Newspaper Page Text
WEDNESDAY, JULY 14, 2010
THE JACKSON HERALD
PAGE 3A
I?
Jackson <
Habitat
for humanity®
Playhouse Raffle
Buy a ticket and help build a house!
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v • A
PLAYHOUSE PRESENTED
Several Jackson County Habitat for Humanity board members turned out Tuesday
morning to present the playhouse to Christine Sinks (third from left), Buford. Sinks
bought the winning ticket in Habitat’s annual fundraiser. The playhouse was con
structed by the Jefferson High School Agricultural Education Department. Shown
(L to R) are: Samantha Berkowsky, Bill Berkowsky, board member, Sinks, Mary
Berkowsky, board member, Bob Reynolds, board member, Gordon Wilson, board
member, Julius Mack, board member, Mark Bradley, Habitat president, and Lauren
Dugan. Photo by Sharon Hogan
Jefferson schools appear on-target for AYP
By Ben Munro
IT’S GOOD news —
unofficially.
The Jefferson School
System appears to have achie
ved adequate yearly progress
(AYP) for 2009-2010. though
the official word won’t come
until August or September.
Summer graduates still have
to be accounted for, and sco
res from summer graduation
tests and writing test retakes
must still be processed.
Georgia High School gra
duation test and writing test
retakes are this week.
“Once we’ve received those
scores, that will be loaded
into the AYP, so we should
see some increases in our per
centages, hopefully, in that
area as well,’’ Jefferson asso
ciate superintendent Donna
McMullen said Thursday.
Data from CRCT retakes
has already been received,
with Jefferson improving its
passage rate in three areas.
In other school news, the
Jefferson central office antici
pates $1.8 million in reserves
when the books for 2009-2010
are closed. The BOE has also
heard that school SPLOST
revenue rose to $164,955 in
last month’s receipts, which
actually represent May sales.
“I don’t know what would
have been going on in May to
trigger that other than maybe
things may be rebounding,”
Jefferson superintendent John
Jackson said.
The system is collecting
an average of $159,000 per
month in sales tax money,
higher than the projected
$145,000 per month average.
In school transportation,
the system expects to run
14 morning bus routes and
17 afternoon bus routes this
school year.
In instructional updates, the
system leaders have conduc
ted postsecondary interviews
with recent Jefferson High
School graduates for fee
dback on how to better pre
pare current JHS students for
college. School officials will
conduct similar interviews
in December and have also
discussed arranging for exit
interviews with graduating
JHS seniors this spring.
“I think it will help enhan
ce our programs at the high
school,” McMullan said.
In facilities updates, the
school board approved $9,255
to remove carpet and old tile
floor in four classrooms at
Jefferson Elementary School
and install flooring. It also
agreed to spend $5,960 to
replace a malfunctioning,
15-year-old air conditioner at
the campus.
PERSONNEL
APPROVED
In personnel, the BOE
approved the hiring of Wendy
Hufford, (Jefferson Academy
custodian) and accepted the
resignations of Shannon
Renee Elmore (pre-school
teacher), Cassie Berryman
(part-time elementary school
paraprofessional), Angela B.
Jacobs (Jefferson Academy
paraprofessional) and Jimmy
Mitchell (high school cus
todian). It also appro
ved family-medical leave
for Tim Nichols (middle
school teacher), the trans
fer of Elizabeth Mitchell and
Melanie Hamrick from ele
mentary school special edu
cation paraprofessional posi
tions to Jefferson Academy
special education paraprofes
sional positions and approved
Rod Dollar as a community
football coach.
The BOE also heard that
Jefferson High School’s new
hours are 7:50 a.m. to 2:55
p.m. this year.
Nicholson to forward comp plan for review
BY ANGELA GARY
IN A BRIEF meeting
on Thursday night, the
Nicholson City Council
voted to send its proposed
comprehensive plan update
on to the Northeast Georgia
Regional Commission and
the Georgia Department
of Community Affairs for
review.
City officials and inter
ested citizens have been
meeting to put together
an update on land use and
other related issues for the
city. The state requires that
the plan be updated on a
regular basis.
“I think it is a good pro
posal,” Mayor Ronnie
Maxwell said of the update.
In other business, the
council:
•approved a resolu
tion of support on behalf
of the Nicholson Water
Association to seek a
Georgia Environmental
Facilities Association
(GEFA) grant to fund future
projects.
•agreed to transfer $30,000
from the general fund into a
CD that has $20,000 in it.
•agreed for the mayor to
sign off on the allocation
for proposed special pur
pose local option sales tax
revenue to be on the ballot
in November. The city pro
poses spending its portion
of the one-cent sales tax on:
roads/bridges, property pur
chase, existing debts, reno
vating the library, historic
preservation, equipment and
water/sewer.
Nicholson work
session to be
held July 22
THE NICHOLSON City
Council has moved the
date of its work session to
Thursday, July 22. It will
be held at 7 p.m. at the
community center next to
city hall.
The work session is usual
ly held on the third Thursday
of the month, which would
have been July 15.
Budget talks begin in Jefferson
Department heads present proposals to council
BYANGELA GARY
JEFFERSON leaders began
budget preparations Monday
night by hearing proposals
from three department heads.
Library manager Amy
Carlan, police chief Joe
Wirthman and fire chief
Bobby Gooch presented their
budget requests for the 2011
fiscal year. City manager
John Ward presented the bud
get request for solid waste.
As for the library, Carlan’s
proposed budget is $241,756,
up nine percent over the cur
rent budget of $221,267.
Carlan said the increases
include a security system,
column replacement and new
books and periodicals. The
state has cut the amount of
money given to libraries for
new books and periodicals,
Carlan said.
Wirthman’s proposed bud
get for the police department
is $1.8 million, up four per
cent over the current budget
of $1.7 million. Wirthman
said half of the increase is due
to a hike in the group insur
ance costs. Other increases
include building upkeep and
mobile/portable radios.
Gooch’s proposed budget
for the fire department is
$493,657, up slightly over the
current budget of $490,915.
The increases include sala
ries and wages and a thermal
imaging camera.
Ward presented the pro
posed solid waste budget of
$517,000, up two percent
over the current budget of
$503,887.
All of the budgets also
include a three percent raise
but the council has not decid
ed yet whether to approve
this.
OTHER BUSINESS
In other business at the
city council meeting Monday
night:
•Lesa Campbell, who has
coordinated the renovation
work at the Crawford W.
Long Museum that was fund
ed with a $200,000 grant,
gave an update on the proj
ect. She reported that all of
the work has been complet
ed, including roofing, brick
work, windows, electrical
work, safety improvements,
exterior construction, secu
rity cameras and exhibits.
•Susan Russell spoke on
the status of the tree grant the
town received. She report
ed that 111 trees have been
planted and 10 more will be
planted in the fall.
•Talmadge Davenport
reported on a project to place
a memorial on church prop
erty to honor the late Rev.
and Mrs. W.D. Cash for their
“dedication to the education
of black children for several
generations.” A committee
is working to locate a gran
ite memorial monument at
the Paradise AME Church
Memorial Garden, located
on Lawrenceville Street. The
former Jefferson City School
for black children was locat
ed on the memorial garden
site, Davenport said. The
committee is selling memo
rial bricks, at a cost of $25
each, to be located at the site
to fund the project.
•John Cowan presented a
proposal from Waste Pro to
increase the cost for residen
tial garbage pick up by 80
cents per month.
•Ward presented a pro
posed alcohol ordinance for
caterers and special events.
He asked the council to
review it and provide input.
The ordinance will be on the
agenda for a vote at the July
26 meeting, which will be
held at 6 p.m. at the civic
center.
Comprehensive plan, transportation
among topics at commissioners’ ‘retreat’
BY SHARON HOGAN
THE UPDATE of the com
prehensive plan and trans
portation issues were among
topics touched on when the
Jackson County Board of
Commissioners held a two-
hour “retreat” on Wednesday,
July 7, in Jefferson.
A brief look at some of the
issues addressed includes the
following:
•planning director Gina
Mitsdarffer reported that the
county’s comprehensive plan
update has gone through the
first review by the Georgia
Department of Community
Affairs. Two comments were
made by DCA on the update.
One was asking for notifi
cation on where the county
was on the service delivery
strategy, Mitsdarffer reported.
The other requires a little bit
of organization preparedness,
Mitsdarffer added. “DCA
was very positive about the
plan,” Mitsdarffer said. The
final review on the comp plan
update will be in August.
•Mitsdarffer advised that she
will bring a separate resolu
tion to the commissioners for
approval for a transportation
plan at the same time as the
resolution on the comp plan
update is presented. “There
is no state qualification that
you have to have a transpor
tation plan along with your
comprehensive plan or as a
stand-alone plan, but we have
one that we will submit for
adoption,” Mitsdarffer said.
Commissioner Bruce Yates
said, “I appreciate you includ
ing as many people as you
could on these plans.”
•Tom Page reported the
county is working on an
update to the solid waste plan.
A plan update is required
every five years. “We are try
ing to be pro-active on this,” he
said. “We know we will have
another plan due in 2014. The
new transfer station is look
ing real good. We are about a
month away from opening.”
Some issues still remain with
the new software program that
will eliminate staff from hav
ing to handle the scale tick
ets numerous times. The new
software will be more effi
cient, Page advised. “I want
to thank each and every one
of you for the interest in solid
waste, we have not had that in
many years,” Page said.
•Ricky Sanders, Jackson
County Parks and Recreation
director, reported that work
is under way to update the
county’s recreation plan.
Sanders advised Bob Betts,
who helped with the coun
ty’s 2002 plan, has taken the
information from the compre
hensive plan and information
from two public meetings to
compile in a proposed plan
to be presented at a meeting
later this month. The plan
addresses facilities, pro
grams, funding mechanisms
and what has been accom
plished thus far. “The Center
Park will be taken out of the
plans,” Sanders said. The plan
will include what is needed
during the next seven years.
“The plan will include more
passive areas, pet-friendly
areas, batting cages in West
Jackson and more facilities,”
Sanders said. “We hope to
have the plan finished by the
end of August. Commissiner
Dwain Smith said, “I want
to thank Ricky and his staff
for the East Jackson Park.
The walking trails are really
getting a lot of positive com
ments.” Commissioner Bruce
Yates said, “I have heard a lot
of positive comments about
the West Jackson Park, it is
being used every day.” Yates
asked county staff to amend
the work ready program to
include recreation plans.
•Sanders announced that
opening ceremonies for the
13-years-old Dizzy Dean
World Series are set for 7
p.m. on Thursday, July 15,
at Gresham Motorsports Park.
The games will be played at
Lamar Murphy Park.
•Sanders also announced
that opening day at the
West Jackson Park is set for
Saturday, September 11.
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