Live: Canton City Council Work Session

During the , officials tabled a discussion about a Sunday alcohol sales referendum that would put the issue in the hands of the voters. City attorney Robert Dyer drafted a resolution that directs city clerk Coty Ervin to call such a referendum. He said that he sent it to Ervin. She said she didn't receive it. Tonight, the council will discuss the issue again.

Canton-Sixes Patch editor Rodney Thrash is at the work session. Follow his live updates on Twitter (@CantonSxesPatch), and we'll compile those messages here a few minutes later for further contemplation and comment. Click on the PDFs on this page for the complete agenda of tonight's meeting, a copy of the Sunday alcohol sales resolution and a letter from city manager Scott Wood.

7:50 p.m.: Meeting adjourned to executive session to discuss personnel.

7:48 p.m.: "Turn them on where there's a known concern," Hobgood said.

7:47 p.m.: The mayor just corrected himself. These are pedestrian lights, not streetlights.

7:43 p.m.: Hobgood on streetlights: A lot of police activity on Edwards Street. The savings in cutting street lights out was $4,000/year.

"Do we want these streetlights back on," he asked.

"If it's a safety problem," Rush said.

7:42 p.m.: Hobgood and Wood will meet with EPD director in Atlanta on Friday. "We're concerned with plant and these fines," Hobgood said. "We'll make our wastewater plant function properly."

7:40 p.m.: Mayor's report: Appoint Deborah Fincher to the Cherokee County Library Board of Trustees, wastewater treatment fines, relighting street lights and discussion of re-lighting street lights.

7:37 p.m.: Tanner thinks the city needs to draft a policy to avoid this in the future so no precedent will be set. Council member Bob Rush agrees.

7:35 p.m.: Main St. Program director Ginger Garrard apparently sent out the email, Mayor Hobgood said. There are no legal issues, Dyer said.

7:28 p.m.: Council member Pat Tanner now discusses a citizen's committee started by John Rust. The group met on May 26. "How was this function ... allowed to meet here" when it wasn't sanctioned by the city. Tanner said she doesn't want to stifle citizen participation. "If it was an independent committee meeting, how did they have access to City Hall?" A city employee apparently used their time and city email to send out an announcement about Rust's committee meeting.

7:26 p.m.: Under council introduced items: Council member Bill Bryan proposes special service rates as well as exemptions from fees and taxes for military personnel. He also proposes a special discounted garbage collection rate for them. "I'll have a bigger list (of people we should extend fee waivers to) at the next meeting," Bryan said.

7:15 p.m.: Beresford just asked for a copy of Croft's presentation. Hatabian said everyone submitted the information requested, but one of the firms offered additional information in its proposal that he thought should have been part of the bids.

7:14 p.m.: These are the bids: Mark Robillard, $30,000; Croft and Associates, $37,100; Lusk Construction, $39,100. Hatabian recommends Croft. Hatabian said the vote, which included folks from Cobb County-Marietta Water Authority, was unanimous for Croft even though it wasn't the lowest bidder.

7:10 p.m.: Dave Hatabian is discussing quotes for the reservoir manager's office and why he recommends the second lowest bidder.

7:09 p.m.: As usual, Canton Council meeting just turned nasty. Wood to Beresford: "Don't tell me who to look at."

The statement came after Beresford told him to look in his direction.

Hobgood had to bang his gavel to settle the men down.

7:04 p.m.: City manager is discussing the design of an office building at the Hickory Log Creek Reservoir.

6:43 p.m.: At the May 19 meeting, Mayor Gene Hobgood asked Dyer to give a report on the history of City Council action regarding compensation for the city council. City clerk Coty Ervin researched the minutes and found only one council meeting where compensation was discussed. At that March 4, 1993 meeting, the compensation for council members was set at “$35 per Work Session and $35 per Council Meeting, if in attendance at the meetings, not to exceed $70 per month." The compensation for the mayor was set at $250 per month.

Hobgood said: “We cannot find in the record how Mayor and City Council should be paid. The reason this was put on here was not to change, but to clear up what we’ve been doing.”

Pay is supposed to be monthly, City Attorney Dyer said then. Annually, it’s $840. There are no minutes and ordinance discussing compensation for mayor and council, Dyer said.

Hobgood wanted to instruct the city attorney to prepare ordinance to keep rates at the same level they are today.

Dyer said tonight he will prepare an ordinance.

6:38 p.m.: Pawn shop ordinance is necessary because of statewide changes involving fingerprinting and additional monitoring, city attorney Robert Dyer said. The reservoir ordinance is necessary because people are trespassing at the reservoir. Motor boats would not be allowed. The boating regulations ordinance would apply to all lakes. Canton would adopt a state law (Example: Alcohol wouldn't be allowed).

6:37 p.m.: Next up: Alcohol code revision, pawn shop ordinance, reservoir buffer ordinance and boating regulations ordinance. The council just got the ordinances today, Mayor Gene Hobgood said.

6:30 p.m.: GMA continues to discuss benefit plans. City manager Scott Wood invited them to discuss advantages of a defined benefit plan versus a defined contribution plan, which could include 401Ks. The city has a defined benefit plan, which focuses on security for employees. Defined contribution plan are focused on wealth accumulation, GMA official said.

6:24 p.m.: "We're recommending that you put in 16 percent of pay to comply with state law," GMA official said. "We do not recommend that as a long term" step.

6:21 p.m.: "Your plan is stable, solid, moving forward," GMA official said.

6:13 p.m.: "It is a very conservative funding structure," official says of Canton's benefit plan. "Your funding percentage increased from 68 to 72." ("The average in GMA is 82.")

6:11 p.m.: "Since 1965, we have grown to 285 plans," Durden said. "Most of our members are cities. The Canton plan was created Sept. 1, 1972."

6:08 p.m.: Steve Durden, of the Georgia Municipal Association, at podium now.

6:06 p.m.: It directs the clerk to call the election.

6:05 p.m.: Sunday alcohol sales resolution to call for a referendum first item under old business.

6:04 p.m.: Council member Bob Rush asked that discussion of an alcohol code revision be moved to the 1st item under old business.

6:03 p.m.: Council member Jack Goodwin is not at tonight's meeting. His son is ill and at Emory in Midtown.

6:01 p.m.: The work session is now underway. No votes will be taken at tonight's meeting. This is merely a meeting to discuss items that will come up at the June 16 council meeting.