Woodstock City Council March 9, 2026: Communications Report Adds Context to Busy Agenda

This story updates and expands on Woodstock Community News's earlier preview of the March 9, 2026 City Council meeting, drawing on the full agenda packet now available for the session set to begin at 7 p.m. in The Chambers at City Center, 8534 Main Street.

As Woodstock Community News previously reported, the agenda includes action on the downtown playground expansion, the Goshen Lane road extension development agreement, a conditional use permit extension at 119 Dupree Road, the Johnston Farm Park master plan, wastewater treatment plant emergency repairs, and a slate of consent agenda items covering alcohol licenses, event contracts and surplus vehicles. The full packet provides additional detail on several of those items, most notably the communications and social media report that council members will receive as part of the evening's presentations.

The packet includes a January 2026 communications report prepared by Marketing and Communications Manager Stacy Brown covering the period from January 1 through January 31, 2026. The report offers a detailed look at how the city's public-facing channels performed during the month and is among the materials the Parks and Recreation Department and communications staff will present during the council's retreat-style discussion segment.

According to the report, the city earned media coverage increased in January compared to December, with the city receiving more media mentions and a higher average reach rank. The report states that coverage volume increased slightly, reach quality improved with increased pickup by higher-tier outlets, and that all articles maintained a positive or neutral sentiment. The most frequent outlets for mentions in January were identified in the packet as Cherokee Tribune, WSB-TV, FOX 5, and Yahoo. The report characterizes January's earned media coverage as positively reinforcing Woodstock's strong public image, describing the city as positioned in coverage as both forward-thinking and deeply connected to its residents.

Key stories driving that coverage included the Fire Station Groundbreaking, the Swearing-In Ceremony and State of the City address, a Shooting Investigation, and the city's Winter Weather Response. The Fire Station Groundbreaking was noted as generating coverage across multiple outlets including WSB Radio and the Cherokee Tribune. The State of the City address drew broad coverage across WSB-TV, Cherokee Tribune, and Yahoo, with the report noting it reinforced leadership stability and civic engagement. The city's proactive Winter Weather Response was covered by WSB-TV and the Cherokee Tribune.

On the digital side, the city's Facebook page received consistent reach and engagement throughout January, highlighted by community interest in events, park construction and winter weather response. The report notes that follows were up over 10 percent compared to the prior month, though overall engagement dipped compared to December. Top-performing Facebook posts by reach included a Concert Series Announcement, Little River Park Progress updates, Snow Plows content, a Little River Park Pedestrian Bridge post, and Winter Weather Response content.

The city's Instagram account saw declining metrics in January, with drops in Views, Reach and Interactions, while Follows held steady. The city's Nextdoor membership grew to 6,083 members in January, with seven posts reaching an Impression Count of over 15,000. The city's YouTube channel recorded 1,000 views, a drop of some percentage from the prior period, and gained new subscribers in January. The city's website recorded 9,000 total sessions in January, with 4,000 active users. The report notes that top traffic acquisition came from Google organic search, with direct visits also significant, and that traffic from social media was not as significant as prior months, with sessions coming from Facebook representing a smaller share. Top landing pages on the city website included the Welcome page, Little River Park, Meetings Agendas and Minutes, Woodstock Police Department, and Applications and Forms.

The LinkedIn page saw an increase in impressions and reactions despite drops in comments and reposts, with the report noting that the City of Woodstock's LinkedIn activity in January saw an increase in impressions and reactions.

Residents attending the March 9 meeting or following along online should note that the communications report covers December 2025 and January 2026, as referenced in the original preview. The packet material available corresponds to the January reporting period. The report was prepared by Stacy Brown, Marketing and Communications Manager.

All other items described in the original preview - including the downtown playground SPLOST budget amendment and Earth Elements NM agreement, the Johnston Farm Park master plan, the Goshen Lane development agreement with Beers Construction Partners, the 119 Dupree Road conditional use permit extension, the Sushi Bros alcohol license application, the Pyro Productions fireworks agreement, the Titan Global Enterprises security services agreement, the wastewater treatment plant emergency repairs, the ARS Inc. conditional use request at 105 Smokehill Lane, the four surplus police vehicles, and the Paragon Accounting and Tax Solutions parking variance waiver - remain on the agenda as previously reported. The packet does not provide additional substantive detail on those items beyond what was available at the time of the original preview.

The March 9, 2026 City Council meeting begins at 7 p.m. at The Chambers at City Center, 8534 Main Street, Woodstock. Hearing assistance is available upon request. The full agenda packet is posted at the city's Granicus portal.