Newspaper Page Text
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2010
THE JACKSON HERALD
PAGE 3A
Water sales peak at 100 million gallons for month
BY MARK BEARDSLEY
JULY WATER sales peaked
at almost 100 million gallons
during July for the Jackson
County Water and Sewerage
Authority.
The authority sold 97.9 mil
lion gallons — by far the most
in any month so far this year
— and billed $583,837 during
July, according to information
released at last Thursday’s
meeting of the authority.
The amount of water sold
during July was up more than
25 percent over June, even
though the authority lost 27
customers during the month.
The authority’s customer base
fell to 7,065, down from a
high of 7,161 in May.
The economic downturn not
only resulted in the loss of a
few customers due to foreclo
sures and other factors, but it
also led the authority to write
off $26,017 in bad debt for the
first six months of the year.
The authority has in excess
of $53,000 in accounts receiv
able that are a year old or
older, but finance director
Judy Davis said the authority
is hopeful of collecting about
half of that.
The move is not unexpected.
The authority had budgeted
for $60,000 in write-offs this
year. Davis said the authority
will continue to seek payment
of the accounts written off.
In other business Thursday
night, chairman Randall
Pugh presented a plaque to
former authority member
Andy Goodman “in recogni
tion and appreciation for your
dedicated service to Jackson
County.”
Goodman, the retired prin
cipal of East Jackson Middle
School, served three years but
asked to not be reappointed
when his term expired.
The authority also:
•approved a $6,075 expen
diture by manager Eric Clerk
for work already done build
ing a temporary access road to
a pump station in Traditions
of Braselton so a truck could
get in to pull a large lift sta
tion pump for repairs. The
authority will maintain the
road until a permanent access
road is built by the developer,
which Klerk said could be 10
years, given the economy.
•approved a $25,554 low
bid to Lanier Construction
Company to replace a piece
of equipment in the Oconee
River Water Reclamation
Facility’s aeration basin.
The device controls the flow
from the aerator to the set
tling basin. The expenditure
replaces a 39-year-old part.
•held a 21-minute closed-
to-the-public session to dis
cuss potential litigation.
•heard Klerk report that the
water pressure problems in
the Hoods Mill area are being
addressed manually pending
completion of a project to
install automatic valves in the
Apple Valley Road pump sta
tion. One key piece of equip
ment has yet to arrive, he
reported.
•heard Klerk report that
wastewater manager Mark
Dudziak and his staff had
resolved a major sewer inflow
problem in the upper Possum
Creek area. “At one time we
were getting heavy inflows
into the plant,” Dudziak told
the board. “I don’t think I can
get it much lower than that.”
•heard Klerk report that
water manager Stacey Jenkins
and his crew saved the author
ity $3,700 by repairing a
125-horsepower pump on
Highway 124. Klerk also said
staff saved $3,000 by doing
repairs in-house on an access
road to a pump station on the
Middle Oconee sewer line in-
house.
Water authority postpones change to PVC pipes
BY MARK BEARDSLEY
ON THE verge of vastly
changing its water service pol
icy, the Jackson County Water
and Sewerage Authority is in
no hurry to make a decision.
Members voted last
Thursday night to table a pro
posed policy that would allow
the authority to use high-
grade PVC pipe to run some
water lines. It’s always used
ductile iron in the past.
But with very little poten
tial of new customers through
residential development and
no SPLOST money to run
new water lines, the authority
is looking for a cheap way to
get county water to pockets
of yet-unserved county resi
dents.
Chairman Randall Pugh
pointed out at the board’s reg
ular meeting that the upcom
ing round of special purpose
local option sales tax - assum
ing the voters approve it Nov.
2 - will provide no funds for
the authority.
“This is the first SPLOST
since the authority was estab
lished that does not have funds
for extending infrastructure
into the county,” he said ...
“We certainly don’t have any
dollars to invest in running
new lines.”
The proposal from the
authority staff is to use PVC
pipe up to eight inches in
diameter to run from the
authority’s existing lines to
subdivisions currently being
served by wells. Because
PVC is less costly and can
be installed by the authority’s
staff, the cost per mile of line
is expected to cost 30 percent
or less of the cost of running
ductile iron.
There are two disadvan
tages to the proposal, Pugh
noted.
One is that it amounts to a
relaxation of the authority’s
construction standards. The
other is that the policy may
result in providing water, but
not fire protection, in some
areas.
Another problem is that sur
veys of target areas are incon
clusive in regard to whether
people want county water
enough to spend $1,540 for
a water tap (plus the cost of
running the service line from
the road to the residence).
The authority sent surveys
to several neighborhoods
deemed likely candidates
for the new approach. The
results ranged from virtually
no acceptance in two Arcade
neighborhoods to 12 “yes”
votes out of a 42-lot subdivi
sion in North Jackson - where
the authority needs a 50-per
cent response to justify the
cost.
Ironically, the Arcade
neighborhoods two years ago
had a number of wells dry
or nearly dry, and a number
of residents made inquiries
about getting county water,
only to be told that the author
ity had no money. Two years
later, their wells are full, con
tributing to antipathy about
the need for county water.
To date, the authority has
not determined exactly how
many target areas exist in
close proximity to its main
lines. Nor has it developed a
firm policy as to how it will
determine whether an area
will be fully served with lines
large enough to provide fire
protection.
One of the target areas
was a 12-lot subdivision on
Stephanie Road in North
Jackson. Four residents have
indicated they are willing to
accept county water. Engineer
Fred Alke said the author
ity needs all 12 to sign up to
provide a five-year payback
of the authority’s cost. He
also estimated that it would
cost $156,000 to serve the
neighborhood with ductile
iron pipe but only $36,000
if the authority uses eight-
inch PVC. Dropping to six-
inch PVC would reduce the
cost to around $30,000 - and
still provide fire protection
throughout.
Pugh has voiced support for
the policy, but also caution,
and he pointed out that two
members, Dr Narasimhulu
Neelagaru and Dave Ehrhardt
missed the Aug. 5 work ses
sion and were seeing the pol
icy for the first time.
“This is a fairly signifi
cant deviation from what
we’ve done in the past,” Pugh
observed. “We need to get
everyone comfortable with
where we’re going.”
Airport authority seeks FBO; mindful of long-term implications
BYBENMUNRO
THE JACKSON County
Airport Authority (JCAA) is
interested in bringing a fixed
base operator to the Jackson
County Airport but is also
concerned about the airport’s
long-term interests.
The airport authority met
for over an hour Friday to dis
cuss FBOs, who provide pri
mary service to aircrafts and
operators at or adjacent to an
airport. The JCAA has sought
bids from potential FBOs.
While authority chairman
Shannon Sell understands that
an FBO needs some level of
long-term security to gain a
return on their investment, he
is hesitant for the airport to
enter into a long-term deal.
“Where do you balance that
line to say, ‘OK you’re getting
enough’ and you’re not shoot
ing yourself in the foot?” Sell
asked.
Sell added that things could
change drastically 20 years
from now.
“We are just on the verge
— if this economy would
straighten out — of our posi
tion and plan to really take
off and bust wide-open,” Sell
said.
The authority spent much of
the meeting Friday listening to
John Taylor, a 20-year mem
ber of the Stephens County
Airport Authority, who was
invited to speak.
Taylor pointed to the poten
tial of the Jackson County
Airport, given its vicinity to
Atlanta.
“You could be a feeder field
here one of these days,” he
said. “I can see that with all
the traffic going in and out of
Atlanta, it’s going to happen.
You have to move it some
where.”
That’s one of the reasons
that Sell is reluctant to enter
a long-term contract. He used
Greene County’s airport as an
example, noting its current-
day traffic and fuel consump
tion.
“What a great deal that was
for the company that was the
FBO there for such a long
period of time,” Sell said.
Yates plans town hall meeting Sept. 14
BRUCE YATES, Jackson County Board of Commissioners District
3 representative, will hold a “town hall” meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday,
Sept. 14, at the Hoschton Depot about transportation and the special
purpose local option sales tax (SPLOST) vote in November.
Grove Recreation l0
Announces:
SOCCER REGISTRATION
LAST DAYS FOR REGISTRATION!
When:
Saturday, August 21 & 28
9:00 am -12:00 pm
Where:
Grove Level Baptist
Recreational Building
Cost:
$55 per player
(includes jersey, socks, and trophy)
Age Groups: 4-6, 7-9, & 10-12
FREE SOCCER CAMP:
August 28 for all kids 12 & under
Registration is open to the public.
Contact:
David Vaughn - 706-652-3742
david.vaughn@grovelevel.com
o„o,
JEFFERSON CITY SCHOOLS
General Fund Budget
FY ‘2011
REVENUES
FY11
School M&O Taxes
$ 5,903,405.00
Interest
1,500.00
Services Provided From LUA
100,000.00
Unreserved Fund Balance
788,882.00
Local
205,000.00
Total QBE Earnings
13,869,195.00
Total Categorical Grants
121,551.00
Total Local Fair Share
(2,416,658.00)
Equalization
160,455.00
ARRA
211,783.00
Austerity Reduction
(1,775,980.00)
Multiple General Fund Grants
76,597.00
Total
$17,245,730.00
EXPENDITURES
Instruction
$ 12,417,210.00
Pupil Services
504,239.00
Improvement Instructional Services
266,560.00
Educational Media
402,390.00
General Administration
763,994.00
School Administration
1,041,009.00
Business Services
115,936.00
Maintenance & Operations
1,264,920.00
Transportation
428,885.00
Support Services
15,586.00
Other Expenses
25,000.00
Total
$17,245,730.00
Revenues - Expenses
$ 0.00
Deal, Barnes to debate at
Brenau campus in Oct.
BOTH THE Democratic
and Republican candidates for
governor of Georgia have ten
tatively agreed to participate a
debate on Sunday, Oct. 10, at
Pearce Auditorium at Brenau
University, Gainesville.
Democratic candidate
Roy Barnes, former gover
nor, and Republican Nathan
Deal, former long-term con
gressman for north Georgia’s
9th Congressional District,
both received formal letters
of invitation from the uni
versity following informal
discussions with university
officials.
Barnes won the Democratic
primary in July and Deal
cemented his nomination in
an August Republican runoff
against Karen Handel.
The university plans to
open the 7-8 p.m. program
for statewide broadcast.
Details and final format
for the program will be
announced later. The uni
versity is arranging a well-
known, impartial public fig
ure to serve as moderator.
City of Pendergrass
PUBLIC NOTICE
A municipal election within the City of
Pendergrass will be held in the City of
Pendergrass, Georgia, on Tuesday, November 2,
2010 at the Pendergrass Civic Center, located at 22
Smith Bridges St., Pendergrass, Georgia 30567, to
elect two (2) members of the City Council. All
persons desiring to run for office of Council shall
qualify at City Hall in the office of the City Clerk,
beginning 8:30 a.m. on Monday, August 30, 2010
and ending at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September
1, 2010. Those desiring to run for the position of
the two open Council member positions shall pay
a qualifying fee of $35.00. All qualifying fees shall
be paid at the time of qualifying. Candidates must
be a Pendergrass city resident for at least 12
months prior to the election. The candidate must
be registered and qualified to vote in city elections.
Council seat - Judy Stowe
Council seat - John Pethel
This 28th day of July, 2010
Renee Martinez, City Clerk
NOTICE OF PUBLIC
HEARING
City of Nicholson, GA
Please take notice that the City of Nicholson has
received and prepared the following relative to the
zoning ordinance and map of the City of Nicholson.
The Nicholson City Council will conduct a public
hearing on this application on September 9, 2010, at 7:00
p.m., at the Community Center, 129 Lakeview Drive,
Nicholson, GA. The Nicholson City Council may vote
on the matter following the public hearing. The
Nicholson City Council may also discuss this matter at
its work session on August 19, 2010 at 7:00 p.m., at the
Community Center, 129 Lakeview Drive, Nicholson.
RZ 2010-02 - Rezone: Chris Tompkins, applicant,
Taras Place LLC, property owner, to rezone 1.25 acres
fronting on the north side of James Maxwell Road, from
R-l (Residential District) to C-l (General Commercial
Business District) for purpose of commercial kennel
(Jackson County Tax Assessor Map/Parcels 013 020H)
(Address: 590 James Maxwell Road).
Interested persons are invited to attend the public
hearing. The applications are on file and available for
public inspection in the Office of the City Clerk in City
Hall, City of Nicholson, 175 Lakeview Drive, 30565,
during normal business hours. For more information,
please call 706-757-3408.
This 18th day of August, 2010.
Wendy Carter
Nicholson City Clerk
Kids • Moms
, . United Met hory _
Barrow County’s Largest Sale'
0* * **
• Toys
• Strollers
• Games
• Books
• Clothes
• Maternity
• Nursery
• Bikes
• Car Seats
• Furniture
What?
Wall-to-wall bargains
(over 5000 #q. ft.) for Hull,
moms, and mom»-to-be on
the best quality items at fard
sale prises.
DON'T M65> THIS 5M£l
When?
August 21st
8:00 AM-2:00PM
LXATCPiH F6LL0W6HIP HALL
Fain or Shine
Air conditioned/Heated
Half price sale Noon to 1:00 PM
Where?
4_
V
Winder First United Methodist Lhurch
18o N Broad 5t. Winder (Across from Ingles)
For information or to volunteer,
call Allison dart: at TO-81/1-A514
Call for consigner code numbers: July 26-August 6
Christy (678-687-8072) - Last Names A-L
Leigh (770-725-2867) - Last Names M-2