After speaking with members of the Hamilton County Commission, Mayor Weston Wamp has decided to veto a resolution the panel approved last week that would have involved adding a 12th seat to the County Commission dais at a cost of about $49,000.
"Chairman (Chip) Baker and the entire commission were gracious in offering to accommodate both the larger commission and the county mayor on the dais," Wamp said in a news release issued by his office. "After several meetings with the finance team, it's clear we have some challenges ahead. With that in mind, I would prefer to direct the nearly $50,000 allocated for this project to more impactful priorities."
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According to the release, the action ends the tradition of the county mayor sitting on the dais, but Wamp's office said the change won't have an impact on his participation during meetings.
"As an ex-officio member of the County Commission, I will regularly attend meetings and always speak to issues important to the citizens and the county," Wamp said in the release. "My staff and I are looking forward to working with this new commission as the county faces both unprecedented opportunities and challenges."
Located in the fourth-floor commission chambers at the Hamilton County Courthouse, 625 Georgia Ave., the dais currently has 11 seats.
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Former Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger and County Attorney Rheubin Taylor previously sat with the nine members of the commission, but the panel has since grown to 11 members following results of the 2020 census.
The plan as of last week was to have the dais expanded to 12 seats by extending it over an existing set of steps that lead up to the platform, making a seat for Wamp. The county attorney would no longer have sat on the dais.
Contact David Floyd at dfloyd@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6249. Follow him on Twitter @flavid_doyd.