Town Council Meeting

TYRONE TOWN COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES October 16, 2025 at 7:00 PM Eric Dial, Mayor Gloria Furr, Mayor Pro Tem, Post 4 Jessica Whelan, Post 1 Brandon Perkins, Town Manager Dia Hunter, Post 2 Dee Baker, Town Clerk Billy Campbell, Post 3 Dennis Davenport, Town Attorney Also present: Sandy Beach, Finance Manager Randy Mundy, Police Chief Philip Nelson, Major Eric DeLoose, Captain Doug Morris, Corporal Terry Noble, Planning Commissioner I. CALL TO ORDER II. INVOCATION III. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE IV. PUBLIC COMMENTS: Comments are limited to three (3) minutes. Please state your name & address. Comments that require a response may not be answered during this time. The Council or staff may respond at a later date. Police Chief Randy Mundy introduced everyone to the newly promoted Sergeants, Doug Morris and Cody Clark (not in attendance). Their new positions would go into effect for the new pay period. Everyone congratulated the former Corporals on their new positions. Sergeant Morris thanked Council and shared that it was a privilege to work for the Town. Mayor Dial recognized almost Council Candidate (Unopposed) Maureen Wheeler and Planning Commissioner Terry Noble in the audience. V. APPROVAL OF AGENDA A motion was made to approve the agenda. Motion made by Council Member Campbell, Seconded by Council Member Whelan. Voting Yea: Council Member Campbell, Council Member Furr, Council Member Whelan. Town Council Meeting Page 1 of 7 October 16, 2025 VI. CONSENT AGENDA: All matters listed under this item are considered to be routine by the Town Council and will be enacted by one motion. There will not be separate discussion of these items. If discussion is desired, that item will be removed from the consent agenda and will be considered separately. 1. Approval of October 2, 2025, minutes. 2. Approval to designate Town assets as surplus property. A motion was made to approve the consent agenda. Motion made by Council Member Whelan, Seconded by Council Member Furr. Voting Yea: Council Member Campbell, Council Member Furr, Council Member Whelan. VII. PRESENTATIONS VIII. PUBLIC HEARINGS 3. A Public Hearing for the Proposed 2025 Millage Rate to Remain at 2.889. - Brandon Perkins, Town Manager Mr. Perkins reviewed the presentation and explained that the Town’s millage rate was 2.889 mills, and the Town would receive $2.889 for every $1,000 of assessed value of property taxes. This revenue helps the Town provide police services, pave roads, maintain parks, and pay staff. He shared that the Town’s millage rate had remained the same for 17 years. He added that property taxes usually accounted for 2/3 of the General Fund, Tyrone’s was currently at 15.46%. He reported that Tyrone’s millage rate was one of the lowest in the area and the State. Among those in the area, Senoia was at 4.806 mills, Peachtree City was 5.844, Fairburn was 8.1, and Chattahoochee Hills was 8.2. The comparison on a $545,000 home, Tyrone would bring in $606.69 of municipal tax funds. The state average was $1,362.06. He stated that, compared to other cities, Tyrone’s taxes were slightly higher, however, our municipal tax was the lowest (Brooks did not have the services Tyrone does). When receiving your tax bill, the Board of Education mills (amount) were the highest, County taxes were next, the percentages for Fire/EMS were next, then E911 was the least. He then broke down Tyrone tax percentages for every dollar the Town received for your tax bill, Court had the lowest percentage at $0.02, Finance $0.03, Planning $0.05, Leisure Services $0.07, Administration $0.10, Police $0.20, and Public Works $0.52. Public Works was higher this year due to the Pendleton Dam project, which inflated the budget (a grant was received). Mr. Perkins then moved to how House Bill 581 would impact the Town’s revenue. He added that he had mentioned HB 581 at many Council meetings, and that it was doing what it was designed to do. It reduces the appraised value growth of homestead properties, which reduces the millage rate’s impact on those properties. Page 2 of 7 The average growth rate over the last four years averaged 8.99%; this year, it grew by 1.82%. Mr. Perkins stated that there were other factors involved. He explained that the tax digest was the total taxable property value. Slow digest growth plus low millage equaled revenues increasing slowly and costs rising faster. He shared that the equation for 1 mill in Fayette County equaled $10.5 million, in Peachtree City $4 million, Fayetteville $1.8 million, and Tyrone was $709,000. He explained that our revenue had not kept up with the rate of inflation. He shared that $1 today buys about what $.67 bought in 2008 when the Town’s millage was last adjusted. Mr. Perkins shared that the Fayette County Development Authority and the County Cities joined with Georgia Tech for an economic study. It was found that any Tyrone home valued below $502,412 did not cover the cost of its services (public safety, public works, etc.). He added that for every tax dollar received for residential property, the Town paid $1.15 for services. For every dollar of commercial property tax revenue the Town collected, it would pay $0.88 in services. For farming and agricultural, the Town would spend $2.08. The Town pays a difference of $219,449.06 in services. He added that 55% of Tyrone’s residents are below the $502,412 home value. Mr. Perkins shared many concerns he had for the future, among them the rising personnel costs, slow digest growth, inflation, and maintenance costs. We cannot keep relying on reserves to balance the budget. Tyrone has operated on a lean budget; the next step would be to decrease services. This year’s Public Safety budget was $2.6 million, Personnel was $4.2 million, and the property tax revenue was $2 million. He added that a millage rate increase had to be considered in the future to ensure sustainability of services. Mr. Perkins gave examples of the cost of Tyrone’s personnel, in 2020 personnel costs were $2.38 million, in 2026 $4.82 million. The U.W. Median wage for full-time employees this year was $65,416; Tyrone’s was $59,945. We are not overpaying our employees, and we are not overstaffed. Other factors, the cost of asphalt per ton increased by 39%, crack seal increased by 15%, and roadway striping by 52%. He added that if Council considered a 1 mill increase, the revenue would increase from $2.04 million to $2.75 million, 2 mills $3.4 million, and the state average at 6.486 mills would gain $4.6 million of tax revenue. As a prospective, the staff pulled $3.9 million from reserves this year to balance the budget, which equates to 8 mills, including 2.889 (5.49). He added that during the budget preparation for next year, he would meet with Council regarding how to move forward. Staff recommended for this year maintaining the 2.889 mills, but moving forward, he would suggest making changes. Council Member Campbell inquired about unassigned funds. Mr. Perkins stated that when Council approved the budget in July, $3 million was pulled from the reserves which was 50%. Next year, the bulk of the Public Works budget will be lower as the Pendleton Dam project will be off the books. Page 3 of 7  Next year he stated that he would create the method most used by cities. Begin with the estimated revenue, then minus the property taxes, then figure out what the gap would be, and the actual millage rate would be without dipping into reserves. He stated that it would be a large number, but we could work backward to see what could be comparable. He suggested incremental increasing the millage until we get to a goal. Mayor Dial also suggested perhaps raising the millage rate but also offset the homestead exemption so the property owner would get the reduction in cost. Mr. Perkins stated that Peachtree City was going through a similar process currently, and that it would take a vote from the citizens. Mayor Dial opened the public hearing for anyone who wished to speak in favor of the proposed 2025 millage rate of 2.889. No one spoke. Mayor Dial asked if anyone wished to speak in opposition to come forward. No one spoke. Mayor Dial closed the public hearing. 4. Consideration of a rezoning petition from applicant Tyler Childs for an approximate 3.33-acre tract with parcel number 0738-167 at property address 285 Briarwood Road from AR (Agricultural Residential) to R-18 (1-acre 1,800 s.f. min home). Phillip Trocquet, Assistant Town Manager Mr. Trocquet stated that applicant Tyler Childes applied for a rezoning from a parent tract that came before Council in the past. The purpose of the rezoning is to have more flexibility for the classification. He stated that according to his assessment, the rezoning was suitable and would not negatively affect the surrounding properties. The Planning Commission recommended approval, staff did also. Council Member Campbell inquired about the surrounding zoning. Mr. Trocquet stated that the property was surrounded by mostly AR and R-12. Council Member Campbell asked if the home would be built to be rental property. Mr. Trocquet stated that he was not aware but that if it was built for that purpose, it would have to be registered as such, including registering for a possible short-term rental. Mr. Trocquet asked if there were short-term rentals near the property. Mr. Perkins stated that he believed there was a registered short-term rental near the property. Council Member Furr asked why the property owner would want to rezone if most of the surrounding properties were zoned AR. Mr. Trocquet clarified that it was common practice because it gave property owners more flexibility for construction on a smaller lot as AR is usually 3 acres and R-18 is normally 1 acre. Mayor Dial opened the public hearing for anyone who wished to speak in favor of the rezoning petition for the 3.33-acre tract located at 285 Briarwood Road from AR to R-18. Page 4 of 7  Mayor Dial asked if anyone wished to speak in opposition to the item to come forward. A motion was made to approve the rezoning request from Tyler Childs for the approximate 3.33-acre tract with parcel number 0738-167 located at 285 Briarwood Road from AR (Agricultural Residential) to R-18 (1-acre 1,800 s.f. min home). Motion made by Council Member Campbell, Seconded by Council Member Furr. Voting Yea: Council Member Campbell, Council Member Furr, Council Member Whelan. IX. OLD BUSINESS 5. Consideration to approve Change Order 1 for PW-2022-14, the Handley Park Public Works Building Project regarding adding 75 calendar days to the contracted time for Substantial Completion and adding $3,900.00 to the project cost. Scott Langford, PE Public Works Director and Town Engineer Mr. Langford shared that construction began in April, and due to additional rain delays, unsuitable soil, and third-party vendor delays, the Corbett Group has requested an additional 75 days for the completion of the project. The original date of completion was September 20, 2025; the new date would be December 4, 2025. He added that the associated cost would be $13,900, which would be funded by $10,000 that was already in the contract as Special Allowance and the remaining $3,900 from Change Order 1. If approved, the change order would still be under the Fiscal Year 2026 budget for the project. Council Member Campbell asked for clarification regarding the $13,900. The unsuitable soil was part of the original restroom relocation to the project. Why would the Town be charged for items of that nature? Mr. Langford explained that there were many factors involved, one of which was that most of the $4,200 went toward the electrical work, which was not part of the initial project. The $3,900 of the $4,200 would have been in the new building if the restroom had stayed in the new building. Other items, such as cutting into the concrete floor and a value, played a part too. Council Member Campbell asked if the $10,000 was a special line item in the budget for the project. Mr. Langford explained that amounts such as that were in every project to keep the project moving, avoiding the time it would take to come to a Council meeting for approval. Council Member Campbell wanted clarification that $13,900 was budgeted. Mr. Langford stated that yes, the original project was for $710,000 and was awarded $672,350. He added that the change order for $3,900, along with the already budgeted $10,000 brought the total to $676,250, making the project $33,750 under budget. Mayor Dial asked why would staff come to Council for such a low amount. Mr. Trocquet explained that it was a contract amendment. Council Member Whelan asked if, due to the delays, would the building completion would take an additional 49 days. Mr. Langford explained that they asked for 90 days, but that it took an additional 49 days for the weather. Page 5 of 7  A motion was made to approve Change Order 1 for PW-2022-14, the Handley Park Public Works Building Project, to add 75 calendar days to the contracted time for Substantial Completion and add $3,900 to the project cost. Motion made by Council Member Whelan, Seconded by Council Member Campbell. Voting Yea: Council Member Campbell, Council Member Furr, Council Member Whelan. X. NEW BUSINESS XI. PUBLIC COMMENTS: The second public comment period is for any issue. Comments are limited to three (3) minutes. Please state your name & address. Comments that require a response may not be answered during this time. The Council or staff may respond at a later date. XII. STAFF COMMENTS Mr. Trocquet shared that Cherish Mitchell, our new Code Enforcement Office, had started on Monday and that she had a scheduled chorus event with her children. Mr. Trocquet gave Ms. Mitchell a shoutout for assisting in resolving issues with a home in Southampton that was a source of contention with residents at the last Council meeting. Mr. Perkins announced that Tuesday morning at 9:00 a.m. would be the second millage public hearing and that the 23rd at 6:00 p.m. would be the third, and that same evening the millage adoption would be at 6:30 p.m. Ms. Baker announced that early voting had opened on Tuesday at Town Hall and the hours were 9:00 am to 5:00 pm through October 31st, including two Saturdays. Most of Tyrone would be voting at the library this year on Election Day, November 4th. She added that the count so far in Tyrone, which included other neighboring residents voting, was approximately 270. XIII. COUNCIL COMMENTS Council Member Campbell inquired about progress for the emergency exit within Shamrock Industrial Park. Mr. Trocquet explained that the Cresswind HOA had the contract and should present it to their board soon. Council Member Whelan asked staff and Council to investigate more funding sources other than property taxes such as working with other cities for road stripping or a TSPLOST. However, a TSPLOST was on the radar for discussion. Mayor Dial stated that our revenue will need to be a new potpourri of thoughts. The flexibility of property taxes has been taken away with HB581. Mr. Perkins stated that he just completed a GMA revenue certificate program and what the Town needs to look at is raising the Occupational Tax fees. Page 6 of 7 XIV. EXECUTIVE SESSION A motion was made to move into Executive Session for one personnel item and one item of real estate. Motion made by Council Member Campbell, Seconded by Council Member Whelan. Voting Yea: Council Member Campbell, Council Member Furr, Council Member Whelan. A motion was made to reconvene. Motion made by Council Member Campbell, Seconded by Council Member Whelan. Voting Yea: Council Member Campbell, Council Member Furr, Council Member Whelan XV. ADJOURNMENT A motion was made to adjourn. Motion made by Council Member Whelan. Voting Yea: Council Member Campbell, Council Member Furr, Council Member Whelan. The meeting adjourned at 9:22 p.m. By: Attest: Eric Dial, Mayor Dee Baker, Town Clerk Page 7 of 7