Carson

THOMASVILLE — Time Thomasville City Council members spend attending meetings will be reduced, if council members approve the change.

Changes also will lessen time residents devote to the meetings. In the past year, many council meetings, committee meetings and workshops have been heavily attended by residents.

In recent weeks, 6 p.m. council workshops conducted before 7 p.m. regular council meetings on second and fourth Mondays have been adjourned minutes after they begin.

Alan Carson, who became Thomasville city manager in early January, began adjourning the 6 p.m. workshops as soon as he came on board. Carson asks at the top of the workshops if council members have anything to discuss. If not, workshops are adjourned. The regular council meeting begins an hour later.

Carson, who has spoken individually to council members about meeting changes, said the city charter will require changes.

The city manager, addressing council members at a Wednesday utilities committee meeting, said utilities meetings will be conducted once monthly instead of twice. Meetings will be at 8:30 a.m. the first Wednesday of each month.

Council workshops will continue to be held first and third Wednesdays at 4 p.m.

“In conjunction with that, we are going to drop the 6 o’clock workshop before the city council meetings and move the council meeting to 6 o’clock,” Carson said.

The changes will not require Georgia General Assembly approval.

“We’re shooting for a June start date,” Carson said.

The city manager said he is available to the council if a situation arises that needs council members’ attention.

“We’ll work hard to get it situated before the meeting. If something comes up in a 6 o’clock workshop, I can’t get it fixed by 7 o’clock,” Carson said.

The charter change will require council approval.

Senior reporter Patti Dozier can be reached at (229) 226-2400, ext. 1820