C I T Y O F F O R E S T P A R K

DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION / FINANCE

Expenditures (preliminary totals) for the General Fund for the month of October are $1,747,689 or 9.33% of the budget. Year-to-date preliminary expenditures for the General Fund are $5,798,388 or 30.95% of the budget (fiscal year July 2008 – June 2009). For comparison purposes, the period of July through October represents 33.33% of the budget year. Total expenditures for the General Fund are under budget year to date.

Local Option Sales Tax revenue received in October is $426,370, compared to $366,578 for October of the prior year. The fiscal year-to-date total received is $1,947,247 or 37.88% of the budget; the percentage of the budget year through October is 33.33% of the year. Revenue from Local Option Sales Tax remains ahead of budget through October. The monthly amounts will continue to be monitored closely.

The annual audit for the City began on September 29 and the fieldwork (audit procedures) was completed in late October. Preparation of the financial report has begun and is expected to be completed by the end of November.

New business licenses issued during the month of October:

Name Description

El Lationo Restaurant / Billiards

Snelling Staffing Service Temporary / Placement staffing

Unisex Kateryn Salon Barber Shop

A & J Hispanic Service Fax and Photo Copies services

Hill Professional Alignment Commercial Truck Alignment

Dul-Mex Distributors Wholesale Distributors

American Deli & Wings Restaurant

Mike Blandenburg, Director

(404) 366-4720

DEPARTMENT OF POLICE SERVICES

TRIAD

The Senior Expo was held on October 17^th from 10 am – 2pm at the recreation center gymnasium. Turnout was good for the event which featured local banks, medical companies and crime prevention tips for seniors.

COPS

Attendance continues to be high at the Neighborhood Watch program meetings that have been held for north and south side residents. Average meeting attendance has been between 80 and 100 residents which is a dramatic improvement in community involvement.

Patrol

Citizens Police Academy Class #23 is ongoing with 25 registered participants. The attendees are receiving training in criminal law and a variety of other law-enforcement and crime prevention topics.

Officer M. Kennemur is the newest member of Adam Team, and came from the Camden County Sheriff’s Department

Sgt. Armstrong attended Supervision Level II at GPSTC.

Sgt. Adams and Captain Stevens attended Civil Liability Class given by Henry County Sheriff’s Department

CID

Sgt Fisher gave an identity theft class at Georgia Power. Approximately 30 Georgia Power employees were in attendance.

On October 11, 2008 Sgt. Henry went to the Anthrax response training sponsored by Clayton County Police Department and Kaiser.

Det. Jackson recovered approximately three thousand dollars ($3,000.00) in property when he solved a burglary.

On 10/08/08 Officer Hiers was assigned to detective division.

On Tuesday 10/14/2008 LT Delk presented the Criminal Investigation & Internal Affairs class to the citizens police academy.

Sgt Fisher attended the 17th annual Homicide Conference hosted by the Regional Organized Crime Information Center. This was a three day training event

Detective Jackson attended Apartment Manager Coalition Meeting for the month of October.

Administration

MPO Lisa Presley completed the Nike Women’s Marathon (26.2 miles) in San Francisco October 19th for Team in Training to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Chief Dwayne Hobbs

(404) 366-7280

DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING, BUILDING AND ZONING

Building Plans Submitted

Business Name

Address

Details

Quantum Day Care

697 Ruskin Dr. Ste. F

Tenant finish.

Clorox/Pine-Sol Pine

14 Royal Dr.

Shelter for unloading /Tank containment.

Building Permits Issued

Structure Type	Address	Details
Commercial	3950 Jonesboro Rd.	Roof
Residential	4294 Gilbert Pl.	Remodel; 228 sq. ft. JC $10,000
Commercial	4620 Old Jonesboro Rd.	Shed; 144 sq. ft. JC $2,000
Residential	797 Dennis Dr.	Shed; 224 sq. ft. JC $1,500
Commercial	4926 Old Dixie Hwy.	Remodel; 715 sq. ft. JC $44,000
Commercial	697 Ruskin Dr. Ste. F	Tenant finish; 350 sq. ft. JC $8,500
Residential	411 Springside Dr.	Enclose porch; 100 sq. ft. JC $3,000
Residential	4829 N. Oak St.	Remodel; 525 sq. ft. JC $1,500
Residential	4696 Hendrix Dr.	Shed; 160 sq. ft. JC $1,500
Residential	719 Lookout Dr.	Fire repair; 900 sq. ft. JC $40,000
Residential	386 Third St.	Demo duplex; JC $2,750
Commercial	4150 Jonesboro Rd. Bldg B Ste. 900 & 1000	White box; 1,400 sq. ft. JC $10,000
Commercial	4150 Jonesboro Rd. Bldg A Ste. 1000	White box; 1,400 sq. ft. JC $5,000

Certificate of Occupancies Issued

Business Name	Address	Date of Issue
Snelling Staffing	528 Forest Pkwy. Ste. E	10/08/2008
Hill Professional Alignment	100 Hill Ind. Blvd.	10/24/2008
Dul-Mex Distributors	4698 Lake Mirror Pl.	10/29/2008
Los Amigos Billiards	4148 Jonesboro Rd.	10/28/2008
Salon M-315	828 Morrow Rd.	10/23/2008

AFFILIATE BOARD ACTIVITY

There were no meetings of the affiliate Boards for the month of October 2008.

Special Interest

Code Compliance Officer Daniel Gallardo has received his Georgia Association of Code Enforcement (GACE) Level II GACE Masters Certificate on October 2^nd, 2008. Officer Gallardo received his certification as GACE Code Enforcement Officer Level I in 2005 (A 3-year course). He has pursued the Level II certification which also covers hazardous and special materials handling. This course outlines how a code enforcement officer deals with asbestos, demolition waste, barrels with unknown contents, paints and other chemicals, etc. Officer Gallardo received his framed certification at a graduation ceremony which was held at the Fall Conference in Athens, Georgia. This noteworthy accomplishment brings great credit to the City and reflects his personal commitment to the professional standards of the Planning, Building and Zoning Department. Thank you Daniel; you should be very proud of your accomplishment.

Neighborhood Watch Program

Mike Tuttle, Deputy Director gave presentations at the October 23^rd, 2008 (Southside) and November 4^th, 2008 (Northside) meetings held at the Police Department. He gave educational presentation on the following topics:

Code Enforcement – Due process

Court ordered abatements

Property Maintenance – Article K

Vehicles parking in yard areas on grass

Presented literature regarding:

Unsafe abandoned structures

Animal Control

General summary of code compliance ordinances

Example of court policies

Q & A

The audience was also informed of LIHEAP – Low Income Housing Energy Assistance Program and of the Clayton County Community Assistance Center location at 1000 Main Street, Forest Park, Ga. 30297.

Steve Pearson, Director

(404) 608-2300

DEPARTMENT OF FIRE/EMS

The second week in October was designated “Fire Prevention Week” in Forest Park. Several Activities were conducted including the following:

Fire Personnel visited all the elementary schools in the City as well as the Clayton County Head Start teaching Fire Safety to some 400 children.

The Fire Safety Trailer was utilized to teach Fire Safety at the Autumn in the Park Festival and the City Halloween Carnival. Some 200 children participated in these events. CERT members also assisted Fire Department personnel in these endeavors.

Fire Personnel assisted in the Trick or Treat Carnival at Chick-fil-A Dwarf House, distributing Fire Safety Education Materials.

Fire Personnel attended the Northside Neighborhood Watch Program distributing pamphlets on Emergency Preparedness measures in times of disaster.

All Fire Personnel were checked off on annual live burn requirement at the Atlanta Fire Training Academy, facilitated by the Georgia Fire Academy. Special thanks to FF/EMT Keith King, a part-time Fire Instructor at the GFA for facilitating this process.

We welcome aboard:
FF/EMT Micah Cauble, FF/EMT William Pruitt and FF/EMT Samuel Pratt. We wish all of these the very best as they begin their Fire Service career with the City of Forest Park.

Call information for October 2008

Private Dwellings 2

Apartments 1

Hotel/Motel 1

Public Assembly 1

Health care 1

Store/Office 1

Highway vehicles 2

Brush/grass 3

Other Fires 3

Total Fires 15

Engine EMS Responses 102

False Alarms 13

Haz-Mat - 2

Hazardous Responses 6

All other Responses 12

EMS Response 291

Total Calls 441

Chief Eddie Buckholts

(404) 608-2382

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS

Street Division:

The major event for the month of October was the quarterly “Clean Sweep event on October 4th. The Street crew and volunteers worked hard to move the vehicles that entered our facility. Street crews also removed concrete from the backside of Fire Station #1 and replace it with rebar and 15 yards of concrete. Street and Park crews cleared right-of-way of low limbs on several streets. A total of 9 abatements were completed and 3 special sanitation pickups.

Completed Court Ordered Abatements:

5070 Park Drive, 4797 West Street, 796 Catherine Street, 4510 Burks Road, 4111 O’Hara Road, 5338 Sharon Street, 707 Melrose Drive, 863 Birch Street, and 601 Kay Street

Special Paid Sanitation Pick-ups:

892 Mimosa Drive, 5182 Old Dixie Highway, and 5559 Highland Drive

Building Maintenance:

Major project for the Building Maintenance crews included the replacing of ceiling tile at the police department, installing a split in the water line in the watch office, repairing roof leaks, installing 4 dehumidifiers, and hanging sheetrock , mud, and caulking in the 911 room. Crews also painted the steps and handicap walkway at the annex building and painted over graffiti on Central Avenue. Crews also replaced a broken sink at the stadium restroom and winterized outdoor pool area. Crews checked electrical boxes in the park preparing for placement of Christmas decorations, and hung fall festival banners and set out fall festival signs. Work orders were completed on all City buildings.

Parks Division:

October was a busy month for Parks Division crews cleaning City right-of-ways and park areas. Particular attention was given to the Starr Park area in preparation for the Fall Autumn in the Park Festival and the 5K Road Race. The Recreation Center was set-up for the Halloween Carnival. Other standard maintenance issues were completed by the crews, which included helping Building Maintenance crews with winterizing outdoor facilities and checking city buildings.

Mike Gippert, Director

(404) 608-2310

DEPARTMENT OF RECREATION AND LEISURE SERVICES

Community Wide Yard Sale – The Yard Sale was held on October 4, 2008 from 8am to 2pm at the parking lot of the Recreation Center. There were 96 spaces sold. We had a good crowd throughout the day. Everyone loves a bargain.

Youth Basketball Registration – Started on October 1, 2008. This program is for boys and girls ages 5-16 years of age. Practice will be held in December with games being played starting in January 2009.

Youth Soccer – The Youth Soccer season ended on Saturday, October 25, 2008. We had a total of 32 games in October with 16 teams participating in the Fall 2008 season.

Autumn in the Park Festival – Was held on October 18, 2008 from 10:30am to 6pm at Starr Park. The booths consisted of arts and crafts, games, food, and information booths. The Fire Department brought the Smoke House and gave information on fire safety, and the Police gave out information on safety and crime prevention. We had a variety of entertainment to perform all day. Everyone enjoyed the festivities.

5K Fun Run & Walk – Was held on Saturday, October 25, 2008. We had a total of 70 participants. Chick-Fil-A and Little Caesar helped sponsor this year’s race. City Departments helping with the race were, Forest Park Fire/EMS, Public Works, and Recreation & Leisure Services. Forest Park High School provided volunteers to help from Beta Club, AFROTC, and FPBLA.

Halloween Carnival – Was held on October 31, 2008 at the Gym from 6pm to 8pm. The ages are 2-12 years old. 150 kids participated in the costume contest. We had over 500 children to participate in the carnival. We had games ranging from bean bag toss, basketball shoot, to the duck pond. Children received candy for participating at each booth. The Forest Park Fire Department had the educational Smoke House trailer set up outside to teach the children what they should do in the event of a fire. The Forest Park High School AFROTC helped to make the event a huge success by running the booths and handing out candy.

Wellness Programs

Water Aerobics – Monday & Wednesday 6 pm-7 pm

Yoga – Wednesday evening 6:45 pm-8 pm

Water Exercise – Monday & Wednesday 1 pm-2 pm

Teen Weight Lifting – Tuesday & Thursday 5 pm-6 pm

Swim For Fun (ages 55 & Over) – Tuesday & Thursday 1:30 pm-2:30pm

Exercise/Weight Room – Monday-Friday 9am-8pm and Saturday 10am-4pm

Martial Arts (Tai-Chi, Kung Fu) – Tuesday & Thursday 7:30pm-8:30pm

SENIOR ACTIVITIES

* October has been a busy month for the Seniors. We started out with a fun lunch with 30 seniors and some great food then comes the yard sale.

* The Yard Sale was a mixture of food and sales of treasures as we call them. We all had a fun and busy day of selling.

* Of course the Autumn in the Park was our next event and we were even busier. The Seniors seem to enjoy staying busy and being out doors.

* Our Apple Trip was a nice trip to see the leaves so colorful. We ate a good lunch, shopped and brought home a lot of apples.

* Halloween was full of good music and a lot of decoration and costumes. Everyone seems to enjoy dressing up and having fun. We had ghosts, dancers, cowboys and just plain old folks.

* It was a month full of fun, shopping, eating, and fellowship. These events were just our special ones; we also had our regular cards, computers, WII, gossip, and lots of coffee.

* The Senior Expo was a success and enjoyable for all the seniors. They received information on all subjects from health, banking, trusts, social security, IRS, mail fraud, probate problems and a great deal of information on scams. It was very useful for all the seniors that came and we hope to add on next year and make it even greater.

UPCOMING EVENTS

* November 11, 2008 – Veterans Day Ceremonies @ 10 am in the front of City Hall

Elaine Corley, Director

404-363-2908