The Stockbridge City Council voted May 9 to double the spending authority of the city manager and to enter into an agreement with the city’s Main Street program.

A motion was made at the start of the meeting to amend the agenda so that the city manager issue could be addressed. City manager Frederick Gardiner was asked to explain the reasoning behind the proposed change in policy, which would raise his spending authority from $25,000 to $50,000 for budgeted items. He stated that the amount was reduced under a previous administration, and such purchases as a single new vehicle are difficult under the $25,000 limit without bringing each request before the council and prolonging the process.

After the measure was successfully added to the agenda, the vote to approve it passed 4-0-1. Council member Yolanda Barber abstained, saying that the proposed action requires an amendment to the city’s procurement policy and the details of what was proposed had not been provided to the council for review.

After a memorandum of understanding with the Main Street Advisory Program was approved, Main Street program manager Kira Harris-Braggs informed the council that the Stockbridge staff would be honored at the 2022 National Main Street Conference as second-place winners of the Small Business Saturday Neighborhood Champion Innovation Contest. She said the competition was a nationwide search for exemplary Main Street programs that hosted innovative promotional campaigns and activities in observance of Small Business Saturday. 

Harris-Braggs and program coordinator Lisa Fareed were asked to participate on a panel of experts from around the country to discuss best practices for Small Business Saturday at the National Main Street Now Conference in mid-May in Richmond, Va. They also received a monetary reward to assist with further Stockbridge Small Business Saturday program implementation. Stockbridge’s was to be the only Main Street program representing the state of Georgia and the southeastern region of the United States.

The council meeting included the swearing-in of Frangela Merritt – Downtown Development Authority Board, as well as Angela Myers-Jenkins and Deron Johnson to the Ethics Committee .

The council’s final action of the night was the appointment of Rosalynd Rawls as executive assistant to the mayor and council.