Dalton’s Independence Day fireworks show at Heritage Point Park is typically the highlight of the city’s celebration.
The City Council voted 4-0 Monday night to approve a $30,000 contract with Pyrotechnico of New Castle, Pennsylvania, for a Fourth of July fireworks show. Mayor Annalee Harlan Sams typically votes only when there is a tie.
Council member Steve Farrow asked if, after the John Davis Recreation Center renovations are complete, the fireworks could be brought back to James Brown Park, where the rec center is located.
“It’s more a part of the city than out on the bypass, and it’s got all these ways to get in and out instead of just one way in and out,” he said.
Parks and Recreation Department Director Caitlin Sharpe said the Independence Day festivities could be brought back to James Brown Park.
“We need a specific size (of property) to shoot the shell sizes that we have,” she said. “But we are not far from the (North Georgia Agricultural) Fairgrounds, and there has been a conversation about potentially using that area to fire off the fireworks.”
“Hearing stories about shooting the fireworks off at the rec department, I don’t think the fire department would let us do that anymore,” she said. “But we could get it very close at the fairgrounds.”
The council members also voted 4-0 to:
• Transfer the tennis courts at Dalton High School to Dalton Public Schools.
“The school system is prepared to renovate the courts,” said City Administrator Andrew Parker. “We don’t offer any recreation department programming on the courts. They are exclusively used by the school system.”
Parker said there was a concern that people who live near the courts may use them. He said the school system is willing to accept a deed encumbrance allowing the public to use the courts when they are not being used by the schools.
• Approve an agreement with BION Security of Dacula to help the information technology department deploy networking equipment in keeping with best practices in security. The cost of the agreement will not exceed $19,000.
• Approve a $16,000 agreement with InterDev of Roswell for professional services in support of the city’s information technology and geographic information systems.
• Approve an $8,496 agreement with Threatlocker of Orlando, Florida, for software to help the city audit its data storage systems.
• Approve a $3,750 agreement with The Arbitrage Group, which has offices across the nation, for rebate calculation for Dalton Building Authority revenue bonds issued in 2021 and 2022. This is part of the city’s due diligence on those bonds.
• Approve a memorandum of understanding with the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency to receive a cybersecurity grant.
• Dissolve three inactive boards: the Animal Control Board, the Building Code Appeals Board and the Grievance Committee.
“We have already started preliminary discussions with (Whitfield County) to adopt a unified animal control ordinance similar to our unified zoning ordinance,” said Parker.
He said once that is done the city and county will likely appoint a joint board to oversee animal control.
He said the county has assigned responsibility for building code appeals to the Board of Zoning Appeals, “which is a very active board that the city and county make appointments to.”
The city will now also delegate that authority to the Board of Zoning Appeals.
Parker said “only a very small percentage of our employees are eligible for grievance hearings.”
“The charter and the employee manual already provide for certain types of grievances to be heard by other entities of the city, such as the (Public Safety Commission) or the City Council or staff.”