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Roswell officials adopt pathway for hotel growth By ANNABELLE REITER annabelle@appenmedia.com
JON WILCOX/APPEN MEDIA
From left, City Councilman Dan Merkel discusses options for Alpharetta to fund its own jail with Mayor Jim Gilvin and Councilman John Hipes during an Aug. 25 meeting.
Alpharetta considers running its own jail By JON WILCOX jon@appenmedia.com ALPHARETTA, Ga. — Paying for a jail in Alpharetta is about more than just the money, city officials say. At its Aug. 25 meeting, the Alpharetta City Council discussed solutions to a pending Sept. 1 closure of the North Annex Jail, 2555 Old Milton Parkway. The Fulton County Sheriff’s Office plans
to close the jail as part of a plan to address systemic operational concerns raised by the U.S. Department of Justice. For years, police in Alpharetta and nearby cities, like Johns Creek, Roswell and Milton, have relied on the jail to house prisoners. Faced with an estimated annual operational cost of $2.3 million, the City Council weighed the pros and cons of running the North Annex Jail,
Candidates qualify for city elections
County commission approves jail plan
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which the city owns. Despite the cost, council members unanimously approved allocating $1.6 million to operate the facility for eight months during the first reading of a budget amendment ordinance. Alpharetta is considering a reopening deadline of Nov. 1, leaving the city without a local option for two months.
See COUNCIL, Page 15
Cambridge football snuffs Johns Creek ► PAGE 8
ROSWELL, Ga — Roswell is taking aim to improve its hospitality landscape with passage Aug. 25 of a Development Finance Program. The guidelines will provide loan assistance to new hotels in the city. The intergovernmental assessment agreement also approved in the Aug. 25 City Council meeting outlines how the city will act as the program administrator. The city does not loan funds from its own budget and the minimum loan under this program will be $4 million for a minimum project value of $20 million. No city tax dollars are associated with the program, and residents are not on the hook for any project defaults. “There is demand for hotels in the city,” Roswell Director of Economic Development Darryl Connelly said. He went on to explain that high risk associated with loans for hotels can incur high interest rates from capital lenders. Roswell is one of north Metro Atlanta’s largest tourist destinations, with historic homes, state-renowned parks and the Chattahoochee Nature Preserve.
See PATH, Page 15
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