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The ADVANCE, October 18, 2023/Page 5A
Heart of Georgia Regional
Commission Seeks Public’s Help
in Transit Development Plan
Courtesy of Heart of Georgia
Altamaha Regional
Commission
The Heart of Georgia
Altamaha Regional Com
mission (HOGARC),
in coordination with the
Georgia Department of
Transportation (GDOT),
is requesting the public’s
input during a planning
meeting for the Regional
Transit Development Plan
(TDP) on October 24.
The TDP will help
identify transit needs and
opportunities and inform
future on-demand (dial-
a-ride) transit system in
vestments across the 17
counties making up the
Heart of Georgia Altamaha
Region. A regional TDP
will allow the HOGARC
to pool resources and staff,
create plans to consider
regional needs and travel
patterns, focus on local
transportation issues and
concerns, and identify im-
plementable transit proj
ects.
The Commission has
asked that individuals con
tribute their concerns and
thoughts, while also learn
ing about the future on-de
mand transit system, dur
ing a virtual public meeting
through the Zoom website
from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on
October 24. The group
plans to discuss existing
transit conditions and re
view the vision and goals
for regional transit.
This meeting may be
attended through the link
found on the TDP website,
https://regionaltdp-gdot.
hub.arcgis.com/pages/
hogarc. Through this link,
Community members are
also encouraged to review
the project information
and materials, while also
providing input.
Legislative panel adopts
recommendations for dual
enrollment program
By Dave Williams
Bureau Chief
Capitol Beat News Service
Georgia lawmakers
should simplify the state’s
dual enrollment program
for high-school students
wishing to get a jump on
post-secondary education,
do more to publicize the
program and provide more
funding, a legislative study
committee recommended
Wednesday.
The joint House-Sen
ate panel unanimously ap
proved a report following
several meetings around
the state this summer and
fall exploring ways to make
the dual enrollment pro
gram financially sustain
able while speeding up the
progression of students
earning credit for taking
college courses into high-
demand careers.
Among other things,
the committee recom
mended doing away with a
three-year sunset provision
on the program.
“When it comes to a
time frame, we want con
tinuity,” said Georgia Rep.
Matt Dubnik, R-Gaines
ville, one of the commit
tee’s co-chairmen.
The study committee
also recommended clarify
ing state law by providing a
legal definition for the term
“high-demand careers.”
Currently, the list includes
18 careers ranging from
welding to criminal justice,
but there’s no specific crite
ria for either adding to or
subtracting from the list to
keep up with workforce re
quirements.
“It needs to be based
on data we can track and
monitor,” Dubnik said.
The panel also suggest
ed the state look to increase
the number of “articulated
agreements” between the
University System of Geor
gia and the state’s technical
colleges, which allow tech
nical college students to
transfer after two years to
complete their degrees at
a four-year state college or
university without losing
credits.
“A lot of these arrange
ments are done locally or
regionally,” said state Sen.
Matt Brass, R-Newnan, the
study committee’s other
co-chairman. “It would be
in the best interests of our
students if there were more
uniformity throughout the
state.”
Beyond steps to sim
plify the dual enrollment
program, the committee
also recommended the
state take steps to make
information about the pro
gram more accessible to
students and parents and
boost funding to hire more
high-school counselors
and technical college in
structors.
Brass said how many of
the panel’s recommenda
tions would require legisla
tion and how many could
be implemented through
policy changes remains to
be seen.
“This report doesn’t
lock the legislature into
anything,” he said. “We’re
only making recommenda
tions.”
The committee’s report
will now be forwarded to
the full General Assembly
to take up during the 2024
legislative session begin
ning in January.
Georgia best state for business
for 10th straight year
By Dave Williams
Bureau Chief
Capitol Beat News Service
Area Development
magazine has selected
Georgia as the No.-l state
for business for the 10th
year in a row, Gov. Brian
Kemp announced Tuesday.
Georgia placed in the
top 10 for all 14 categories
included in the magazine’s
annual rankings and earned
the No.-l spot in seven of
those categories.
Georgia has generated
343,650 new jobs since first
receiving the award a de
cade ago, and that includes
only economic develop
ment projects in which the
state played a role.
Most of those jobs
came to communities in
rural Georgia, Kemp said
during a ceremony at the
Governor’s Mansion at
tended by state agency
heads, legislators, and for
mer Gov. Nathan Deal,
who was in office at the
time Georgia first won the
designation as the best
state for business in 2013.
“People shouldn’t have
to move away from home
to find good economic op
portunities,” Kemp said.
The 2023 Top States
for Doing Business Survey
is the 14th in Area Devel
opment magazine’s annual
series.
ODDS
Home-
Coming—
Homecoming will
be observed at Char
lotte Church near
Uvalda on Sunday,
October 22, at 10:30
a.m. Ken Garrett will
be the guest speaker
and special music
will be by The Hall
Sisters. Dinner will be
served on the
grounds after the
worship service.
Everyone is in
vited to attend.
Methodist Church will
have Homecoming
on October 22 at
10:30 a.m. Heartfelt
will perform, and
lunch will follow the
service.
Everyone is in
vited to attend.
Home-
Coming—
Center United
Reunion—
The Pants Factory
of Vidalia Reunion
will be held on Octo
ber 28 at Chatters in
Lyons. There will be a
lunch buffet from
11:00 a.m. til 2:00
p.m.
Everyone is
vited to attend.
in-
From the Record
THE BLOTTER
These are the reported
arrests from the Toombs
County Sheriff's Office,
the Vidalia and Lyons
police departments,
and the Montgomery
County Sheriff's Office
for the past week.
Incidents are taken
directly from police
files. All suspects are
innocent until proven
guilty.
In Lyons...
•Queidy Cruz, of
Lyons, was arrested
on October 10 and
charged with Driving
While Unlicensed,
Failure to Obey Traf
fic Control Device,
No Proof of Insur
ance.
• Balbino
Jimenez, of Vidalia,
was arrested on Oc
tober 12 and
charged with Driving
While Unlicensed, No
Insurance-1 st.
• Tyler Carl Jason
Moore, of Vidalia,
was arrested on Oc
tober 12 and
charged with Shop
lifting.
• Dennis James
Hancock, of Lyons,
was arrested on Oc
tober 14 and
charged with Oper
ating a Vehicle While
Registration is Sus
pended, Tail Light
and Tag Light Re
quirements, No Insur
ance-1 st, Seatbelt
Violation 18 and Up.
• Christina Hope
Branson, of
Cobbtown, was ar
rested on October
15 and charged with
Warrant Service.
• Damion Centell
Mathews, of Lyons,
was arrested on Oc
tober 15 and
charged with War
rant Service.
In Toombs
County...
No report avail
able.
In Montgomery
County...
• Dakoda Chris
topher Brinkley, of
Baxley, was arrested
and charged with
Possession of Con
trolled Substance,
Felony Obstruction
of Officer.
• Emma Gayle
Foster, of Hazlehurst,
was arrested and
charged with Driving
with Suspended Li
cense.
• Bessie Kersey
Peebles, of Adrian,
was arrested and
charged with DUI,
Failure to Maintain
Lane.
• Daniel Scott Sis
son, of Ailey, was ar
rested and charged
with Financial Iden
tity Theft, Cruelty to a
Person 65 Yoa or
Older.
In Vidalia...
• Merrill Drinks, of
Ailey, was arrested
on October 11 and
charged with War
rant Served (Bulloch
Co).
• Darnell Hend-
ley, of McDonough,
was arrested on Oc
tober 12 and
charged with DUI /
Fail to Maintain Lane.
• Isis Bryant, of
Glenwood, was ar
rested on Ocotber
13 and charged with
Theft by Shoplifting.
• Casandra
Stewart, of Vidalia,
was arrested on Oc
tober 14 and
charged with War
rant Served (Bench
Warrant Lyons PD).
• Donnie Spikes,
of Vidalia, was ar
rested on October
15 and charged with
Warrant Served
(Toombs Co).
• Timothy Juarez
Byrd, of Vidalia, was
arrested on October
15 and charged with
Battery / Cruelty to
Children.
• Clint Dale
James, of Vidalia,
was arrested on Oc
tober 15 and
charged with War
rant Served (Felony
Probation).
In Wheeler
County...
No report avail
able.
Alamo City Council
Proposing Burn Ordinance
By Deborah Clark
Regional Editor
dclarkadvance@gmail. com
A number of house
keeping items were on
the Alamo City Council’s
monthly meeting agenda
on October 10, includ
ing the first reading of the
leaves and limbs burn ordi
nance, an update on work at
new City Hall, and a public
hearing on the 2024 budget,
which has thus far garnered
no public comment.
The City moved its reg
ular monthly meeting slot
from the customary third
Monday of the month on
October 16 due to the un
availability of City Attorney
Russell Clark on that date.
City Manager Jeff Floyd
read the proposed burn or
dinance, which was neces
sitated by the discontinu
ance of the City’s pickup of
leaves and limbs. The City
halted this service, which it
contracted for through Re
public Services, on August
1 due to Telfair Landfill’s
cessation of receiving refuse
from counties outside its
borders. The City’s refuse
has been going to the Tel
fair County landfill for sev
eral years, but as the landfill
nears capacity and as ad
ministrators prepare for its
expansion, refuse accom
modation is limited.
Since the City had no
burn ordinance in place,
one was drafted which al
lows citizens to burn yard
debris within the city lim
its. This ordinance does
require citizens to refrain
from disposing of and
burning leaves and limbs in
rights-of-way, and it also re
quires that citizens abide by
state law as outlined on the
Georgia Forestry website.
The proposed ordinance is
posted on the City of Ala
mo website and is expected
to be adopted after its sec
ond reading on November
14.
Floyd reported to
Council members that
work on the new City Hall
on Main Street (U.S. High
way 280) is 65-70% com
plete and the structure is
expected to be ready for
occupancy in mid-Novem
ber. The approximately
$980,000 project is on bud
get. Rather than building a
new facility to house City of
Alamo administrative offic
es and police headquarters,
the Council opted to reno
vate a city-owned building
that had once served as a
grocery store and pharma
cy. An adjacent building is
being repurposed to house
police department func
tions. The existing facilities
for administrative and po
lice functions have become
outdated and overcrowded.
The Council approved
a proposal from ADT for
security at the new admin
istrative and police build
ings. The agreement would
provide interior and exte
rior monitoring at a cost of
$245.98 monthly. Funds
for the operation of the ser
vice would be taken from
the City’s Water and Sewer
fund, the General Fund,
and the Police Department
budget, with $4,600 for
equipment coming from
SPLOST.
The Council approved
spending money from
SPLOST for a digital sign
to be erected in the vicinity
of new City Hall after hear
ing a proposal presented by
Scott Bombard of the Sign-
store of Macon. Bombard
proposed a 4X8 foot, dou
ble-sided, high-resolution
sign at a cost of $43,000,
which includes online sup
port as well as free content
creation services in the first
year of operation. Bombard
said the cost of the sign
could be adjusted depend
ing on its overall size.
The sign would be
situated in a location to be
easily seen by motorists
passing through downtown
Alamo, but it is yet to be de
termined whether the sign
could be mounted on the
state highway right-of-way
in front of new City Hall.
The Council considered al
ternate locations, including
a parking area at the corner
of Main Street and Com
merce Streets (Highways
U.S. 280 and GA. 126).
Floyd will investigate the
issue regarding the state
right-of-way and report
back to the Council.
The City’s 2024 bud
get, which has been pub
lished in The Advance, the
county’s legal organ, has
thus far received no formal
input from citizens. The
budget has also been posted
on the City’s website and is
available for review at City
Hall. The budget is slated
for adoption on November
14.
Floyd said the 2024
budget is $1,656,000 -
lower than 2023’s budget
of $1,674,412. “And 2023’s
budget was $55,000 lower
than 2022’s budget. We are
going down and still look
ing for ways to save money,
as well as new ways to spend
discretionary money.”
The Council’s next ses
sion is scheduled Novem
ber 14 at 6 p.m. at City Hall.