MANSFIELD, Ga. — Mansfield’s mayor says the new businesses that filled vacant buildings and spaces in 2021 made him optimistic about the future of the city's business district.
G.W. Davis said all but two buildings in the city are still vacant after new businesses came into the city in 2021.
Some new businesses to open in the town recently included an event center, taxidermy shop, residential cleaning service, antique shop and a laundromat, he said.
A restaurant, Miss Sally's, opened in the former location of a barbecue restaurant on Georgia Hwy. 11, he said.
Another vacant building the city owns is under contract to a company Davis said he could not disclose.
"If we're able to do it, it will be a great addition to the town," Davis said.
He said 2021 saw the city sell its electric substation to the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG), which is the agency from which Mansfield buys wholesale electricity.
MEAG is upgrading the system with new infrastructure designed to halt power interruptions, Davis said.
It is installing equipment to replace outdated technology that formerly delayed repairs during outages, he said.
"When a limb hit a line, you had to drive the line to find it," he said.
The Georgia Environmental Finance Authority in November approved a $956,600 Clean Water State Revolving Fund loan to Mansfield to finance an overhaul of the city's water pollution control plant.
The project is designed to make sure it meets the requirements of the plant's operating permit, as well as improving worker safety and improving treatment effectiveness, the Authority said in a press release.
The city will pay 0.13% interest on the 20-year loan, which qualifies for a reduced interest rate because the city is a WaterFirst Community. The city is eligible for principal forgiveness up to $430,470.
The City Council in August voted to approve a lower property tax rate for the fifth year in a row to fund its 2022 budget.
The council voted to reduce the tax rate from 3.867 to the rollback rate of 3.412 mills Aug. 9.
Blair Northen and Austin Mitchell were unopposed for re-election to new four-year terms in their city council seats. But a special election failed to fill the Post 5 council seat left open by the resignation of Bryan Hale after no one qualified for the position. Davis said the council has seen interest from two people for the seat on the five-member council.
Residential growth also rose to its highest level in recent memory in 2021, he said. A total of 11 new homes were permitted, which is an unusually high number for the city, Davis said
“(An) attractiveness of the town is it’s not super-developed,” he said.
He said residential growth also is picking up in nearby areas which are outside the city limits but within the city's water service area.
Davis said he was glad paving of the part of the Cricket Frog Trail inside and near Mansfield meant more people were using the trail, which provided a recreational outlet for city residents.
The 15-mile trail route runs between Covington and Newborn atop land and most bridges used by Norfolk Southern Railroad until 2010.
All but about 0.8 of a mile within Mansfield is paved, though the path is usable, according to information from Newton Trails. However, paving of the trail through the city may be completed in 2022, officials said.
