Sky Valley Police Chief Vaughn Estes bid farewell to the City of Sky Valley on July 31 after seven-and-a-half years of service as he tendered his resignation to pursue other career opportunities.
“I appreciate my time here with the citizens of Sky Valley,” Estes told city officials and community members. He said he made the difficult decision to leave based on what is best for his family and to pursue other career opportunities in another state.
Upholding a professional police department and serving the Sky Valley community with pride are goals that Estes said have always been important to the Sky Valley Police Department.
Estes served as Sky Valley Police Chief for a little over seven-and-a-half years, with a brief seven week termination in 2023 by the city manager before being reinstated as chief via a unanimous vote by Sky Valley council members and much community support.
The high standard Estes has for the police department and love he has for the community are apparent and he said that serving the people of the Sky Valley community is what he is going to miss most.
“I made good friends for life,” Estes said. He recounted the enjoyable times he had with residents and those who made a positive impact on his life.
“When I leave, I’ll be carrying them and my memories with me,”Estes said. He said that what he loves most about being a police officer is helping people and “to be able to work in a community where you can serve the people.” He said that the citizens are kind and it has been a pleasure to serve them and help them through some of the toughest times of their lives.
During the July city council meeting, Estes also gave the police department report with statistics on how the department has served the community in the time period from January 1, 2024 until now.
“Sky Valley dynamics have changed over the years,” Estes said about the need for increased policing efforts.
Estes said that with the increase of residents, community policing efforts increased with close to 100 criminal reports including criminal trespass, damage to property, DUIs, and neighbor disputes; business and residential checks; golf cart inspections; and close to 300 traffic stops, with 250 citations being written and 60-80 of those as warning citations.
Many improvements have been made with the Sky Valley Police Department under Estes’ leadership including helping the department get new vehicles with approval from council in 2020. The department is also licensed by the state to run radar and is certified on Safe Policing for Safe Communities by the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police. The certification results from compliance with an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on June 16, 2020, regarding “Use of Force” policies. It details that departments update their use of force policies to become compliant with certain standards.
Estes also led the Sky Valley Police Department in efforts to make roads safer by combating aggressive driving, distracted driving and speeding on the roadways. As well as strictly enforcing school bus laws to make the roads safer for children.
Protecting and serving citizens is something Estes has always taken seriously and he said he has tremendous love and affection for the Sky Valley community. Under his leadership, the department frequently performed welfare checks due to the city’s high elderly population.
Estes has said before that his career has always been about “helping people and giving people the comfort in their own homes of being safe.”
Sky Valley council members wished Estes well in his next opportunity at the July 16 meeting and thanked him for his service to the community.
Mayor Hollie Steil told The Clayton Tribune following the meeting that once the application deadline ends, posted by city officials as Friday, Aug. 23, at 4 p.m., a committee will be formed and go through a process before a new chief is named.
The City of Sky Valley posted an advertisement “seeking a highly qualified police chief to lead the city police department.”
For a job application and requirements, contact City Hall at 706-746-2204