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American Legion
To Meet April 9
To Elect Officers
American Legion Post 93 will
meet Wednesday, April 9, at 7
p.m. at the Stan Hodsdon Realty
Office, 1215 South Elm Street in
Commerce.
All members are urged to attend
as officers will be elected.
IDA Reduces
Price For Land
In Industrial Park
A Jefferson company may be get
ting a bargain for land to expand its
operation.
The Jackson County Industrial
Development Authority agreed
Friday to offer a price of $15,000
an acre in the Central Jackson
Industrial Park to World Technology
Ingredients Inc. (WTI).
The previous asking price for the
estimated 10-11 acre property was
$20,000 an acre, according to IDA
chairman Scott Martin.
Martin acknowledged that while
the new asking price is “slightly
below’' market value for the area,
the particular parcel has a “chal
lenging’’ topography.
WTI has a 46,000 square-foot
facility at the Central Jackson
Industrial Park, located off U.S.
Hwy. 129, between MLK Avenue
and Galilee Church Road. The
company is slated to add a second
building.
WTI provides the food process
ing industry with functional ingre
dients and new technology, accord
ing to the company’s website.
WTI had initially asked the author
ity — which owns the property — to
make some improvements to the
site before making a deal, Martin
said. The improvements included
some grubbing and grading of the
property.
John Buchanan said water and
sewer lines would also have to
be relocated on the property. He
favored the proposal to offer a bet
ter price for the land to WTI.
Jefferson was recently awarded a
grant to help improve road access
to the Central Jackson Industrial
Park. Martin said he hoped that
WTI’s commitment to expand its
operation would be the “catalyst’’
for Jefferson moving forward with
the road improvements.
Kennel Case To
Be Subject Of
Hearing In April
JEFFERSON - A hearing on
whether or not some 300 dogs
from a Nicholson kennel will be
confiscated and released for adop
tion is slated for later this month.
A forfeiture hearing has been set
for 2 p.m. Thursday, April 17, before
Judge David Motes in the Jackson
County courthouse on the case.
In February, more than 300
puppies were removed from a
Nicholson kennel following the
arrests of the owners after allega
tions of abuse and neglect. The
kennel license has been revoked
by the Georgia Department of
Agriculture and state officials said
the owners would likely never be
allowed to operate a kennel again
because of the condition of the
dogs.
David Gunter, an attorney rep
resenting the state department of
agriculture, said at a board of com
missioners meeting in March that
the kennel owners could be facing
up to $1 million in fines. He said
the investigation is continuing by
the state into the civil case. He said
it would be up to the district attor
ney to pursue any criminal charges.
District attorney Rick Bridgeman
was contacted Monday about the
case but he has not responded.
Kennel owners and operators,
Marie, Jennifer and Ronnie Hughes
and Brandy Stone, were all charged
with misdemeanor and federal ani
mal cruelty charges.
At the March Jackson County
BOC meeting, a report was given
on the condition of the puppies
found at the kennel. It said the
animals were found with broken
bones, open sores, skin conditions,
dehydration, mainour ishment,
severe dental issues and high para
site levels.
DOT Announces
Traffic Shift On
Jefferson Bypass
Traffic is expected to shift this
week on the widening project of
U.S. Hwy. 129, from the Jefferson
bypass to S.R. 330 in Jackson
County, according to the Georgia
Department of Transportation.
Weather permitting, traffic will
be split and start using one lane on
each side of the median from S.R
330 to New Kings Bridge Road.
From New Kings Bridge Road
to Potter House Road, traffic will
be routed to the northbound lanes
while work is completed in the
southbound lanes.
“Please slow down as everyone
gets used to the traffic shift. It will
be different for everyone and you
need to slow down and do what
the signs and barrels direct you to
do,’’ DOT district engineer Russell
McMurry said.
The completion date for the proj
ect is June 30, 2008, and its con
struction cost is over $21 million.
Planners Deny
Re-zoning For
Planned Warehouse
The Jackson County Planning
Commission denied a zoning
request Thursday night that would
have allowed a warehouse in a rural
zone.
The rezoning request was made
by Sondra Davis for 3.42 acres to
be rezoned from residential growth
to industrial workplace at the inter
section of Highway 82 and Apple
Valley Road.
Davis applied for the change to
build a warehouse on the prop
erty. According to Davis, the ware
house would be used for storing
computer games and associated
materials. Davis said she operated
a similar warehouse in Chicago
and would like to operate one in
Jackson County. Davis insisted that
the area was going to change due
to its proximity to the interstate.
Several residents in the area
spoke in opposition to the change.
Patricia Stephens and Wesley
Leach expressed concern about
the traffic a warehouse would bring
to the area.
Davis said that the business
would not generate enough traf
fic to impact the normal traffic
flow. Commission member John
Gaissert asked about how many
trucks a day would be expected
at the warehouse. Davis said that
once the warehouse was filled, the
only time multiple trucks would
be in and out would be to move
product out.
Planning board member Don
Seagraves made a motion to fol
low the staff recommendation to
deny the change based on the rural
location and proximity to a danger
ous intersection. The commission
voted unanimously to deny the
rezoning request.
The matter will next come before
the Jackson County Board of
Commissioners at its next monthly
meeting April 21 for final action.
Board To Hold
First Meeting
In New Location
The Jackson County Board of
Education will hold its first meeting
in its new location this month.
The board will meet in room
B-16 at the Gordon Street Center,
located in downtown Jefferson,
Monday, April 14, at 6 p.m.
The meeting will be a joint work
session and regular meeting. Spring
break for the county school system
will be April 7-11, when the BOE
would have held its work session
meeting Thursday, April 10.
The Jackson County BOE holds
its work sessions the Thursday
prior to the second Monday of
each month at 6 p.m.
Regular meetings are held at 6
p.m. the second Monday of each
month. All meetings are open to
the public.
Free Speech And
Hearing Clinics
Offered At UGA
The University of Georgia Speech
and Hearing Clinic will provide
free speech and hearing clinics for
adults and children ages 3 and up
from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 18.
The clinic will be held at 593
Aderhold Hall and is in recogni
tion of May as “Better Hearing and
Speech Month’’ and “International
Noise Awareness Day.’’
Call 706-542-4598 for an appoint
ment.
Man Faces Arson
Charge For Setting
His Shoes On Fire
DANIELSVILLE - A Commerce
man was charged with arson last
week after he allegedly set fire to a
pair of shoes in his bedroom.
David Lamar Gee, 39, 190
Seagraves Short Road, was charged
with one count of first degree
arson.
According to the incident report,
Gee’s roommate told deputies that
he was sleeping in his bedroom,
David Gee set fire to a pair of shoes
in his (Gee’s) bedroom, which then
caught the carpet on fire.
The roommate said he woke up
to “a house full of smoke’’ and that
Gee was not inside the residence.
He located the fire and managed
to put it out before it could spread
out of the room.
The roommate stated that he and
Gee had been arguing the day
before because Gee had not been
taking his medicine.
Gee was located in the yard of
the residence next door, arrested
and transported to jail.
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NOTICE TO PUBLIC
HAIL DAMAGE
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One hundred fifty seven new and pre-owned cars, trucks and
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In addition Wayne Neal Chevrolet customers are still eligible for
special financing and rebate offers.
Shop 24/7 online at wayneneal.com.
123 S. Elm Street, Commerce, GA
(706)335-3196
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