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CYBER SAFETY SEMINAR For parents only: FHow to keep your kids safe online — Page 5A DUALING AT STATE Tiger wrestlers second in Area Duals, to compete at state this week — Page IB Vol. 133 No. 48 20 Pages 2 Sections 50 Cents COVERING THE COMMERCE AREA SINCE 1875 25th King Celebration Set Sunday The 25th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Commemoration will be held Sunday at St. Paul First Baptist Church, locat ed at 573 Gordon Street in Jefferson. At 3:30 p.m., the Poplar Springs Baptist Church Choir of Jefferson, under the direction of Marianne Burley, will present a mini gospel music concert. The ecumenical service will start at 4 p.m. Mayor Willie E. Burns of Washington will be the keynote speaker. He is serving his second term as mayor and is a mem ber of Mt. Nebo Baptist Church. Burns served in the Army where he graduated from U.S. Army Military Police School and was assigned to the 561st Military Police Company at Fort Meyer in Virginia. After his mili tary service, he gradu ated from the Northeast Georgia Police Academy in Athens and joined the police department in the City of Elberton. He Cont. on Page 3A msm THURSDAY, JAN. 15 Sunny, windy: Low, 20; high, 39; 0% chance rain FRIDAY, JAN. 16 Mostly sunny: Low, 18; high, 37; 0% chance rain SATURDAY, JAN. 17 Sunny: Low, 29; high, 45; 0% chance rain SUNDAY, JAN. 18 Partly cloudy: Low, 27; high, 48; 10% chance rain Percipitation this month 3.42 inches Percipitation This Year 3.42 Inches INDEX Births 7A Church News 8A Classified Ads 6-8B Calendar 3A Crime News 6A News Roundup 2A Obituaries 101 1A Opinions 4A School News 1 2A Sports 1-3B Social News 7A City BOE To Proceed With Bids On New High School By Ben Munro With everything being “right for the picking" now to build, city schools super intendent Dr. James “Mac" McCoy has recommended that the school system seek bids to construct the new Commerce High School. “Economic times are bad, but in one way it could be good for those of us who are trying to bid out construction jobs," McCoy said at Monday night’s board of education (BOE) meeting. The school board gave its blessing to proceed with that process. “I think if we delay it any longer, it’s going to cost us more," BOE member Bill Davis said. According to those he’s talked to, McCoy said there’s currently a bidding war going on among con struction companies hungry for work during the current economic downturn. Still, McCoy warned that bids for a new CHS could run over budget, especially with an auxiliary gym in the plans and architect fees added in. “If we need to trim, if we need to cut something or, lo and behold, have to rede sign, then we’ll do so after we get our project costs," McCoy said. As for the school system’s current construction proj ect, workers last week start ed pouring the concrete for sidewalks for a gym that will serve as a temporary home for the CHS basketball teams. They also installed a gas line over the weekend and hardwood floors are to be delivered this week. A permanent gym will be built later during the new CHS construction, leaving this temporary gym as a practice facility. The cable barriers erected in the median of Interstate 85 last year are saving lives, but they’re also forc ing EMS and fire services to change coverage areas. Barriers Change Way Fire, EMS Are Dispatched On Interstate 85 Inability To Cross Median Means New Strategies Required By Mark Beardsley The cable barriers erected in the median of Interstate 85 last year are changing the way fire and rescue units are dis patched . The barriers, designed to prevent the crossover head-on collision, also pre vent fire and emergency personnel from crossing the median in an emer gency “It makes it a little more difficult," conceded Commerce Fire Chief Keith Whitfield. “If we have to go to the other side of the interstate, we have to go up to the next exit." In emergency, those extra minutes can be critical. The 911 center has changed its dispatching of fire and rescue. Basically, By Mark Beardsley If spring rains bring sum mer flowers, fall leaves bring — free mulch for Commerce and Jackson County gar deners and landscapers. Jackson County just com pleted its fall “grinding" of yard wastes into mulch. The same company is turning mountains of tree trimmings and leaves into mulch in Commerce this week. who responds depends upon what side of the road the wreck is on. For example, a wreck on T85 northbound between Dry Pond and Commerce would be handled by the Plainview units, which could get on the interstate at the Dry Pond exit and drive north to the wreck. Commerce would handle calls on the same stretch of road in the southbound lanes. Braselton units would be dispatched to wrecks on 1-85 north bound all the way up to U.S. 129; Jefferson would handle the southbound lane of the same section, plus the northbound lane between U.S. 129 and Dry Pond. When a location comes in, the 911 system will “We’ve probably got 500 to 700 tons," commented Tom Page, Jackson County’s solid waste director. “It’s in three-to-four-inch pieces good for open beds and hills, more so than flower beds." The county gives away the mulch on a first come, first served basis, although it also uses a lot in its own operations. automatically page out the appropriate units. “There are some long stretches of road between the off-ramps," notes Steve Nichols, Jackson County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) director. The barriers primar ily affect units from Commerce, Plainview, Jefferson and Braselton, although units from Harrisburg and North Jackson sometimes work the interstate, Nichols said. “We’ve already readjusted the ambulance respons es," said Nichols. “Now we’re working on the fire responses. Basically you can turn around at the on- off ramps, and that’s it." The barriers have been something of a “nuisance," in terms of EMS responses “Come to the landfill and tell us you want a load of mulch. We’ll load it with a Bobcat," says Page. “If you have a bigger truck, we can load it with a backhoe." Landfill hours are 7:30- 5:30 weekdays and 7:30-2:00 Saturdays. Page asks that people seeking mulch come at least a half hour before closing. Commerce stockpiles yard but officials acknowledge their benefit. 'There’s no telling how many lives the cables have already saved," Whitfield commented. “No doubt it’s saved a lot." “Weighing between the two, it’s a benefit by far," Nichols agreed. “A little aggravation, a lot more benefit." The problem comes when the wreck is off the roadway to the outside of the interstate, said Nichols. Wrecks caught up in the cable in the median itself can often be worked from either side of the barrier. “At one time the DOT talked to us a little bit about some crossovers. I’m guessing that’s gone in the budget cuts," Nichols stated. wastes at its former dump site at the end of Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. As of Friday, the city had just one small pile of mulch, but with a grinding crew start ing Monday, that changed rapidly. The quality of Commerce’s mulch has also improved. The city used to grind up Cont. on Page 3A Finances Stay Tight For City Still In Black, But Operations In Red By Mark Beardsley Technically the city of Commerce is in the black halfway through its budget year. In reality, however, it’s operating $400,000 in the red, thanks to a com bination of factors. Finance Director Steve McKown explained the city’s financial condition at Monday night’s meet ing. If he went into a little more detail than usual, it’s because of the tough eco nomic circumstances. On paper, the city is $173,273 in the black, but McKown said those num bers are misleading. “Before we celebrate and lower taxes, let’s consider what comprises those numbers," he told the council. McKown explained that the city has $580,158 in “restricted" revenues that make the bottom line appear inflated. That includes SPLOST funds ($427,592), confiscated drugmoney($ 138,620) and money for the city library expansion ($13,946) that are unavailable for general operations. Basically, those funds are being “saved" for future projects. SPLOST and other capital projects are all on hold. The problem is in opera tions. Water and sewerage revenue is $130,006 in the red and the natural gas revenue is $343,484, while the Electric Department, though not having a stel lar year, is $51,454 in the black. The gas revenue is the major problem. Although temperatures are cold this week, to date, fall and win ter have been warmer than average. Cont. on Page 3A City, County Have Abundance Of Free Mulch