Newspaper Page Text
THE COMMERCE (GA) NEWS, WEDNESDAY. APRIL 23, 2008 - PAGE 5A
It's Wait Till Next Year Again
For Library Expansion Plans
It looks like the expansion of the
Commerce Public Library will be
delayed another year.
The Commerce project is not
among those proposed by the
Georgia General Assembly for
funding, Library Director Susan
Harper announced.
Harper told the Commerce
Library Board Monday night that
the Budget Conference Committee
sent 12 proposals to the governor
for funding. Commerce would
have been next, she added.
“I think that during the legislative
session that all of these insertions
occurred,” she said. “One was
the governor’s home library in
Editor:
On Sunday, April 13, a group
of concerned people met at
the First Baptist Church in
Commerce to discuss the plans
for the new Commerce High
School. The group, known
as People Excited About
Commerce Education (PEACE),
asked me, chair of the High
School Advisory Council, to
present their concerns at a
board of education meeting
the following night. Many of
those same people attended
that meeting.
The board of education was
responsive to the concerns of
the citizens and asked PEACE
to draft a letter identifying and
prioritizing our concerns and
offering suggested resolutions.
The board pledged to respond
to this letter and expressed a
willingness to sit down with
representatives from our group
Editor:
Last evening my wife and
I attended the annual ora
tory contest for high school
juniors and seniors spon
sored by the local Right to
Life chapter held at Madison
Street Baptist Church here in
Commerce.
It was an extremely reward
ing experience to witness the
Houston County.”
The library is about $70,000
short of meeting its $583,000
capital fund-raising goal to match
leverage a state grant. It will now
have another year to make up that
short-fall.
Game Ban Extended
The Commerce Library Board
made it permanent Monday night.
After an experiment lasting three
weeks, the board permanently
banned the playing of games on
the library’s computers.
A month earlier, the board decid
ed to stop gaming for a month,
after staff observed that people
needing to use computers for
and any other concerned citi
zens to discuss plans for the
new school. We appreciated
their response and look forward
to this process.
This past Friday, school super
intendent, Dr. Mac McCoy, and
board chair, Dr. Paul Sergent,
met with myself, Dr. Clark
Hill and Joe Leffew to fur
ther discuss this process. Again,
we were encouraged by their
responsiveness and coopera
tion.
Sunday afternoon, represen
tatives of PEACE met to begin
drafting the letter using the
list of concerns that had been
expressed April 13. We feel it is
important to keep people who
were involved in the April 13
meeting informed as to where
we are in this process. We also
feel the community needs to be
aware of the efforts the superin
tendent and the school board
maturity, enthusiasm and obvi
ous careful preparation by all
of the contestants who took the
opportunity to express their
personal convictions on some
critical social issues.
As a consequence, our faith in
this generation, and we're sure
that of all of those in atten
dance, was greatly fortified as
a result of these young people
research or other purposes had to
wait while other patrons used their
computer time to play games.
“Computer usage actually went
up since we got rid of the games,”
said Library Director Susan
Harper. “Nobody has objected.
People seem to be happy with it.”
In other matters, the board
approved a modified version of
its proposed city budget after
Harper, at the request of City
Hall, trimmed it by about $3,500.
Line items cut included those for
telephone service, custodial help
and shelving.
The budget is still subject to
approval by the city council.
are making to hear and respond
to people in the community.
We are both encouraged by
and grateful for the steps they
are taking to ensure that the
new school will meet the needs
of our students, teachers and
administrators, will have the
support of the community and
will be a source of pride for the
citizens of Commerce for years
to come.
Should you have questions
about this process or should
you wish to communicate with
those associated with PEACE,
please e-mail me at peace-
forcommerceschools@yahoo.
com. We welcome your input
as, together, we strive to provide
the children of our community
with the educational resources
they need to succeed.
Bill Sims,
People Excited About
Commerce Education (PEACE)
and we should all be grateful
to the teachers, youth leaders
and parents who encourage
and support their participation
in these type of events. Our
sincerest thanks and heartfelt
appreciation to them all.
Respectfully,
Dave James
Commerce
Hospital Using
Foundation
To Seek Funds
With its foundation in place,
BJC Medical Center is looking
for grant funds.
During its monthly meeting
Monday — which lasted eight
minutes — the BJC Medical
Center Authority got an update
from CEO Jim Yarborough on
foundation activities.
He’d earlier reported that the
foundation’s application for an
Avon grant to upgrade its mam
mography equipment had been
rejected.
In the past month, he said, the
authority has decided to seek
“a significant contribution” for
vehicles at the nursing facility
that would be used to transport
residents on outings, including
doctors’ appointments.
In addition, Yarborough said
a “front porch atmosphere” is
planned for BJC Nursing Facility,
although the state fire marshal
nixed actually putting it on the
front of the building.
“We are going to relocate it,”
Yarborough said, adding that the
foundation will seek the dona
tion of supplies for its construc
tion. Staff will build the porch.
“We are working on a lot of
initiatives,” he said. “I’ll keep you
posted.”
In other business, Finance
Director Bill Williams said he’ll
have draft versions of next year’s
budget ready by the May meet
ing.
Edna Hix of the BJC Medical
Center Auxiliary reported that
her group earned $530 in its
$5 costume jewelry sale. She
reminded the authority that a
stretcher purchased by the aux
iliary for the nursing facility will
be dedicated in honor of the
late Claire Griffin at a ceremony
Monday at 3:00.
Mrs. Griffin, who contributed
more than 24,000 hours of vol
unteer service, died in February.
The stretcher will be dedicated
during a memorial service in her
honor in the Unit B Day Room
following the annual Auxiliary
Social, and a plaque will be dedi
cated in her memory.
In other business, the author
ity approved granting consult
ing and courtesy staff privileges
to Derek B. Pollard, Radiology;
James Bailey, Jonathan Davis,
Louis Fuerstman, Michael
Kordus, Oguchi Andrew Nwosu
and Kathirae Severson, all doc
tors in the emergency depart
ment; and Jenangir K. Rathor,
ultrasound technician privileges.
Red Cross Sets
Blood Drive On
— On The Negativity Of Political Campaigns
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Group Appreciative Of School
Board's Response To Concerns
Impressed By The Quality Of Oratory
Cont. from Page 4A
ing their constituents could
actually be on the job; those
candidates who are gainfully
employed at some profession
could be at their jobs, and not
on the dole from contributors;
and those sycophants whose
only job is to enhance and flat
ter the candidates could find
some other line of work.
Furthermore, if the party of
the winner of the lottery real
ly messed up the economy or
war, there could be another lot
tery, just like the one in Shirley
Jackson's "New Yorker" short
story (June 28, 1948) where one
member of the family (cabinet)
gets the black spot on his lot
and gets stoned to death for the
good of the village (country).
Wouldn't that shake the rats
out of their nests?
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Before any reader begins a
petition to have my citizen
ship revoked, please know I jest
about the lottery. I will, how
ever, continue to wag my head
from side-to-side and wonder
about the coming election.
Claire Gaus is a retired educator
and volunteers in the community
in a number of capacities. She
lives in Commerce.
May 13 At FBC
The American Red Cross will
hold ablood drive Tuesday, May 13,
from 12-6 p.m. at the First Baptist
Church of Commerce, 1345 South
Elm Street, Commerce.
For more information, call
1-800-448-3543 or visit www.red-
crossblood .org.
READ THEN RECYCLE
Mrs. Laurinda Johnson
Program Manager
Direct 706 - 201 - 5590
Office: 706-583-8001
www.fflife.net
email: mentor a fflife.net
FRIENDS FOR LIFE
MENTORING
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Mentors make application, criminal
background and child abuse registry
checks, valid driver’s license,
comprehensive automobile insurance,
and quality training.
Eligible youths ages 4-18 years reside
in Barrow, Clarke, Elbert, Greene,
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1 CHILD .1 HOUR PER WEEK .1YEAR
Academics . Culture . Family Support
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County Mulls Early
Extension Of Road
Donation of Rights Of Way,
$1 Million Cash Sweeten Deal
A developer’s offer of $1 mil
lion and all the rights of way
has the Jackson County Board
of Commissioners interested in
building a 1.2-mile extension of
Concord Road.
The county’s Industrial
Development Authority voted
last Friday to recommend that the
county use its Road Department
to build the section at an esti
mated cost of $2 million.
That action took place in a
combined meeting of the two
groups; the commissioners will
vote on the recommendation at
an upcoming meeting.
The vote would move the project
into the 2007 “economic develop
ment” road package for which $43
million in bonds has been issued.
That, in turn, represents about
half of an $82 million collection
of road projects the county says
it will accomplish to help attract
industrial tax base.
Actually, the original plan for
Concord Road — 2.2 miles of four
lanes of divided road — didn’t
even make it into the “funded”
portion of the road bond package
due to its high cost, estimated at
$18 million.
But then Industrial Properties
Group Inc., anxious to develop
its property along the proposed
road, came forth with its offer:
all rights of way and $1 million
in cash, half paid up front and
the other half when the road is
completed. All of the land is
in Valentine Farms Industrial
Park.
The idea is to complete the road
through the company’s holdings.
The rest, 1.2 miles to Georgia
Highway 82, would be built if and
when funds became available.
County engineering consultant
Don Clerici explained to commis
sioners and IDA members Friday
how the road could be built on
the cheap by constructing two
or three lanes instead of four,
and by doing the work in house.
Like the other cost estimates in
the bond program, the estimate
for the Concord Road extension
was based on the work being
contracted out.
“The property is in the path
of what we had originally estab
lished as a route for a parallel road
system,” remarked Scott Martin,
chairman of the IDA, who added
that “if we don’t move, they could
do something with the property
that would force a route change.”
Member Chas Hardy made the
motion that the IDA support the
project. The conditions include
completion by May 31, 2012, that
the road be graded for four lanes
but built for three, and that an
agreement be worked out with
Industrial Properties Group to
give the county a limited right of
first refusal on one tract, specify
ing the price per acre over the
next five years.
“We’ve had some success up
there,” observed Martin, speaking
about attracting industry. “That
park has developed faster than
any industrial park we have.”
The commissioners also voted
3-0 with member Tom Crow
abstaining, to pursue the mat
ter. Members Pat Bell, Jody
Thompson and Bruce Yates sup
ported the vote. Commissioner
Dwain Smith was not present,
and Commissioner Tom Crow
abstained.
Newspaper Photos Available Online
MainStreet Newspapers Inc. offers staff-produced photos from its
five newspapers available for the ordering of prints online at its website,
mainstreetnews.com.
Based in Jefferson, the company owns The Commerce News, The
Jackson Herald, The Madison County Journal, The Braselton News and The
Banks County News.
Access to the photos catalogue is available from a button on the main-
streetnews.com website. The photos are hosted by DotPhoto Inc., a firm
which specializes in making prints from digital photographs and which
manages photos for a number of newspapers across the country.
There will be approximately a one-week lag time between the time
photos are published and their availability at the online site.
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