Apr. 19—Whitfield County has cut the property tax rate to 6.1 mills down from 8.3 mills in 2020, while significantly paying down debt, according to commission board Chairman Jevin Jensen.

Jensen was one of several local officials who spoke Thursday at the Greater Dalton Chamber of Commerce's State of the Community breakfast at the Dalton Convention Center.

"The state of our county is strong," said Jensen. "I believe it is getting even stronger. We have a strong financial foundation. I think stronger than our surrounding counties."

Jensen noted that because of the cuts to the property tax rate the county took in $9.8 million less in property tax revenue from 2021 to 2023 than it did in the preceding three years.

But it was still able to pay down its debt. The county had $30 million in debt in 2020. It has just $1.5 million this year.

The county resurfaced 26 miles of roads in 2023, compared to 9.8 miles in 2020. It filled 1,222 potholes last year, up from 111 in 2020. Youth participation in recreation league sports rose to 4,236 in 2023 from 2,274 in 2020.

The county has three sewer expansion programs underway and recently received a federal grant that will fund a fourth expansion.

Jensen said the county has been aggressively pursuing grants that will allow it to complete projects without burdening taxpayers. In 2023, the county received $7.3 million in grants, up from $600,000 in grants in 2020.

Dalton Mayor Annalee Harlan Sams said city officials are working to make Dalton "a more attractive place, physically attractive for citizens."

She spoke of the city's Spring CLEAN effort to tidy up the area around the Mack Gaston Community Center. That involves city code compliance officers identifying issues at owner-occupied housing that the residents are unable to fix and linking them with volunteers who can help with repairs. The city is also offering Rubbish Amnesty Days when the Public Works Department will haul off items it typically does not collect at the curb.

Sams said the city plans to expand this effort to other neighborhoods.

She said city officials also want citizens to "have something to do."

As part of that effort, the city recently opened the Mill Line Trail, which connects the Eagle Walk trail near Crown Mill Village to the trail around Haig Mill Lake Park.

"If you haven't been out on the Mill Line yet, I encourage you to go out there," she said. "We've had so many people say 'This is awesome. We've been waiting for something like this.'"