Roswell City Committee Meeting Summary for January 13, 2026
Roswell City Committee Meeting Summary for January 13, 2026
The Roswell City Committee convened on January 13, 2026, presided over by City Administrator Randy Knighton, with the Mayor and City Council present. The meeting focused on initiating text amendments to the Unified Development Code regarding warehouse uses and data centers, approving contracts and budget amendments for water infrastructure improvements, and discussing the conversion of private utilities to public systems. All agenda items were reviewed and unanimously approved to move forward to the full Mayor and Council meetings.
Consent Calendar
- Unanimously moved to approve the minutes of the committee meeting held on December 9, 2025.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Two representatives from the Garrison Hill Homeowners Association (the HOA President and her husband) were present in the audience to observe the discussion regarding the conversion of their private water utility to the city system. No public comments were formally recorded.
Discussion Items
Text Amendment: Warehouse and Distribution (Section 9.6.6)
- Planning and Zoning Director Jeannie Payton presented an initiation to clarify the Unified Development Code.
- Project Description: The amendment adds the word "physical" to define warehouse uses, explicitly eliminates "data and digital storage centers" as a permitted warehouse use, and reclassifies trailer/box truck storage as temporary rather than a primary standalone use. For the Industrial Flex Area, it limits warehouse/distribution uses to 25,000 square feet with direct access to a state highway.
- Speaker Positions:
- Councilmember Sells questioned if data centers could be permitted under other commercial zoning; Director Payton noted the current code does not explicitly mention data centers, creating potential loopholes.
- Councilmember Hall confirmed that definitions in Section 9 will apply across all zoning districts to prevent ambiguity.
- Councilmember Brumley asked about the process for identifying emerging business types; Payton explained the team monitors trends and code requests to initiate amendments.
- Councilmember Beeson inquired if disallowing data centers in warehouses meant they were conditional elsewhere; Payton clarified the moratorium is researching the future regulation and classification.
- Councilmember Zach expressed concern about data mining operations; Payton noted the moratorium will address server farms and potential noise issues associated with data centers.
Text Amendment: Defined Terms (Section 14.2)
- Director Payton presented an initiation to define "computer and data processing" and "data and digital storage centers" to close a loophole where data centers were misinterpreted as standard office uses.
- Project Description: The new definition for "computer and data processing" explicitly lists activities like data entry, analysis, credit card processing, and sales, clarifying that it does not encompass data centers. A separate definition is being drafted for "data and digital storage centers" to address the gap left in the office use section.
- Speaker Positions:
- Councilmember Brumley noted the definition currently allows mining operations; Payton agreed that data mining considerations are part of the broader research.
- Councilmember Hall emphasized the definition's intent to capture all nuances of the emerging technology.
- Councilmember Beeson highlighted that data centers can generate significant noise (AC units) and suggested the moratorium work should consider restricting them to conditional uses with buffers and noise analysis.
- Mayor Robichot and Director Payton assured the committee that the moratorium (90-day timeline) will refine these definitions to include data mining and other emerging uses.
Contract Award: Water Treatment Plant Generator
- Utilities Director Watson presented a request to award a contract to Ready Power LLC for $210,000 (not to exceed) for the construction of a pad for a new standby generator for the City's water treatment plant.
- Project Description: The project addresses a minor deficiency noted by the state regarding the lack of backup power. The generator, ordered in July 2025 with federal funding, requires site preparation. Previous power outages cost the utility nearly $16,000 (purchasing water from Fulton County and equipment replacement).
- Speaker Positions:
- Councilmember Zach asked about the generator's shelf life (expected 20 years) and the procurement process for a single bidder; Watson explained the unique size (1,000 kW) and federal regulations resulted in only one bid.
Approval: Private to Public Water Utility Conversion
- Director Watson presented a request to approve the conversion of the Garrison Hill subdivision's private water utility to the City of Roswell system, including a budget amendment of $18,942.
- Project Description: This is a rare policy action (third occurrence) where an HOA opts to transfer infrastructure ownership to the City. The homeowner HOA voted to pursue this, covered site evaluation costs, and signed an agreement. Costs include $2,000 per homeowner for new meters and $18,942 for infrastructure rehabilitation.
- Speaker Positions:
- Councilmember Bromley asked about the city's right of refusal versus Fulton County jurisdiction; Staff clarified that being within the city's footprint and having existing City lines allows the City to take over, avoiding service duplication.
- Councilmember Hall asked about other subdivisions (Stonegate, Stone Grove, Weatherford Place) that have inquired about conversion.
Key Outcomes
- Unanimous Approval: The Committee unanimously approved all five agenda items, directing them to the full Mayor and Council meeting for formal adoption.
- Approval of previous meeting minutes (Dec 9, 2025).
- Initiation of text amendment for Warehouse and Distribution (Section 9.6.6).
- Initiation of text amendment for Defined Terms (Section 14.2).
- Award of contract to Ready Power LLC up to $210,000 for the generator construction.
- Approval of Garrison Hill subdivision conversion and $18,942 budget amendment.
- Next Steps:
- Full Mayor and Council meetings scheduled for January 26, 2026, for final readings and actions.
- Garrison Hill conversion agreement is targeted for execution in February, with construction expected between February and April (likely March).
- Planning staff will continue the 90-day moratorium research on data centers to refine future code restrictions.
- Service delivery agreements with Fulton County and other cities to be updated by the end of the year.
Meeting Transcript
All right. We will begin in just one minute. Just one minute. We will begin. All right. All right. Good. All right. Good evening and welcome everyone to the committee meetings for January 13th, 2026. The elected body present, Mayor Mary Robichot, Councilmember Christine Hall, Councilmember Alan Sells, Councilmember Aaron Brumley, Councilmember Christopher Zek, Councilmember Jennifer Philippi, Councilmember Sarah Beeson. I'm Randy Knighton, the city administrator, along with City Attorney David Davidson and the executive assistant to the council and deputy city clerk Michelle Miller. The purpose of committee meetings are for the city departments to convey information to the mayor and city council and discuss initiatives listed on the published agenda, as well as provide updates of vital information essential to the operation of city government. And by ordinance, the committee consists of the mayor, members of the city council, and the city administrator. And the ordinance mandates that the city administrators serve as the chair of committee meetings. This is a public meeting, but not a public hearing, and therefore, while we certainly welcome members of the public, we do not take public comments unless or questions during committee meetings unless specifically authorized. Public comments and questions are received at the regular city council meetings on the second and fourth Monday of each month and fifth Monday in open forum. We do encourage residents to engage our online platforms. And if you have questions or need information, we certainly encourage you to reach out to our staff. Also, the city's web service portal is a mechanism to report issues or concerns, and please visit Roswell365.com for a calendar of events and for our committee meetings. Uh this evening will be explained by the respective members of our staff and for those items that will ultimately need a formal approval by mayor and council. We'll ask this committee to motion and approve those items moving forward to a formal uh mayor and council meeting if they are so inclined. The first item on the uh meeting agenda is the approval of the committee meetings for December 9th, 2025. Motion to approve by Councilmember Beeson, second by council member Sells. Any further discussion, all in favor? All right, that passes unanimously. Thank you very much. As listed on the agenda, item number two, consideration of a text amendment to the unified development code, Article 9, use provisions, section 9.6.6, warehouse and distribution, and this is for initiation, uh, presented by Jeannie Payton, our planning and zoning director. Ms. Payton. Hi, good evening, Mayor and Council. Um, I have two text amendments to present to you. Um it looks like the first one that got put on the agenda is section 966. So these go alongside the moratorium discussion for data centers and help further refine um our code immediately to allow for clarification of what um interpretation of our code allows for. So the first section is 966 warehouse and distribution. Um you can see that we add the word physical to further define and reduce like ambiguity about what kind of goods we um define warehouse use for. Um we explicitly eliminate data and digital storage centers as a use that's allowed. And then while we're in here cleaning it up, we also suggested um refining trailer and box truck storage as temporary and um as a and not allowed as a primary standalone use. Um then we further uh define the use standards for industrial flex area for warehouse and distribution. So our industrial flex area is a less intense industrial area than our light industrial area. So this is where we don't want to see those heavy warehouse uses, and so we refine it by asking it to be a limitation of on direct vehicular access to a state highway and having a maximum size of 25,000 square feet. Any questions? Ms. Paige, if we would, can you explain just a little bit about the process for initiation and then as it relates to planning commission elseably mayor and council? Sure. So when we suggest a change to the code, we initiate it in this committee format, and that allows us to start the process. The next step would be planning commission. Planning commission votes recommendations, and then we bring those recommendations to you in the first reading. The first and second reading at Mayor and Council allow you to make any changes you want, kind of discuss them previous to suggest them, and then you have a second even opportunity before the adoption. And so it is required that we have those first and second readings. So text amendments always start with initiation, go via planning commission to gain some recommendations, additions to that text, and then end up at a first and second reading with mayor and council.
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