City ofl Donalsonville Council Meeting-November: 4, 2024 Official Minutes  Mayor Ron. Johnson, Jr. called the Council Meeting to order at 6:00 PM: ini the Council Chambers at City Hall. After which Mayor Ron. Johnson, Jr. gave the invocation, then allj joined in the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States of America. Councilmembers present for the meeting included Mayor Ron. Johnson, Jr., Mayor Pro' Tem Ed: Bond, CP Mitch Blanks, CP Mitzy Moye, CPI Lindsay Register, CP Travis Brooks, and CPI Flossie Smith. Staff present were City Manager Jeffrey Hatcher, City Clerk Christina Corvers, Fire Chief Dean King, Assistant Police Chief Barbara Barber, Public Works Superintendent Bert Adams and City Attorney Chip Stewart. Approval of the Agenda: Mayor Pro' Tem Bond made a motion to approve the Agenda, with CP  Police Chief Kem Pugh was absent. Brooks seconding. Motion carried.  Next was the approval of ther minutes from the following meetings:  October 3, 2024, Council Meeting October 18, 2024, Called Council Meeting October 24, 2024, Called Council Meeting  CP Smith made ai motion to approve the above Meeting Minutes, with CP Register seconding. APPEARANCES: Downtown Development Authority (DDA)Director' Tori Gravlee gave an update on the Board's recent and upcoming activities toi include the following:  Motion passed.  The annual Trunk or Treat event, held on October 31,2024, from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM, was a great success. Director Gravlee expressed gratitude tot the Public Works Requested street closure of 2nd Street, from Wiley Avènue down through' Tennille Avenue onl November 30, 2024, for the Annual Car Show from 7:30 AM-3:00: PM. CPE Blanks made ai motion to approve the street closure request on November 30, 2024, for the Annual Car Show from 7:30AM-3:00 PM.. Mayor Pro Tem Bond Requested street closure of 2nd Street on December 5, 2024, for the Annual Christmas Parade from 5:301 PM-8:001 PM. CPI Blanks made a motion to approve the street closure request on December 5, 2024, for the Annual Christmas Parade from 5:30 PM-8:00. PMj pending coordination with the Donalsonville Policel Department. CP Announced that the City's District 2, Post 6 Councilmember, Mr. Lindsay Register, will serve as the Grand Marshal for this year's Annual Christmas Parade.  Department for their effortsi in making the event a suçcess.  seconded; motion carried.  Register seconded; motion carried.  Next, David Maxwell: from) BetterWay Initiative thanked the City of Donalsonville for their continued support and requesteds street closure of2nd Street from Tennille. Avenue to the Courthouse between 9:15AM-10:00. AM onl Monday, November 11, 2024, for the Annual Veterans Day Parade. Mayor Pro Tem Bondi made a motion to approve the street closure of2nd Street from Tennille. Avenue to the Courthouse between 9:15A AM I-10:004 AM on Monday, November 11,2024, for the Annual Veterans Day Parade. CPI Moye seconded; motion carried. Seminole County Economic Development Authority (EDA) Director Sarah Avery provided an update on the Hotel Feasibility Study and requested thatt the City cover an additional $633.00to address expenses that exceeded the original budgeted amount: for the study. After some discussion, CP Blanks made ai motion to approve the additional $633.001 to address expenses that exceeded the original budgeted amount: for the Hotell Feasibility Study. CP Smith seconded; Next, Pearlie Worlds addressed the Mayor and Council regarding damage to City Hall caused by her building and the manner in which she was notified about the issue. Mrs. Worlds expressed her concern about receiving a notification letter from the City Attorney, suggesting that the matter could havel been  motion passed.    handled differently given her status as a neighboring business. The Mayor and Council acknowledged her concerns and stated they would consider her feedback on similar situations ini the future. Ron] Foskey played an audio clipt titled" "Democracy is Yours" and reminded everyone to cast  their votes tomorrow, Tuesday, November 5,2024.  INTERNAL BUSINESS  INTERNAL BUSINESS: Thel Financial Statements for September 2024 were presented and reviewed with comments madel by City Manager Hatcher ont the current status, along with  discussion on the three-month analysis.  OLDI BUSINESS  OLDI BUSINESS: City Manager Hatcher presented the second reading of Ordinance 11-05-24, to amend the Downtown Entertainment District. City Manager Hatcher stated that the proposed Ordinance would include additional properties tot the Downtown Entertainment District to allow reduced food requirements while also reducing the hours of service. After some discussion, CP Smith made a motion to approve Ordinance 11-05-2024, to amend Downtown Entertainment District, with Register seconded. Motion Next, Councilmember Moye requested that the Laserfiche Cloud Upgrade be brought back to the Mayor and Council for reconsideration and approval. City Manager Hatcher reminded the Council that the City'sI IT service provider hasi informed them that the server hosting Laserfiche will nol longer bei includedi int the off-site backup plan, with this change taking effect by year-end. City Manager Hatcher also noted that thes server isl highly outdated, yet essential for daily operations and the mandated archiving of records. Transitioning tot the Cloud version oft the application is a more cost- effective solution comparedt to replacing the server. After some discussion, CP Smith made ai motion to approve the Laserfiche Cloud upgrade, with CP Smith seconding. Motion carried. Mayor. Johnson then requested the discussion on the Fairgrounds property and City Park be tabled until the. January 2025 Council meeting in order to give additional time to discuss ideas with the County at the. Joint City/County Meeting scheduled later in the month. CP Blanks then made a motion to table the discussion on the Fairgrounds property and City Park be tabled until the January Next, Mayor. Johnson requested the discussion on selling City acquired property bet tabled until the January 2025 Council meeting in order to give additional time to discuss ideas with the County at the. Joint City/County Meeting scheduled later in the month. CP Blanks made ar motion tot table the discussion on selling City acquired property until the January 2025 Council meeting. City Manager Hatcher stated that he and City Attorney Stewart havel been reviewing various ordinances and Charter sections related to amending Charter Section 5.16(b), which pertains to the removal ofc officers, and assessing the potential impacts oft these changes. City Attorney Stewart highlighted questions regarding the Mayor and Council's intentions for overall hiring and termination processes and requested clarification ont their objectives. After some discussion, City Attorney Stewart stated he would prepare an Ordinance to amend Charter Section 5.16(b), which pertains to the removal ofofficers, andj present itt tot the Mayor and Council at the December Council Meeting. Next, Councilmember Moye reported thats shel had been in discussions with City Attorney Stewart about the possibility of establishing a City Charter Violation Board. Councilmember Moye stated that a separate board tol handle City Charter violations would bei necessary to properly handle any City Charter violations thati may arise. Attorney Stewart suggested alternative options, including amending the current Ethics Board codes section to grant the Ethics Board authority to review charter violations. Additionally, City Attorney Stewart noted that such matters could bel handled under Robert's Rules of Order, which allows fori investigations into issues related to the board's. operations. After some discussion, the majority oft the Council agreed to maintain the existing procedures for addressing charter violations, opting not toj pursue the creation ofar new board or other adjustments at this time. No action taken.  passed.  2025 Council meeting, with Mayor Pro Tem seconding. Motion passed.  Mayor Pro Tem Bond: seconded; motion carried.  NEW BUSINESS    NEWI BUSINESS: Bill Burke, with) Burke, Worsham & Harrell, presented and discussed the City of] Donalsonville's) FY2 2023-24. Audited Financial Reports with the Mayor and Council. Lastly, Mr. Burke informed the Mayor and Council that this would bet the final year Burke, Worsham & Harrell would conduct governmental audits. Mr. Burke assured them that the firm will work closely with the City ofl Donalsonville to ensure a smooth transition to the new auditor selected Next, City Manager Hatcher recommended approving the Survival Flight membership renewal for the 2025 calendar year. The Survival Flight membership covers the employee andt their family household in the event they are flown by Survival Flight Air Ambulance or transported via ground by Survival Flight Ambulance. The annual fee is $60j pere employee. After some discussion, CP Smith made a motion to approve the Survival Flight renewal int the amount of $60 per employee. CP Brooks Fire Chief King presented al Resolution for the approval oft the City of Donalsonville Fire and Rescue Department to establish andj join the Georgia Mutual Aid Resource Pact. Fire Chief King explained that the Georgia Mutual Aid Group organizes, mobilizes, and operates Fire-Rescue and Public Safety resources across thes state. The primary purpose oft the group is to assist local agencies in responding to and mitigating the effects of both natural and man-made disasters. After some discussion, Mayor Pro Tem Bond made ai motion to approve the Resolution for the City of Donalsonville Fire and Rescue Department to establish andj join the Georgia Mutual Aid) Resource Pact. CP Smith seconded; motion passed. Next, City Manager Hatcher presented a request for the rezoning of3100 Oakview Church Post Road-Westbrooke Place Subdivision. City Manager Hatcher explained that the plot is currently zoned Agricultural, and thej property owneri is requesting itl be changed tol Residential toj proceed witht the subdivision development. AI Public Hearing willl bel heldt to allow for objections, and a vote on the: zoning changei is scheduled for the December Council Meeting. After some discussion, CPI Blanks made a motion tot tablet the approval oft the rezoning request until the December Council Meeting to ensure all necessary rezoning requirements are met. Mayor Pro City Manager Hatcher then presented a request for ther rezoning at 204 West 4th Street. City Manager Hatcher explained that the ploti is currently zoned asl RAI but needst tol be rezoned tol R-Bt to allow the apartments' occupancy toj proceed. Al Public Hearing will bel held to allow for objections, and a vote ont the zoning change is scheduled for the December Councill Meeting. After some discussion, CP Blanks made a motion to table thè approval of the rezoning request until the December Council Meeting to ensure all City Manager Hatcher then gave an update on the Communications Department, with a review of the eDonalsonville monthly report. City Manager Hatcher reported that he continues to work with the USDA andt that they are progressing with the project to extend service intot the County. Lastly, City Manager Hatcher stated that eDonalsonville recently experienced two outages affecting customers on' 7th Street due to vultures roosting on thei nearby water tank. Thel Donalsonville! Police Department and Animal Control are actively working to address the issue and havei identified devices which will be deployed to encourage thel birds to relocate. In compliance with thel Migratory Fire Chief King provided an update on the Fire Department, noting that the team has been actively extinguishing fires and has saved over $1 million worth of property within the last few weeks. Lastly, Fire Chief] King reminded everyone to make sure they change out the batteries int their Next, Assistant Police Chief Barber stated she had nothing new to report on att this time. Public Works Superintendent Adams then stated that he had nothing newi to report on att this  int the future.  seconded; motion carried.  Tem Bond seconded; motion carried.  necessary rezoning requirements are met. CP Smith seconded; motion carried.  Bird" Treaty Act, these efforts will use safe and! humane deterrents.  smoke alarms.  time.  City Manager Hatcher then gave an update on the following:    Westbrooke Place Subdivision: Progress is underway for the infrastructure oft the Westbrooke Place subdivision. The developer has demolished the old] house on the property and cleaned up thel lots for Phase One, where they have also begun laying out initial roadways. Joint City/County Workshop: Ther next. Joint Workshop forl local government entities will be held onl November 14, 2024, at 6:001 PM att the Beall Center. The event has been advertised to the public. Discussion topics includel Housing, Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), Service Delivery Strategies (SDS), and the Comprehensive Plan Update. SDS topics from the previous meeting, including the allocation ofs shared costs for Public Safety and Communication Services, will also be addressed. Please submit any additional items for the agenda to Clerk Corvers by November 8, 2024, to ensure they are included on the published Business Licensing and Use of City Funds: Itl has come to our attention thats some local businesses have not renewed their business licenses yet have conducted work for City Departments or Authorities. To align with City Ordinances andi mitigate liability, City Manager Hatcher proposes issuing al Memorandum stipulating thatj payments should only be made to vendors with a valid business license, unless the Mayor and Council express objections. This measure will ensure compliance with local Ordinances: regarding vendor requirements. House Bill 1105 Compliance: Inl line with the 2024 Georgia Criminal Alien' Track and) Report Act (HB 1105), the Donalsonville Policel Department is preparing the necessary Memorandums ofUnderstanding (MOUS) to certify the City's compliance as required in the annual audit by the State of Georgia. This law mandates tracking and reporting the immigration status of individuals involved in crimes and coordinating their transport to federal facilities. Failure to At7:19) PM, Mayor] Pro Tem Bond made ai motion to goi into Executive Session to discuss personnel At7:37P PM, Mayor Pro Tem Bond made a motion to come out of] Executive Session, with CP Brooks With there being no further business to come before thel Mayor and Council, at 7:371 PM, CP Blanks made a motion to adjourn, with CP Moye making a second; and the motion carried.  agenda.  comply couldj jeopardize the City's eligibility for state funding.  matters, with CP) Blanks seconding. Motion carried.  seconding. Motion passed.  ADJOURNED  City ofl Donalsonville A  Mayor  Attest and Certification:  I,Christina Corvers, dol here Attest and Certify that the above written isa at true and correct representation ofthel business and actions conducted during the November 4, 2024 meeting oft thel Mayor and Council oft the City of Donalsonville.  hristina Corvers, City ZD