South Fulton officials pitch $96M bond for new police, fire headquarters and ask to lift millage cap amid resident concerns

South Fulton officials on Wednesday presented detailed plans and financing terms for two new public-safety facilities—a proposed 75,000-square-foot police headquarters and a 50,000-square-foot fire headquarters and training campus—and told residents the city intends to issue $96 million in bonds to pay for construction.

City Manager Sharon Soubaden said the city will commit $20,000,000 of its fund balance to the projects and seek a 20-year bond; she said the city is not proposing an immediate tax increase. “The city of South Fulton is not raising the millage rate,” Soubaden said during the town-hall.

The presentations, from Major Jubal Rogers of the South Fulton Police Department and Fire Chief Chad Jones, described shortcomings in current facilities—officers using roll-call rooms for inmate interviews, limited training space, and rental of headquarters outside the city—and argued the new buildings would include indoor training ranges, interview and investigative areas, a burn building, driving course and a 911 center to improve response and training.

Why it matters: The city is asking council to remove or raise a charter millage-rate cap so lenders will consider offering more favorable financing and to enable the full proposed borrowing. Financial adviser Ed Wall told residents that with the existing cap the city’s borrowing capacity would be smaller and lenders may not offer the most competitive rates; Wall said the best bank bid obtained so far would price the debt at a floating rate indexed to the 10-year U.S. Treasury, about 4.3% at the time of the presentation, and that the annual debt service on the $96 million at that rate would be roughly $7 million.

Legal and procedural questions dominated public comment. Bond counsel Douglas Selby told the meeting that state law and the city charter provide mechanisms to amend charter provisions, including millage caps, either by a council-led amendment process or by referendum. “The power to adjust the millage cap is vested in either the council or the people,” Selby said. Several residents and speakers urged the council to put any change to the cap to a citizen vote; others said they support building the facilities but object to changing the charter without broader public approval.

Residents raised affordability and equity concerns, especially for seniors on fixed incomes. Speakers asked for protections or “guardrails” if the cap is changed, and several requested a moratorium or other legally binding limit on when and how future councils could raise taxes. City officials replied that state law and the city’s own policies limit annual tax increases and that the first time the city could legally raise the millage rate would be when council votes after any change to the cap; officials also pointed to existing homestead, senior and veterans exemptions the city preserves from Fulton County.

Operational details and costs given at the meeting included: a police headquarters described by Major Jubal Rogers as a “state of the art 75,000 square foot” facility with an indoor pistol range; a fire headquarters and training campus on land the city acquired (the chief said 51 acres were purchased in 2022) that would house a 9-1-1 center, emergency operations center, simulation rooms and a burn tower. City staff said contractors provided a guaranteed maximum price (not-to-exceed) for the two projects of about $113 million; the planned bond amount presented was $96 million with approximately $2.2 million in issuance costs noted by staff.

What’s next: City leaders said council will consider ordinance language in coming meetings and that a formal council vote on the millage-cap question and the millage rate is scheduled for a regular council meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 9, at 7 p.m. Officials repeatedly encouraged residents to attend that meeting.

Voices from the meeting

• Major Jubal Rogers, South Fulton Police Department: emphasized training and officer safety; “The question is, can we afford not to?”

• Fire Chief Chad Jones: described the training campus features and said a local burn tower and driving course would reduce reliance on out-of-city training.

• City Manager Sharon Soubaden: described the financing plan and said the city will commit $20 million from its fund balance to the projects and that the millage rate would not be increased now.

• Ed Wall, financial adviser: explained the millage-cap options (remove the cap, raise the cap to 18 mills, or leave it) and said lenders’ willingness to fund the full program at competitive rates was a central reason for the proposed change.

• Douglas Selby, bond counsel: outlined legal routes to amend the charter and confirmed state mechanisms exist for either council-led amendments or a referendum.

Community concerns and clarifications

Speakers at the town hall repeatedly asked how the city will protect homeowners—especially seniors—if the charter cap is removed. Officials pointed to the city’s existing exemptions (homestead, senior, veterans) and to a policy limit the city has adopted (an internal cap that city staff described as limiting annual millage increases to roughly 3% under current practice). Staff also said that many of the city’s current costs—rent for facilities and payments to Fulton County for dispatch—would be reduced or repurposed if the new facilities are built.

Several residents asked why the city did not pursue a municipal credit rating first. Ed Wall answered that obtaining a public rating requires up-to-date audit reports and that the city pursued competitive bank bids (a private placement approach) to secure the terms presented.

No formal council action was taken at the town hall. The council will consider the millage-cap language and financing at the Sept. 9 council meeting; residents were urged to attend to provide input before council votes.