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DUNWOODY CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL CALLED MEETING
9:30 A.M. - SITE VISIT - ETOWAH RIVER PARK PLAYGROUND
10:15 A.M. - CANTON CITY HALL – (CANTON CITY MANAGER)
EXECUTIVE SESSION - FOR THE PURPOSE OF CYBER SECURITY, LEGAL, REAL ESTATE, AND PERSONNEL DISCUSSION
RECESS
Wednesday & Thursday of this week the Dunwoody City Council and Staff will be meeting for two days to discuss high level planning topics in order to set future work topics. Council gets no read ahead documents but I am guessing many of the same topics from last year will be covered this year. The agenda published at the moment is only for Wednesday but it does include a Zoom link to watch (or maybe just listen) but I am unsure if that same link will work for Thursday too?
The retreat conversations really start at 2 pm on Wednesday in Dahlonega and I would expect the day to be done by 6 pm therefore with only four hours, I am guessing we will be talking about everything but finances. Council spends the night there and guessing we start the Thursday meeting at 8 am kicking off the topic of finances and future project funding, followed by other topics not completed on Wednesday.
These meetings are open to the public and the press, and hopefully we will have both in attendance to report on what we are discussing. There is always a slim chance that even though we plan to stream the meetings that there may be technical difficulties with the internet, therefore having in person reporters to report these events is a feather in the cap to the news agencies who cover. Last year, the Crier had a reporter there both days and probably stayed close overnight. PS: even if the streaming system were to crap out the meetings are recorded by the City Clerk and could be obtained immediately after the meeting.
Read the retreat recap document from January 2023 to see what we accomplished in 2022 but also note what we have put off or kicked down the road. In 2022 we put off a call for a General Obligation Bond for Capital Projects and a Special Tax District for Parks & Police for operational expenses. I believe both topics may be back on the retreat agenda for council to come to a consensus about possibly adding these items to the ballot in November of 2023?
Immediately below I am re-posting document links from the May 23, 2022 meeting where city finances and possible bonds were discussed.
Remember how just a few months ago I said our 2023 budget looked like an ugly baby? We need to determine the capital desires of the community and the correlating operational expenses (more parks/more maintenance expenses) vs (fully staffed Police Department at appropriate salary / benefit level is an expense we can not compromise on) with inflationary pressures on a tax digest that has limited escalating raises. Because Dunwoody was one of the first cities to break away from a County to incorporate, we were given very tight financial constraints that other newer cities do not have. 14 years after incorporation we have rising inflation, rising costs but also have a home valuation freeze, a 1 mil tax reduction that was a replacement for a credit that was given back, but the reduction stuck, and we are now at our maximum ad valorem tax rate on real property of 3.04 which by my reading of the Charter would need the approval of the Citizens to increase that general tax rate. Tough decisions & discussions on finance are coming.
No formal votes are typically taken at retreats, therefore no matter what happens at the retreat, Council will be holding public hearings or informational meetings before any final policy is enacted while at a formal city council meeting in the future.
As a young man who grew up on the Northwest side of Chicago, being raised by parents of Irish decent; I have participated in every aspect of Irish culture be it parades, music, cuisine and even Irish dancing.
Let me clear up that last statement, in case someone wants to ask me to recreate the Lord of the Dance. As a young boy, my mother would bring me, my brother and my two sisters to a basement of a home that was offering beginning Irish dancing lessons. Not sure of my age but I'm sure I was a large clumsy goofball of a kid, dancing wasn't for me, (still isn't) therefore my brother and a bunch of other young hoodlum boys hid under the stairs (out of the way), while the school taught the girls and those who wanted to learn. It was a win / win for everyone, my mother talked to the other Mom's on the main floor, my sisters learned to dance, my brother & I perfected our goofball skills and most importantly; my Father was alone with all four kids away with Mom for a few hours of peace and quiet. Great investment as far as my Father was concerned and I still can't dance.
Below is a clip from the Conan show where he visited the Irish American Heritage Center in Chicago, located not far from my family home. My son Gavin and I recently went to Chicago to visit my parents and it was at the Heritage Center where my siblings and I lifted a glass with my newly minted 21 year old son. The facility is quite impressive, imagine a four story elementary school sitting on an entire city block converted into the mecca of all things Irish. There is live music every night, various festivals monthly, dance lessons, theater, art and much, much more. The Conan clip is good and it is worth a visit.
To circle back to my 2020 St. Patrick's post where the world had basically shut down, I reminisced of our wedding ceremony in in the oldest public building and oldest church in the City of Chicago - Old St. Patrick's Church. None of my grandparents were alive to attend my wedding, but they would have loved it. The priest was the beloved Father John Cusick, who just celebrated the 50th anniversary of his ordination and he still feeds my soul with his wisdom and guidance. There was a five or six string ensemble and our soloist Ms. Catherine O'Connell sang like an angel. At the end of the ceremony, there were bagpipes, and at the reception, there were Irish dancers. Of course, the party was epic.
In the Conan clip above he makes fun of Irish Soda Bread and as I have posted both my mothers recipe, as well as my grandmothers recipe, the links to each are included. Whip up a few loafs, cut a slice fresh out of the oven with a couple pads of butter, it's pretty damn good warm.
As the world is now back to semi-normal, this Friday night I'll be back at the All Saints Knights of Columbus fish fry working the bar where I'm told we will have Guinness available and miraculously the white wine may also be converted to green if so desired.
Another Friday evening event I would like to support is the Anderby Brewing Artist Market starting at 5 pm in close by Peachtree Corners. The atmosphere at the establishment is wonderful both inside & out (when the weather cooperates), the beverages are tasty and the variety food trucks usually hit the spot.
Saturday, after my typical early morning spinning class I will be visiting the Farmers Market with my sister & her husband visiting from Chicago, then in the afternoon I hope to visit the inaugural Northside St. Patrick’s Parade & Festival that will step off Saturday March 18th, 2023 at 10am in beautiful Sandy Springs GA. Aside from those plans, in the next few days we will probably be walking the Brook Run Trail, doing the dog park, stopping at a few quality dining establishments, getting coffee at Cafe Intermezzo, and over looking the Dunwoody skyline while enjoying an old fashioned at Bar Peri.
I'm not a runner but if I was, on Sunday, I would be attending the Pebble Tossers Ripple Run 5K in Brookhaven at Blackburn Park.
Finally, if don't want to miss a good time, I highly suggest you purchase your tickets to the Big Green Eggs & Kegs 2023 on Saturday April 22nd in Dunwoody Village / Bar[n} where the courtyard will overflow into the closed parking lot, food & drinks will be flowing with outstanding music being played. The event is a fund raiser for Juvenile Diabetes and it will sell out. Buy the kids a wrist band for Lemonade Days, ditch them at Brook Run and join us in the village on April 22nd.
