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SEE PAGE 9A SEE PAGE IB Rakestraw's Free Throws Lift East Jackson In Nail-Biter Will Legislature Take Up Tax Reform Again? Vol. 136 No. 48 20 Pages 2 Sections 50 Cents COVERING THE COMMERCE AREA SINCE 1875 Council Sets Planning Meeting; Light Agenda On Tap Monday The Commerce City Council will hold a planning ses sion Friday afternoon at Southeast Toyota’s cabin just outside of Commerce. Call it a team-building and agenda setting gathering that will begin at 2:30, formally end at 5:00, followed by dinner for officials and their spouses. “I wanted to do this as quickly as possible to get you (new Ward 4 councilman Steve Perry) on board and see what we’ve got going,” explained Mayor Clark Hill. Perry, the only new member of the government, will also undergo a day of orientation next week with city manager Clarence Bryant, who will take him to the vari ous departments to meet department heads and to learn more about city operations. The council will hold its first voting session Monday night at 6:30 in the Commerce Room of the Commerce Civic Center with a light agenda. Among the items on the agenda are: •appointment of a magistrate judge for a two-year term • appointment of a city attorney for a one-year term • two requests for annexation and rezoning, both from See “Council” on 3A Reception Planned Jan. 19 To Honor Mayor Hardy The Commerce City Council will hold a reception Thursday, Jan. 19, to honor Charles L. “Buzzie” Hardy Jr. for his 22 years of service as mayor. The reception will be from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Commerce Civic Center, with a presentation planned for 6 p.m. The public is invited. Hardy, who left office Dec. 31 after deciding not to seek re-election, is the longest-serving mayor in Commerce history. Red Cross Blood Drive Tuesday At First Baptist The American Red Cross will hold a blood drive Tuesday, Jan. 10, from noon to 6:00 p.m. in the fam ily fellowship center of the First Baptist Church of Commerce. + The church is located at 1345 South Broad Street, Commerce. The Red Cross provides blood services to local hospitals, including Northridge Medical Center and the Athens, Gainesville and Atlanta area hospitals. Participants will receive a coupon for a free Chick fil A sandwich at the Banks Crossing restaurant. 4-DAY WEATHER FORECAST THURSDAY, JANUARY 5 Sunny: Low, 34; high, 58; 0% chance rain SATURDAY, JANUARY 7 W 1 Few showers: Low, 48; high, 64; 30% chance rain INDEX Church News 4B Classified Ads 6-7B Calendar 3A Crime News 6-7A News Roundup 2A Obituaries 5B Opinions 4-5A School 1 2A Sports 1-3B Social News 9A 4 8 7 9 1 4 1 4 1 " g FRIDAY, JANUARY 6 Sunny: Low, 47; high, 64; 0% chance rain SUNDAY, JANUARY 8 30% chance rain Rainfall this month 0.00 inches Rainfall Last Year 42.58 Inches CONTACT US Phone: 706-387-5406 FAX: 706-387-5435 E-mail: news@ma i nstreetnews .com Mail: 33 Lee Street, Jefferson, GA 30549 Plenty Of Voting In 2012 Legend Data Sourci 10 Redistricting Data SF 94-171 New City Voting District Map Commerce’s city council and its board of educa tion finally reached an agreement on new voting districts. The new maps are in the hands of Rep. Tommy Benton, who will introduce them in the Georgia House of Representatives for legislative approval. Technically, the city could do its own reapportionment, subject to the approval of the Department of Justice, but the school board had to go through the General Assembly. After fretting over some minor changes centered around Ward/ District 3, the two groups came to an agreement on a plan that keeps the districts and wards identical. This map should not be confused with the Minish District (north and south) precincts used in city, state and national elections. Busy Election Schedule This Year Jackson County voters will go to the polls mul tiple times this year, from the March 6 Presidential Preference Primary to a possible General Election runoff Dec. 4. While the early atten tion will be on the March 6 Republican Presidential Preference Primary, local candidates will begin quali fying in May for constitu tional offices where some high-profile offices are up for grabs, starting with the Republican and Democratic primaries July 31 and cul minating on Nov. 6 in the General Election. Voters must select a replacement for retir ing sheriff Stan Evans, as well as for board of com missioners’ chairman Hunter Bicknell, who has announced plans to run for Congress in the newly Other offices to be filled include those of the District 1 and District 2 seats on the board of commissioners, the Post 1 and Post 4 seats on the Jackson County Board of Education, clerk of court, tax commissioner, probate judge, state court judge, state court solicitor, county surveyor, magistrate court judge and coroner. Then there will be elections of state senators and rep resentatives as well as the 9th District seat in the U.S. Congress. Winners will be on the ballot Nov. 6 in the General Election, but in Jackson County local races are typically decided in the Republican Primary and pri mary runoff, since few can- formed 9th Congressional intentions of running for didates offer as Democrats. District. sheriff, and a number have During the primary on Five candidates have also expressed interest in already announced their the Congressional seat. See “Elections” on 3A Important Election Dates March 6: Presidential Preference Primary and special election (if needed) May 23-25: Qualifying period for General Primary Election July 31: General Primary Election, T-SPLOST referendum Aug. 21: General Primary Runoff Election Sept. 18: Special election date (if needed) Oct. 16: Runoff date for special election (if needed) Nov. 6: General Election Dec. 4: General Election Runoff (if needed) Voter Registration Deadlines Feb. 6: Presidential Preference Primary July 2: General Primary Elections Aug. 20: Special election/runoff Oct. 8: General Election Chamber Hopes Momentum Continues By Mark Beardsley Chamber of Commerce officials, by nature, have to be optimistic, but just the same, Jackson County’s chamber official leading the economic development effort has good reason to think 2012 could get off to a strong start. “It looks promising,” said Courtney Bernardi when asked about what the new year may bring. “A lot of companies that have held off the last couple of years, or active projects that went into hibernation, seem to be coming back a little more.” There was a lot of prom ise last year as well, but it wasn’t until November that things began falling in place. In a matter of about three weeks, the chamber got to announce projects destined to bring more than 1,100 jobs and $180 mil lion in investment into the county. All during 2011, new proj ects kept popping up, and Jackson is still working with more than 40 proposals — more than virtually any county in Georgia. Bernardi thinks that will continue, for See “Chamber” on 3A o