Rethink Rockmart celebrates new hire for city code enforcement

Rethink Rockmart’s search for a new code enforcement officer is finally over, and Bryan Richardson will soon be enforcing various building codes and land ordinances within the city limits.

Much like a police officer enforces laws, Richardson will be making sure buildings are maintained to the local standards set forth in Rockmart’s building codes.

Sherman Ross and the other Rethink Rockmart members have been searching for someone to fill the position for months, and once Richardson starts, the group’s goal of neighborhood revitalization will get another advocate to help.

While the appearance of the city is important to the group, blight and structural damage that can cause physical harm is something Rethink Rockmart has been battling since the team’s inception after they joined the Georgia Initiative for Community Housing program.

Richardson wasn’t at the March 28 meeting to speak, but the group felt they had made the right hiring choice. His previous employment includes service as a Paulding County Sheriff’s Deputy and a security officer, and he will be obtaining his code enforcement license soon after he starts.

“I know it was a long time coming, you went through a lot of resumes,” Ross said to Rethink member Stacey Smith. “But we held out for the right person.”

The land bank is another long-running topic Ross, current council member and mayoral candidate for the November municipal elections, was able to offer updates on.

The bank has essentially been approved, and now that representatives from each of Polk’s municipalities have been chosen to serve on its board, it won’t be long until the cities and county sees the benefits of the tool.

Abandoned, unwanted properties can be foreclosed and sold through the land bank and can help in reducing market stagnation. This puts otherwise unclaimed houses and buildings back on the tax rolls and gives the structures a chance to be used again. Each municipality is free to use the tool.

“It (the land bank) has basically been approved in principle,” Ross explained. “We’ve got a team together that has to get together to hash out the details. Two county commission (representatives), Jeff (Ellis) and myself, Bill Fann, Edward Guzman, Garry (Baldwin) from Aragon, and the tax commissioner. We’ll be sitting down and ironing out the operational details of the land bank authority.”

Rethink Rockmart isn’t depending exclusively on the land bank to raise property value within and outside the city limits. During a GIHC retreat to Valdosta, Ross learned of an ‘Innovative Grant’ that they could potentially use in the Goodyear Village Centennial Project. The village is nearly 100 years old, so the group has been working to improve the area and highlight its history.

“While we were in our Valdosta retreat, they introduced the Innovate Grant that’s available for innovative projects,” Ross said. “So, we’ve got until May 31 to put together a proposal and they’ll tell us if it’s worth pursuing the grant.”

Ross suggested a potential town hall meeting where citizens can share their vision for the area, though no specific dates were set. Rethink has been working on the Goodyear Village Centennial Project long before they knew about the grant, so locals can still expect some kind of contribution from the group in the event their proposal is declined.

“How many communities have that much history and remain relatively solid for so long?” Ross asked.

The group’s next meeting has already been scheduled for Thursday, April 24. More information about Rethink Rockmart and the meetings can be acquired by contacting Ross at 678-982-6853 or by visiting https://www.facebook.com/ rethinkrockmart/.