CI T Y   O F   F O R E S T   P A R K

 

 

TO:                             Mayor and Council

 

FROM:                       John Parker, City Manager

 

DATE:                        October 14, 2009

 

SUBJECT:                 INFORMATION BULLETIN  - SEPTEMBER, 2009

 

 

The following is a department by department status report of priority activities, projects and initiatives for the month of September, 2009.

 

 

DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING, BUILDING AND ZONING

 

Building Plans Submitted

 

Business Name

Address

Details

JBL Jonesboro Road

4150 Jonesboro Road – B

Fire Alarm System

 

 

Building Permits Issued

 

Structure Type

Address

Details

 

Residential

 

4325 Gilbert Place

Addition; 140 sq. ft. JC $800

Residential

5355 Sharon Street

494 sq. ft. JC $6,200

Residential

657 Valley View Drive

New roof; JC $2,000

Residential

643 Valley View Drive

Extend roof; JC $6,000

 

 

Certificate of Occupancies Issued

 

Business Name

Address

Date of Issue

Unisex Kateryn Salon

5418 Old Dixie Hwy.

09/02/09

Parkway Bottle Shop

11 Forest Parkway

09/02/09

Royal Food Mart

5604 Old Dixie Hwy.

09/10/09

Bambino’s Market Place

5590 Old Dixie Hwy.

09/10/09

Direct Connection

1125 Forest Parkway

09/15/09

Chevron Food Mart

4578 Old Dixie Hwy.

09/16/09

 

La Tiendita

4140 Jonesboro Rd. 120-125

 

09/25/09

Christian Family Fellowship

 

983 Forest Parkway

 

09/30/09

Auto Tech

4788 Old Dixie Hwy.

09/30/09

 

 

 

 

AFFILIATE BOARD ACTIVITY

 

Planning and Zoning Board

 

The Planning Commission (Planning and Zoning Board) held an advertised Public Hearing  on September 2, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. in the courtroom located within the Agnes B. Bateman Community Development Building; 785 Forest Parkway, Forest Park, Georgia 30297. The Public Hearing was held for the purpose of hearing public comments, if any, with regard to a proposed Conditional Use Permit to operate a family in-home daycare in an R-80 Single Family Residential zoned district. 

 

At issue, a petition has been filed by Sherial Durden, petitioner, with the permission of Jennifer Williams, owner of 4197 Tara Drive, Forest Park, Georgia 30297; Clayton County Tax ID No. 13019B A007, for a Conditional Use Permit to establish and operate an in-home daycare within the residence.  Ms. Durden is seeking a Conditional Use Permit to begin the process to legally operate a family in-home daycare, to accommodate six (6) children; ages one (1) year to twelve (12) years of age. Hours of operation will be Monday through Friday 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.  The Planning and Zoning Board unanimously voted to recommend approval to Council.  A second Public Hearing was originally scheduled and advertised for September 14th, 2009 to be held at the regular Council meeting.  However, upon reviewing the file of 4197 Tara Drive, a flaw in the process was discovered.  It seems early on in the process, while determining Public Hearing dates; an error was made concerning the regular scheduled Mayor & Council meeting (2nd Public Hearing).  The erroneous date (September 14th, 2009) was published in the newspaper and on the sign posted upon the subject property, as well as in the notification letters sent to the (29) adjacent property owners. Thus, the Zoning Procedure Law (ZPL) has not been satisfied.  As the result, the petition for Conditional Use Permit was removed from the (September 21st, 2009; the correct date) agenda. We had to re-advertise the Public Hearing, repost the sign and re-notify the adjacent property owners of the corrected Public Hearing date for Mayor & Council to receive public comment, if any, and consider the petition.  The revised date for the 2nd Public Hearing is November 16th, 2009 at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers, 745 Forest Parkway, Forest Park, Georgia 30297. Also, during the regular scheduled Council meeting, the petition will be considered and a final determination will be rendered that same night.

 

                                                                        Steve Pearson, Director

                                                                        (404) 608-2300      

 

 

DEPARTMENT OF FIRE/EMS SERVICES

 

  • Forest Park firefighters collected $3640.53 during the annual Muscular Dystrophy Association Boot Drive. A check for this amount was presented on Labor Day at the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon. Gracious kudos to the Forest Park Community for giving to a worthy cause during difficult times.

 

  • The Fire Department received notification of a U.S. Department of Homeland Security grant award for six additional firefighters. The grant – Staffing Adequate Fire and Emergency Responders (SAFER) allows the Department to hire firefighters with the local government paying only half the salaries over a five-year period. This is a substantial award for the City at this time as additional resources will be needed along with the Ft. Gillem transition.

 

  • New hires for the month of September include FF/EMT Merle (Tyson) Mills and FF/Paramedic Rodney West. We are very pleased to have these new personnel on board as they begin their Forest Park career.

 

  • 285 EMS Calls were run with 102 patients treated and released and 187 patients transported to area hospitals.

 

                        Run Activity

 

·   Single-family Fires                          3

·   Multi-family Fires                           2

·   Rubbish fires                                                3

·   EMS Assists                                      96

·   False Alarms                                                18

·   Mutual Aid Given                            2

·   Hazmat Response                            3

·   Other Hazards                                  13

·   Other Response                               22

·   EMS Calls                                          285

 

                        Total Calls                                         447

 

 

 

                                                                        Chief Eddie Buckholts

                                                                        (404) 608-2382

 

 

 

 

 

OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER

 

Sidewalks to Schools, Phase III and Transit Oriented Pedestrian Improvements Project

The City has begun mailing the Right-of-Way Easement packages to the property owners.

 

Livable Centers Initiative (LCI)-Main Street Streetscape Project

NO STATUS CHANGE - The City of Forest Park is waiting for the Notice to Proceed with construction from the Georgia Department of Transportation.

 

State Farmers Market

NO STATUS CHANGE – Assisting the Georgia Department of Agriculture in identifying and researching funding sources for transportation and building improvements.

 

Forest Park Business Coalition

The next Forest Park Business Coalition meeting will be held 11:30 am – 1:00 pm Tuesday, October 20, 2009 at Clayton County Community Services Authority 1000 Main Street.  Clayton County Sheriff Kem Kimbrough will be the guest speaker.

 

 

                                                                        John Parker, City Manager

                                                                        Angela Redding, Mgt. Analyst

                                                                        (404) 366-4720

 

 

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS

Street Division:

            Street crews were kept busy trimming and cutting city right of ways.  Crews also completed a total of 11 court ordered abatements and 5 special sanitation pick-ups. Potholes were filled at Pine Valley Drive and Bartlett Road. Signs were made for the neighborhood watch meetings and the teen meetings and placed around the City.

 

Completed Court Ordered Abatements:

            769 Longleaf Drive, 4723 Chesler Street, 1161 Rockcut Road, 1102 Rockspring Street, 887 Linda Way, 707 Melrose Drive, 1017 Longleaf Drive, 475 Lake Drive, 674 Morrow Road, 5953 Ash Street, 1003 Longleaf Drive

 

Special Paid Sanitation Pick-ups:

            287 First Street, 5225 Albert Drive, 5936 Pinecreek Road, 732 Hill Street, Elm Drive

 

 

Building Maintenance:

Crews worked on repairs at the property acquired on Main Street.  Rerouted the electrical junction box at concession stand and replaced fence. Repaired and painted festival signs and placed out around the City. Crews also completed numerous other work orders from all departments.

 

Parks Division:

            Right-of-way cutting on Main Street, Jonesboro Road, and Forest Parkway highlighted efforts by Parks crews.  The rains have made August a busy month for Parks crews cutting grass and trimming and pruning shrubs. All ball fields were lined off for the upcoming football season. Personnel have been shifted from other divisions to help with these tasks as well as utilization of the trustee workforce.

 

 

                                                                        Mike Gippert, Director

                                                                        (404) 608-2310

 

 

 

DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION/FINANCE

 

Expenditures (preliminary totals) for the General Fund for the month of September are $1,554,660 or 7.79% of the budget.  Year-to-date preliminary expenditures for the General Fund are $4,181,707 or 20.92% of the budget (fiscal year July 2009 – June 2010). For comparison purposes, the period of July through September represents 25.00% of the budget year. Total expenditures for the General Fund are under budget for the month of September and year to date.

 

Local Option Sales Tax revenue received in September is $474,980, compared to $517,064 for September of the prior year. The current month amount is increased from the previous month of the current year. The fiscal year-to-date total received is $1,277,804 or 24.57% of the budget; the percentage of the budget year through September is 25.00%. Revenue from Local Option Sales Tax remains slightly under budget through September.

 

The annual audit for the City began on October 5 and the fieldwork (audit procedures) is expected to be completed by October 19. Preparation of the financial report will begin at that time and is expected to be completed by mid November.

           

New business licenses issued during the month of September:

 

                        Name                                                             Description

 

            Banbino’s Market Place                             Retail Food Store

            Royal Food Mart                                          Convenience Store / Gas Station

            Direct Connections                                     Cell Phone bill payment

            Unisex Kateryn Salon                                 Beauty and Barber Shop

            American Dollar Thrift Store                   Thrift Store (used goods)

            Rumba Latina                                              Insurance; Money Transfer; Tax

            K & Ess Grocery Store                                Grocery Store

            Dorothy’s Creative                                      Child Care

            Chevron Food Mart                                                Convenience Store / Gas Station

           

 

                                                                        Mike Blandenburg, Director

                                                                        (404) 366-4720

 

 

 

 

 

DEPARTMENT OF RECREATION AND LEISURE SERVICES

 

WHAT’S HAPPENING!

 

Youth Soccer – Our Youth Fall Soccer program opening day was September 12, 2009.  There are 17 teams with 200 children participating between the ages of 4 yrs to 12 yrs.  Games are played on Saturdays starting at 10am at the Soccer Fields on Park Drive. 

 

Adult Athletics – Continues on Tuesday, Wed, and Thursday nights.  We have softball on Tuesday and Thursdays.  Games start at 7pm on Baker Field with two games each night.  Basketball games are played on Wednesday nights, we have six (6) teams participating in this league.

 

5K Fun Run/Walk – The Annual Autumn 5K Fun Run/Walk took place on September 26, 2009.  This year we added a Health Fair with various health and fitness vendors joining us for the festivities.  There were approximately 135 registered walkers/runners, but as usual some joined us just for the fun.  Awards, including 2 roundtrip tickets to anywhere in the US (donated by Air Tran), were awarded at the end of the 5K.   

 

Daily Participants to use Recreation Gymnasium for September 2009 were 831.

 

                        Activity Cards:  Residents/11        Nonresidents/12

 

 

 

Ongoing Classes

 

            Water Aerobics – Monday & Wednesday 6pm-7pm

            Yoga – Wednesday evening 6:45pm-8pm

            Water Exercise – Monday & Wednesday 1pm-2pm

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

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

            Chess – Wednesday 5pm-9pm

            Martial Arts (Tai-Chi, Kung Fu) – Tuesday 6pm-7pm

 

SENIOR ACTIVITIES

 

*          We have had a very busy month. The Red Hatters started us off with a covered dish lunch for any one who wanted to come.  It was fun with a lot of good food.

 

*          Our Mystery Trip was cancelled due to the weather, but we will reschedule.  But that didn’t stop the card or domino players from coming out. 

 

*          The State Olympics in Warner Robins are here and we have 8 participants this year.  It will be in Shuffleboard, Track, Swimming, and Basketball Toss.

 

*          Italian Night is always a fun night.  There was lot of spaghetti and meatballs to eat.  Everyone enjoys the dinners so it keeps us busy.

 

*          All the programs are doing great, dancing, shuffleboard, computers, lunches, walking club, and the Bingo Breakfast/Lunch.

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

 

*        October 3, 2009 – Community-Wide Yard Sale 9am-2pm @ Recreation Center Parking Lot  

 

*        October 17, 2009 – Autumn Festival 10:30am-5:50pm @ Starr Park (rain date: October 24, 2009)  

 

*        October 24, 2009 – Senior Halloween Night 6pm-8pm @ Senior Center – Tickets are $3 each  

 

*        October 31, 2009 – Magic of Halloween 6pm-8pm @ Recreation Gymnasium – Children 2yrs-12yrs old – 50¢ admission 

 

 

                                                                                    Elaine Corley, Director

                                                                                    404-363-2908

 

 

 

 

DEPARTMENT OF POLICE SERVICES

 

TRIAD

 

Triad held their monthly meeting with 46 people in attendance. A speaker from the Home Depot gave a presentation about fall planting.

 

Citizen’s Police Academy

 

Citizen’s Police Academy began on September 15th with 9 registered participants.

 

Patrol

 

The assessment center was completed for Sergeant And Lieutenant candidates. The assessors noted that all candidates were very professional throughout the process.

 

Ofc. Avery completed the Intoxilyzer 5000 class at GPSTC.

 

Lt. Gentry completed RMS training.

 

MPO Cochran, Ofc. Colvin, Ofc. Paul, and Capt. Podsiadly attended MCT/MFR training September 14 – 18 and MCT/MFR training is underway for all patrol teams in anticipation of our October 15th “go live” date.

 

Officers Colvin & Paul have been promoted to Master Patrol Officer.

 

SGT Cloud taught a class about street gangs at the Citizen’s Police Academy.

 

Lt. Gentry attended Intox re-certification class at GPSTC

 

Ofc. Simmons completed the Intoxilyzer 5000 class at GPSTC.

 

Ofc. Freeman and Ofc. Jackson attended RMS training.

 

CID

 

Det. Averhart attended Search Warrants & Affidavits class at GPSTC

 

Sgt. Henry and Det. Craig attended a course on Child abuse investigation.

 

Det. Craig attended the CPA (1st class), Apartment Managers Coalition Meeting (COPS office) and the NHW (North Side) meeting.

 

 

 

 

Admin

 

Admin personnel are overseeing the training for the new mobile data terminals that are being installed in the police vehicles. Personnel from all divisions of the agency have been attending extensive computer training and will be training other personnel the new system.

 

MPO Lisa Presley and her 18 year old daughter Seanna Wright are training for the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington D.C. October 25, 2009. They are running for the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund which assists wounded Marines and their families with rehabilitation and household expenses while they are recovering from their injuries. If you would like to donate you can do so by going to:

 

http://www.active.com/donate/teamsemperfi09/lisapresley

 

 

                                                                        Chief Dwayne Hobbs

                                                                        (404) 366-7280