Dalton City Council to hold meeting on proposed charter changes

Apr. 28—City of Dalton residents will have an opportunity to ask questions about proposed changes to the city charter on Monday.

The City Council will hold a public information meeting on the proposed draft of a new city charter at 5 p.m. at City Hall. The council will hold its regular meeting at 6 following the public information meeting.

Officials have said it isn't clear when the last full revision of the charter was made, but it appears to have been at least 60 years ago. Council members have talked about revising the charter several times during the last two decades. A sustained focus on the charter started last fall.

City officials said there are parts of the charter that conflict with other parts of the charter or with current city practices or with what the Georgia Municipal Association recommends as best practices for city governments.

For instance, according to officials, there are references to city residents paying for their share of road resurfacing based on their road frontage. There's also a section that mandates a technique to pave roads that hasn't been used in about 50 years.

Other proposed changes would reduce the power of city commissions, giving them more of an advisory role.

For example, the Public Safety Commission currently hires the fire and police chiefs and confirms all new firefighters and police officers. A proposed charter change would allow the two chiefs to hire all firefighters and police officers without the approval of the commissioners.

In their regular meeting, council members are scheduled to take up a request from Charles and Bernita Cofield to rezone from medium-density, single-family residential to neighborhood commercial 2.82 acres at 618 Veterans Drive. That is the former home of the Veterans of Foreign Wars George Edward Smith Post 4985.

The Dalton-Varnell-Whitfield County Planning Commission on Monday recommended approving that request. At that meeting, attorney Tom Minor spoke on behalf of the Cofields, who now own the property. He said Jorge Lara, who owns Dalton's La Esperanza Bakery, plans to put a bakery on the site if the rezoning is approved. Minor said it is unfortunate the VFW post no longer exists but the owners want to put the now-empty property to use.

U.S. Army 1st Lt. George Edward Smith was the first Whitfield County native killed in World War II. VFW Post 4985, which was founded in 1946 shortly after the end of World War II, is named in his honor.

For the next 75 years the post was a place where those who served in America's wars could find support, companionship and camaraderie. But in recent years, membership dwindled. By 2022, the post only had about five members. The national VFW put the post on probation and placed the property up for sale.

The council members are also expected to vote on a memorandum of understanding between the Dalton Parks and Recreation Department and the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association for the city to receive funding through the BOOST (Building Opportunities for Out-of-School Time) program. The grants aim to increase access to summer recreation programs for youth.