City of Cedartown Year In Review
2014
A publication from the City of Cedartown Š2014 Public Information Office 201 E. Avenue Cedartown, Georgia 30125 www.cedartowngeorgia.gov
A message from the
City Manager
Nearly 10,000 people call Cedartown their home -- and it’s a town as special as the people who live here. With a historic Main Street that houses decades-old mom-and-pop shops that continue to flourish, to a business park that creates hundreds of local jobs and clean energy via a state-of-the-art solar farm, Cedartown is a perfect mix of modern progress meets quintessential “Small Town, USA.” It is the City of Cedartown’s mission to provide excellent, comprehensive services to our citizens and our businesses. Our residents and businesses are the heart of our community, and we aim to support them in any way possible. Additionally, we strive to provide ongoing stimulus for sustainable economic development and growth. We know that smart expansion paired with careful planning is the key to Cedartown’s future success. Lastly, we will uphold these goals while remaining as fiscally responsible stewards to the taxpayers of our city. Serving as Cedartown City Manager is a responsibility that I take seriously. It is an honor to lead and serve alongside the great employees of the City of Cedartown and to work closely with our Board of Commissioners, ensuring that the absolute best decisions are made for the ultimate good of all our residents. Whether you are a resident or a visitor in our wonderful city, we hope you find Cedartown to be a perfect place to spend your time. Explore our website to find out more about what Cedartown has to offer. We may be a small town, but we have a rich history, a surprising number of local attractions and exciting plans and projects on our horizon. If I can be of assistance to you, please don’t hesitate to contact me using the information listed below. Bill Fann
City Manager, City of Cedartown 770-748-3220 ext. 222 bfann@cedartowngeorgia.gov
City of Cedartown Year in Review 2014 — 2
Cedartown City
Commission
2014 Cedartown City Commission Dale Tuck, Chairman Larry Odom, Chairman Pro-Tem Jordan Hubbard Gary Martin Matt Foster
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Table of Contents Operations & Administrative PAGES 6-14 During 2014, the City of City of Cedartown executed day-to-day operational tasks while implementing new policies and procedures designed to better serve our residents and our employees. BUDGET & FINANCE 2013 Budget Savings 2013 Financial Audit Report Property & Liability Insurance Negotiations Healthcare Insurance Negotiations Online Bill Pay Implementation LICENSING, PERMITS & CODE ENFORCEMENT Business License Issuances Building Permit Issuances Code Enforcement PUBLIC WORKS Main Lift Station Pump Replacement Wireless Tylemmetry for Lift Stations Hwy. 27 Bypass Luminaire Lighting Directional Signage Installation West Avenue and College Street Traffic Striping LMIG Paving Grant Award PUBLIC SAFETY Cedartown Police Department Patrol Car Purchase Cedartown Fire Department Truck Purchase ISO Inspection Rating and Change LGRMS/GMA Safety Grant Award WATER & WASTEWATER 2014 Water Audit 2014 Watershed Protection Plan City Water Policy Update 2014 Sanitary Survey Inspection/Report PUBLIC INFORMATION & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Social Media Accounts Implementation City of Cedartown Website Redesign Downtown Cedartown Association Website Redesign Electronic Marquee Sign Repair Digital Purchase Order System Creation Re-implementation of Auditorium Ticket System Installation of Additional Check Out Terminal
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Table of Contents Special Projects PAGES 15-17 During 2014, the City of City of Cedartown participated in several special projects beyond the scope of normal operations. Full System Leak Detection Survey Bert Wood Park Renovations Bleacher Installation for Recreation Football/Baseball New Installation of Scoreboards for Baseball, Softball & Football New Polk Medical Center Sewer Line Project Tree Identification Project at Peek Park
Events PAGES 18-24 During 2014, the City of City of Cedartown sponsored and/or played host to more than one dozen events and annual activities. By hosting and sponsoring these events, the City either contributes financially or through in-kind services and support. Extreme Couponing Class Martin Luther King Jr. Day Program Employee Health Fair Downtown Investment Incentives Workshop Cedartown Biz Builders Workshop & Program Annual Parkinson’s Walk Annual Cedar Valley Arts Festival International Wheelchair Training Camp & 5K Trail of Tears Historic Marker Dedication Downtown Farmers Market Fourth Friday Summer Concert Series Jeremiah Castille Football Camp KIMOTO Cup Friendship Game Big Spring Work Day Annual Fall Festival Cedartown Christmas Parade
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BUDGET & FINANCE 2013 Budget Savings: All City departments worked together to create a 2013 budget savings of 6.84% or $649,725. This was achieved by fiscal conservation and smart spending across all departments.
2013 Annual Financial Report: The 2013 Annual Financial Report was prepared by the City’s Finance Department with assistance from our administrative staff. The report contained our yearly audit from Rushton & Company. The report reflected a positive fund balance in the City’s General Fund of $696,000.
Property & Liability Insurance Negotiations: The City was able to negotiate a 15-percent reduction in our insurance premium. This translates to a $45,000 savings.
Healthcare Insurance Negotiations: The City achieved a savings of $98,185 by engaging in negotiations with our healthcare provider. The original proposal of a 12-percent increase was negotiated to an eventual zero-percent increase.
Online Bill Pay Implementation: The City was able to implement an online bill pay option for water and sewer services in the Spring of 2014. This service had been requested for many years by our customers. We are pleased to report that 373 customers are active users of our online bill pay interface, accessible at www.cedartowngeorgia.gov.
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LICENSING, PERMITS & CODE ENFORCEMENT Business & Alcohol Licensing: The City issued 423 business licenses resulting in $89,843 of collected fees. Twenty-eight alcohol licenses were issued and resulted in $42,500 worth of fees paid to the City.
Building and New Construction Permits: The City issued a total (as of Dec. 1, 2014) of 247 permits, including building, addition, remodel and renovation, demolition, electrical, plumbing, roofing and signage permits. Total valuation of the permits totaled $2.8 million and $26,181 in permit fees were paid to the City.
New Ordinance Regarding Blighted Properties: The City’s Code Enforcement and Building Inspector began prioritizing a list of 20 properties in Cedartown that are under review for extreme violations of City code. These include properties deemed as eyesores and structurally unsafe -- properties considered as blight. The City Commission launched an aggressive stance on increasing taxes on the property eight fold for violating the new blight ordinance. Of those 20, three blighted properties have been demolished and three properties are in the process of being demolished. An example of a success story is show in the photos at right.
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PUBLIC WORKS Pump Replacement at Main Lift Station: $25,000 of SPLOST funding was used to complete this project. Eighty percent of all City sewer lines are fed into this station. This project was necessary as a lift station of this size must have two working pumps.
Wireless Tylemmetry for Lift Stations: A Wireless Tylemmetry system was implemented for the City’s lift stations. All lift stations have auto-dialers that notify water officials, via telephone, should the lift station fail to operate. Each station had a dedicated land line for the auto-dialer, costing $100 per line. A better and less costly approach was to install the wireless tylemmetry system for $5,000. The initial cost was recouped within the first year of operation. Hwy. 27 Bypass Luminaire Lighting: Additional lighting was installed by the GaDot at the intersection of US 27 and North Main Street. Cost to the City for this project was $600.
Directional Signage on Hwy. 27 Bypass: Signs promoting the Downtown Cedartown Historic District and the Silver Comet Trail were placed at Bypass entryways at a cost to the City of $1,200. This was part of an Action Item set into motion by the Downtown Renaissance Program.
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West Avenue and College Street Traffic Striping: Striping for West Avenue and College Street was paid for by SPLOST funds and completed in February 2014.
LMIG PAVING GRANT AWARD: The City’s Public Works Department received a $90,203 grant from the Department of Transportation. The grant was used to pave Spring Street and Turner Street. Part of the LMIG 2014 was set aside to be used in the 2015 repaving of East Avenue.
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PUBLIC SAFETY Cedartown Police Department Patrol Car Purchase: The City purchased four new Ford Interceptors that feature six cylinder engines instead of the eight cylinder model to help cut down on fuel costs. In addition to LED lighting and warning sirens, these cars also feature a low-frequency alert system called rumblers. Low frequency tones have the distinct advantage of penetrating solid materials, enabling vehicle operators and nearby pedestrians to feel the sound waves. The new patrol cars were funded from SPLOST (Special Local Option Sales Tax) dollars. Total: $140,000.
Cedartown Fire Department Truck Purchase: Using $375,000 in SPLOST funds, the City’s Fire Department purchased a custom 2015 Pierce Saber Pumper in the fall of 2014. The truck features a six-cylinder Cummins engine and boasts 450 Horsepower. A Waterous CMU 1500 GPM two-staged mid-ship mounted centrifugal pump allows for greater water volume at a lower RPM.
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ISO Inspection Rating and Change: The City of Cedartown earned a Public Protection Class (PPC) ranking of 3 during a summer inspection conducted by Insurance Office Services (ISO). This new classification number went into effect on May 1, 2014. Previously, the City had a classification of 4. The lower rating can be attributed to hard work from all the personnel at CFD, along with assistance from the city’s Water and Maintenance Department and the Polk County 9-11 Center.
LGRMS/GMA Safety Grant: The Georgia Municipal Association (GMA) announced in June that the City of Cedartown was a recipient of a Safety Grant check in the amount of $4,197.30. These funds were used by the City Fire Department to purchase turnout gear for firefighters.
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WATER & WASTEWATER Completion of 2014 Water Audit and Watershed Protection Plan: The Watershed Protection Plan serves as an action plan that the City of Cedartown will follow in partnership with the community to protect local water resources and sustain a high quality of life for its citizens. The Watershed Protection Plan is based on the results of a comprehensive watershed assessment of local streams as well as consideration of current and future land use, and other sources of pollutants to local streams. Successful implementation of the watershed protection plan will result in improved water quality, increased protection of stream buffers and aesthetic improvements of the City’s critical water resources for future generations.
City Water Policy Update: City administration amended our water policy in an effort to concisely communicate our operating procedures and fines for late/lack of payment.
2014 Sanitary Survey Inspection/Report: A sanitary survey is defined as “an onsite inspection of the water source, facilities, equipment, operation, and maintenance of a public water system” and is required by the EPD. The City achieved a ranking of 86.1%.
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PUBLIC INFORMATION & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Social Media Implementation & Management: The City revitalized their Facebook account, growing from 229 fans in January 2014 to 1,655 as of December 1, 2014. The City also created a Twitter account in March and has an audience of 100 followers -- ranging from the City of Hiram to Atlanta Filmworks. The City’s YouTube account was also created in March. To date (Dec. 1) we have produced 34 videos and garnered 6,003 views. Website Redesign of CedartownGeorgia.gov and DowntownCedartown.com: The City of Cedartown’s website was redesigned in January and February of 2014. The site went live in March 2014 and averages 260+ views each day. It has a grand total of 53,000 views since its redesign. Cost of hosting the site is $20 per month. Downtown Cedartown Association’s website was redesigned in June. Stats are not yet available; however the site was redesigned to be more attractive, useful and easier to update.
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Repair of Electronic Marquee Sign: The Cedartown Civic Auditorium’s Electronic Marquee sign had been inoperable for five years. Our IT department, with assistance from administrative offices, identified issues with the sign and for less than $100, had the marquee working again. It is used to announce shows and city-sponsored events.
Implemented a Digital Purchase Order System: Digital purchase orders were created via Microsoft Excel and uploaded into our City website’s “Employee Portal.” This eliminates the need for paper PO forms. Employees can print these digital forms or save them to their computer for future reference.
Re-established Ticket Printer for Cedartown Civic Auditorium: In the past, the auditorium paid a monthly fee to have tickets printed via an online service. The ticket printer owned by the auditorium had not been used in years due to expensive operating software. Our IT department created a program in-house that can be used to print tickets with little expense.
Improved Customer Service with Installation of Additional Terminal: An additional terminal was installed at the front counter of City Hall. This improves customer service, reduces wait times and improves front office efficiency.
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SPECIAL PROJECTS
During 2014, the City of City of Cedartown participated in several special projects beyond the scope of normal operations.
Full System Leak Detection Survey The City of Cedartown completed a full system leak detection survey on our distribution system in 2014. The survey was comprised of 70 miles of metallic pipework. Cedartown was featured in the Summer Issue of Water Stewards, a magazine produced by the Georgia Rural Water Association for our efforts. The survey has reduced Cedartown’s non revenue water from 35 to 29 percent and has saved an estimated $119,758.
Bert Wood Youth & Athletic Complex Renovations
The City of Cedartown partnered with Cedartown Youth Baseball to complete an extensive renovation to the Bert Wood Youth Complex. The Trippe Foundation, on behalf of Cedartown Youth Baseball, provided $549,000. The City provided $413,000 for the project. A new building was constructed which includes restroom facilities, concessions, a scorekeeper’s booth and a meeting/board room. This was only the first phase of renovation. A second and third phase is planned in the coming years.
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Bleacher Installation for Recreation Football/Baseball Polk County provided $15,000 for this project. New bleachers were installed at the Bert Wood Youth and Athletic Complex and are utilized for football and baseball games.
New Installation of Scoreboards for Baseball, Softball & Football A generous $64,000 grant from the Trippe Trust allowed the City to install eight new scoreboards at the Bert Wood Youth and Athletic Complex. The old scoreboards were in a state of disrepair and not functioning properly.
New Polk Medical Center Sewer Line Project The City of Cedartown negotiated a funding agreement -- paid by Floyd/Polk Medical Center -- for a new 12-inch sewer line for the county’s new hospital. The new hospital opened in October 2014. No City tax money was used for this project.
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Tree Identification Project at Peek Park The Cedartown Tree Commission, with help from the W. D. Trippe Foundation, the Ayers Beck Golf Tournament, The City of Cedartown, Helmes Painting and the Cedartown High School National Honor Society, installed seven informational signs in Peek Forest Park on Jan. 18. These signs are located near trees and other native flora and allow visitors a chance to learn about each featured species.
SPECIAL EVENTS
During 2014, the City of City of Cedartown sponsored and/or played host to nearly one dozen events and annual activities. By hosting and sponsoring these events, the City either contributes financially or through in-kind services and support.
Extreme Couponing Class The City sponsored an Extreme Couponing Class for both our employees and our residents. Employees were able to attend for free; residents paid a $10 fee to attend class and pay for materials. More than 100 people attended the class, with one participant driving from Riverdale to attend. There was no cost to the City to host this class.
Martin Luther King Day Program The City supports the Annual Martin Luther King Day Program, hosted by a local community organization, by allowing the group to use the Cedartown Auditorium at no cost. 17— City of Cedartown Year in Review 2014
Employee Health Fair The City hosted a Health Fair for employees at the Nathan Dean Gym at Bert Wood Youth and Athletic Complex. More than one dozen exhibitors participated in the health fair, allowing employees to learn more about healthy lifestyles.
Downtown Investment Incentives Workshop A Downtown Cedartown Investment Incentives Workshop was held at City Hall in January. The workshop attracted 45 people who were interested in learning more about the advantages of investing in Downtown Cedartown. Informative materials were distributed during this workshop and were also posted online at www. downtowncedartown.com. This event was an action item listed in the Downtown Renaissance Program.
Cedartown Biz Builders Program The Cedartown Biz Builder Program rolled out in May 2014 as an innovative and unique initiative put into motion by a group of community volunteers. The idea was born out of the Downtown Cedartown Renaissance Vision and Planning Initiative. Cedartown Biz Builders strives to match current business owners and budding entrepreneurs with top-notch education -- the premise being that educated business owners with a solid business plan increase their chance of survival in today’s market. The City invested $10,000 in the program, partnering with Georgia Northwestern Technical College, so that we could provide these eager entrepreneurs with college-level instruction. Our instructors are high-caliber, high-energy and highly knowledgeable in business planning and development, as well as marketing. The City offered 12 scholarships to cover the cost of the program, allowing students to gain this knowledge at no cost to them. In November, we graduated our first class of students.
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Annual Parkinson’s Walk The City is a proud sponsor of the Annual Parkinson’s Walk that takes place every spring. Each year, participation has grown and the Cedartown Walk is one of the largest in the State.
Annual Cedar Valley Arts Festival The Cedar Valley Arts Festival takes place at Peek Park in late Spring. The City helps sponsor the event by offering support in park set up, transportation and additional services as needed. The annual event attracts visitors from neighboring counties and is a local favorite.
Annual International Wheelchair Training Camp & 5K An annual event that draws dozens of international athletes to Cedartown, the Cedartown Wheelchair Training Camp and 5K is an event that puts our City on the map -- the world map. What began as a small event with an exhibition race for elite athletes has now become home to the world’s fastest 5K road race. The annual event is held in late June/early July and takes place under the shady canopy of our historic Peek Park. We are proud to help sponsor this event.
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Trail of Tears Historic Marker Dedication Next time you’re driving down Wissahickon Avenue, make sure to take notice of Big Spring Park’s newest historical marker. Several city departments, as well as the Cedartown City Commission, were instrumental in helping the marker find its new home. The bronze marker recognizes the connection between the Big Spring and the Cherokee Indian Tribe. The marker pays respect to the Cherokee people who were imprisoned and held captive on the very land that surrounds the Spring. Located at the corner of the park near Wissihickon Avenue, the marker honors the lives lost along the Trail of Tears during the 1830 Indian Removal Act.
Downtown Farmers Market As one of the action items listed in the Downtown Renaissance Program, the City encouraged local farmers to bring their home-grown goodies downtown one evening during the summer. Farmers set up in a highly visible parking lot and offered hours that catered to working adults.
Fourth Friday Concert Series As another action item in our Downtown Renaissance Plan, a group of volunteers planned and organized a summer of concerts that took place on the fourth Friday of each month. Concerts took place in June, July and August and were very wellattended by residents. Local businesses helped to offset costs of securing bands and sound systems.
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Jeremiah Castille Football Character Camp The City teamed up with the Castille Foundation to bring the Jeremiah Castille Character Football Camp to Cedartown. Held in June, the camp attracted more than 100 participants and over two days, taught football skills and character lessons to local youth. The camp was partially funded by generous donations from local businesses and residents.
KIMOTO Cup Japan-US Baseball Friendship Game The City was honored to participate in the KIMOTO Cup Japan-US Friendship Game. Members of the All Inabe baseball team traveled from Japan to Cedartown to take part in the 10th Annual Kimoto Cup, billed this year as the Japan-U.S. Friendship Baseball Game. All Inabe shared the field with the Cedartown Bulldogs in a cordial game of ball. Both teams were comprised of 11 to 12-year-olds.
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Big Spring Work Day (Renovation Project Kick-Off) A volunteer work day at one of the most recognizable landmarks in the city took place the morning of Saturday, October 18. The work day was held to kick off the Big Spring Park renovation project. Volunteers worked on cleaning out overgrowth in the landscape beds by the park’s sidewalk and in the memorial area, and attempted to clean out the stream bed from the Spring to Furnace Street. The renovation project will be carried out in phases over the next few years.
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September 11 Remembrance Ceremony Our Fire Department hosts a special remembrance ceremony annually for the victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. We involve local school children in the ceremony and the event is well attended by residents.
Annual Downtown Cedartown Fall Festival The City is pleased to assist the Downtown Cedartown Association in sponsoring the Annual Fall Festival. An autumn tradition for locals, the festival offers handmade arts and crafts, a parade, games for children and delicious food -- all in historic downtown Cedartown.
Annual Downtown Cedartown Christmas Tree Lighting & Parade We are proud to assist the Downtown Cedartown Association in preparation for the annual lighting of the “official” Cedartown Christmas Tree. This event is relatively new, but attracts hundreds to our downtown greenspace. The City sponsors the annual Christmas Parade, another strong holiday tradition in Cedartown. We are pleased to offer cash prizes for best float entry in three categories and love to see Main Street filled with folks lining sidewalks, ready to catch a glimpse of Santa. 23— City of Cedartown Year in Review 2014