City of Cedartown looking ahead with ‘2020 VISION’
What does one expect from the City of Cedartown with their 2020 VISION? One can look back in just the past year and find easy clues to where they plan to be as the year moves forward.
The city can toot their horns over a fantastic year in 2019. They started new festivals, they worked on infrastructure, they positioned themselves in places to grow business and welcomed new eateries to the Polk County palate.
Here’s some ways that Cedartown in particular is poised to build off the year they had by what got underway and is still in the works:
Commissioners work on business-friendly legislation, growth
A new business is in the works at a former restaurant on Herbert Street that if not for some forward-thinking action from the City Commission might not be in town at all.
Paul Coley is in the process of turning the former home of Cedar and Smoke into a cigar bar and tobacco shop and looks to open as soon as possible, but it took a change in the city’s alcohol control ordinance to make it happen. The city heard that Coley was interested in bringing the business to Cedartown last year, and in the fall determined that it was worth allowing a change in the ordinance to make a change to allow him to open up.
Though not a simple process to change the ordinances since it undergoes review and changes, city officials said the Commission is determined to remain business-friendly and are ready to help those who bring new concepts to downtown to help encourage economic growth on Main Street and around the historic district.
Other spots around the city have seen that growth over the past year, and are likely to continue to see progress on development in 2020. In 2019 alone, the area saw the opening of several new restaurants, a new car wash and downtown businesses.
Scoring big with soccer complex
Work continues on making the Goodyear Soccer Complex the new hot spot for recreation in Cedartown, but it’ll be some months yet before youth get to play their first round of matches on the field.
Just this month, the commission voted to approve a bid of $89,428 to get into a second phase of construction on the new fields, which already have been laid out, fenced in and new pavement put down in a loop around the facility to accommodate for parking. Now they’re going to install a bathroom and concession stand at the park to serve players and parents alike when the complex opens this year.
Construction on the restrooms and concession stand will begin in March, weather permitting. The goal is to have the fields ready for play before the kickoff of the spring soccer season so long as the weather cooperates during late winter and early spring.
The soccer complex is only one area of improvement for recreation opportunities in Cedartown in past and present. They’ve made improvements at the softball field on Prior Street, continue maintenance work at Bert Wood Youth and Athletic Complex, and are always working to expand programs and offerings throughout the year.
Volunteers are always needed with youth sports, and those interested in taking part can visit cedartownrec. org to learn more.
Family events
The coming season of events looks to keep people busy on the weekends in Cedartown after the Department of Tourism and Economic Development made some changes to city events in the past year, and look to continue them into the festival seasons.
The Summer Concert Series in the past held in Holloway Park made a move in 2019 that proved fruitful to Peek Park, providing more space and opportunity for people to take part in the trio of summer concerts put on once a month from May through the end of July — weather permitting.
Cedartown also introduced the Holloway Hunny Pot Festival set to make a return later this summer, and a move of Cedartown’s Fall Festival to a new event dubbed Market on Main held the first weekend of November to accommodate for weather remaining hotter into early fall over the past years provided a lot of fun for families large and small. Expect additional announcements on both events and the Summer Concert Series in the weeks and months to come.
Code enforcement staying on top of blight
A change over the past couple of years in priorities following Cedartown’s participation in the Georgia Initiative for Community Housing program has provided some positive results that the city hopes to continue into 2020.
One dilapidated structure at a time, Cedartown is getting rid of properties that have become eyesores. They’re also getting more proactive about making sure that people are following the rules by cleaning up their yards and keeping their houses repaired.
“Over the last couple of years, our activity in regard to code enforcement has gone
up substantially,” City Manager Bill Fann said. “We’ve been able to remove several more blighted structures and we’re continuing to work on that as well to better serve our community and ensure that we’re putting our best face forward for residents and potential developers alike.”
He said the city will continue to work on removing blighted properties throughout the rest of the year.
Repair projects still going for wastewater treatment
The city’s wastewater improvement project is expected to come up smelling like roses in the months ahead after nearly a year of work on improvements to the system happening on Cave Spring Road and off Girard Avenue.
New lift stations, main pumps and sewer line improvements are underway or have already been completed as the wet start to 2020 causes some delays in projects due to wet weather and the invasion of water into older systems.
Over the past months, Cedartown has relied on temporary bypasses to get around the failure of main pumps at the lift station across Girard Avenue from the city’s wastewater treatment plant. The hopes are that as soon as the ground dries out again and water levels go down, the final round of switching over from old pumps to new will get underway.
The improvements also put a new lift station on Cave Spring Road, made improvements to a sewer line along the roadway, and will pay for the installation of new bar screens to filter out trash from wastewater as it is being processed.
One of the goals of the city with improvements is to make sure the system can handle residential and business growth in the years to come and to replace worn out equipment.
It is expected to be completed by spring months, weather permitting.
Opportunity for business in York property
The City of Cedartown a few years back bought a parcel with the idea of bringing in industrial partners who are looking for building space slightly smaller than the Development Authority’s SPEC building not far away in the Northside Industrial Park.
For two years now, the city has been holding onto grant money that will allow them to take the York property purchased in 2016 and make it accessible for future development and building turnaround time. Fann said the plan remains to prepare eight sites on the property with two access roads in, water and sewer access and some site preparation work that will make it an attractive option for industrial development.
Fann did add the number of sites available for development will depend largely upon how much of the property is purchased at one time by potential investors in Cedartown.
He said that project is expected to finally move forward in the late spring and summer months to make the land ready for development.