Tribune & Georgian. (Athens, Ga.) 2002-current, January 30, 2013, Image 1

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Newspaper Page TextC M K Inside Testing their knowledge Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl champs look to Valdosta. see 3A Wildcat win The boys basketball team rolls over Colquitt. see 1B Index Obituaries 2A Opinion 4A Upcoming Events 6A Sports 1B People 3B Classifieds 5B Legals 7B Today’s Poll Do you believe local government employees are overpaid? Vote online at tribune-georgian.com Tribune & Georgian P.O. Box 6960, St. Marys, Ga. 31558 Volume 110, No. 9 20 pages* Two sections tribune-georgian.com © 2013, Tribune & Georgian, Community Newspapers Inc. I O c o N C\l 01 b co oo -Q 00 3 -V. co c\i 3 5* t: o eg CO s 84264 UUUU3 A long way from home U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Kenneth Abbate Aviation Electrician’s Mate 3rd Class Amanda Walker of St. Marys wipes down the side of an F/A-I8C Hornet from the Golden Dragons of Strike Fighter Squadron 192 on the flight deck of the aircraft car rier USS John C. Stennis.The carrier is deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility conducting maritime security operations and support missions for Operation Enduring Freedom. City pay aligns with survey Johna Strickland Rush johna@tribune-georgian.com Although City of St. Marys employees have not seen raises since November 2008 when the city council froze salaries, the pay remains on par with what employees working in similarly sized cities earn. St. Marys city manager Steve Crowell makes $110,001 annu ally in a town of 17,099 people; the salary cap for that position is $115,000. Americus — population 16,809 in west Georgia — pays its city manager between $67,275 and $94,185, according to the annual Georgia Depart ment of Community Affairs wage and salary survey, in which St. Marys participates. Milledgeville — population 17,499 between Macon and Au gusta — compensates its city manager $96,900 to $132,600. See the cities’ top earners on page 8A. Tifton — population 16,869 west of Waycross — pays its leader $137,500. The second highest paid em ployee in St. Marys is lire chief Robby Horton, who earns $79,747 annually. His counter- See ST. MARYS, page 8A Property owners demand answers Jocelyn Brumbaugh jocelyn@tribune-georgian.com Six years ago, Joe Shanahan and a handful of his friends visited southeast Georgia and fell in love with an area called Bridge Pointe at Jekyll Sound. The group decided to build their dream homes in the subdivision, pur chase boats and enjoy a lifestyle for which they worked many years. Now, that dream may never come true. Everything was going smoothly until fall 2008, Shanahan said, when Or lando-based Land Resource, the devel oper of the now-defunct subdivision in north Camden County, filed in Florida bankruptcy court. “We were shocked,” said Shanahan, who currently lives and works in New Jersey. Shortly after, lot owners joined to gether to form Bridge Pointe Commu nity Association Inc. and aimed to stay positive about their future dreams com ing to life. Earlier this month, several of those owners demanded answers from Camden leaders during a regular county board meeting. The date was Jan. 8 — exactly a week before a Bridge Pointe investment See COUNTY, page 6A Kingsland wages vary Johna Strickland Rush johra@tribune-georgian.com While many City of Kingsland em ployees earn salaries comparable to those paid in like-sized cities, some re ceive more and less than their counter parts. Kingsland last gave a 2-percent increase to every employee in 2010. The highest paid staff member, city manager GwenMungin, earns $97,996 annually. The administrator in Brunswick, population 15,525, makes $95,000 but city managers in Dublin and Suwanee receive $112,540 and $122,500, respectively, according to data compiled by the Georgia Depart ment of Community Affairs. Dublin, population 16,044 to Kings- land’s 15,913, is located east of Macon on Interstate 16. $uwanee, population 15,734, is northeast of Atlanta. “When looking at the differences in salaries, people should keep in mind several factors,” Mungin said. “The years of experience; the level of educa tion and training, as well as whether or not a position requires ongoing certifi cation; whether an individual is an ex isting employee or a new hire. If an existing employee, the number of years See KINGSLAND, page 8A KPD arrests local man Johna Strickland Rush johna@tribune-georgian.com A Kingsland man has been charged with a felony after he allegedly mo lested three children last year. Ron Christopher Faison, 43, of Clarks Bluff Road was arrested Jan. 24 and charged with child molestation. According to a Kingsland Police Department affidavit, one of the three victims told a school counselor who sent a referral to Georgia’s Divi sion of Family and Children Services where an employee contacted KPD. A KPD detec tive conducted a forensic inter view with the girls in December. Fai son remains in the Camden County Jail in Woodbine. Faison Taking the crown Submitted photo Cynthia Green was crowned Miss Wildcat this past weekend at Camden County High School. Forty teenage girls competed in the event, where Miss Georgia Leighton Jordan was a judge. First runner up was Rachael Hudson; second runner up was Krissy Phillips; third runner up was Shelby McCaskill and fourth runner up was Chelsea James.The talent winner was Chandler Clark. Teams registering now @ camdenrelay.org Friday, May 3-Saturday, May 4, 2013 • PSA Leisure Services Track • Kingsland, GA Sign up by Feb. 14 and we’ll enter you in our prize package drawing!

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Tribune & Georgian. (Athens, Ga.) 2002-current, January 30, 2013, Image 1