The City of Stone Mountain is calling for volunteers to serve on the city's Planning & Zoning Committee and its Historic Preservation Commission.
The city has posted notices asking for letters and/or resumes from those interested in serving on either panel. They should be sent by Wednesday, Jan. 15, to Mayor Patricia Wheeler, Stone Mountain City Hall, 875 Main St., Stone Mountain GA 30083.
While Historic Preservation Commission members must have lived in the city for one year before taking office, there is no requirement that Planning & Zoning Committee members be residents of the City of Stone Mountain.
The posted notice says appointments to the Planning & Zoning Committee require a nomination by the mayor. However, the Stone Mountain city code says "all members of boards, commissions, and authorities of the city shall be appointed by the city council." No mention is made of the mayor nominating Planning & Zoning Committee members.
Mayor Wheeler has publicly complained about the Planning & Zoning Committee, which is chaired by ART Station Founder and Producing Director Michael Hidalgo. "We do have people on Planning & Zoning who really don't know the zonings and the ordinances and they come in not knowing," Wheeler said at a May 2018 City Council meeting where she threatened to suspend the committee, even though she has no authority to do so.
The Stone Mountain Historic Preservation Commission is required to have three to seven members, a majority of whom "shall be persons who have demonstrated special interest, experience or education in the preservation of historic resources, history or architecture."
The city's web site indicates that the preservation commission already has seven members, so it is unclear if there are any existing vacancies. Unlike the planning committee, the mayor is entitled to make nominations to the preservation commission, which is chaired by Al Capogrossi. Each preservation commission member is to serve a three-year term.
The City of Stone Mountain web site includes meeting agendas for the Planning & Zoning Committee and the Historic Preservation Commission, but no minutes are posted for either body.
