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PAGE 6A - THE COMMERCE (GA) NEWS, WEDNESDAY. MARCH 26, 2008
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Restaurant Celebrates Grand Opening
Laura’s Place, the new family restaurant locat
ed on South Broad Street in Commerce next
to Gift Works at the Joy Shoppe, celebrated its
grand opening Tuesday morning with a ribbon
cutting ceremony. Members of the Commerce
Area Business Association, city officials, rep
resentatives of the Downtown Development
Authority and the Jackson County Board of
Commissioners helped the owners celebrate
the occasion.
Maysville Counting On
More Traffic Fine Income
By Chris Bridges
With little discussion, the Maysville City Council
approved a 2008 budget that is eight percent higher
than 2007 during a called meeting Monday night.
The new budget calls for a 50 percent jump in city
police fine income, which suggests the department
will be stopping and fining more motorists during
the year.
The budget calls for municipal court fines to go
from $100,000 in 2007 to $150,000 in 2008, a 50
percent increase.
The budget also calls for a 14 percent drop in the
town’s tax rate on its Jackson County residents and
a slight increase in the Banks County rate. The 2008
Jackson County rate was set at 2.728 mills, down
from 3.194 mills last year. The 2008 Banks County
rate was set at .81 mills, up from .71 mills in 2007.
Together, city property tax income is expected to
decline by 6 percent.
A third public hearing was held on the city bud
get prior to Monday’s called meeting. No citizens
attended.
Council member Lynn Villyard inquired about
obtaining additional funds for the library, but mayor
Jerry Baker said no additional money was available.
The library budget is cut in the 2008 budget.
Expenses
On the expense side, the city cut most depart
ments’ spending, except for general government and
the police department.
The police department, the town’s largest depart
ment, got a 16 percent increase in projected spend
ing to $309,700, up from $266,900 in 2007. Some
$16,000 of that increase was due to an expected hike
in fine payments to be passed along to the state from
the overall increase in city fine income.
Water/Sewer/Garbage Budget
In the town’s water, sewer and garbage budget,
the town expects to have $643,600 in income and
expenses. Most of the income and expense are in
the water department, which makes up $495,000 of
the total.
Maysville Budget
General Govt.
Income
2007
2008
City Court Fines
$100,000
$150,000
LOST
$254,000
$255,000
Property Taxes
$84,000
$78,800
Other
$148,163
$151,337
TOTAL INCOME
$586,163
$635,137
Expenses
Public Safety
$266,900
$309,800
General Govt.
$190,700
$211,700
Planning
$5,000
$4,000
Library
$57,300
$52,300
DDA
$5,000
$2,500
Public Works
$43,000
$36,700
Fire-Intergovernmental
$18,200
$18,100
TOTAL EXPENSES $586,200
$635,137
‘Departmental line items are rounded to the nearest
$100
Maysville Ponders Variance
By Chris Bridges
Maysville officials could decide
April 7 on the fate of a request
from Dollar General officials to
construct a store in the Jackson
County side of the city.
The Maysville Planning
Commission voted 2-1 ear
lier this month to allow Dollar
General officials to continue
with store plans off Hwy. 98 and
Newton Drive across from the
Golden Pantry. The area is cur
rently a vacant lot.
The Maysville City Council
was going to vote on the matter
at its regular meeting earlier this
month, but city attorney Gary
Freeman told members the mat
ter first had to presented by the
city’s newly established plan
ning and zoning commission.
Freeman also advised city
officials that it is best to abide
by the zoning rules, otherwise,
everyone who makes a request
would have to be granted a vari
ance.
Some of the issues that the
planning commission consid
ered in making its decision
included setback requirements.
The city council has final say
on the matter as the planning
commission acts only a recom
mending body, Freeman said.
The issue will be on the agenda
April 7 at 7 p.m. in the library.
Still Time To
Enter Team In
Chili Cook-Off
The Jackson County Area
Chamber of Commerce will
hold its annual chili cook-off
Saturday, April 19, from 3-6 p.m.
in Braselton.
The event will be held at
YearOne, which is also holding
a car show that day from 3-9
p.m. Samples of chili will be for
sale. Quantities are limited. A
kids play area will also be avail
able.
For information or to enter a
team in the event, contact the
Jackson County Area Chamber
of Commerce at 706-387-0300
Hurt By Bad Debt, Medical
Center Moves To Help Cash Flow
Facing unprecedented levels of
bad debt, BJC Medical Center’s
governing authority took steps
to protect its cash flow Monday
afternoon.
Chief Finance Officer Bill
Williams presented a chart
showing that through the first
eight months of the fiscal year,
bad debt is running at $3.4 mil
lion, about 70 percent higher
than budgeted. He blamed the
increase on the economy.
“People are losing jobs and/or
health insurance,’’ Williams told
the authority. “We have a good
hospital and a good emergency
room, and these people are find
ing their way here.’’
According to Williams, bad
debt runs from 8.5 to nine per
cent of gross revenues.
The problem, he pointed out, is
an industry wide issue, and rela
tive to other hospitals, BJC is in
better shape.
“The largest for-profit hospitals
are running 10 to 13 percent. The
largest hospital corporation, HCA,
is running 13 percent,’’ Williams
explained. “That is just bad debt; it
doesn’t count charity.’’
Officials are taking a multi
pronged approach to dealing
with the matter. First, the inter
nal and hired collection efforts
recover about 10 percent of the
bad debt, Williams said. Second,
the facility is starting to look
at its policies of providing free
health care.
“We’ve never turned anyone
away,’’ Williams pointed out, but
he said the hospital may start
looking more closely at elective
procedures done for people who
have a bad debt.
“We don’t intend to do it in a
heavy-handed way or a negative
way,’’ he assured.
CEO Jim Yarborough explained
that most of those creating the
bad debt make too much money
to qualify for Medicaid or indi
gent care reimbursement, but
not enough to have health insur
ance.
“One of the challenges is to
get them in to our counselors,’’
he said, “who might be able to
qualify them for one of the two
programs.’’ He suggested that the
facility will look more closely
at patients who appear for non
emergency services and who
already have an outstanding
account.
In the meantime, the hospital
is taking two steps to improve its
cash flow.
One is to cease funding for
the school nurse program in the
three school systems of Jackson
County. According to Williams,
BJC doesn’t actually pay for
those programs, but it pays about
$500,000 a year in costs that are
reimbursed through state grants
to the school systems, which, in
turn, reimburse the medical cen
ter. The idea is to let the school
systems front the money and get
the reimbursements, cutting BJC
Medical Center entirely out of
the process.
Currently, the nurses are
employees of BJC Medical
Center. Next school year, they’ll
work for the various boards of
education.
Yarborough said the medical
center has contacted all of the
school systems about the change
in payment, and he expects “very
little change’’ in the school pro
grams.
Director of Nursing Maura
Cobb said the contracts expire
June 30. All of the school nurses
“will present applications to their
principals for continued employ
ment,’’ she said.
Likewise, the medical center
will drop its $100,000 per year
commitment to Lanier Technical
College’s nursing program,
Yarborough said.
BJC has provided in-kind dona
tions, first for the part-time LPN
program and then for the full
time program. That contract ends
next fall.
“It was never our intention that
it (the participation) would be
permanent,’’ said Yarborough,
adding that it “is time for Lanier
Tech to fly solo.’’
Yarborough said he has dis
cussed the matter with Lanier
Tech officials, and “all indica
tions are’’ that “their intent will be
to continue that program.’’
Other Business
In other matters, the authority:
•heard Edna Hix of the hos
pital’s auxiliary report that it
had spent more than $4,000 to
donate a stretcher and an oxime
ter to BJC Nursing Facility.
•approved the expenditure of
$20,788 for equipment needed
by podiatrist Dr. Jon Middleton
and his expanded practice,
which has increased its surgical
activity three-fold.
• approved granting consult
ing staff credentials to doctors
Kenneth Bailey, James Darling
and Jon Horn, all of whom are
with Optimal Readings, the facil
ity’s radiology consultants.
Census Bureau: Jackson
Now The 10th Fastest
Growing County In U.S.
BOC OKs Bond
Underwriter
In Split Vote
By Sharon Hogan
There is apparently some
disagreement over who should
be named as underwriter for
Jackson County’s 2008 eco
nomic development bonds.
Three votes have been held on
the matter with motions to hire
three different companies.
At a called meeting Thursday,
a third vote was taken by the
Jackson County Board of
Commissioners on hiring a
bond underwriter. In a 3-1 vote,
the BOC approved Morgan
Keegan, Atlanta, as the bond
underwriter for the 2008 eco
nomic development bond issue
for roads.
At a meeting earlier last week,
the BOC voted to hire Miller
& Martin as the underwriter.
Also at that earlier meeting,
a motion was made to name
Merchant Capital as the under
writer, but it failed due to the
lack of a second.
Those voting in favor of
Thursday’s motion were Tom
Crow, Jody Thompson and
Bruce Yates. Commissioner
Dwain Smith voted against this
motion and BOC chairman Pat
Bell wasn’t present.
The BOC also heard from
Bucky Kinsey of Morgan
Keegan and Jamie Wilson of
Merchant Capital before the
vote was taken.
By Kerri Testement
Jackson County is the 10th
fastest-growing county in the
nation, according to the U.S.
Census Bureau.
Jackson is among three
Georgia counties ranked in the
top 10 of fastest-growing counties
in the U.S., the Census reported
last week. Forsyth County was
named the eighth fastest-growing
county in the U.S. and Paulding
County was ninth. Neighboring
Barrow County was the 12th
fastest-growing in the nation,
while Hall County was 50th.
Jackson County grew from an
estimated 55,542 residents in
2006 to 59,254 in 2007 - which
is a 6.7 percent increase in popu
lation, according to the Census.
'That means a lot,’’ said Shane
Short, president of the Jackson
County Area Chamber of
Commerce. “That means we are
definitely a fast-growing county
and we’ve got to get ready for
the growth.’’
Short said with the growing
population, new services will
come to Jackson County, such
as retail opportunities.
“I think that gives us a positive
outlook for more retail growth,’’
he said.
The 2006-2007 Census popula
tion estimates were announced
amid a slower economy.
“Although the economy nation
wide has slowed down — and we
have too in Jackson County —
but we haven’t slowed as much
as the other areas in the nation,’’
Short said.
Jackson County is among the
Atlanta-area communities slated
to continue to grow, he added.
Atlanta is still expected to grow
by millions over the next 10-15
years, Short said.
And while the real estate
market has recently slowed in
Jackson County, the market
hasn’t stopped, Short said.
“It’s still active, it’s just not as
active as it used to be,’’ he said.
The Census Bureau said all but
one of the nation’s 10 fastest-
growing counties are located in
the South or West.
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Leslie M. Pitts, DMD
Pediatric Dentistry
706-335-7793 I
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215 Mercer Place,
P. O. Box 1241
Commerce, GA 30529
Website: drlpitts.com
Email: drlpitts@drlpitts.com
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321 Pottery Factory Drive, Commerce -- across from OUTBACK STEAK House