City Council Closes in on New City Hall Lease

Peachtree Corners City Council addressed several pressing needs at Tuesday's called meeting, including the search for a city manager, finding a new location for City Hall, establishment of a call center to respond to citizen concerns and setting a regular meeting schedule.

Some 40-50 people filled the cramped and temporary meeting place inside the Robert Fowler YMCA, highlighting the need for more spacious facility.

147 Technology Park appears to be the leading candidate to become the new City Hall.

Consultant John Kachmar said the 8,076 square foot facility needs some remodeling, but can be leased for approximately $9,333 per month including renovations and all utilities.

"It's the most economical of all the buildings we've looked at," he said, adding that some windows and doors would need to be added and the carpet replaced.

Council directed Kachmar to move forward with negotiating the terms of a lease agreement then bring it back before council for final authorization.

In the search for a city manager, Kachmar said he has received 48 applications and approximately 70 percent of those have come from outside the state. He added that he plans to conduct phone interviews in the next two weeks. Before scheduling face-to-face meetings with the finalists.

CH2MHill Customer Relations Manager Kristen Howlett gave a slide presentation on a proposed call center that would operate 24/7 and serve as a single point of contact for citizen concerns. Calls would be translated into priority-ranked work orders, tracked through completion, and citizens would receive status updates. Howlett said her company resolves about 70 percent of all incoming calls on the first call. Council took no action on the issue.

Council also adopted a resolution to schedule weekly meetings on Tuesday during the remaninig of the calendar year.