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SEE PAGE IB Tough Start For E. Jackson Hoops Teams SEE PAGE 7 A JCCO Holds Annual Awards Banquet Vol. 133 No. 41 20 Pages 3 Sections 50 Cents COVERING THE COMMERCE AREA SINCE 1875 Runoff Election Is Tuesday Jackson County voters will return to the polls next Tuesday to take care of some unfinished busi ness. Three runoff elections will be on the ballot for the General Election Runoff Tuesday Dec. 2. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in all pre cincts, and early voting is available through Friday at the Jackson County Administrative Building, Athens Street, Jefferson. Voters will fill the follow ing seats: •United States Senate: Saxby Chambliss (R) and Jim Martin (D). Chambliss is the incumbent. •Public Service Commission: Lauren “Bubba” McDonald (R) and Jim Powell (D). • Court of Appeals Judge: Sara Doyle and Mike Sheffield, both non partisan. Hearing On Zoning Draws Zero Citizens By Sharon Hogan If the number of Nicholson residents attending a public hearing Thursday night indicates the number of questions about the town’s new rezoning and appeals pro cedures, it would indicate there is little concern. No city residents attend ed the hearing to speak on the matter. The Nicholson City Council held its month ly work session meeting immediately following the public hearing, but Mayor Ronnie Maxwell said there were no items on the agen da for the work session. Maxwell said the monthly council meeting at 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 1, should be short. The council will have its sec ond reading to codify city Cont. on Page 3A INDEX Births 8A Church News 9A Classified Ads 5-7B Calendar 3 A Crime News 6A News Roundup 2A Obituaries 8A Opinions ,, 4A School News .... 1 1 -1 2A Sports 1-3B Social News 10A A White Knight For BJC? Medical Center Authority Signs 'Nonbinding Letter Of Intent' For Acquisition Of BJC Medical Center's Assets By Mark Beardsley BJC Medical Center is courting a suitor. The facility’s governing authority approved a nonbinding letter of intent Thursday that could lead to the sale of BJC Medical Center and the construction of a new hospital in Commerce. BJC has been searching for a white knight ever since the Jackson County and Banks County boards of commissioners signaled that they were not interested in underwriting up to $35 million in bonds to build a new hospital in Commerce. Doctors Hospital of Georgia is the first serious response to that search. It is a new entity comprising EDT Development Company, an Atlanta-based company that spe cializes in medical facilities, and a number of doctors. A lot has to take place before an acquisition can occur, officials stressed. “I am guardedly optimistic,” declared authority chairman Charles Blair, who participated in Monday’s meeting of the BJC Medical Center Authority by speakerphone, “that the citizens of Jackson County will have an opportunity to have a first- class hospital in the future.” The process will be lengthy. The letter of intent gives Doctors Hospital 90 days to do its “due dili gence” on the medical center and will be a time of negotiations over the details. The next step would be the signing by the authority of a final, binding agreement. “There would be public hearings,” noted CEO Jim Yarborough, and the final step would be approval by the state attorney general, whose role would be to make sure the authority has done everything it could do to keep the facility operating and that it is getting fair market value. Yarborough speculated that get ting the attorney general’s approval will be the “biggest hurdle.” He also said the boards of com- Please Turn to Page 3/ Taking Advantage Of Low Lake Level The drought continues to take its toll on the Bear Creek Reservoir, which provides drinking water for much of Jackson County. The lake, as of Monday, was about nine feet below full. But the low water level (and cold temperature) didn’t keep Noy Bentley of Oconee County from trying her luck fishing from the shore Saturday. In fact, it made access to the lake easier. She caught one nice catfish on crickets in an hour of fishing on the regional reservoir. Photo by Mark Beardsley DDA Eyes Loan Proceeds For 'Microloan' Program By Mark Beardsley Commerce businesses could have a new source of credit should pre liminary plans of the Downtown Development Authority bear fruit. The DDA hopes to utilize Economic Incentive Program (EIP) funds loaned to and repaid by two local industries to create a “micro-loan” program. The dollars to fund the program would come from the money repaid by SKAPS and Quick Response for federal EIP grants they received years ago through the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. Under the pro gram, the money went to the indus tries in the form of loans, but the loan payments were made to the city. Commerce must use the money — over $300,000 according to Sosebee — to promote economic development. To date, they have not used any of the money. “We’re getting pressure from DCA to either spend it or send it back,” remarked DDA chairman Bob Sosebee at the DDA’s Nov. 19 meeting. “Of course, we’re not going to send it back.” Sosebee envi sions a program that would offer small loans of $3,000 to $5,000 to businesses who need short-term working capital or money for inven tory. The money could not be used for renovations. Sosebee acknowledged that the pro gram will likely have a high default rate. There remains some question about whether the DCA will approve that use of the EIP money, but executive director Hasco Craver indicated that DCA is leaning toward approval. In other business last Wednesday, the DDA approved a $2,500 facade grant to Paul Kinetra to cover part of his Please Turn to Page 3A Reworking Of Intersection Set Back By One Year The Georgia Department of Transportation’s revenue shortfall has pushed a Commerce project back a year. The DOT delayed improvements to the intersection of B. Wilson Road and Hwy. 98 from this December to December of 2009, according to Don Clerici, Jackson County’s capital proj ects consultant. “With the funding shortfalls, the project has been re-prioritized,” wrote Clerici in response to a request for information from Commissioner Jody Thompson. “They plan to release funds for (right of way) acquisition next month and the new let date is December 2009. They are giving themselves 12 months to buy R/W and certify the project. My guess is you are looking at mid-2010 before it goes to construction.” “I am still very pleased that we were able to get some traction on this,” commented Thompson. “I know there are several people out there who really want to see it hap pen. It is a very dangerous intersec tion.” Bob Sosebee Maysville Getting Closer On '09 Budget By Mark Beardsley The Maysville City Council continues to work on its 2009 budget, with the goal of approving it at its Dec. 1 meeting. The council will meet at 7:00 p.m. at the Maysville Public Library. While the council has agreed on the tax rates, there are two main issues yet to be resolved. One is water and sew erage rates; the other is the appropriation for the Maysville Fire Department. The city council dis cussed both at a work ses sion last Thursday night; another work session was planned for Tuesday night. Details of that were not available by press time. The tentative millage rates are .81 for Banks County residents and 1.764 for Jackson County residents. The Banks County rate is the same as last year, while the Jackson County rate is down slightly. Facing a projected water and sewerage revenue shortfall of $184,000, the council had discussed raising water rates as much as 40 percent. But last Thursday, councilman Stephan Lewis suggested that figures presented by Chip McGaughey from Engineering Management Inc. at a prior work ses sion “just didn’t add up for me.” Lewis and Council- woman Lynn Villyard have been working on the figures and hoped to Cont. on Page 3/ CONTACT US Phone: 706-335-2927 FAX: 706-387-5435 E-mail: news@ma i nstreetnews. com ma rk@ma instreetnews .com brandon@mainstreetnews.com teresa@ma instreetnews .com Mail: P.O. Box 459, Commerce, GA, 30529 Drought Watch: Reservoir Levels As of Monday, Nov. 24 Commerce: 698 (.2 feet above full) Bear Creek: Not Available Rainfall this month .74 inches Rainfall This Year 40.15 Inches THANKSGIVING WEEK WEATHER OUTLOOK THURSDAY, NOV. 26 Mostly sunny: Low, 39; high, 58; 10% chance rain FRIDAY, NOV. 27 ^ y V \\ Showers: Low, 45; high, 55; 40% chance rain SATURDAY, NOV. 28 / Few showers: Low, 39; high, 63; 30% chance rain SUNDAY, NOV. 29 / Partly cloudy: Low, 34; high, 60; 10% chance rain