Newspaper Page Text
WEDNESDAY, JULY 20, 2016
THE COMMERCE NEWS • THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS
PAGE 11A
Honored for service
The Jackson County Water and Sewerage Authority board recognized two employees for their 10 years
of service to the authority. On July 14, the board recognized Mike Johnson, left, CIO/GIS analyst; and
Judy Smith, right, finance director. Board chairman Dave Ehrhardt, center, presented plaques to Smith
and Johnson. Photo by Sharon Hogan
Jackson water authority OKs
sewerage for W. Jackson project
Backyard chicken
owners should
protect their flocks
from avian influenza
By Josh Fuder
UGA Extension
Avian influenza is not a problem in Georgia, yet. Com
mercial chicken producers are prepared to fight the vims
that kills birds, and backyard chicken flock owners should
prepare, too.
While the commercial poultry industry in Georgia has the
greatest risk in terms of potential for loss, it also has multiple
safeguards in place and has limited exposure to migratory
birds. Avian flu can more easily be introduced into Georgia
through backyard chicken flocks.
There have been no cases of human infection by birds
because the N5NW strain of the vims is not zoonotic, mean
ing it cannot pass between humans and animals.
To protect backyard chickens, University of Georgia
Cooperative Extension offers small flock owners these rec
ommendations.
Keep Your Distance
• Restrict access to your property and your birds.
•Consider placing the birds inside a fence, and only
allow those who care for the birds to come in contact with
them.
• If visitors have backyard chickens of their own, do not
let them come in contact with your birds.
• Game birds and migratory waterfowl should not have
contact with your flock.
• Keep chickens inside a pen or coop, and do not let
them mn free.
BY SHARON HOGAN
The Jackson County
Water and Sewerage Author
ity board unanimously
approved the preliminary
application for a commercial
project on Highway 124/332
on July 14.
Darrend Delaperrier, A&B
Real Estate Partners LP, and
Chris Patton, were in atten
dance to answer questions
about the proposed com
mercial development that
will include medical, retail,
fast food and office space.
The project will be situat
ed on 23 acres across from
the Publix in West Jackson.
The project is estimated to
need over 24,700 gallons per
day of sewerage capacity.
Patton said Georgia
Department of Transpor
tation approval had been
received for the entrance.
The developers plan to
install a loop road around
the site and the roads are
expected to be complete in
Febmary or March of 2017.
Other Business
In other business the
board:
•elected Dylan Wilbanks
as its vice chairman. Wil
banks replaces former vice
chairman Shade Storey.
• approved spending
$23,260 for Atlanta Consult
ing Engineers Inc., Roswell,
to do the electrical engineer
ing for four projects, includ
ing the Middle Oconee
Wastewater Treatment Plant,
Highway 60 pump station,
Apple Valley pump station
and Galilee pump station
generator.
•unanimously approved
a budget not to exceed
$100,000 for the effluent
re-use project at the Middle
Oconee Wastewater Treat
ment Plant. The project will
allow the authority to use
effluent to run the screw
press, which will reduce the
amount of water being pur
chased from Jefferson. Man
ager Eric Klerk said the water
bills sometimes ran as high
as $12,000 per month. The
board approved an invoice
from C.H. Spencer & Com
pany, SLC, Utah, for $30,680
for the effluent pump.
• authorized chairman
Dave Ehrhardt to sign the
Nicholson Water Authority
Water Sales Agreement. The
rate the NWA will pay is $1.90
per 1,000 gallons for a min
imum of 2,500,000 gallons
per month and $2.30 per
1,000 gallons for less than
2,500,000 gallons per month.
•unanimously approved
an agreement with Hill Folley
Rossi & Associates Architec
ture and Engineering, Dulu
th, not to exceed $27,000, for
professional services for the
building addition/remodel at
the current JCWSA building
on MLK Avenue. Authority
engineer Joey Leslie said the
agreement is for a “turnkey”
set of bid documents. The
project will include enlarging
the conference room and
adding office space. Plans
are to prepare the plans and
specifications in 2016 and
make the project a 2017 capi
tal project.
• approved spending
an amount not to exceed
$45,000 for an additional aer
ator at the Middle Oconee
WWTP. Klerk said this will
give the authority five aera
tors at the plant.
• met in closed session for
approximately 30 minutes to
discuss a real estate offer. No
action was taken.
•received a copy of a
letter sent to the Jackson
County Board of Commis
sioners from Marvin G.
Back, Grounds Committee
chairman, Cambridge Farms
Inc., thanking Mark Dudziak,
JCWSA Water/Wastewater
operations manager, for his
response to a request to have
the fire hydrants in the Cam
bridge Farms subdivision
repainted.
Freeport exemption question to be on
Jackson County ballot in November
Jackson County voters will
have one more item to con
sider when they go to the
polls in November’s General
Election.
A vote to clarify how
Freeport tax exemptions are
granted to local warehouse
fulfillment centers, such as
Amazon and Bed, Bath and
Beyond, will also be on the
ballot.
The call for a vote,
approved by the Jackson
County Board of Commis
sioners Monday night, won’t
change any existing local
Freeport exemptions in the
county, but it will clarify the
legality of future exemptions.
Freeport exemptions are
tax abatements on invento
ry in local warehouses that
are in transit to other areas.
The abatement has existed
in Jackson County since the
1970s and has been used as
one tool to lure businesses to
the county.
But its use has primari
ly been for manufacturing
goods or large lots blocks of
merchandise shipped out in
large quantities.
The advent of fulfillment
centers, where businesses
such as Amazon ship sin
gle items out, has raised the
question of whether or not
traditional Freeport exemp
tions are legal. A Henry
County tax assessor said last
year that they don’t apply
to single items, a move that
angered local fulfillment cen
ters in that county and raised
the issue statewide.
In response, the Georgia
Legislature passed a bill ear
lier this year to clarify the
matter by allowing citizens
in each county to vote on
extending Freeport to fulfill
ment centers.
The issue is important in
Jackson County, which has
developed a growing ware
house and fulfillment niche
along the 1-85 corridor.
Two fulfillment centers are
already located in the county
and Amazon will soon locate
in Braselton.
Jackson County has not
interpreted the current law
as Henry County has, so
it won’t change anything
already being done, county
leaders said. But it will clarify
the issue for the future and
give the BOC the power to set
the Freeport abatement rate,
which can be from 20 to 100
percent.
Other Business
In other business, the
BOC:
• approved a rezoning
request for 10 acres on Bill
Wright Rd. from A-2 to L-I
for an existing trucking busi
ness.
•reappointed Doug
Waters to the Northeast
Georgia EMS Council.
•reappointed Linda Fos
ter to the Georgia Depart
ment of Behavioral Health &
Developmental Disabilities.
• approved a contract for a
firm to perform aerial photos
using an angle to provide a
better perspective for county
use.
• approved purchasing up
to 11 new laptop computers
for the EMS medical units.
•approved an intergov
ernmental agreement with
Banks and Barrow counties
for three law clerks for the
Piedmont Judicial Circuit.
• approved a sub-grant for
the Jackson County Account
ability Adult Felony Dmg
Court Program for FY2017.
Headmaster’s
Corner
by
•approved an agreement
with Sentinel Offender Ser
vices for pre-trial intervention
and diversion service for the
district attorney’s office.
•approved moving part-
time jail positions to the sher
iff’s office budget.
• approved a $15,000 grant
to help with the renovations
of new office space for the
Piedmont CASA.
Keep Clean
• Wear clean clothes when coming in contact with your
birds; scmb your shoes with disinfectant.
• Wash your hands thoroughly before entering the chick
ens’ pen.
• Clean cages, and change food daily.
• Keep stored feed in enclosed containers and protected
from wild birds and vermin.
• Clean and disinfect equipment that comes in contact
with your birds or their droppings, including cages and tools.
• Remove manure before disinfecting.
• Properly dispose of dead birds.
• Use municipal water as a drinking source instead of
giving chickens access to ponds or streams. (The avian
influenza vims can live for long periods on surface waters.)
Don’t Bring Disease Home
• If you have been near other birds or bird owners, at a
feed store or bird hunting, for instance, clean and disinfect
your vehicle’s tires and your equipment before going home.
Shower and put on clean clothing before approaching your
flock.
• Keep any new birds or birds that have been off-site sep
arate from your flock for at least 30 days.
Don’t Borrow the Virus
• Do not share tools, equipment or supplies with other
bird owners.
• If you do bring borrowed items home, clean and disin
fect them before you bring them home.
Know the Signs of a Sick Bird:
• A sudden increase in deaths, a dear-sign of the N5NW
strain of the vims
•A drop in egg production, or eggs that are soft, thin-
shelled or misshapen
• A lack of energy or poor appetite
• Watery and green diarrhea
• Purple discoloration of the wattles, combs and legs
• Swelling around the eyes
• Nasal discharge
Early detection is critical to prevent the spread of avian
influenza. If you suspect your flock is infected, call the Geor
gia Poultry Laboratory Network at 770-766-6810.
For more information on avian influenza, call the Geor
gia Department of Agriculture at 404-656-3667. To learn
more about how to care for backyard flocks, see the UGA
Extension publications on the topic at extension.uga.edu/
publications.
Josh Fuder is the University of Georgia Cooperative
Extension agricultural and natural resources agent in Cher
okee County.
Please Recycle
This Newspaper
Steve Cummings
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Public Notice
Commerce City Board of Education
The Commerce City School System offers the following career and
technical education programs for all students regardless of race, color,
national origin, including those with limited English proficiency, sex, or
disability in grades 9-12.
• Agriscience Systems
• Audio-Video Technology and Film
• Business and Technology
• Food and Nutrition
• Health Science
• Work-Based Learning
Persons seeking further information concerning the career and technical
education offerings and specific pre-requisite criteria should contact:
Dr. Joy R. Tolbert
270 Lakeview Drive
Commerce, Georgia
706-335-5500
jtolbert@commerce-city.k 12.ga.us
Inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies should be directed to:
Joy Tolbert (Superintendent)
270 Lakeview Drive
Commerce, Georgia
706-335-5500
joy.tolbert@commercecityschools.org