Newspaper Page Text
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 4, 2010
THE JACKSON HERALD
PAGE 3A
Nicholson mayor, council member clash
Wheeler wants to postpone vote until full council present
BY SHARON HOGAN
NICHOLSON councilman
Chuck Wheeler wanted to
wait to vote on two issues
at Monday night's meeting
because of the absence of
two council members which
apparently angered Mayor
Ronnie Maxwell.
“You have been on the
council eight months and we
have done nothing but go
backwards,” Maxwell told
Wheeler.
This comment was made
after Wheeler refused to
vote on two issues facing
the council because council
members, Howard Wilbanks
and Lamar Watkins, were
absent from Monday’s meet
ing.
Wheeler said he thought
the whole council needed
to be present to vote on a
change in the city’s ethics
ordinance and to vote on
forming a planning and zon
ing board.
The council has dis
cussed the ethics ordinance
at several meetings recent
ly. Maxwell is asking the
council to approve a change
that would eliminate the
requirement that an attorney
living in the city limits of
Nicholson must serve on the
ethics committee. Maxwell
told the council there is no
attorney that resides inside
the city.
At a called meeting in
June, the council agreed to
hire Commerce attorney,
Dylan Wilbanks, to serve
on this committee on an as-
needed basis at the rate of
$225 per hour. The motion
that was approved stated that
Wilbanks would represent
the city if an ethics com
plaint were filed against the
/■
1-f
MAXWELL WHEELER
city or a council member.
Following the June meet
ing, Wheeler and Watkins
met with Wilbanks about
serving on this committee,
reportedly without approval
from the council for such a
meeting.
Maxwell informed Wheeler
again at Monday’s meeting
that he will not approve the
bill from Wilbanks for this
meeting.
“I will not approve this bill
for payment,” Maxwell said.
Maxwell read a letter
from the Georgia Municipal
Association stating that it
would be O.K. to amend the
ethics ordinance to eliminate
the requirement for an attor
ney to serve on this commit
tee. The letter from GMA
also stated the city should
not pay an attorney to serve
on this committee.
City attorney Tricia
Leeman said on Monday,
“Hiring a third party attorney
to serve on this board will
create a conflict of interest.”
Leeman recommended
that the council change the
ordinance to allow the city
attorney to serve on the eth
ics committee and eliminat
ing the requirement that the
attorney must reside in the
City of Nicholson.
Council member Bobby
Crawford made a motion to
eliminate the requirement
about an attorney residing in
the City of Nicholson serv
ing on this committee. The
motion died for lack of a
second.
Crawford also made a
motion to approve forming
a planning and zoning board
consisting of six members
to make recommendations to
the council on zoning issues.
Wheeler said he would not
second this motion.
“I think we all need to be
here for this,” Wheeler said.
Another item on the agenda
was a request from Wheeler
on a policy regarding check
signing.
Maxwell said, “I would
trust Wendy (Carter, city
clerk) with my last dollar.
She is above board with
everything.”
Wheeler said, “I didn’t
accuse anybody of any wrong
doing.”
Maxwell said that was
the way it sounded when
Wheeler raised a question
about having the mayor
and a council member sign
checks.
Maxwell reported that
the city has had two audits
recently and nothing was
found in either audit.
“There is nothing to find,”
Maxwell said.
OTHER BUSINESS
In other business at
Monday’s meeting:
•the council unanimously
approved a variance request
from Carol Beauchamp that
will give her 18 months
to pave the parking lot at
the new restaurant located
on the corner of Mulberry
Street and Highway 441.
Beauchamp plans to put
gravel on the parking lot
until it is paved.
•librarian Kelli O’Clare
addressed the council about
staying on with the city as
the librarian with reduced
hours. O’Clare tendered her
resignation earlier due to
her husband being re-locat
ed with his job. O’Clare
said on Monday she is very
passionate about the City
of Nicholson and her job as
librarian and she would like
to continue in this capac
ity with a reduction in her
hours and the addition of
an assistant to fill in in her
absence. O’Clare said she
would reduced her hours
back to 30. “I will still be
able to do planning and
scheduling and most of the
programs are on Tuesday,
Wednesday and Thursday,”
O’Clare said. O’Clare pre
sented a proposal to the
council to reduce her hours
and hire Rebecca Scott as
the assistant. Scott lives
in the Center community
and currently works for the
Piedmont Regional Library
System in Statham and
Winder as needed. Wheeler
made a motion to approve
this change and Crawford
seconded the motion.
•O’ Clare presented a library
report to the council show
ing an increase each month
for the past three months
in library use. The number
of patrons in May was 798,
June was 1,010 and July was
1,145. Total circulation for
the month of May was 562,
June was 1,102 and July was
1,239.
•Maxwell read a thank-
you note from the Rev.
Mark Smith, North Georgia
Holiness Fellowship, thank
ing the city for the use of
the Community Center for a
recent event.
Potential bond deal could save
Jefferson Schools $11 million
BYBENMUNRO
A SPECIAL pro
gram could save
Jefferson Schools
millions towards
three long-awaited
construction proj
ects.
If Jefferson quali
fies for the state’s
qualified school bond pro
gram, the system would be
able to build — without
paying interest — a new
Jefferson High School class
room section, a fourth wing
at Jefferson Elementary
School and a new high
school basketball gym, sav
ing the system roughly $11
million.
The Jefferson Board of
Education (BOE) voted
unanimously last Wednesday
to apply for $22.7 million
worth of funds available
through the program.
“We don’t know if we’ll
get any of it, part of it or all
of it,” school board chair
man Ronnie Hopkins said.
“We would hope that we get
it all and that we can move
forward with the project.”
Under this bond deal,
Jefferson would make pay
ments over 17 years with no
interest. The construction
projects must be completed
within three years.
The annual payments
would go into a “sink
ing fund,” in which inter
est would be accrued and
applied to the principle.
Superintendent John
Jackson said Jefferson could
end up paying back a little
less than the $22.7 million
“depending on the amount
of interest those payments
draw down.”
If Jefferson didn’t get
the special bond, the same
work could cost $11
million more on the
open market, when
factoring in 4.25 per
cent interest payments
over 20 years.
“By doing it this
way, as a minimum,
we would save the
taxpayers $11 million
interest costs over the con
ventional way of financing
it,” Hopkins said.
Jackson offered another
way to look at it.
“If we were to get this in
the full amount, the amount
of money that would be
saved in the interest would
come close to paying for the
gym,” he said.
The JHS classroom build
ing would take the place
of the JHS annex - the
old middle school building
— which would be demol
ished. That project, which
includes relocating the
kitchen, would cost between
$3 million and $3.95 mil
lion.
The Jefferson Elementary
School expansion project
would include 12 class
rooms plus new kitchen and
cafeteria. The current kitch
en and cafeteria would be
converted into four class
rooms. This phase would
cost between $2.6 million
and $3.26 million
The new JHS gym would
be the most expensive
phase, running between $14
million and $16.2 million.
“These are three projects
we’d already talked about
doing,” Hopkins said. “We
had sort of pulled back
because of the economic
times. So it’s not anything
new. We had preliminary
plans already prepared for
all of this.”
JACKSON
Community Forest Master Plan to
be presented Aug. 12 in Jefferson
A DRAFT OF Jefferson’s Community Forest
Master Plan will be presented on Thursday, August
12, at 6:30 p.m. in the Jefferson Clubhouse, 302
Longview Drive.
Urban Forestry Consultant Connie Head of
Technical Forestry Services in Commerce will
review the current state of Jefferson’s community
forest and will then present an overview of recom
mendations and proposals that will enable the city
to achieve the desired state of its urban forest.
The Community Forest Master Plan repre
sents the culmination of the year-long Sustainable
Community Forest Project being coordinated by
the Heritage Tree Council and Ms. Head. Other
components of the project include: a continuation
of the city’s tree inventory, a city-wide tree canopy
cover measurement, two clean-up and education
events at Curry Creek Park, tree maintenance
training for city and school staff, evaluation, and
recommendations for revision of the city’s Tree
ordinance.
The public is invited to attend this meeting.
“This is a great opportunity for community lead
ers and citizens to ask questions about Jefferson’s
trees and to provide feedback on the Master Plan,”
organizers state.
This program is jointly sponsored by the City
of Jefferson and the Jefferson Heritage Tree
Council.
For information, contact Barbara Johnson,
Jefferson Heritage Tree Council Vice-chair, at
706-255-1064 or barbarajohnson3@hotmail.com.
I
Frank Ginn
Ready to Work for Jackson County
For over two decades, Frank Ginn has successfully
equipped North Georgia communities to attract quality
jobs. As our Senator, Frank will focus on improving our
lives here in Jackson County.
“I’ve personally worked with Frank to solve transportation
problems in Northeast Georgia. Frank understands how to
build successful industrial recruitment programs that create
jobs. I’ve endorsed Frank because Georgia needs his
expertise, values and work ethic in the State Senate. ”
- Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle
Extended unemployment benefits now being paid
STATE LABOR Commissioner Michael
Thurmond announced last week that federal
extended unemployment insurance benefits are
now being paid to 90,994 jobless Georgians.
The benefits were enacted by Congress and
signed by the President on July 22. The law
extends the qualifying time for eligible recipients
from June 2 through Nov. 30.
The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL)
transmitted benefit payments made through direct
deposit and checks have been mailed. The total
amount of payments made is more than $76.1
million.
Notifications have been sent to eligible claim
ants. There is no need for claimants to call or visit
their local GDOL career centers, unless they are
asked to by GDOL staff. For more information,
visit www.dol.state.ga.us.
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by electing conservative Frank Ginn for State Senate.
Frank