BUDGET PUBLIC HEARING AND WORK SESSION AGENDA/MINUTES – April 27th 6 PM

BROADCAST VIA FACEBOOK LIVE       SITE: CITY OF HIAWASSEE
OPEN TO PUBLIC – April 27th, 2026 6pm
Hiawassee City Hall 50 River Street Upstairs Training Room
BUDGET PUBLIC HEARING AND WORK SESSION AGENDA       

• Call to Order 

.1.      Invocation – Scott Benton

.2.      Pledge of Allegiance

.3.      Approval agenda as distributed

• Budget Public Hearing

.1.      Public comment regarding the FY26-27 Budget

• Adjourn Public Hearing

• Call to order May 27, 2026 Work Session Meeting

1. Consent Agenda

1.1.    Minutes of April 7, 2026 Council Meeting

1.2.    April 27, 2026 Work Session

1. Mayor’s Report

1. GIRMA Property and Casualty insurance invoice

1. Water rate change discussion

1. Water truck purchase discussion

1. Purchase of jetter/mudvac combo discussion

1. Replacement of Wastewater Treatment filter rehab discussion

1. Zone meters – EMI mapping locations discussion

1. Set price for Wine Bar license

1. DDA Board Nomination Recommendation – Alex King, BRMEMC Director of Broadband

1. FY25-26 Budget amendment – Shook House proceeds allocation discussion

1. EMI contract for salary survey discussion

1. Road Runner Lift station rehab discussion

1. Second reading of the 2026-2027 Budget Ordinance

1. Various ordinance changes – Attorney Mitchell

1. Public Comment

1. Executive session

1. Adjournment

BUDGET PUBLIC HEARING AND WORK SESSION MINUTES – April 27, 2026

The Hiawassee City Council met in the Upstairs Training Room at City Hall on April 27, 2026, at 6:00 PM. The Budget Public Hearing meeting was open to the public and broadcast over Facebook Live.  The meeting was called to order by Mayor Jay Chastain. Present, in addition to the Mayor, were Council members Nancy Noblet, Jeff Scott, Scott Benton, Andrea Bell and Jonathan Wilson. Staff present were Economic Development Director Lily Ponitz, Police Officer JP Smallwood, City Attorney Thomas Mitchell, City Clerk Bonnie Kendrick, and Court Clerk Sheryl Branson.
The Invocation was given by Scott Benton and was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
The agenda as distributed was approved 1st by Nancy Noblet, 2nd by Scott Benton with all in favor.
The Budget Public Hearing began with public comments regarding the FY 26-27 Budget.
There were no Public Comments made. The meeting was adjourned at 6:02 pm.
The Mayor called the April 27, 2026, Work Session Meeting to order.
The Consent agenda, consisting of minutes from April 7, 2026, City Council Meeting, and April 27, 2026, Work Session, will be voted on Tuesday, May 5, 2026.
The Mayor needed to amend the agenda to include 14.A printer purchases. Approved as amended 1st by Andrea Bell, 2nd by Scott Benton, with all in favor.
Mayor’s Report
The Mayor thanked the City Council for their continued commitment to addressing the critical infrastructure needs facing the city.  The process being made is meaningful, and it is the result of teamwork and shared focus.
 The Mayor completed a 40-hour Class III Water Treatment course this month. This training continues to strengthen our ability to properly manage and improve our water system as we address ongoing infrastructure challenges.
The Mayor and City Council recently completed a two-day retreat. We accomplished a great deal of meaningful work. We had productive discussions centered around infrastructure priorities and established direction for upcoming projects. Due to the importance of the issues, we face-particularly with water and infrastructure-we plan to hold another retreat in six months to maintain momentum.
The water meter audit is nearing completion. We have identified several critical issues: meters not being billed, multiple connections tied to a single meter and incorrectly sized meters. All these findings are currently being corrected. This effort has been extremely valuable and will directly impact reducing water loss and improving accountability.
The Roadrunner Lift Station rehab planning is underway.  We met with engineers from EMI and are scheduled for pump-down and a full inspection (this Tuesday). This will help determine the scope of work needed to restore proper function.
The Mayor met with Georgia DOT to discuss the progress on the sidewalk project.
A meeting was scheduled with the Tennessee Valley Authority, but TVA did not attend. The follow-up emails and calls have not received a response. We will continue to pursue communication, as this coordination remains important to our water system operations.
Work has begun on the city’s Comprehensive Plan. The Georgia Mountains Regional Commission is expected to assist. Mailers and outreach materials are pending. 
Banners celebrating America’s 250th Birthday have been installed throughout the city. This project was funded by the county.
The new Italian restaurant is scheduled to open this week on Thursday. The Mayor encourages everyone to go out and support them.
We currently have one incubator space still available and are actively seeking a tenant.
In closing, the Mayor stated that we continue to make progress across multiple fronts. Challenges remain, particularly in infrastructure, our direction is clear, and our commitment is strong.
Number three on the agenda is GIRMA Property & Causality insurance invoice.  The invoice for is for $76,656.00 and will be split between funds. This will be placed on the consent agenda for the May 5, 2026, Council Meeting.
Next is the Water rate change discussion. The water rate change was discussed at the retreat. The residential customers will pay less and receive 800 more gallons of water, going from 1200 gallons to 2000 gallons. Those customers that use more will pay more. It will go to a tiered system. They have not gotten to the sewer survey at this time, but it is coming.
We are still getting bids on the new truck for the water department. It looks like around $79,000.00 for truck with beds.  This will come from the capital budget for Water in the FY26-27 budget year.
A jetter/mudvac quote came in at $228,000.00. This is too much. A jetter that we can use is about $30,000.00 and a mudvac is $69,000.00. We are still getting quotes and should know more soon.
Replacement of the Wastewater filters, rehab is an immediate need to avert plant failure. They are 5-7 years past life expectancy right now. The control panel is obsolete. This is an operational risk and needs to be taken care of now. The price for all of this is $302,000.00. If this goes down, we cannot treat sewer. We need to order now because we do not know how long it will take to get it in. This will get us to where we need to be.
Zone meters are being put in through town.  They are not to exceed $15,000.00. This will help us locate where there are leaks and where we are losing water.
The Council will be asked to set a price for the Wine Bar license. The fee for the brew pub is $1250.00 and should probably be the same.
Council will be asked to appoint Alex King to the DDA Board.
FY 25-26 Budget amendment – Shook House proceeds- We need to decide how to allocate the last of the proceeds which is around $140,000.00. Andrea Bell thought $30,000.00 should go to the jetter and the rest to infrastructure. Scott Benton thought that $100,000.00 should go to infrastructure with the remaining $40,000.00 going to the Berrong House for restoration in memorial of the Shook family who donated the house to the city.
EMI has offered to conduct a comprehensive salary survey for the city with a cost not to exceed $7,500.00. This will be on the agenda for the May 5, 2026, Council Meeting.
The Roadrunner lift station rehab begins tomorrow, Tuesday, April 28, 2026.  The lift station will be drained and visually evaluated to determine what needs to be done to make it operational again.  This should alleviate the odor, which was the reason it was shutdown.
At the retreat it was suggested that additional printers were needed; One to replace an outdated black and white printer in the Courtroom and 2 color printers; One for Sheryl’s office and one for the main office (near HR and Clerk’s offices. This will provide security as the main printer is in an open area, The company that supplies the copiers has quoted a price of $3085.00 for all three and the monthly fee will cover the upkeep (ink, toner, etc.)
City Attorney Thomas Mitchell address various Ordinance changes – Our business license ordinance does not allow us to suspend a license due to violations. The Texaco had violations last week and were open again within an hour. We can change the wording so we can suspend their business license due to violations. It will require that a hearing be granted within 10 days. It might be possible to utilize the Planning Committee to function as the hearing board. The other ordinance is the Elevation ordinance. The city cannot guarantee to provide water to higher elevations. This should be noted in the development review process. This would shift the infrastructure responsibility to the developer by ordinance. Atty Mitchell can have something drawn up by the Work Session next month.
Public Comment – LaJean Turner asked about the legitimacy of the billboard sign. Mr. Mitchell said that it was started before the new sign ordinance moratorium. We would be liable for a lawsuit that we would lose under the first amendment because the Bojangles sign was allowed under the previous administration. 
Preston Haliburton stated that the DOT could complete the expansion without moving a lift station. They do not even know for sure which entrance they will use. Mayor Chastain said that he would relay this to DOT at their next meeting.
No need to go into executive session. 
Motion to adjourn was made 1st by Jonathan Wilson and 2nd by Nancy Noblet with all I favor.
Meeting was adjourned at 6:47 pm.