Braselton prepares for sales tax negotiations

The Braselton Town Council named council member Tony Funari on Feb. 14 as its official negotiator for the upcoming Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) discussions with county representatives.

Meanwhile, Funari’s position with the Braselton Community Improvement District (CID) will be replaced by council member Peggy Slappey.

LOST is a one-percent sales tax that is levied by counties in Georgia. With the 2010 Census figures expected to be released in February, cities and counties will begin the 10-year process of negotiating how sales tax revenue is distributed with most governments expected to base its formulas on population.

Unlike LOST, the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) is used for specific projects — such as new schools, libraries or roads — and is decided by voters every few years.

Braselton spans Jackson, Barrow, Hall and Gwinnett counties — which all have a LOST, with the exception of Gwinnett County.

The town will have to negotiate its new LOST formulas with Jackson, Barrow and Hall counties — which are expected to distribute a total of $178,000 to Braselton during the current fiscal year, according to the town’s budget.

“LOST is one of our largest revenue sources,” said town manager Jennifer Dees.

And with Braselton’s population boom since the 2000 Census — from 1,206 residents to an estimated 7,000 residents in 2010 — the town most likely will get a larger piece of the LOST pie in the three counties, if the new formulas are based on population. LOST distribution may be based on seven factors, including population, Dees said.

She cautioned on Thursday that the official selected to represent Braselton in the LOST negotiations could have a large time commitment among the three counties.

“There’s a very limited time period when the negotiations can occur, so they may — all three (counties) decide to do it at the same time,” Dees said. “It may be a very, very busy time for those meetings to occur,” she said.

The state has also revamped its LOST laws in the past decade and the Georgia Municipal Association is offering training for government officials, Dees said.

Negotiations may start as soon as the latest Census population figures are released and counties call for the process to begin, she explained. If a county hasn’t called for the start of negotiations by July 1, 2012, the cities may do so.

Dees said she expects weekly meetings among Jackson, Barrow and Hall counties for 60 days during the LOST negotiation process.

Other Business
In other business, the Braselton Town Council:
•approved an intergovernmental agreement with Jackson County to install and operate communication equipment on the town’s water tank on New Liberty Church Road. Jackson County is requiring all public safety agencies to use a new radio strength, which requires new towers, according to Dees. A radio tower for the new system will be placed on the water tower, which also has an exiting radio tower for amateur ham radio operators during emergencies.

•heard a presentation about the Barrow County Economic Development Council (EDC), which is asking Braselton to give $2,000 to its effort in the town’s 2012 fiscal year budget. Braselton initially gave $1,500 to the Barrow County EDC.

•approved a cooperation agreement with the Braselton Community Improvement District (CID), which includes 24 commercial properties along Ga. Hwy. 211. The town council also supports local legislation to amend the CID’s current legislation, after a typo was discovered in the document outlining the staggered terms for posts one through five.

•approved a request to declare 0.96 acres in The Falls of Braselton as surplus and seek bids for sale. Shawn Grenier, a property owner, said he has been maintaining the property since he purchased his lot in 2007. Grenier wants to extend his yard. The town council approved a similar request for another property owner in the subdivision last year. Town manager Dees said approving Grenier’s request would leave Braselton with an uneven property line in the area.

•approved an amendment to the town’s development code to establish a modification of minimum lot standards procedures for only commercially-zoned properties. The changes will allow property owners who have less than an acre of land to build a commercial project. Previously, the town required at least an acre of land for such projects. The changes establish a set of criteria to determine which properties are eligible for the modification of standards, which must be approved by the Braselton Zoning Board of Appeals. The Braselton Planning Commission had recommended approval of the changes last month.

•approved a special event permit for Chateau Elan to hold a St. Patrick’s Day celebration on Thursday, March 17, at Paddy’s Pub. The annual event typically draws 400 people, and includes several outdoor alcohol serving stations and live music, Dees said.

•approved an alcoholic beverage license for Dom’s 53, a new restaurant located at 6750 Ga. Hwy. 53 in the Hometown Walk shopping center. The restaurant was approved for an alcohol license to serve wine and malt beverages, along with Sunday sales of alcohol.

•approved a resolution for the town’s capital improvement element and short-term work plan.

•approved a resolution to adopt the Northeast Georgia regional solid waste management plan 2009 short term work program update. Area governments throughout a 10-county region will adopt the plan.