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The Decatur County Industrial Development Authority met at City Hall last Thursday for their monthly meeting.

Before going over business items on the agenda, citizens in attendance were allowed to address the Authority members. Yvena Merritt took to the podium, reading out portions of the Georgia Open Meetings Act, specifically those that pertain to executive sessions.

Following the public comments, the Authority voted to approve the third quarter’s financial statement, as well as the minutes from the previous meeting.

Next, Chamber of Commerce President Karen Tobin delivered the Chamber report. She spoke about the previous week’s Ag Appreciation Luncheon, and thanked several Authority board members for participation in Chamber programs. She also spoke on several upcoming Chamber events.

Following this, the Authority voted to go into an executive session to discuss litigation updates and personnel matters. Upon returning from executive session, the Authority voted to give a 6% cost of living increase to the salaries of Executive Director Rick McCaskill and Administrative Assistant Dyann Howell.

The next item on the agenda was the Executive Director’s report, delivered by McCaskill. He stated that A-1 Industries is planning for “quite a bit of expansion”.

“They’ve grown continuously since they’ve been here, but that’s really good news,” McCaskill said.

He briefly spoke about a Locate South Georgia board meeting, as well as the BASF advisory committee, adding that BASF has a large expansion planned for 2025.

McCaskill also stated that there are multiple prospective businesses interested, with just three in the last week.

“I’m getting a lot of attention from the state and the railroad, so we continue to stay busy, and the future looks bright there,” he said.

Next, the Authority voted to approve the proposed 2025 budget, and briefly discussed the nominating committee, which will present a slate of officers at the Authority’s January meeting.

After this, the meeting was adjourned.