6/1/2026 Meeting Preview
You’ll see below some of the agenda highlights for our first meeting in June. I’ve added information from the council agenda memos and background on items that may be of particular interest, along with my thoughts on those issues. You can watch our meetings on the city’s Facebook and YouTube pages. Our meetings are typically on the first and third Mondays of the month. Workshop Session begins at 6:00 pm; Regular Session begins at 7:30 pm; Executive Session, if necessary, takes place at the conclusion of the Regular Session.
You can access the full agenda packets here.
We welcome your attendance at our meetings, and public comment is available near the start of the meeting, before any actions are taken. You can speak at the meeting by signing up for public comment here, starting at 4:00 pm on the day of the meeting, or by signing up in person at City Hall starting at 4:00 pm. If you have feedback for Mayor and Council directly, you can email us.
In my preview of the November 17, 2025 meeting, I raised my concerns about the adoption of a new public comment policy that eliminated the ability for comments to be emailed and read into the record. This change was placed on the agenda the day before the meeting, leaving little opportunity for the public to weigh in on a significant shift in how we engage with our stakeholders. I continue to disagree with this decision. I cannot support initiatives that make it more difficult for people to have their voices heard.
A note on Community Enhancement Funds:
In FY 2025–26, each member of the governing body has been allocated $900,000 in community enhancement funds: $500,000 designated for capital projects and $400,000 for non-capital expenditures.
Unlike the formal budgeting process undertaken by staff, where every dollar is tied to a specific line item, my colleagues and I did not go through that level of detail when these enhancement funds were allocated. As a result, some of the items being funded through these accounts are appearing for the first time on the consent agenda without any prior public discussion.
To ensure you have a real opportunity to weigh in on how these public funds are used (especially given the recent changes to the public comment policy), I believe any community enhancement expenditure not specifically identified in the adopted budget should appear in the Regular Business section of the agenda, not the Consent Agenda.
As this fiscal year continues, I will provide updates detailing how your community enhancement dollars are being spent. You deserve to know where and how your tax dollars are being invested.
To see the latest spending information, visit How the Math is Mathing: An Ongoing Series.
Workshop Session, 6:00 p.m.
3. Leadership Clayton Class, Group 2 Presentation
"Fresh Hope: Lather & Load," is a mobile shower and laundry service concept targeting Clayton County residents experiencing homelessness and housing instability.
The proposal envisions employing a trailer-mounted unit with shower stalls and a laundry bay at scheduled locations on designated "Fresh Hope Days." Without access to showers and clean clothing, people face higher rates of skin infections, preventable ER visits, and reduced employment readiness. The three-phase launch plan targets a July 2026 pilot, a World Homeless Day activation in October, and full expansion through November's National Homelessness Awareness Month.
The CAM recommendation is simply to support the project. No financial ask from the city is requested in the documentation. This program mirrors some of the great work being done by a nonprofit in College Park, Love Beyond Walls.
4. Presentation from Director of Human Resources and Risk Management Christa Gilbert on the Citywide Classification and Compensation Study Recommendations conducted by Management Advisory Group International, Inc.
We’ve been talking a lot about receiving the results of this study and I would say that I am not surprised with the findings.
Management Advisory Group International (MAG) benchmarked College Park against 13 peer governments including Atlanta, East Point, Sandy Springs, Decatur, and all four major metro counties.
MAG found that College Park is at the 48th percentile for compensation. Roughly half of comparable governments pay their employees more. MAG also found salary compression throughout the organization: newer employees are being hired at rates close to what longer-tenured staff earn, which creates internal equity problems and retention risk.
Three implementation options are on the table. Moving our employees to the 55th percentile plan would cost $2,008,514 annually (6.9% payroll increase). The 60th percentile is projected to cost $2,728,000 (9.37%). Reaching the 65th percentile would total $3,651,299 (12.54%). All three include a 4% COLA for all 463 employees plus minimum and compression adjustments affecting varying numbers of staff. None of the figures include fringe benefits, however, so the true costs will run higher.
The budget being voted later on in the regular session already includes the 4% COLA. The open question is how to fund the minimum adjustment and compression components under whichever option Council selects.
5. Discussion on the BELOVED services funding request in the amount of $50,000.00 to launch and operate a REACH community center in College Park and to support the connected continuum of care provided through BELOVED's RESTORE residential program and enter into a Professional Services Agreement.
BELOVED is a Georgia-based nonprofit serving adult women who have experienced sex trafficking or are at risk of exploitation. The $50,000 request would come from the City Council's $100,000 Unhoused Initiative Fund and fund two programs: RESTORE (residential trauma recovery) and REACH (a new community center in College Park). The budget splits across safety operations ($12,500), clinical and case management services ($25,000), and workforce development ($12,500). In 2025, BELOVED served 38 women and delivered over 3,100 hours of services.
This proposal will be considered for action in the regular session as part of the consent agenda (Item 9B).
6. Discussion to Identify Reputable Professional Legal and Title Protection Services to Assist in Protecting Senior Homeowners from Property Title Fraud and Unauthorized Quit Claim Deed Transfers
This is an important conversation to have. Senior homestead preservation is central to neighborhood stability, and the threat is real and growing. This discussion aims to identify title monitoring services, explore real-time fraud detection tools, and consider a public awareness campaign.
There is no supporting documentation in the packet beyond the agenda memo itself. I look forward to learning more.
Regular Session, 7:30 p.m.
10. Regular Business
D. Consideration of and action on a request to approve a Resolution adopting the Fiscal Year 2026-2027 Budget.
This vote is to formally adopt our $227.4 million budget. This budget does not contemplate a millage rate increase, and includes a 4% cost of living increase for all employees.
E. Consideration of and action on a request to Rent and Set up A/V Equipment for a FIFA World Cup Watch Party in the amount of $26,000.
The city is planning to host a watch party at Badgett Stadium on June 24, 2026 for the Morocco vs. Haiti FIFA World Cup match. The $26,000 covers stage and screen rental and setup.
The agenda memo lists funding from GL #100.1100.52.6193 (Citywide Events, FY25/26). However, my understanding is that this will actually be funded from Mayoral Community Enhancement funds. I anticipate the funding source will be updated at the meeting.
F. Consideration of and action on a request to approve an Ordinance Establishing Destination Marketing Organization Requirements. This item is sponsored by Councilwoman Dr. Jamelle McKenzie.
Monday's agenda includes a vote on an ordinance establishing requirements for any organization receiving city tourism promotion dollars. The accountability provisions, including quarterly reporting, independent audits, fund separation, and a governing board seat, sound reasonable in the abstract. However, the ATL Airport District already does all of this.
The ATL Airport District receives 1.5% of our hotel-motel tax revenues on a monthly basis, per state law. They provide monthly reports to the governing body and the city manager, conduct a yearly independent audit, and have a seat on their board for one appointee from each member of the governing body. College Park has representation on the board right now. In fact, my colleague from Ward 2 was so eager to participate on the board that he nominated himself to serve. (He was also recently voted Vice Chair of BIDA, which is quite unusual for an elected official serving on that board, which is one of the reasons I did not vote in favor of that motion.)
The Airport District also does something a standalone College Park DMO cannot: it markets the region. Fairburn, South Fulton, Union City, and Hapeville are all partners. My predecessor, Mayor Jack Longino, understood that a strong region meant a strong city. Marketing as a region is how we can make a strong case for large conventions and major bookings at the GICC and Gateway Arena. Pulling College Park out of that regional identity doesn't make us more prominent. It makes us less competitive.
To be fair, there has been friction over how some of my colleagues would want to see the funds used, specifically around event funding that may not be permitted under state law governing hotel-motel tax expenditures. That is a legitimate grievance worth addressing directly. But the answer to a spending dispute is accountability and discussion, not dismantling or undermining a regional partnership that has taken years to build.
I think there is something else at play here, but time will reveal that.
Giving this matter urgency is the fact the city issued RFP 26-57 for DMO services with proposals due May 29th, while this ordinance was being drafted in parallel. Both the RFP and the ordinance have been spearheaded by my colleague in Ward 1.
I have said before that our ordinances would benefit from a first and second reading process. It exists in other municipalities for a reason: it gives the public time to weigh in and gives the governing body the time to incorporate those views and get it right before changing laws. This proposed ordinance is no exception.
*This post has been updated to clarify some of the issues around event spending.
H. Consideration of and action on a request to approve an Ordinance regarding Vacation Rental Establishment Regulations. This item is sponsored by Councilwoman Dr. Jamelle McKenzie.
Vacation rental establishments are already prohibited in every zoning district in College Park. That's been the law since 2018. Monday's ordinance adds nuisance abatement and enforcement procedures on top of that existing prohibition.
We all know, however, short term rentals are operating in College Park. Adding enforcement language to the Code only matters if we have the staff to act on it. Our entire code enforcement team could conceivably spend every shift on these types of violations alone and still not keep up.
We should have an in-depth discussion of what serious enforcement effort actually looks like (ideally in a workshop during the first reading of this ordinance). It should include the staffing levels required, budgetary projections for that staff, and how these issues will be prioritized for the code enforcement team.
It's also worth understanding what nuisance abatement authority actually means in practice. This ordinance treats each day of a continuing violation as a separate offense, meaning fines compound daily. A property ignoring notices doesn't face one penalty, it faces a growing stack of them. Pursued to its fullest extent, that debt attaches to the property as a lien, and unpaid liens can lead to foreclosure. That is significant coercive power.
Which is exactly why consistency matters. If the city selectively pursues some properties and not others, the daily fine structure amplifies that inequity just as fast as it amplifies the penalties. Getting enforcement right (i.e., fairly, systematically, and with adequate staff) isn't just good policy. Given the tools this ordinance creates, it's an obligation.
