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SEE PAGE 4A Thompson-Hardy Adds Interest To Upcoming Elections SEE PAGE IB Forces Collide For Historic Finish At Southern Nationals Vol. 133 No. 11 24 Pages 3 Sections Wednesday APRIL 30, 2008 mainstreetnews.com 50 Cents COVERING THE COMMERCE AREA SINCE 1875 Daisy Festival Coming Up In Nicholson Friday-Sunday The Nicholson Daisy Festival will be held Friday May 2, through Sunday May 4, at the Nicholson City Hall. The weekend event will fea ture arts, crafts, food booths, contests, a parade and more. The schedule for the week end follows: Friday • 6-7 p.m. - Cakewalk •7-9 p.m. - Cheryl Andrews Saturday • 10 a.m. - Parade • 11:30 a.m. - Opening cer emonies, political speaker, prayer • 1-2 p.m. - Commerce School of Dance •2-2:30 p.m. - Jazz band, high school band •2:30-3 p.m. - Pie eating contest • 3-4 p.m. - Cakewalk •4-4:30 p.m. - Hula Hoop Contest •4:30-5:30 p.m. - Bucky S. Band •5:30-7 p.m. - Karaoke, win ner of Ugly Truck contest •7-10 p.m. - Time Travelers Band, picnic table give-away Sunday • 1-5 p.m. - Clarke Kesler, all-day gospel singing W THURSDAY FRIDAY Mostly sunny: Partly cloudy: Low, 58; high, 81; Low, 61; high, 81; 10% chance rain 20% chance rain SATURDAY SUNDAY / '*‘K Scattered T-storms: Partly cloudy: Low, 59; high, 76; Low, 54; high, 82; 50% chance rain 20% chance rain Reservoir Levels Commerce: 698.5 (.9 feet above full) Bear Creek: 695 (full) Rainfall this month 3.75 inches Rainfall This Year 18.65 Inches Births . . . 10A Church News . . . . . . 5B Classified Ads . . . . 1-4C Calendar . . . 3A Crime News . . . . . . 7A News Roundup . . . . 2A Obituaries . . . 8A Opinions . . . 4A School News. . . . . 6-7B Sports . . 1-4B Social News . . . . 9-10A CONTACT US Phone: 706-335-2927 FAX: 706387-5435 E-mail: news@mainstreetnews.com ma rk@ma i n streetnews. com brandon@mainstreetnews.com teresa@mainstreetnews.com Mail: P.O. Box 459, Commerce, GA, 30529 Iraq War Claims Local Soldier Former CHS Student Shaun Whitehead Killed Thursday By Roadside Bomb The war in Iraq claimed its first Jackson County resident last week when Sgt. Shaun J. Whitehead of Commerce was killed by a road side bomb. According to the Army, Whitehead, 24, was on foot patrol in Iskandariyah Thursday when an improvised explosive device exploded. He was an infantry man assigned to A Company, 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team. He is survived by his widow, Janie Moore Whitehead, son Gabriel “Gabe" Whitehead, 7, and daughter Janna Moore, 12, all of Fort Campbell, KY; his mother, Rebecca Whitehead, Maysville; a sister, Amber Whitehead; and his grandfather, Coy O’Shield, Maysville. Funeral arrangements will be announced by Evans Funeral Home. For futher information as it becomes available, visit www. mainstreetnews.com. Assistant superintendent of schools Dr. Joy Tolbert remem bers Whitehead as quiet, polite and respectful. “He transferred from Gwinnett County to our middle school and continued here until tenth grade," she said. “He was a very reserved young man who sort of kept to himself. He was very likeable and had a lot of friends and had good relationships with his teachers. He was not very outspoken, but when he did speak, he was very respect ful with his remarks." One of his best friends was Michael Collins, a CHS standout in football and basketball who, after playing football at Clemson University, is a deputy sheriff in South Carolina. “We basically had everything Sgt. Shaun Whitehead died from injuries suffered by an improvised explosive device. in common," Collins recalled in a telephone interview. “We both enjoyed video games, a big bowl of cereal in the morning, even our handwriting was the same. Check The Web For updates on funeral arrangements see www. mainstreetnews.com We both enjoyed weapons and knives and playing ninja and stuff. I spent a lot of time at his house with his mom and sister." Ironically, the first encounter between the two was not pleas ant. They were playing basketball in sixth grade. “It started with us almost getting into a fight," Collins said. “I went for a rebound and he undercut me. It’s like two enemies became best friends," he laughed. Like Collins, Whitehead played football, but he injured a knee on his first carry in the ninth grade. He left CHS in the tenth grade, but he and Collins remained friends. “We spent most of the time at his house after we met," said Collins. “I lived with him a little bit." They remained friends after Collins went to college and Whitehead got his GED and joined the Army. Collins visited Whitehead in Kentucky a couple of times. Collins learned of Whitehead’s death last Thursday when a mutu al friend called. “I just knew by the sound of his voice something was wrong," he said. Whitehead joined the Army in 2003. He was due to return to the U.S. at the end of May. His awards include the Army Commendation Medal; Army Good Conduct Medal; National Defense Service Medal; Iraqi Campaign Medal; Global War on Terrorism Service Medal; Army Service Ribbon and Combat Infantry Badge. He was qualified as “expert" with the M4. Commerce Police Chief John Gaissert ordered the flags at the J. Nolan Spear Jr. Public Safety Complex flown at half-mast in honor of Whitehead. The project includes two 48,000-square-foot dering, plus a building housing a hospice, and medical buildings similar to this architect’s ren- a pharmacy and other retail space. Medical Complex Proposed For Maysville Road Near Interstate 85 Dr. James Bouchard plans to break ground in “six to eight weeks" on a medical complex of more than 100,000 square feet on the Maysville Road at Interstate 85. Bouchard, a podiatrist whose offer of donated land for a new BJC Hospital was rejected last year, got a thumbs-up Monday night from the Commerce Planning Commission on the rezoning he needs to start the project. The project comprises two three- story 48,000-square-foot medical buildings adjacent to Georgia 98, an 8,416-square foot hospice, a 13,912-square foot pharmacy “and maybe some shopping," said Bouchard. His plan calls for 11,580 square feet of retail. Approximately 25 people were in the audience in support of Bouchard’s request to rezone 17.9 acres from AF (Agriculture-Farm) to C-2 (Commercial). “Be brief, because you’ve got no opposition," advised Chairman Greg Perry after he took the unusual step of asking prior to the discussion if anyone in the room opposed the rezoning. Bouchard owns some 520 acres including the old Nunn dairy farm, and his long-range plan is to develop a full medical complex Please Turn to Page 5A BJC Authority Seeks 'Partner' To Build A New Hospital Having been rebuffed in its attempts to get Jackson County to build a new hospital, BJC Medical Center is looking for a new part ner. In all likelihood, that would be another hospital, either non-profit like itself or a for-profit hospital. “We’re excited about the pos sibilities," said authority chairman Charles Blair. “We’ve got to move forward. We can’t wait any longer. Our job is to provide health care for citizens of Banks and Jackson counties and that’s what we’re committed to do." The BJC Medical Center Authority, the nine-member gov erning board, has contracted with DECOSIMO, a Tennessee-based accounting and consulting firm, to find “options" for what has pre viously been described as a $37 million project. “The ultimate intent of the author ity board is to seek a mechanism to obtain financial support," said a news release issued Tuesday. According to the news release, DECOSIMO has contacted “a sample number of potential enti ties," which led the authority to let the consultants develop a request for proposals to be submitted to those groups. The board maintains the follow ing conditions: • continuance of acute inpatient care • construction of a new hospital within a mutually agreeable time period not to exceed 48 months • agreeable financial terms • commitments to maintain and invest capital into the current hos pital and nursing home facilities •continued provision and sup port of charity care in the com munity. The deadline for written propos als will be May 29. The author ity expects to require six to eight Please Turn to Page 5A Tackson County Elections Local Races Take Shape As Qualifying Starts Two races had been estab lished as of press time Tuesday and three more days of quali fying for the Republican and Democratic primaries remain. Incumbent Sheriff Stan Evans and incumbent District Attorney Rick Bridgeman both face opposition. Two other contested races appear certain. Chas Hardy qualified for the District 2 posi tion on Jackson County Board of Commissioners. Incumbent Jody Thompson has not quali fied but he announced earlier that he plans to seek re-elec tion. And, Hunter Bicknell has qualified for the chairmanship of the Jackson County Board of Commissioners, while Ron Johnson has announced his intentions to seek that post. Eleven Republicans have qual ified so far, but no one seeking office has qualified to run on the Democratic side. In the sheriff’s race, Evans will face challenger Jim Keinard. Evans has served as sheriff since 1985. Keinard is a former member of the Hoschton City Council. In the district attorney race, incumbent Rick Bridgeman will face Donna Golden Sikes and Brad Smith. Other Republicans who had qualified as of Tuesday were: •Lynn Wheeler, incumbent, Jackson County Board of Education, Post 4. Please Turn to Page 3A County To Others: Keep Hands Off Our Water Jackson County has served notice on the other three own ers of the Bear Creek Reservoir: Don’t touch Jackson County’s 25 percent of the water in the reservoir. Former Georgia attorney general Michael Bowers sent a letter on the county’s behalf to Melvin Davis, chairman of the Upper Oconee Basin Water Authority, staking a claim on Jackson’s water rights. Under the intergovernmen tal agreement with the Upper Oconee River Basin Authority, Jackson County paid 25 percent of the cost of building the Bear Creek Reservoir and is entitled to 25 percent of its water. “Accordingly, Jackson County hereby demands that the author ity comply with its obligation and at all times deliver or make available for delivery to Jackson County its entitlement share of the project’s outcome and ser vices," Bowers wrote. The strategy is to treat the water in the reservoir as a prop erty rights issue — that since the county is entitled to 25 percent of the water, none of that water may be used by other members of the basin authority without Jackson’s permission. That argument has repercus sions on daily management of the reservoir, but could be of particular importance if drought Please Turn to Page 3A