The Fairburn

City Council held a budget retreat Monday to look at the past year's achievements

and the coming year's challenges.

Mayor Betty

Hannah started the proceedings with a show of thanks to staff member Robbie

McDuffey by awarding her a "gold star" for her excellent work

on securing 100 percent of Fairburn's business licenses.

"You are

the first one to ever do that," the Mayor said as she presented a

beautiful gold star ornament to her surprised employee.

City Administrator

Jim Williams then took the reins from Mayor Hannah and ran through a quick

review of the previous fiscal year.

"Morale

is good," Williams said. "The finance department is well on

its way to functioning where it should." He went on to report the

strengthening of the City Hall staff and its smoother flow in handling

paperwork. He touched on the curtailing of residential development which

he said was "totally out of control."

Williams went

on to mention improvements in the Lightning Community. Habitat for Humanity

has been involved with four new houses in the area. Preparation of a new

fire service contract and newly acquired contracts for electrical service

to Adessa and S.C. Johnson facilities were stressed as well.

The council

did not stop to rest on their laurels but continued on with the concerns

of the immediate and near future. Covering the general administration

first, state required budget formats, purchasing procedures, new billing

and collecting tactics, and a public relations and information program

were all hit on briefly.

With a final

emphasis on pay increases for the city's lowest paid employees, council

members moved on to questions of planning and development.

Promoting a

balanced development and a better preparation of plans were high on the

list. Thoughts on creating a more appealing entrance to town were also

entertained.

The police

and courts were up next for discussion. State certification took precedence

but did not eclipse other important needs such as crime prevention and

a new indigent defense program to provide legal council for those who

need it.

Relocation

of court facilities to City Hall met with some debate as did upgrading

the Police Department facilities. With space at a premium right now the

solution is an immediate concern.

Public works

got a going over due to the increasing amount of work being done by an

undermanned team.

"We need

to do a much better job. Some areas are going untouched." Williams

stated.

Storm water

management was discussed in the water and sewage phase.

"I feel

like we are well ahead of the curve," Williams said in reference

to the state of Georgia getting ready to "lower the boom" on

it various community's water policies. Possibility of a storm water utility

were bandied about without conclusion

The meeting

ended with a discussion of cable and Internet expansion. A decline in

revenue this year and projected costs for next year may force the city

to sell and get out of the cable business. A preliminary budget summary

was handed out for the Council's consideration and will be workshopped

before the numbers are finalized.