County

Coweta adds 2 officers to elementary schools

A March 19 request by Coweta County Sheriff Mike Yeager led to the unanimous approval by the Coweta County Commission to provide half-funding for two additional school resource officers (SRO) to provide support in the elementary schools in the unincorporated areas.

Sheriff Mike Yeager told commissioners the need for additional school resource officers came at the request of the school system after the recent school shooting in Connecticut. Read More»

Despite past opposition, commissioners OK West Bypass

It came with a significant caveat, but the Fayette County Commission on March 14 voted to complete the construction on Phase 2 of the West Fayetteville Bypass.

The irony is that all five commissioners have vehemently opposed what each previously called “the road to nowhere” at one time or another during the past three years. Read More»

Ex-Commissioner Horgan’s ethics charge against Brown goes down, 2-1

An ethics complaint filed by former Fayette County Commissioner Robert Horgan against commission Chairman Steve Brown over an investigation into former county attorney’s missing computer was dismissed last week by the Fayette County Ethics Commission on a 2-1 vote. Read More»

Fayette tells legislature to back off on T-SPLOST penalty

The regional 1-cent sales tax for transportation (TSPLOST) projects referendum was handily defeated last year by voters in the 10-county Atlanta Regional Commission area.

But because the vote failed, it triggered a penalty provision in the law that requires an increase in the local share for transportation projects that also receive state dollars.

The Fayette County Commission on March 15 voted unanimously to support having the penalty rescinded by the state legislature. Read More»

Commission thanks Master Gardeners

Commission thanks Master Gardeners

Fayette County Extension Service representative Kim Jackson provided comments on Master Gardener Extension Volunteer Appreciation Day at the March 14 meeting of the Fayette County Commission. Picture, from left, are commissioners Charles Oddo, David Barlow, Randy Ognio, Steve Brown and Allen McCarty. Photo/Ben Nelms.

Coweta DFCS receives approval for alternate emergency site

The Coweta County Dept. of Family and Children Services (DFCS) got approval last week from the Coweta County Commission to establish an alternate facility at the Coweta County Fairgrounds and Conference Center in the event of a natural disaster or other emergency.

Commissioners by a unanimous vote agreed to the DFCS request after receiving a recommendation from county staff. The approval noted that the use of the fairgrounds would come if the local DFCS facility is rendered unusable by an emergency or natural disaster. The agreement covers calendar years 2013 and 2014. Read More»

Commission to vote on Phase 2 of bypass all 5 have opposed

The 2013 Fayette County Commission. (L-R) David Barlow, Steve Brown, Randy Ognio, Charles Oddo and Allen McCarty. Photo/Ben Nelms.

An effort to stop the second phase of the West Fayetteville Bypass in its tracks is not possible because terminating construction contracts would leave the county susceptible to lawsuits, according to Fayette County Commission Chairman Steve Brown.

In a memo to his fellow commissioners, all of whom have opposed the bypass, Brown notes that the majority of the work on the remainder of the second phase — from Eastin Road to Ga. Highway 92 — is complete. Read More»

Pinewood Studios project gets planners’ OK

How ‘Drop Dead Diva,’ noisy airplanes and a last-minute flight led to a multi-million-dollar project for Fayette

“We haven’t seen a project like this in a long time, if ever,” Matt Forshee of the Fayette County Development Authority told the county Planning Commission March 7. Read More»

Fayette chairman warns of ‘budget crackdown’

Fayette County Commission Chairman Steve Brown in an undated file photo.

‘Everything is on the table, including furloughs.’ — Chairman Steve Brown

Employee furloughs are a possibility as Fayette County government deals with cost increases in liability insurance and other categories, according to County Commission Chairman Steve Brown.

With the new five-member commission averse to a property tax increase, there will be a scouring of the county budget, and Brown recently sent a letter to all county employees in which he implores department heads, chiefs and constitutional officers to crack down on spending. Read More»

Fayette eliminates 21 vacancies to recoup retirement savings promise

Fayette County Administrator Steve Rapson. File photo.

County replaced 22 of 32 employees who retired in June

Fayette County’s new county administrator last week eliminated 21 vacant positions across various county departments to create the nearly $2 million savings projected by the use last year of an early retirement program for county employees.

Steve Rapson said he was surprised to learn that the county had hired 22 new employees to take the place of the departing 32 employees, which stood to wipe out a significant chunk of the projected savings from the early retirement program. Read More»