A half-dozen Macon food service operations must close until paying three or more years of past-due health permit fees.
Monday, the Macon-Bibb County Health Department voted to suspend food service permits, which temporarily shuts down food preparation at four restaurants, a church and a nursing home after multiple attempts at collection, including a final notice threatening suspension or possible revocation of permits that allow them to serve food.
Environmental Health County Manager Felicia Pearson-Powell gave the board a list of the worst offenders and their amount in arrears without any late penalties assessed:
- Tropical Flava at 2396 Ingleside Ave. — five years past due $2,036. Owner reported having a medical hardship and asked for a payment plan to catch up.
- Abundant Word of Grace at 3396 Napier Ave. — four years past due $1,814. Pastor said the church is under financial hardship and could not pay in full.
- Mid-Town Daiquiri Bar & More at 4373 Log Cabin Drive — four years past due totaling $1,672. Owner did not respond to bills or payment notices, but the business was recently closed pending the investigation of a mass shooting last month.
- Pruitt Health at 6190 Peake Road — three years past due $1,414. Company blamed a likely billing or clerical error. Health department staff said they would work with the company’s other locations to ensure residents have food.
- Taj Indian Restaurant at 5033 Brookhaven — three years past due $1,272. Owner made one payment at the health department but complained of financial hardship and requested a payment plan.
- Society Garden at 2389 Ingleside Ave. — three years past due $1,219. One of the payments was rejected for insufficient funds, but the health department did not receive any response to their inquiries and notices, according to staff. Owner Brad Evans told The Macon Newsroom he was not aware of the past-due account and planned to pay the fees Tuesday.
In her presentation, Pearson-Powell explained that the health department currently does not have any type of payment plan to offer.
Board member Stacy Carr feared if one was implemented, other businesses would request a payment plan, which could further complicate collections.
“They feel like, if they’re paying something, then that’s good enough, and then you’re just not able to get the full amount,” Carr said.
That type of collection schedule will create extra burdens for staff, to which the board’s legal counsel Julia Magda agreed.
Food service permit bills, which cover the cost of the health department’s services, vary in price depending on the size of the operation. Invoices go out by mid-October and payment is due Dec. 31.
Board Member Wade Scott questioned whether the past-due account holders ever contacted the department to explain their non-payment.
“My understanding is that you have been speaking to these owners for three years, I would imagine based on what you’re saying, and they never reached out to you to say, ‘I’m having hardship,’ up until now?”
“Yes,” Pearson-Powell explained.
A week before Monday’s meeting, a final notice was mailed and tacked on doors alerting business owners to pay up by last Friday or be turned over to the board for suspension or revocation of the permit. None of the owners appeared before the board.
There are other businesses who are behind a year or two, but many cited unreliable mail service for lack of notices in 2023 and 2024, Pearson-Powelll said.
“The postal service was really bad,” Scott acknowledged.
The health department has continued to do its bi-annual food service inspections at the locations in question, she said.
For these half-dozen worst offenders, board chair Chris Tsavatewa favored suspension over permit revocation, which would mean businesses would have to reapply for permits, causing extra paperwork for staff. With suspensions, businesses could reopen upon full payment of past due bills.
Magda suggested and the board approved that if the six suspended businesses do not pay up by the next billing cycle in October, the board could revoke their permits.
The board voted unanimously to suspend all six businesses, which can appeal the suspension to the Georgia Department of Health within 10 days of notice.
“The people that are not paying now, some may not have the funds, but you know, on the other hand, they do pay the power bill,” Scott noted. “They pay the water bill. The water authority will shut you off and the power people will cut you off.”
Stricter standards ahead
Going forward, Magda has compiled a new policy that could result in suspension less than two months after missing the first payment deadline.
“We don’t want to get two, three, four or five years behind,” Magda said.
Invoices for Fiscal Year 2026 will include a memo about the deadline and consequences for non-payment as of Dec. 31. Late notices and a fee of $128 will be assessed by certified mail after the holidays on Jan. 5. The deadline to pay the invoice and late fee would fall after the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
If the business does not pay up by Feb. 2, they will be notified of a potential suspension or revocation of permit at the Feb. 6 Board of Health meeting.
Magda believes the new policy will decrease the number of non-paying businesses.
“We looked at another county in another district that is doing this successfully. And for instance, they only brought one, and they put it on the agenda and that person paid,” Magda said. “So I think when we get this process started, it will be a wake-up call to our permit holders.”
— Civic Journalism Senior Fellow Liz Fabian covers Macon-Bibb County government entities for The Macon Newsroom and can be reached at [email protected] or 478-301-2976.
