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book when it comes to infrastructure and we could replace every single pipe in the city,” he emphasized.

He informed the audience that the brown water issue stems from the age of the system and the cost of replacing the pipes. “We have an old system,” Roper told the audience. “That stuff has been in the dirt a long, long, long time. It continues to age. It’s not like it’s put in the ground and will never age – the longer its in there, the more it ages, [and] the more issues arise.”

Roper continued, “The second issue is cost. You know, two or three years ago, we did a $6 million project where we replaced 3.2 miles of [water] line, and I think in a lot of people’s minds in the public, that was going to solve our issue. But the reality is this – for us to eradicate brown water, it would have cost us north of $100 million. We just approved a budget of roughly $12 million the other night [at a city council meeting]. So, if you do the math, what we did two or three years ago with the $6 million project is just the beginning.”

He emphasized that completely fixing the brown water issue will take several years, but the City is committed to addressing the issue for years to come. “It’s not going to be something that we solve overnight,” he added. “ Helene exacerbated the issue. When you look at the amount of damage, we all in this room know how that storm affected us, but it only exacerbated that issue [of brown water] with the amount of damage that we received.”

Roper said that the debris trucks even caused damage to the city’s infrastructure, but were necessary to help the area pick up the pieces from last year’s hurricane. “We needed them to get debris off the roads, but we knew that it was going to cause some issues with infrastructure. So, we just have to keep in mind it's an old system,” he remarked.

He shared a story with the audience about the city’s diligence to find water in the midst of Hurricane Helene debris, as Memorial Health Meadows Hospital – Mike Hagan had informed the mayor that the hospital was running out of its water supply. “Now imagine getting that call, trying to mitigate it, and you don't have any cell service. Long story short, we end up getting a fire department to the STC pump, dropping a hose in, filling the tanker up, getting to the hospital with minutes to spare for you to actually get it through your filtration system,” he recalled. “We have things that we are trying to put in play so that we don’t run into that scenario again.”

Beck added, “We knew not only do we have a groundwater problem, we have water pressure issues as well. On the north side of town near CV Mosley Road really struggles with fire protection pressure. So, in order to address that and to address the issues that the hospital went through during the storm, we decided to put a well and elevated tank of about 250,000 gallons of water out on the northeast side. It was a project that we were able to do thanks to the annexation of around 500-600 acres out near the U.S. Highway 1 bypass, and it’s going to be built on about an acre of that piece of property.” He told the audience that the project will be an integral part of addressing water pressures in the area, but will also allow for the connection to the city’s main water line to help connect the region to the city’s infrastructure. Beck informed the audience that in addition to this, the City had purchased several generators that will be able to provide back-up power to the wells in the event of a power outage.

“That’s going to help not only with our infrastructure, but with communications as well, so that our fire and police departments communicate properly. It’s going to be a huge tool,” he said. According to Beck, the city funded the project through Georgia Environmental Finance Authority grant, which had provided the city with $6 million. “We’re trying to squeeze your dollars – your tax dollars – the best we can and leverage the funding that we’re able to get, not only to provide solutions, like the hospital and CV Mosley Road and the low pressure, but also so that we can keep those tax dollars and pursue other projects as well,” he commented.

Beck stated that another project that the city is working on is to address a stormwater issue near North Cheney Road, which is located on the southern end of U.S. Highway 280 in the city. He explained that the City had received $1 million through the Department of Community Affairs OneGeorgia Program to construct a stormwater retention pond to collect all of the stormwater that runs off of U.S. Highway 280, comes down North Cheney Road, and all the way down to Hannah Circle. “We have dozens of people that experience flooding whenever we get 4-5 inches of rain,” he added. “This is going to capture some of that rain and slow that water down to try and help these residents.”

The City is currently preparing to procure engineering services for the project, and hopes to begin the design process within the coming months.

The men stated that another aspect of infrastructure that they hope to improve in the future is the Vidalia Regional Airport, as they plan to work closely with stakeholders and the Toombs County Development Authority/ Greater Vidalia Chamber economic development team to further enhance the facility. The leaders informed the public that projects have recently been completed and are currently underway to continue to improve the airport and plan for the future.

Public Safety

When discussing public safety, Roper emphasized the importance of prioritizing support for police officers within the city. “If we don’t put a priority on public safety and keep our communities safe, what good is the rest of it?” he asked the audience. “We want to pour into those men and women that every single day leave their home or are willing to put their life on the line to serve our community and keep it safe.”

He continued, “I have the utmost respect for the two guys that were our previous [police] chiefs, and I’m really impressed with the chief that we have now. He understands protect and serve, and he understands the serve part just as much as he does the protect part. He's done a tremendous job of building relationships in the community, particularly around the faith-based community, and I think he's going to do great things within our department.”

Roper explained that the city’s focus regarding public safety was currently to improve relationships with other agencies and to ensure that the department has all that it needs to be successful.

“We want to update their equipment, get them more cutting-edge. We want to provide them with diverse training, particularly around the canine unit, and we want to provide them with unique opportunities for crime prevention,” Beck remarked. “The top priority is relationship, guys. If you think about every decision that you make as an individual, every decision at any level, it boils down to some sort of relationship that you have, whether it's a relationship with your family members, whether it's a relationship with your Lord and Savior. Every decision you make hinges around a relationship, and we had to improve those in our public safety agencies.”

Beck praised Vidalia Police Chief Rob Shore for his work on improving relationships and creating connections with the surrounding law enforcement agencies, as Beck informed the audience that Shore had helped the City become a member of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) Task Force. “This task force does a lot in crime suppression. They're able to go to different communities in different populations and help suppress crime. And our being able to be a member of that GBI task force is absolutely paramount,” he added.

He shared the department had built a strong partnership with the Department of Natural Resources, which helped in the training of the agency’s K-9 unit.

He also highlighted ways that the Department had been able to improve their equipment and technology, such as their enrollment into an Enterprise Fleet Management program. “We’re now able to provide all of our fleet – over 80 vehicles – and get turned over every five years. We were spending $600,000 a year maintaining our fleet, and it was in disrepair. Enterprise is a very, very useful tool not in just how you police with this upgraded technology and the same vehicles, but also recruitment,” he remarked.

Quality of Life

“For us, we believe the heartbeat for our community is our downtown,” Roper emphasized, as the men began discussing the quality of life aspect of the city.

He praised Downtown Vidalia Association (DVA) Executive Director Tonya Parker for her work in the ensuring that the downtown area is at its best. “DVA is strong. Main Street is strong. We’ve got rural designation so we’re able to help business either start up or do rehab with property,” Roper added.

Roper explained that the City had also recently created the Historic Preservation Commission, which will be doing work to help continue to improve the downtown area, but that currently, the city’s focus is to focus on increasing nightlife, walkability, continued from page

and cultural aspects – particularly, celebrating the arts – downtown. “You’re going to see us continue to make downtown a focus – it needs to be the heartbeat,” he added.

He shared that recently, the downtown area’s aesthetics had been improved by the installation of new landscaping throughout the district – a project for which Parker had been lobbying for several years. This landscaping features parks, green spaces, and more to encourage people to sit and enjoy fellowshipping with one another in the area.

The leaders informed the audience that the City was working with the University of Georgia and their College of Environmental Design to complete urban design projects within a four-block area. “It's at least going to be a one-semester project, potentially two semesters, depending on how this progresses. We want to be able to show the public some different ideas that we can do downtown and how we can try to attract different businesses downtown,” Beck said.

When discussing quality of life, Roper commented on the projects being done on parks and recreation within the city, as he stated that a lot of work was currently underway at the Vidalia Regional Sports Complex and Warmouth Sands Golf Course on Ezra Taylor Road.

He explained that the Sports Complex was being transformed from a baseball/ softball hub to multipurpose fields, allowing football and soccer to be played at the location. He also recapped the events that led to the construction of the Warmouth Sands Golf Course, as he explained that he hoped the course would open in the coming spring.

Roper praised TQ Construction for their work on revitalizing the Ed Smith Complex after Hurricane Helene wreaked havoc on the area. He stated that the city had invested $1.8 million in the project.

The Future

When discussing the future, Roper and Beck discussed several changes and growth that they hope to see in coming years.

The men stated that the city is working to eradicate litter in the area by changing the community’s culture by making others aware of the issue. The Keep It Clean Vidalia committee is currently working to raise awareness for litter, and the city is coming alongside to support that effort.

The City is also work- continued from page

ing to restore and protect the East Park Cemetery – a project spearheaded by Councilman Ronald Miller and the Enhancing Low Income Communities Economically (ELICE) group, who have already been working on the project. Pinecrest Cemetery is also a focus for the city, as they are preparing to request bids to pave the area.

The leaders said that the city will also be focusing on pipe replacement, addressing brown water, eradicating blight structures, and residential development, as the area is growing and the need for housing is continuing to increase. The City will also work to attract commercial retail development as they continue to grow the area.

Lyons

Lyons Mayor Willis NeSmith Jr., City Manager Jason Hall, and Community Development Director Jessica Barfield then took the stage to discuss current events in Lyons. Hall began by discussing the current state of Partin Park, which he said has been a popular topic within the community. He explained that the facility would be undergoing tremendous renovation to repair issues from Hurricane Helene, but would keep the same culture, tradition, and charm that the community cherishes. “The top deck playground is going to be completely renovated because it was destroyed by Helene. We knew that it needed a lot of work, and that is going to look a lot different in the next year,” Hall remarked. “The John Moore Senior Nature Trail and our disc golf course were completely destroyed by the storm. We expect that to be open this summer, so we’ll have a beautiful different- looking nature trail.”

“A lot of trees are leaving at Partin Park. Partin Park is known for its trees – a lot of those are gone now, but we are coming back with better infrastructure, better placed trees, newly planted trees, and a topnotch disc gold course that will be hopefully again this summer,” he added. Hall stated that parking issues within the park near the Callaway Community Center will also be addressed in the renovation, as parking lots will be expanded. He also spoke on the current renovation undergoing at Faison Park, located at —. “Very similar to what Vidalia did, we were awarded a grant, turning that park into a four-field, multi-purpose field facility, along with a gorgeous community center and a concession stand and public restrooms. We will move soccer over there. That's going to bolster our soccer program – it's already just bursting at the seams. And then it's going to bring some new life, I believe, into our recreational football program. So we're excited about that,” he told the audience.

Infrastructure

Hall noted some recent changes to infrastructure, as he explained that like Vidalia, the city would be installing a new fire tank north of U.S. Highway 1 to help with fire suppression. “We need to build out for those industries that are going into that project there on US-1. So that well and tank – the well's already drilled – the tank will be going up very soon to help bolster that,” he remarked.

He shared that the City had recently completed a smaller project to improve the courtyard near the Toombs County Courthouse, and to connect the structure’s parking area with downtown. “We wanted to be able to connect those two places, and we worked in partnership with McLendon Enterprises and the Department of Transportation to run a sidewalk from the courtyard to our downtown. There’s a lot of parking at the courthouse and we want to take advantage of that, especially moving forward with our festivals,” Hall said.

He informed the audience that the City had recently improved and expanded their animal shelter with the help of the Rachel Ray Foundation. “Another smaller project that we're very proud of that nobody really ever sees is that we did a partnership with the Rachel Ray Foundation,” Hall explained. “We improved and expanded our animal shelter and created an enrichment area so that those that are coming to visit with their future furry family members have a great place that they can get to know their future adoptive pets and spend time with them. It's a great place for those that are staying at the animal shelter to be able to get some freedom and get out and move around.”

According to Hall, housing is also improving within the area, as he stated a workforce housing project on Bulldog Road is currently underway, and will provide new housing options for several families.

Another change that is set to come to Bulldog Road is the installation of a roundabout that will help traffic flow more smoothly in the area often congested by Toombs County Schools traffic. That project is expected to be completed within the next year or year and a half.

He remarked that the city is working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to get funding to help with the revitalization of the Callaway Center, which was completely destroyed in Hurricane Helene. “We are going to leverage that funding over the next year or so and turn the Callaway Center into a facility that we can use more effectively in Lyons,” Hall said. “These things require patience, so please be patient with us on that.”

Hall commended Ohoopee Regional Library Manager Cameron Asbell for her work with the Nelle Brown Memorial Library in Lyons, which will be closing on January 15 for an extensive remodel.

Downtown Affairs

Hall then turned the program over to Community Development Director Jessica Barfield, who spoke on how the recently passed Tax Reallocation Powers Law will help to create a Tax Allocation District (TAD), which she believes will help bring business into the area.

“The city of Lyons is really excited about the new development powers that were just approved in the November election. We believe that the projects in Lyons will look a little different than those in Vidalia. However, we think that they'll both complement one another, and it'll attract business in both places,” she began.

Barfield explained that the city had recently created a downtown entertainment district, where guests may stroll the streets with alcoholic beverages in city-issued open containers, which many of the downtown businesses now distribute. “The council's firm stance on making both businesses and patrons sure that changes in the place benefit those businesses that have stood firm and continued to make our downtown businesses thrive can be seen in the specifics of the district. The district further strengthens the city's commitment to the real school festival and its growth,” she added.

Barfield then addressed blighted properties within the city, assuring that the city was working diligently to deal with these abandoned spaces. “We know the battle with abandoned, absentee, or apathetic property owners who often increase the likelihood of squatters and criminal activity. So, it's no longer acceptable to retain properties that fall below the minimum standards. Its focus should position Lyons for planned, measurable growth over the next 10 years,” she emphasized.

Some challenges that Barfield stated the city is facing is communication and safety, but have developed ways to deal with these growing issues.

Unity

Mayor Willis NeSmith Jr. and City Manager Hall concluded Lyons’ portion of the event, as they stressed that the cities of Lyons and Vidalia, and Toombs County were working together to better the community for everyone. Hall remarked that not only these governing bodies, but also the Memorial Health Meadows Hospital, Mercy Medical Clinic, Gardens of Hope Recovery Community Organization (RCO), State Senator Blake Tillery, and State Representative Leesa Hagan were also working in unison for the benefit of the area.

“I do want to say something about partnerships. I always stress about the leadership here in this community, but the leadership comes with the great partnerships we have with each other that we work so well together,” NeSmith added.

“My council and I – we always try to have a better quality of life in the City of Lyons. We're always looking forward to the future, and the future does look good, and we're going to keep making it look good,” NeSmith reassured.

Toombs County

Toombs County Commissioner Tommy Rollins kicked off Toombs County’s portion of the event, as he introduced County Manager John Jones and announced his upcoming campaign.

“[County Commission Chairman] David Sikes is running for state senate. Who is going to run for county commissioner? Well, I’m letting you know that on March 2, I’m qualifying to fulfill David’s term,” he said. Hurricane Helene Relief

Jones began his address by speaking on the state of Hurricane Helene relief efforts. He informed the audience that the total cost for debris removal in Toombs County was $83 million.

“I suspect after everything is said and done, I think Coffee County and Toombs County got more damage than any other county in the state of Georgia, those two counties. I don't know of any county that was even close to being that,” he emphasized. “With that said, when it first came out, Hurricane Helene came, and what we had to do, we were told we needed to get a contractor out to clean this up, a contractor to do the monitoring, and a contractor to help us do this FEMA navigation for getting funds back.”

He continued, “We quickly realized it was going to work better if we could consolidate all this into one government entity doing it, and it became the county. The reason for that was they wanted to recertify these trucks, and for us to get everything out of here, that's what happened. So the county took the lead on handling all the debris removal with that.”

Jones said that FEMA had issued a check for $31 million to pay towards the bill around a year ago, but the County had received no money since that payment, even though FEMA still owes $52 million to the area.

“We were told that the first of the year – June or July the latest — all this would be done. All of it would be taken care of, paid, and everything. June came and we were told October. Well, October came, and all we hear now is crickets,” he said. “We have heard that there are some possibilities they're going to be releasing some money here shortly, but until we hear that for a fact, we're just going to wait and see what we hear.”

Jones stated that the debris removal workers, who have extensive experience working through these type of disasters and completed work after storms like Hurricane Katrina and Michael, stated that they have never seen FEMA payment take this long.

Yet, even though the County is having to wait for the funding, Jones reassured the audience that the county will bebetter in coming years because of their response to Hurricane Helene. Millage Rate and Digest

Jones told the audience that the tax digest had only grown 3.34% this year, in comparison to the 10% growth the County experienced last year. He also said that the County has 214 part-time and 74 full-time employees.

He emphasized that Toombs County’s millage rate was lower than comparable counties by size, such as Evans County, and surrounding counties. “So, when you talk about your property taxes and how high they are — and I know you don't like writing checks– but keep in mind, please, what the difference is from your surrounding counties and what that means to us. I think it helps when you can keep as much money in your pocket to do the things you need to do as opposed to give them to the government and let the government decide what needs to happen and so forth,” Jones remarked.

County Services

He gave an overview of the services provided by the county, such as EMS – which answers over 600 calls a month – elections, the landfill, parks, and several courts – including juvenile, state, magistrate, and superior court.

Jones highlighted the county’s detention center and fire department, which spans over 12 stations. “We have 12 stations. It's 100% volunteer-based. We have 20 fire engines, 4 engine/ wildland trucks, 3 brush trucks, and over 60 volunteers all together working for the fire department,” he remarked.

Jones told the audience that the County had devised a comprehensive plan to improve solid waste collections within the county, which will provide another 40 years of capac- continued from page

ity to take care of this waste within the county.

Projects

Jones gave the audience an overview of several projects on which the County is currently working.

He said that the repaving of Old Normantown Road and Cedar Crossing Road had been completed, and the paving of Hammonds Church Road is expected to be finished in the first quarter of 2026. Jones informed attendees that Dasher Street in Santa Claus will be repaved as part of a Transportation Special Local Option Sales Tax (TSPLOST) project to connect to U.S. Highway 1. Some other projects, such as one along McLendon Road, will help to connect travelers on U.S. Highway 1 with U.S. Highway 280 and Georgia Highway 292. Highway 292 will also be widened in the Vidalia city limits as part of a regional TSPLOST project.

According to Jones, the County also plans to expand the E911 center and the Toombs County Sheriff’s Office, which needs more room for evidence storage. He also said that the County plans to place another fire station on the northern end of the County in the future. SPLOST AND FLOST

Jones addressed the upcoming Special Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) and Floating Local Option Sales Tax (FLOST) that may be seen on the ballot in the future.

He stated that the local SPLOST election will be held in the upcoming year, as the County attempts to renew the tax for the next 6 years. “You're all familiar with SPLOST. We do it every six years,” he said. “A lot of those things you heard earlier from the cities that they're doing could not happen if you didn't have SPLOST dollars. That's your capital. That’s what they buy police cars, ambulances, equipment, buildings — all that kind of stuff. If SPLOST goes away, none of that happens. That'll bring things to a grinding halt.”

Jones reassured that the tax had always passed in the county, and he hoped to see it happen again.

He also addressed FLOST, as he explained it to the crowd. “The next one's a new one that's come out, and that's FLOST. FLOST is a property tax rollback. If you were in the floating homestead exemption, the state allowed you then to – if you so wish – to put on the ballot a referendum that you would vote for that would add in a tax, such as a sales tax, that is a dollar-for-dollar rebate on your property tax.”

Jones continued, “Right now, on your property tax bill, you get a line item that says, ‘property sales tax rollback.’ If you pass this, you would get another line that says ‘FLOST rollback.’ Basically, you're not creating new money for anybody. You're basically taking the burden from the property tax payer to the point of sale at sales tax. That's all you're doing on that. That'll be for y'all to decide on that.”

The county manager shared that this tax will also be on the ballot in 2026.

Conclusion

Jones ended his address with a quote from Theodore Roosevelt, which states, “Do what you can with what you have and where you are.” He thanked the attendees for allowing him to serve and helping to better the community. Question and Answering

The event concluded with a short question and answering session, as attendees were able to ask the presenters about their concerns within the local governments.