Enjoy using the paved track that snakes around Fort Oglethorpe’s city hall around the creek and down to Gilbert Stephenson City Park?

Well, it’s about to get longer.

Mayor Ronnie Cobb said the city recently received a $100,000 grant through federal funds allotted to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

“These are not easy grants (to get),” he said.

The city must put in at least $25,000 to take the grant, but officials said Fort Oglethorpe plans to add $115,000 generated from the current special purpose local option sales tax to the money pot anyhow.

Public works director Jeff Long said that while this is one extension of the city’s walking track system, he hopes it won’t be the last.

“What my long-term vision is...eventually tying it all the way in to Harker Road with Frank Gleason Park we just finished,” he said.

In other recreational news, the City Council at its regular biweekly meeting on Monday, March 10 approved spending $28,000 for design work on a new bath house for the city pool. Long said the current one was built in 1972 at the same time the pool was built, but falls short of building requirements for the number of people expected to use it.

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Pool admission fees

Daily admission: $4, up from $3

Single season pass: $75

Family season pass: $150 for city residents, up from $125; $225 for nonresidents, up from $200

Swim lessons per child: $30 for one-week lesson, changed from $50 for a two-week lesson

Pool parties: $125 for a two-hour party, up from $100; $25 for each additional lifeguard, up from $20.

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Plans are for the new pool house to be of roughly the same design but almost twice as big as the current one – 4,000 square feet instead of 2,700 square feet – Long said. He said Markey and Associates, Inc. – the same contractor that designed the new pool – will do the design work, and the bath house will open next year. Work won’t begin until after the swimming season, he said, and the house is expected to cost around a half-million dollars which will come from the city’s general fund.

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In other business Monday, March 10, at the City of Fort Oglethorpe Municipal Complex, the Fort Oglethorpe City Council voted unanimously to:

* Increase all hourly employees’ pay by $0.75 and all salaried employees’ pay by 1 percent.

* Approve pool new admission fees for the new pool which is scheduled to open this summer.

* Annexed Porter Weaver’s residence at 158 Cedar Tree into the city at his request.

* Passed a resolution asking the Georgia Legislature to approve letting residents vote on a homestead extension that would allow each homeowner a $10,000 exemption. Those age 60 but younger than 70 would exempt $40,000 while people older than 70, totally disabled or 70 percent disabled veterans would be completely exempted.

* Approved having the Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe Recreation Association opening day parade on April 12 to begin at Kmart and continue to Barhnardt Circle.

* Granted a request to reimburse the Post Volunteer Fire Department and for workers’ compensation insurance as well as accident insurance for both volunteer and paid firefighters at $7,515.

* Appointed members to a committee with council member Louis Hamm as chairman to be responsible for helping coordinate programming for the city’s television station.

* Annexed property at 1653 Cloud Springs Road owned by Six Gents, LLC into the city and rezoned it from residential to commercial. Six Gents representative Monte Sauders said the group hopes to put a Fred’s Dollar Store on the site and is pursuing other business propositions, too.

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