Contest Held to Determine Name for Auburn's Cultural Arts Center

A building on College Street in Auburn will have a new name come March 3.

A "name that building" contest was held recently to find a name for the city's future cultural arts center.

The building will be used for educational and artistic purposes, and both the Georgia Piedmont Arts Council and the Yargo Community Concert Band will make it their home.

The Auburn City Council discussed the contest at its workshop meeting Thursday night. The winning name will be announced at the council's regular session March 3, and a plaque will be dedicated to the winner and displayed in the building.

The following items were also discussed Thursday and will be up for a vote March 3.

Tattoo regulations

Auburn's current tattoo parlor regulations were adopted from Gwinnett County, and they call for issuing of licensing and monitoring of regulations to be performed by Gwinnett. There is, however, no formal agreement in place for this. The new measure would change the wording of the regulations so that Auburn would license and monitor the city's tattoo parlors. These tasks would most likely be performed by a code enforcement officer.

Sales tax collection assistance

The Georgia Department of Revenue is asking for assistance from local governments to collect sales tax revenues. The council will vote on amending the city's business license application to include the business's sales tax identification number, and the city would provide this information to the department of revenue.

Green Tree subdivision annexation

The city has received consent to annex 23 of the 25 properties in the subdivision. By annexing these properties, Auburn agrees to supply them with water. The city has offered to waive the $3,500 water tap fee, install a 120inch water main, waive the $150 water meter fee and install fire hydrants for a total cost of $50,000. The planning and zoning commission recommended annexing the properties, but Attorney Jack Wilson suggested the council wait on consent from the remaining two properties, which may push the vote back to the council's second meeting in March.

Architectural services for Hawthorne House

Auburn received 14 submissions for architectural services for a U.S. Department of Agriculture loan to transform Hawthorne House into a reception venue. Based on review, Morrison Design LLC is the recommended selection. Final approval will be made March 3.

Approval for submittal of grant

Resolution 11-033 would allow Auburn to submit their application for the  Community Development Block Grant, which would be used to improve the R&R/Perry Rainey Building. The Northeast Georgia Regional Commission has been named grant administrator, and Carter Watkins Associates Architects Inc. is the project architect. A public hearing will be held at city hall at noon Feb. 23 to obtain residents' input on applying for the grant.

Tennis court reservations

Currently, Auburn's rental and policies manual does not include information on reserving the city's tennis courts. Proposed changes would institute a $5 fee to reserve both courts for two hours. Each additional hour would cost $2.50. The courts will remain free to the public when they are not reserved.

Sale of Ford bucket truck

The city owns a white, 1990 Ford diesel bucket truck, which is inoperable due to transmission problems. Repair costs would total $7,000, and the truck has already been replaced with a newer knuckle boom truck. If approved, the truck would be posted on the auction site E-Gov, with a starting bid of $2,000.

The Auburn City Council meet meet again at 7 p.m. March 3 at .