Vol. 139
No. 52
24 Pages
2 Sections
Wednesday
FEBRUARY 10,2016
www.CommerceNewsTODAY.com
50 Cents COVERING THE COMMERCE AREA SINCE 1875
Mangum
announces
for re-election
Janis Mangum has
announced that she plans
to seek re-election for sheriff
in May.
She became Jackson
County’s first female sheriff
by winning the election in
2012, beating out a crowded
field of contestants.
“During the campaign in
2012, the promise I made
was to serve and protect the
people of Jackson County,
enforce the laws of the State
of Georgia and always be
a good steward of taxpay
er’s money,” said Mangum.
“These three things will
always be my top priority as
long as I am sheriff.”
Mangum said this is her
31 st year in law enforcement
and said she plans to contin
ue to serve the county to the
best of her ability.
“I am going into my 31st
year in law enforcement,
have witnessed many things
during that time, and contin
ue to learn every day,” she
said. “I have never lost my
drive to serve the people.
During these four years, we
have accomplished many
things at the sheriff’s office,
however we have a lot more
we want to do. I will continue
to serve the people to the
best of my ability. I would
like to ask for your continued
support as I seek this re-elec
tion. It is such a blessing and
I am honored to serve as
your sheriff.”
Those wishing to contact
Mangum can do so on her
Facebook page or through
the contact form on the
MangumForSheriff website.
Qualifying begins March
7. The primary election will
be May 24. The general elec
tion will be held on Tuesday,
Nov. 8.
INDEX
Church News 6B
Classified Ads 8-9B
Crime News 6-7A
Obituaries 7B
Opinion 4A
School 8-9A & 5B
Sports 1-4B
Social News. 10-11A
MAILING LABEL BELOW
Commerce schools
BOE axes furlough days
Improving finances allows return to full calendar for 2016-17
BY MARK BEARDSLEY
Commerce City School System stu
dents and teachers will have a full
school calendar for the 2016-17 for the
first time since 200809 school year.
With its reserves boosted to $2.7
million last week by a $1.3 million
check from the Jackson County tax
office, the Commerce Board of Edu
cation voted Monday night to return to
a calendar with 180 days of instruction
for students and 190 days of work for
teachers.
The board had previously added
back two instructional days for the
current (2015-16) school year, bringing
the number of instructional days this
year to 178 and the number of teacher
work days to 184.
Each day of school costs the system
about $50,000.
Superintendent Joy Tolbert recom
mended “giving back” the calendar
days, which were put into effect as the
Great Recession took hold to balance
the system’s budget against state bud
get cuts. At the high point the system
had cut its educational days to 170.
“Remember, the board had two
goals, to have a healthy fund balance
and to give back all the (furlough)
days,” superintendent Joy Tolbert told
the school board at its Thursday night
work session “My recommendation
is that we give back all the days for
next year.”
“This is great,” commented mem
ber Bill Davis.
“Let’s do it,” agreed Nathan Ander
son.
Member Kyle Moore inquired as to
whether Tolbert anticipates the board
“meeting our budget this year.”
“We do,” Tolbert responded, “and
we’re actually ahead a little bit.”
She reminded the board that Gov.
Nathan Deal had proposed an addi
tional $300 million in K-12 funding for
the upcoming budget year, and while
she indicated she was not yet counting
on those dollars, “if that comes in, it
will help in giving back the days.”
She also pointed out that due to the
system’s tax digest drop a couple of
years ago (it has since recovered), the
system’s equalization money should
go up, plus the system should get
more money because its enrollment
is up.
“People have waited long enough,”
she said. “It is time to give students
back their days and put them on a
level playing field with everybody else
and give our teachers back their days.”
The new calendar eliminates the fall
break staff and students have grown
accustomed to over recent years.
Moore asked if Tolbert could see
any prospects for reducing the sys
tem’s tax rate, which is just shy of the
state limit of 20 mills for maintenance
and operations.
Tolbert responded that the impact
of “giving back” days will cost the sys
tem about $300,000, but suggested that
the board could look at the tax issue in
the fall. At that point, the board will be
able to look at its fund balance and will
also have an idea of whether the tax
digest has grown.
Moore said he would like the board
to cut taxes “one or two mills,” which
he said would help the city “expand its
boundaries.”
Break ground on Habitat house
Habitat for Humanity held a ceremony
Saturday at 38 Cotton Street in Commerce to
mark the beginning of construction on its 14th
house. The 1,600-square-foot, three-bedroom,
two-bath house will be owned by Billy Hunt
and his two children. Turning the ceremonial
first shovels of earth for the house are, left to
right, Paul Brown, Habitat executive director;
Lucy Hagy, representing the Waters family,
which donated the lot; John Strong and Judy
Dodd, Habitat board members; Cindy Phillips,
Habitat’s family advocate; Jackie and Billy Hunt,
future owners; and Harold Harrison, a member
of the construction team. The house will be
largely constructed by volunteers working on
Wednesdays and Saturdays and completion is
expected in 12 weeks, weather permitting, once
the slab is poured. Anyone interested in volun
teering to work on the house can go online to
www.JacksonCountyHabitat.org.
Council, fire officers meet for 3 hours
Commerce’s mayor and city council met behind closed
doors for over three hours Monday night with fire chief
Kevin Dean and his four top officers. The meeting was an
attempt to resolve an impasse over the status of Dean.
The council took no action following the meeting, which
earlier Mayor Clark Hill couched as a performance review
for the fire chief.
Tensions between the fire department and the city gov
ernment surfaced last week. The fire department re-elected
Dean as chief last November, but the city council had not
confirmed Dean’s election, and city manager Pete Pyrzens-
ki had reportedly put Dean on “probation” for reasons not
disclosed.
Firefighters, their families and supporters — more than
100 strong — packed the Commerce Room of the Com
merce Civic Center for the council’s Feb. 1 work session
in a show of support. As that meeting got under way, Hill
announced that the city council would meet with the fire
men.
Dean brought officers Knox Smith, Adam Stephenson,
Josh Spear and Daniel Morrison.
Ward 4 councilman Bobby Redmon, a 22-year veteran
of the fire department, said he thought the meeting went
well, though he declined to provide any details because the
issue is a personnel matter.
“I think both sides were positive during the meeting,”
he said. He pointed out that the city charter vests the city
manager with control over personnel matters and said he
expects that Pyrzenski will make some kind of announce
ment in regard to the matter at some point.
“As far as a timeline, I don’t know,” Redmon said. “No
real timeline was discussed.”
Commerce BOE seeks bond savings
BY MARK BEARDSLEY
The Commerce Board of Education thinks it can save
the school system $511,000 in school bond payments
through 2028.
The board agreed at its Thursday “work session” to pro
ceed toward the refinancing of its 2009 bonds, the principle
amount of which is $8 million.
Superintendent Joy Tolbert told the board that prelimi
nary discussions suggest that the board could finance the
bonds for 2.05 percent, less than half the 4.44 percent rate
it is currently paying.
“That is outstanding,” she told the board. “It is just unbe
lievable to me that by the interest rate dropping two percent
we’re saving $50,000 a year.”
When it issued the bonds, repayment was scheduled so
that the system paid interest only on the principle through
2021 — when its 2007 bonds would be retired. Those bonds
cannot be refinanced, Tolbert said.
“Let’s go for it,” offered member Bill Davis.
What’s In Forgotten Safe Deposit Box?
Tolbert informed the board Thursday night that State
Street Bank contacted her about a safe deposit box she was
unaware existed, could not locate keys for and that had not
been opened since 1993.
“We don’t have the keys. We cannot find the keys,” she
said. “They have to drill it.”
Since the bank required that the board submit min
utes reflecting that someone be present when the box is
opened, the board elected chairman Rodney Gary to be
present.
Bids sought
on proposed
new sidewalk
The long-anticipated side
walk running along Jefferson
Road from Commerce Middle
School to Lakeview Drive may
actually be built this year.
Stevenson & Palmer Engi
neering, Inc., has placed an
advertisement for bids in this
week’s Jackson Herald for the
“North South Connecting Side
walks.”
The project would be built
on the east side of Jefferson
Road (Hwy. 15) and is approxi
mately 5,400 feet long.
Bids must be submitted by
2 p.m. on Tuesday March 1,
to the city’s utility department
building at 545 Cedar Drive.
Bids will be publicly opened
and read at that time.
Funding is coming primarily
from a $250,000 federal Depart
ment of Transportation grant
the city received several years
ago. That grant is being admin
istered by the Georgia Depart
ment of Transportation. Any
costs over the grant amount
would be funded by revenue
from the special purpose local
option sales tax (SPLQST).
The contractor, who must
be prequalified or a registered
subcontractor with the GDOT,
will have 90 days to complete
the project, and the city has the
right to reject all bids and re-bid
the project.
light agenda
for city council
The Commerce City Coun
cil will have a very light agen
da for its Monday, Feb. 15,
meeting at 6 p.m. at the Com
merce Civic Center.
The council will:
•approve the 2016 speed
zone ordinance. There are
no changes from the 2015
ordinance.
• consider rezoning a lot at
754 South Broad Street from
R-5 (multifamily housing) to
C-2 (commercial),.
•consider approval of a
right of way ordinance that
would be used in the event
that companies seek to install
“microtowers” for cell phone
or Internet service.
•consider approval of a
license for AQSA Ventures
LLC to sell beer and wine
by the package at 145 South
Elm Street. It is a temporary
relocation of J.D.’s Tobacco
Town from the strip center on
North Elm Street that burned
late last year.
