Newspaper Page Text
Vol. 140
No. 28
24 Pages
2 Sections
rpl WEDi
1/16 AUGUSr
Commerce News
Wednesday
AUGUST 31,2016
www.CommerceNewsTODAY.com
50 Cents COVERING THE COMMERCE AREA SINCE 1875
Deadlines
advanced for
Labor Day
Because of Labor Day
falling next Monday all
deadlines for the Sept. 7
issue of The Commerce
News will be advanced.
All news announce
ments, church items,
social news and photo
graphs must be submitted
by noon on Friday Sept. 2,
to assure publication on
Sept. 7.
All advertising copy
including classified ads,
must be submitted by
noon on Friday Sept. 2,
as well.
The offices of all Main-
Street Newspapers will be
closed on Monday Sept. 5,
for the Labor Day holiday.
As for the newspapers,
they will be printed, dis
tributed and mailed on the
regular schedule.
Council
meeting set
back 1 day
Commerce’s mayor
and city council — like
the rest of the city’s
employees (except
police) — will take the
Labor Day holiday off
next Monday Sept. 5.
The city council usual
ly holds a “work session”
(non-voting) meeting on
the first Monday night
of each month in the
Commerce Room of the
Commerce Civic Center.
To accommodate Labor
Day and a visit by coun
try music legend Bill
Anderson to Commerce,
the council will hold its
“work session” on Tues
day, Sept. 6, at 5 p.m.
See “Council” on 3A
Contact Us
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INDEX
Church News ....01A
Classified Ads 8-9B
Crime News 6-8A
Obituaries 11A
Opinion 4A
School 5-6B
Sports 145 B
Social News.9A-12A
MAILING LABEL BELOW
Tigers romp
against Banks
Co, Leopards
— Page IB
Eric Redmon
raises funds
for B&G club
- Page XX
Maysville to raise tax rates slightly
Net millage rates to be .51 mills on Banks County side, .98 on Jackson County side
BY SHARON HOGAN
The Maysville City Council plans
to hike the town’s tax rates slightly
this year for both Jackson and Banks
county residents.
Public hearings on the proposed
millage rates will be held at 7:30 a.m.
and 6 p.m. on Thursday Sept. 8. The
council will vote on the millage rate in
a called meeting at 7:45 a.m. on Friday
Sept. 16.
The proposed net millage rate for
the Banks County side of Maysville for
2016 is 0.53 mills - up from 0.51 mills in
2015. (The 2016 gross mills for Banks
County residents is 7.62 mills with a
7.09-mill rollback.)
The proposed net millage rate for
the Jackson County side of Maysville
for 2016 is 0.98 mills - up from 0.69
mills in 2015. (The 2016 gross mill for
Jackson County residents is 7.62 mills
with a 6.64 mill rollback.)
Both the Banks County and Jack-
son County tax digests reflect decreas
es for 2016.
The Banks County digest dropped
from $19.4 million in 2015 to $18,899
million for 2016. The Jackson County
digest dropped from $20.5 million in
2015 to $20.4 million for 2016.
“We are coming through a down
economy. Building is picking up.
Maybe this will only be for one year,”
said council member Charlie How-
ington.
Other Business
In other business:
• The council tabled action on bids
for an aerator in the pond at the new
city park. Two bids were received on
the project, but the council had ques
tions about each bid. Mayor Richard
Presley said he would call the bidders
and get additional information before
a vote is taken.
• Chip McGaughey, Engineering
Management Inc., was on hand to
discuss the walking trail and how
work on drainage would affect the trail
construction. The city has received a
grant for funding of the walking trail
and McGaughey advised the grant
could include piping to divert water
away from the playground. Barry Lord
spoke about a fix for the drainage
problem and he said he would send
the plans for the project to McGaughey
for his consideration.
Totally focused
Tiger Town Twirler Caroline Conger is all concentration as her squad per
forms at the Tigers on the Town pep Rally Thursday night in Spencer Park
to kick off the high school athletic season. For more photos, see page 7B.
Sales tax receipts gaining on
Jackson Co. budget projections
Although revenues continue to run behind
the budget, the August disbursement from the
local option sales tax (LOST) did gain a little
ground, according to an email from Jackson
County finance director Trey Wood.
“We have received our August, 2016 LOST
distribution from the Georgia Department of
Revenue in the amount of $538,641 for sales
made primarily in July 2016,” Wood wrote.
“This marks the seventh month’s collections
to be included in the FY 2016 budget.
“Our budgeted FY 2016 goal for local option
sales tax receipts is $5,600,000. The seventh
month of LOST revenue for FY 2016 is up
$33,757 over the same period last year. Over
all, collections are under budget by one per
cent or $16,406 through the period.”
A month ago, LOST proceeds were $88,000
below budget projections.
Meanwhile, the county also got a distribu
tion of $897,691 from the Department of Rev
enue from the special purpose local option
See “Sales tax” on Page 3A
Garbage, recycling pickups are
pushed back to Tuesday next week
Residential garbage and recycling pickup
in Commerce will take place on Tuesday
next week, thanks to the Labor Day holiday.
WastePro will not operate on Monday,
which is Labor Day, so Commerce residents
should remember to have their garbage and
recycling roll-outs at the curb by 6 a.m. on
Tuesday, Sept. 6, for their weekly pickup.
IDA approves
bonds, abatement
deal for Amazon
The Jackson County
Industrial Development
Authority approved a $37 mil
lion bond issue for the new
Amazon fulfillment center in
a called meeting last Friday
morning.
The company is getting
an eight-year schedule of tax
abatements that will save it
$504,023 in county and fire
district taxes over eight years.
During that same time, it will
pay $210,530 in county and
fire district taxes.
The abatement schedule
starts at a 90-pecent abate
ment in the first year, then
falls to 85 percent, 75 percent,
65 percent, 50 percent, 25
percent and to 10 percent in
the seventh year.
On school taxes, the abate
ment is 50 percent each year.
While it will save a total of
$526,651 over the course of
the abatement, it will pay a
like amount in school taxes.
Chamber of commerce
president/CEO Jim Shaw
said the company will pro
vide 700 jobs averaging
$30,000 a year, for a $21 mil
lion annual payroll.
The abatement covers per
sonal property. The company
is leasing space in a building.
“An investment of $37
million in equipment is fairly
extraordinary for a business
like this,” Shaw told the IDA.
“It’s a great project,”
remarked IDA chairman
Scott Martin. “Hat’s off to Jim
Shaw for working to get it
here.”
Bond attorney Jim Wood
ward said the bond validation
hearing will be held October
or November.
The IDA is working on a
similar bond issue and abate
ment for Williams Sonoma,
that is winding down, accord
ing to Woodward, who said
the bonds on that project
have been validated and the
closing is expected in the
near future.
Audit Report
Treasurer David Lathem
went over the IDA’s audit,
which covers both 2014 and
2015.
The IDA suffered opera
tional losses in both years,
largely due to lack of land
sales and bond fees. In 2014, it
was $224,733 in the red large
ly because it took a $186,689
paper loss on land in the Cen
tral Jackson Industrial Park it
sold for less than it was listed
on the books. In 2015, the
IDA had an operational loss
of $58,073.
IDA chairman Scott Martin
reminded the IDA that the
land sold to the Humane
Society was unsuitable for
industrial use. The Humane
Society plans to use it to build
an animal shelter and for a
dog park.
“That’s the way it works
with the IDA,” said Shaw. “If
you don’t have bond fees
and don’t have land sales,
you have no income. The
expenses are regular annual
expenses, like the IDA con
tribution to the Alliance for
Economic Development
($30,275) and professional
fees. The revenue, when you
sell land or have bond fees,
comes in lump sums.”
The IDAs 2015 expenses
included $30,275 to the Alli
ance and $7,126 in legal fees.
The 2016 audit will show
a “profit,” because the IDA
had two bond issues, from
which it will receive substan
tial income — from Amazon
and Williams Sonoma.
“Overall, it was a very good
audit,” Lathem commented,
“very clean, no issues.”
Bonded Debt
As of Dec. 31, 2015, IDA-is-
sued industrial revenue
bonds outstanding totaled
$646.8 million, payable by the
companies involved. “Nei
ther the authority the county
nor any political subdivision
thereof, is obligated in any
manner for repayment of the
bonds,” the auditor noted.
On the other hand, Jack-
son County is obligated to
pay almost $32 million in
bonds the IDA issued on
behalf of the county to build
infrastructure for econom
ic development, primarily
roads, plus another $9.14 mil
lion in bonds issued in 2012,
also under a contract with
Jackson County.
The IDA itself has no debt.