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PAGE 2A THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 23, 2008 Baldwin officials hear year-end reports BY SHARON HOGAN Baldwin City Council members heard end-of-year reports from several of its department heads at meetings earlier this month. A brief review of each of the reports is listed. FIRE DEPARTMENT Fire chief Joe Roy reported that his department had 751 calls in 2007, up 185 calls over 2006. Some 503 of the total 751 calls were rescue and emergency medical service inci dents. The fire department brought in $39,750 in contract fees in 2007. The department also received a $1,000 grant from Wal-Mart and purchased two laptop computers, one for the training room and one for the command post. Fire department staff spent a week visiting the school and day cares presenting information on fire prevention. Some 18 fire inspec tions were done and walk-thrus on pre-fire plans were conducted at over 100 businesses. The depart ment also got the city in compliance with the national incident manage ment system (NIMS) through the Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA). Roy said for the 2008 budget, the fire department has brought in a little over $31,000 so far in contract fees. The department has several grants pending: one in the amount of $180,000 for the purchase of a heavy rescue truck; one in the amount of $49,000 for the purchase of an exhaust removal system; and one in the amount of $52,175 for the purchase of a fire prevention and severe weather simulator. Roy said the department has start ed the cost recovery billing and has submitted 13 calls which could pos sibly generate $7,800 in revenue. The fire department sponsored eight specialized classes for Baldwin Fire Department members and all public safety personnel in the area. WATER DEPARTMENT Public works director Tim Hall presented the council with a copy of the year-end report for the water, street and collection departments. Hall said there are 570 work orders on file for 2007. The water depart ment is responsible for 73 percent, or 420 of these, and the street depart ment 26 percent or 150. The water department had its water lines hit four times and had several blow-outs of water main lines. The water department upgraded a couple of problem areas on the water distribution system and have discov ered several control valves, located more water lines, and upgraded water line blow-offs to the appropri ate size. The department is updating the sys tem on an on-going basis, Hall said. All tanks, vaults, gates and pump house locks have been changed to have a one-key entry. The pump house on J. Warren Road has been almost completely remodeled. The water department has changed 82 water meters as part of the change- out process. Some 49 new water customers were added to the system, this is a three percent increase over 2006. The estimated water loss due to leaks, breaks, flushing, disinfec tion, etc. was 18.6 million gallons. Hall said this is nine percent of the total that has been purchased from the water plant. The water leak the department repaid at Chatham and Willingham Streets alone was approximately 16,632,000 gallons over a one-year period. Hall said the water department is constantly looking for leaks and responding to them as soon as legal ly possible. “We are always walking water lines to hopefully find any leaks that the public cannot report,” he said. “All repairs are made with materi als that have a proven history of durability and we have an attitude of ‘we ain’t coming back to this one,’” Hall said. STREET DEPARTMENT Hall said the street department was also busy during 2007. In the cooler months, the employees are cleaning ditches, cleaning out culverts, pick ing up trash, cutting street rights- of-way back and improving catch basins, among other things. Hall said the street department also deals with snow and ice whenever neces sary and watches the weather for any event that may come so the city can be prepared. During the warmer months, the street department cuts grass. Hall said grass cutting never stops and when a person finishes, it is time to start over again. The street department installed 168 feet of asphalt curbing on King Street to stop rainwater runoff. This is an on-going endeavor in the city limits to rid streets of standing water. The street department also moved countless loads of dirt from prop erties on Hwy. 365 and City Park Drive to fill in the property next to the fire department to get it ready for a city park. The street department also headed a recycling effort on Runway Drive. COLLECTION DEPARTMENT Hall said the collection department was a bit slow to transition in but is gaining momentum as the new year moves on. A priority at the onset was to stock materials for any repair that was needed. Hall said we are about 90 percent complete in that effort at this time. Hall said the collection department has started clearing some sewer easements in the city. This process will require some dedication and will take some time. Hall said some unknown manholes have been discovered and they have been marked, mapped and they will be raised soon. Hall said three employees under went training and continuing educa tion in the water, wastewater col- Dr. Neelagaru, M.D. (Dr. Neel) N. Neelagaru, M.D. (Dr. Neel) is now associated with Northeast Georgia Medical Center, Gainesville, Georgia and will do all Invasive Cardiology Procedures at this facility. Commerce Cardiology Clinic Call 335-2000 for appointment Now In Commerce Esquire Insurance No Driving Record Too Good Or Too Bad Over 40 Companies Represented Progressive • Mercury Travelers & More We offer: Commercial Insurance Auto • Home • Life • Health Mon.-Fri. 9am-5:30pm • Sat. 10am-1pm 950 S. Broad Street • Commerce, Ga. 706-335-0881 lection and soil and sedimentation control fields. A total of 154 hours was spent on training in 2007. POLICE DEPARTMENT Police chief Daren Osborn pre sented a report that showed a total of 126,687 miles were patrolled in the city limits of Baldwin in 2007. The police department made 2,742 traffic stops and issued 1,802 citations. A total of 1,634 warnings were given, most of these being verbally. The department made 17 felony arrests, 326 misdemeanor arrests, 65 DUI arrests, 31 drug arrests and 51 warrant/hold arrests. Osborn said one activity on the report that he was proud of was a decrease in the number of burglaries from 2006. The department investi gated 10 burglaries in 2007. A total of 1,316 hours were logged for officer training in 2007. Corporal James Savage was named Officer of the Year for 2007 by the Georgia Office of Highway Safety. Osborn said the department received seven bullet proof vests from the Fraternal Order of Police and received a grant from the Georgia Municipal Association for traffic vests and fluid resistant gloves. Donations were received by the department to purchase two tasers and cartridges. A $1,000 grant was received from Wal-Mart to purchase two Glock pistols. The department also received two in-car cameras from a grant from 2006. All quiet at recent Lula public hearings BY SHARON HOGAN The City of Lula held three public hearings last week on the consider ation and adoption of new water and sewer rates. No Lula residents turned out at any of the three hearings held on Tuesday and Wednesday to voice opinions on this issue. The implementation of the increased water and sewer rates is scheduled to take place over a two- year period. The city’s current rates are the lowest in the area. The increased water and sewer fees at full implementation in two years will probably place the city somewhere in the middle of what other area communities charge, according to the proposal. DFACS officials hope for progress on new building BY CHRIS BRIDGES The wait continues for a new building for the Banks County Department of Family and Children Services, but director Kenny Jarvis said last week things could be mov ing forward soon. Jarvis told county DFACS board members that he was planning to meet in Banks County with state officials of the Department of Human Resources concerning the new building. Jarvis said state offi cials wanted to review with him the procedures for placing bids and advertising for bids. “I know we have been discuss ing a new building for eight years,” Jarvis said. “However, it seems all procedures are beginning to move forward now.” The county director said the even tual plan is to construct a new build ing near the current Banks County Health Department. In other business at last week’s 20-minute January meeting, Jarvis told DFACS board members that with half of the fiscal year now com plete, only 41 percent of the budget has been used. The year-to-date expenses are cur rently at $13,786.92 with $19,997.08 remaining in the budget. “We are well in line with the bud get,” Jarvis said. DOT names Waldrep new district administrative officer Teresa Waldrep, Lula, has been named the district administrative officer for the 21 counties in Northeast Georgia that make up Georgia Department of Transportation’s District One. Waldrep has worked with DOT since 1976. She began her career as a clerk typist. She worked her way up through the administration division. Waldrep served as a secretary typist, accounting technician, procurement officer, administrative services manager, legal services manager and assistant district administrative officer. Waldrep is now responsible for the administrative functions of District One, including personnel, train ing, safety, technology, purchasing and accounting. She supervises a staff of 20 and an annual operating budget of approximately $24 million. Waldrep assumed her new duties on Jan. 16. “Teresa is an outstanding employee,” said DOT district engineer Russell McMurry. “She is uniquely qualified to supervise our administrative office because she has worked in almost every facet of the office.” “In 2005, Teresa won the ‘Commissioner’s Award of Merit’ for her outstanding work. As legal services officer, she processed over 160 open records requests. That’s a 20 percent increase over 2004. I am sure Teresa will do her job to the best of her ability. She is an asset to the department and the state of Georgia,” he added. •NO BEER OR WINE SOLD •CLOSED ON SUNDAYS •NO LIMITS •NO GIMMICKS •NO SALES TO DEALERS COMMERCE VILLAGE SHOPPING CENTER COMMERCE, GA. 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