Fort Oglethorpe mayor Cobb dies

Fort Oglethorpe Mayor Ronnie Cobb died Tuesday night after a long history in the city.

Cobb, 64, was pronounced dead at Hutcheson Medical Center at 8:45 p.m., City Manager Ron Goulart said.

"I feel reasonably sure it was a heart attack," Goulart said.

Cobb had suffered a heart attack in January.

The Catoosa County Sheriff's Office was assisting Cobb's family late Tuesday, Catoosa County coroner Vanita Hullander said.

Earlier in the day, Goulart said he had lunch with Cobb in a meeting with officials from Costco, a warehouse club set to open its doors in the city in October.

"He was excited about that and appeared to be completely normal," he said. "We had a great meeting, and (Cobb's death) was sort of a shock to everyone."

Cobb last week had a road named for him, Cobb Parkway, at the Costco site at Interstate 75 and Cloud Springs Road.

Goulart said he has known Cobb for "well over 20 years." He said some of the mayor's biggest contributions to the city were to Fort Oglethorpe's economic development, efficient government operations and athletic programs.

"He's been a great asset," he said.

Cobb was born in Chattanooga and had lived in Fort Oglethorpe for 60 years.

He is survived by his wife, Jan; two children; and two stepchildren.

He graduated from Lakeview High School in 1964.

Cobb was a former TVA employee. He also worked for Plumbers & Pipefitters.

He was a member of Fort Oglethorpe's City Council from 1996 to 2000, then again from 2002 to 2004. He began serving as mayor in 2008.

Perhaps the last major thing Cobb oversaw as mayor was the merger between the Post Fire Department and the Fort Oglethorpe Fire Department, which was approved just a few days ago.

"We've reached a point where we can move forward and get rid of the hard feelings," Cobb said of the merger last week.

Goulart said the mayor always was going to meetings and doing things on behalf of the city.

"He was the one you could always count on, and he will really be missed," Goulart said.

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