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VOL. 133 NO. 11 44 PACES 4 SECTIONS PLUS INSERTS A PUBLICATION OF MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. JEFFERSON, JACKSON COUNTY GEORGIA 30549 50« COPY
— Inside —
Area news:
•Food banks seeing
more people in need
page 9A
•Food distribution
center to locate in
county page 2A
Op/Ed:
•Three big amend
ments on Nov. 4 ballot
page 4A
Sports:
•It's Jefferson, it's foot
ball and, yes, it's a win
page 1B
Features:
• Dr. Pendergrass'
items donated to
museum page 1C
Other News:
•School News
. .pages 6&8B, 10&12A
•Public Safety
pages 6-8A
•Legals
pages 10-24C
•Church News
page 7B
•Obituaries
page 11A
Thompson wants ‘financial crisis plan’ in place
BYANGELA GARY
COUNTY departments are being
asked to cut spending by five percent
to help offset declining revenues.
Jackson County's revenues are
under budget by approximately
$228,100 as of Sept. 30, according
to a report presented to the board of
commissioners Monday night. Due
to the timing of some debt payments
and capital expenses, the county is
exceeding budget year-to-date by
nearly $600,000.
“We can be over budget for just so
long," BOC chairman Pat Bell said.
“We're going to have to suck it up
like everybody else."
Commissioner Jody Thompson
asked Hulsey to create a “financial
crisis plan." He said the county had
been handling its finances well “until
the whole world decided to stop.”
OTHER BUSINES
In other business at the meeting
Monday night, the BOC:
•nominated Dr. S.J. Shirley to serve
another term on the BJC Hospital
Authority.
continued on page 8A
“We’re going
to have to
suck it up
like every
body else. ”
-BOC chair
Pat Bell
INJURED IN WRECK
Tyler Kenneth Hardman, 19, Jefferson, was transported to an Athens
hospital with visible injuries after his vehicle struck that of Joshua
Jacob Tonish, 26, Jefferson, who making a right turn into a driveway
on Elberta Drive. Tonish and a passenger in his vehicle complained
of neck pain and both were treated at the scene.
Hoschton looks at property tax
First town hall meeting slated for Thurs.
BYANGELA GARY
WITH TWO town hall meetings
slated for the coming week, the head
of Hoschton's finance committee is
calling for the town to impose a prop
erty tax to fund city expenses.
The Hoschton City Council will
hold two “town hall meetings” at the
depot to discuss the proposed city
property tax. The first will be held on
Thursday, Oct. 23, at 2 p.m. A second
meeting is set for Monday, Oct. 27,
at 7 p.m.
Last week, Tom Walden, the head of
the Hoschton City Council’s finance
committee, called for the town to
impose a 2.1 mill property tax — the
first in the last 30 years — to fund
Hoschton coun
cil member Tom
Walden has called
for a 2.1 mill
property tax,
which would be
the first for the
town in 30 years.
city expenses. The proposed Hoschton
budget for 2009 calls for an 11 percent
hike in city spending.
“With this, we are creating a
reserve,” Walden said. “It is a minimal
reserve, but it is a starter reserve.”
But councilman Jim Jester opposed
continued on page 9A
Election updates
Over 6,300 already voted in Jackson
ELECTION DAY isn’t until
Nov. 4, but many in Jackson
County have already cast their
ballots.
Some 6,339 people have
already voted in the 2008 gene
ral election. Some have been
mail-in absentee ballots, while
others came from early voters
at the administrative duilding in
Jefferson.
Early voting will be offered
again next week from 9 a.m.
to 7 p.m. at three locations,
including: the county admini
strative building in Jefferson;
the Commerce Recreation
Department, 204 Carson Street;
and the Braselton Municipal
Building. No reason has to be
given for early voting or absen
tee mail-in voting.
Jackson County has approxi
mately 35,000 registered voters.
FIRST TIME VOTER
Brittany Butler, a college student at
Gainesville, voted for the first time on Oct.
17, which was her 18th birthday. She started
the day off by going to vote early. Absentee
voting is under way at the administrative
building in Jefferson through Oct. 31.
Homestead exemption on Nov. ballot
JACKSON COUNTIANS will vote in
the Nov. 4 election on a proposed home
stead exemption for senior citizens.
The question on the ballot is as follows:
“Shall the act be approved which amends
the current homestead exemption from
Jackson County school system ad valorem
taxes for educational purposes for persons
who are 65 years or age or over and whose
real income, excluding certain retirement
income, does not exceed $18,000 by
increasing the exemption amount from
$20,000 to $40,000?”
Similar wording will be offered to citi
zens in Jefferson and Commerce school
districts as well.
The move is an effort to give greater
school property tax relief to senior citi
zens. It was pushed through the legislature
by Rep. Tommy Benton after a number
of older citizens lobbied for a larger tax
break.
Some senior citizens are still unhappy
with the proposal, saying it doesn’t go far
enough to help older homeowners. Some
larger metro counties give a much larger
break to senior citizens on school property
taxes.
But Benton, and others, have pointed
out that larger metro counties with a more
diverse tax base and deeper pockets can
afford to give a larger tax break while
Jackson County’s resources are much
smaller and more limited.
County, school officials meet on
Gums Springs safety concerns
BYANGELA GARY
COUNTY AND school leaders
met Friday afternoon at Gum Springs
Elementary to discuss safety concerns with
students walking and riding bicycles to the
West Jackson school.
Superintendent Shannon Adams and
school system transportation director
Dennis Patrick met with county manager
Darrell Hampton, county special projects
manager Don Clerici and District 3 com
missioner Bruce Yates.
The group agreed to move forward
with $41,000 in improvements to handle
immediate safety concerns and to seek a
$500,000 federal grant through the Georgia
Department of Transportation to address
other road improvement needs.
The $41,000 would cover cross walk
continued on page 8A
Jefferson BOE mulls
additional space needs
More dassrooms, new kitchens and
new gym among ideas being floated
BY SHARON HOGAN
Architects for the Jefferson
City School System are pro
posing some major changes
to add more classrooms to
Jefferson Elementary School
and Jefferson High School.
Superintendent John Jackson
told the Jefferson Board of
Education last week that addi
tional classrooms, kitchen space
and gymnasiums are needed in
the system.
Among the proposals being
discussed would be to build an
additional wing to JES for 12
classrooms and a larger caf
eteria and kitchen space. The
existing cafeteria would be
converted to four classrooms,
he said. JES only has two class
rooms available for growth,
Jackson said.
At JHS, the system is study
ing tearing down the old mid
dle school annex and building
a two-story building with 18
classrooms and moving the
kitchen area for more space. In
addition, the system is studying
building a new gym where the
tennis courts are currendy locat
ed. The existing gym would
continue to be used, Jackson
said. JHS only has three class
rooms for future growth.
continued on page 9A
SCHOOL BOARD LOOKS AT SPACE ISSUES
The Jefferson Board of Education addressed the need for additional classroom
space at both the elementary and high schools and kitchen updates at both of these
schools as well. Superintendent Dr. John Jackson presented an architectural draw
ing of the proposed additions at the two schools to the board at the meeting on
Thursday, Oct. 16. Shown (L to R) at the meeting are: Dr. Sherrie Gibney-Sherman,
board members Derrell Crowe and Guy Dean Benson, Jackson, board chairman
Ronnie Hopkins, board members Willie Hughey, Damon Wilbanks and Angela
McKinney. Photo by Sharon Hogan