PERRY, Ga. — At the Tuesday meeting of mayor and council, City Manager Lee Gilmour presented a pin to City Clerk Annie Warren in honor of her 15 years of service to the City of Perry. Gilmour said he has seen Warren always strive to become more advanced in her field while representing the city in an honorable way.
“I know mayor and council are very familiar with all of the various tasks and everything that Ms. Warren takes care of for them,” Gilmour said. “It’s a very demanding process, short timeframes you have to deal with…In addition to that, Annie has demonstrated a continuing interest to become more professional, more advanced and just develop her whole field and be a very excellent representative for the city — not only in Perry, but also her active membership in the Municipal Clerks Association for Georgia and a number of other activities like that.”
Warren addressed mayor and council following the remarks from Gilmour.
“I just want to say ‘thank you’ to mayor and council for having the confidence for keeping me on for 15 years — and thank you very much,” Warren said.
Assistant City Manager Robert Smith said the city submitted a grant application on Friday, June 3, requesting $2.5 million in funding to complete various projects associated with the South Downtown Perry Gateway Project, including: parking, the completion of Legacy Park, improvements to Main and Carroll streets and signage among other things.
Council unanimously approved a resolution calling for an organization-wide credit limit increase from $150,000 to $250,000. It would also designate persons of power to make changes to the P-Card program, and those people would include the finance director, city manager, assistant city manager and director of administration.
The building across Washington Street from city hall will eventually be a Filipino cuisine restaurant. The owners, Keith and Mary Wilcots, came forward at the meeting to make the announcement, saying they plan to be up and running near the end of September but will make more announcements related to the opening as that time comes closer.
Community Planner Holly Wharton came forward and spoke through some rezoning requests and a special exception application.
Wharton advised council on a rezoning request for the property at 1829 Macon Road from M-2, General Industrial to C-2, General Commercial.
Next came a special exception application to potentially allow a multi-family development at 200 and 200A Valley Drive. Wharton said this would meet the standards for a special exception, and staff and Planning Commission recommended approval. Council later unanimously accepted the special exception request.
“In total, the applicant is proposing 162 new market-rate apartment units that will be developed within the existing buildings; it would include a mix of studio and one-bedroom apartments,” she said. “The applicant has provided a preliminary concept design, and that includes a common area for tenants and on-site amenities. They are also proposing to reserve the Green Derby Restaurant for future restaurant use as well.”
She mentioned there had been a rezoning request for the property at 1824 Houston Lake Road and 1904 Hwy. 127 to be changed from R-AG, Residential Agricultural District to PUD, Planned Unit Development.
“The applicant is proposing a mixture of commercial and single-family detached and attached residential uses within the PUD — and the design of the PUD reflects a neotraditional neighborhood that would typically be developed under a form-based code,” Wharton said. “The proposal calls for 45,000 square feet of commercial space in a mixed-use center at the main entrance, which aligns with the intersection of Lake Joy Road and Houston Lake Road. A total of 284 dwelling units — those will include 119 rear-loaded townhouse units, 86 front-loaded single-family detached units and 79 rear-loaded single-family detached units.”
Council unanimously approved a purchase and sale agreement for the city to acquire 1524 Houston Lake Road for the price of $38,000.
Police Chief Steve Lynn introduced the department’s new part-time logistics technician, Devin McCracken. Lynn said McCracken brings along a wealth of experience, including his service with JSTARS at Robins Air Force Base and a bachelor of science degree in technology from Bowling Green State University.
The next council meeting will take place on Tuesday, June 21, with the pre-council meeting starting at 5 p.m. and the official council meeting at 6 p.m.
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