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THE JACKSON HERALD
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 7, 2017
Emergency services
reorganization proposed
By Kyle Funderburk
Several positions inside the Jackson County Emergency
Services Department are requested to be eliminated, oth
ers reclassified and new positions to be created.
If approved, the positions of Emergency Services Direc
tor, E911 Manager, EMA Manager and Radio Systems
Administrator will be eliminated.
The E911 Administrative Assistant position will become
the E911 Assistant Director, and the EMS Manager will
become the EMS Assistant Director.
The new positions will be the E911 Director, EMS
Director. EMA/Radio Communication Director and EMA
Operations Technician.
City Manager Kevin Poe recommends that Lou Ann
David be promoted to E911 Director and Tommy Kesler
be promoted to EMA Director. Jason Baker is recom
mended to continue as acting EMS Director.
The reorganization will go into effect on July 3 if the
BOC approves the request at its next meeting on June
19. The reorganization will cost the county an additional
$22,000.
Historic trust may help with Oxford building sale
By Ron Bridgeman
Commerce might seek an agree
ment with the Georgia Trust Invest
ment Group to market the former
Oxford building.
Two representatives of the group
told council Monday night it could
help spread the word about the
building to developers interested in
historic development.
Ben Sutton said the city could
think of the group as “the realtor of
last resort.”
“We have a lot of opportunity to
get your business out to a wider
audience.”
Sutton said the preservation group
knows the developers interested in
historic development.
He said a “lot of economic incen
tives” exist for developers in that
field. Federal and state tax credits
and freezes on property taxes are
among those, he said.
The historic preservation group
typically has a six-month option
with local government to market a
piece of property, Sutton said. That
is extended as needed.
City Manager James Wascher said
Downtown Development Direc
tor Natalie Thomas and he would
talk with the historic preservation
group about the details of a contract.
Action on the matter would not
occur before July.
In other business, the council:
•heard reports about an amended
fine schedule for municipal court,
buying new software for the munici
pal court and a new contract for pro
bation services. Police Chief Zack
Ardis said the amended fine sched
ule has been a two-month project
between his office and the munic
ipal court. Fines for some offenses
could nearly double. Mayor Clark
Hill said he did not believe the city
had updated the schedule in his
eight years. Ardis said it probably
should be reviewed every five or six
years. The software will cost $7,500
plus $5 in court costs for each fine.
The municipal court now writes all
orders and receipts by hand.
•heard details about memoran
dums of understandings with the
Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and
the Jefferson Police Department.
The MOUs would allow Commerce
police officers to work outside the
city when the two other departments
request assistance.
•heard a request to reappoint
Linda Potts to the Commerce Hous
ing Authority and one to close Little.
Oak and Pine streets for fireworks
on June 30 as part of the July 4 cel
ebration.
BOE approves tentative budget
Newspaper
honored by GPA
Mainstreet Newspapers won 38 Better Newspaper
Contest awards from the Georgia Press Association last
weekend, including two papers in the top General Excel
lence category.
The Jackson Herald, Jefferson, and the Madison County
Journal, Danielsville, won third place in General Excel
lence in their respective circulation categories, the associ
ation’s top honor.
The awards were presented at the GPA’s annual conven
tion held at Jekyll Island.
The Jackson County Board of Education approved a
tentative budget for FY2018 of $69.8 million in its gen
eral fund Monday night.
No tax hike is included in the budget. If the system
sees a larger growth than anticipated in its tax digest,
officials said a slight property tax reduction could hap
pen.
The BOE expects to take in about $30 million in local
property taxes in the budget out of $70.4 million in total
projected revenues (excluding ELOST taxes for capital
projects.) The final property tax rate won’t be set until
later this year.
The system expects to have between $6-$7 million in
reserves at the end of the current fiscal year on June 30.
WEST JACKSON
HIGH SCHOOL PROPERTY
Movement toward a new high school in Braselton
took a small step forward Monday night after the BOE
approved the purchase of a house and three acres con
nected to the system’s property on Hwy. 332.
Even so. the actual construction of a third county
high school is still several years away as the system
attempts to gather enough funds to begin the project.
The overbuilding of classrooms on the East side of
the county in the early 2000s has saddled the BOE
with significant debt payments, financially tying
its hands in attempts to build new facilities on the
fast-growing West side of the county.
NEWSPAPER AWARDS
THE JACKSON HERALD
3rd Place General Excellence
1st Place Best Sports Section by Ben Munro
1st Place Best Spot News Photo by Ben Munro
2nd Place Best Spot News Photo by Alex Pace
1st Place Best Headline Writing by Alex Pace
2nd Place Best Community Service by Mike Buffington
3rd Place Best News Photo by Wesleigh Sagon
3rd Place Best Sports Photo by Ben Munro
3rd Place Best Sports Feature Photo by Clark Buffing
ton
2nd Place Best Photo Essay by Wesleigh Sagon
BRASELTON NEWS
1st Place Best Feature Photo by Wesleigh Sagon
2nd Place Best Local News Coverage by Alex Pace
3rd Place Best Layout and Design by Alex Pace
3rd Place Best Business Writing
BARROW NEWS-JOURNAL
1st Place Best Hard News Writing
1st Place Best Sports Column by Chris Bridges
1st Place Best Sports Section
2nd Place Best Local News Coverage
2nd Place Best Sports Photo by Jessica Brown
BANKS COUNTY NEWS
Commerce council to vote on budget June 19
By Ron Bridgeman
The Commerce City Council will
consider a budget that is slightly
less than the current one at its next
meeting June 19.
Council will consider adopting
the 2017-18 budget of nearly $27
million total and a general fund of
about $7 million.
Those are about $100,000 and
$50,000 respectively less than the
current budgets.
The city’s tax rate of 4.02 mills
is not expected to change. The new
fiscal year begins July 1.
Public comments on the budget
were heard Monday night at the
work session of council. One res
ident, Tim Redmond, asked ques
tions and offered comments.
Redmond asked about the capital
purchases of a street sweeper and
pumper truck for the fire depart
ment in the proposed budget. The
street sweeper is projected to cost
$155,000 and the fire truck will be
about $550,000.
City Manager James Wascher
said the city’s street sweeper is so
old the city spends more time on
it “being repaired than it does on
the streets.”
He said most of the cost of the
fire truck will be paid through a
Federal Emergency Management
Administration grant.
Redmond also asked about a
proposed $450,000 for a new com
munity park and wanted to know
its location and details.
Wascher said the park is in the
“concept stage” and the city does
not yet have the land. He said it
likely would include “multipur
pose” fields for lacrosse, soccer
and football. He noted the city
schools have shared their facilities
with the city but those are being
overused because of expansion of
programs.
The council has made little pub
lic comment about the budget.
Comments were made at the May
work session about giving city
employees a cost-of-living raise.
No pay hike is in the budget.
Wascher said he concentrated
on keeping the city’s insurance for
employees at the same level. He
noted the city is facing the sec
ond of three years of a 12 percent
increase in health insurance.
Wascher said after Monday’s
meeting that it likely would be July
or August before council considers
pay increases for employees.
Pendergrass subdivisions may be revived
1st Place Local News Coverage
1st Place Best Sports Writing by Charles Phelps
2nd Place Best Sports Writing by Cameron Whitlock
2nd Place Best Spot News Photo by Angela Gary
2nd Place Best Layout and Design
3rd Place Best Spot News Photo by Wesleigh Sagon
3rd Place Best Sports Photo by Charles Phelps
3rd Place Best Sports Section by Charles Phelps
3rd Place Best Business Writing by Angela Gary
MADISON COUNTY JOURNAL
3rd Place General Excellence
1st Place Best Special Issues
1st Place Best Feature Writing by Zach Mitcham
1st Place Best Editorial Page
2nd Place Best Sports Column by Zach Mitcham
2nd Place Best Religion Writing
3rd Place Best Page One
3rd Place Best Education Writing
3rd Place Best Sports Feature Photo by Dallas Bordon
3rd Place Best Layout and Design
By Kyle Funderburk
Two Pendergrass sub
divisions that were start
ed but never finished
almost a decade ago
might be revived in the
near future.
The subdivisions were
abandoned after the
developers went bank
rupt after the economy
tanked in 2007. Now.
new developers have
taken an interest in them.
When the projects
were abandoned, the
streets and cul-de-sacs
had already been fin
ished and paved, but
sidewalks, parking and
lights were never done
and no lots were sold.
The city expects the
two projects to add 420
new homes to Pender
grass when they are com
pleted.
OTHER BUSINESS
In other business, Pen
dergrass has realigned its
city administration.
Brant Erickson was
promoted to Chief of
Police. Former police
chief James Larocque
will continue to be a
Pendergrass Police Offi
cer, but will also serve as
assistant city manager to
Robert Russell.
Russell said he believes
this realignment will help
as Pendergrass begins to
grow at a more rapid rate.
Russell also mentioned
that Pendergrass may be
getting some new busi
nesses on Hwy. 129.
2018 PROPOSED
BUDGET
Although Pendergrass
budgets run from Janu
ary 1 to December 31.
Jackson County is asking
its cities to submit their
budgets for the 2018 fis
cal year that begins on
July 1.
The proposed budget
expects Pendergrass to
bring in $339,000 in rev
enue for the 2018 fis
cal year, most of that
in taxes and fees. It
also expects the town to
spend $338,950 with the
largest amounts going to
the city administrator’s
office, city hall and for
public safety.
Milene Argo, M.D
St. Mary’s is pleased
to welcome Milene Argo,
M.D. to Athens Internal
Medicine Associates and the
St. Mary’s Medical Group.
Dr. Argo is now accepting
new patients.
Athens ^internal Medicine Associates
Y <0>ST. MARY’S MEDICAL GROUP
RESOURCE MEDICAL | 1500 Oglethorpe Ave., Suite 400C, Athens | 706.548.8600