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PUBLISHED JULY 26, 2012
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Swim center
reflects on
.
active year
By Crystal Ledford
cledford@forsythnews.com
It’s been a busy year at the
Cumming Aquatic Center.
“I'd say overall, we've been
very successful,” said Carla
Wilson, manager of the center.
“There’s been a very positive
response from the community.
They love the facility and are
excited we're here in Cumming.”
The facility on Pilgrim Mill
Road opened last summer to large
crowds, which continue today.
“The outdoor pool was obvious
ly very successful last summer,”
Wilson said. “Of course, that’s
weather-dependent, so last week
wasn't our best week, but overall
we’ve been doing very well.”
The outdoor pool, which offers
a kids' splash play area, water
slide and lazy river, drew large
crowds of more than 2,000 people
on the center’s opening day last
June.
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Autumn Vetter Forsyth County News
Sissy Bowers, far right, helps Jake Barnes during swim les
sons at the Cumming Aquatic Center. The facility is marking its
first anniversary.
Ata glance
The Cumming Aquatic Center is on Pilgrim Mill Road, near
Ga. Hwy. 400 Exit 16. For complete times and schedules at the
center, visit www.crpdonline.org.
Since then the numbers have
‘come down, but Wilson said a
busy summer day can still attract
as many as 950 people.
Greg Little, director of the
Cumming Recreation and Parks
Department, under which the
center falls, said attendance at the
facility continues to exceed
expectations.
“We were hoping it would be a
big success,” he said. “We
opened for the summer last year
and the outdoor pool was vastly
more popular than what we were
led to believe it would be from
our projections. People were
thinking we’d get maybe 500 to
600 people a day.”
During the fall and winter
months, when the outdoor pool is
closed, the center remained active
thanks to its two indoor facilities:
a 50-meter competition pool and
a physical therapy pool.
Both are open vcar round for
use by the center’s three youth
swim teams, Forsyth high school
teams and individuals wishing to
swim laps or take any of the cen
ter's numerous classes.
The facility also played host to
several swim meets and other
events during its first year.
“We hosted a couple of water
polo tournaments this past year,”
she said. “We didn’t really antici
pate having water polo in here
that soon, so that was exciting.
“We have several more and larg
er [high school] meets booked for
this year ... and just speaking to
the coaches at the end of the sea
son, just from having the facility
here, they think their teams will
potentially grow.”
SUNDAY, JANUARY 13 2013
PUBLISHED AUG. 2, 2012
Tax rejected
Mountains region joins
in opposing T-SPLOST
By the numbers
Transportation sales tax
Georgia Mountains
Region
*Yos — 25 percent
*No -~ 75 percent
said.
“Georgia does need a plan
for roads and road improve
ments, but this was the
wrong plan and the wrong
time to foster this onto the
taxpayers of Georgia."
The referendum caught
early fire when officials and
proponents alluded to the
lack of a “Plan B” or at least
an acceptable alternative if
the sales tax vote failed.
Officials have said the state
would have to lean on declin
ing gas tax revenue unless
some other answer is found.
Cumming Mayor H. Ford
Gravitt, who served on the
regional roundtable that
decided which projects
would have been funded
through the tax had it passed,
expressed disappointment at
the outcome.
“We know we've got a lot
of roads that need improve
ments done and a lot of inter
sections that we were going
to get from that, but we’re
going to continue to work on
it,” he said.
The mayor also looked to
the future.
“Hopefully, we can get
together with the people that
were opposed and maybe
work out agreements that
everybody can be on board
with and we can come back
at some point in time later
and have a funding mecha
nism to do it,” he said.
FCN Staff writer Jennifer Sami
contributed to this report.
By Joft Gill
FCN regional staff
The transportation sales
tax referendum was defeated
in most parts of Georgia on
Tuesday, but no place worse
than the 13-county Georgia
Mountains region, which
includes Forsyth County.
In the Georgia Mountains,
the overall vote was about
25 percent in favor and 75
percent against it.
Forsyth closely mirrored
the region’s vote, with 75
percent voting against the
measure, referred to as a
transportation special pur
pose local option sales tax,
or T-SPLOST, and 25 per
cent voting in favor. |
The referendu_? was
defeated in nine of 12 regions
in Georgia, including the
10-county Atlanta region.
“] am extremely excited
and grateful that through the
leadership of the tea parties
all across Georgia that the
citizens of Georgia recog
nized this unconstitutional
T-SPLOST as such, and have
voted to stop it,” said Mike
Scupin, local coordinator of
the Lanier Tea Party Patriots.
“But my excitement is mit
igated by the fact that Gov.
[Nathan] Deal, a former con-,
gressman, came out in favor
of such an obviously uncon
stitutional plan that violates
the home rule portion of
Georgia's Constitution.”
Scupin said he was even
more disappointed that some
state lawmakers “jumped in
lockstep to promote [the
sales tax].”
“The citizens of Georgia
are to be congratulated for
showing more wisdom and
discernment than our
Georgia politicians,” Scupin