Woodstock, Canton OK Cherokee SPLOST plan

Cherokee County voters will be asked in November to extend the county’s Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax for another six years. Woodstock and Canton recently signed onto the county’s plan. AJC FILE

Cherokee County voters will be asked in November to extend the county’s Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax for another six years. Woodstock and Canton recently signed onto the county’s plan. AJC FILE

Woodstock and Canton have signed onto Cherokee County’s plan to extend its Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax for another six years.

The present one-cent SPLOST expires next year. If voters approve in November, the new tax would take effect July 2018 and raise nearly $253 million for county and city capital projects.

According to an intergovernmental agreement recently approved by the Woodstock and Canton city councils, the county would collect the tax, keep about 70 percent and divvy up the rest among its seven cities. Woodstock and Canton, the county’s two largest cities, would get roughly 12.2 percent and 10.4 percent of total revenues, respectively.

Woodstock’s $28.9 million would go mostly to public works ($11.8 million), public safety ($7.1 million), and parking deck and other parking improvements ($5 million).

Canton’s $24.6 million would go mostly to streets, sidewalks, parking and other transportation projects ($7.1 million), general government buildings and equipment ($7 million) and park and recreation facilities ($6 million).