Douglasville City starts City Hall demolition; city says millage rate will not increase

Emily Hardaway, community communications manager for Douglasville City, said demolition of the city's old City Hall has begun and that construction of a three‑story replacement will start soon.

"The building is down, and construction will start soon," Hardaway said on the podcast, adding that the replacement City Hall will be three stories and, she said, will be funded without new debt. "The awesome thing about the new City Hall is that it is going to be debt free," she said, describing that as good news for taxpayers.

Hardaway and host Jason Post also discussed the city's millage‑rate process. Hardaway said the city is hosting millage‑rate meetings to inform the public, and Post said Douglasville is proposing to keep its millage rate at last year's level. Hardaway invited residents to a public meeting set for August 3 at 5 p.m. at the Douglasville Conference Center, when the city will take final action on the rate.

Hardaway promoted recurring community activities, including a Tuesday farmers market and a family movie night at Jesse Davis Park on Friday, July 31. "The activities start at 6 and then the movie is going to start at 7," she said, and encouraged families to attend.

Hardaway and Post noted the city has sought to preserve historical materials and memory from the old City Hall as it proceeds with demolition and construction.

For event times and changes to city services during construction, Hardaway directed listeners to Douglasville City information channels and to upcoming millage‑rate meetings for questions about tax impact.