DALTON, Ga. — Members of the Dalton City Council say they want more information on the Haig Mill project before approving any final plans.

The council heard a presentation on various options offered by the Parks and Recreation Commission at the council’s work session on Monday.

The four-year, $63.6 million SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax) that voters passed in 2015 contained $5 million for a recreation complex on Haig Mill Lake. And last year, city officials got final approval from the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, which regulates the reservoir, for the project.

The plans for the park include 3.1 miles of walking trails, fishing piers, shelters, launches for non-motorized boating, an outdoor classroom for wetlands and wildlife studies, a playground and kayak, canoe and paddleboat rentals.

The option recommended by the rec commission also includes pavilions but not a lodge, which had been considered.

After what has already been committed for planning and engineering, the city still has about $4.1 million left of the $5 million allocated for the park. But that’s a few hundred thousand below the projected cost. Some council members said they did not want to have to dip into the city’s general fund to pay for that.

After the work session, Mayor Dennis Mock said the council could shift some SPLOST funds to cover the difference.

“As long as we are taking from other recreation projects I think we can do that. We can’t take money we said we would spend on fire trucks though,” he said.

Mock said if SPLOST collections come in above projections they could also use that money on the Haig Mill project.

At their regular meeting, council members confirmed without a vote Todd Pangle as fire chief. The members of the Dalton Public Safety Commission voted in March to name Pangle the fire department’s next chief.

Pangle will follow Bruce Satterfield, who retired as chief on Friday after 37 years with the department and eight years as chief. The department has a 2017 budget of $8.8 million with five stations and some 94 employees. 

Pangle has served with the fire department since 1997. He had been deputy chief since 2015 and served as a battalion chief from 2012 to 2015. Human Resources Director Greg Batts said Pangle will receive a salary of $84,156.