measles,
mumps, rubella) vaccine. DPH
says the vaccine is safe and effec
tive. The Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention rec
ommends children receive their
first dose of MMR vaccine be
tween 12-15 months of age and a
second dose between four-six
years old.
More than 95 percent of the
people who receive a single dose
of MMR will develop immunity
to all three viruses. A second
dose boosts immunity, typically
enhancing protection to 98 per
cent.
The last reported case of
measles in Georgia was in 2020.
People with symptoms of
measles should contact their
health care provider immedi
ately. DO NOT go to the doctor’s
office, the hospital, or a public
health clinic without FIRST cal
ling to let them know about your
symptoms. Health care pro
viders who suspect measles in a
patient should notify public
health immediately.
For more information
about measles, visit
https://dph.georgia.gov/epi-
demiology/acute-disease-epi-
demiology/vaccine-preventa
ble-diseases/measles or
https://www.cdc.gov/measle
s/index.html.
Fayetteville Council
OKs Final FY '23
Budget Amendment
90-Day Notice Provided
to Building Inspection Contractor
Fayetteville City Council and Community and Economic Development Director David Rast, along
with Sheba Ross of HKS Inc. and Shelby Barker of Innovation Roundtable, pose with the Regional
Excellence Award in the category of Visionary Planning from Atlanta Regional Commission at
the Jan. 18 city council meeting. Brigitte Greer/Fayette News
Fayetteville, HKS Win
Regional Excellence Award
Brigitte Greer
Staff Writer
bgreer@fayette-news.net
The City of Fay
etteville’s Livable Centers
Initiative Study, along
with HKS Inc., was
awarded the prestigious
Visionary Planning Award
as part of Regional Excel
lence Awards from the At
lanta Regional
Commission at the Jan. 18
city council meeting.
Presented by Fay
etteville Director of Com
munity and Economic
Development David Rast,
the award was based on
the project, “Moving Fay
etteville Forward,” which
focused on 900 acres sur
rounding the county court
house square downtown.
The vision of the proj
ect was to establish a
downtown that is safe and
friendly for pedestrians
and bicyclists, provide in
terconnected parks and
green spaces, provide a va
riety of housing for res
idents, and embrace
Fayetteville’s rich history
while also planning for the
city’s future.
See Excellence Award, A2
Luke Haney
Editor
lhaney@upsonbeacon.com
Fayetteville City Council
unanimously approved a
final budget amendment on
Jan. 18 for Fiscal Year 2023,
which ended July 31, 2023,
resulting in an $8.4 million
increase to the general fund.
Amended funds of the
budget include ARPA,
hotel/motel tax, capital
projects, impact fee, build
ing, TAD, water and sewer,
solid waste, downtown de
velopment authority, main
street, veterans memorial,
2017 special purpose local
option sales tax, 2023
SPLOST, and the self-
funded insurance plan fund.
While the general fund
was of focus during the
meeting, the total $58.6
million budget amendment
is largely due to the addition
of the 2023 SPLOST, adding
$40.38 million to the
budget, to be received over a
five-year period.
Director of Finance and
Administrative Services
Mike Bush explained that
hotel/motel tax and permit
fees both saw higher reve
nues than expected.
A full copy of the final
amended budget is available
at Fayetteville City Hall and
at www.fayetteville-ga.gov.
In other news:
•Council authorized staff
to provide a 90-day notice
to SAFEbuilt Georgia, LLC,
to terminate the current
contract for building inspec
tion services. Staff com
mented that the revenue
share model with SAFEbuilt
Georgia receiving 75 percent
of revenues and the city re
ceiving 25 percent “is no
longer to the benefit of the
city for larger development
projects that are currently
occurring in the city.”
See Budget, A2
PTC Airs 2023 4th Quarter Report
Leah Banks
Senior Reporter
leah@fayette-news.net
PEACHTREE CITY - Dur
ing the Jan. 18 meeting of the
City Council of Peachtree City,
council members reviewed the
final quarterly report for 2023,
which displayed final updates,
statistics, and city changes
through the end of the year.
Updates ranged a variety of
topics. From crime to executive
services, to financial and admin
istrative services, city staff pro
vided infographics that depicted
changes that occurred from the
third quarter report and the
2022 annual report.
Of notable points, council
members focused on the budget
during discussion. Peachtree
City Mayor Kim Learnard ex
pressed pride while noting the
previous council’s work to bal
ance the city budget.
When discussing human re
sources and risk management, it
was noted that Peachtree City
has a total of 341 employees,
with 18 new hires acquired in the
fourth quarter, along with 13
separations. The average salary
for these positions is $59,379.18.
Current vacancies and open
ings in Peachtree City include
positions in engineering, fi
nance, fire, grounds, human re
sources, police, public works,
and recreation departments.
Referencing crime statistics,
it was noted that crimes in
creased by 28 percent in the
fourth quarter, primarily attrib
uted to an increased amount of
shoplifting. Vehicle collisions de
creased by 14 percent.
The planning and devel
opment sector displayed a 31
percent increase over the last
five years in the issuing of build
ing permits, with 572 building
permits issued in the fourth
quarter and 2,145 total building
permits issued in 2023. Forty-
four percent of permits issued in
2023 were for residential alter
ations.
The final pages of the report
include areas of public works,
tourism, recreation and special
events, fire, and engineering
services, each of which saw im
provement, according to offi
cials.
Courtesy of Piedmont Fayette
Piedmont, Dr. Davis Reach Surgical Milestone
Mitzie-Ann Davis, M.D., MPH,
FACOG, a gynecologic oncologist
and surgeon at Piedmont Fayette
Hospital, was recently honored by
hospital leaders for performing her
1,000th robotic-assisted surgery
using the da Vinci system.
Piedmont Fayette has been
using robotic assisted surgery
since 2010 to treat conditions
ranging from uterine fibroids, hy
perplasia, and endometriosis in
women and conditions such as
prostate cancer and urological
conditions in men. The technologi
cal advancements in the years
since have made robotic-assisted
procedures more common.
Robotic assisted surgery gives
the surgeon better vision and more
precise control for complex opera
tions, while also leading to smaller
incisions and faster recovery
periods for the patient, according
to Piedmont Fayette officials.
“Reaching a milestone like this
is very special,” said Dr. Davis. “It
speaks volumes about the team
work and collaboration of the fan
tastic surgical services department
at Piedmont Fayette, and it means
See Milestone, A2
r
Mayor Pro-Tern Richard Hoffman
Hoffman Elected
Mayor Pro-Tem
Boards and Committees
Receive Appointments
Brigitte Greer
Staff Writer
bgreer@fayette-news.net
Fayetteville City Council member Rich Hoff
man was elected by his peers on Jan. 18 to serve
as Mayor Pro-Tem for 2024, a position pre
viously held by council member Dr. Niyah
Glover in 2023. Hoffman has been serving Fay
etteville since 2018.
The council also unanimously approved of
board and committee appointments for the
planning and zoning commission, ethics board,
and public facility authority.
City Manager Ray Gibson stated they had re
ceived 27 applications for the open positions and
thanked applicants for their interest in local gov
ernment.
Appointed members of the planning and
zoning commission include Lori Mideau for Post
2, Kelly Brown for Post 4, and Chris Key for Post
6.
Lydia Powell was appointed to the ethics
board.
Ron Cantoni, Aaron Wright, and Nancy
Musselwhite were appointed to the public facil
ity authority.
“We had more than we’ve ever had, citizens
who wanted to apply for those positions, and it
was a tough decision to select, but I think we
have the cream of the crop and people who are
wholly committed to being a part of the decision
making body,” Mayor Edward Johnson stated.
INSIDE:
FAYETTE VIEWS
SPORTS
A4 SCHOOL
B1 OBITUARIES
B2 LEGALS
A2 CLASSIFIEDS
B3
B6
CONTACT US: support@fayette-news.net - (770) 461-6317 - fayette-news.net
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