Newspaper Page Text
WEDNESDAY, JULY 7, 2010
THE JACKSON HERALD
PAGE 3A
Ex-court clerk pleads not guilty
BY KERRI TESTEMENT
BRASELTON’S former
court clerk has pled not
guilty to charges that she
stole at least $17,000 from
the town's municipal court.
Becky Skelton, 48,
entered her not guilty plea
on Wednesday, June 30 — a
day before she was slated to
make her first court appear
ance for an arraignment. She
is seeking a jury trial.
In June, Skelton was
indicted by a Jackson County
grand jury on four counts
of theft by taking and one
count of forgery in the sec
ond degree.
Skelton was arrested in
June 2009 on 14 counts of
theft by taking and one count
of violation of oath
by a public officer.
After more investiga
tion, she was arrested
again in March 2010
for new charges of
theft by taking and
forgery in the first
degree. She posted a
$31,000 bond.
When Skelton
11-year employee of
the town — was arrested
last year, Braselton offi
cials alleged that she stole
$15,000 in cash bonds from
the town’s municipal court,
which handles fines stem
ming from the police depart
ment. The thefts allegedly
occurred between June 2008
and May 2009.
During her second
arrest in March 2010,
investigators said they
believed Skelton took
at least an additional
$2,000 in cash bonds
from the town from
September 2006 to May
2009.
The four theft by tak
ing charges in which Skelton
was indicted on by the grand
jury allege that she stole at
least $500 at unknown times in
2004, 2006, 2008 and 2009.
A warrant also alleges that
Skelton forged the signature
of a probation officer in a 2008
court order document.
Skelton was fired from
her job just before her 2009
arrest.
Hoschton to fund sewer plant upgrades
FAMILY HELPS CELEBRATE
Several family members of Wilbur Cole (back row, second from left) attended the
June 29 Pendergrass City Council meeting to help celebrate June 29 as Wilbur Cole
Day in Pendergrass. Pictured with Cole are: (back row, left to right) Larry Cole, Cole,
Linda McMullan, Joe McMullan and Brant McMullan; (front row, left to right) Sara
McMullan, Cathryn McMullan, Elizabeth McMullan and Cindy McMullan.
BY KERRI TESTEMENT
A LONG-OVERDUE
improvement at Hoschton’s
problematic sewer treatment
facility will finally get its fix.
After years of stalling on
placing a new control sys
tem at the wastewater treat
ment plant, the council agreed
Tuesday during a called meet
ing to spend $28,789 on the
project.
“This is basically something
that has been put off between
the last council and ours, so
it can no longer be put off,”
said Hoschton Mayor Erma
Denney.
And according to the
Jackson County Water and
Sewerage Authority — which
operates and maintains the
facility — delay is no longer
an option.
Since November 2009, the
plant’s supervisory control
and data acquisition system
(SCADA) has failed at least
four times.
One of those failures caused
Hoschton’s water storage tank
to overflow — creating the
need for emergency repairs.
The authority proposed
that Hoschton improve the
SCADA system just in time
for a holiday weekend on July
4. The last failure occurred on
June 25.
Mark Dudziak — waste-
water operations manager for
the authority — said if the
programmable remote-con
trolled system isn’t working,
it requires manual operation.
“It becomes a man power
issue,” he said. “You’d be pay
ing someone to stay there all
of the time, basically, to run
that plant correctly.”
A wastewater tank at the
treatment plant is work
ing fine, but the valves are
improperly working, Dudziak
said. Even with the faulty
valves, the city has continued
to operate its facility within
state permit regulations.
“In layman’s terms, if you
need a valve to open on the
hour, every hour, (SCADA)
tells it to open or close, it tells
what kind of flow is coming
in, what kind of flow is going
out,” he said. “It takes all
of that data and complies it.
Without that, you’re just run
ning it manually.”
Hoschton has been dealing
with the faulty system since
its former city engineer com
pleted an expansion project
at the wastewater treatment
facility several years ago.
The city later sued its for
mer engineer — Armentrout,
Roebuck and Matheny — over
faulty design of the sewer
treatment plant. The company
paid a $725,000 legal settle
ment with the city in 2009.
Hoschton has two state
loans from the Georgia
Environmental Facilities
Authority (GEFA) total
ing more than $6 million to
improve its wastewater treat
ment plant.
In May, the state froze the
city’s access to a $3 million
GEFA loan until it stabilized
its oxidation pond at the sewer
plant. That move also included
$158,000 that the city planned
to use, in part, to fund new
sludge pumps and a SCADA
County to get shuttle bus
JACKSON COUNTY will
receive one of more than
200 vehicles purchased with
federal stimulus money that
will be used by rural public
and community transporta
tion systems, according to
the Georgia Department of
Transportation.
Using funds from the
American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (ARRA)
of 2009, Jackson County will
get an 11-passenger shuttle
van with a wheelchair lift.
“These vehicles, purchased
with federal ARRA funds,
will allow rural providers
to continue providing this
important service at a time
when economic challenges
face all of us, while at the
same time supporting jobs
in manufacturing and distri
bution,” said Georgia DOT
Commissioner Vance C.
Smith Jr. in a statement.
The DOT will deliver the
vehicles over the next six to
12 months. The shuttle buses
and vans will cost a total of
$8.25 million.
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Cole honored by Pendergrass council
COLE HONORED
Pendergrass resident Wilbur Cole (R), 95, was honored
by the Pendergrass City Council on June 29. Cole, pic
tured with Pendergrass Police Chief Robert LaRocque
(L), was honored for his service as a Marine during
World War II. Photos by Sharon Hogan
system.
Denney said the state
unfroze Hoschton’s access to
the GEFA loan in early June.
The city will use the state loan
to fund the SCADA project.
Dudziak said problems with
the SCADA system date to
least 2006, when the author
ity was operating Hoschton’s
sewer treatment plant. The city
later handled its own facility
before once again returning its
operation over to the authority
in 2010.
Former Mayor Bill
Copenhaver signed a resolu
tion that was approved by the
council in June 2009 to seek
$100,000 of federal stimulus
funds for the SCADA project.
The city apparently didn’t
get federal stimulus funding
for the project and opted to
tap into its GEFA loan for the
improvements.
Hoschton’s engineer, John
Washington, discussed issues
with the SCADA system with
the newly-elected council and
mayor in November 2009.
Washington estimated that the
project would cost $100,000
to $150,000.
The authority estimated
in January that the improve
ments would cost $45,000 and
requested bids in February
after the SCADA system
failed again.
After the latest failure
in June, the authority told
Hoschton officials that the
SCADA system must be
improved.
“We’re basically trying to
close a chapter in the books,”
Dudziak said.
BY SHARON HOGAN
A LONG-TIME Pendergrass
resident was honored at the June
29 meeting of the Pendergrass
City Council.
The council signed a proc
lamation to proclaim June 29,
2010, as Wilbur Cole Day in the
City of Pendergrass.
Mayor Monk Tolbert said,
“Wilbur is the oldest living
member of our community at
95 years young. Wilbur has led
a distinguished and fascinat
ing life. He fought in two wars
for our country and served our
nation in the military for a great
many years.”
Cole served in the Marines
during World War II in the
Pacific Theatre. He fought in the
Battle of Saipan in June of 1944,
the Batde of Tinian in July and
August of 1944 and the Battle of
Iwo Jima in February 1945.
Cole has three children, Linda
McMullan, Larry Cole and Don
Cole; five grandchildren and six
great-grandchildren.
Tolbert said, “I once heard a
speaker talking about our war
heroes say, ‘A veteran is some
one who, at one point in his
life, wrote a blank check made
payable to The United States of
America, for an amount up to
and including my fife.’”
Tolbert described Cole as a
man who values fife and a man
who valued duty and honor and
understands sacrifice.
“It’s an honor to have you as
a member of our community,
Wilbur,” Tolbert said.
Several of Cole’s family mem
bers turned out for the occasion.
Also, on Saturday, July 3, a
Marine Staff Sargeant, accom
panied by Pendergrass Police
Chief Robert LaRocque, pre
sented Cole a Marine flag and
a vial of sand from Iwo Jima, at
his home in Pendergrass.
Railroad crossing to be closed in Jefferson
THE RAILROAD crossing on State Route
11 Business/Lee Street in downtown Jefferson
will be closed for upgrades on Monday and
Tuesday, July 12 and 13, if weather permits,
the Georgia Department of Transportation
announced.
The crossing will close by 9 a.m. Monday
and will remain closed around the clock until
work is completed Tuesday afternoon.
The crossing must be closed while the
concrete panels are removed and replaced. A
signed detour will be in place using U.S. 129/
State Route 11/Damon Gause Bypass.
“These upgrades will improve the ride for
vehicles as they cross the railroad tracks,” said
DOT district engineer Todd McDuffie in a
statement. “The old timbers will be removed
and replaced with concrete. The concrete pan
els will be more stable and smoother. It will
also last much longer with less maintenance.”
TRI-COUNTY
WEIGHT LOSS CHALLENGE
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$ 39 for 12 weeks
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All money paid out in cash prizes to winners.
NEW CHALLENGES START
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Last challenge winning weight loss -
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CAVENGER’S PORCH
I FT a CONSIGNMENT
9965 HWY 129 N TALMO, GA 30575
EXIT 137 ON 85 N. GO LEFT ON 129, WE ARE ON THE LEFT
IN THE ERA SUNRISE REALTY LOG HOME
CALL 706-693-0099 ASK FOR CHRISTINE
BIG SALE!! SATURDAY JULY 10
EXTENDED HOURS 8A.M. TO 5P.M.
SHIRTS/PANTS: MENS/WOMENS/CHILDRENS
$1.00 EACH
DRESSES/SUITS/COATS: $5.00 EACH
FURNITURE ITEMS UP TO 50% off
OTHER ITEMS AT GREAT DISCOUNTS
WE NOW HAVE
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,TH
YARD SALE SATURDAY AND BBQ TOO!!
NEW HOURS:
WED-FRI 12P.M. TO 7P.M.
SATURDAY 10A.M. TO 5P.M.
SUNDAY 12P.M. TO 5P.M.
Drawing Will Be Held July 30, 2010
Joy B. Chastain, M.D.,F.A.A.D.
Carol Anne Lindsey, PA-C
1500 Oglethorpe Ave., Suite 3000
Athens, Georgia 30606
www.JoyChastainDerm.com
706-543-1335
No longer valid after July 30, 2010
M