Newspaper Page Text
The True Citizen, Wednesday, July 21,2021 — Page 3
I TODAY 1
| THURSDAY
■ FRIDAY
SATURDAY |
SUNDAY
BURKE
COUNTY'S
~ _ _ ^
FIVE-DAY
FORECAST
Partly Sunny
50% Chance of Showers and
Thunderstorms
Mostly Sunny
50% Chance of Showers anc
Thundertorms
Sunny
40% Chance of Showers and
Thunderstorms
Sunny
30% Chance of Showers
and Thunderstorms
Sunny
87° 171°
90°
72°
93° 71 0
93°
71°
92172°
Forecast of the National Weather Service
Georgia Power asks for
increase in electric bills
Delays in the commercial operation of Plant Vogtle’s Unit 3 could attribute to a 3% increase
in electric bills.
Airport receives
another boost
SHELLIE SMITLEY • thetruecitizen.shellie@gmail.com
The Federal Aviation Administration has offered Burke
County $22,000 in American Recovery Plan Act funding,
to be received through the Georgia Department of Trans
portation. The county intends to apply the funds toward
operating expenses and staff salaries. The board unani
mously approved to adopt a resolution July 13, authorizing
the application for the money and to allow the county to
execute a contract with GDOT for the funding.
“We can turn that airport into an asset, where it has been
a liability,” County Manager Merv Waldrop said.
Lively to nominate
new panel member
If a recent request is ap
proved, electric bills will in
crease approximately 3%,
effective one month after Unit
3 is in commercial operation.
According to state statute,
rates shall be adjusted to in
clude the costs related to Unit 3
and common facilities deemed
“prudent.”
Last month, Georgia Power
submitted an application to
Georgia Public Service Com
mission requesting permission
to adjust the base rate. The
power company cited overruns
due to delays.
Georgia Power requested
an increase of approximately
$369 million on an annual
basis combined with a reduc
tion of the Nuclear Construc
tion Cost Recovery tariff of
approximately $134 million,
resulting in a net increase
of $235 million. The NCCR
tariff was set up to finance the
construction of Units 3 and 4
during construction through
a separate rider on customer
bills. It will continue until the
units are in base rates.
Plant Vogtle is still in the
process of expanding to in
clude the reactors Unit 3 and
Unit 4. Originally, the units
were intended to be completed
by the end of this year, but the
deadline has been extended
to the summer of 2022 at the
earliest.
The power company con
tracted with Westinghouse
to insulate the company and
customers from some over
runs, but that was annulled
after Westinghouse filed for
bankruptcy. Georgia Power is
now looking at its share of the
project increasing to approxi
mately $11 billion, up from
approximately $6 billion.
According to the official
application, the company’s cur
rent Fuel Cost Recovery tariff
rates, effective beginning June
2020, contemplated Vogtle
Unit 3 achieving commercial
operation in November 2021.
“This means that custom
ers are already receiving the
benefit of an estimated $44
million of fuel cost savings
attributed to Unit 3,” Georgia
Power stated.
SHELLIE SMITLEY
thetruecitizen.shellie@gmail.com
Wayne Lively submitted his
resignation from the Burke
County Planning Commission
because he is moving out of
the county. Tradition has it that
each commissioner nominates
a member to represent his/her
district on the commission and
the full board votes to make the
appointment. Wayne Lively
was representing District 5,
which leaves it to Commis
sioner Art Lively to nominate
his replacement.
Lively asked the panel to ta
ble the issue until next month.
He has someone in mind, but
doesn’t have permission to of
ficially nominate the person,
he said.
Camper stays slashed from land code
SHELLIE SMITLEY
thetruecitizen.shellie@gmail.com
The Board of Commission
ers unanimously voted to ap
prove the first reading of the
amendments to the Land De
velopment Code July 13.
Commissioner Tommy Nix
suggested that the County
remove all time limits from
the proposed amendments
that define how long people
can stay in campers. He also
suggested that the panel strike
out the section that pertains to
living in an RV. Nix pointed out
that people living in RVs will
still need to have a septic tank,
water and power in order to be
compliant.
“Basically, what we are say
ing is that it is going to be very
hard to have time limits on
certain areas,” Commissioner
Art Lively said. “It is going
to be impossible to police and
enforce.”
The ordinance will define
campgrounds according to
commercial, recreational and
sporting but will not define the
length of time that people can
reside in campers.
The board will revisit the
issue next month when they
vote on a second reading that
includes the changes Nix sug
gested. The new version is
posted on the county’s website.
In other news, the board
unanimously approved another
first reading of an amendment
to the Land Development Code
that requires that new parcels
that result from zoning changes
will need to be recorded in the
Clerk of Court’s office within
60 days of approval of the zon
ing change. Failure to record
the plats will negate the zoning
approval.
“What we found was that
parcels were divided in order to
rezone and then they didn’t re
cord the plat and then it became
difficult to determine where
the zoning line fell,” County
Manager Merv Waldrop said.
Continued from front
He did not get hospitalized,
but ended up in an emergency
room twice. The less-severe
case still took a toll on him. He
knows several people who died
from the virus.
He said, “it takes a mental
toll to think that I could have
been one of the many who
didn’t make it. It’s a mental
state- of- mind that sticks with
you.”
Bruce said he felt like he
faced death. It caused him to
ask himself if family mem
bers were prepared to move
on without him. It prompted
Delays
said “We are probably going
to have to do these as two
separate projects. We can’t
hold up Shadrack St. another
12 weeks.”
Engineering estimates have
projected that the new project
will cost as much as $250,000.
“One of the huge hold-ups
of this project has been the
supply chain,” Ellison said.
“The contract was ‘let’ a good
while ago, and they ordered the
pipe, but it’s taking forever to
prayer and soul searching
while he fought for his life.
“I remember lying in the bed
and thinking to myself that I
might not make it,” he said.
“I had never been that sick
before.”
It was a different kind of
illness than a cold or seasonal
illness, he said. It affected his
entire body. His mother agreed.
The decision to get vacci
nated with the Moderna vac
cine was an easy choice for the
mother and son. Bruce’s wife,
who suffers from Lupus, an
autoimmune disease in which
get things.”
Waiting for new pipe may
not be Shadrack’s only issue,
Utilities Committee member
Dick Byne said he would like
to see the timing changed on
the stop light that sits on the
corner of Shadrack and 6th
Streets.
“It’s at 30 seconds, can we
cut it to 15 or a blinking light,”
he asked the other members.
“We have traffic problems
at Liberty and 6th Streets.
the body’s immune system at
tacks healthy tissue, also got
vaccinated after she recovered
from the virus. None of them
experienced side effects from
the vaccine.
“I didn’t want to be that sick
ever again,” Hosie said. “That
is one sickness I never want to
have again. I have never been
that sick before. You don’t
want it.”
Bruce also said he and his
wife fear ever getting that sick
again.
“It was a no-brainer for us,”
he said of getting vaccinated.
Continued from front
It is dangerous, all lanes are
stopped.”
City Manager Valerie Kirk
land said the Department of
Transportation looked at the
light and found no issues.
“Call me, I will be glad to
show them,” Byne remarked.
“At 5 o’clock there is a real
problem. Now if he is there at
3 o’clock in the morning, that
is different.”
I I I I
CROSSWORD
I FreeDailyCrosswords.com
l ACROSS
I) Make scholarly revisions
6) Fan part
II) Mongrel
14) San (California city)
15) "Nevermore" speaker
16) Gene material, briefly
17) Testy garden flowers?
19) Wood-shaving tool (var.)
20) Fuss
21) Came in first
22) Feed lines to
23) Inept
27) Followed obsessively
29) "Close Encounters" craft
30) Nevada's second-largest
city
32) Keystone State port
33) Chop, as tree limbs
34) Follows recipe directions
36) Guessed wrong, e.g.
39) Artist's apartment
41) Cook, as crabs
43) Not quite closed, doorwise
44) Brew, in a teapot
46) Deep sleep
48) Title of respect, abroad
49) Customer come-on
51) Effervescent beverage
52) Shed tears
53) Private's privy
56) Abolishes or cancels
58) Jackie 0's spouse
59) Org. quoted on toothpaste
tubes
60) "Go team!"
61) Carving mo. in theU.S.
62) Laughing very hard, in slang
68) Docs in a bloc
69) Disclose
70) Commit character
assassination?
71) Mineo of old Hollywood
72) More than a third of
"Mississippi"
73) Roomy vehicle
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r DOWN
1) Bad , Germany
2) Dog's best friend?
3) Flier's concern, for short
4) Country bordering Tibet
5) Walks unsteadily
6) Grille cover
7) Hang back
8) Declares openly
9) De musical sign?
10) Catch in a trap
11) First-rate
12) Type of influence
13) Brought down the house
18) Red colors used by painters
23) Ships' bottoms
24) Underway, as a game
25) Musical extravaganza
26) Agitated states
28) Italian cash, once
31) Cookies with three parts
35) It's a matter of taste
37) Tidal bore
38) Mule-drawn vehicles
40) Kind of drop
42) Up-to-date
45) Easily bent
47) Wreaks havoc on
50) Provides with a trait
53) Turner and Cantrell
54) Free bakery treat?
55) 90-degree headings
57) Midwest airport
63) Little piggie, for one
64) Write- (some vote-getters)
65) about (wander)
66) "Anytown, "
67) Midmoming hour
ANSWERS ON 11