Milledgeville mayor presents ‘State of City Address

Published 9:43 am Wednesday, May 18, 2022

Milledgeville Mayor Mary Parham-Copeland says there is much to be proud of when looking at the accomplishments that have been made in the city during the past year.

Her comments came during her annual State of City Address before a large turnout of residents and employees in the council chambers of City Hall.

“It is indeed an honor to present our annual State of the City Address,” Parham-Copelan said. “I would like to begin by thanking each member of city council and the citizens of Milledgeville for your continued determination and resilience throughout 2021, as our community and this nation has made great strides to move beyond the grasps of the global pandemic and return to a sense of normalcy in our daily lives.”

The mayor said she was equally proud of the many men and women who work for the city.

She pointed out that they had continuously worked to provide the same high-level of operations services throughout 2021 and to the constituents of elected city officials while navigating through ever-changing guidelines and best practices.

Parham-Copelan said the city staff was committed to ensuring the safety of themselves and others by continuing to follow Georgia Department of Public Health and CDC guidelines, as well as cleaning and sanitizing workspaces daily, and ensuring that learning and sanitizing items are available for use in all city buildings. She said keeping citizens and city employees as safe as possible has been and would continue to be a top priority.

The mayor, who is now into her second term as the city’s top elected official, said 2021 brought about the promise of better days.

“And as the pandemic guidelines have loosened, the city of Milledgeville has revamped its efforts to fully resume normal operations,” Parham-Copelan said. “We have accomplished significant achievements and progress in 2021 that have benefitted our citizens and the commimiuty at-large.”

The mayor later focused her comments on various accomplishments made by a host of city departments.

Parham-Copelan first spotlighted the city’s public works department.

Some of the accomplishments included:

•Completed a resurfacing project on Stevens Court and remedied intersections on Pine Valley and Holly Hill roads.

•Signed a contract with an engineering firm for all streets to be rated for resurfacing in the near future. The city hopes to receive funding for that project through the Local Maintenance Improvement Grants (LMIG) from the Georgia Department of Transportation.

•Identified 33 major stormwater issues (or hot spots) and completed 60 work order requests.

•Made stormwater improvements on Reeves Circle, Pine Valley Road, Coventry Court, Stevens Court, Stevens Drive, and in an ares near West Charlton Street.

The mayor also talked about the Milledgeville Police Department.

Etta R. Gray became the department’s first Black female to head the criminal investigation’s bureau. She holds the rank of major.

Maj. Phillip Taylor, meanwhile, was promoted to head up the police department’s support services division, while Maj. Linc Boyer became the youngest officer to ever head the department’s road patrol division.

A community and civic honor, meanwhile, was bestowed to Sgt. James Spisak, who was named the 2021 Officer of the Year by members of the Milledgeville Exchange Club.

The mayor also talked about some of the accomplishments of the Milledgeville Fire Rescue Services.

The fire department received a $46,000 grant from Firehouse Subs to purchased new extrication equipment.

The fire department held an open house to show residents the improvements that have been made at Station No. 1. Renovations are underway at the Station No. 1 headquarters on Thomas Street.

During last year, firefighters participated in 93 different community events.

 “Some of these events included assisting the Georgia Memorial Cemetery with placing a new rope on its flagpole, along with a new flag,” Parham-Copelan said.

The mayor also praised the city’s water and sewer department.

“Our Water Treatment Plant received the Platinum Award from the Georgia Association of Water Professionals for its water treatment technique,” Parham-Copelan said.

The water and sewer department also renewed its microbial laboratory certification, which allows the city to perform its own bacterial testing, including offering testing for other utilities.

A new chlorination system was installed at the city’s water pollution control plant.

A new elevator, meanwhile, was installed at the Camp Creek Lift Station.

The city’s utility maintenance department installed a new sewer system to serve residents in the Doles Boulevard neighborhood.

Durung 2021, water lines were replaced along West Thomas Court. That project is expected to be completed sometime later this year.

“The installation will provide improved residential water and fire protection services to approximately 15-20 residents in this area,” Parham-Copelan said.

The city’s finance department continues to do an outstanding job, according to the mayor.

She said the finance department maintained major functions on behalf of the city last year, such as finance, payroll, procurement, utility billing, business licenses, property taxes, all revenues, etc.

 “All these functions were used to manage a budget of more than $35 million,” Parham-Copelan said.

In addition, the finance department partnered with Overview, Inc. through a Georgia Department of Community Affairs Low Income Household Water Assistance Program to help pay for water services for eligible households with disconnects and or past-due balances with the city.

And for the 36th consecutive year, the finance department received the Government Finance Officers Association Certificate of Achievement in financial reporting.

The city’s finance director also received a service award for having served as past president of the Georgia Government Finance Officers Association.

“Our business office maintained water utility collections during COVID-19 by working with water customers and providing payment plans during the height of the pandemic,” Parham-Copelan said.

The city’s human resources department received an $8,000 Wellness grant to promote health awareness among city employees.

Main Street/DDA, meanwhile, successfully hosted three events that were well-attended last year.

The city’s planning and zoning department facilitated the annexation of property along North Columbia Street into the city limits for a new development project.

The mayor said the city also successfully completed the required applications for CARES Act funding and ARPA allocations.

City Manager Hank Griffeth, meanwhile, completed the Robert E Knox Jr. Municipal Leadership Institute Program and obtained his certification.

Since becoming mayor of the city, Parham-Copelan has served on several boards and committees, locally and statewide. She currently serves as president of the Georgia Municipal Association’s District 6. She also received a Certificate of Excellence from the Harold F. Holtz Municipal Training Institute.

“Again, these are just a few of the activities completed by the city and accomplishments achieved by our city employees this past year, who have been on the front lines of serving this community,” Parham-Copelan said. “The city council and I are profoundly grateful for the dedications of our employees and high-level of service they deliver to our constituents, daily.”

The mayor told those at the meeting that she wanted to thank the residents of the city for entrusting her and members of city council, as well as the city staff with the task of managing city government operations.

“We value your confidence and support as we strive to make Milledgeville a thriving place to live, work and play,” Parham-Copelan said. “May God bless you all.”