Dear Friends: I love the holiday season. From Thanksgiving through Christmas and into the New Year, I enjoy the great football on TV, the abundance of wonderful cooking and the richness of time spent with family and close friends. It is also a time I spend with my thoughts about the past year and the future. Looking back over nine years as Commissioner of District 1, I have to say 2011 has been my most challenging year. 2011 began following a troubling end to 2010 when several members of the commission wanted to replace the county manager but decided better of it after they were chastened by prominent leaders in the community. I fully supported the County manager then, as I do now. The economy throughout 2011 has been anything but smooth for all of us. The economic decline that hit our nation in 2007 has manifested itself deeply in the county's 2011 and 2012 budgets. In a county where revenue is provided by residential and commercial property taxes, the effects of a stalled national economy are devastating. (The property tax net digest dropped $2,564,357,223 between 2008 and 2011. That's 9.29%). The period leading up to the commission's vote on the budget and millage adjustment proved to be an emotional and nerve-wracking experience for this commissioner. It was a time of examining the budget in great detail, listening to the citizens, weighing the options and then making the best decision for the common good. It is important to remember some of the actions we took during the years leading-up to the millage rate increase: The county initiated a hiring freeze in 2007. Merit raises were halted in 2008. We imposed budget reductions of $19.8mm in December 2008; $5.4mm in March 2009; $8.0mm in January 2010; and $20.0mm in April 2011. In September 2009 we privatized solid waste for a cost reduction of $5.0mm per year. And, in 2010 we exercised an early retirement program which yielded $6.0mm savings per year. During that same period, the number of employees dropped by 372, or about 8%. I voted for all of the above and personally participated in the five furlough days. With the county's debt service and fire funds on empty; with most citizens critical of the closure of facilities and opposing any reduction in county sponsored programs; with 60% of the phone calls and e-mails to my office supportive of a millage rate increase and the fact that 75% of the taxable parcels in my district received a reduction in their assessed values (thus, an increase in the millage rate would not result in significant increase to their tax bill), I voted in favor of the increase in the millage rate. It was a very difficult decision that was not taken lightly. Although the action will protect our quality of life over the long run, it has been painful to bear the criticism from some corners. Other topics I’ve pondered at random have included: Cobb Employees: Dedicated and skilled individuals; very customer and service oriented. The best! Cities: Cooperation between the cities and the county is at an all-time high. There have been joint efforts in the remediation of the effects of the devastating floods of 2009 and joint SPLOST roadway projects that benefit all citizens. Airport: Third busiest in the State despite being limited to smaller aircraft in an effort to protect surrounding communities. Cumberland and Town Center CID’s: I look at them as major economic engines that have self-taxing powers to leverage monies for improvements within their boundaries. Colleagues on BOC: I’m noticing some tendency to spell “TEAM” with an “I”. Tim Lee: The Chairman has been confronted with difficult economic issues such as the budget and TSPLOST during his entire 1st year. Somehow, he continues to smile. KSU: Another economic engine for the county; the third largest school in the university system. I have had the pleasure of working with the university and surrounding neighborhoods to address growth and quality of life issues. Chattahoochee Tech: Offers an important alternative to a four year degree and provides skill sets needed by companies in the area. Economic Development: A program to attract and retain businesses in our county, it is an increasingly critical element of our future growth and fiscal stability. Wellstar: A growing conglomerate of world class healthcare professionals. An important player in Cobb's future. Public Safety: Cobb County’s #1 priority. Ours is nationally recognized as superior. Library System: Advocates have a strong voice as evidenced during the budget talks. DOT: County department that is not funded adequately. Relies too heavily on SPLOSTS. Parks & Recreation: The county department that makes the best use of volunteers. Community Development: There has been a slight increase in the number of building permits issued for single family residences in 2011. Hopefully the trend will continue for 2012, Senior Services: Despite a slight reduction in facilities, services provided for Cobb Seniors are hard to beat. Water System: Cobb County's only enterprise fund, allowing for one of the lowest water and sewer rates in the region and sufficient treatment capacity for decades into the future. Chickens: I support the 2 acre minimum lot size requirement for raising livestock. MDJ: I Read it every morning. Cobb EMC: Glad to see the restructuring and transparency that is taking place. Congestion: Less noticeable with the downturn in the economy. We have much work to do in improving our roads and interchanges. As employment improves, congestion will worsen. Para-transit: Great service for our citizens, but due to lack of funding, the county is sometimes unable to keep up with all of the requests. Georgia Legislature: Needs to be sensitive to the impact of unfunded mandates and balancing the state budget on the backs of the local governments. Cooper: My dog. I feed him. He loves me. Economy: The economy has not yet stabilized. We still haven’t seen the bottoming-out of home values. Employment will be slow to recover. Unemployment: I do not believe the national unemployment figures reflect those individuals that are underemployed and those that have simply given up. A terrible situation. Commercial Development: What commercial development? Inventory is too large at this point. Strip centers are dead. Our cities are suffering badly. Citizens Oversight Committee: Has provided the county with useful suggestions to the 2011 budget and hopefully will provide insight in improved ways of doing business for the future. Transportation Investment Act of 2010: The TIA or T-SPLOST has been a news maker for the last quarter of this year. As I discussed with Otis Brumby Jr. back in November, I am a supporter of some form of mass transit for the future well-being of our county. That being said, I feel the legislation that created this animal was not well thought out, was rushed through the legislature and dumped into the laps of the local governments. There is no real plan and creating the governance for a regional transportation system after the fact is unacceptable. Perhaps this legislation needs to be re-visited in the upcoming legislative session. It might be a good time to press the “pause” button until more thorough planning has been done. That’s all I have, for now. I look forward to continuing my work as Cobb’s District 1 Commissioner in 2012. It has been an honor to be of service and you have my word I will continue to serve with complete honesty and integrity. I hope all of you have a Happy and Healthy New Year! Helen |