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PAGE 2A FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS Friday, January 18,2002 BUDGET from 1A city’s existing workforce, but the mayor cautioned that if revenues do not keep up with expenditures during the year, positions could be cut and some tasks contracted out to private companies. Gravitt characterized the budget as “very lean,” noting that the only sizable increases in operating expenses are a 4 percent cost-of-living raise for employees and capital expen ditures for projects already under way. On the other hand, if the revenue flow improves with the economy in 2002, the city could spend more, said City Manager Gerald Blackburn. “If the revenue begins to escalate and looks good, by midyear or by September, the council may go back and do an amendment to the budget and speed up projects and put other capital improvement projects back in,” Blackburn said. “But at this point in time, we pretty well pulled all that hack.” SPLOST revenues for November 2001 were up by about SII,OOO-$ 12,000 oyer the same month a year earlier, which is a 4-percent increase, he said. SPLOST collections during December will not be known at the local level until mid-February. “We’ll have to track that very close,” Blackburn said. “In the meantime, we’re going to be looking at several different areas. If things don’t EVAN from 1A second- and third-degree cov ering more than 45 percent of his body. The burns destroyed skin on his head, back, arms and legs. Then the miracles began. While the toddler was in the critical care unit, his aunt went into an Eckerd Drugs in Gainesville to have a prescrip tion filled. It was not her nor mal pharmacy. While inside the store, she relayed the day’s tragic events to the pharmacist. A young girl working in the store overheard and interrupt ed the conversation. She told the stranger about being burned as a child and strongly recommended the pediatric burn specialists at Cincinnati Shriners Hospital. Looking for an answer, Brian and Tricia Johnson con tacted the Yaarab Shrine Temple in Atlanta. They did not yet know the bill for less than one day in the hospital already exceeded $17,000. And he was yet to undergo surgery. The Shriners Temple decided to foot the bill for him io be moved to Cincinnati. Hours turned into days and the days into weeks. Each moment was emotionally charged. Evan was in a bed and he was attached to bundles of tubes and machinery three monitors attached to his heart, one on his toe, feeding tube, catheter and IV. Doctors attempted four times to attach synthetic skin to his body that would give time for his healthy skin to heal. The healthy skin was need ed to graft onto the most severely burned areas. None of the attempts worked, forcing doctors to use cadaver skin as a temporary fix. During the lengthy hospital stay, family members learned of other heart-wrenching sto ries from across the country. A North Carolina boy suf fered burns to 80 percent of his body, forcing doctors to regenerate the little skin that was left on his small frame in One Thing Hasn’t Changed: Our 100 year tradition of service to the families of this community. It’s a tradition that’s created a unique relationship between our family and your family. And that, we believe, can make an important difference in the quality of care and service we offer you. Funeral Pre-Planning Available Our family serving your family- That's what we're all about. Mike Castleberry Gilbert PhlUlps Richard Bobo Randy Jones Hiram Bobo Marvin Lord Mertle Sims Cynthia S. McWhorther Cherry Butterworth J&uie & Jones Juneral Jlome 59 North Main Street, Alpharetta, Georgia 30004 770-475-6554 24 Hour Obituary Line 770475-6555 improve, we can make cuts.” Potential cutbacks proba bly would be at the fairground and in recreation program ming, Blackburn said. “We’ll make every effort to avoid doing that.” City budgets since 1997 have jumped by an average of more than $1.5 million each year. The 1997 budget, for example, was $10.2 million. The budget last year was $16.7 million an increase of more than 63 percent in just four years. The budget includes pro jected operating expenditures, capital expenditures and expenditures for water and sewer service. Affecting this year’s budget are the economic downturn on the heels of significant capital spending commitments for the new city hall, the new arena, the new recreation center scheduled to open Feb. 4 and the widening of Tribble Gap Road. The economic downturn is particularly significant for Cumming because the city derives its revenues largely from sales taxes, fees and per mits. The city does not have a city-assessed property tax. “It’s just that we had a very aggressive capital improve ment year last year and, of course, we’re still working on some of those,” Blackburn said. “We need to play all of these out and make sure we’ve got sufficient money to com plete the job as it needs to be.” a lab. Each procedure also carries a potential side effect. Foll owing one surgery, for exam ple, Evan Johnson’s CRP level, measuring the inflam mation and dead tissue, was 38. Normal ranges are bet ween two and three. On New Year’s Eve, he was in a hospital bed with a horn in his hand and a glittery crown on his head. A tube was still in his nose and he had a painful look on his face. “You sit and watch moni tors and learn what the levels should be. You pray,” said Tricia Johnson of their time in the hospital. “We learned a lot more than we wish we ever did,” her husband added. Then their son’s condition began to improve. The new skin was sticking. Evan finally returned home on Sunday in time to celebrate the birthday of his 5-year-old brother, Andrew. Many of their neighbors in the High Gables subdivision stayed home from church to put banners and bal loons outside welcoming the toddler home. His parents recalled the countless cards, words of encouragement and meals they received from members at First Redeemer Church and First Baptist Church in Cumming. They praised the work of the veteran surgeons and car ing nurses. They praised the visits by Santa and his elves that eased the pain for the toddler and his family. The road to recovery is far from over. He must wear pro tective suits each day so his skin does not constrict. He must endure physical therapy twice a day and he probably will have to undergo many more surgeries until age 18. But his family is thankful he is alive, laughing and walk ing again. “He is a little boy who has had to go through more than most men,” said his mother. u i n I k 0 mu n i idv A- i ■s' Z t| I ' uOSI WW* In i*. JhS I I , ft* /W V ’■ll® Jf ” JA': 5 ' rM j ’ M. ■ Jh jSSßillil If «♦♦♦ TjEjl «mL ♦♦♦♦ ANDROS from 1A woman screaming for help when they responded to a 10:40 p.m. call near the intersection of Mullinax Road and Hwy. 9. “Help me! He’s trying to kill me,” a sheriff’s report quotes the suspect’s wife, Sarah Andros, as saying. She was bleeding from the nose and had scratches covering her body, according to the sheriff’s report. The officers also located the suspect ARC from 1A and State Sen. Rusty Paul, all of whom plan to attend the meeting along with planning consultants from the Georgia Department of Transportation, Forsyth’s county commission ers and representatives of the Georgia Conservancy and Sierra Club. As a member of the state’s transportation committee, Paul was instrumental in creating a legislative caucus to study whether money earmarked for the proposed four-lane high way could be better spent else where. The Sierra Club has attacked the arc for its poten tially negative impact on the environment. The governor and other arc supporters argue that the pro posed highway would help to alleviate congestion on 1-285 and smaller two-lanes like Hwy. 20. They say the arc would further serve to accom modate transportation needs in counties north of Atlanta that are growing at unprecedented rates. Barnes has said he would like to see construction of the arc begin in either 2008 or 2009. On the other side, task force members believe the arc would worsen traffic problems by encouraging commuting from more remote locations and would degrade air quality by becoming a magnet for additional development, and worsen the quality of life for those living near it. Preliminary proposals, for example, show the arc cutting through the upscale Polo Fields Golf & Country Club in Cumming. The neighborhood ■ FINE ARTS 4 CRAFTS SHOW Thursday, Jan. 17th-Sunday, Jan. 2oth (during mall hours) at North Point Mall 1000 North Point Circle, Alpharetta, GA Featuring 01L5... WATERCOLORS... WOOD CARVINGS... ACRYLICS... PORTRAITS... FLORAL ART... PHOTOGRAPHY... POTTERY.. JEWELRY... WOODCRAFT... SEWING... CALLIGRAPHY... GARDEN ART... DECORATIVE PAINTING... AND MORE... OVER 50 INVITED EXHIBITORS SPONSORED BY THE DUNWOODY ARTS & CRAFTS GUILD Featuring over 50 talented artists and craftsmen from the Southeastern States and a white truck at the scene. The truck was in a ditch and its driver’s side door was open. Andros relayed the following chain of events to deputies: His wife became irate after accusing him of doing drugs and then jumped out of the moving truck. He said she was driving at the time. The sheriff’s report states the woman’s injuries suggested she fell onto contains about 900 homes, with the cost of new homes at $1 million or more. The task force suspects that industries, the big rigs they depend on and the count less dollars they pump into the state economy are the real rea sons driving the arc forward. Anheuser-Busch, carpet mills in Dalton and mega con tractors such as C.W. Matthews are in a position to gain much more from the highway than the communities it affects, said task force spokesman and Polo Fields resident Cliff Hollyfield. The task force has appointed a rep resentative from each neigh borhood to spearhead recruit ing and publicity efforts. Hollyfield said that with only four to six exits from I -75 to 1-85, the arc would become a “truck toll-way.” The real issue is how the arc will benefit “Joe Citizen” who daily commutes to work, said Tony Gul la, representa tive from the Tallantworth neighborhood near the Forsyth-Cherokee line. Gulla puts the benefit at nil. He reasons that most com muters travel south into Atlanta each morning on Ga. 400 and have no need for a superhighway traveling east and west. “There is nothing about this arc that is positive for existing home owners,” Gulla said. Other neighborhoods rep resented in the task force include River Mist, Briar Meadows, Sweetbriar, Ryan’s Owner/Operator Mike Ridzon of Chick-fil-A in Lanier Crossing and employee Juli Erickson were honored with the second annual Big Heart Award from Grayson’s Gift. The recognition comes as the result of Ridzon’s decision to host “Super Kids Night Saturday” to children with mental and physi cal disabilities and their families. Erickson is the coordinator of the program. At the presentation cer emony above were, from left, Nancy and Tim Perry with their daughter, Caroline; Erickson and Ridzon. Grayson’s Gift is a nonprofit group based in Cumming that seeks to raise awareness of issues affecting children with disabilities. Bluff, Rosewood Lake, Grand Cascades, Hampton’s Grant and Ivey Manor. Despite the task force’s determination to fight the arc, its specific battle plan remains to be seen. Petitions are being circulated. Politicians are being contacted. A lawsuit has been discussed. Hollyfield said the task force will draw on the finan cial and educational resources of its members. In the group’s ranks are attorneys, doctors and engineers. Hollyfield earlier this week pitched his case in a one-page letter he fired off to popular WSB Radio talk-show host Forsyth County News J Your "Hometown Paper" Since 1908 J USPS 205-540 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Cumming, Georgia 30040 Phone:77o-887-3126 Fax:77o-889-6017 Internet Address: www.forsythnews.com Publisher DENNIS STOCKTON General Manager NORMAN BAGGS |v( lUUI Pl Editor SUSAN NORMAN vAlljiA*/ Advertising Director BARBARA SCOHIER Xbcudjy Circulation Director PHIL JONES MEMBER Published Sunday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday by the Forsyth County News Company, Veterans Memorial Blvd., Cumming, Ga. Second Class Postage paid at Cumming, Ga. and additional offices. Subscription rate for Forsyth County, $46 per year; other Georgia and out of state subscriptions are SBO per year. Any unused portion of a subscription balance will be gladly refunded. However, all refunds due the subscriber are subject to a processing fee, which will be automatically deducted from the subscription balance refund. Advertising rates and deadlines available upon request. Postmaster: Send address change to Forsyth County News/P.O. Box 210, Cumming, Ga. 30028. A Swartz-Morris Media Inc. publication Miss your paper? Call 770-887-3126 We deliver replacement papers within Forsyth County. If your newspaper is not delivered by 6:30 a.m„ please call the circulation department at 770-887-3126. Service calls will be taken from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, replacement papers will be delivered from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday calls taken from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Sunday, replacement papers will be deliv ered from 11 a.m. to 2p.m. If your call is received during the above listed times, a replacement copy will be delivered to your home. Calls received after the above times will be extended credit to their account or delivered with next issue. Any changes in publication will be announced in preceding issues. Advertising Deadlines For Sunday’s paper retail and classified display ads are due by noon Thursday For Wednesday’s paper retail and classified display ads are due by 5 p.m. Friday. For Thursday’s paper retail and classified display ads are due by noon Monday. For Friday’s paper retail and classified display ads are due by noon Tuesday. Classified Line Advertising Deadlines (Help wanted, garage sales, rentals, etc.) For Sunday’s paper classified line ads are due by noon Friday. For Wednesday’s paper classified line ads are due by noon Monday. For Thursday’s paper classified line ads are due by noon Tuesday. For Friday’s paper classified line ads are due by noon Wednesday. Legal advertising is due by Friday noon and runs only in Wednesday’s paper. * .. 'l' Big Heart Award honors Chick-fil-A in Cumming Photos/Jonathan Phillips the ground from the passenger’s side of the truck and did not hit the pavement from the driver’s side. She was transported to a local hospi tal for treatment and he was taken to jail. Deputies reported smelling alcohol on both Andros and his wife. He is scheduled to appear in Forsyth County Superior Court on Feb. 8 in con nection with the case. Neal Boortz. “How can a highway that was conceived 15 years ago to travel through an area of some 13,000 people with a cost esti mated at S6O million go for ward now, with 90,000 people and some of the nicest com munities in metro Atlanta in its path and its cost risen to $4.2 billion?” the letter states. “If I were a politician, I surely wouldn’t want my name asso ciated with this white ele phant.” Saturday’s meeting will provide an opportunity for Forsyth residents to ask other questions. The meeting is open to the public.