The following are my notes and thoughts from the Feb. 10, 2026 called council meeting. I encourage you to comment below or email me at reedforcavespring@gmail.com if you have any questions or concerns. To receive updates via email, please join the Cave Spring City Council Post 3 Updates Google Group.
Audit Report Presentation
The annual audit by Williamson & Co. CPA was presented by Christian Hatch. Hatch reported there were no material weaknesses and no instances of material non-compliance. He also reported that the city increased revenue and paid down debt in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025.
Georgia Department of Education Report
Leslie Jackson with the Georgia Office of State Schools expressed gratitude for the collaboration between the Georgia School for the Deaf (GSD) and the Northwest Georgia Charter Academy (NWGCA). Jackson said the GSD has been making preparations for the opening of NWGCA including relocating classrooms and identifying shared spaces. Jackson said they look forward to continuing the partnership and believe this arrangement benefits all parties.
Park Board Annual Report
Betty Sue Hickman, chair of the Rolater Park Board, presented the 2025 Rolater Park Report. Hickman reported:
- Norde Patterson resigned from the board in July 2025 and Ken Landers rotated off the board in October 2025 after 20 years of service.
- Rip Montgomery was appointed to the board in August 2025. There is still one vacant seat.
- Both the men’s and women’s bathrooms at the park were updated with new paint, toilets and stall doors.
- A Wix POS machine was purchased to facilitate card payments and help with inventory management at the cave.
- Larry Hesterly was hired to manage the cave.
- Landscaping efforts included planting seven new trees, mulching the playground and having trees cut that presented a danger of falling.
Citizen Comments
One citizen spoke and said he intends to request permission to construct a new gas station/truck stop within the city limits. The gas station would include a deli. The citizen was instructed to leave his information for further review.
DDA Report
Marley Peals presented the DDA report. Peals reported that Cave Spring is now featured in the Chieftain’s Trail brochure and on their website. According to Peals’ report, the brochure is a “valuable regional resource that highlights Cave Spring’s Native American History and helps position our community within a broader cultural and tourism network."
Upcoming DDA events include the Feb. 15 Galentine’s Tea, the March 14 Murder at the Shamrock Shindig Murder Mystery and the April 18 Porches and Pastries event.
Court Report
There were no fines levied or paid in January as court was not held last month.
Police Report
The Cave Spring Police Department reported the following activity for January:
- 12 incident reports
- 10 dispatches
- 69 meet in person
- 8 suspicious persons
- 19 assists (EMS/Fire/PD)
- 6 animal complaints
- 33 keep checks (keep check on property)
- 8 fights
- 1 arrest (domestic)
- 4 domestic calls
- 6 vehicle accidents
- 4 suspicious vehicles
- 7 phone calls
- 6 alarm calls
- 3 medical calls
Fire Department Report
The Cave Spring Fire Department reported the 19 total calls and 45 total man hours for the month of January:
City of Cave Spring Responses
- 2 rescue
- 2 fire
- 12 total man hours
Floyd County Responses
- 7 rescue
- 8 fire
- 33 total man hours
Billing Report
In December 2025, 30% of water pumped to the system by the city was non-revenue water, meaning the city did not collect payment for that water. The breakdown provided at the council meeting showed:
- 26,411,000 - water pumped to the system
- 16,607363 - total revenue gallons billed
- 430,700 - non-revenue real water loss (explained on the report as “Tank Overflows, SLL, MLL, Valve Replacement”)
- 1,022,400 - Accounted for non-revenue apparent water loss (explained on the report as “Hydrant Lks, Fire Service, Council Extra & City Leaks, Flushing)
- 18,529,706 - Total accounted for water
- (7,881,294) - Diff. of water billed - non-revenue water
Adjustments
Council unanimously approved one adjustment to allow payment of $207.15 over 12 months.
Financial Summary
With approximately 58% of the fiscal year complete, the City of Cave Spring has spent the following (approximate % spent, dollar amount spent):
- Administration - 55% ($125,275)
- Maintenance - 62% ($169,732)
- Police - 50% ($200,307)
- Fire - 64% ($261,925)
- DDA - 50% ($8,453)
- Library - 61% ($20,552)
- Community Center - 106% ($19,146)
- Water/Sewer - 54% ($899,617)
The above was presented as a short synopsis of invoices paid through February 10, 2026 and does not include invoices not approved to date.
Requisitions
Council unanimously approved two requisitions to be paid for from 2013 SPLOST funds:
- $2,899.90 for 10 office chairs to replace worn chairs at City Hall.
- $816 to re-key locks at City Hall.
The council also unanimously approved the payment of $58,517.74 in open invoices.
Old Business
None
New Business
Events Moratorium
Tonight, I introduced an events moratorium. The purpose of this moratorium is to allow us time to create and provide the proper notices regarding a proposed event ordinance that is currently under review. The moratorium passed unanimously. Read the full moratorium here:
Moratorium on Event Applications Utilizing City Property
While the moratorium applies only to events on city property, the events moratorium I have proposed will include all events held within the city limits that meet certain criteria.
Convenience Store Moratorium
In order to make sure we have time to develop standards to govern under what terms gas stations and convenience stores can be developed within the City of Cave Spring, Chairman Dennis Shoaf introduced a convenience store moratorium. The moratorium passed unanimously.
123 Fincher Street
Tonight the council voted 3-1 (I voted no) to proceed with the purchase of the old Cave Spring Housing Authority Office on Fincher Street next to the fire station. Councilmember Charles Jackson introduced the motion and said the intent is to use it as part of a public safety complex. Jackson proposed paying the Northwest Georgia Housing Authority $115,655 for the property. Jackson mentioned the need to secure the property in light of the shared driveway between the office property and fire station.
Before I explain the reason I voted no, here is a little history as I understand it:
- In 2008, the Cave Spring Housing Authority (CSHA) transferred the property on which the fire station is located to the City.
- The City decided to move forward with modifying the old community center on the property and turning it into a fire station.
- CSHA retained ownership of the adjacent property (123 Fincher Street) containing the CSHA office.
- CSHA also retained ownership of the driveway the firefighters use to access the back of the station.
- In 2022, the City approved the transfer of all remaining CSHA property, including the office building and the driveway, to the Northwest Georgia Housing Authority (NWGHA). That transfer made NWGHA - not the City of Cave Spring or the CSHA - the owner of the driveway our firefighters use every day.
- Now, less than four years later, NWGHA has offered to sell us the property (including the office building and driveway) that the city council transferred to them in 2022.
I don’t understand why the city ever built a fire station on that site or why the office property was ever transferred to the Northwest Georgia Housing Authority without first making sure we had permanent, enforceable access to the driveway.
City leadership has a responsibility to protect the city’s interests, and, in this case, to make sure our firefighters have safe and easy access to the station. We also have a responsibility to the taxpayers to be good stewards of public funds, yet we are now effectively put in a position of asking the taxpayers to pay twice for a public asset so that we don’t have to face the operational consequences of not controlling the driveway that our firefighters depend upon.
I understand the desire to choose the simplest path forward, but I could not support a solution that places an additional and ongoing burden on the taxpayers when there are other remedies available.
For me, this was never a question of whether we should buy a building for the police department. We have offices in City Hall to house our police department, so there is no urgent issue there. While the Fincher Street building can be used for a police station, we can also continue to utilize the current offices.
That said, I respect the will of the majority and will work with council to move forward with the solution that has been authorized.
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