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THIS ISSUE
Copyright © 2001 Forsyth County News
Forsyth Life
Tour of Homes to
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Page IB
Sports
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Date Level
£ April 3 ~ 1061.02 ft
ApfH4 ft
& April ' J 061.3 Sft Z
i
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Business
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Page 5A
INDEX
Abby MMMOMMSMMMaMMMaeMMMMB ..88
Births •MMMMVMMMSMMMMSMIMHMM .48
BusinesssA
ClassifiedssC
Deaths...2A
Forsyth Life IB
H0r05c0pe......88
Opinion.. 14A
Schools 8A
5p0rt5.................................... 1C
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Forsyth County News
J Your "Hometown Paper" Sinci . 01 FOO6IM 12/31/20
Vol. 92, No. 56
Program puts kids’
dreams on wheels
By Cheryl Rhodes
Features Writer
It’s the stuff of dreams.
Anyone who has ever spent much time
in an automobile has pondered how nice
it would be to have certain specialty fea
tures installed that would make life
behind the wheel easier.
But Daimler Chrysler has taken that
ambition one step further and put imagin
ing creative automotive design into the
hands of local students for course credit
and, potentially, financial reward to
the school.
“We hope to interest students in pursu
ing automotive careers,” said Scott
Brown, public relations manager for the
automaker, of the company’s innovative
“Build Your Dream Vehicle” program.
Designed to encourage teamwork,
Fender benders pile up
Statistics
reveal most
dangerous
crossings
By Colby Jones
Staff Writer
Motorists run into each other
at the intersection of Ga. 400
and Hwy. 20 every 55 hours.
The 154 wrecks in 2000 at
the traffic crossing make it the
most accident-prone intersection
in Forsyth County by more than
a 2.5-1 margin, according to
traffic statistics from the Forsyth
County Sheriff’s Office.
The heavily traveled Ga. 400
and Hwy. 20 run roughly per
pendicular to each other and cut
the county into four geographic
regions.
The five most frequent acci
dent sites lie on the two high
ways. There are few ways
around them.
Many commuters on their
way to Atlanta, Dawsonville,
Cumming and Buford make two
daily trips through the cross
roads, first on their way to work
and back again on their way
home.
Even a minor accident can
bring rush-hour to a standstill,
clog secondary roads and send
tremors for miles down the two
major arteries.
The majority of the 353 acci
dents at the five worst intersec-
Tax help still
available as
deadline
draws near
By Alton Bridges
Staff Writer
With the end of tax season
approaching, several organizations
are preparing to help taxpayers
meet the April 16 deadline.
The AARP Tax Counseling
Service will be available just one
more Thursday to help low
income citizens and senior citi
zens with their tax problems. The
service is available at the Forsyth
County Public Library on
Dahlonega Highway between 10
a.m. and 2 p.m.
The Internal Revenue Service
and the Georgia Department of
Revenue helps sponsor the free
tax preparations each year and
marketing, finance, ergonomics, produc
tion planning and communications strate
gies, the curriculum is tackled at each
school year’s beginning and then advan
ced to competition in the spring.
Last year, the first year of local partic
ipation, students at Forsyth Central High
School took top honors in the regional
competition.
This year, 200 schools representing
more than 1,000 students participated in
the Build Your Dream Vehicle program
nationwide.
On Tuesday, seven teams from area
schools, including five from Forsyth
•Central High School, will compete from
8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Atlanta’s
Sci Trek Museum to capture the title.
See DREAM, Page 3A
" briber Beww 11
jMEkyjk n i i
Accidents/lnjuries
Ga. 400 @ Hwy. 20 '5 um/2s
Hwy. 20 @ Marketplace Blvd. sa/is
Ga. 400 @Hwy. 369 x =5 k/m
Ga. 400 @ McFarland Rd. 'S«/»
Hwy. 20 @ Hwy. 9 TSSW/13
‘Based on 2000 statistics
tions in the county were minor.
The wrecks at Ga. 400 and
Hwy. 20, for example, accounted
for only 25 injuries.
There were a total of 2,964
accidents and seven fatalities in
the county last year.
None of the deaths occurred
at the five worst intersections.
Traffic engineers cautioned
that, although the accident sta
tistics accurately reflect the
number of total wrecks at a par
ticular intersection, they fail to
take into account traffic volume.
A smaller intersection, there-
Photo/Tom Brooks
The AARP Tax Counseling Service will be available just one
more Thursday, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., at the Forsyth
County Public Library on Dahlonega Highway.
will continue through Thursday,
April 12. So far, the AARP Tax
Counseling Service has averaged
30 clients each Thursday since the
February.
“We work very hard to give
SUNDAY April 8,20 C
fore, could be more dangerous
and accumulate more accidents
per car than a busier intersection
with a higher number of total
accidents.
Sheriff’s Capt. D.T. Smith
said many county roads are sim
ply not designed to carry the
heavy traffic load they are cur
rently handling.
Referring specifically to the
Ga. 400/Hwy. 20 intersection, he
added, “If you go 24 hours with
out an accident, it makes you
wonder what’s going on out
there did everybody leave
our clients the best service possi
ble,” said Thelma Jacobs, a volun
teer with the tax service. “We
would like to have several people
See TAXES, Page 3A
- 0mh,..,. II
L— . r.,. _a_ . - ■ -
Photo/Submitted
Last year’s “Build Your Dream Vehicle” regional winners, Forsyth Central High
School students Matt Williams and Nick Martin, display their winnings.
town?”
Traffic is sure to get worse
before it gets better at the coun
ty’s worst intersection, courtesy
of the continued population
boom and two major construc
tion projects planned at Ga. 400
and Hwy. 20.
The Georgia Department of
Transportation plans to begin
buying property by fall for
rights-of-way on Hwy. 20 from
Ga. 400 to Samples Road, said
Brent Cook, DOT planning engi-
See WRECKS, Page 2A
Court system seeks
potential new jurors
By Linda Irvine -
Staff Writer
If you feel that serving on a
jury is a privilege, but you still
have not had your “day in
court,” you may want to contact
the Clerk of the Courts office to
volunteer for the jury pool.
Clerk of the Superior Court
Doug Sorrells said he decided to
actively recruit residents to vol
unteer in an effort to add “new
blood” to the present pool. He
hopes this different approach
will provide his office with more
individuals interested in serving
jury dufy * n th® Forsyth County
court system.
Those interested in volunteer
ing will need to provide their
cun£nt address, date of birth,
raqe, Social Security number,
/
County
considers
bond for
new jail
By Bill Johnson
Staff Writer
One year after Forsyth
County voters soundly defeated
an $18.9 million bond referen
dum to build a new jailhouse,
the board of commissioners
apparently wants to try again.
County officials are in the
process of selecting a company
to study the county’s need to
build a new jail or expand the
current one.
The study will also look at
the feasibility of building addi
tional courthouse and public
safety facilities.
Purchasing Director Betina
Hammond said Thursday the
board would like to have the
study completed in time to call
for a referendum on the
November ballot, if the feasibili
ty study warrants it. She expects
to have a recommendation'by
April 25.
Hammond’s office received
six bids and has narrowed the
field to three companies
Rosser International, Facilities
Group and Lee Design and
Management.
Hammond said her office had
not entered the pricing stage yet.
“Right now, we’re making a
quality-based decision,” she
said.
“The three finalists will be in
for interviews on April 10, 12
See JAIL, Page 3A
Sorrells
occupation,
sex, tele
phone num
ber and vot
ing district.
A form
for doing so
can be
found in an
ad on page
13A.
Respon
ses should
be mailed
to: Board of Jury Com
missioners, c/o Doug Sorrells,
Clerk of Superior Court, 100
Courthouse Square, Suite 10,
Forsyth County Courthouse,
Cumming, GA 30040.
See JURY, Page 3A
Certs I