Smyrna suspends water disconnections

Action intended to ease financial strain during pandemic.

The city of Smyrna will suspend disconnections for water service and not apply late fees to unpaid accounts for the next 60 days to ease the financial strain residents may be feeling due to the coronavirus pandemic, Mayor Derek Norton said.

Norton made the announcement Monday while unveiling the latest social-distancing steps the city of Smyrna will take to decrease potential expo- sure to the virus. Smyrna’s water utility announcement is similar to decisions made by Georgia Power and Cobb EMC to suspend disconnec- tions and bill collections for 30 days, he said.

The City Council’s March 16 meeting was the last pub- lic meeting Smyrna will have this month. It has canceled its License and Variance meeting set for March 25. Norton said city leaders will re-evaluate at the end of the month how Smyrna will proceed with pub- lic meetings in April, including the Mayor and Council Committee of the Whole on April 2, City Council on April 6 and Planning and Zoning Commission on April 13.

One of the options available to the city is teleconfer- encing. If the city chooses this option, Norton said all meetings will be available to the public to access through listening and review. Anyone who wishes to file an Open Records request with Municipal Court will be directed to Smyrna’s city clerk. People can view that process by visiting the city’s website at smyrnaga.gov. Public safety and public works services will continue to operate as normal, Norton said.

The mayor said Smyrna police and fire officials have implemented “special protocols to keep our citizens and public safety staff safe.”

Administrative services in the police department lobby have been suspended until further notice, and all open records requests will be done through email by contacting policerecords@smyr- naga.gov. The jail and Smyrna’s 911 center will remain fully functional and staffed, however.

Norton said he has appointed a task force of citizens and business, faith, education and community lead- ers to determine how the city can assist the most vulnerable during the pandemic.

“Smyrna is a strong community, and we will get through this together,” the mayor said. “As we move forward in the upcoming weeks, please be vigilant and limit your interactions with others. Wash your hands often, and if you must go to pub- lic places like the grocery store, please use gloves or disinfectants. Social distancing is of the utmost impor- tance to stem the spread of the coronavirus.”