DALTON, Ga. — Whitfield County Board of Commissioners Chairman Mike Babb “treats people the way they ought to be treated,” said Georgia Court of Appeals judge and former state senator Charlie Bethel.

“Every time I’ve seen him interact with people, not just elected officials, he has treated them with courtesy and respect,” said Bethel, of Dalton. 

Babb is retiring as chairman at the end of this year after more than 15 years at the helm of the county government. Babb served as chairman of the Board of Commissioners from 1997 to 2004 and again since 2009, working with 13 different commissioners, four Dalton mayors and four county administrators.

Babb served as chairman during all of Bethel’s six years in the state Senate.

“Mike understands the value of relationships and really cares about developing relationships, not just with the county’s delegation to the General Assembly but with the elected officials of Dalton and Cohutta and Tunnel Hill and Varnell and with all the agencies he works with,” Bethel said.

Babb will retire as chairman when his current term ends on Saturday. Commissioner Lynn Laughter will be the new chairman.

During Babb’s 16 years in office, the county took on a number of major projects, from expanding the courthouse to creating a new park on the Westside to building a new jail.

“I’d say extending water throughout the county is the most important project I have been part of,” he said. “But that took the cooperation of the Dalton City Council and Dalton Utilities. It took the citizens to approve a SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax) to pay for it. I’m really proud of the water and my part in it, but I know it took a lot of other people to make it work. It was going to have to happen, and I just happened to be the chairman when it did happen.”

Former Dalton mayor Ray Elrod worked with Babb and the other members of the Board of Commissioners on the water project.

“That was something Mike and the entire Board of Commissioners wanted to happen,” he said. “It was something the City Council wanted to happen. Dalton Utilities wanted it to happen. But it took a lot of hard work, and Mike did a lot of hard work. He was always a hard worker for his constituents, for the county. He was good to work with. He was interested in doing what was best for the entire community. That’s one reason I always liked working with Mike. He was able to look at all sides of an issue. He was always pretty perceptive about finding ways to get things done.”

Babb says another project he is very proud of is the Miracle Field at the Westside Park, which features a special field that allows those with physical and mental disabilities to play baseball.

“That idea was brought to us by members of the community, and the community really banded together to make it happen. But I’m proud that the commissioners bought into their vision and helped create a place where our children who otherwise would not have those opportunities can go and play,” he said.

And he says he’s also very proud of his role in helping the county acquire some 600 acres on Rocky Face Ridge, protecting historical Civil War fortifications and greenspace.

Babb will turn the reins of the county government over to Laughter, who has served with him for the past four years.

“He makes sure that we all understand the issues. He gets our opinion on the issues we are dealing with, then acts on what the majority of the board wants,” she said. “He’s a very honorable man. He has such a great knowledge of this county and its history in his head. I’m going to miss that. He has really been a mentor. He’s taught me ‘Count to three, and move on.’ That’s a hard one for me. But he has shown me that once three commissioners want to move in a certain way you need to accept that and move on.”

Babb says he plans to spend his retirement caring for his grandchildren and working in his yard. But he first has to get something out of the way. He was diagnosed with prostate cancer in late November and plans to have surgery soon after the new year starts.

“It was caught early,” he said. “I served for years on the board of Northwest Georgia Healthcare Partnership, and they really push the need for regular checkups. I’ve done that. My wife has done that. She had breast cancer 10 years ago, and it was caught through a mammogram. Now, she is cancer free. We have five more grandchildren today than we did when she was diagnosed. She’s here to enjoy them, and I plan to be here for years to enjoy them.

“I’m going to get that knocked out of the way, get my surgery soon after the new year. After that, I just plan to take care of my grandkids and work out in my yard, that sort of thing.”