Grovetown boosts government jobs

Tremendous growth in Grovetown has city officials looking to expand their city government.

At Monday's semimonthly meeting, the City Council voted to advertise for two city positions, one new and one being expanded. The council is putting together job descriptions for a city administrator and a full-time building inspector.

"It's been a long time coming," Councilman Bruce Stoddard said of the city administrator position.

The city administrator, a new position, will take over many of the tasks performed by the mayor and city clerk, such as writing local, state and federal grants, Mayor Dennis Trudeau said.

"He'll be doing the administrative work within the city, planning our growth and meeting with different people," Trudeau said, adding that he's been attending most of the meetings and handling the grant writing.

The city currently employs a full-time building inspector and part-time inspector Charles Reynolds. With Reynolds' upcoming retirement Dec. 15 and the city's continued growth, the council voted to replace Reynolds with a second full-time inspector.

"We've got one (full-time inspector), and he meets himself coming and going," Planning and Zoning Director Dick Taylor said.

The city council also held the first reading of the 2006 budget Monday. Trudeau said the budget is less than 2 percent more than the current budget.

The second reading of the budget will be 6 p.m., just before the Dec. 12 city council meeting.