Cohutta officials looking for long-term location for police department

Charles Oliver, The Daily Citizen, Dalton, Ga.
·1 min read

Jun. 29—Six months after a fire destroyed the building that housed the headquarters of the Cohutta Police Department, city officials are still trying to develop a long-term plan to relocate the department.

The department is currently operating out of trailers at 112 Windwalker Drive on the town tennis courts.

"We're a small town and don't have a lot of money," said Mayor Ron Shinnick. "We don't have a property tax. We might have to temporarily move them back into Town Hall."

The Whitfield County Board of Commissioners plans to put a Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) referendum on the ballot next year. The current SPLOST, which was approved by voters in 2020, expires at the end of October 2024.

"If that passes, it could help us fund something," Shinnick said. "We might use at least some of our portion of the money on a new police headquarters."

A fire on Dec. 18, 2022, destroyed a building that housed the police department and served as a warehouse for a private business. The cause of the fire was ruled undetermined. The city received reimbursement from insurance for the equipment it lost. But it did not own the building.

Evidence and case files were stored elsewhere and were not affected by the fire but the department lost personnel files, firearms and other equipment. Police departments from across the state and the nation donated equipment to help replace what was lost.