Just days after Chick-fil-A founder Truett Cathy passed away at the age of 93, his company’s Fayette County connection was recognized at the very beginning of last Thursday afternoon’s Board of Commissioners meeting.
“One of south metropolitan Atlanta’s most notable people passed away this week. He was a remarkable man, and he will be missed,” said commission Chairman Steve Brown when speaking of Cathy.
“The last retail food and beverage imprint that he had on this world is right down the road,” Brown pointed out, referring to Truett’s Luau on Ga. Highway 54 just west of the square in Fayetteville. “He started it in Hapeville [with the original Dwarf House] and finished it in Fayetteville.”
As Brown spoke, the video monitors in the meeting room displayed a photo of Cathy with a quote attributed to him: “I realized I could do anything if I wanted it badly enough.”
His son Dan Cathy, the current CEO of Chick-fil-A, lives in Fayette County as well as many other high-level Chick-fil-A employees.
The meeting was held Sept. 11, which is a regular meeting day for the board, but was moved to the afternoon because of a special event that night that all of the commissioners planned to attend. Brown also used his opening remarks to remind citizens of the importance of that date.
Members of American Legion posts 50 and 105 were on hand as Sept. 16 was proclaimed “American Legion Day in Fayette County.” The week of Sept. 17-23 was named “Constitution Week in Fayette County” as representatives of the James Waldrop Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution were present for the presentation.
County Administrator Steve Rapson made a special presentation to the county’s finance department on the heels of the county’s recent AAA bond rating, which was mentioned at the previous meeting when the millage was adopted.
“There’s not really an award for this, so I just made one,” Rapson said with a smile as he gathered the employees together and gave them a small plaque he had made for the occasion.
There was very new business conducted at the meeting.
Fayette County and Fayetteville have entered into an automatic aid agreement relating to fire services, with the Fayette County Board of Commissioners approving the deal one week after it was passed by the Fayetteville City Council.
The agreement, said to be “for mutual rendering of supplemental fire suppression and for participation in joint training exercises,” was approved unanimously by the commissioners.
The chiefs of both fire departments were present at the BOC meeting, as they along with various county officials acknowledged the success of the two municipalities’ ongoing working relationship.
“This is a really good agreement,” said Rapson. “It will make us all operate more efficiently.”
Also garnering unanimous approval was a request by Brown that the county apply for a $2,000 grant from the Fayette Master Gardener Association, to be used after certain park designs are officially approved by the board. Brown said that those design approvals would come after the deadline for the grant application had passed, so the measure was addressed in advance.
One consent agenda item, approval of the disposition of $543.55 in tax refunds as recommended by the tax assessors’ office, was postponed until the Oct. 7 meeting.
