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THE JACKSON HERALD
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2010
Neighbors voice support
for WJ tow truck business
BOC denies
zoning request
BY ANGELA GARY
A LAND USE change
was denied in a 3-2 vote of
the Jackson County Board
of Commissioners Monday
night despite support from
area residents for the proj
ect.
The BOC denied the
request from Gary Harvin
for a land use map amend
ment on three acres at 50
Ward Road in West Jackson
to be changed from resi
dential growth to industrial
workplace. The proposed
use is a tow truck business
and several area residents
spoke in support of the proj
ect.
Commissioner Bruce
Yates made the motion to
deny the request because he
said the plans don’t conform
with the county’s compre
hensive plan. Commissioner
Chas Hardy seconded the
motion and chairman Hunter
Bicknell and Tom Crow
voted along with it. Dwain
Smith voted against the
motion to deny the request.
The comprehensive plan
designates the area as com
mercial.
“That comprehensive plan
came through the people,”
Yates said. “They indicated
how they wanted the area
to grow...My voting record
shows I’m very supportive
of the comprehensive plan. I
find it very difficult to make
a change in the document
that was just approved.”
Harvin. who is the prop
erty owner, presented the
request and the business
owner, Michael Drucker,
also spoke. The business,
Specialize Towing and
Recovery Inc., has been
located in a rental build
ing in Hoschton for several
years.
Drucker said the office
hours would be 9 a.m. to 5
p.m. and there would be no
outdoor storage or salvage.
Among the area residents
speaking in favor of the
request was Martha Martin.
“I know they are good
community people,” she
said. “I don’t have a prob
lem with it being in my
neighborhood.”
Adjacent property owner
Joel Keith said, “I have no
problem with him being
there and I'm the next door
neighbor.”
Three other people spoke
in support of the request.
No one spoke in opposition
to it.
“We certainly do appreci
ate small business,” Bicknell
said. “This just doesn’t fit
with our land use map.”
ANOTHER REQUEST
DENIED
The BOC also denied
another land use map change,
in a 3-2 vote, because of con
cerns that it doesn’t meet the
new comprehensive plan.
Commissioners Yates,
Hardy and Bicknell voted to
deny the request from Rusty
David for a land use map
amendment on .80 acres at
3115 Hwy. 15. Jefferson,
from residential growth to
gateway corridor. Crow and
Smith voted against deny
ing this request. Crow said
he has spoken with neigh
bors who support the change
because it would allow a
business to continue to oper
ate at the site.
David, who is the property
owner, wants the change in
order to allow a convenience
store and auto repair busi
ness to locate on the proper
ty. Several other businesses
have been on the site in the
past few years.
The current land desig
nation would allow a con
venience store or an auto
repair business to locate but
not both businesses. Smith
pointed out that no one has
been able to “make a living”
on the property by only hav
ing a convenience store.
Crow pointed out that
several other businesses are
located in the area and that
he has discussed the issue
with neighbors who support
the land use change.
OTHER ZONING
REQUESTS
In other zoning requests
at Monday’s meeting, the
BOC:
•approved a request from
Marcus Smith for a special
use permit to repair tractors
on four acres at 1329 New
Kings Bridge Road, Athens.
•approved a request from
Kevin Maxwell to rezone
33.9 acres at 4106 Jackson
Trail Road, Jefferson, from
R-l to A-2 in order to have
farm animals on the prop
erty.
•postponed until Dec .20
a request from Dotson Road
LLC to change the condi
tions on a project on 28 acres
at 558 Dotson Road to allow
the road to remain gravel
instead of being paved.
OTHER BUSINESS
In other business Monday
night, the BOC:
•named Jonathan Milford
to serve on the Jackson
County Airport Authority.
•approved a $12,742 con
tract with the Northeast
Georgia Regional
Commission to provide
“aging services” at the coun
ty senior citizen’s center.
•approved a contract with
ABM Janitorial Services,
the company that handles
cleaning of the courthouse,
to clean the Administrative
Building three days each
week for a cost of $1,852
per month.
•held a 10-minuted closed
session to discuss personnel.
No action was taken when
the meeting was opened to
the public.
Klimkowski honored by Experience Works’
BY SHARON HOGAN
JACKSON County resident
Richard “Rick” Klimkowski,
Jefferson, was recognized on
Tuesday. Nov. 9, at the Boys
and Girls Club of Jackson
County, Jefferson, for being
chosen as Experience Works’
Employee of the Year for the
state of Georgia.
Experience Works’ offers
a Senior Community Service
Employment Program (SCSEP)
that helps senior adults over the
age of 55 re-enter the work
force.
Brenda Smith, Experience
Works’ Employment Training
Coordinator, reported SCSEP is
celebrating its 45th anniversary
this year. There are currently
seven senior adults in Jackson
County enrolled in the program.
Smith added.
Experience Works’ SCSEP
partners with local non-profit
organizations and municipali
ties such as Boys and Girls
Club of Jackson County.
Jackson County Government
and Action, Inc.
Klimkowski was placed with
the Boys and Girls Club of
Jackson County during the pro
gram.
Smith reported there are 1.700
senior adult Georgians enrolled
in the program and Klimkowski
was selected as the champion
participant for the state among
the 1.700 enrolled.
Klimkowski said he worked
for a county mental health agen
cy, but due to state and federal
mr Aht#
9 ‘ A
KLIMKOWSKI RECOGNIZED
Jackson County resident Richard “Rick” Klimkowski, Jefferson, was recognized
on Tuesday, Nov. 9, at the Boys and Girls Club of Jackson County, Jefferson, for
being chosen as Experience Works’ Employee of the Year for the state of Georgia.
Klimkowski (second from left) was chosen out of 1,700 people in Georgia. During
the program Klimkowski was assigned to the Boys and Girls Club of Jackson
County. Also shown (L-R) are: Brenda Smith, Experience Works’ Employment
Training Coordinator (ETCA), Klimkowsko, Stacey Ramsey, Boys and Girls Club of
Jackson County Unit Director for Commerce, Teresa Bish, Experience Works’ ETCA
aide, and Michael R. Williams, Boys and Girls Club of Jackson County Executive
Director.
budget cuts his job was cut.
“I tried for nine to 12 months
to get a job,” Klimkowski said.
Klimkowski entered the
Experience Works’ SCSEP and
was able to sharpen up his old
skills.
“Experience Works’ is very
upbeat and very supportive,”
Klimkowski said. “It makes you
feel like you are back in the job
workforce again.” Klimkowski
said he is back working in men
tal health, at a different agency
with a different population.
Klimkowski was hon
ored with a plaque, at the
Boys and Girls Club of
Jackson County where he
was assigned during the pro
gram, in recognition of out
standing accomplishments
and overcoming significant
barriers to achieve work-
Photo by Sharon Hogan
place success.
Michael R. Williams, Boys
and Girls Club of Jackson
County Executive Director.
Stacey Ramsey, Boys and
Girls Club of Jackson County
Commerce Unit Director, and
children who attend the Boys and
Girls Club of Jackson County
were among those congratulat
ing Klimkowski Tuesday at the
center in Jefferson.
BOE hopes energy audit explains high power bills
BYBENMUNRO
A POWER bill mystery per
sists at Jefferson City Schools
and perhaps an audit will shed
some light on it.
School leaders have requested
a Georgia Power audit of month
ly electric consumption with spe
cific concerns about Jefferson
Middle School and Jefferson
Academy’s usage. School offi
cials have been stumped as to
why power costs at those build
ings have risen drastically this
year compared to last year.
The academy power has been
programmed to shutoff at 5 p.m.
each day, but the power bill at
that campus is up by 50 percent
(from $4,837 for Oct. 2009 to
$6,268 for Oct. 2010).
Meanwhile, the middle
school’s bill is up 75 percent
(from $4,969 in Oct. 2009 to
$7,256 in Oct. 2010).
JMS principal Brandy Corbett
said custodians began turning off
lights at 3:15 p.m. At 4:15 all
thermostats are checked.
Corbett said the school did
nothing different this past month
compared to previous months.
Perhaps one explanation,
Corbett said, could be the dras
tic difference between high and
low temperatures during the day
compared to last year. Corbett
said the variation has been as
much as 39 degrees some days
this year.
“I made a couple of calls
(Thursday) afternoon, and it was
stated to me that weather does
have quite a bit of an impact on
electrical use,” she said. “So the
fact that the highs and the lows
were much different in 2010 in
October versus those in 2009
might have made a difference.
Because our procedures that
we’ve done are no different this
month that what we’ve done in
the past few months.”
The time frame of the billing
could be a cause as well.
This year’s bill charged for
usage from Sept. 7 to Oct. 9,
when there were 18 90-degree
days. Last year’s bill at this time
charged from Sept. 22 to Oct. 17
when there were no 90 degree
days.
“So last year’s bill picked up a
cooler period of time frame than
this year’s bill picked up,” finan
cial officer Kim Navas said.
There were also three more
days on this year’s bill.
But other schools haven’t had
the same increases, which only
adds to the mystery.
“If you would have seen it
consistently among all the build
ings, you would have said, ’yeah,
that makes sense,’ and I could
validate it,” Navas said. “So I’m
giving you part of the answer,
but I don’t have the full answer
as to why it jumped 50 to 75
percent.”
The anomaly is bothersome,
Jackson said, “because this is
translating into money.”
“We’re doing more this year
than last year in terms of trying
to cut back and spending that
much more as a result of it,”
Jackson said. “I mean, we’d be
better off doing nothing.”
Strangely, the numbers for the
November bill, “look back in
line,” according to Navas.
City of Arcade’s 2011 budget down 40 percent
THE ARCADE City Council
voted last week to approve a
budget for 2011 which is down
40 percent over the current bud
get.
Under the new budget, the
city is looking at a total revenue
amount of $660,835, a decrease
from $921,584 in 2010. The
budget also calls for total expen
ditures of $657,120, down from
$903,569 in 2010.
One reason for the difference
is that SPLOST funds were not
included as part of the budget,
as those funds do not go for the
day-to-day operation of the city.
Under the new budget, the city
is expecting $539,335 in admin
istrative revenues, down from
$793,880 in 2010. They are
also expecting total administra
tive expenditures of $237,341,
down from $460,934 in 2010.
Also at last week’s meeting,
the city council:
•voted to approve a busi
ness license request by Moiz
Posnansky to operate MAMS
Business, Inc., a gas station
and convenience store at 3156
Athens Highway.
•voted to approve a busi
ness license request by Paulette
Adams to operate Depot Tavern
at 32 Peppers Street for the sale
of beer, wine and liquor by the
drink.
•voted to amend the city’s
Land Management Code to
allow residents in RRI, RR2
and RR3 to have livestock under
a conditional use permit.
•went into a closed meeting
for 20 minutes. No specific
reason was given for the closed
meeting. No votes were taken
after council members returned
to the open meeting.
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