About Pickens County progress. (Jasper, Ga.) 1899-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 25, 2022)
THURSDAY. AUGUST 25. 2022 PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS PAGE 3A New elections office location opens on Camp Road West end town hall meeting coming September 13 By Angela Reinhardt Staff Writer areinhardt@pickensprogress.com The Pickens County Elec tions Office has a new home in the same building as the Georgia State Patrol Office on Camp Road. On Friday, Aug. 19, the office was moved from its former location at Pioneer Road, which has been criti cized for being inadequate for an elections office. Critics said the building was too small, did not have enough parking, no public restrooms, and had a steep grade outside that made standing in line to vote difficult for many seg ments of the population. The announcement came at the Pickens County Board of Commissioners meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 17. Commission Chair Kris Stancil said there is signage at the building to direct vot ers to the correct area. “Look for the sign. If you go into the door where the sign is not there you’re going to be met with somebody armed in a blue uniform,” he said laughing. “Don’t vote there.” Stancil said moving ef forts went smoothly, with county crews doing much of the work which kept costs low. “We avoided having to pay movers,” he said. “We were able to use the internal staff for getting everything moved and set up...It’s the minimal amount of expense to actually convert a space. You’d be amazed at how well they all did.” Stancil specifically recog nized county grounds crew for going above and beyond. He called them “the hardest working individuals I’ve ever seen” and thanked them for their work. In their much-improved office, elections staff Rhonda Waggoner, Kay Hughes and Su pervisor Stacey Godfrey. The elections office would like to remind people that their Camp Road office is now open standard business hours for anyone wishing to request absentee ballots by mail for the upcoming general election. They also remind the public that all early voting will continue to be at the community center in Roper Park. And their old office on Pioneer Road will not be used for any elec tion/voting purposes. It has been permanently closed. West end town hall meeting announced A town hall meeting will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 13 at 6 p.m. the Hinton Commu nity Center in the west end of the county. “One of the first things I really wanted to work on if I was elected was improving the line of communication between the residents of the county and the board of com missioners,” said west dis trict Commissioner Josh Tippens. “Generally, the idea is that we give an overview of some projects that are going on in the county, specifically the west end of the county. We will provide an opportunity for some questions and answers at the end.” Commission Chair Stancil will attend. “So if you have any ques tions about the day-to-day operations of the county he can certainly answer those,” Tippens said. East district Commis sioner Josh Tatum will also attend, and announced he is planning a town hall in the east end of the county, with date and place to be an nounced. “If you can come see us we’d be glad to have you,” he said. Road department going full steam ahead Pickens Road Department Director Kirk Anderson called his department grand central station, with several projects in various stages of completion. •Cove Road patching/paving is under way. Paving began at the roundabout at the Steve Tate Road intersection. They patched/paved the westbound lane headed into Jasper city limits, then will turn around and work the east bound lane back to the Marble Hill area. In a later interview, Anderson noted that these patch repairs are temporary, and that a complete repaving of Cove Road should be in the budget next year. •Over half of Talc Mine Road was chip sealed. On the other half, utilities needed to be moved for the other portion of the road to be widened. He anticipates the project will be completed by the end of the year. •Patch work has been done on several streets where the road was damaged because utilities had to be re paired, including Twin Mountain Lake. Repairs were slated the week after the meeting on Henderson Mountain Road. HSe DAY SPA 770-894-9744 MASSAGE & FACIAL TREATMENT Pa.cka.ge 5 •Express facial .60 min massage *^ auna -lounge access •Shower At the August commissioners ’ meeting, Pickens County Fire & Rescue held the first promotion ceremony for firefighters who were promoted to the position of fire lieutenant. Pickens Fire Chief Tim Prather thanked the board of commissioners, then read a promotion warrant. Firefighters were also congratulated by Pickens Public Safety Director Sloan Elrod. (L-R) Pickens Public Safety Director Sloan Elrod; Lt. Paul Elder; Lt. Eric Irish; Lt. Johnathan Thomas; Lt. Walter Waddell; Lt. Andy Scott; Pickens Fire Chief Tim Prather. The new lieutenants will soon receive their assignment and will be in charge of their company/station during their shift. State to “supercharge” school-based health center program Governor Brian P. Kemp today announced that he will dedicate $125 million to su percharge Georgia’s School- Based Health Center Program and help strengthen healthcare options for fami lies across the state, including those in underserved and rural communities. The fund ing will be administered by the Georgia Department of Education through a grant program. Awardees will be able to use grants of up to $1 million per project to support the planning and start-up of new School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs) in ap proved Title 1 schools. "School-Based Health Centers are effective models for meeting the unique needs of students, families, and their communities," said Governor Kemp. "By invest ing these funds, we're paving the way for new centers across the state where they are needed most. This inno vative program is in line with our ongoing efforts to lower costs and increase access to quality healthcare coverage for everyone — especially those in rural Georgia — without assigning an unfair price tag to taxpayers." The goal of SBHCs is to provide students the best op portunity to succeed by ad dressing medical, behavioral, dental, and vision health needs. SBHCs are a proven, effective method for address ing those needs by meeting students where they are - in school, eliminating barriers like transportation, accessi bility, and cost for children and families living in com munities with healthcare ac cess challenges. SBHCs have also been proven to help communities by reducing avoidable or unnecessary emergency room visits, in creasing access to quality healthcare options, improv ing school attendance records, and increasing the likelihood of students and families seeking care. Addi tionally, SHBCs comprehen sive services support schools with safe reopening and COVID-19 mitigation strate gies. To learn more about SBHCs, please follow this link. Depending on the needs of the individual school and the local community, SBHCs provide the following com prehensive services: ■ Primary Care (including child wellness exams) ■ Behavioral health screen ing and counseling ■ Diagnosis and treatment of acute chronic illnesses and minor injuries (i.e. asthma, diabetes, and sickle cell) ■ Immunizations ■ Vision and hearing screenings ■ Lab tests ■ Sport physicals ■ Referrals to and coordina tion of outside services ■ Dental care (including fill ings, extractions, fluoride treatments, sealants, and restorative services) ■ Full-service vision center: eye exams and prescription glasses Commercial building for lease downtown 72 S. Main Street, jasper 1,600 square feet recently renovated Great for office space, retail, small restaurant. Call 770-710-6799 to discuss CRIMSON CANYONS & MESAS NATIONAL PARKS TOUR 10 days, departs April - September 2023 Las Vegas • Grand Canyon • Bryce Canyon • Zion • Capitol Reef • Arches & Canyonlands • and more — Experience the red rocks of these 6 iconic national parks. Travel through deserts, forests, mountains, and to the very edge of the Grand Canyon on this tour. promo code N7017 1-866-721-2490 * Prices are per person based on double occupanq plus $199 in taxes & lees. Single supplement and seasonal surcharges may apply. Add-on airfare available. Offers apply to new bookings only, made by 0130122. Other terms & conditions may apply. Ask your Travel Consultant for details. iflVIfc vacations METAL ROOFING DAWSON VILLE METAL PRODUCTS Your Metal Roofing Specialist BUY DIRECT in Dawsonville Painted Galvalume Metal Roofing 18 Colors In Stock Delivery & Contractor Referrals Available 82 Etowah River Road • Dawsonville 706-265-3099 • 800-519-4616 Consigning Women^S "A Unique Consignment Shop” 50% Off Summen (^teanoptce Sale fat t&e entOie s4cccyu<it Browse our racks Women’s Clothing, Plus Sizes, Formal Wear, Purses, Shoes, and Jewelry 706-253-6905 • 540 N. Main Street • Jasper Hours: Wed 11-5, Thurs 11-4, Fri & Sat 11-5
