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About Jackson herald. (Jefferson, Jackson County, Ga.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (April 12, 2023)
PAGE 8A THE JACKSON HERALD WEDNESDAY, APRIL 12, 2023 Easter Egg-Stravaganza at Galilee Several Easter egg hunts and parades that were planned this past Saturday were either cancelled or rescheduled due to rain. Hoschton and Jefferson both cancelled their events. The City of Commerce has rescheduled their egg hunt to Wednesday, April 12, at 7 p.m. at the First Baptist Church of Commerce. At least one Easter event continued on as scheduled, including the Easter event at Galilee Christian Church pictured here. The church was able to host its event with the help of its Family Life Center. Maysville library hosts Easter egg hunt Siblings Willa and Oakley Tatum enjoy a visit with the Easter bunny at Mays ville Park. The event was hosted by the Maysville Public Library on April 1. Carlee Hill stops to talk to the Easter bunny at the Maysville Public Li brary Easter egg hunt on April 1. Harper Cruce enjoys the Easter egg hunt in Maysville. David Farmer was a lucky winner of a prize basket at the Easter egg hunt at Maysville City Park. Jefferson continued from 1A prior to the start of summer activities. “We’ve been talking for four years now about a place for seniors to have a home,” councilmember Clint Rob erts said about a permanent gym space for the program. “Our senior community is growing. If you look at our administration reports, our Silver Sneakers program is growing and I want to ensure that we "re serving those peo ple who are coming here and growing with our program.” The expansion would also provide more capaci ty for other popular leisure activities and the recreation department’s continued part nership with the Jefferson school system. The expansion project would cost an estimated $3.5 million, which is about $2 million less than previous plans to build a separate multipurpose facility on the eastside of the city. City manager Priscilla Murphy said the expansion could potentially be bond ed with the swimming pool project planned for the same site to further cut down costs. Morris also presented a proposal to add pickleball courts and a dog park to Jef ferson’s City Park. His proposal includes four pickleball courts, a dog park with obstacles and the possi bility of additional parking. The project would cost an estimated $550,000 and be located at the site of the old tennis courts. Before making a decision on either of the proposals, Jefferson plans to do more research on civil engineering and cost estimates, as well as parking issues related to par ticipation. The projects are not bud geted for FY23 and there is only about $700,000 left over from the original mul tipurpose center plans, Mur phy added. Mayor Jon Howell noted the importance of funding and completing projects that are already budgeted priori ties. “One of the things I don’t want to do is make promises that we "re going to do some thing in 2023 that is not the highest priority,” he said. “I love dogs. I grew up play ing tennis; I’m sure I could figure out pickleball with a little bit of experience. These aren’t things I’m against — I’m just wondering out loud to the group are these the top priorities that we’re trying to deploy with the finite funds that we have in the next cal endar year? I understand the frustrations that are real and raw and palpable, but I also don’t want to put these projects in front of some of the blocking and tackling of parking and other logistics that we have to do as a city.” “[Silver Sneakers] have been disenfranchised by our lack of permanent space for them and I’m tired of that,” Howell continued. “I’m ready to deal with that. With that said, people also expect us to do the things that mu nicipalities are charged to do — whether it’s public safety, whether it’s roads. We just can’t put the horse before the cart and what we have to do right now, which is a budget that has already been approved. It has line items on it and this, to my recollection, is not on the page.” “I want to make sure that we’re not being frustrated and just rushing to do some thing versus doing the right something.” PARKING, NATATORIUM The council also received updates about plans for both downtown parking and the planned city natatorium (swimming pool). The city is looking at civil engineering drawings and the allocation of funds for two extra parking lots near existing parking, an ADA-accessible sidewalk connected to the lots and a walking trail. Parking is a priority for the downtown district as community events and com merce continue to grow. The natatorium project is currently out for bid and city plans to have a better idea of actual costs at the May 8 council meeting. JCHS Gillespie approved as Melissa Gillespie has been named princi pal of Jackson County High School. Gilles pie will begin her new role within the school this summer. She currently serves as an assis tant principal at JCHS. The Jackson County Board of Education approved the move at its April 10 meeting. Gillespie will replace Jason Wester, who was promoted to Assistant Superintendent of Stu dent Services. “Our school system is thrilled to announce Mrs. Melissa Gillespie as our newest princi pal. The job of a high school principal is one that takes dedication and ownership and Mrs. Gillespie proved throughout the interview process that she is the perfect fit for Jackson County High School,” JCSS Superintendent Dr. Philip Brown said. “I look forward to working with Mrs. Gillespie during her transition to principal and supporting her as she leads a growing, robust high school on our west side,” Gillespie has been with Jackson County High School since 2018, serving as a teacher for one year before moving into the role of assistant principal. She served as an assistant principal at John T. Hoggard High School in North Carolina from 2016 — 2018, before relocating to Jackson County. new JCHS principal “Steve Jobs once said, ‘Your work is go ing to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.’ I’m blessed to have a job where I love what I do and I’m honored to work at JCHS,” said Gillespie. “I consider it a privilege to continue the tra dition of making our school excellent.” Gillespie holds a Bachelor’s Degree in History and Political Science from the Uni versity of North Carolina Chapel Hill. She obtained her Master of School Administra tion from UNC at Wilmington in 2016. She was named the State Teacher of the Year in Southeastern North Carolina for the 2013-14 school year. Gillespie said she is excited to work with the community at Jackson County High School. “I am most looking forward to being able to collaborate with teachers, families, com munity members, and many other stakehold ers to make a difference in the lives of the stu dents at our school and in our community,” Gillespie said. Gillespie and her husband. Simon Gilles pie, have two children — Silas and Paisley. Growth continued from 1A increased traffic to the need for new schools, have come to dominate many local government agendas in both Bar- row and Jackson counties. The growth has also sometimes sparked increased tensions between government agencies in the communities over service issues and over allegations of lightly-regulated growth and its impact on nearby schools. Overall, the state grew by 1.7% over the two-year period. Much of that growth was in North and North-Central areas of the state and along the coast. Much of Southwest Georgia lost population and core Atlanta Metro counties were stag nate. Nationally, Idaho, Montana and Flor ida saw the largest population increases while New York, Illinois and Louisiana has the most population loss. Commerce continued from 1A be 2 square foot per chicken) would need to match the appearance of the existing residential structure. “So if your residential structure is brick and wood, you need to have brick and wood on your chicken coop just so that it looks cohesive,” planning and zoning administrator Jordan Shoemaker told the council during the ordinance update on April 3. Selling of eggs or meat would be pro hibited. Chickens will need to be registered with the city’s planning department for $150 for a period of five years. That can be renewed indefinitely. Shoemaker estimates about 50 resi dents currently have chickens in the city. If the change is approved, code enforce ment will go out to those properties, de liver the ordinance and notify them that they have 30 days to get into compliance. Fines for those who don’t comply are proposed at $1,000. Since the city government itself doesn’t have to adhere to the ordinance, the ducks at the Veteran’s Park pond won’t be im pacted by any changes. Now Hiring for Production and Assembly A Family Atmosphere Work Environment in Pendergrass, GA HARRIS DOOR AND MILLWORK Average wage $950.00 paid weekly Monday - Friday 6 a.m. - 4 p.m. Closed Saturday and Sunday • Full Benefits Package • Health Insurance (Starts within 30 days or less) • Dental and Vision (Starts within 30 days or less) • Matching 40IK (Starts Day 1) • 3 weeks paid vacation (Accrual Starts Day 1) • Long Term Disability Insurance (Company Paid) • Short Term Disability Insurance (Company Paid) • 1 hour lunch break and two 15 minute breaks per day (5786 Hwy. 129 N, Suite A) Pendergrass, GA Call 706-693-0060 (Jennifer) or email HR@harrisdm.com
