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THE COMMERCE (GA) NEWS, WEDNESDAY. MARCH 19, 2008 - PAGE 5A LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Writer Seeks Support For Senior Center Editor: We are concerned that funds may be cut to our Jackson County Senior Center. We cannot express enough how important this program is to our senior citizens. Many seniors come to the center, if they are able, and the center provides a bus for those unable to get to the center for a morning of activity and a well- balanced, nutritional meal. Many of the seniors live alone and this is their main contact with the outside world. Shirley Smith and her staff are abso lutely wonderful and loving to our seniors. They go the extra mile to make this time spe cial. They provide a service that must be continued. In addition to the senior cen ter program, Mrs. Smith and staff have organized volunteers from all over Jackson County to deliver Meals on Wheels to homebound seniors. It is prob ably the best meal they have all day. Not only are they getting a hot nutritious meal, but they also get a warm smile and words of kindness from the volunteers. An extra benefit for some of the seniors is that they are checked on every day. If some thing does not seem right, the volunteers notify Mrs. Smith, and she will follow through with what is needed or call emergency help if needed. We ask that our representa tives and those who make deci sions about block grants sup port funding for this worthy cause. And we thank you for your help. This letter is being circulated for signatures at the First Baptist Church of Commerce. If you believe in the ministry being done at the Senior Center and Meals on Wheels, please write your own letter, even pass it around to be signed by others who care. Mrs. Smith is applying for a block grant to help with fund ing. She says letters will be very helpful. Send them to Shirley Smith, Jackson County Senior Center, 151 General Jackson Drive, Jefferson, GA, 30549. Sincerely, Genny Shirley, On behalf of members and Meals on Wheels volunteers at the First Baptist Church of Commerce Speed Bumps Would Slow Traffic On Minish Drive Editor: My grandson lives on Minish Drive as do other children. There is a speed limit sign and a slow-children-at-play sign at each end of the street. Every day we sit on the porch and watch people speeding up and down this street. We have asked the police department to come down the street more often because of this. Some of the neighbors have had their pets hit by speeding cars. The city needs to put speed bumps up and down this street to help slow these cars down. Is it going to take a child getting run over before some thing is done about this? My grandson stands on the porch and yells for the cars to slow down every day, as do some of the neighbors. Please, please do something about this before an innocent person gets hurt. Other children walk home from school on this street as well as ride their bikes. Emily Ray Commerce Cancer Survivors Invited To ‘Celebrate Life’ Dinner Editor: Are you a cancer survivor? If so, we are looking for you. We want to invite you to be our guest at our "Celebrate Life" dinner at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, April 5, at the Jefferson Civic Center. You and one caregiver are invited to join us for food, fun and fellowship as we fight against cancer. We will celebrate the many victories over cancer and support those battling the — Breaking In Cont. from Page 4A and show this trick to our neighbors, who are not overly impressed. We are the only ones who think this trick is fantastic. We have to remember, that as with children, they are only as cute as the parents think they are. Having a puppy is a lot of work and responsibility. The joys and rewards are endless disease. Your attendance will give others hope. Dinner will be served compli ments of Beef O'Brady's, with desserts by local caterers. Survivors are our reason to relay, and we want to honor you. For more information or to RSVP that you are coming, please call Gail Banks by April 1 at 706-367-9721. Sincerely, Sandra Fite Jackson County Relay for Life A New Puppy as our daughters are learning the importance of taking care of a dog. We anticipate a lot of happy times with Millie and we look forward to the many years we will have with her. Tricia Massey is a stay-at-home mom, a member of the Commerce Downtown Development Authority and chair of the Commerce Public Library's capi tal campaign committee. Clarification On Letter To Editor A letter to the editor in the March 5 edition regarding issues with a "county fire department" warrants clarification. It was unclear from the letter exactly what fire department was being discussed. The letter was related to the Banks County Fire Department, not the Commerce nor any other fire department in Jackson County. osi , ■ 'Ay ' 1 A '^^^*** * A ~ r k a \ # .;Jb ^ ' 1 A- )'-■ ' At- y . \ k Hi New Business Opens Peyton’s Place, a new gift shop, opened Development Authority, city officials, mer- Monday morning at 1704 South Broad chants and others gathered Monday morning Street. Members of the Commerce Area to help Melissa Mooney (cuutting the ribbon) Business Association, Commerce Downtown conduct a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Consultant's Work Wins Favor With Airport Authority Any doubts the Jackson County Airport authority might have had about hiring Talbert & Bright as its consultant are long gone. The authority, in a meeting called last Wednesday (in part) to approve $66,000 worth of extra payment to the company, fairly gushed with enthusiasm for the firm. Maybe it was because of the first amendment to the compa ny’s contract, which provided for the payment of $59,815 for extra work the company did on design changes instrumental to the authority winning a $1.6 mil lion AirGeorgia grant last month. The grant is crucial to funding the airport’s major project, the extension of its runway to 5,001 feet so corporate jets can land. “I think that’s money well spent,” said airport manager Bob Stapleton. Vice Chairman John Buchanan, presiding in the absence of Chairman Shannon Sell, agreed. ‘Talbert and Bright showed us what they can do. They did a really good job,” he said. The authority hired Talbert & Bright last year, jettisoning its long-time consultant for a com pany that, while highly regarded in other states, has not done any airport consulting in Georgia. “I didn’t know them,” said Stapleton, who came on after the switch, “But they’re my favor ite airport consultants now.” The second amendment was for additional environmental work related to the same proj ect, and will pay the company $6,957. The original design for the expansion project, said Stapleton, did not meet Federal Aviation Administration require ments. The change resulted in more “stream mitigation” than expected. “We are very fortunate these guys caught this,” Stapleton said. “We could have gone through (the expansion project) and wound up with something the FA A would not accept.” The airport authority had pre viously authorized the work for which the contract was amend ed. Both contracts are eligible for 95 percent reimbursements from the FAA and another 2.5 percent from the Georgia Department of Transportation. Stapleton gave credit to former airport manager Robert Banks “for bringing in these guys,” referring to Talbert & Bright. “Based on what I’ve seen since I’ve been here, you did the right thing in changing consultants,” he added. “They really want to do well in Georgia, so they’re really going the extra mile for us.” “This is their showcase,” com mented Buchanan. In other business last Wednesday, the authority voted to hire THC Inc. at a cost of $65,929 to help it acquire three parcels totaling 62 acres. That cost is also eligible for reimbursement from the FAA and DOT, although the timing of the reimbursement is something of a question. The authority expects to meet with the Board of Commissioners soon over its 2009 budget request and the interim funding of projects, since there is no guarantee that the FAA will bud get all of the reimbursements in its upcoming fiscal year. The airport authority would like to complete the following projects during the upcoming fiscal year: •the construction of four new T-hangars • the construction of four com mercial hangars •the acquisition of the 62 acres for a Westside taxiway and future hangar construction •the updating of the automat ic weather observation system (AWOS) •the construction of a ramp and parking area for a new fuel site The total estimated cost of those projects is approximately $4 million, all of which will qual ify for funding by the FAA and the DOT under the 95 percent and 2.5 percent reimbursement. Member Don Lohmeier rec ommended that the authority be prepared for the possibility that the commissioners, rather than funding all of the author ity’s projects, will “ask us to pri oritize” those projects. Stapleton proposed that the projects that will improve the air port’s cash flow get top priority. Walgreens Wants A Variance From City's Sign Ordinance Yet another company wants a variance from Commerce’s sign ordinance. Walgreens, which plans to build a pharmacy at the inter section of North Broad Street and Homer Road, is asking for an LED message board, reports city planning director David Zellner. “You can have an LED mes sage board, but just for time and temperature,” Zellner pointed out. Apparently, Walgreens intends to use its message board for store promotions, Zellner said. If history proves a prece dent, the Commerce Planning Commission will reject the Walgreen’s request Monday night, but the Commerce City Council will approve it April 14. That’s the path by which Ingles, Carquest and the Common Road Bakery were all able to get variances. The planning commission meets Monday at 7:00 in the Peach Room of the Commerce Civic Center. Other items on the agenda include: •a request by Dr. Ali Kahn, a dentist, to annex just over 10 acres on Steve Reynolds Industrial Parkway and to rezone it to C-2 (commercial) to build a dentist’s office. • a request from Michael Scott, owner of Ashworth Mobile Home Park, to bring in mobile homes older than five years for the Homer Road trail er park. The city has an ordi nance prohibiting the importa tion of mobile homes that are older than five years. • The planners will again take up an amendment to the zoning ordinance dealing with acces sory buildings. It had approved an amendment last month, but the city council objected to some of the provisions and asked the planning commission to reconsider the ordinance. •The group will discuss changing the requirements for the height of fences in front yards. Business Group Seeks Items For Welcome Baskets The Commerce Area Business Association wants donations for “welcome bas kets” to be presented to new businesses. President Brad Johnson asked members last Wednesday to come up with items to stock the baskets. Johnson also appealed to members to provide prizes for Saturday’s Easter egg hunt, which will begin at about 11:00 at the First Baptist Church of Commerce, South Elm Street. The egg hunt features a vari ety of candy treats, but also hundreds of prize eggs, in which children may find trin kets — or cash or gift certifi cates from local businesses. “Just think about it in terms of what you might be able to do. It doesn’t have to be big,” Johnson advised. Dinner Theater? Johnson also announced that the group is considering a new fund-raiser, a dinner theater, to be held in the first half of the year since CABA’s calendar is heavier with late- in-the-year activities. Johnson said the CABA board of directors hopes to discuss the possibilities with the Cold Sassy Players, Commerce’s little theater group. In other business at the group’s March 12 meeting, treasurer Abby Lawler report ed that the group has almost $10,000 in the bank, with $1,300 due in payables. She also urged members to help the group increase mem bership from its current 38 to 45 members. “If you know of any new businesses coming in or any one who is not a member, invite them to one of our lunches,” she urged. The CABA meets on the second Wednesday of each month at noon at the Commerce Civic Center. Lunches are catered. — County Water Restrictions Eased Cont. from Page 1A used again to mix mortar. In short, businesses that had to find alternative sources of water can now use Jackson County water for operations. The move comes after Athens-Clarke, Jefferson and Commerce took similar action. So, while it’s still illegal for someone to wash his or her own vehicle, there are no lon ger any restrictions on com mercial car washes. “We are getting behind other water systems in sales of water,” observed Eric Klerk, manager, in recommending the loosening of restrictions. The move also confirms for JCWSA customers the recom mendations of Gov. Sonny Perdue, including the filling and operating of swimming pools, and the hand watering of landscapes on an odd-even schedule for up to 25 minutes a day. The change is effective immediately. But while the water restric tions are loosened, the system must still meet the governor’s 10 percent reduction in usage. Fortunately, starting April 1, that reduction will be based on last year’s spring and sum mer average daily water sales instead of the winter sales numbers, which are lower. KEEP AMERICA BEAUTIFUL GET A HAIRCUT I ^ Wood’s 1441 North ^ Hwy 98 t lla Road 1- CO 5. th ens Commerce's Only Barber Shop Family Haircare Bill Wood, Owner Walk-Ins Welcome Wood Barber Shop 581 lla Road, Lot#1, Commerce (706) 335-5392 • Mon.-Fri. 8-6 Dr. Neelagaru, M.D. (Dr. Neel) •«| N. Neelagaru, M.D. (Dr. Neel) is now associated with Northeast w Georgia Medical Center, Gainesville, Georgia and will do all Invasive Cardiology Procedures at V this facility. Commerce Cardiology Clinic Call 335-2000 for appointment ’ V : V : V V : V : V V : V : V V : V : V V : V : V V : V : V V : V I l Bray Construction, Inc. • New Homes • Remodeling • Vinyl Siding • Masonry Work • Concrete Finishing (706) 789-2313