City of Cumming Readies for Fourth of July

The City of Cumming is getting ready for this year's Fourth of July celebration with plenty to do for the entire family.

The two-day festivities begin at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, July 3, at the . There will be various vendors including food and drink, inflatables for the kids. Live music again this year by Feedback, a local band, playing classic rock and country beginning at 7:30 p.m.

The fireworks show will begin around 9:30 p.m. Immediately following the fireworks will be a dance contest for all ages. There is no admission or parking fee for the celebration, but parking spaces are limited. 

The mayor highly suggests attendees to get there early.

On the Fourth of July it's the 55th annual Steam Engine Parade beginning at 10 a.m. The parade will include steam engines, antique tractors, antique cars and many other floats decorated in the spirit of the holiday lasting about two hours.

The parade will start at the intersection of Tribble Gap and Woodland Drive and can be seen coming down Tribble Gap from ending at the fairgrounds.

In other business:

• Council unanimously approved the purchase, using the state contract bid program, of a new pickup truck. The Ford F-150 truck, costing $16,906.00, will be used to read city meters, according to Jon Heard, director of Utilities.

• Two alcohol licenses were unanimously approved by council for the new owner of the Citgo Food Mart located at Castleberry Road and Tolbert Street and for a new Mexican restaurant. Tacos and Tequilas Mexican Grill will be occupying the former location of FireWater Chophouse restaurant located on Market Place Boulevard.

Two public hearings were held concerning a zoning request and conditional use request. No one spoke in favor or against.

• Council unanimously voted to approve a zoning request for a business owner to renovate a home located at 202 Patterson Street from single-family residential into a business office.

• Council unanimously voted to approve a conditional use request for a proposed storage area, located behind the , based on four conditions:
  
  
  • Maintain a minimum 40 foot undisturbed vegetative buffer along the entire eastern property line between the proposed storage area and the residential development.
  • Security lighting.
  • Fencing for the proposed storage area, no taller than 8 feet in height.
  • Must have grass and gravel around the proposed storage area.

Lorraine Morris, coordinator of the Forsyth County Emergency Management Agency, presented council with the Forsyth County Hazard Mitigation Plan, which includes the city of Cumming,

Morris said that this was an update to the current plan that is done every four years.

"This allows us to stay compliant with federal requirements," she said. "And also allows the city and the county to be eligible to receive hazard mitigation funding should funding become available through the federal government."

Also attached to the plan is the GEMA Statewide Mutual Aid and Assistance Agreement. Morris said the document allows the county to request resources, on behalf of the city, should a local or state declaration take place.

"Normally the county in the past has signed this document every 10 years, on behalf of county and city," said Morris. "This year GEMA (Georgia Emergency Management Agency) wanted each municipality within each county jurisdiction to sign it as well."

• Council unanimously voted to adopt the plan and agreement.

A resolution was presented to the mayor and council to officially adopt the city's Comprehensive Plan. Adoption of the plan maintains the city's status as a Qualified Local Government under the Georgia Department of Community Affairs guidelines. The plan was updated in 2009, according to Scott Morgan, director of Planning and Zoning.

"With this full update this will incorporate all of the 2010 Census information as part of the Comprehensive Plan data," said Morgan. "From this point forward we will only have to update it every five years."

Morgan pointed out that the Comprehensive Plan is the master or vision plan for the city.

"It incorporates all the things such as, housing, transportation, population, economic development information, historical information, all those types of elements," he said. "It is not part of the service delivery strategy."

• Council unanimously voted to adopt the plan and sign the resolution.

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