Call To Order: 5:30 pm

Invocation: Martinez Baptist Church Minister of Outreach Reverend Perry Key

Pledge of Allegiance: Evans HS JROTC

Approval of Agenda: Yay 5, No 0

Special Recognitions

1. Columbia County School District Teacher of the Yer Finalists for 2027

   1. Ashley Farmer, Brookwood ES

   2. Anna Connolly, Blue Ridge ES

   3. Heather Cottingham, Grovetown ES

   4. Taylor Norwood, Stallings Island MS

   5. Brittany Hayes, Grovetown HS

Board Comments: Congratulated the 5 Teacher of the Year finalists and praised their dedication to students. Philip Kent highlighted the district’s high teaching standards and praised the Evans High JROTC color guard, while Kristi Baker reflected on the Teacher of the Year tradition and praised the recently completed Lakeside HS renovation. Katie Allen emphasized the patience required of educators and thanked finalists for their commitment to students and families. Chairman Dekle called the finalists “cream of the crop”, congratulated them, and also recognized Lakeside staff for school’s recent ribbon cutting.

Approval of Consent Items: Yay 5, No 0

1. Minutes of 8/25/2026, Work Session Meeting

2. Fundraisers

3. Employee Travel

4. Program/Camp/Employee Participation Requests

5. Lease/Use of Facilities

Board Policy EBB, Safety: Yay 5, No 0

Flynt: Policy revised following board input, but overall content had not changed substantially. Policy includes what is required by state law. Minor adjustment made this morning.

Parent Square Update

VanMeter: Transition from Remind to ParentSquare. Reason for switch - ParentSquare bought out Remind. Centralized communication platform for classroom, school, district, transportation and emergency messages. Parents can choose whether to receive routine notifications instantly or in daily digest. Can receive through app, text, email or web portal. Emergency notification override settings.

Toni Clyde (Greenbrier MS Principal: Piloteed last spring and described transition as largely seamless. Staff can easily post files, videos and updates, set office hours, and monitor communications in one place.

Penny Jackson (Transportation): 14,000 users joined transportation groups. Used for bus changes, delays and links to bus tracking. Families don’t have to download the app, but users must be associated with district and communications restricted by school/location.

Judy Teasley: Asked who can access the system, including whether grandparents or others could sign up.

Staff explained that access is tied to district associations and specific groups or locations.

Lakeside HS International Baccalaureate 5-Year Evaluation Agreement: Yay 5, No 0

Flynt: 5-Year evaluation to ensure continued compliance with IB standards and practices. $13,000 annual participation fee and authorize superintendent and board chair to sign a statement affirming the district’s commitment to IB requirements.

Allen: Asked whether IB program is connected to the United Nations, global governance or UN Sustainable Development Goals, noting concerns she had when researching the program several years ago.

Dr. Campbell: Not aware of that connection but acknowledged he hadn’t specifically researched it before.

Teasley: Looked it up on Google during the meeting and reported that her search indicated IB is not part of the United Nations.

Allen: Can support the agreement but raised the issue for further consideration.

Building Program Bid Result - Lakeside HS Roof. Yay 5, No 0

Flynt: District received 14 bids for replacement of the older portions of LHS roof. SRS Inc. submitted the low bid of $1.942 million, which is recommended.

Allen: Questiond why roof was not completed as part of recently finished Lakeside renovation. Project’s earlier GMP included approximately $2.326 million for roofing and asked wether that work had been completed.

Flynt: Earlier roofing work covered the new additions and other portions included in the renovation, while existing older roof was left in place because it had useful life. District got 3 more years from that roof.

Allen: Questioned whether competing the roof during the larger project ight have produced savings through economies of scale.

Dekle and Flynt: Putting additional work through CMAR would have added contractor fees and general conditions.

Kent: Discussion provided insight into the expense of the CMAR process.

Allen: Asked the district to review its process for future projects, and Flynt agreed that the current board would be involved in those discussions.

Board Discussion on Possible Property Tax Revenue from Data Centers

(I tried to get an exact transcript of this but it might not be exact because not everyone spoke in a microphone, and there was some overlap in speech)

Flynt: …the county has approved the data centers, there are estimates available for increased revenue coming from those data centers in future years. Some of the discussion around here has been how’s the best way to make sure that we credit back the taxpayers. Specifically, one of those is homeowners and the homeowner’s tax bill. So we did want to just kind of talk through this a little bit, but give the board a chance to also talk about it. One of the reasons that the county and the school district are a little bit separate on this is because of the way the state funds school districts. The county is very different. So what the county may be able to do—and from what I understand, they’re not able to do it yet, but are going to be working with the delegation to try to have something as far as a law and maybe a constitutional amendment that would be able to approve that within a year or so.

We are doing the same thing. We’re getting expert advice from people who work with school-level funding across the state of Georgia, and making recommendations on possible options that we may be able to bring to the Board of Education.

A couple of things we just wanted to mention, and Mr. Casado obviously can have even more information on this if you have questions. But equalization is tied to a minimum millage rate, and that minimum currently is at 10 mills. If you go below that, then you’re at risk where you would lose access to any equalization dollars. Currently, our equalization is $28 million.

The local fair share is also a piece that we just need to make sure that we discuss because every school district in the state of Georgia, to receive QBE dollars, has to provide the equivalent of a five-mill share back to the state, and obviously there are some things that go into that calculation and some things that are kept out.

And so those two are probably the largest areas that are different from county governments, and something that we’ll have to—not to say that we can’t do it—but just something that’s going to be extremely different for school districts. And so we’ll be learning and working with a number of folks on that, and be bringing that back to y’all.

Mr. Casado, what did I miss on that as far as just a start to this? Okay. So with that said, I thought we would open it up to the board to ask questions or to have a discussion on this area.

Dekle: Well, I think I’d like to understand equalization a little bit better. I didn’t necessarily understand that you lose it when you reach your 10-mill minimum, but equalization, as I understand it, is you have the tax digest of all the counties, and somehow they figure out the richer counties and the poorer counties, and as our tax digest increases based on the value of [inaudible], then we could lose our equalization possibly anyway. So there’s—that’s kind of—I don’t know how you can avoid that.

Flynt: But it’s something that can—it is a good point, and there is no real good way for us to anticipate where our equalization is going to fall. They do take all of the digests across the whole state for that year. We can’t necessarily estimate what everybody else is going to do, kind of like they wouldn’t be able to estimate ours.

But the bottom 50% are the school districts, out of the 180 across the state, that are eligible to receive equalization. So theoretically, as our tax digest goes up, if everybody else remains about the same, then we would slowly move towards that 50%, and eventually be where we wouldn’t receive any if it kept going in that direction.

Teasley: Is there any distinction between commercial and residential in the tax base?

Dr. Flynt: No, and that’s one of the challenges. As you know, the last couple of years there’s been a number of debates because of exemptions, and just recently they have taken out exemptions, which help because we have some large exemptions that are local, and so that has helped us not pay quite as much of that total for the five-mill share as we would have if the exemptions were included. And obviously, the largest is the 70 and above.

Kent: Mr. Fletcher, in your conversations at the state level, what do you see are possible pathways? Not putting you in a box, but it’s uncharted territory for sure. First school system. What do you see are some possible paths as far as utilizing these dollars without potentially impacting equalization in the short term? Maybe, you know, do we get to—is it my understanding that once we get to the 10 mill, do I hear that right? That we start losing favor in equalization? Like we get to that point. It’s not approaching that point?

Flynt: Right, and it used to be—it was just a couple of years ago—that number was at 14 mills, and the state, a number of school districts, were able to go lower because of the tax digest increases. And of course, we’ve been doing—we’ve been reducing our millage. We’re just under 15 now, right? [unclear] Yeah, we’re about five to go. So we have a little ways to go before we get to that point. Yeah, that’s right. But you can’t—you don’t want to go below 10, or I guess if you’ve already—if you lose it all, then it would be okay.

Kent: But do you see any green pathways? Might put you on the spot, Mr. Fletcher.

Fletcher: Well, we are looking at them. You know, y’all know Kent Pollock, you know, with Public [unclear], who does the finances for us. They have—you know, they represent several school districts. Interestingly, we’re the first one to pose this question, so they’re in the earliest stages.

You know, I think you’re obviously going to have to look at some legislation that’s going to be broad. It’s kind of a state level, like this was. It’s going to involve constitutional amendments because not only do you have the issue with the state funding formulas, because the equalization, local tax share, whatnot, House Bill 33, which is kind of hot, but you know, you’ve got unique laws that say that school funds can only be used for educational purposes.

I hate to generalize, but getting a rebate or credit—is that qualifies the educational purpose? So there are a lot of things there.

Kent: Should we get, you know, let’s say we got $10, $15 million or something out of this in a shorter term, and it’s not something we’re waiting three, four, five, seven years for—is this something where we could even accept the dollars and put it into our account and let it sit there until we can figure out a solution for it? Or is there even a possibility we can’t accept it?

Fletcher: I think it’s a possibility that you cannot accept it. I mean, we discussed that too. Obviously, you know, the kind of private revenue bonding—bonds that have been done—you know, without us being like we did with our splost bond financing. You know, it’s kind of what counties do and getting revenue coming in. But you know, it’s just another layer.

Teasley: The money that the county gets, $40 million, that we hear about—they’re fond of saying that we collect most of the property tax. Do we get, what, two-thirds of it? Two-thirds. Do we not get two-thirds of $40 million?

Fletcher: Not if we’re part of that legislation that allows us to get it, or our own legislation that we have to do. I think part of what we’re talking about, if we do something like that, how can we get it through? (unsure after this….)

Allen: Can you clarify when you say we need to pass legislation and we need to get a constitutional amendment? Those are two separate processes, are they not?

Teasley: Yes, we get one, we get the other.

Fletcher: Constitutional amendment, something has to be done on the state basis of referendum, whereas passing legislation, whether it’s local legislation—

Allen: So the constitutional amendment—please correct me if I’m wrong—the constitutional amendment has to be done in order to create a mechanism for this money to be given back to citizens in general. Correct? That’s how it was explained to me.

Fletcher: I think that’s an argument. I think that’s correct.

Allen: Okay, and that would require a two-thirds majority vote in state Congress and a ballot initiative from the people. So when we say legislation, theoretically legislation could happen, and if that constitutional amendment process is not successful, that legislation would be ineffective. Is that correct? Okay.

Again, because I hear legislation, constitutional, I’m just trying to bridge my understanding. So I guess if I’m to walk away with a—don’t hold me to this—understanding of this unique situation.

Okay. Well, and kudos to the board for having this discussion. I think this is just wonderful that we’re speaking so openly about this.

So, in my understanding, there is not currently a path for data center revenue to be returned to citizens at this moment. Okay. And then, and I’m just checking my knowledge here, it would require a constitutional amendment, two-thirds majority vote in state Congress plus the ballot question that the people have to approve, and once the Constitution is amended to even allow revenue to be returned to the citizens, then legislation would be put in place for the county and the school districts to then create a mechanism to return it to citizens.

Is that a correct understanding? As best as we—okay, correct. I’m not holding anybody to this.

Flynt: I think you stated it very well. Okay, except for the—we may want to clarify also that there is a way to lower the millage for all taxpayers. So when you’re saying citizens, we do that every year when we pass the millage and have lowered that every year. So you could feasibly go down. It just wouldn’t go to one group. It would go to the entire tax digest.

However, the money that we’re talking about that’s a little separate, which is like a bond premium, is not tax revenue. So let’s make sure we’re all talking about the same thing.

Dekle: The issue with the constitutional amendment is having like two different levels of taxation for homestead properties versus everyone else. Should be taxed equally. Whether there’s a provision for small amount exemptions for homestead, but it’s very limited. And so that—I mean, like you said, the money can be returned to all taxpayers, I think, by lowering the millage rate. But we can’t create two classes of taxation.

Dr. Flynt: And like you said, you could—you know, we went back and increased that amount of the homestead exemption, which you could feasibly do, but that would be assuming that the taxes remain constant over a long, long period of time, which—I mean, maybe a hundred years or whatever we’re talking about here.

So there’d be a concern if you went too high on an exemption that you wouldn’t—you wouldn’t be able to—you wouldn’t be able to afford that if something were to happen.

Teasley: Are we at risk of not being funded? Is that any of this? There’s not changes?

Flynt: No, I think the only discussion is—and it’s from just some estimates people have been talking about—I do think that it’s going to be a number of years before the tax digest moves into that zone.

But at the same time, that’s why they were able to get a premium up front, some money from Google to offset that a little bit, but our issue is there’s really no mechanism for the county to give us a portion of that money.

Teasley: Conceivably, it’s going to happen. The short term looks like is that the four commissioners, if this constitutional amendment—post constitutional amendment on the ballot November third—passes, they can return money to homestead or people with homestead exemption, right?

Flynt: I think I’ll leave that to somebody else to answer. But I mean, I would assume that is—that’s my understanding.

Casado: So, I think the issue we’re all kind of talking around is how does a school district, just like the county, target the tax [unclear] just to those properties that have a homestead exemption?

Teasley: We don’t have—we don’t have a way to do that. So, in the short term, the county will be able to do that if the… passes November 3rd.

Flynt: They need to get it. Now they need legislation to get it as a constitution—is the way I understand it.

Dekle: That’s House Bill 439, which just gives them the ability to reimburse a certain amount if they collect more than their budget, I believe, is somehow—

Teasley: Either way, they’re going to be able to give tax homeowners tax relief other than the millage, and that’s going to create a vast opportunity for misunderstanding because they’re not going to understand why we’re not doing it. They already don’t understand the difference in law for us to collect taxes, the different streams of revenue that the Board of Commissioners have that we don’t have, where our funding comes from, where theirs comes from.

Flynt: You did increase the homestead exemption… So, I mean, we’ve been making progress to that end. But yeah, I think we’ve got to figure out how we can—how we can do that. And I, you know, there’s a lot of discussion down in the buildings to have that.

Kent: Well, I’m confident that y’all are going to figure it out. My only criticism is I just wish that we would have had this conversation earlier. I feel like an earlier start might have been helpful in the last session at the State House around the time the county was meeting with the state legislature.

I think we personally missed the boat a little bit on that. I’m glad that we’re having the conversation now. Let’s see where we’re—

Allen: I do have a couple questions on the millage rate. If we lower the millage rate, that applies to data centers as well, right? So if you lower the millage rate, for every bit that you lower, to relieve property tax exemptions, you’re also reducing your data center revenue significantly. That—okay? And then if we lower the millage rate too much, we start getting into an area where we lose QBE. Is that correct as well?

Allen: Equalization, both less dollars from the state, regardless of how we label it.

So, and just to go back to what Ms. Teasley said, I think there’s a little bit of confusion again because now I’m hearing that the county has legislation that they are able to give a cent of revenue back to the people, regardless of the constitutional amendment.

Flynt: I think it’s best to let the county talk about the county and the board, but like let’s talk about what we can do.

Allen: Right. So even if we were to pass legislation, would we still need a constitutional amendment for that legislation to be effective, just like the counties? That’s our understanding. I just want to keep making this drive clear.

But now, this data center in Columbia County—they’re still in litigation due to questions about the process. Is that correct? They’re still in active litigation on the—

Flynt: I think the appellate level. Again, we’re just looking at estimates on possible—

Katie Allen: I’m just concerned if we’re getting revenue from the data centers on the front end, and then it turns out that there was a legal process issue, that these cases are ruled in favor of the plaintiff, then we potentially would be in a situation where the data centers would want that money back.

Flynt: So we’ve got a long way to go to even approve them now, so we don’t have a mechanism. So, I mean, I think we’ve got—that’s a long way before we even start approving an amount to rebate. There could be a lot of discussions before—

Allen: I thought it was coming quickly, but there was a portion of it coming imminently.

Flynt: That’s the—that’s kind of the bond [money] we were talking about over the next couple of years. The county’s getting—we even have to get a mechanism to if they wanted to give us some of that.

Allen: Is that not data center revenue?

Flynt: That’s—well, no, that would be probably termed more—and Larry, you maybe help with this—but more bond premium for the county, which they’d have to give us some of that. So it would not—it would not fall into a tax.

Allen: I guess my point, put in layman’s terms, if these lawsuits are successful, and the data centers have to go through the process from the start, or something happens that they’re not able to continue building in Columbia County, and we’re in a position where we’ve potentially already spent money given to us on the front end—let’s say, over the next six months—that was designed to be given on the front end.

In my mind, the data centers would have every right to reclaim that money and say, “Hey, that money was given under the understanding that we would be building data centers. Litigation happened. We’re not building data centers. You owe us that money back.” Is that a potential possibility?

Kent: I feel like we’re getting, like, deep in the forest. I don’t think there’s any way that the superintendent would be able to answer that question. No disrespect, but my personal opinion is there’s certain things in front of us that we have to figure out before we are concerned about that.

And the court has made decisions that point out certain things on that too. But I think there’s some higher priorities. In my humble opinion, we need to have pathways, options, is what we talk about. Something that’s kind of out of our control, and I don’t believe that the superintendent would answer that question. Not to answer for you—

Allen: But no, I would just counter that. And I hear what you’re saying, but my understanding is money coming soon from data centers, and to me, we’re in years of litigation.

But with money that’s not necessarily going to pay ours, to me, the litigation should be determined when—if the money comes, it can sit in a holding account. And then once the litigation has completed, and we know for sure certain revenue is coming, whether it’s five or seven years, at that point in the process for how the mechanism—because otherwise, what if we spend all this time and money for a data center that ends up not surpassing or surviving litigation?

Kent: Or we give back to taxpayers and try to come back and claw it back from the school system to live life completely wrong, right?

Superintendent Reports

• CCSD Retirement Reception, 9/16/2026

• CCSD Foundation Event, 9/17/2026

• CC Teacher of the Year Celebration, 10/1/2026

• End of First Nine Weeks, 10/6/2026

• Student Fall Break/District Professional Learning Day, 10/9/2026

• Columbus Day Holiday, 10/12/2026

• Report Cards, 10/14/2026

Public Participation

• Dr. Ronald Gilchrist: VFW student essay contest and teacher-recognition awards. Participation still low - Only 4 students from Lakeside & Evans have begun entries, with none from other High Schools. Student theme: What a Veteran Taught Me About America.

Executive Session

• Vote to go into executive session: Yay 5, No 0

• Vote upon exiting executive session and executing affidavit: Yay 5, No 0

• Personnel Sheet: Yay 5, No 0

Adjourn: 7:55 pm

Call To Order: 6 pm

Approval of 8/18/2026 Meeting and executive session minutes: Yay 5, No 0

Consent Agenda: Yay 5, No 0

1. Community and Emergency Services Committee Commissioner Steed

   1. (H1a) Animal Services Donations

   2. (H1b) Christmas Lighting Services Agreement with Megah, LLC.

2. Public Works and Engineering Services Committee Commissioner Carraway

   1. (H2a) Purchase from MHC Kenworth a Bucket Truck for Traffic Engineering

   2. (H2b) Purchase from Pearson Peterbilt a 567 Dump Truck for Stormwater

   3. (H2c) Purchase from Alan Jay Fleet Sales Two Chevrolet Tahoes for the Fire Department

   4. (H2d) Change Order Number One with PF Moon and Company for the Clarks Hill WTP Hypochlorite System Improvements project

   5. (H2e) Purchase of a 140HP Influent Pump from Xylem Water Solutions, USA., Inc. for the Little River Plant Pump #6

   6. (H2f) Awarding 2026025-RFP5105 to Denali Water Solutions, LLC for the Water Treatment Residuals Removal and Disposal Project

   7. (H2g) Purchase of a Gas Chromatograph/Mass Spectrophotometer from Fisher Scientific Company

   8. (H2h) AT&T Encroachment Agreement at Parcel 042 156M for the Euchee Creek Harlem Interceptor Project

   9. (H2i) Resolution 26-18 Concerning a Determination to Abandon and Sell a Portion of Morris Callaway Road

   10. (H2j) Resolution 26-19 and Project Delivery Agreement (IGTIA2700551) with GDOT for the Construction of the Hereford Farm Rd Widening Project, PI 0012865

   11. (H2k) Contract #2026-3683 with East Coast Grading, Inc. for Building B & C Parking Lot Repairs/Overlay and Striping

   12. (H2l) Facility Use Agreement with UGA Extension / 4-H for the Trap Shooting Program at the Baker Place Road Municipal Solid Waste Landfill

   13. (H2m) Acceptance of Improvements at Wrights Farm Section 4B Lots 214-284

Debate Agenda

1. Unfinished Business

   1. Development and Planning Services Committee

      1. (I1a1) RZ26-08-02, Rezoning from R-2 (Single Family Residential) to S-1 (Special), 250 Legion Drive, Tax Map 079 Parcel 122A, 2.5 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-2 (Single Family Residential). - tabled from August 18, 2026 (Glamping site) Deny: Yay 5, No 0

         Melear: Unfinished business from the previous commission meeting. Commissioners had questions then and gave the applicant time to come back with answers. She asked staff whether they had been able to work with the applicant and get those questions answered.

         Schlachter: Applicant was provided questions, but neither he nor staff received a response.

         Melear: She received a packet from another source and reviewed it that day. She asked the other commissioners whether they have any remaining questions or concerns based on the information they received, and there weren’t.

      2. (I1a2) RZ26-08-04, Rezoning from R-3 (Single Family Residential) to PRD (Planned Residential Development), 325 McCormick Road, Tax Map 077B Parcel 114, 14.1 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-3 (Single Family Residential) -tabled from August 18, 2026. Approve: Yay 3 (Melear, Steed, Duncan) No 2 (Carraway, Couch)

         Schlachter: 107 townhome units, concentrated toward the center of the property. 40-ft buffer around the site, including a fence. Lots approximately 24 ft wide × 90 ft deep. 20-foot front setbacks. Townhomes intended to have two-car garages. Additional off-street parking. Amenities include pickleball, cornhole and walking areas., 25-ft buffer along McCormick Road, with permanent plantings on berms. Gated Community.

         Melear: The proposed development looks nice. Asked what could be built there, without the Commission having another opportunity to approve it.

         Schlachter: R-3 is the smallest residential lot zoning Columbia County has, and the county no longer approves new R-3 zoning, although existing R-3 remains valid. Under the property’s current R-3 zoning, staff estimates the owner could build approximately 46–47 single-family lots without this rezoning. Differences: No required buffer, meaning houses could be built immediately adjacent to existing residential properties. No additional design standards imposed through this PRD. No required amenities. The alternative is about 46–47 homes on the smallest residential lots permitted by county code.

2. New Business

   1. Management and Internal Services Committee

      1. (I2a1) Intergovernmental Agreement Regarding Economic Development Services and Project Related Infrastructure with the Development Authority Approve Yay 5, No 0

         Johnson: The agreement establishes compensation the Development Authority will pay the county for economic-development services and project-related infrastructure. Revenue will cover development costs, freeing up county funds that can be directed to HB 439 homestead tax relief if voters approve the measure in November. County intends to establish the relief fund this year and fully fund it going forward.

   2. Development and Planning Service Committee

      1. (I2b1) VA26-08-07, Variance to Section 90-53 List of lot and structure requirements, 266 Fairfax Street, Tax Map 078F Parcel 063, 0.26 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-3 (Single Family Residential). Disapprove: Yay 4, No 1 (Couch)

         Schlachter: Accessory building already under construction without permits and did not meet required side/rear setbacks. Staff and Planning Commission recommended denial. Applicant subsequently proposed modifying the building to increase the side setback to 9'2". Several neighbors spoke in opposition at Planning Commission.

      2. (I2b2) RZ26-08-06, Conditional Use for Therapeutic Massage, 119 North Belair Road, Tax Map 073C Parcel 092, 0.44 +/- acres, and currently zoned P-1 (Professional). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Request for conditional use to operate therapeutic massage business in existing building, with two licensed massage therapists. Proposed hours 9 a.m.–7 p.m., seven days a week.

      3. (I2b3) RZ26-08-07, Rezoning from R-2 (Single Family Residential) to P-1 (Professional), 165 South Belair Road, Tax Map 073B Parcel 001, 0.55 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-2 (Single Family Residential). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Rezone from R-2 to P-1 for professional office/real-estate-related business at corner of South Belair Road and Oakley Pirkle Road. Existing building predates current road configuration and does not meet current setbacks. Conditions included abandoning the septic system and connecting to county sewer, removing existing sheds, and relocating the driveway farther from the intersection for traffic safety. No neighbors spoke for or against the request.

      4. (I2b4) VA26-08-08, Variance to Sections 90-98 List of lot & structure requirements and 90-139 Buffers & screening, 165 South Belair Road, Tax Map 073B Parcel 001, 0.55 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-2 (Single Family Residential). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Companion variance to reduce setbacks (previous) for existing building and allow drainage improvements within residential buffer to prevent stormwater runoff onto neighboring property. Also allows driveway to be relocated farther from the intersection for safety.

      5. (I2b5) RZ26-08-08, Major PUD (Planned Unit Development) Revision, 779 Bishops Circle, Tax Map 065 Parcel 554, 0.30 +/- acres, and currently zoned PUD (Planned Unit Development).Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Request to allow an ancillary dwelling on property with a 5-ft rear setback and a max 2,200 sq ft under roof. Current design includes 510 sq. ft. of living space and 472 sq. ft. of storage, with a loft that could increase the usable space. Part of the driveway crosses HOA-owned property, which owner has an agreement to use and maintain.

Public Comments

• Susan Warren: Responded to Scott Johnson’s recent podcast on data centers. Agreed the early process was too quiet and argued residents should have been informed earlier about the scale and location of planned development. Said citizen involvement ultimately resulted in a stronger data center ordinance. Also criticized rezoning signage and pushed back on Johnson’s comments about political polarization, saying her positions don't fit neatly into a political party.

  • Carraway: County was already developing the data center ordinance when S-1 rezoning occurred and purchaser knew additional regulations were coming. Scott Johnson confirmed the ordinance was being developed throughout that period.

  • Couch: Responded to Warren’s concerns about notice, noting the county met legal advertising requirements (signage and ad with Augusta Chronicle), posted the rezoning on its website, and that she personally posted about the rezoning on her political Facebook page to inform District 4 residents.

  • Duncan: Followed up on Warren’s signage criticism and asked staff about possible changes. Mentioned Lindsey Brantley’s recommendation of changing signs. After discussion of adding hearing dates to rezoning signs, Duncan asked staff to bring options back to next committee meeting.

• Howard Johnson: Raised concerns about Flock/automatic license plate reader cameras and privacy, noting he passes 4 cameras during his 3.5-mile drive to commission meetings. Asked the county to consider an ordinance limiting camera placement, data collection and storage, arguing that AI increasingly makes it possible to analyze and track individuals across massive datasets. He also tied the issue to data centers, arguing that collecting and analyzing so much data contributes to the demand for more data-center capacity.

  • Steed: Asked whether Johnson had researched how often the systems are audited. Johnson said he had and believed inadequate auditing was a concern, but said his larger objection was the amount of data being collected and the potential for abuse regardless of safeguards.

• Lee Muns: Called for greater public involvement and financial transparency around the data center projects, arguing residents were brought into the process too late and ultimately helped improve the ordinance. Questioned financial claims surrounding $17 billion investment and asked the county to provide a side-by-side comparison of ordinary taxes versus exemptions, abatements and negotiated fees before voters consider tax relief in November. Said many of the financial agreements and figures are not yet finalized.

Executive Session

1. Property

   1. (M1a) Property A: Donation of portions of 2 Canterbury Farms Association parcels for right-of-way and temporary easements needed for the Horizon South Parkway/Chamblin Road Connector project. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

   2. (M1b) Property B: Purchase of 97-acre parcel from Pollard Land Company, Inc. for $3,915,600. Property adjoins 75 acres the county purchased for new park south of I-20. County tried unsuccessfully to acquire this additional property several years ago and plans to combine the two parcels. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

   3. (M1c) Property C: Purchase of approximately 22 acres from Keith Allen Pollard for $484,000. Property off Hwy 221, backs up to County Camp Rd, and adjacent to existing Appling campus. Additional land will provide room to expand Roads & Bridges operations and other county facilities, including a future fire training facility. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

Adjourn: 6:42pm

Call To Order: 5:30 pm

Invocation by New Hope Worship Center Youth Pastor Dawson Cleminte

Pledge of Allegiance: Lakeside HS JROTC

Approval of Agenda: Yay 5, No 0

Special Recognitions:

1. Governor’s Honors Program Finalist and Alternate

   1. Greenbrier HS

      1. Lucas Bew - Electrical and Computational Physics

      2. Haydn Mangione - Communicative Arts

      3. Noah Torabi - Brass: French Horn

   2. Lakeside HS

      1. Marble Bradshaw - Science

      2. Saisurya Lakkimsetti - Science (Alternate)

      3. Darren Li - Engineering

      4. Stephen Liu - Music/Flute

      5. Anunya Madhavaranman - Social Studies

      6. Arnav Patel - Mathematics

2. Georgia BioGENEius Challenge Award

   1. Saisurya Lakkimsetti - Lakeside HS

3. GSBA Youth Advisory Council Representative

   1. Anna Claire Wall - Harlem HS

4. National Science Bowl

   1. Lakeside HS: A Team, 1st Place in State, 5th Place Nationals’ Bracket

      1. Eliana Benevides

      2. Kareem Hassan

      3. Arnav Patel

      4. David Wang

      5. Steven Zhang

5. National Beta Club - Schools of Merit & Distinction* 2025-2026

   1. Elementary Schools

      1. Baker Place

      2. *Blue Ridge

      3. Brookwood

      4. Euchee Creek

      5. Greenbrier

      6. Grovetown

      7. Lewiston

      8. North Columbia

      9. North Harlem

      10. Parkway

      11. Riverside

      12. River Ridge

      13. Stevens Creek

      14. *Westmont

   2. Middle Schools

      1. Columbia

      2. *Evans

      3. Harlem

      4. Lakeside

      5. Riverside

      6. Stallings Island

   3. High Schools

      1. Evans

      2. Greenbrier

      3. Harlem

      4. Lakeside

6. National Beta Club Competition

   1. Blue Ridge ES

      1. 1st Place: Spelling - Raghav Thumsi

      2. 6th Place: Pottery - Ward Walker

      3. 10th Place: Musicology

         1. Adelie Baker

         2. BlessingMessan

         3. Happiness Messan

         4. Ward Walker

   2. Stevens Creek ES

      1. 1st Place: Social Studies Academic Competition - Vivek Raval

      2. 4th Place: Elementary Reimagine, Recreate, and Recreate Team Exhibition

         1. Navtej Farmaha

         2. Avni Makhija

         3. Ayan Patel

         4. Vivek Patel

         5. Vihaan Shah

7. National Beta Club Convention

   1. 2nd Place mathematics - Krish Patel, Lakeside HS

8. National Civics Bee Competition

   1. Columbia MS: Charlotte Anderson

   2. Harlem MS: Hannah Leatherwood

Board Comments:

• Katie Allen (D4): Praised the students’ academic and intellectual achievements across science, engineering, math, civics, Beta Club and other areas. Thanked parents, teachers, administrators and district staff for supporting them. She also thanked the pastor for the invocation and said, “we’ve got to start with Jesus Christ if we want to go somewhere strong.”

• Philip Kent (D1): Thanked the pastor and referenced the Holy Spirit in the invocation. Praised the students’ abilities but emphasized that talented students still need strong teachers to guide them toward success, and recognized the district’s teachers for their role in the students’ achievements.

• Judy Teasley (D3): Said the district’s success comes from a combination of talented students, good teachers and supportive parents. Thanked the pastor for emphasizing gratitude and described the district as blessed to have all the necessary “ingredients” working together.

• Kristi Baker (D2): Thanked the pastor for the invocation and said prayers from him and the community are appreciated. She noted that although board members may appear calm during meetings, they can be nervous because of the weight of their decisions and said they continue thinking and planning about district matters outside of meetings. She otherwise agreed with the preceding comments.

• David Dekle (Chair): Focused primarily on the National Beta Convention, which he attended in Nashville with his wife. He praised Columbia County students’ performance and especially recognized the parents for the substantial work involved in getting elementary students to the national competition. He said seeing younger students alongside successful high-school students showed the district’s future potential and said student recognitions remind the board of its purpose and mission.

Approval of Consent Items: Yay 5, No 0

1. 8/11/2026 Regular Session Meeting Minutes

2. June and July financials

3. Fundraisers

4. Employee Travel

5. Program/Camp/Employee Participation Request

6. Lease/Use of Facilities

Discussion Topics and Presentations

Strategic Planning

1. Vision and Mission

   1. Vision: The Columbia County School District will lead the nation in educational excellence where each student is engaged, enriched, and inspired.

   2. Mission: The Columbia County School District will provide each student challenging content in a supportive environment resulting in increased academic achievement through shared accountability.

2. Goal Areas and Related Performance Objectives

   1. Maximum Achievement and Success for Each Student (Leanne Gregg)

      1. Understanding & Mastery of Curriculum

         District continue refining K–12 instructional guides, add exemplar teacher videos, improve assessments/semester exams, and use writing-assessment data to improve instruction. Plans include Next Gen Science resources, expanded K–12 robotics, an 8th-grade career exploration experience, standardized science labs, professional development, and additional IEP/specially designed instruction support.

      2. Increase instructional rigor

         Expand CTE offerings, including the new construction/heavy-equipment operator pathway; increase industry certifications, internships in high-skill/high-wage/high-demand fields, gifted instructional units, and middle-school outreach about CTE and fine arts. District also plans to identify and integrate “vetted and trusted” AI resources. Staff identified Gemini for students through the Google environment and Microsoft Copilot primarily for staff.

         Discussion

         Allen: Asked what the district meant by “vetted and trusted” AI resources and how students would use them.

         Gregg: District’s two vetted AI resources are Google Gemini and Microsoft Copilot. Gemini is available to students through the district’s Google environment; Copilot is primarily used by teachers/staff.

         Allen: Asked whether student activity and information stored through Google Workspace, including student papers, notes and other activity, could be collected or used to train or improve AI systems.

         VanMeter: No.

         Allen: Asked whether other district software programs contain AI features.

         Staff: Said some curriculum software includes AI features. Galileo was specifically discussed, but whether its AI functionality is being used was not clearly established.

      3. Enhance academic supports

         New credit-recovery platform; expanded elementary and middle-school math interventions; EL teacher training; school-based special-ed department chairs; expanded co-teaching; individual college/career plans; use PSAT 8/9 data to identify students for AP; SAT/ACT prep with student incentives; and expanded virtual instruction through CVA for alternative-school students.

   2. Community Engagement & Support (Alex Casado)

      1. Maximize family/community involvement

         Continue developing the Columbia County School District Foundation and expanding community partners/trustees.

      2. Expand meaningful business & post secondary partnerships

         Increase internships where students use CTE certifications, high-skill/high-wage fields. Partnerships include AU dual enrollment and teacher leadership certification and Augusta Tech programs. Augusta Tech partnership will allow students to earn three course credits toward a basic heavy-equipment operator technical certificate of credit.

         Discussion

         Teasley: Asked for clarification about the Augusta University Tier I and Tier II leadership certification courses.

         Casado: Confirmed the partnership will provide leadership certification coursework through Augusta University, with district personnel teaching courses using AU resources.

      3. Improve internal/external communications

         District will explore replacing/updating its website to make it more user-friendly. The annual communications campaign is “The Promise.” District will also continue refining the new mass-communications platform piloted last year.

   3. Consistent & Supportive Culture (Steven Cummings)

      1. Ensure Safe Learning Environment

         Alert systems continue to be installed/implemented. All schools completed first intruder drill of the year and Student Behavior Threat Assessment training. Staff are monitoring locked doors and use of employee alert badges.

         Discussion

         Allen: Asked what information is being collected through the district’s school-safety monitoring tools and whether the district uses facial-recognition technology.

         Jackson: Said administrators and SROs use a mobile application to document safety and facility conditions, currently focusing on locked doors and employee alert badges. It can also document maintenance and other hazards.

         Allen: Asked what student data are collected and whether facial recognition is used.

         Jackson: Said the district is not using facial recognition through the system and is primarily collecting facility and employee-compliance information rather than student data. SROs may photograph hazards, such as an open door, but staff said they do not photograph students or teachers for this purpose.

         Kent: Asked whether the district has considered expanding camera technology to provide additional documentation when disciplinary incidents or disputes involving teachers, students or parents occur.

         Jackson: No clear commitment to expand cameras for that purpose was made during the discussion.

      2. Nurture Strong Relationships in Supportive Environment

         District implementing ACEs across schools to strengthen connections between students and trusted adults. Staff are receiving district-approved de-escalation training.

      3. Support the Overall Health of Students

         In response to HB 268, district will provide one hour of evidence-based suicide-awareness/prevention training and one hour of youth-violence-prevention training. It is expanding its 24-hour anonymous reporting system and providing counselors/families with additional resources.

         Discussion

         Allen: Asked about district procedures for parental notification when students speak with school counselors, distinguishing ordinary counseling from mental-health counseling.

         Dr. Campbell: Said parental permission is not required for ordinary counseling conversations, such as a student discussing friendships or having a difficult day. Parents are involved when mental-health or safety concerns reach a level involving potential harm. Said counseling procedures are addressed in the district’s counseling handbook.

         Allen: Asked where families can find counseling and community resources.

         Campbell: Said resources are available through school websites under community resources.

         Allen: Asked about staff training materials and whether the district is considering suicide-prevention programs other than Signs of Suicide (SOS).

         Jackson: Said Georgia recently identified three approved programs, including SOS. The district has not vetted the other two and currently plans to continue using SOS.

         Allen: Asked for the names of the other two state-approved programs.

         Jackson: Said they would provide them.

   4. Facilities & Operational Processes & Systems (Penny Jackson)

      1. Improve Operational Processes & Systems

         Improve custodial hiring/training; continue implementing transportation routing and camera systems; implement standardized school inspection checklists covering cleanliness, maintenance and safety.

      2. Identify & Plan for upcoming facility needs

         Continue maintaining the comprehensive building program and security/alert-management systems.

      3. Improve Technology Access (James VanMeter)

         Planned infrastructure refreshes rather than waiting for equipment failure; E-rate funding; wireless heat mapping; increased network capacity; disaster-recovery/business-continuity testing; and device-management measures aimed at a “distraction-free” learning environment.

         Discussion

         Kent: Asked what the district’s next major technology replacement will be and whether it is adequately budgeted.

         VanMeter: Said a roughly $2.7 million edge-switch upgrade is scheduled to begin in mid-to-late September. Said the district plans and budgets for infrastructure upgrades and competitively procures equipment while maintaining compatibility across network systems.

         Dekle: Asked about the status of replacing security cameras throughout the district.

         VanMeter: Said the district has approximately 1,600 cameras and replacement is proceeding. Some older equipment remains but is isolated so its traffic cannot leave the district network. Video storage servers/NVRs are also being replaced.

   5. Talent Optimization (Tony Wright)

      1. Attract a highly-qualified staff

         District wants to become more data-driven about which teacher-preparation programs and recruitment pipelines produce successful employees. Recruitment will expand beyond traditional education majors to undecided college students, career changers, paraprofessionals and the district's own students.

         Kent: Asked what the district is doing differently or “outside the box” to attract new employees.

         Wright: Said the district is expanding its geographic reach for some specialized positions and using internships as a recruitment pipeline, but emphasized culture, working environment, relationships, competitive salaries and communicating the district’s strengths as the primary recruitment tools.

      2. Provide professional growth opportunities & development for all employees

         District wants to become more data-driven about which teacher-preparation programs and recruitment pipelines produce successful employees. Recruitment will expand beyond traditional education majors to undecided college students, career changers, paraprofessionals and the district's own students.

      3. Retain a highly-effective workforce

         Continue reviewing compensation for market competitiveness/internal equity and better communicate total compensation, including insurance and leave. District also wants to improve retirement planning/support.

         Discussion

         Dekle: Asked how Georgia legislation allowing retired educators to return to work in high-need areas is affecting district staffing.

         Wright: Estimated approximately 3–5 fully retired educators have returned to full-time work, with additional retirees working part-time. Said current targeted areas include math and science.

         Dekle: Asked how salaries are handled when an experienced retiree and a newer teacher are candidates for the same position.

         Wright: Said principals select the best candidate and returning retirees are placed at the salary level they would have reached had they continued working. District does not pay the employee’s portion of TRS for those retirees. Said the district is also looking for ways to encourage experienced employees to remain beyond 30 years.

         Teasley: Asked whether the district offers flexible or part-time arrangements for experienced teachers who want to return but do not want a full schedule.

         Wright: Said flexibility depends on the position. Specialized positions such as speech-language services are more conducive to fractional positions than general classroom teaching.

         Teasley: Asked about telehealth and mental-health resources for employees.

         Wright: Said mental-health assistance is available through the district’s EAP and more employees are using it, although availability of providers accepting new clients remains a problem.

         Kent: Asked what the district is specifically doing to eliminate workplace barriers that cause teachers to leave.

         Wright: Said retention is strong and the most common reason employees leave is retirement, followed by spouse relocation/moves. HR follows up with employees reporting negative experiences through exit evaluations and works with departments to address problems that can be corrected.

         Allen: Asked whether the district’s annual Gallup employee survey includes comments and whether results are analyzed over multiple years to identify improving or declining trends.

         Wright: Said the standard Gallup survey consists of 12 questions used consistently from year to year. Schools and leaders receive their results and can track them over time and identify particular areas for improvement.

         Allen: Asked whether the district similarly compiles exit-survey data to identify multi-year trends in why employees leave.

         Wright: Said responses can be difficult to categorize and the district receives responses from roughly half of employees surveyed. Staff look for patterns, including recurring problems at particular locations, and follow up on concerns.

         Kent: Asked whether the district has considered making participation in the Gallup survey mandatory.

         Wright: Said employees are strongly encouraged to participate and characterized district employee-engagement results as strong.

3. Next Five-Year Strategic Plan

   District will spend the remainder of 2026 developing process for revising the strategic plan. Beginning January 2027, district plans to solicit input from teachers, staff, students, parents, community members and the Board, along with professional organizations and educational experts. Regular updates are planned during the second semester, with a revised five-year strategic plan expected to be presented to the Board in summer 2027, tentatively July.

Staff Reports

1. 2027-2028 School Calendar - Option A retained majority votes from stakeholders. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

   

   

2. Nuclear Science Week (Dr. Campbell)

   1. October 19-23

      Discussion

      Teasley: Clarified that Nuclear Science Week does not require teachers to add activities, change the curriculum or attend additional meetings.

      Campbell: Said nuclear-science material discussed already part of the curriculum and the recognition week does not add new curriculum requirements.

      Allen: Asked what students would be taught under Nuclear Science Week themes including “carbon-free energy” and “global leadership,” expressing concern that some themes could become politically charged.

      Campbell: Said those are themes identified by the Nuclear Science Week organization and are not automatically being adopted by the district. Any materials incorporated into instruction would go through the district’s review process.

      Allen: Said she supports teaching nuclear energy but wanted assurance that the district was not endorsing outside positions simply because they were included among the organization’s themes.

      Campbell: Confirmed that inclusion in Nuclear Science Week’s materials does not mean the district automatically endorses or incorporates them.

Building Program Bids:

1. Furniture for Evans HS (Cost: $269,479.34). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

   

   Discussion

   Allen: Asked whether the additional $269,479 purchase is included within the approximately $1.8 million budget for furniture and equipment at Evans High School or represents spending beyond that amount.

   Casado: Said the purchase is included within the overall Evans High School project budget. “Additional” refers to purchasing furniture for additional/new spaces, not increasing the project’s budget.

   Kent: Asked why the district is continuing to use pricing from the January 2025 bid rather than bidding the furniture again.

   Casado: Said district bids can include provisions allowing future purchases at the approved price as long as the vendor agrees to continue honoring it. Georgia Specialty Equipment is still honoring its January 2025 pricing. Rebidding could result in higher current prices and could also create inconsistencies in furniture makes/models already purchased for the school. Said the district generally allows such pricing arrangements for no more than three years.

2. FMO Vans (Cost per van: $51,435, Total cost: $205,740). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

Discussion

Teasley: Asked whether Akins Ford was the closest dealership offering the best price and whether a local dealership could match the pricing.

Casado: Said the state contract includes approved dealerships throughout Georgia. District staff reviewed dealerships on the contract; a geographically closer dealer did not have the vehicles available and would have required a significant wait. Akins Ford was the closest dealership with reasonable availability and offered the largest discount among the state-contract dealers contacted.

Allen: Asked for the funding source.

Casado: Said the vans are budgeted in the General Fund under FMO. Vehicle needs are included during the budget process based on fleet replacement needs and new positions requiring service vehicles.

Superintendent Reports:

• 9/3/2026 Lakeside HS Ribbon Cutting 5:30 pm

• 9/3/2026, Progress Reports

• 9/4/2026, Early Dismissal/Parent Conferences

• 9/7/2026, Labor Day

• 9/16/2026, CCSD Retiremnt Reception

• 9/17/2026, CCSD Annual Foundation Event

• 10/1/2026, Columbia County Teacher of the Year Celebration

• 10/6/2026, End of First Nine Weks

• 10/9/2026, Fall Break/ District Professional Learning Day

• 10/12/2026, Columbus Day

• 10/14/2026, Report Cards

Executive Session:

• Approval of affidavit: Yay 5, No 0

• Personnel Sheet: Yay 5, No 0

Adjourn at 8:30 pm : Yay 5, No 0

Next meeting regular session: 9/8/2026

All Commissioners Present

Call To Order: 6:00 pm

Approval of 8/4/2026 meeting minutes: Yay 5, No 0

Special Recognition, Presentation, and/or Declaration

1. Special Recognition

   1. (G1a) Awarding of the Medal of Valor and Meritorious Service Award

      Structure fire call in April 2026. Fire crews arrived about 3 minutes after the call and were told someone was still inside. Within 1 minute, 23 seconds of arriving, firefighters entered through 2nd story window in a very hazardous environment. Firefighters suffered second- and third-degree Burns during rescue attempt, and later treated at the hospital. Although they succeeded in getting the person out and to medical care, the person did not survive. Their protective equipment is being studied because of the damage it sustained in the fire.

      • Brian Folsom, civilian neighbor, reached home first and helped young male escape without injury. Meritorious Service Award

      • Medal of Valor

        • Lt. Matt Kennedy

        • Lt. Kyle McClellan

        • Engineer Jimmy Williams

Consent Agenda: Yay 5, No 0

1. Management and Internal Services Committee

   1. (H1a) Retirement Bridge Program Spousal Coverage and Dental Option Revision

   2. (H1b) Reimbursement to GEMA/FEMA for Helene Project Number 806591

   3. (H1c) Independent Contractor Agreement with Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services, LLC. for Risk Management Consulting and Supplementary Services

   4. (H1d) ACCG Safety Incentive Discount Program: 2027 Policy Year

   5. (H1e) Cisco Equipment Lifecycle Purchase from DISYS for Water Utility Sites

   6. (H1f) Cisco Smartnet Renewal Payment Authorization 2026-2027

   7. (H1g) Cisco Equipment Lifecycle Purchase from DISYS for Sheriff’s Office

   8. (H1h) Subscription Agreement with GovAI

   9. (H1i) Annual Maintenance Payment for Conga Software

   10. (H1j) Award Bid # 2025013-BID03289 and Contract to S.D. Clifton Construction for the Pollard House Renovation

   11. (H1k) Independent Contractor Agreement with Verge Erosion Control, LLC for the Pollard House NPDES Sampling and Reporting

   12. (H1l) Independent Contractor Agreement with CSRA Testing & Engineering Co., Inc for Special Inspections and Material Testing Services at the Pollard House

2. Development and Planning Services Committee

   1. (H2a) Purchase of a Takeuchi Mini Excavator for Facility Maintenance

   2. (H2b) Position Reclassifications in Building Standards

   3. (H2c) Easement Encroachment Agreement 828 Lillian Park Drive, Tax Map 067 Parcel 2563

   4. (H2d) Easement Encroachment Agreement for 1222 Arcilla Pointe, Tax Map 082 Parcel 444

Debate Agenda

1. New Business

   1. Management and Internal Services Committee

      1. (I1a1) Resolution 26-17 to Establish a Millage Rate for Purposes of Computing Ad Valorem Taxes on Property in Columbia County, Georgia for Calendar Year 2026 Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Johnson: County adopting rollback rate as previously announced. County General Services/ Administrative Services: 4.491 Mills. School Tax: 14.997 Mills. Fire Special Service District (unchanged): 2.788 Mills. 4.491-mil county rate puts Columbia County among the lowest in the state.

         Duncan: Credited county officials and staff with working through budget requests to balance the budget and allow the millage rate to be rolled back.

   2. Development and Planning Services Commttee

      1. (I1b1) RZ26-08-01, Conditional Use for Therapeutic Massage, 4490 Washington Road, Tax Map 072 Parcel 060N, 2.82 +/- acres, and currently zoned C-2 (General Commercial). Approval: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Existing business owner relocating to property. Therapeutic massage requires conditional-use approval at this location. One massage therapist 8am-5pm, Tuesday through Saturday.

      2. (I1b2) VA26-08-01, Variance to Section 90-53 List of Lot and Structure Requirements, 113 Glenora Drive, Tax Map 073C Parcel 163, 0.30 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-2 (Single Family Residential) and Easement Encroachment Agreement. Approval: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Owner plans to construct 16x20 foot addition to home. Property is triangular shaped, causing addition to encroach into required side setback. Reduce setback to 2 feet to accommodate addition. Includes encroachment agreement.

      3. (I1b3) VA26-08-02, Variance to Section 90-55 RCO Residential Cluster Overlay District, 509 Ernestine Falls, Tax Map 061 Parcel 1434, 0.3 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-2 (Single Family Residential)/RCO (Residential Cluster Overlay) and Easement Encroachment Agreement. Approval: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Corner lot, so applicable setbacks are side setbacks rather than rear setback. Owner wants to construct an accessory building on existing concrete pad. Reduce the side setbacks to 1 foot. Property has grading challenges, and owners completed work to address the grade. Submitted an HOA approval letter. Includes associated encroachment agreement.

      4. (I1b4) VA26-08-03, Variance to Section 90-53 List of Lot and Structure Requirements, 711 Campana Drive, Tax Map 071 Parcel 082, 0.29 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-2 (Single Family Residential) and Easement Encroachment Agreement. Approval: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Owner plans to construct a pool, deck and retaining wall in northern corner of property. Placement affects by property’s topography and irregular shape. Property has a 10-foot setback. Retaining wall - 9 ft. Reduce both sides and rear setbacks from 10 feet to 5 feet. Includes encroachment agreement.

      5. VA26-08-04, Variance to Sections 90-139 Buffers & Screening and 90-98 List of Lot and Structure Requirements, 4546 Washington Road, Tax Map 072 Parcel 073Q, 0.84 +/- acres, and currently zoned C-2 (General Commercial). Approval: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Site already graded and has an existing retaining wall. 30-ft structural setback required where the property adjoins residential property. Request reducing 30-ft structural setback to 10-ft, allowing existing retaining wall to remain and proposed building to be shifted farther back on lot. 10-ft side setbacks required because adjoining properties have different commercial zoning. Request reduce 10-ft side setbacks to 3-ft. No public comments during planning meeting.

      6. (I1b6) RZ26-08-02, Rezoning from R-2 (Single Family Residential) to S-1 (Special), 250 Legion Drive, Tax Map 079 Parcel 122A, 2.5 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-2 (Single Family Residential). Postponed: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Proposed 12-unit glamping campground. Units are enclosed dome structures on about 30x30 ft wooden decks. Plans include gravel access road and 13 parking spaces. Letters of support submitted from some neighboring property owners. Concerns raised during planning commission include flooding, wildlife, fire safety and emergency access. Campfires would not be permitted. Only entrance crosses the top of a dam. Fire access requires 20-ft wide route able to support emergency vehicles.

         Robert Tice, DMC Engineering: Existing gravel surface is not currently 20 ft wide, although distance from berm to berm is slightly more than 20 ft. Geotechnical evaluation would be performed to determine whether it can support fire vehicles. Fire also requested guardrails or lighting along access route to reduce risk of emergency vehicles leaving roadway.

         *Commissioners had questions about length of stay, security for property when nobody is there

         Frank Harris: Applicant. Property would be fenced and guests would need access codes for both property and individual sites. He lives nearby and intends to remain hands-on in managing property. Said that it was intended for short-term stays but had not established a specific limit yet.

         Carraway: Said to Harris that he seems to have good intentions but expressed concerns about “unintended consequences” if property were sold or operated by someone else.

         Harris: Has no intention of selling property and intends for it to remain in his family.

         Melear: Suggested postponing the request rather than risking denial, which would require the applicant to wait 6 months before reapplying.

         Schlachter: Agreed to send applicant and engineer list of questions so they could be addressed at next meeting.

      7. (I1b7) RZ26-08-03, Rezoning from R-3 (Single Family Residential) to P-1 (Professional) 106 Bellewood Drive, Tax Map 082A Parcel 100, 0.45 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-3 (Single Family Residential). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Applicant proposes converting existing 1040 square ft structure into an office for a tree-service business. Used as a professional office only. Adjacent property owner supported request and no one appeared in opposition at planning hearing. Companion Variance addresses required structural buffer.

      8. (I1b8) VA26-08-05, Variance to Section 90-139 Buffers & Screening, 106 Bellewood Drive, Tax Map 082A Parcel 100, 0.45 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-3 (Single Family Residential). Approval: Yay 5, No 0

      9. (I1b9) RZ26-08-04, Rezoning from R-3 (Single Family Residential) to PRD (Planned Residential Development), 325 McCormick Road, Tax Map 077B Parcel 114, 14.1 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-3 (Single Family Residential) Postpone until 9/1/2026 Meeting: Yay 5, No 0

Public Comment

• Lee Muns: Questioned why commissioners extensively discussed the glamping proposal while asking comparatively few questions about much larger data center projects. He called for public disclosure and discussion of proposed changes to the county’s data center ordinance, a possible moratorium, and detailed calculations supporting projected tax revenue and property-tax relief. Also suggested considering millage-rate reductions as a broader form of tax relief and questioned what would happen to funds accumulated for the HB 439 program if necessary legal changes do not occur. He concluded that citizens are asking for specific calculations, documents and proposals rather than promises of future relief.

• Cambrey Wood: Formally presented a draft model data center ordinance for the county's consideration and again called for a temporary moratorium on new data center applications while regulations are reviewed. She asked when the public would see the ordinance revisions and moratorium that Couch previously said were being developed. Wood asked the commission to place her draft on the appropriate agendas, have staff and the county attorney evaluate it alongside the county's proposed changes, and hold public workshops before adopting a revised ordinance. She said the goal was not to stop economic development but to establish rules and involve the public before additional projects are approved.

• Susan Warren: Raised questions about data center construction and enforcement, including noise and lighting restrictions, power and water use, infrastructure, stormwater, setbacks, and the timeline for full buildout and projected tax revenue. She also asked about proposed changes to the county's data center ordinance and again raised the possibility of requiring a project surety bond.

  • Couch: Proposed ordinance amendment relates to a surety bond

  • Chairman Duncan: He reviewed the model ordinances submitted to the county and considered them “too invasive.” Also said the county was very close to having financial numbers available for review and attributed the failure of the constitutional amendment needed for the proposed property-tax relief mechanism to Democrats in the Georgia House.

Closed Executive Session: 6:48 - 8:11 pm to discuss 2 personnel items

Johnson stated that they discussed 2 personnel items during executive session and no formal action was taken during executive session

Approval of employment contract for Brian Armstrong as Right-of-way Specialist: Yay 5, No 0

Adjourned: 8:12 pm

Board Members Present: Chairman David Dekle, D1 Philip Kent, D2 Kristi Baker, D3 Judy Teasley, D4 Katie Allen

Call To Order: 5:30pm

Special Recognitions

• Georgia High School Association

  • GHSA 5A Golf State Champions

    • Hamilton Coleman

    • Charles Elsken

    • Brighton Glodava

    • Cooper Hawkins

    • Andrew Higgins

    • Tabb Hinson

    • Qasim Khan

    • Kipp Madison

    • Grant Murray

    • Tyler Newsome

    • Sam Rogers

    • Jacob Weaver

    • Bennett Wiggins

  • GHSA 5A Girls Golf State Championship, 3rd Place, Greenbrier High School

    • Gabriella Burkett

    • Jaclyn Cressend

    • Shane Daly

    • Khera H Khera

    • Adyson Lukich

    • Madelyn Silarek

    • Avery Simpson

    • Benton Vineyard

  • GHSA 5A Girls Soccer State Champions, Greenbrier High School

    • Peyton Anderson

    • Analaura Boone

    • Arianna Boone

    • Darcy Bridwll

    • Sophie Campanaro

    • Mackenzie Canady

    • Nora Dye

    • Belle Gantt

    • Krista Gillies

    • Molly Grover

    • Talashia Harris

    • Madelyn Heckathorn

    • Addison Jernigan

    • Maura Jobes

    • Murphy Larkin

    • Kate McDonald

    • Kinley Mitchell

    • Sadie Oldham

    • Mamie Cate Pangle

    • Stephanie Schroeder

    • Aaliyah Silver

    • AdelinaStrupp

    • Aubrey Strupp

    • Alayna Tamez

    • Sarah Wahl

    • Sophie Witt

  • GHSA 5A Girls Tennis State Runner-Up, Lakeside High School

    • Victoria Bishop

    • Emily Bull

    • Elise Clemente

    • Charley Fair

    • Marlea Griffis

    • Genevieve Handel

    • Madeline Jackson

    • Hannah Liebel

    • Georgia Manolakis

    • Savanna Mills

    • Manasvi Patel

    • Siya Patel

    • Katherine Peterson

    • Lauren Smith

    • Connor Trammell

• National Grant for Summer Fellowship

  • Crystal McDowell, Greenbrier High School

Special Recommendation

• Director of Talent Development, HR: Dr. Kenneth L Johnson

Approval of Consent Items: Yay 5, No 0

1. 7/21/2026 Regular Session Meeting Minutes

2. Fundraisers

3. Employee Travel

4. Program/Camp/Employe Participation Requests

5. Lease/Use of Facilities

Board Policies: Approval of items b-e: Yay 5, No 0

a. Board Policy EBB, Safety

b. Board Policy GARJ, Employee Retirement

c. Board Policy IH, Student Achievement

d. Board Policy JB, Student Attendance

e. Board Policy KG, Use of School Facilities

Dr. Flynt pulled item “a” off the list because staff still has some changes they want to make. Recommended approval of policies b-e.

Allen: What was the reason for the changes in item “b” Board Policy GARJ?

Flynt: This was changing the wording from TRS. This reflects some legislative changes as well. Some items were pulled off and moved to procedure. The law was effective 7/1/2026.

Adoption of the 2026 Tax Digest Millage Rate to the rollback rate of 14.997. Approval Yay 5, No 0

Human Resources Staffing Update, Tony Wright

• 2,207 of 2,215 certified positions filled, a 99.6% fill rate.

• Fewer than 10 certified vacancies, primarily in ASD and interrelated special education positions.

• Demand for specialized positions increased by about 14%, or 42 additional positions, over last school year.

• Non-certified positions: 1,580 of 1,600 positions are filled, a 98.7% fill rate.

• Current recruiting priorities: 8 special ed para vacancies and 11 combined maintenance technician, HVAC technician and custodial vacancies.

• Current vacancies not affecting student achievement and coverage plans are in place.

• New teacher orientation and mentoring program, custodial training center, additional training days for special ed paras, district leadership academies, Augusta University’s first speech-language pathology cohort graduating December, the CTAE teacher apprenticeship pathway, and continued work on weighted staffing and a new HR information system.

Discussion

Allen: Asked about para staffing and referenced prior information suggesting the district lost about 80/ year.

Wright: Said losing 80 paraprofessionals annually would be a significant problem and estimated turnover among special education paras at under 20% per year. Said the district has roughly 78–90 ASD-specific paraprofessional positions and another 50–60 interrelated paraprofessional positions.

Proposed School Calendar Options for 2027-2028, Penny Jackson

• School Calendar Advisory Team: parents, teachers, administrators and district personnel, began in May.

• Each option has180 instructional days and incorporates required teacher workdays/professional development days, holidays, seasonal breaks and at least one early-release day per semester for parent conferences.

• The district continues its practice of ending first semester before winter break and second semester before Memorial Day.

• Calendar survey opens Aug. 12 and closes Aug. 21. District employees will receive the survey by email, and a link will be posted on the district website for public feedback.

• Survey results and the preferred calendar option will be presented at the next board meeting for approval.

• Graduation dates/venue remain TBD, which could affect the end-of-year schedule. One option would end school earlier but could require staff to return after post-planning for graduation.

Advanced Placement Update for 2026, Dr. Campbell

• 30+ AP courses across its five high schools.

• Since 2021, the number of AP exams administered has increased 59%, from 3,298 to 5,242.

• District’s AP exam pass rate increased from 55% to 81%, the first time the district has exceeded an 80% pass rate.

• Newer AP offerings include AP Business with Personal Finance, AP Cybersecurity and AP Cyber Networking.

• Evans High School: Highest 3-year increase in percentage of AP exams earning a 3 or higher; increased 13 percentage points to 83%.

• Harlem High School: Highest 3-year increase in total AP exams; increased 27%.

• Greenbrier High School: Highest percentage of AP exams earning a 3 or higher (90%) and highest AP participation, with 40% of students taking at least one AP exam.

• Grovetown High School: Highest 1-year increase in percentage of AP exams earning a 3 or higher; increased 6 percentage points to 82%.

• Lakeside High School: Highest one-year increase in total AP exams; increased 20% to 1,518 exams.

• 51% increase in dual-enrollment participation over the past 3 years, while AP participation has also continued to grow.

• AP English and AP U.S. History are most popular AP courses. AP Psychology and AP Government more approachable entry points for students who may be hesitant about AP.

• Uses PSAT 8/9 results and College Board’s AP Potential reports to identify students who may be capable of succeeding in AP courses.

Junior Achievement Dream Accelerator, Dr. Campbell

Dr. Campbell:

• District developing framework to help every student graduate with a defined post-graduation pathway.

• Framework supports Georgia’s Top State for Talent Act (HB 192). Includes career-interest inventories, aptitude assessments and individual college and career plans beginning in middle school.

• Brand pathway initiative “What is Your E Plan?” 3 broad post-graduation options: Enroll, Employ or Enlist.

• Students begin developing an Individual College and Career Plan (ICCP) in sixth grade, with parents able to access plan through parent portal. In HS, district would refer to the plan as the student’s E Plan.

• Already uses Junior Achievement programming, career-interest surveys, YouScience aptitude assessments, pathway fairs, the College and Career Expo and work-based learning opportunities.

• Proposed Dream Accelerator would be incorporated in 8th and 10th grades to provide immersive career exploration experience. Help students develop and revise plans.

• Students receive report with career interests and goals, shared with teachers and counselors and incorporated into ongoing college/career plan.

• Dream Accelerator installed in approximately 3,200 square feet of currently unused space adjacent to the existing JA Discovery Center.

• District would contribute up to $1.3 million from the 2026–27 curriculum and instruction budget. Junior Achievement funding partners would contribute approximately $700,000, for an estimated total project cost of $2 million.

• No district wide textbook adoption scheduled this year, leaving curriculum and instruction funding available for project.

• Program serve approximately 5,000 8th and 10th grade students each year.

John Hancock – Junior Achievement of Georgia

• Junior Achievement’s focus career exploration, entrepreneurship, financial literacy and workforce readiness, with an emphasis on experiential learning.

• Dream Accelerator complements existing programs at Discovery Center.

• Unlike many JA programs designed for a single grade level, Dream Accelerator can be used at multiple grade levels, allowing students to revisit career planning as they progress through school.

• Program includes classroom prep followed by an approximately two-hour interactive experience.

• Students move through stations focused on personal strengths, career exploration, lifestyle costs, entrepreneurship, visualization and SMART goals.

• Program intended to help students explore possibilities rather than assign them to a particular career path.

• JA responsible for ongoing technology support, with program content generally refreshed on a 3-year cycle.

Discussion

Allen: Raised concerns about operations, finances and potential conflicts. Noted previous difficulty recruiting volunteers for the existing JA Discovery Center and questioned adding another program requiring additional volunteers.

Hancock: Said 6 volunteers would be ideal, but program could operate with approximately 3 because interactive individual stations.

Allen: Questioned spending up to $1.3 million after the district transferred $20 million from the general fund to the building program, and adopted a budget using approximately $40 million in general fund balance. Said didn’t believe this was appropriate year for the expenditure. Raised concerns about Dr. Flynt serving on the Junior Achievement board while district considers another major investment with JA. Asked when he joined the board.

Hancock: Said Flynt joined the JA board in September 2025.

Allen: Asked for participation data from the existing Discovery Center, costs and volunteer requirements from other Dream Accelerator programs, and evidence of measurable student outcomes from both Dream Accelerator and the district’s existing JA programs.

Kent: Said he supports concept but shared Allen’s financial concerns. Said board’s aggressive building program limits its ability to take on additional spending and that he could not support project this year.

Dekle: Supported the expenditure, arguing that $1.3 million in curriculum and instruction funding would serve approximately 5,000 students per year. Compared the cost with textbook adoptions of $2–$4 million and said the program could serve approximately 35,000 students over 7 years.

Allen: Asked if district could wait a month to obtain additional information before making a decision.

Teasley: Said students who have a goal are more likely to graduate, even if they ultimately change goal. Pointed to the district’s approximately 92–93% graduation rate.

Allen: Said evidence that Dream Accelerator could produce even a 2–3% increase in graduation rates would strengthen the case for the program, but reiterated that she wanted supporting data before approving it.

Allen: Moved to table the proposal until the board received additional information. Yay 2 (Allen & Kent), No 3.

Baker: Asked what information was available from Clayton County and how widely Dream Accelerator had been implemented.

Hancock: Said Dream Accelerator originated with JA in Denver and had been replicated three times. Clayton County’s program opened in February, so long-term data are not yet available. Said JA has some info on teacher satisfaction, student experience and alignment with school strategies, but isolating the program’s effect on long-term student outcomes is difficult.

Allen: Asked whether JA had data showing how often students ultimately enter the careers they identified through Dream Accelerator.

Hancock: Said that data do not yet exist because the program is relatively new and reiterated that the goal is career exploration rather than assigning students to a specific career.

Allen: Asked how Dream Accelerator fundamentally differs from the career-interest and aptitude surveys students already take.

Campbell: Said the primary difference is the interactive experience. Students connect interests with possible careers, examine salaries and lifestyle costs, set goals and take those results back to teachers and counselors for continued planning.

Allen: Asked whether the program accounts for AI’s potential impact on careers over the next five to ten years.

Hancock: Said he did not have a specific answer but agreed it was an important consideration and said JA could examine it further.

Kent: Asked whether the district’s $1.3 million share was a realistic estimate and whether the final cost could be lower.

Hancock: Said the approximately $2 million total project cost was likely accurate within about 5–8%. He said JA would also seek philanthropic contributions, which could proportionally reduce the amount paid by both JA and the district.

Dekle: I make a motion that we approve up to $1.3 million out of the curriculum instruction budget to partner with Junior Achievement to develop a Dream Accelerator in Columbia County. Yay 3, No 2 (Allen and Kent)

Contract for Services CSRA RESA: Yay 5, No 0

Basic Membership $106,324

Vision Education $ 30,754

Orientation & Mobility $ 41,672

Total Contract $178,750

Superintendent Reports

• Progress Reports, September 3

• Early Dismissal/Parent Conferences, September 4

• Labor Day Holiday, September 7

• Columbia County School District Retirement Reception, September 16

• Columbia County Teacher of the Year Celebration, October 1

• End of First Nine Weeks, October 6

• Student Fall Break/District Professional Learning Day, October 9

• Columbus Day Holiday, October 12

• Report Cards, October 14

Public Participation:

• None

Executive Session: Yay 5, No 0

• Affidavit: Yay 5, No 0

• Personnel Sheet: Yay 5, No 0

Executive Session Procedures:

• Motion to table executive session procedures: Yay 4, No 1 (Allen)

Adjourn: 8:25 pm

Commissioners Present: Chairman Doug Duncan, D1 Connie Melear, D2 Jim Steed, D3 Michael Carraway, D4 Alison Couch

Call To Order: 6 pm

Approval of 7/21/2026 Meeting Minutes: Yay 5, No 0

Consent Agenda. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

1. Community and Emergency Services Committee

   1. (H1a) Service Agreement with Augusta Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution

   2. (H1b) Motorola P25 AIS 911 Recording System Agreement with Replay Systems, Inc.

   3. (H1c) Amendment to the Columbia County Events Sponsorship and Advertising Agreement

   4. (H1d) CSRA Mustang Club Agreement for the Mustang Club of America National Show

   5. (H1e) The Purchase of (40) Scott XD Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) and (30) additional cylinders from American Safety and Firehouse

   6. (H1f) The Purchase of ProtectIR and XplorIR Bundles from 908 Devices for the Hazardous Materials Response Team

   7. (H1g) Masters Services Agreement with RapidSOS, Inc. for IAmResponding Software

   8. (H1h) Independent Contractor Agreement with Telemedicine Group for the HeartStart+ Cardiovascular & Metabolic Screening

2. Public Works and Engineering Services Committee

   1. (H2a) The Purchase of a New Mobile Generator for Fleet Services from Nixon Power Services

   2. (H2b) Award Bid # 2026021-BID3289 and Contract to Coleman Construction, Inc. for the Construction of the Columbia County Emergency Back-up Generators

   3. (H2c) Emergency Purchase from Augusta Chiller Services Inc. for the Boiler Replacement at Patriots Park Gym

   4. (H2d) Award Bid # 2026020-BID3289 and Contract to Duckworth Development for the Renovation of Building G1 - Department of Revenue

   5. (H2e) Southern Flow Nozomi Yearly License Renewal 2026

   6. (H2f) Independent Contractor Agreement with Bluewater Engineering Services, LLC. for the Sawdust Rd to Old Louisville Rd 12” Waterline Project E&S Inspections and Monitoring

   7. (H2g) A Purchase from Gerald Jones Ford for a Half Ton Four-Wheel Truck to Replace Shop Number 2201

   8. (H2h) Adding a Cell Phone Allowance to Position Numbers 91 Manager II NE and 1616 Manager II NE

   9. (H2i) Water Utility Pump Maintenance Agreement with Goforth Williamson Inc.

   10. (H2j) Emergency Chemical Spill Cleanup by Clean Harbors Environmental Services, Inc

   11. (H2k) Amendment to the Project Access Improvements (PAI) Manual

   12. (H2l) Designation of the Stormwater Compliance Department Manager as a US EPA Signatory Authority & Alternative Designated Representative

   13. (H2m) Change Order Number 1 to Contract #2026-3469 with Cajenn Construction & Rehabilitation Services for the 2026 Storm Water UV Lining Projects

   14. (H2n) Contract #2026-3610 with Southern Civil Solutions for Engineering Services Related to the Ridge Crossing Storm Drain UV Lining Rehabilitation Project

   15. (H2o) Supplemental Agreement Number 1 to the Project Framework Agreement with GDOT for the Washington Rd Widening Project, PI# 0021250

   16. (H2p) Acceptance of Easements and Associated Stormwater Infrastructure from Tillery Park Homeowners Association, Inc

   17. (H2q) Acceptance of Easements and Associated Water & Sanitary Utility Infrastructure from Edgar Hughston Builders, Inc.

Debate Agenda

• New Business

  1. Developmnt and Planning Service Committee

     1. (I1a1) VA26-07-02, Variance to Section 90-53 List of lot and Structure Requirements, 228 Applecross Drive, Tax Map 083 Parcel 046, 0.7 +/- acres, and currently zoned A-R (Apartment Residential) and Easement Encroachment Agreement. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

        Schlachter: Both Variance and an easement encroachment agreement. House located on property zoned A-R. Any house on A-R property must comply with R-3A setback requirements. Previous house burned in 2008, but original slab remains. Want to construct new house on existing slab. Small portion of the proposed house falls within required side setback.

        Melear: Previously a single-family residence?

        Schlachter: Correct

        Melear: Basically replacing what was there already?

        Schlachter: Correct

Public Comments

• Cambrey Wood:

Response from Alison Couch (transcribed):

I do think it’s important to note that I have already requested changes to the data center ordinance in Columbia County, as well as a moratorium while we work through those changes. I only have 1 vote, but I am actively working with my fellow commissioners to garner support for that.

While I am speaking about my 1 vote, I would also like to remind everyone that I voted against 2 of the 3 data centers that were proposed for Columbia County, and my position on that has not changed. I am in favor of tax relief for our citizens and continue to work tirelessly for it. Its is my belief that we can accomplish that with what has already been approved.

• Lee Muns on behalf of Citizens for Open Governance: Asked the Commissioners to adopt a policy requiring public approval of NDAs related to county business. He argued that while confidentiality may sometimes be appropriate, decisions to enter into NDAs should be transparent and approved in an open meeting. Proposal called for review of existing NDAs, development of permanent county rules governing their use, and reaffirmed NDA can’t be used to circumvent Georgia’s sunshine laws. Also asked about timeline for recruiting replacement for County Manager Scott Johnson.

  • Doug Duncan responded that the Board of Commissioners would recruit a replacement but did not provide a timeline for when the search would begin.

• Blane Carter: Concerns about sharply rising property assessments, questioned how fair market values are determined and whether significant increases are being used to generate additional tax revenue. Express concern about county’s messaging on proposed property tax relief program, arguing that advertisements by [Chamber of Commerce] make benefits sound more certain that they are before voters have approved thee November Referendum. During the discussion, he questioned how the tax relief would be funded and the challenged the county manager over compensation and government spending.

• Jeffrey Holder: Asked for clarification on how the property tax relief created by House Bill 439 would be calculated, and when homeowners could realistically expect to receive the benefit. He questioned the timeline for funding the program and sought a better understanding of how the proposed homestead exemption would work in practice. Also expressed skepticism that Data centers would have no impact on future electricity rates, suggesting that increased power demand could eventually result in higher costs for consumers despite current assurances from Georgia Power.

Executive Session

1. Property

   1. (M1a) Property A. Approve: Yay 5, No 0 $1850 to Vickie Dye for Euchee Creek project. This was to preserve a historic tree.

Adjourn: 6:44 pm

Commissioners Present: Chairman Doug Duncan, D1 Connie Melear, D2 Jim Steed, D3 Mike Carraway. D4 Alison Couch was absent due to testifying at State tax committee in Atlanta.

Call To Order: 6:00 pm

Approval of 7/7/2026 Meeting Minutes: Yay 4, No 0

Consent Agenda: Yay 4, No 0

1. Management and Internal Services Committee

   1. (H1a) Service Agreement with the Izzy Scott Foundation

   2. (H1b) Georgia Indigent Defense Services Agreement for the Public Defender’s Office

   3. (H1c) Master Services Agreement with Pictometry International for Digital Orthophotography

   4. (H1d) Implementation of Cisco Security Suite

   5. (H1e) Microsoft Enterprise Agreement 2026-2029

   6. (H1f) Allocate funding for the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office to replace the Detention Center plumbing fixtures.

   7. (H1g) Independent Contractor Agreement with WSP USA Inc. for the Special Inspections and Material Testing Services at Evans Towne Center Park and the Racquet Center

   8. (H1h) Lighting Services Agreement with Georgia Power for the Evans Towne Center Park Ice Rink and Parking Lot

2. Development and Planning Services Committee Commissioner Melear

   1. (H2a) Purchase of Stream and Wetland Mitigation Credits from the Phinizy Swamp Mitigation Bank and Yam Grandy Mitigation Bank for the Hereford Farm Road Widening Project, PI# 0012865

   2. (H2b) Resolution 26-16 Concerning a Determination to Abandon and Sell a Portion of Morris Callaway Road

   3. (H2c) Acceptance of the 2026 LMIG Safety Action Plan Grant

   4. (H2d) Alcoholic Beverage License Mendoza’s Mexican Grill LLC

   5. (H2e) Easement Encroachment Agreement for 801 Prairie Lane, Tax Map 072P Parcel 077

   6. (H2f) Easement Encroachment Agreement 3104 Wildflower Court, Tax Map 071 Parcel 178

Debate Agenda

1. New Business

   1. Development and Planning Services Committee

      1. (I1a1) VA26-07-01, Variance to Section 90-53 List of lot and Structure Requirements, 618 Millstone Drive, Tax Map 077 Parcel 599, 0.70 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-2 (Single Family Residential). Approve: Yay 4, No 0

         Schlachter: (This is for a proposed standalone garage.) The property has 2 front setbacks. Letter of support from HOA.

      2. (I1a2) RZ26-07-01, Major PUD (Planned Unit Development) Revision, 500 Furys Ferry Road, Tax Map 078 Parcel 178, 11.16 +/- acres, and currently zoned PUD (Planned Unit Development). Disapprove: Yay 3, No 1 (Steed)

         Dr. Troy Acres: Asked to deny. Planning Commission voted 4-1 to deny. Concerns about traffic safety, removal of parking spaces, construction impacting existing businesses, existing conceptual plans from 2020 and 2024 do not include gas station. Had to jump through hopes for Ding Pickleball, but never complained.

         Lindsey Steinburg: Opposed. 2026 Comprehensive Plan encouraging wider variety of businesses. Economic benefits of pickleball tourism, safety concerns associated with gas stations, impacts to quality of life.

         Dr. Brandy Consololis: North August Business Owner of Splatter Place. Shared experience of prolonged construction at shopping center in Aiken County. Promised it would be done in 10 months but still ongoing at month 12. She had forced layoffs within 3 weeks of construction starting and she is 3 weeks from bankruptcy. Has lost $15K in business per month since construction started in the parking lot. Her business now has no parking and her front entrance was blocked for 2 months. Urged Commission to not put businesses through that.

      3. (I1a3) RZ26-07-02, Change of Conditions, 4800 Columbia Road, Tax Map 068 Parcel 019C, 2.44 +/- acres and currently zoned C-2 (General Commercial). Approve: Yay 4, No 0

         Schlachter: Change to allow restaurant to use Parcel. Years ago, there was a restriction placed on the parcel to not allow a restaurant. There has been infrastructure improvements nearby, so asking restriction to be removed to build a restaurant. Conditions that all planning staff has to approve and Caliper trees to remain in landscaping.

         Melear: Will this restaurant be inside the gas station and connected or two separate units?

         Schlachter: Connected to existing building but there won’t be doors that pass between the 2 businesses.

         Melear: Questions about alcohol sales at this location?

         Schlachter: Not at this time.

         Melear: Were there any comments from neighbors?

         Schlachter: One comment at planning commission that area is already “super congested” and adding restaurant will increase traffic in area.

      4. (I1a4) Agreement to Participate in the Georgia Hospital Signing System Approve: Yay 4, No 0

         Schlachter: Hospital nearing completion. In order to have signs on Interstate, we have to enter agreement with GDOT. They are responsible for signs on their roads and we’re responsible for signs on our roads.

         Melear: Pointed out that this agreement supersedes local signage ordinance but she thinks that’s an appropriate Variance.

2. Items Added at the Meeting

   1. (I2a) Reappointments of Development Authority (Mark Herbert, Rick Tulle, Stan Shepard) with terms ending 12/31/2029. Approve: Yay 4, No 0

      Johnson: These people are all up for reappointment to the Development Authority.

      Susan Warren: Added at the meeting to give comment. Questioned whether adding the Development Authority appointments to the agenda during the meeting complied with Georgia’s Open Meetings requirements. She compared the addition to previous library agenda amendments and argued agenda additions should only occur during emergencies.

      Duncan: Acknowledged appointments overlooked earlier in the year. It should have been brought to the board in January.

      Susan Warren: Argued that public should have been properly noticed of the addition of the agenda item because it wasn’t an emergency.

      Duncan: He didn’t have a problem with it.

      Susan Warren: It’s circumventing requirements under the Open Meetings Act, similar to how it was circumvented with the Library [Guidelines] previously.

Public Comment:

• Lindsey Brantley: Requested improvements to Rezoning process by increasing notice from 15 days to 30 days, and adding Board of Commissioners Meeting info to rezoning signs. Used Hall County as an example.

  Duncan: Directed to Schlachter, discussed concern about if the date of the meeting gets moved, it creates a problem with the sign. Interested in what Hall County does.

  Schlachter: We order the signs. After application received, signs get ordered, and typically put out on Wednesdays to meet the necessary 15-days. Here’s the concern though and happy to look into what Hall County does. Also, directed public to the website. There are 6 right now on website that won’t go in front of Planning Commission until August, so they are advertising it.

  Brantley: My complaint isn’t about the information available online. It’s about the signage. In the last 14 months, I’ve noticed people swarm the meeting on the sign but not the meeting in which the final vote is taken, like tonight. The Pickle Ball parking lot might be the exception to that. We want to see you all though (indicates towards commission) because we elect you and you make the final vote, not the volunteers. Those are volunteers on the planning commission, or are they paid employees?

  Duncan: No, they’re appointed.

  Brantley: They’re appointed by you but they’re not the ones that the decision is on…

  Melear: They are a recommending body.

  Brantley: That’s right. So I feel like the crowd needs to show up to this meeting, and not just to the planning commission meeting. That’s my issue. I know online is up to date but people respond to the signs.

  Duncan: She mentioned stickers, so maybe if there are stickers like an overlay on the sign….

  Brantley: Argued that right now it just has the planning commission date on it. If you add the commission meeting date on it and that date changes, you could slap a sticker on it and you’re not having to order a new sign.

  Melear: But if you see a date on the sign, and you show up, but it was postponed or changed, you’re going to be kinda mad, right?

  Brantley: I’m just asking for a good faith effort. A lot of people just want more time and information. And some people rely on and plan attendance based on the signs. We could go back and forth about who is responsible about knowing the process and information. I feel like an olive branch from you all to the community, especially with all the things sliding through, notifying us to the best of your ability would feel like an olive branch to us.

  Carraway: I wouldn’t be opposed to that if it can be done.

• Lee Muns: Presented a proposed Model Data Center Ordinance and Development Framework on behalf of Citizens for Open Governance. Asked ahead of time to go over allotted 5 minutes. Spoke for about 12+ minutes.

  Adjourn

In attendance: Chairman David Dekle, Vice Chair (D1) Philip Kent, D2 Kristi Baker, D3 Judy Teasley, D4 Katie Allen, Superintendent Steven Flynt

Call To Order: 5:30pm

Invocation: Trinity Baptist Church Family Life Pastor TJ Custer

Pledge of Allegiance: Grovetown HS JROTC

Approval of Agenda:

(Not transcripted)

Dekle: There are 2 items that were inadvertently left off the agenda, and asked to amend the agenda to include:

• The schedule for board members training, which was included in board packet

• Bid results regarding special education outsourcing of teachers.

(After a motion and second))

Allen: What item numbers will those be now?

Dekle: We’ll make the training schedule Consent Item H, and we’ll make the bid results item 11.1, immediate following the CTAE presentation. Is that OK?

Allen: And just for clarification, those are training hours only. That’s not….

Dekle: Yes. It’s the sheet that was in your packet.

Allen: And we’re approving the training hours only, correct?

Dekle: Yes, as presented in the training packet.

Amend Agenda Vote: Yay 5, No 0

Special Recognition:

a. Country Music Award Foundation Top Music Educator in the Nation

Melissa Blizzard of Stevens Creek Elementary School

Special Recommendation:

a. Rodney Holder, Assistant Principal Harlem High School

Board Comments: Board members thanked the pastor for the invocation, congratulated music teacher Melissa Blizzard on receiving a national CMA Foundation Music Teacher Award, and praised her commitment to her students. They also congratulated Rodney Holder on his promotion to assistant principal at Harlem HS, highlighting his nearly 29 years of service and leadership in the district. Several board members thanked the Grovetown HS JROTC cadets for lading the Pledge of Allegiance, praised district staff for their work preparing for the upcoming school year, and expressed confidence that CCSD would have another successful year.

Flynt: One more agenda item to add as item 7.1. Vote to submit application for Exemplary School Board to Georgia School Board Association. Yay 5, No 0

Exemplary Board Application: Yay 4, No, 0 Abstain 1 (Allen)

Flynt: Deadline falls before the next board meeting. GSBA offers 3 levels of recognition based on board governance and other criteria, and Columbia County routinely applies each year.

Allen: Questioned whether the board should seek the designation, saying she believed there were still areas where the board needed improvement and that she had previously emailed concerns about governance. She hadn’t been provided the evaluation rubric or enough information to make an informed decision.

Kent: Believes the board is moving in a positive direction, citing more open discussion and transparency. Acknowledge he wasn’t familiar with GSBA scoring criteria.

Teasley: Stakeholder feedback gathered as part of the application process had been positive, and the district applies for the recognition annually.

Consent Agenda:

a. Minutes of 6/16/2026 Regular Session Meeting, and Minutes of 7/14/2026 Special Called Meeting.

b. May Financials

c. Budget Amendment and Transfers

d. Fundraisers

e. Employee Travel

f. Program/Camp/Employee Participation Requests

g. Lease/Use of Facilities

h. Schedule for board member training

Allen: Asked to remove 6/16/2026 Meeting Minutes.

Motion to approve consent items b-h and the 7/14/2026 Special Called Meeting Minutes: Yay 5, No 0

Allen: Asked to amend the 6/16/2026 meeting minutes to state that she removed herself from part of the executive session before later abstaining from the affidavit vote. Yay 5, No 0

Board Policies (revisions to be voted on at next meeting) (To view Board Policies, check here: https://simbli.eboardsolutions.com/Policy/PolicyListing.aspx?S=36031361&ptid=amIgTZiB9plushNjl6WXhfiOQ== . Scroll down on the left-hand menu to see “Pending for Public Comment.” This will list the board policies that are currently accepting public comments.)

a. Board Policy KG, Use of School Facilities

b. Board Policy EBB, Safety: Adding state mandated Behavior Threat Assessment guidelines/protocols, safety training for subs. Each school will have behavioral threat assessment team that valuates reported threats under state guidelines, documents serious cases in Infinite Campus and coordinates with school resource officers.

c. Board Policy GARJ, Employee Retirement: Revising Return to work language for retirees to comply with TRS requirements.

d. Board Policy IH, Student Achievement: Modifying that middle school students may qualify for example exemptions

e. Board Policy JB, Student Attendance: Implementing new kindergarten and first-grade readiness requirements. State requirements to assess students for first grade readiness if they did not attend public Kindergarten.

Graduation Ceremonies for 2027

• Ceremonies will continue to be held at Evans Towne Center Park with the Columbia County Performing Arts Centers reserved as indoor backup in case of inclement weather

• Augusta Arena as alternate venue discussed but no guarantee it will be finished in time, but may be a viable option for 2028.

Career, Technical and Agricultural Education Pathway Update

• Addition of Heavy Equipment Operator Pathway

Bid Result for SPED Teacher Augumentation. Approved with Restriction (see notes): Yay 5, No 0

Flynt: District issued request for proposals to ore than 10 vendors and received 29 responses. Based on cost, staffing availability, response time, Georgia experience and references, administrators recommended Blazer works.

Wright (HR): District currently anticipating needing 8-10 teachers and described the contract as a backup staffing option to fill vacancies more quickly than the district could hire on its own. He said contracted teachers would met thee district’s certification requirements and could be hired for varying lengths of time depending on need.

Allen: Questioned whether proposal was connected to a separate procurement involving the possible outsourcing of paraprofessionals. Allen said she reviewed an open procurement document referencing staffing services and believed there was overlap in the language. Sh argued that the board previously discussed studying the outsourcing concept further and that she had no received enough documentation to determine if the 2 procurement were related.

Wright: Repeatedly stated that the bid contract before the board did not involve outsourcing paraprofessionals and was limited to temporary professional staffing for positions such as special education teachers, occupational therapists and other specialized personnel. Wright said the district had no intention of outsourcing its paraprofessional Workforce and explained the proposal simply established a contract that could be used when vacancies arose.

Baker: Asked whether contracted employees would remain for the entire school year and if district could request other specialized provides if needed.

Wright: Compared to arrangement to traveling healthcare professionals, explaining that the staffing company maintains a large network of qualified personnel who can be placed more quickly than traditional hiring. Expressed concern that if they didn’t follow through with contract, there would be SPED teacher vacancies on the first day of school.

Dekle: Proposed adding a restriction that the contract could not be used to fill paraprofessional positions without returning to the board for approval.

The motion was made and voted on.

Bid for Heavy Equipment Operator Simulator for CTAE. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

Ratification of the Greenbrier HS CMAR bid award. Yay 5, No 0

• Formally ratified it’s 7/14/2026 decision rescinding award to Carroll Daniel Construction and awarding contract to McKnight Construction.

• Allen asked whether Turner & Townsend’s representative would be present to answer additional questions about scoring calculations.

• Dekle state he wanted the superintendent to review the district’s program management process and provide recommendations going forward

Superintendents Report:

• Rising 6th Grade Camp, July 23

• New Teacher Induction, July 23, 24 and 27

• Open House Dates for 2026-2027 SY

  • HS: July 29

  • MS: July 30

  • ES: July 30

• Teacher Pre-Planning, July 28-31 & August 3

• Rising 9th Grade Camp, July 30 and August 1

• First Day of School, August 4

• Progress Reports, September 3

• Early Dismissal/Parent Conferences, September 4

*All Parents* Don’t forget! Online Student Registration is still ongoing. Contact the district if you didn’t get your back to school magazine in the mail.

Public Participation:

• Jessica Fisher: Praised the board for tentatively lowering the millage rate to the rollback rate. Discouraged the board from outsourcing staff due to quality concerns.

• Taylor Schwarzkopf: Concerns about culture of intolerance and non-acceptance of students with special needs throughout district.

Executive Session: 7:15-7:23pm

Affidavit executed: Yay 5, No 0

Personnel sheet: Yay 5, No 0

Adjourn 7:25pm

Call To Order: 5:30 pm

Approval of Agenda: Yay 5, No 0

Tax Digest Millage Rate Presentation (I will link the full presentation when it gets uploaded to the district website tomorrow morning.)

CFO Alex Casado:

• One mill is now worth approximately $9.2 million in property tax revenue.

• The Tax Commissioner’s office calculated the rollback rate at 14.997 mills, an 8.25% reduction from the current 16.234 mills.

• Even with the full rollback, the district would still collect about $305,000 more than last year because of growth in the tax digest.

• The FY2027 budget assumed approximately a 3% increase in property tax revenue, which would be met with a rate of roughly 15.524 mills.

• Casado estimated that adopting the full rollback would reduce expected revenue by about $4.7 million compared with the adopted budget, leaving the district with an estimated 19% fund balance, above the Board’s 15% policy minimum.

• If the Board adopted the full rollback, no additional tax increase hearings would be required.

Board Discussion:

Chairman Dekle - Preferred tentatively adopted a rate above the rollback rate so that they could hold public hearings and receive additional public input, before making a full decision.

Katie Allen made a motion to tentatively adopt the full rollback rate of 14.997 mills, and Philip Kent seconded the motion. Yay: 3 (Teasley, Allen, Kent) No: (Dekle, Baker)

Allen: Last year we adopted the full rollback rate and still collected approximately $2.7 million more in property tax revenue because of growth in the tax digest.

Casado: If we have growth in the digest which outweighs exemption applications, then the revenue will grow.

Allen: Why would we come to taxpayers for more money when we just transferred $20 million from the General Fund to the Building Fund? Adopting the full rollback would require roughly another $4.7 million to come from the General Fund, and the General Fund is large enough to absorb that.

Casado: This would move the General Fund from about 20% of operating expenses to 19%. According to the board’s rules, we can’t go below 15% but 19-20% is a healthy fund balance level.

Baker: What do we use the General Fund for?

Casado: You can think of it as the savings account. There is some lag between now and when we collect property taxes, when we draw down the General Fund. The balance tends to increase/decrease in waves with revenues.

Because the Board tentatively adopted the rollback rate, the district will not be required to hold the three public hearings that would have been necessary if a higher millage rate had been proposed.

Executive Session

Following executive session, Chairman David Dekle made a statement that after the June 16 meeting, a contractor had objected to the scoring used to select the Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) for the Greenbrier High School additions and renovations. An investigation determined that the district's outside program manager, Turner & Townsend, had used a different scoring methodology than the one previously used for the Harlem High School CMAR selection. Had the correct methodology been used, McKnight Construction would have received the highest score instead of Carroll Daniel Construction.

Katie Allen raised a point of order, noting the issue was not on the published agenda. Judy Teasley then moved to amend the agenda to add the item.

Allen: The affected contractors have not been notified and she questioned the need to take action tonight rather than waiting until the regularly scheduled meeting next week. She also noted that discussion on amending the agenda should occur before a vote under Robert’s Rules of Order. Chairman Dekle paused the meeting, confirmed that a motion to amend the agenda is debatable, and allowed discussion before the Board voted.

The Board voted 4-1 to amend the agenda, with Allen opposed.

Beatty: Turner & Townsend discovered the scoring error after the June 16 meeting and reported it to district staff. The corrected calculations showed McKnight Construction should have received the award and, in response to a question from Kent, said additional review of the scoring process would likely help prevent similar errors in the future..

Allen requested copies of the scoring matrices for the Harlem, Greenbrier, Evans, and Lakeside projects.

The Board then voted 5-0 to rescind the award to Carroll Daniel Construction and award the Greenbrier High School CMAR contract to McKnight Construction.

Adjourn: Yay 5, No 0

Call To Order: 6:01pm

Approval of 6/16/2026 Commission Minutes and 6/16/2026 Executive Session Minutes: Yay 5, No 0

Special Recognition/Presentation:

• Columbia County Fire Rescue 2026 Boot Drive Check Represntation to Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation and Columbia County Community Connection: approximately $28,000

Consent Agenda. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

1. Community and Emergency Services Committee

   1. (H1a) Columbia Judicial Circuit Independent Contractor Agreement with CSRA Probation Services, Inc.

   2. (H1b) Rental Agreement with State Properties Commission for the Department of Community Supervision

   3. (H1c) Acceptance of the FY2025 Emergency Management Performance Grant

   4. (H1d) FY27 Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Grant for the State Accountability Court Program

   5. (H1e) Animal Services Donations

   6. (H1f) Senior Center Donation

   7. (H1g) Service Agreement with the Columbia County Ballet for Ballet in the Park Event

   8. (H1h) Service Agreements with Columbia County Community Connections and the Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation from the 2026 Fire Rescue Boot Drive Proceeds

2. Development and Planning Services Committee

   1. (H2a) Alcoholic Beverage License Griffin’s Steakhouse LLC

3. Public Works and Engineering Services Committee

   1. (H3a) Implementation of FM Live Fuel Point Hardware and Software with FuelMaster

   2. (H3b) Professional Services Contract with Booker + Vick Architects for the Columbia County Roads and Bridges Administration Office

   3. (H3c) Change Order Number One with Blair Construction for Water System Improvements Cleaning Phase I

   4. (H3d) Purchase of Water Meters for FY26/27 from Sensus, Inc

   5. (H3e) Award 2026019-BID5100 to Blair Construction for the Hunter’s Ridge Lift Station Replacement

   6. (H3f) Independent Contractor Agreement with Hydrologics, Inc. for a Zero Discharge Flushing Program

   7. (H3g) Resolution 26-11 to Increase the Speed Limit and Reclassify Kelarie Way to a Minor Collector Road

   8. (H3h) Lighting Services Agreements with Georgia Power to Upgrade Street Lighting at Various Locations - Phase IV

   9. (H3i) Non-Residential Gas Extension Contract with Atlanta Gas Light (AGL) to serve the installation of a Backup Generator for the Traffic Signal at the intersection of River Watch Pkwy and Baston Rd

   10. (H3j) Contract# 2025-3325, Change Order 1 for TIA 2, Group 6 Resurfacing with Reeves Construction

   11. (H3k) Facility Use Agreement with the Clarks Hill Beekeepers Association for use of the Baker Place Road Municipal Solid Waste Landfill

   12. (H3l) Contract# 2026-3609 with Surveying and Mapping, LLC for Prior Rights Research for the Hereford Farm Rd Widening Project, PI# 012865

   13. (H3m) 2026 Annual Renewal of Columbia County’s Title VI Plan relating to Federal Assistance for Transportation Programs and Activities

Debate Agenda

1. Unfinished Business

   1. Development and Planning Services Committee

      1. (I1a1) Resolution 26-14 Amending Fee Schedule for Development Services - Second Reading Approve: Yay 5, No 0

2. New Business

   1. Management and Internal Services Committee

      1. (I2a1) Resolution 26-15: Requesting and Directing the Board of Elections to Call and Conduct a Referendum Pursuant to House Bill 439 Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Johnson: HB 439 part of county’s effort to reduce, and eventually eliminate, county homestead property taxes. Previously increased homestead exemption from $2000 to $10,000. This allows voters to consider exemption up to $18,000 (max allowed without constitutional amendment). County intends to use rollback rate for 2027 millage rate. (Meaning, lower millage rate enough to offset higher property assessments and avoid net increase from reassessments. County has reduced millage rate in 10 of past 11 years except COVID year when it stayed the same.

   2. Development and Planning Services Committee

      1. (I2b1) Alcoholic Beverage License Jones Creek Golf Course LLC Approve: Yay 5, No 0

      2. (I2b2) VA26-06-01, Variance to Section 90-135 Signs, 4015 Gateway Blvd, Tax Map 068 Parcel 1667, 1.71 +/- acres, and currently zoned C-2 (General Commercial). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Increased Applebee’s Signage. 89 square feet of awning signs. Wall sign on west elevation. Wall sign on east elevation that exceed normal maximum. In response to commission questions: No complaints from other businesses and would not create precedent for other businesses seeking larger signs.

      3. (I2b3) RZ26-06-01, Major PUD (Planned Unit Development) Revision, 1868 Champions Circle, Tax Map 065 Parcel 251, 0.83 +/- acres, and currently zoned PUD (Planned Unit Development). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Reduce setback from 50 feet to 25 feet for a pool.

      4. (I2b4) RZ26-06-02, Major PUD (Planned Unit Development) Revision, 3982 Hammonds Ferry Court, Tax Map 077H Parcel 369, 0.399 +/- acres, and currently zoned PUD (Planned Unit Development) and Easement Encroachment. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Change setback from 10 ft to 2 ft so homeowner can put in a pool.

         Neighbor: Objected because he said that excavation that close to the property line could damage the critical root zone of the mature trees on his property, which is behind this property. He cited an arborist report and said the issue might not show up immediately, but trees could decline or die within 1-3 years. He was concerned about who would be responsible for tree removal or if the trees caused other property damage.

         (Chris Driver, board’s attorney, briefly addressed liability issues, but ultimately advised that this would be a civil matter and he couldn’t give legal advice.)

         Owner: Responded that the pool would not be two feet from the property line along the entire fence. The pool would likely be at least 5 feet from property line.

         (Neighbor and homeowner then briefly discussed responsibility for future tree damage/removal. They were going to work together.)

      5. (I2b5) RZ26-06-03, Major S-1 (Special) Revision, 460 Furys Ferry Road, Tax Map 082 Parcel 076A, 2.27 +/- acres, and currently zoned S-1 (Special). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Zoned for S-1 for a daycare. Daycare owner decided to sell property and new owner wants to use it as a medical office treating children. No comments from nearby property owners.

      6. (I2b6) RZ26-06-04, Major PUD (Planned Unit Development) Revision, 401 Bartram Trail Club Drive, Tax Map 060 Parcel 1695, 20.57 +/- acres, and currently zoned PUD (Planned Unit Development). Disapprove: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Proposed single-family residential development on property currently designated C-2 Commercial.

         After the vote, Eric Beddingfield: He said that staff and the planning committee recommended approval. (He seemed surprised)

         Commissioner Melear: Explained that while staff and the planning committee make recommendations, the final approval comes from the Board of Commissioners, and they disapproved.

      7. (I2b7) RZ26-06-05, Major PUD (Planned Unit Development) Revision, 785 Jones Creek, Tax Map 078 Parcel 057U, 0.78 +/- acres, and currently zoned PUD (Planned Unit Development). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Existing amenities predate the current setback requirements. HOA wants to expand the building, they need to establish new setbacks for pool area. (Commissioner Melear had a lot of questions about the project in regards to parking of construction equipment, fencing requirements, etc.)

         Tripp Nanney (On behalf of HOA): Replacing 35+ year old pool house. Add ADA-compliant restrooms and pool entrances, enlarge pump room, address flooding/plumbing problems.

         Homeowner of nearby property: Satisfied with revised plans provided HOA follows through with no 2nd story balcony overlooking his property, add an appropriate privacy fence, and landscape buffering.

         Schlachter: Confirmed that required fence and landscaping would have to be installed before certificate of occupancy could be issued.

      8. (I2b8) RZ26-06-06, Change of Conditions, 4434 Columbia Road, Tax Map 073G Parcel 082, 0.86 +/- acres, and currently zoned P-1 (Professional). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Remove a condition imposed in 2015 that limited the Parcel to only one massage business. This will allow more than one massage therapy business to operate on the property.

   3. Public Works and Engineering Services Committee

      1. (I2c1) Contract #2026-3538 with Eleven-X to Purchase their Smart Parking System eXactpark) for the Parking Deck and Parking Lots around the Performing Arts Center. Approve: Yay 4, No 1 (Connie Melear)

         One-time capital cost $323,265.99. Annual cost $37,230.48. System will show how many parking spaces are available in the area (including parking deck, but not limited to the parking deck.) Help people find parking during large events and better use existing parking before spending money on additional parking. Staff was able to reduce annual cost and had app included in one-time purchase. Steed stated it could help with safety because people can drive right to their parking spot.

Public Comments

• Helen Willingham: On behalf of Willingham Estate. Discuss adding access to county water, road paving, name of road was changed from Willingham Dr to Beehive Dr and would like to switch it back. Commissioners Carraway and Steed will meet with descendents and county officials.

• Timothy Alrich: Discussed property tax options

• Morgan Evans: Requested a traffic safety study be conducted of the intersection on William Few between the Kroger and McDonalds. Schlachter responded that the county had already begun looking into it after Ms. Evans contacted them. There have been 28 accidents in 3 years, including 10 with injuries. He discussed different possibilities but it needs to be studied more to look at all possibilities of routing traffic in the area.

• Susan Warren: Data Centers

Executive Session

1. Property

   1. (M1a) Acceptance of a temporary construction Easement (175 square feet) from Evans Enterprise of Augusta, LLC for Washington Road Corridor Traffic Improvement Project. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

   2. (M1b) Acceptance of a temporary construction Easement (435 square feet) from CAlvin Toliver for Horizon South Parkway/Chandler Rd Connector Project. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

Adjourn: 7:16pm.

The next scheduled meeting is Tuesday 7/21/2026 at 6:00pm in the Auditorium of Building A at the Evans Government Center.

Call To Order: 4:03pm

Reading & Approval of Agenda: Yay 3, No 0

New Business

• Recess at 4:05pm until 5:00pm to allow for deadline of provisional ballot curation

• 5:06 pm Reconvened

  • 6/16/2026, General Primary/Nonpartisan General Election Runoff

    • Provisional Ballots:

      • 4 Election Day

        • 2 accepted (wrong precinct)

        • 2 rejected (voters registered in different counties. workers helped to register in CC for future elections)

    • Absentee Ballots

      • 806 applications, 1 uncured

      • 622 returned + 4 (scanned today) =626

  • Certification of Election Results of 6/16/2026 General Primary/Nonpartisan General Election Runoff: Yay 3, No 0

  • Audit of 6/16/2026 General Primary/Nonpartisan General Election Runoff

    • Friday 6/26/2026: Bldg G3: Both parties already submitted names

  • Recount of PSC District 3 Republican Race

    • Recertify results of the PSC District 3 election: Yay 3, No 0

      • 1 vote difference due to voter review panel difference.

      • Part of statewide recount

Next Meeting: 7/21/2026: 10:30am Evans Main Office (G3)

Adjournment: 5:27pm

Call To Order: 5:30 pm

Invocation: Christ Church Presbyterian, Associate Pastor Ryan Bigham

Pledge of Allegiance: Greenbrier High School NJROTC

Approval of Agenda: Yay 5, No 0

Special Recognitions

1. Advanced Placement Honor Schools

   1. Evans High School: AP Humanities Achievement School, AP Distinction School, AP STEM School, AP STEM Achievement School

   2. Greenbrier High School: AP Humanities School, AP Distinction School, AP STEM Achievement School

   3. Grovetown High School: AP Access & Support School, AP Humanities School, AP Humanities Achievement School, AP STEM School, AP STEM Achievement School

   4. Harlem High School: AP Distinction School

   5. Lakeside High School: AP Humanities School, AP Humanities Achievement School, AP Distinction School, AP STEM School, AP STEM Achievement School

2. Columbia County Foundation For Children

   1. Motivating Mentor Award: LTC Samson Sider, Harlem High School

3. Boys and Girls Track and Field State Championship

   1. Evans High School: Individual State Championship Competition

      1. Liliana Beemer: 2nd Place Girls 1600m Run

      2. Jeremy Howard: 1st Place Boys Long Jump

   2. Girls Track & Field State Championship

      1. Greenbrier High School

         1. Bryannah Remice: 3rd Place Girls 200m Dash

         2. 4x100m & 4x200m Relay Team State Runners-Up

            1. Amarie Burns, Neiyssaah Marius, Taylor McKoy, Bryannah Remice

   3. Boys Track & Field State Championship

      1. Grovetown High School

         1. Bryan Story: 3rd Place in 800m

   4. Boys and Girls Track & Field State Championship

      1. Lakeside High School

         1. Zion Bullard: 3rd Place Girls 200m Dash

         2. Valynsia Calhoun: State Champion Long Jump, 2026 5A Girls Track & Field High Point Total Champion, Runner Up in 300m hurdles, 3rd Place in 100m Hurdles

         3. Aysia Hawkins: 3rd Place in Girls Shot Put

         4. Andrew Phillips: 3rd Place in Boys Vault

         5. 3rd Place - 4x400m Girls Relay

            1. Zion Bullard, Valynsia Calhoun, Lealyn Dale, Kaylee Jones

         6. 3rd Place Overall in Girls Team Points:

            1. Eliana Benevides, Zion Bullard, Valynsia Calhoun, Isabella Cardona-Mendez, Lealyn Dale, Adele Gross, Aysis Hawkins, Hannah James, Kaylee Jones, Hailey McDonald, Kimberly Mullins, Ella Williams, Grace Williams

4. National Beta Club

   1. State Service Leaderboard Award: Harlem High School, Lisa Wilson, Beta Advisor

   2. School of Merit: Greenbrier Middle School

Special Recommendations

1. Grovetown High School Assistant Principal: Jesse “Russ” Winter. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

Board Comments: All board members expresses gratitude to pastors, students, families, coaches, principals and the foundation. Commended AP achievements, athletics, Beta Club service, and strong public participation turnout. Praise for Mr. Winter’s credentials and return to Columbia County

Approval of Consent Items

1. Minutes of May 12, 2026, Regular Session Meeting and Minutes of May 26, 2026, Special Called Meeting

2. April Financials

3. Budget Amendment and Transfer

4. Fundraisers

5. Employee Travel

6. Program/Camp/Employee Participation Requests

7. Lease/Use of Facilities

April Financials were pulled from consent items. Approval for items 1, 3, 4-7: Yay 5, No 0

April Financials discussion: Approval: Yay 5, No 0

• Increase of $6 million in state sources budget clarified as one-time state revenue for employee supplement, covered by a corresponding revenue and expenditure amendment.

• Building program financials (SPLOST 2017-2022): $500,000 increase in furniture budget was explained as a move of unallocated funds to align with previously approved furniture bid

Approval of FY2027 Budget Approve: Yay 3 (Baker, Teasley, Dekle), No 2 (Kent & Allen) (Passed with the $20 million transfer to General Fund)

• Casado (CFO): Previous version included $10.6 million placeholder for a 3% COLA and $20 million transfer to building program. Since then, additional $2.785 million in state revenue received

• Changes to current budget:

  • Increase employee COLA from 3% to 5% (additional $5.5 million cost)

  • Increase paid lunch prices to $3.75 instead of proposed $4.00 ($200,000 revenue reduction)

  • After adjustment, projected ending FY27 general fund balance is $83.89 million

• Kent made a motion to amend the budget to reduce the general fund transfer to the building fund from $20 million to $10 million. Yay 1 (Kent), No 4

  • Kent argued this represented continued use of property-tax-supported General Fund dollars for construction projects that voters expected SPLOST to cover. Felt this was a compromise.

    • Emphasized repeatedly that he supported the building program and the planned high school projects, arguing that his proposal was intended to slow the use of General Fund dollars for construction rather than halt or cancel renovations.

  • Allen’s arguments:

    • Stated that the Maintenance & Operations budget increased from approximately $21.8 million five years ago to $39.8 million currently and said she had not received requested explanations for the increase.

    • Questioned why the district could not provide projected expenditures for Greenbrier and Harlem projects over the next three fiscal years.

  • Casado/Teasley: school districts routinely use General Fund dollars for capital maintenance and the district would still retain approximately $83.89 million (about 20% of expenditures) in reserves after the transfer.

• Allen made a motion to reduce the transfer to $900,000, allowing for project-by-project approval. Yay 2 (Kent & Allen), No 3 (Baker, Teasley, Dekle)

  (Transcripted)

  Katie Allen: My discussion point on what is the need to make that transfer in approving this budget tonight versus doing it project by project. What is the argument that we must do it all in one lump sum tonight versus project by project throughout the fiscal year?”

  Chairman Dekle: One thing is we don’t have to listen to you as much and give (didn’t catch the end.)

  Chairman Dekle: I apologize. I apologize.

Board Policies

1. Board Policy BCBI, Public Participation in Board Meetings Approve: Yay 5, No 0

2. Board Policy KG, Use of School Facilities:

   1. Proposed updates

      1. Removing fee descriptions

      2. removing “extended use” section

      3. Clarifying district priority for facilities

      4. Will be voted on in July after feedback period.

Code of Conduct Update. Approval: Yay 4, No 1 (Allen)

1. Updates: New format, special sections for key topics (bullying, attendance), and new state-required additions. New state code restricting electronic device use extended to high schools. (District extended to high schools last year)

2. Attendance Policy (suggested from juvenile court)

   1. 10th unexcused absence: certified letter

   2. 3rd unexcused absence: intervention plan

Discussion: Parent note makes absences excused (up to 5 per semester). Notifications for unexcused absences are automated. Allen Suggested to change notification threshold from 3rd to 5th unexcused absence. Noted that this was at the request of the juvenile court.

Building Program Bid Result

1. CMAR (Construction Management at Risk) Selection for Greenbrier Renovation. Approve: Yay 4, No: 0, Abstain: 1 (Allen)

   1. RFP Process: An RFP for Greenbrier renovation was issued with 5 firms interviewed. Evaluation committee recommended Harold Daniel Construction, which received highest rating/scores and lowest fees.

      1. Discussion on selection/conflict of interest

         1. Committee uses a rubric scoring model.

         2. Concern raised about potential conflict of interest as the recommended firm scheduled a dinner with the board when they were in Savannah.

            1. Kent sent an email, raised a number of questions, and the dinner was cancelled

   2. Project scope and budget: Estimated GMP for project is $80.4 million, with a total board set-aside of $96 million. Goal is to receive bids by September/October.

Superintendent Reports

• Student Registration for 26-27 year open now

• Summer School: 6/25/2026 commencement

Public Participation:

• Priscilla Bence

• Trinity Bennett

• Karin Parham

• Janet Duggan

• Renee Ginn

• Stephanie Tee

• Lorraine Thomas

After Executive Session

• Affidavit that only legally allowed topics discussed during closed executive session: Yay 4, Abstain: 1 (Allen - not present for entire meeting)

• Personnel Sheet. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

• Discipline Appeal. Approve: Yay 4, No 1 (Katie Allen)

• Superintendent’s Contract. Approve: Yay 3 (Dekle, Baker, Teasley), Opposed 1 (Kent), Abstain 1 (Allen, she said due to concerns about the process)

Adjourn: 8:45pm

Karin’s Note: This article is cross-posted with Garden City Gossip

UPDATE (June 6, 2026): Following publication, Columbia County issued a statement stating that neither Columbia County Libraries, County Administration, nor Human Resources were aware of the allegations or ongoing investigation at the time of Grove's hiring. The county stated that Grove passed a criminal background check and that the allegations discussed in this article were not known to county officials during the hiring process. The county further stated that, after becoming aware of the allegations and related court filings, Grove was placed on administrative leave pending an internal review.

Correction (June 10, 2026): An earlier version of this article attributed a records response to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office. The original request was routed to Richmond County 911, which reported no responsive records. A subsequent request to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office also returned negative results. The article has been updated to reflect responses from both agencies.

UPDATE 2 (June 10, 2026): Additional records obtained from the Augusta Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office provided further information regarding the allegations involving Laura Grove. In an email released through an open records request, District Attorney Jared Williams stated that the matter was opened and closed on June 2, 2025 because the allegations fell outside the statute of limitations. The records also included statements from two former students who alleged they had a sexual relationship with Grove while they were students at A.R. Johnson Health Science and Engineering Magnet School, as well as a written statement from Grove denying those allegations. In her statement, Grove acknowledged maintaining close relationships with both former students during and after their time in school, but denied the allegations.

Columbia County Libraries hired Children’s Librarian Manager Laura Grove in August 2025 while she remained on administrative leave from Richmond County Schools and amid an open Georgia Professional Standards Commission case, according to records obtained through Open Records Requests.

Grove had worked for the Richmond County School System for nearly two decades before being placed on paid administrative leave on June 3, 2025 pending an investigation into alleged “unprofessional behavior.”

The hiring occurred during a period of significant upheaval within Columbia County’s library system, following months of controversy over youth book placement policies and the departure of several longtime librarians who publicly cited concerns about professional ethics.

Records show Grove applied for the Columbia County position on July 29, 2025 while still employed by Richmond County Schools and while on administrative leave. Richmond County formally released Grove from employment on Aug. 7, 2025. Columbia County Libraries issued an offer letter four days later, on Aug. 11, 2025.

Laura Grove’s Employment History With Richmond County Schools

Documents show Grove worked for the Richmond County School System for nearly two decades. Employment records place her first at C.T. Walker Elementary Magnet School beginning in 2006 before later serving as a media specialist at Goshen Elementary School and eventually at A.R. Johnson Health Science and Engineering Magnet School.

On June 3, 2025, Richmond County Schools placed Grove on paid administrative leave pending an investigation into alleged “unprofessional behavior.” The letter instructed Grove not to contact students or enter school campuses while the investigation was ongoing.

Divorce and Emergency Custody Filings

The administrative action came months after allegations surfaced in divorce and emergency custody proceedings filed in Columbia County Superior Court. Court records show Grove’s former spouse filed for divorce in April 2024. In February 2025, the plaintiff filed an emergency motion for change of custody and related relief.

An affidavit from a former student attached to those filings alleged Grove engaged in an inappropriate sexual relationship with that individual while employed within the Richmond County School System. The filings also alleged inappropriate communications involving additional students and referenced prior reports allegedly made to school administrators.

Following an emergency hearing, the court granted the plaintiff sole legal and physical custody of the couple’s children and exclusive possession of the marital residence pending additional proceedings. Final settlement documents filed in October 2025 continued sole legal custody with the plaintiff and established visitation provisions for Grove.

Open Records Requests and Agency Responses

The allegations contained in the affidavit were made in civil court filings and do not constitute criminal findings.

Richmond County Schools released personnel and contract records responsive to Open Records Requests but stated portions of the records were withheld or redacted under exemptions covering personnel evaluations, student records, medical information, and investigative materials related to employee discipline or complaints.

Open records responses from Richmond County 911, the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, and the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office found no responsive records related to the allegations. A records request was also submitted to Georgia DFCS, but the agency declined to release records or state whether responsive records existed, citing confidentiality laws governing child welfare and CPS information.

The Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GAPSC), the state agency responsible for educator certification and ethics enforcement, responded to an Open Records Request by stating records related to Grove could not be released because of an open investigation.

Following publication, additional records obtained from the Augusta Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office provided further information regarding the allegations. In an email released through an open records request, District Attorney Jared Williams stated that the matter was opened and closed on June 2, 2025 because the allegations fell outside the statute of limitations.

The records released by the DA’s Office included statements from two former students alleging inappropriate sexual relationships with Grove while they were students at A.R. Johnson Health Science and Engineering Magnet School. The records also included a written statement from Grove denying those allegations. In her statement, Grove acknowledged maintaining close relationships with both former students during and after their time in school, but denied the allegations of inappropriate sexual activity.

Columbia County Library Application and Hiring Process

Records further show Grove applied for the Columbia County library position on July 29, 2025, during Richmond County’s pre-planning period for the 2025-26 school year. In her application with Columbia County Libraries, Grove listed July 29, 2025, as the date she was available to begin work. At the time, she remained employed by Richmond County Schools and had been on paid administrative leave pending an investigation since June 3, 2025.

The Columbia County application asked whether the applicant had “been suspended, dismissed, or asked to resign.” Grove answered “No.” Richmond County formally released Grove from employment on Aug. 7, 2025. Columbia County Libraries issued her an offer letter four days later, on Aug. 11, 2025.

Qualifications and Credentialing

Georgia State Board for the Certification of Librarians records show Grove was issued a Grade 2 public librarian license in February 2026. Under Georgia’s public librarian licensing structure, a Grade 2 license is classified as a paraprofessional credential and is usually limited to duties of support staff.

The Columbia County job description for Children’s Librarian Manager states the position requires “a Masters degree in Library Science [MLIS] from a college or university accredited by the American Library Association [ALA].” Records show Grove holds a Master’s Add-On in School Library Media from the University of West Georgia, a credential in the K-12 educator certification pathway issued through the Georgia Professional Standards Commission. That credential is not an MLIS from an ALA-accredited library school program, which is what the Columbia County job description requires.

It is not clear from the records reviewed whether the GAPSC and Georgia’s Library Board share investigative or disciplinary information with one another. GAPSC stated that records related to Grove could not be released because of an open case. In a separate Open Records Request seeking Grove’s librarian licensing application and supporting materials, the Georgia Library Board denied release of the records, stating such documents are confidential under state law.

In response to questions about Columbia County hiring procedures, Human Resources Director Dr. Jeff Carney stated that hiring managers (rather than HR staff) are responsible for screening applicants and conducting reference checks during the hiring process. Dr. Carney stated that criminal background checks are conducted through HR and the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office using Georgia Crime Information Center records as part of onboarding procedures. The school system’s investigation would not emerge in a standard criminal background check though.

In a separate Open Records Request seeking records reflecting verification of Grove’s prior employment and reference checks, Columbia County responded that no responsive records existed within either Columbia County Libraries or County Human Resources files.

In response to a request for comment for this article, Columbia County and the Columbia County Library System declined to comment on the matter. (Update: Following publication, the Columbia County issued a statement stating that county officials were unaware of the allegations and ongoing investigation at the time of Grove's hiring. The county stated that Grove was placed on administrative leave after officials became aware of the allegations and related court filings. The county also stated that neither Columbia County Libraries, County Administration, nor Human Resources had been provided the supporting reports referenced in the article prior to publication.)

The Hiring in Context

Grove’s hiring came after years of public accusations from some residents, including claims that librarians were “grooming” children or exposing minors to inappropriate materials, during Columbia County’s ongoing book controversy.

After the departure of several longtime librarians who publicly cited political pressure they said forced them to violate professional library ethics standards, Columbia County Libraries hired Grove while she remained under active investigation by Richmond County Schools following allegations of sexual activity with a former student and while the Georgia Professional Standards Commission maintained an open case related to her educator certification.

1/6/2026 County Response

Karin’s Note: Additional source documents available upon request.

Document posted by Janet Duggan:

Complaint Final May 2026 8 Counts (1)

96.4KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Chairman Dekle’s letter to Janet Duggan regarding allegations:

260518 Ltr To Janet Duggan

2.23MB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Call To Order: 6:00pm

Approval of 5/19/2026 meeting minutes: Yay 5, No 0

Consent Agenda Approve Yay 5, No 0

1. Community and Emergency Services Committee Commissioner Steed

   1. (H1a) Proclamation Recognizing the Anniversary of First Mount Moriah Baptist Church

   2. (H1b) Animal Services Donation

   3. (H1c) Independent Contractor Agreement with 1 to 4 Pickleball Services

   4. (H1d) Library Services Agreement with the Columbia County Library System

   5. (H1e) Memorandum of Understanding and Annual Financial Agreement with UGA Cooperative Extension for Personnel Salary Reimbursement for Fiscal Year 2027

   6. (H1f) Contract with Gold Cross EMS for Emergency Medical Services

   7. (H1g) Blood Services Agreement with Shepeard Community Blood Center

2. Public Works and Engineering Services Committee Commissioner Carraway

   1. (H2a) Ancillary Dwelling Variance, 5314 Magnolia Lane, Tax map 060 Parcel 142, 3.0 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-A (Residential Agricultural).

   2. (H2b) Purchase of a Peterbilt Dump Truck from Peterbilt of Atlanta for Water Utility

   3. (H2c) County Fleet Vehicle Upfitting Service Agreement with Blue Badger Upfitters, LLC.

   4. (H2d) Payment to Cayenta for Annual Subscription

   5. (H2e) Independent Contractor Agreement with Bluewater Engineering for W. Milledgeville Rd Sewer Modification

   6. (H2f) AT&T Encroachment Agreement at Parcel 052 1837 for the Euchee Creek Harlem

      Interceptor Project

   7. (H2g) Independent Contractor Agreement with Ardurra for General Engineering Services related to the 620 System Modifications and Upgrades on an as-needed basis

   8. (H2h) County Acknowledgment, Permit Transfer Consent and Rent Guarantee Agreement with Alamo Farms and Cattle LLC.

   9. (H2i) Contract Amendment Number One with Hudson’s Grassing Co, Inc. for Biosolids Management Services

   10. (H2j) Purchase of GameChanger Turning Movement Traffic Systems through Rhythm Engineering

   11. H2k) Consulting Agreement with GA Power to Install Multiple Electric Vehicle Charging Stations in Columbia County Parks

   12. (H2l) BID# 2026013-BID5200 and Contract# 2026-3535 with US Infra Rehab Services, LLC for the One Marshall Place Storm Drain UV Lining Rehabilitation Project

   13. (H2m) Bid# 2026018-BID3313 and Contract# 2026-3567 with East Coast Grading for the 2026 LMIG

   14. (H2n) Supplemental Agreement No. 1 with GDOT for TIA 2, Group 6 Resurfacing

   15. (H2o) 2026 Local Road Assistance (LRA) Application with Georgia Department of Transportation

   16. (H2p) Contract 2024-3013 Renewal # 1 with Infrastructure Consulting and Engineering, LLC for Construction Engineering and Inspection Services for Roadway Projects

   17. (H2q) Renewal Number 2 of Contract# 2024-2834 with International Appraisal & Research Group (IAR) for Appraisal and Acquisition Services related to TIA and GDOT Projects

   18. (H2r) Easement Agreement with the Department of the Army for the continued Operation and Maintenance of a portion of Burns Road

   19. (H2s) Acceptance of Improvements at Highland Lakes West Section II

   20. (H2t) Acceptance of Improvements at Wrights Farm Section 4 Lots 285-307

   21. (H2u) Acceptance of Utility Easements for Shelby Properties, LLC

   22. (H2v) Acceptance of Easements for F&A of Evans, LLC Tractor Supply

   23. (H2w) Acceptance of Easements for AU Medical Center, Inc

Debate Agenda

1. Unfinished Business

   1. Development and Planning Services Commision

      1. (I1a1) RZ26-05-04, Rezoning from R-A (Residential Agricultural) & PUD (Planned Unit Development) to PRD (Planned Residential Development), off Baker Place Road, Tax Map 051 Parcel 008H, 54.8 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-A (Residential Agricultural) & PUD (Planned Unit Development). - Postponed from May 19, 2026

         Withdrawal Without Prejudice. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Developer requested to withdraw at this time.

2. New Business

   1. Community and Emergency Services Committee

      1. (I2a1) Resolution Number 26-13 Dedicating the New Columbia County Park on Hardy McManus Road in Honor of Former Commissioner Don Skinner, Sr. Approve: Yay 4, No 1 (Melear)

   2. Management and Internal Services Committee

      1. (I2b1) Resolution 26-12 Adopting an Annual Budget for All Funds of Columbia County, Georgia for Fiscal Year 2026/2027. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Johnson: Working on the budget for about 6 months using zero-based budgeting. Boards goals: no property tax increase, reduce taxes if possible, maintain county services despite continued growth. General fund increase 1.95% compared to about 3% last year. Keeping growth below 2% notable given population growth, new facilities and infrastructure, and increased service demands. 22 new county positions: jail deputies, EMA personnel, parks & rec to maintain new parks/facilities. Target contingency reservice is 2.5%. Includes 3% COLA for employees. Employee health insurance cost increases - medical increase 10%. County attorney rates increased $20/hr. Hadn’t been rate increase in awhile.

      2. (I2b2) Acceptance of Additional ARPA Funds for the Columbia Judicial Circuit Grant CY2026 ARPA 3Y009. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         $71,420

   3. Development and Planning Services Committee

      1. (I2c1) RZ26-05-06, Conditional Use for Therapeutic Massage, 120 North Belair Road, Tax Map 073C Parcel 053, 1.16 +/- acres, and currently zoned C-2 (General Commercial). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Salon previously offered massage therapy services but discontinued during Covid after losing staff. Service inactive for over a year and county regulations changed, business required to obtain new conditional use permit. One massage therapist operating within existing salaon.

      2. (I2c2) RZ26-05-07, Rezoning from P-1 (Professional) to C-C (Community Commercial), 406 North Belair Rd and 601 Ponder Place Drive, Tax Map 073 Parcels 366B & 366C, a combined 2.64 +/- acres, and currently zoned P-1 (Professional). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: This is for a bank drive-thru in Evans Towne Center. Showed a non-binding concept including one Parcel. Proposal meets requirements of Evans Town Center District. 2nd Parcel does not yet have a development plan. All future development will still be required to meet standards and go through the review process.

Public Comments: None

Executive Session

1. Property

   1. (M1a) Property A: Approve: Yay 5, No 0. Acceptance of donated portion of property from Eubank Family for construction of right-turn lane serving new elementary school on Ray Owens Road

   2. (M1b) Property B: Approve: Yay 5, No 0. $79,000 payment to George and Cheryl Newman for right-of-way and easements needed for Hereford Farm Road Widening Project. Last acquisition.

   3. (M1c) Property C: Approve Yay 5, No 0. Accepted a donated easement from David Byrd Enterprises LLP for Harlem Force Main Project. Project remains on schedule with a target completion date of December 2026.

Adjourn: 6:16pm

The next scheduled meeting is Tuesday, June 16, 2026 at 6:00 p.m. in the Auditorium of Building A at the Evans Government Center.

Call To Order: 6:00 pm

Approval of 5/5/2026 Commission Meeting Minutes: Yay 5, No 0

Approval of 5/5/2026 Budget Public Hearing Minutes: Yay 5, No 0

Consent Agenda. Approve: Yay 5, No 0

1. Management and Internal Services Committee

   1. (H1a) RFP# 2026004-RFP1313: Disaster Debris Management Services Agreement with Ceres Environmental Services, Inc.

   2. (H1b) RFP# 2026005-RFP1313: Disaster Debris Monitoring Services Agreement with Debristech, LLC.

   3. (H1c) RFP# 2026009-RFP1313: Disaster Recovery Public Assistance Consulting Services Agreement with Synergy Disaster Recovery LLC.

   4. (H1d) RFP#2026007-RFP1011 Temporary Workers & Payroll Agreement with Augusta Temporary Services, Inc. dba Augusta Staffing Associates

   5. (H1e) Building C Network Equipment Lifecycle Purchase

   6. (H1f) Professional Services Addendum with Clariti Cloud Inc. for the Implementation of Clariti Permitting and Licensing Solution

   7. (H1g) Award Bid # 2026015-BID3000 and Contract to Sommers Construction, LLC for the Construction of the Restroom Facilities at Evans Towne Center Park and the Racquet Center

   8. (H1h) Award RFP Professional Services Contract with Craig Gaulden Davis Architecture, LLC | PBK for the Design of the Columbia County Fire Rescue Engine Company 13 Replacement Station

   9. (H1i) Contract Renewal Number 3 with Northwest Exterminating Co., Inc. for Exterminating Services

   10. (H1j) Contract Renewal Number 3 with Otis Elevator Company for Elevator Maintenance

   11. (H1k) Contact Renewal Number 1 with ADSI Moving Systems

   12. (H1l) Contract Renewal Number 4 with A-Com Security Company, LLP dba Acom Integrated Solutions for Fire and Intrusion Monitoring Services

   13. (H1m) Contract Renewal Number 1 with E Logic Incorporated for Move Management Services

   14. (H1n) Professional Services Contract with Booker + Vick Architects for the Design of the Columbia County Vice & Narcotics Unit Office Building

   15. (H1o) Contract Renewal Number 1 with KAMO Manufacturing Company, Inc. for the Purchase of Janitorial Supplies

2. Development and Planning Services Committee

   1. (H2a) Bid# 2026001-BID3313 and Contract# 2026-3565 with Gearig Civilworks for the Horizon South - Chamblin Connector Project

Debate Agenda

1. New Business

   1. Development and Planning Services Committee

      1. (I1a1) VA26-05-01, Variance to Section 90-53 List of lot and structure requirements, 417 Hastings Place, Tax Map 082I Parcel 422, 0.47 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-3 (Single Family Residential) and easement encroachment agreement. Approve: Yay 5, No 0 (with condition that homeowner apply for building permit within 10 business days.)

         Tammy Pye (Homeowner): Would like to keep added cover/awning structure attached to home. Didn’t realize a permit was required, and even the code enforcement officer was initially unsure. She advised that she was never told to stop work and completed the structure while permit process was pending. Uses the area when watching her grandchild during the week.

         Lee Prim: Ms. Pye’s neighbor spoke in support and described Ms. Pye as a good neighbor. Stated the structure caused no visible harm or neighborhood issue.

         Joe Mitchell: Ms. Pye’s neighbor. Noted that original structure existed before a neighbor that was opposed to the structure, moved in. (Opposing neighbor was at planning meeting I think, but not at this meeting).

         Schlachter: Involves 3 parts: a building permit, setback Variance and easement Encroachment Agreement. Structure extends into the side setback and drainage easement, commission had to approve variance and encroachment before permit could be issued.

      2. (I1a2) VA26-05-02, Variance to Section 90-144 Placement of building and structures, 4044 Mullikin Road, Tax Map 077I Parcel 367, 0.24 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-2 (Single Family Residential). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Homeowner has an existing 6ft fence but because of the way the backyard slopes, would like an 8 ft privacy fence to give more privacy while enjoying above ground pool in backyard.

      3. (I1a3) RZ26-05-01, Rezoning from R-A (Residential Agricultural) to PRD (Planned Residential Development), 5703 Wrightsboro Road and off Wrightsboro Road, Tax Map 052 Parcel 002N and Tax Map 051 Parcel 068, 76.02 +/- total acres, and currently zoned R-A (Residential Agricultural), and a Major PRD (Planned Residential Development) Revision, off Baker Place Road, Tax Map 051 Parcels 048, 049, 049A, and 049C a combined 150.55 +/- acres and currently zoned PRD (Planned Residential Development). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

      4. (I1a4) RZ26-05-02, Rezoning from C-2 (General Commercial) to M-1 (Light Industrial), 3985 Gordon Highway, Tax Map 043A Parcel 043A, 1.53 +/- acres, and currently zoned C-2 (General Commercial). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

         This is considered together with I1a5, the next item.

         Schlachter: Currently operating as Harlan Paint & Body. Rezoning allows owner to add towing and vehicle storage. Several improvement were made to property without permits, which triggered the accompanying Variance requests (look under following). Willing to allow gravel storage area because towing lots often contain damaged vehicles that can damage asphalt, however staff recommended customer parking eventually be paved.

         Planning Commission conditions required the parking lot to be completed by the end of the year, but the applicant requested three years to complete the work while getting business established. Commissioners Couch & Carraway supported the longer timeline, and motion amended to allow 3 years.

         Additional conditions:

         • Any future buildings on site require installation of fire hydrant

         • Fence could remain as-is, but if replaced in the future, would have to meet current code

         • Stormwater analysis required because of amount of gravel added to property

         • Health Department requested inspection of septic system because no septic permit was on file.

      5. (I1a5) VA26-05-03, Variances to Sections 90-98 List of lot and structure requirements, 90-133 Parking, and 90-144 Placement of buildings and structures, 3985 Gordon Highway, Tax Map 043A Parcel 043A, 1.53 +/- acres, and currently zoned C-2 (General Commercial).

         • A front setback Variance for a covered awning added too close to Gordon Highway

         • A variance allowing gravel instead of paved parking in portions of lot

         • Permission for existing 10-ft fence to remain, although county code generally only allows 8ft fence with additional 2 ft of barbed wire

      6. (I1a6) RZ26-05-03, Conditional Use for Indoor Recreation, 3001 McCrary Court, Tax Map 072 Parcel 231G, 1.95 +/- acres, and currently zoned M-1 (Light Industrial). Approve: Yay 5, No 0

      7. (I1a7) RZ26-05-04, Rezoning from R-A (Residential Agricultural) & PUD (Planned Unit Development) to PRD (Planned Residential Development), off Baker Place Road, Tax Map 051 Parcel 008H, 54.8 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-A (Residential Agricultural) & PUD (Planned Unit Development). - Postponed to June 02, 2026 Yay 5, No 0

         Schlachter: Wants to open a golf simulator and golf instruction business. Zoning district allows that type of use, it required commission approval as a conditional use permit.

      8. (I1a8) RZ26-05-05, Rezoning from R-A (Residential Agricultural) to S-1 (Special), off Anderson Road, Tax Map 050 Parcel 039F, 319.36 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-A (Residential Agricultural) Approve: Yay 5, No 0 (with condition that access through the Anderson Farm neighborhood be closed so quarry traffic could not use neighborhood roads.)

         Vulcan Materials quarry expansion

         Dan Lanning: Nearby resident. Company was transparent with neighbors, held meetings, tours and provided blast notifications by text message already. Would reduce truck traffic because overburden material could remain on-site instead of requiring about 40K truck trips on public roads. Described Vulcan as good neighbor and long-term plan would minimize impacts near nearby homes.

         Steve Leaning: Nearby resident. Supports request. Says he was skeptical at first before researching and touring site. Approval would reduce truck traffic, road wear and dust from hauling material off-site.

         Greg Sloyer: Nearby resident. Praised Vulcan’s community outreach, saying company representatives went door-to-door speaking with neighbors. Suggested the county should expect/encourage similar early outreach efforts from companies for future controversial developments.

         Teen speaker (didn’t catch her name): Nearby resident also spoke in support. Wrote a 10-page research paper on granite mining and argued the expansion would help reduce truck traffic, dust and road wear in the area. (Commissioners asked for a copy of the paper.)

Public Comments

• John Ardell: Speed bumps in Forest Creek. (County will conduct traffic study.)

• Susan Warren: Data Centers

Executive Session: None

Adjournment: 6:50 pm

The next scheduled meeting is Tuesday 6/2/2026 at 6:00 pm in the Auditorium of Building A at the Evans Government Center

District 2 Board Member Kristi Baker was not present.

Call to Order: 5:30 pm

Invocation: Grace Baptist Church Senior Pastor Bill Hilley

Pledge of Allegiance by Brookwood and Westmont Elementary Schools 4-H Presidents

Approval of Agenda: Yay 4, No 0

Approval of Consent Items: Yay 4, No 0

• Minutes of April 21, 2026 Regular Session and April 28, 2026 Special Called Meeting

• Budget Amendments

• Fundraisers

• Employee Travel

• Program/Camp/Employee Participation Requests

• Lease/Use of Facilities

Special Recognitions

Governor’s Office of Student Achievement Awards (GOSA CCRPI)

• Greatest Gains:

  • Baker Place Elementary — Bronze

• Highest Performance:

  • Greenbrier Elementary — Bronze

  • North Columbia Elementary — Silver

  • Greenbrier Middle School — Bronze

  • Riverside Elementary — Bronze

  • Stallings Island Middle School — Bronze

• Highest Performance and Greatest Gains:

  • Lewiston Elementary — Silver

  • Parkway Elementary — Bronze and Silver

  • River Ridge Elementary — Silver and Platinum

  • Stevens Creek Elementary — Bronze and Gold

Columbia County School District Aspiring Principals Academy Graduates (2025-2026)

• Marisa Forney — Grovetown MS

• Thomas Holtzner — Evans HS

• Whitney Quattlebaum — Cedar Ridge ES (also named principal for 2026-2027)

• Kellen Smith — Euchee Creek ES

• Lachandra Thomas-Mole — Grovetown ES

• Kimberly Wall — Harlem HS

• Rebecca Walls — Riverside ES

• Zachary Watson — Grovetown HS

• Jessica Williams — Blue Ridge ES (also named principal for 2026-2027)

Congressional Art Competition, Georgia District 12

• First runner-up: Arianna Brunk, Columbia Virtual Academy

• Third runner-up and People’s Choice Award: Nidhi Patel, Lakeside HS

Georgia Department of Education Award of Excellence

• Charles Dykes, Evans HS

Georgia Governor’s Honors Program Finalists, Evans HS

• Breanna Cannon — Agricultural Research, Biotechnology and Science

• Bailey Pease — Dance (will participate in the program this summer)

Georgia Junior Achievement 19 Under 19

• Iris Holberton — Columbia County Virtual Academy

Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA)

• Greenbrier High School:

  • First place: Charlotte Dye (Respiratory Therapy), Kathryn Fagan (Patient Care Technician), Cecilia Muro (Physical Therapist)

  • Second place: Isabelle Best (Student Nursing), Madelyn Lincicum (Community Emergency Response Team), Ella Pascual (Dental Science), Caroline Sidley (Pharmacy Science), Blake Sommers (Community Emergency Response Team)

  • Third place: Leah Borchardt (Respiratory Therapy), Lily Romagnoli (Medical Assistant)

• Lakeside High School:

  • Second place: Charlotte Geisen (Sports Medicine)

  • Second place: Vansh Sarin (Prepared Speaking)

  • Third place: Aarav Gupta (Research Poster/Leadership Events)

Margaret Rogers Scholarship

• Nicole Boyett — Greenbrier ES

• Shira Martin — Parkway ES

JROTC — Grovetown High School

State placements:

• First place, female armed platoon:

  • Takiyah Momon (Commander)

  • Aryianna Bates

  • Amayo Biyo

  • Jade Gantt

  • Amarah Hariston

  • Michaiah Hill

  • Aubrii Marshall

  • Destiny Moore

  • Divine Onoh

  • Jalyn Rentz

  • Lauryn Richardson

  • Mikaylis Slater

  • Skylar Walker

• First place, female unarmed squad

  • Amaya Biyo (Commander)

  • Jade Gantt

  • Amarah Hariston

  • Takiyah Momon

  • Divine Onoh

  • Jalyn Rentz

  • Mikaylis Slater

• Second place, Female Armed Squad

  • Takiyah Momon (Commander)

  • Aryianna Bates

  • Amaya Biyo

  • Jade Gantt

  • Amarah Hariston

  • Jalyn Rentz

  • Mikaylis Slater

• Second Place - Male “Coed” Unarmed Platoon

  • Wyatt Reid (Commander)

  • Noah Brown

  • Trinity Colbenson

  • Alexander Colon

  • Mackenzie Gates

  • Jocelyn Graham

  • Isaac Harrington

  • Brianna Lester

  • Jioni Morales

  • Mariah Miller

  • Jaidev Pichardo

  • Logan Smith

  • Jake Tilson

  • Corri Towns

  • Tyler Warner

• Second place, male armed squad

  • Tyler Warner (Commander)

  • Noah Brown

  • Alexander Colon

  • Jioni Morales

  • Jaidev Pichardo

  • Wyatt Reid

  • Logan Smith

• Third place overall, Raider Coed Team

  • Kloe Lombardo

  • Sani Mahamane

  • Logan Smith

  • Khloe’ Tansiel

  • Arian Walker

  • Kiara Ward

  • Ariana Washington

  • Neriah Bates

  • Eliana Belt

  • Noah Brown

  • Alexander Colon

  • Pablo Colon

  • Kymberleigh Danner

  • Edwin Domaskin

National placements:

• Fifth place, duo armed exhibition

  • Noah Brown (Captain)

  • Jaidev Pichardo

• Seventh place, unarmed platoon regulation female

  • Amaya Biyo (Commander)

  • Jade Gantt

  • Jocelyn Graham

  • Amarah Hariston

  • Michaiah Hill

  • Mariah Miller

  • Takiyah Momon

  • Destiny Moore

  • Divine Onoh

  • Jalyn Rentz

  • Lauryn Richardson

  • Mikaylis Slater

  • Skylar Walker

NJROTC Academic Team — Greenbrier High School

• First place, Area 7A Team

  • Eve Nevarez

  • Joseph Puskas

  • Yamil Soto

  • Alice Vile

• Second place, Academic “B” Team

  • Tristan Bender

  • Owen Lambert

  • Tierra Parker

  • Lauryn Riviera

  • Jasmina Yarasheva

• Tenth place overall

  • Tristan Binder

  • Eve Nevarez

  • Joseph Puskas

  • Yamil Soto

  • Alice Vile

Personnel Recommendations — New Assistant Principals Approved unanimously.

• Amber Bentley — Greenbrier High School

• Erica Wilson — Harlem High School

• Scott McClintock — Lakeside High School

• Heather Thickpin Stefani — Cedar Ridge Elementary.

• Brittany Brown — Cedar Ridge Elementary

FY2027 Budget Presentation and Public Input

CFO Alex Casado and Superintendent Dr. Flynt presented the FY2027 proposed budget. Third presentation of the same document with no changes from prior sessions. Final budget approval is scheduled for June 16, 2026.

Key figures in the proposed budget as presented:

• 3% cost of living adjustment for all employees, combined with step increases expected to bring most employees to approximately 6% total

• Addition of 13 custodians, returning staffing to pre-pandemic levels

• Special education enhancements approved in February (planning time, stipends, reorganization) included

• $10.6 million in general fund improvements total

• $20 million general fund transfer to the building program

• Proposed lunch price increase from $3.50 to $4.00 for paid lunches, generating an estimated $660,000 in additional school nutrition revenue

Board member Katie Allen (District 4) proposed increasing the employee raise to 5%, at an additional cost of $5.5 million over the proposed 3%, arguing the district’s consistent surplus history makes it sustainable without a tax increase. She asserted that the district has run annual surpluses ranging from $18 million to $30.8 million since FY2021. She cited FY2025 surplus of $30.8 million and a projected FY2026 ending surplus of $17.3 million. Allen also raised concerns about the $20 million general fund transfer to the building program, noting that without the $180 million Harlem High School bond proceeds, the building program fund balance entering FY2027 would have been $9 million, which combined with anticipated E-SPLOST revenue would have left the program $4 million short of covering Lakeside and Evans project costs alone. She argued the transfer is unsustainable at the current pace and called for a separate discussion on the building program before budget approval.

Board member Philip Kent (District 1) expressed support for a 5% raise and called for a pause and reassessment of the building program, saying taxpayers would prefer employee raises over building expenditures given changed economic conditions since 2022. He suggested cutting the transfer to $10 million.

Judy Teasley (District 3) also indicated support for the 5% raise.

Chairman Dekle expressed support for the CFO’s proposed 3% budget, citing the ongoing nature of salary increases and the absence of state appropriations for raises. He also defended general fund transfers to the building program as necessary given the age and number of district facilities.

Dr. Flynt cautioned against spending projected surpluses before they are realized, citing equalization dollars as a significant variable, and disputed Allen’s analysis of the building program funding gap.

Tentative budget vote: A motion by Chairman Dekle to table the tentative vote failed, with Dekle the only vote in favor.

A motion by Allen for tentative approval of the budget as presented failed. Dekle voted in favor; Allen, Kent, and Teasley voted against.

Public Speakers Budget:

• Jessica Fisher: Questioned the cost-benefit of the iReady program, district-level award spending while teachers reported to her that they are lacking basic supplies, and summer school costs. She noted that percentage-based raises benefit higher-paid administrators more than teachers in dollar terms, flagged the addition of another Title One school as a sign of economic stress, and suggested bonuses rather than raises if sustainability is a concern.

• Janet Duggan: Argued Dr. Flynt is misrepresenting the district's financial picture, specifically on the relationship between millage rate reductions and actual tax relief given digest growth. She challenged the assertion that general fund transfers to the building program were publicly known, noted $510 million has been allocated to three high schools in a program originally scoped at $493 million for 31 schools, and called the capital projects list used to justify the $20 million transfer "political theater."

• Max Brown: A parent of four CCSD students, supported the 5% raise, noted the district's general fund balance is running $23 million higher than projected, and argued the budget is a policy document reflecting priorities — warning that failing to close the 10.4% inflation gap signals to teachers they are undervalued.

Final budget vote is scheduled for June 16, 2026.

Inspire School Spotlight — Lewiston Elementary Presented by Associate Superintendent Dr. Kristen Carroll and Principal Sherry Allen

Lewiston highlighted two focus areas: co-teaching and student goal setting. The school uses a co-teaching model across general education classes, pairing general education teachers with special education, EIP, and gifted teachers for shared planning and instruction. Students maintain data folders tracking iReady and assessment results, meet individually with teachers for data chats, and set measurable goals for reading and math growth. Lewiston’s CCRPI has increased steadily in recent years, and the school recently received a state award for math achievement.

Board member Teasley asked about the data folder process; Principal Allen confirmed it draws from iReady diagnostics, post-tests, and other classroom data, with students monitoring their own progress throughout the year.

Board Policy JN — Awards and Scholarships. Approve: Yay 4, No 0 Change adjusts valedictorian and salutatorian determination to the first semester grading period.

Board Policy BCBI — Public Participation in Board Meetings Not voted on. Presented for discussion based on new case law guidance from the University of Georgia Law Center. Proposed changes clarify maximum speaking time, speaker selection process, and registration window. Board will review further before a vote.

Strategic Plan Annual Update

Goal 1 — Maximum Achievement and Success for Each Student (Chief Academic Officer LeAnne Gregg)

• refinement of ACE instructional guides across all courses and grade levels

• a new writing assessment in grades 4, 7, and 9

• expanded CTAE offerings including a new culinary arts class and a construction equipment operator pathway under development

• a successful pilot of the Strings Academy

• integration of Next Gen standards into ACE course documents

• an AI tools pilot for teachers and students

• redesigned credit recovery and summer school programs with a new platform for all EOC courses.

• The PSAT 8/9 is now administered to 8th graders to identify candidates for AP courses in high school.

Board member Allen asked how the board tracks progress against the strategic plan’s baseline percentages. Gregg confirmed a tracking document exists and that an annual student achievement presentation (typically in September/October) provides the detailed update.

Goal 2 — Community Engagement and Support (CFO Alex Casado)

• expansion of the Columbia County School District Foundation (established 2023)

• growth in work-based learning placements from approximately 26% to 40% in high-skill, high-wage opportunities

• a partnership with Augusta University allowing Teaching as a Profession students to earn college credit while in high school.

• The district also overhauled its website and continued its monthly employee newsletter.

Goal 3 — Consistent and Supportive Culture (Associate Superintendent Steve Cummings)

• implementation of behavior threat assessment teams at each school, with administrator training scheduled during post-planning

• launch of the ACES elementary counseling curriculum

• first-year implementation of the Signs of Suicide program at middle and high school levels.

Board member Katie Allen raised concerns about the Signs of Suicide program. This is transcripted:

Last fall, my daughter is a senior, and she had gone through the Signs of Suicide program at Harlem High School. I have some concerns about when I opted her out and viewed the slides, the materials that were sent weren’t the actual student materials, and so I kind of went through a process to where I ultimately had to go to the school to view the student materials. And then when I did, I found that the third video was a scenario that really with the teacher’s script discussed the student dealing with a sexuality issue. The opt-out form to the parents didn’t really communicate the fact that this is a suicide program be addressing students struggling with sexuality, and also part of the problem was the video. Their solution was oriented around ‘don’t talk to mom. It hurts when your parents don’t understand or don’t accept you for who you truly are.’ And so I kind of was concerned that we would be showing a video that directed students away from their parents and paired it with a script that says, “Note to facilitators: Students may discuss how Luke, the character in the video, may be struggling with sexual orientation or gender identity. This could be a good time to mention resources available in your school or community.'“

Associate Superintendent Penny Jackson responded that the facilitator note has since been removed and that the district has improved the parent materials access process. Parents will now receive direct links to student materials rather than having to visit the school in person.

Goal 4 — Facilities and Operational Excellence (Associate Superintendent Penny Jackson and CIO James Van Meter)

• transition from EdLog to Transportation Finder for routing

• integration with ParentSquare for a single parent communication app

• enhanced custodial training; continued installation of Cormax key locking systems (two schools remaining); and the Safe and Epic alert/digital mapping system now used by the sheriff’s department.

• Van Meter reported a $2.5 million edge network switch upgrade proposal coming to the board, which would complete the district’s network infrastructure overhaul. He also noted the district identified and shut down an email sniper attack without data compromise or downtime.

Goal 5 — Talent Optimization (Chief Human Resources Officer Tony Wright)

• updated recruiting strategy balancing in-person and virtual/social media outreach

• continued focus on employee benefits education

• and a planned comprehensive review of all salary schedules (the first since 2021-2022) with attention to South Carolina competition, specifically Aiken County.

Building Program Bid Results

• Ice cream products (school nutrition): Approve Yay 4, No 0. Hershey Creamery Company, estimated $165,504 for first year. District has held contracts with Hershey since approximately 2020.

• Multipurpose copy paper: Approve Yay 4, No 0. CPG, $220,374 estimated for 7,560 cases. CPG and Perimeter Office submitted identical bids; CPG recommended based on existing successful contract and working relationship.

• Network switches: Approve Yay 4, No 0. DSI, $2,836,809. Lowest bidder Questivity, a California-based company with no documented presence in Georgia, received a lower score on the evaluation matrix. Funding: approximately 60% e-rate, 40% E-SPLOST technology funds (~$1.1 million from E-SPLOST).

• Chromebooks: Approve Yay 4, No 0. $513,578 for approximately 1,125 units at $456.50 each. Supply chain issues with Intel processors prompted a bulk purchase. Funding: mix of Title 1, general funds, and E-SPLOST.

Superintendent Reports

Dr. Flynt highlighted:

• Arts in the Plaza Fine Arts Showcase (April 25): 1,384 students and four guest musicians performed; over 1,000 pieces of artwork displayed; 670 frames sold; 3,443 tickets sold; two graduating seniors received $1,000 fine arts scholarships. Save the date: April 24, 2027.

• National School Lunch Hero Day (May 1) and National School Nurse Appreciation Day (May 6) recognitions.

• District nursing director Lisa Lyles is retiring.

• Teach at the Peach signing day: 47 graduating seniors committed to pursuing education careers; five received $1,000 scholarships from Georgia’s Own Credit Union.

• The first three graduates of the Teaching as a Profession program from the Class of 2022 are returning to CCSD as teachers next year.

• New Teacher End of Year Celebration: Outstanding First Year Educator named as Victoria Van Natta, Baker Place Elementary.

• Graduation ceremonies for the Class of 2026 at Evans Towne Center Park. Tickets required. Inclement weather plan moves ceremonies indoors to the Columbia County Performing Arts Center with limited tickets.

• Summer school registration open through May 22 for middle and high school students.

• Kindergarten Kickoff: May 14, 5:00-6:30 pm at each school.

• Last day of school: May 20 (early dismissal).

Public Participation

• Jason Myers: asked the board to consider partnering with Georgia Appalachian Pineland Services (GAPS) to offer world language instruction beginning at the 8th grade level, noting the program costs approximately $500 per student compared to roughly $60,000 for a teacher. He highlighted Chinese, Japanese, and other language offerings as relevant to community employers including Augusta National and Bridgestone.

• Janet Dugan: Thanked board members Allen, Kent, and Teasley for their positions on the 5% raise and building program reassessment. She challenged the district’s assertion that general fund transfers to the building program were publicly disclosed prior to this year’s budget hearings, noting transfers of $23 million (FY2025) and $10 million (FY2023 or FY2024) were not listed or discussed during those budget presentations. She stated that $510 million has been allocated across three high schools in a program originally scoped at $493 million for 31 schools over ten years, and called the inclusion of routine maintenance items on the capital projects list justifying the $20 million transfer “political theater.”

• Jessica Fisher: Expressed general support for prioritizing classroom funding and affirming that the Lewiston Elementary spotlight presentation accurately reflected what is happening at that school based on her daughter’s experience as a fifth grader there.

Executive Session The board retired to executive session to discuss personnel and real estate matters. Upon returning, the board approved an administrative contract and the personnel sheet, both unanimously.

Adjourn

Next Regular Session: June 16, 2026

Chairman Duncan was not present. Present: Connie Melear (D1), Jim Steed (D2), Mike Carraway (D3), Alison Couch (D4)

Call To Order: 6pm

Approval of 4/21/2026 Meeting Minutes: Yay: 4, No 0

Consent Agenda: Yay 4, No 0

1. Community and Emergency Services Committee

   1. (H1a) Master Services Agreement with Rep’d for AI Chatbot Services

   2. (H1b) Purchase of a Boston Grand Piano from Turner’s Keyboards for Jabez Harden Auditorium

   3. (H1c) Reed Creek Donation for Interpretive Signage

   4. (H1d) Animal Services Donation

   5. (H1e) Athletic Fields and Park Usage Agreement with GA Bulls Soccer Club, LLC

   6. (H1f) Tournament Hosting Agreement with GA Bulls Soccer Club

   7. (H1g) Canoe, Kayak and Paddleboard Rentals at Riverside Park Concessionaire Agreement with Outdoor Augusta, LLC.

   8. (H1h) Clark Hill Committee of the CSRA Bass Tournaments Agreement

   9. (H1i) Purchase of Nutrition Services Agreement with the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office for the Senior Center

   10. (H1j) Service Agreement with the City of Harlem for the Oliver Hardy Festival

   11. (H1k) Athletic Facilities Use and License Agreement with Martinez Evans Little League (MELL)

   12. (H1l) Donation from Clark Hill Committee for the Fishing Rodeo

   13. (H1m) Columbia County Library System Donation

2. Public Works and Engineering Services Committee

   1. (H2a) Memorandum of Tower Site Land License Agreement and Tower Site Land License Agreement with SBA Structures, LLC. for 580 Stevens Creek Road

   2. (H2b) Award Bid# 2026010-BID5100 and contract to Blair Construction for Sawdust Rd Waterline project

   3. (H2c) Independent Contractor Agreement with Turnipseed Engineers for Crawford Creek Aeration Basin Rehabilitation

   4. (H2d) Change Order Number 2 with Blair Construction, Inc. for Crawford Creek Sewer Phase II

   5. (H2e) Independent Contractor Agreement with Ardurra Group, Inc. for Biosolids Alternatives Evaluation and Recommendations

   6. (H2f) Lighting Services Agreements with Georgia Power to install Safety Lights at the Intersections of Columbia Road & Long Creek Falls, Wrightsboro Road & Euchee Creek Drive, Louisville Road & Nature’s Way and the Blue Ridge Dr. Crosswalk.

   7. (H2g) Revised Lighting Services Agreement with Georgia Power for the Intersection Safety Light at Wrightsboro Rd and Kettle Creek Dr

   8. (H2h) Resolution 26-02 to amend Street Light District (SLD 2024-535B) in Jackson Heights, Phase II

   9. (H2i) Resolution 26-10 Concerning a Determination to Declare as Surplus and Sell Real Property located at 4065 Columbia Rd, Martinez, GA (Parcel ID 079 084)

   10. (H2j) Contract# 2026-3521 with Maner Builders Supply for Perimeter Fence Repair at the Baker Place Rd Landfill

   11. (H2k) Contract# 2026-3495 with Southern Asphalt for Parking Lot Repairs and Overlay at Fire Station #3

   12. (H2l) Contract #2026-3512 with Thompson Building Wrecking Company for Abatement, Demolition, and Removal Services of Properties for the Hereford Farm Rd Widening Project

   13. (H2m) Contract #2026-3531 with Lose Design for Architectural & Engineering Services related to the Columbia County Sports Complex

   14. (H2n) Supplemental Agreement #1 to the Project Framework Agreement with GDOT for the Wrightsboro Rd Widening Project

   15. (H2o) Acceptance of Improvements at Greenpoint Phase 4

Debate Agenda

1. New Business

   1. Development and Planning Services Committee

      1. (I1a1) VA26-04-01, Variance to Section 90-135 Signs, 212 Bobby Jones Expressway, Tax Map 078D Parcel 024, 0.598 +/- acres, and currently zoned C-2 (General Commercial). Approve Yay: 4, No 0

         Request to allow additional building signage to remain in place. Buffalo Luke's restaurant installed a sign on the side of the building without obtaining the required permit. Total proposed signage — front, side, and one additional sign — totals 102 square feet, which is 0.5 square feet under the 102.5 square feet permitted if all three allowed sign positions are used. Conditions attached to approval: all unpermitted window signs must be permitted or removed within 30 days; sign facing the parking lot (Roseland-facing) must be permitted within 30 days; each tenant limited to two total signs per the subdivision requirements.

      2. (I1a2) VA26-04-02, Variance to Section 90-53 List of lot and structure requirements, 710 Whitetail Trail, Tax Map 017 Parcel 068, 3.09 +/- acres, and currently zoned R-A (Residential Agricultural). Approve Yay: 4, No 0

         Request to reduce rear setback from 25 feet to 10 feet for a proposed storage structure. Property accesses via easement rather than a road, which causes what would typically be a side lot line to be classified as a rear lot line, triggering a 25-foot setback instead of the standard 10-foot side setback. Reduction would align the structure with the property's driveway and is consistent with a neighboring structure.

Public Comments:

• Karin Parham

• Susan Warren

Executive Session

1. Property

   1. (M1a) Property A: Approve: Yay 4, No 0. Highlands Townhomes HOA, donating 0.04 acres as a permanent easement for the Ivy Falls sewer line improvement project.

Adjournment: 6:18pm

The next scheduled meeting is Tuesday, May 19, 2026 at 6:00pm in the Auditorium of Building A at the Evans Government Center.

Chairman Duncan was not present. Present: Connie Melear (D1), Jim Steed (D2), Michael Carraway (D3), Alison Couch (D4), Scott Johnson (County Manager)

Call To Order: 5:30pm

Public Hearing:

1. Budget Summary General Fund

Johnson started, noting the budget is balanced and ready to advertise, with a 1.95% overall increase in the General Fund, down from roughly 3% last year. He credited zero-based budgeting, saying departments build from scratch rather than from the prior year’s numbers.

Key items he walked through:

• 3% cost of living increase for employees

• Increase in medical plan contributions (both county and employee shares go up)

• Vehicles moved to the Fleet Fund for amortization rather than sitting as lump-sum budget items

• $750,000 in Sheriff’s Office technology requests moved to one-time TAVT money rather than recurring budget

• Roads and Bridges fully moved to the Insurance Premium Tax Fund (IPTF) — Johnson described it as a cleaner accounting move, not a funding change

• Gold Cross contract increase, adding one additional ambulance

• General Fund proposed at $105,925,401 with a 2.51% contingency (goal is 2.5%)

Couch asked about the millage rate; Johnson confirmed the budget is balanced with a millage rate reduction in mind. Formal rate-setting happens in July/August.

Melear asked for a FEMA update. Johnson said FEMA reimbursements will not affect the General Fund. County covered costs with project money and will reimburse those accounts as FEMA money comes in. Staff stated $69 million received against $87 million spent, with another $13 million expected soon, putting them at roughly 97% reimbursed with more still coming through September/October.

Couch asked about the $8.4 million returned by EDACC from the White Oak Industrial Park sale. Johnson confirmed it’s been set aside and the intent is to return it to taxpayers via HB 439, which is on the governor’s desk. He described the $8.4 million as “seed money.”

Carraway then made a point of stating explicitly that the commission is unified in its intent to use that money to reduce or eliminate homestead property taxes, and that they have said so publicly. Johnson added they intend to “continue to fight” until homestead property taxes in Columbia County are eliminated. Johnson clarified that if the governor signs HB 439, it still goes to voters in November, meaning any tax relief would happen in 2027, not this fall, directly pushing back on a common public expectation.

Steed offered general praise for the budget process, noting it was his first budget cycle with the county.

• Tax Digest Projection

Johnson projected 5% growth in the digest for 2026, consistent with how the county typically estimates. He said last year’s millage rate reduction was so aggressive that despite digest growth, the county only netted an additional $612,581 in property tax revenue year over year.

He said property tax now represents about 40-42% of General Fund revenue, down from over 65% when he took over as county manager 15 years ago. 40% is roughly the floor he’s comfortable with, given the volatility of other revenue sources.

Melear pressed on that point, noting that sales tax is volatile (she cited the hurricane as an example of a sudden dropoff) and that property tax is the most dependable revenue stream. Johnson agreed 40% is about as low as he’d want to go, and flagged a specific risk: a bill discussed this legislative session would have eliminated the Insurance Premium Tax Fund, which would have forced everything currently funded there back into the General Fund, requiring a tax increase.

Johnson confirmed this will be the 10th millage rate reduction in the last 11 years, with 2020 (COVID) being the only exception.

Couch asked about the homestead portion of the ~$42 million in property tax revenue. Johnson said approximately $25 million of that $42 million comes from homestead properties. He noted that for a county with a $10 billion digest, $42 million total in property tax collections is among the lowest in the state.

Couch added that the board’s long-term intent is to eliminate homestead property tax entirely and replace it with other revenue streams.

• Sales Tax Collections

Johnson said the county conservatively estimates sales tax revenue. He noted that March 2026 showed the first negative year-over-year percentage change in several years (-0.05% on the 12-month average, per the document), describing it as possibly just a stabilization rather than a trend.

He explained how LOST works for the county: 100% of Local Option Sales Tax collections are applied as a credit against the millage rate, showing up on tax bills as a LOST credit that effectively lowers what property owners pay.

• Summary of Proposed Budget

  

  

  Johnson cautioned against reading the 7.32% overall budget increase as representative of county spending broadly. He pointed to the General Fund’s 1.95% as the more meaningful number, since many of the other funds are revenue-driven, they balance to whatever comes in, so they move up and down independently.

  The specific outlier he called out: the 2024 PFA Bond debt service fund shows a 583% increase. He explained this was intentional. When the bonds were structured, the county took an interest-only period while investing the bond proceeds at high returns, deferring the larger payments. The big payment is now due, and he said they were prepared for it.

  Johnson also noted the ARPA funds (both state and federal) dropping 68-100%, which reflects those one-time pandemic funds winding down.

  Carraway reiterated the 1.95% General Fund figure for the record.

• Budget Calendar

  

  Johnson went through the remaining steps: newspaper advertisement of the proposed budget goes to press on May 15; budget adoption is set for the Board of Commissioners meeting on June 2. He noted that any significant changes resulting from public input will be disclosed at adoption. He credited finance staff (Ms. Reece) for managing thousands of pages of budget documents over a five-month process.

There were no public comments

Adjournment: 5:55pm

(Note: Slides and video available on the district website. Budget will be considered for final approval at the June 16, 2026 Board meeting.)

Call to Order: 8am. All board members present.

FY2027 Budget Presentation

Budget Process Overview

• Board approves budget at the legal reporting level, expenditure function and revenue source by fund

• Budget managed by district within board-approved limits

• Expenditures exceeding budget by fund and function must return to board for approval via budget amendment

• Board receives monthly financial reports by fund and function

• Building program reports are detailed by project and by each active E-SPLOST cycle

General Fund

• Total estimated revenue: $390,044,500

• Total estimated expenditures (before needed improvements): $418,765,112

• Needed improvements: $10,657,625

• Revenue breakdown (general fund only): 58.80% state, 40.98% local, 0.22% federal

• 15th largest district out of 180 in Georgia by FTE

• 6th in state for percent of budget spent on instruction

• Last in state (180/180) for percent spent on general administration

• 174th out of 180 for per-pupil total expenditure ($12,155)

Employer Benefits / Major Increases

• FICA & Medicare: unchanged at 7.65%

• Teacher Retirement System: increased to 22.32% (up 1.87%)

• Certified and non-certified health insurance: increased to $23,220 annually (up 2.65%)

• Life insurance and supplemental retirement: unchanged

• Summary of mandatory cost increases built into budget:

  • Step increase: $4,200,000

  • State health insurance: $2,800,000

  • Teacher Retirement System: $1,500,000

History of Salary Increases

• Cumulative US inflation since 2020: 27.3%

• Cumulative COLA since 2020: 16.9%

• Gap: 10.4%

• 2026 adjustment was a $2,000 one-time stipend for all employees (not a permanent scale increase)

General Fund Improvements — Needed Improvements & Estimated Cost

1. 3% cost of living adjustment to all scales $8,276,348

2. Add 3 registered behavior technicians $165,000

3. Add 1 SPED coordinator $129,474

4. Add 0.5 SPED nurse $40,000

5. Increase curriculum specialists from 220 to 225 days $21,880

6. Reclassify coordinator to director in Curriculum & Instruction $12,565

7. Add 13 custodians to school buildings across the district $752,571

8. Increase HS Bookkeeper and Principal Secretary from 220 to 225 days $12,612

9. Add a step to administrative scale to bring in line with market $421,103

10. Add robotics lead stipends for schools ($1,500) $58,487

11. Reclassify 2 positions in business department to market $53,922

12. Add 1 purchasing agent $85,000

13. Add 1 open records request position $85,000

14. Add 2 HVAC techs $184,590

15. Reclassify lead custodians to market $189,955

16. Add administrative position for HR $125,240

17. Minor supplement & market adjustments $43,878

    Total$10,657,625

Board Discussion: COLA — 3% vs. 5%

Board member Katie Allen raised the possibility of increasing the proposed cost of living adjustment from 3% to 5%. The following is transcripted from the meeting:

Allen: I just want to first of all say thank you for all the work you do. And then also walk you through some of my numbers and calculations just to give you a chance to correct anything. So, based on what I am seeing from neighboring counties, I would like to do a cost of living increase for the staff from three percent to five percent. So it might have — calculations: this would cost five point five million dollars in addition to the ten point seven million for needed improvements. About correct?

Casado: Yes, that sounds right.

Allen: And so my second part is I think we can do this. And let me walk you through my numbers to explain why I believe we can do this. So we began fiscal year twenty twenty six, this current fiscal year, with a general fund balance of one hundred eight point seven million. We are projected to end this current fiscal year with the general fund balance of one hundred twenty six million. So that means we’re on track to finish this fiscal year twenty six with a seventeen point three million dollar surplus, which is what our Moody’s report said would happen — that we would be running a surplus. So it is also consistent with our history since fiscal year twenty one in which we have had an annual surplus ranging from eighteen to thirty million dollars each year. So given the projected surplus of this year, given our five and six year trends, I believe we can do this — even within our current operations budget — to do the recommended improvements and also to do that five percent cost of living increase without even raising property taxes.

I also would like to see, and I believe based on my analysis that we have room to do, some of the items that were on our improvements list from last year that we didn’t vote on. So that would be one of the ones I really wanted last year — hiring six SPED paraprofessionals. Now, last year we had that at about one hundred and eighty six thousand. I imagine it would be a little bit more, but that’s for the board to kind of think about. And then also to consider from our list last year an elementary K through seven math specialist brought in at two hundred and twenty days — four hundred twenty six thousand. So those items together would be less than four hundred thousand. So, still in the vicinity of what we could do in our operations budget that would be sustainable without a tax increase. So based on my numbers, is that approximately correct for what you say — that would be sustainable moving forward to do those things?

Casado: Yeah, I think your numbers are accurate there — relatively accurately stated. I can rerun that and look at it if you will, or tell you how much more it will cost.

(Karin’s Note: Allen also suggested reinstating two items from last year’s improvements list. Six SPED paraprofessionals (~$186,000) and an elementary K-7 math specialist (~$426,000). Kent and Dr.Flynt noted that a reorganization of the SPED department may have addressed some of the paraprofessional needs, and that any added positions would need to be mapped to the district’s weighted staffing formula. No determination was made on whether those positions are still needed.)

School Nutrition

• Program is intended to be self-sustaining

• Current estimated fund balance (6/30/26): $6,300,000

• Projected deficit for FY2027 without price increase: $1,109,444

• Projected fund balance (6/30/27) without price increase: $5,190,556

• Casado’s target fund balance: approximately $5,000,000

• No expenditure improvements recommended for school nutrition

• Revenue improvement recommended: meal price increases

• State and federal paid lunch equity calculation formula puts the target price for paid lunches at $4.25 for SY2025-26

• Estimated additional revenue from proposed increases: $660,478

• Board discussion included possibility of a smaller increase (to $3.75 for lunch) which would yield approximately $560,000 in additional revenue

• Casado noted participation has increased despite last year’s price increase

Special Revenue Funds

• Federal funds budget is a conservative estimate given federal fiscal year does not begin until October 1

• Total special revenue grants for FY2027: $11,146,538

• Includes Special Education (federal), Title I-IV, Homeless, Vocational, Lottery Pre-K, and ROTC

• Note: federal grant amounts shown do not represent total district expenditure on these programs — state and local dollars also fund these areas

Building Fund / $20M General Fund Transfer

• Proposed budget includes $20,000,000 transfer from general fund to building fund

• Building fund estimated revenue FY2027: $75,000,000

• Building fund total estimated expenditures: $154,662,888

• Building fund balance (6/30/26): $189,000,000 (reflects December 2025 bond proceeds)

• Projected building fund balance (6/30/27): $109,337,112

• The $20M transfer is designated for Phase 3 building program projects — facility maintenance and upgrades across the district

(The board didn’t have a copy of the 26-27 project list prior to the meeting. FY2026-2027 project list provided by CFO Alex Casado attached below. Total project cost: $19,077,700. Projects include HVAC replacements, fire alarm upgrades, LED lighting, restroom renovations, roof replacement, and painting across multiple schools.)

Budget Timeline

• April 21, 2026 Budget presentation to the board

• April 28, 2026 1st public input meeting

• May 12, 2026 2nd public input meeting, 5:30 p.m.

• June 16, 2026Final budget approval

Public Input

• Janet Duggan

The public will have a second opportunity for input at the May 12, 2026 board meeting at 5:30 p.m. Board members discussed several budget alternatives at this meeting, including a 5% COLA instead of 3% and additional staffing items, which may be presented with updated numbers at the May 12 meeting. The final budget will be considered for approval at the June 16, 2026 Board meeting. Both meetings are held at the Board of Education Building at 4781 Hereford Farm Road, Evans, GA.