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±r. N r Region Roundup
DOT Closes
Rest Area In
Franklin County
The Interstate 85 north
bound rest area in Franklin
County is now closed.
The Georgia Department
of Transportation perma
nently closed the rest area,
along with the southbound
rest area in Gwinnett
County.
“Many factors have gone
into the decision to close
these rest areas," said DOT
district engineer Russell
McMurry. “Criminal activ
ity is rising at these loca
tions. Safety is definitely
a factor in this decision.
Private development along
the interstate now provides
the services offered by rest
areas. The condition of the
rest areas has deteriorated
and the cost to maintain
them is high."
The Welcome Center on
1-85 south in Hart County
will remain open.
Message boards alert
motorists that the rest areas
are closed. Barricades
are now in place at their
entrances to prevent entry
into the rest areas.
Girl Scouts
Looking For
Volunteers
The Girl Scouts of Historic
Georgia are holding recruit
ment round ups for girls and
adult volunteers throughout
the area.
Girls ages 5-17 are invited
to participate. The cost of
annual membership is $12.
Girl Scout journeys lead
girls through age-appropri
ate adventures that inspire
them to leadership.
Young girls may plant a
garden and learn to appreci
ate the different flowers and
plants that grow there, while
learning about friendship
and honesty. Teens may
identify ways to improve
their community and begin
a public campaign for
change, while learning the
value of networking and
setting an example.
For more information
about becoming a Girl
Scout — or to volunteer —
visit www.gshg.com or call
706-774-0505.
Area Gets $5M
Grant For
Weatherization
The Area Committee to
Improve Opportunities
Now Inc. (ACTION Inc.)
announces the launch of
the Georgia Weatherization
Assistance Program after
receiving a $5.1 million grant
from the U.S. Department
of Energy (DOE). Funding
will provide weatherization
services, free of charge, for
eligible applicants current
ly living in residential and
multifamily homes in a ten
county area of Northeast
Georgia until March of
2012.
Funding for the project
has been allocated by the
Georgia Environmental
Facilities Authority
(GEFA) for Clarke, Barrow,
Elbert, Greene, Jackson,
Madison, Morgan, Oconee,
Oglethorpe and Walton
counties.
Local funding allocations
are listed below:
•Jackson County: num
ber of units, 74; allocation,
$512,075; applications
taken, 12.
•Madison County: num
ber of units, 49; allocation,
$343,849; applications
taken, 14.
• Barrow County: num
ber of units, 60; alloca
tion, $419,027; applications
taken, 12.
ACTION Inc. will within
the next two weeks place
notices for contractors in all
county newspapers. At the
present time, ACTION Inc.
has a mailing list of approxi
mately 15 contractors prior
to letting any contracts for
work.
For more information,
contact ACTION Inc. at
706-546-8293, ext. 22 or by
visiting www.actionincorpo-
rated.org.
Report On
Reservoir Sites
Due In October
Jackson County officials
could get their first look at
an engineering company’s
analysis of three potential
reservoir sites in October.
Rob MacPherson, Prime
Engineering, told the
Jackson County Water and
Sewerage Authority Aug. 13
that his firm, having com
pleted the field analysis,
geo-technical borings and
environmental analysis is
putting the data together
for presentation of a draft
report.
In response to a question
from vice chairman Dave
Ehrhardt, MacPherson said
the reports — including a
yield analysis and cost esti
mates — should be ready for
the authority’s review at one
of its October meetings.
Jointly with the
Jackson County Board of
Commissioners, the author
ity is looking at three poten
tial sites, all in the Nicholson
area. The largest of the three
is along Little Curry Creek
west of Nicholson inside of
Brockton Loop and back
ing up to Brockton Road.
The other two are east of
Nicholson. One is between
Quail Ridge Drive on the
north, Wages Farm Road on
the south and Sanford Road
on the east. The third is
located on Hardman Creek
west of Hwy. 334 between
Berea Road and Tal Phillips
Road.
Both the board of com
missioners and the author
ity believe that the county’s
stake in the Bear Creek
Reservoir will soon be insuf
ficient to meet demand for
water. Jackson County sup
posedly can withdraw up to
14.5 million gallons a day
(mgd) from the reservoir,
but Jackson officials are
suing the Upper Oconee
Basin Water Authority — of
which it is a member — to
force it to recalculate that
yield in view of the recent
drought.
Jackson officials believe
that the yield of the regional
reservoir is actually less
than half of what has been
long assumed, meaning that
Jackson County can’t count
on getting 14.5 mgd when it
needs it. If they’re correct,
the county will need a new
source of water much soon
er than previously believed.
The authority and the BOC
hired Prime Engineering to
lead the site selection pro
cess. The company looked
at some 13 potential reser
voir sites, including some
existing lakes, before select
ing three for closer scru
tiny.
“We will probably end up
coming up with a selection
matrix with all of the compo
nents that need to be taken
into consideration," Prime’s
Richard Cheek explained
earlier this summer.
Those components will
include cost, the number of
property owners affected,
permitting issues (including
wetlands mitigation), water
quality and yield — among
others.
“We will evaluate each
of these and indicate in a
matrix form how each of
the sites compares with the
others," Cheek said.
Vaccine For
Seasonal Flu
Available Mon.
Routine seasonal flu
vaccine will be available
Monday, according to local
health department officials.
Health departments in the
10-county health district sur
rounding Athens (Barrow,
Clarke, Elbert, Greene,
Jackson, Madison, Morgan,
Oconee, Oglethorpe,
Walton) will have flu vac
cine available for the public
beginning Aug. 31.
The usual high-risk
patients should get the shot
as they have every year,
according to health offi
cials. People over 65 and
people with high-risk con
ditions are at greatest risk
for complications from sea
sonal flu.
However, as has been
recommended for several
years, the shot is also rec
ommended for people of
all ages from 6 months old
and up. (The Vaccine for
Children flu shots for chil
dren 18 years of age and
younger will arrive later -
call the Health Department
to verify VFC flu shots have
arrived.)
Flu shots cost $25 and
are covered by Medicare
and Medicaid. No appoint
ment is necessary, officials
said.
Officials say the shot
contains antigens for the
three flu viruses believed
by experts to be the most
likely to affect the United
States this fall and winter.
This seasonal flu vaccine
does not protect against
the pandemic strain of the
new HINI (swine) flu virus,
officials stress. Vaccine for
that virus is being devel
oped and tested but is not
expected to be released
until later in the fall. It is
now undergoing clinical tri
als.
Symptoms of flu include
sudden onset of fever, head
ache, fatigue, dry cough,
sore throat, nasal conges
tion and body aches. In the
U.S., flu usually peaks in
late fall or winter.
NEED PRINTING?
CALL
706-367-5233
Call ToU-Free!
Commerce
1-888-694-3330
NEW ft ANAGER!
Uiyoway, cfk itTwtayl
own Anything 1*12 Months I
We are so excited to welcome Kevin L. Hoffman as our New Store Manager.
Kevin comes to us with a wealth of experience in the Rent to Own industry.
Some of you might remember him when he opened a store for another com
pany in the old Bramlett’s Pharmacy building in 1998. His courteous and
professional management style has provided 15 years of wonderful service to
the residents of Commerce and the surrounding area. His Customer Service
ability is unmatched. We are pleased to have Kevin as a part of our manage
ment team in providing you with the best product, the best prices, and the
highest level of customer service in town. Please stop by and welcome Kevin
to Crusader Rent to Own!
'^OMtyssameiKCttM No Croft ctotei
$10 Takes It Home!**
‘This is a Consumer Rental-Purchase Agreement. You will not mm (his merchandise until you have paid Uit- lotai of atl required payments according to die Consumer Rrntai-
Purchase Agreement. The lolal number of weekly payments for NilW merchandise may be any combination of the following weekly installments; 39/J2/7S/91/IW weekly
payments as determined by the Consumer Rentai-Piirchsse Agreemenl you execute. Initial payment will include periodic payment, if applicable processing fees & lanes.
Losl/damage waiver & tunes event. Carmen be combined with any other offer. Some restrictions apply. Sec Store Manager for complete details. Pictures shown are for
illustration purposes only Models and styles may vary by location. Merchandise may be new or previously rented While supply lasts. Mol responsible for printer error. 90
days atme-as-cssh available on new agreement terms gneatet titan -In weeks. “S10 pays your first week's rent on any new agreement- Processing lees, taxes and Advantage
Plus product protection plan are extra See Store Manager for details.
Crusader
RENT TO OWN
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