08-15-1983 Regular MeetingAugust 15, 1983
The regular scheduled meeting of Mayor and Council was held August 15, 1983 at Smyrna
_ City Hall. The meeting was called to order at 7:30 o'clock p.m. by presiding officer
Mayor Arthur T. Bacon. All Council members were present except for Jim Tolleson who
was out of town. Also present was City Attorney Charles E. Camp, City Clerk Willouise
Spivey, Police Chief R. E. Little, Acting Fire Chief Hubert Cochran, Public Works
Director Jim David, Parks & Recreation Director Sherry Reavis, Building Inspector
Larry Dunn, Civil Defense Deputy Director Dick O'Hara, Librarian Doris Morris and
representatives of the press.
Invocation was given by Max Bacon followed by the pledge to the flag.
Citizen Reports: Bob Arnold of 3625 Hickory Circle commended Sherry Reavis and her
staff for a job well done at the State swim meet. Everything went like clockwork,
and was well organized. The only bad comments he heard were about the directional
signs posted on poles by members of the Parks Department.
Darlene Davidson was concerned about the construction off Gann Road and wanted a
clarification from Mayor Bacon as to what he had told Charlie Jones. Mayor Bacon
advised he told him at this time he could not tap onto the sewer line, because it
was full. If, when the Sewer System Evaluation Study is completed and the Willowbrook
line replaced, it might be possible for him to tap onto our line.
Rezoning: Ed Salem requested rezoning of five (5) parcels in Highlands Industrial
_ ✓' P;rk from Office & Institutional to Light Industry. There was no opposition and Sarah
Jones made a motion the property be rezoned. Max Bacon seconded the motion which
passed 6-0.
Sue Brissey again stated that some businesses in the City were enforcing the
ordinances and some were not. Mrs. Brissey asked the cost of a 3/4" commercial water
meter and was told the cost was $870. Mrs. Brissey said the Auto Cool business on
Spring Street had not paid for their meter. Also, she wanted to know why the sign
ordinance could not be enforced. Attorney Camp read Section 6-106 concerning the
removal of signs by the City and explained the procedure.
Joe Boling was present and told Mrs. Brissey he was totally in compliance with the
ordinances of this city. At the last meeting she had accused him of flaunting his
non-compliance.
James Williams told Mrs. Brissey he felt the Council and employees of this city had
strived to please her and give her the answers she wanted and many hours had been
spent on her requests.
Hearing: H. G. Hand was present to appeal the decision of Recorder's Court. Mr.
Hand, Officer Willix and four other witnesses were sworn in by Attorney Camp. Mr.
Hand said he was involved in an accident, and at Recorder's Court held July 14th,
was found guilty .of following too close. Mr. Hand said when the accident occurred
he was traveling north on Atlanta Road.. There was some damage to the front of his
car, with extensive damage to the rear. Mr. Hand said the cars in front of his were
stopped and he also stopped 10 to 15 feet behind the car in front. He put his car
in park waiting for traffic to move when he was hit from the rear. The impact caused
him to hit the car in front, and that car in turn struck the car in front of her.
Mr. Hand said that two separate accident reports had been made for the same accident
which was not feasible and very much in error. Also, Mrs. Hession, the driver of
the car in front of him had been allowed to change her story after the first report
was made. Mr. Hand said he was not issued a citation until 3 days after the accident,
which was based on Mrs. Hession's changed story.
Mrs. Hession said the two cars in front of her had stopped and she looked into the
rear view mirror and observed Mr. Hand's car moving; it had not stopped. She was
hit from the rear and very shortly thereafter was hit again. Mrs. Hession said she
had not changed her story; after Mr. Hand was excused to get medical attention she
was questioned by Officer Willix. She never at any time after the accident amended
her story.
Mrs. McClure, the driver of the lead car, said she also was hit twice from the rear.
She had been stopped for several seconds because the cars in front of her were also
stopped. Mrs. McClure also said that Mr. Hand was the first person excused from the
scene.
Mrs. Robinson said she was struck by Mrs. Hession's car and the impact was so hard,
the front of the car went under her bumper. She also felt two jolts. When she looked
August 15, 1983 - Continued
into the rear view mirror, she noticed Mrs. Hession's car was stopped before the
impact. Before she left, she talked to Mr. Brooks to get the name of his insurance
company because since he was the last car, assumed he was at fault.
Mr. Brooks said he was following Mr. Hand and when traffic slowed down he saw Mr.
Hand hit the rear of another car. The roads were wet and when he hit his brakes his
car slid into Mr. Hand's. Mr. Brooks said he did not observe any brake lights or
parking lights on Mr. Hand's car. Mr. Brooks said he was driving a Toyota and drove
it away from the accident and did not see how he could have caused the extensive
damage to the other cars by his impact. He was originally charged with the entire
wreck until Mrs. Hession spoke up and said she was hit twice. In court he was fined
for driving too fast for conditions.
Officer Willix said the roads were very slick and the traffic heavy. Upon his arrival
he observed 5 cars, with the bumpers on the front 3 cars locked. Mr. Hand's car was
approximately 10 to 15 feet away from the car in front of him. Mr. Brooks was charged
with too fast conditions for the simple reason that the roads were wet which means
you automatically should slow down. Mr. Hand said his leg was hurt and asked to be
excused to see a doctor and have himself checked. Officer Willix said he offered
to call an ambulance, but he declined. Mr. Hand told him he was struck while sitting
still and based upon that information he went back to Mr. Brooks. Mr. Brooks told
him there were two accidents and he was told to wait until all the facts were
together. At one point, Mr. Hand got out of his car and walked around. Before
releasing him, Officer Willix stated that as it then stood, Mr. Brooks would;be
charged with the accident. When he .talked to Mrs. Hession again she said she had
felt two distinct impacts. When he went to the station to prepare the reports he
attempted to contact Mr. Hand but could not reach him. He was off for two days, but
left word with the dispatcher to contact Mr. Hand. Officer Willix said Mr. Hand was
charged with following too close and felt the accidents in front would not have
occurred if he had not been. At the time of the wreck, Mrs. Hession was the only
one who said she felt two bumps, but later on the other witnesses also said they
felt two bumps. The citation for Mr. Hand was made the same day, but they could not
contact him at the time. Officer Willix said he was convinced that Mr. Hand's car
was moving,when_.the-accident occurred and not parked, as he had stated.
After further discussion, Jim Hawkins made a motion the decision of Recorder's Court
be reversed and the fine refunded. Max Bacon seconded the motion which ended in a
3-3 tie. Voting for was Jim Hawkins, Max Bacon and Sarah Jones; opposed was Elbert
Coalson, James Williams. and Jack Shinall. Mayor Bacon ;voted for the -motion to break
the tie and reverse the decision.
Mayor Bacon called for a 5 minute recess.
Rezoning: W. S. Caswell requested rezoning of 1264 & 1286 Concord Road from Limited
Commercial to Neighborhood Shopping. There was no opposition. Mr. Caswell said there
is a flower shop at 1286 and 1264 is a vacant lot adjacent. During the show cause
hearing of June 29th it was discovered that, the flower shop was improperly zoned
and this action tonight is to correct the zoning classification. Jim Hawkins made
a motion the zoning be approved. Jack Shinall seconded the motion which carried 6-0.
Rezoning: Donald L. Robinson request rezoning of 1314 Concord Road from Future
Commercial to Limited Commercial. There was no opposition but Jim Hawkins read a
letter from Mrs. Glenn Yarborough expressing her concerns with the existing drainage
problem and the increase of water runoff after additional paving. Mrs. Robinson said
they had owned this property for 21 years and she was never aware of any drainage
problem. However, she had no intention of paving the entire back of the lot and
causing a problem with water runoff. Mr. Hawkins reminded Mrs. Robinson that a 10
foot buffer on the rear was required and she could not pave any closer than that.
Mrs. Robinson said they were going to pave the driveway and pave no more than one
half the back yard for parking. There is an existing apartment building in the rear
and Mrs. Robinson said it would either be torn down or used as future office space.
The present tenants will be moving out September 15th. Mrs. Robinson said she would
take whatever steps were necessary to control any water runoff that she might create.
Jim Hawkins made a motion the zoning be approved. Elbert Coalson seconded the motion
which carried 6-0.
Commercial Building Permits: Commercial building permits were presented by Inspec-
tor Larry Dunn and upon his recommendation, the following approved:
(1) 7-11 Store at 2539 Old Concord requested a permit for construction of a gas
island and canopy at an estimated cost of $20,000. Max Bacon made a motion the permit
be approved subject to approval of the City Engineer & Fire Marshal. Jack Shinall
seconded the motion which carried 6-0.
August 15, 1983 - Continued
There were no bids received for the South Cobb Drive repairs. Jack Shinall made a
motion bids be requested again to be opened the first meeting in September. Max Bacon
seconded the motion which carried 6-0.
Woodland Arms Sewer.. Line: Jack Shinall reported the bid had been awarded to Laslie
Construction, the low bidder at $63,082.80.
Smyrna Athletic Association requested a parade permit for their opening day on August
20th. Mayor Bacon said they should coordinate their plans with the police department.
Jack Shinall said a very informative town hall meeting had been held to discuss the
possibility of,contracting out our garbage collection. There were approximately 30
people in attendance and the consensus of those was that the City retain the service.
There has not been a final decision made but it looks as if we may retain at least
the residential portion of the service. The majority of those present also said to
raise rates if need be to bring it up to first class condition.
Millage Rate: Mayor Bacon said he thought we would reduce the millage rate but did
not know how much. Hopefully a decision will be made by the next meeting. Max Bacon
stated that due to the variation in the reassessments, ranging from 71 to 35% it
would be impossible to lower the millage so that everyone's taxes would not increase.
Some bills will be higher and some lower. Jack Shinall said he felt we should also
look at the salary study being done before a final decision is made.
#r
Jim Hawkins made a motion the stop sign on Clifton Road at Rita Way be removed due
to the request of several residents in the area. James Williams seconded the motion
which carried 6-0.
Sarah Jones made a motion that 25 mile per hour speed limit signs be posted on West
Cooper Lake Drive. Max Bacon seconded the motion which carried 6-0.
Jack Shinall made a motion the Mayor be authorized to sign a contract with the Depart-
ment of Transportation for the paving of 22 streets in the City. Jim Hawkins seconded
the motion which carried 6-0. Mayor Bacon said he wanted the• Engineering -Department
to uncover the manholes on these streets or raise them before paving.
Request for Bids: Jack Shinall made a motion that bids be requested for two new
garbage trucks to be opened at the'•next meeting. These will be the standard size
trucks where ..we should be 'able to pick up garbage and trash at --the same time: Max
Bacon seconded the motion which carried 6-0. These trucks are already in the Revenue
Sharing budget.
Jack Shinall made a motion that bids be requested for two 1/2 ton pickup trucks for
the Water Department to be opened the next meeting, and also paid from Revenue Shar-
ing. James Williams seconded the motion which carried 6-0.
Jim Hawkins said when the Community Block Grant was approved it was his understanding
that bids would be requested for curbing on McLinden Avenue, Medlin Street and
McCauley. After talking to Jim David, he learned the City would be able to handle
these projects which will begin August 24th. Therefore, there will be no need to
request bids, since the City will be doing the work and we will be reimbursed by
the County through the Block Grant.
Committee Reports: (Fire) Sarah Jones made a motion the rules be suspended to place
a motion on the floor. Jim Hawkins seconded the motion which carried 6-0.
Sarah Jones made a motion that bids be requested for 800 feet of fire hose for the
new truck and 400 feet of li inch hose, to be opened the first meeting in September.
James Williams seconded the motion which carried 6-0.
(Parks) Elbert Coalson and Max Bacon both stated the Parks staff did an outstanding
job on the Swim meet and should be commended.
Elbert Coalson said he would go into the hospital for surgery on September 8th. He
has had two people approach him about running for City Council if he decided not
to run, and after serious study had come to the conclusion that he should not run.
Mr. Coalson said he would not be able to go to the people to talk to them after his
surgery and did not feel it was right for him to run for office under those
conditions. To do so would not be doing the people of Ward 6 justice, and he felt
the people should be able to talk to the candidate and make personal contacts. Mr.
Coalson said the people had voted him in for 6 terms and he had done the best job
August 15, 1983 - Continued
he could. Elbert thanked his wife who has stood by him, ex -Mayors John Porterfield
and Frank Johnson and Mayor Bacon; also Les Charles and Willouise Spivey. Mr. Coalson
also thanked the various department heads and said this city had some of the greatest
employees ever. Mr. Coalson said until the end of this year he would be working just
as hard for his people as he ever did and wanted them to continue to call him.
Jack Shinall told Mr. Coalson that he would be missed.
(Library) Doris Morris reported on library activities.
Jim Hawkins said he wanted to clarify that his vote during the appeal was not, in
any way, meant to be a reflection on our police department but he did have a right
to his own opinion. Jim said a remark was made during the recess by someone in the
audience and he wanted to clarify his position.
Max Bacon said he had. the highest regard for Mr. Coalson and his wife, and regretted
that he would not run again.
Mayor Bacon also said he hated to see Elbert go and he still could not believe it.
Announcements: Jonquil & Church Street pools close August 22nd; Jonquil Breakfast
on August 17th at Al Fair's; Larry McDonald will have a citizens meeting on August
25th at City Hall; next council meeting September 6th.
Mayor Bacon said he would be making some committee changes by this Friday.
With no further business, meeting adjourned at 10:29 p.m.
ARTHUR T. BACON, MAYOR WILLOUISE C. SPIVEY, CIX,,t CLER
S E.
— 1� A 4�- ��� - -
MAX BACON, WARD 2
JA S—WTLLIAMS, WARD 3 JAMES M. HAWKINS;,.WARD_4
J SHINALL, WARD 5
SARAH JONES, WARD 7
TOLLESON, WARD 1
ELBERT R. COALSON, WARD 6
l)