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THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS
THURSDAY, AUGUST 28, 2008
HISTORIC COURTHOUSE SEES ACTIVITY AGAIN
Lawyers and clients could be seen on Thursday milling around in the court
room at the historic Banks County Courthouse in downtown Homer. The
courtroom will be used while re-modeling work is being done at the current
courthouse. Photo by Sharon Hogan
Baldwin approves spending $30,000
BY SHARON HOGAN
Immediately following a public meet
ing on Thursday, Aug. 14, on finances, the
Baldwin City Council approved spending
$30,000 for payment on a new ladder truck
for the fire department.
The council unanimously approved the
payment from Special Purpose Local Op
tion Sales Tax (SPLOST) IV revenue.
In other business at the council meeting:
•the council tabled action on a new secu
rity system for city hall. Baldwin Financial
Officer Betty Harper presented three bids
received on this project to the council. Elite
Security bid $4,995 for video cameras inside
and outside and an alarm system. Electronic
Sales submitted a bid of $6,618, including
four panic buttons installed in various of
fices. Ansley Communications put a bid
in for $9,300. Harper said her recommen
dation was for Electronic Sales. “Not the
cheapest, but it’s the most coverage,” Harper
said. Harper said the city has money in its
SPLOST V account to cover this.
•the council also tabled action on hiring an
auditor to complete the 2008 city audit. Bids
were received on this from Rushton & Com
pany for $12,800, Jay Greene for $8,000
and Duncan & Kitchens for $10,500.
•the council unanimously approved
spending $800 to update the city’s zoning
map after some proposed annexations are
made. Interim Mayor Ray Holcomb said,
“I recommend we hold up on annexing the
islands until we get a new mayor.” The city
has several islands that have become contig
uous and need to be annexed. Some of the
property owners are on the city’s water and
sewer systems already.
•the council met in closed session for 35
minutes to discuss potential litigation. No
action was taken on this.
Expansion planned in industrial park
BY SHARON HOGAN
A Banks County business
owner is planning an expan
sion of his business in the
industrial park.
Banks County Develop
ment Authority member
Scott Ledford, owner of
MetroSite, located in the In
dustrial Park, said at a meet
ing last week that he would
like to purchase the four
acres adjoining his 10 acres
and combine them under the
same covenants.
“I need it for additional
lay-down yard,” he said.
BOC chairman Gene
Hart said the authority and
the board of commission
ers need to look at the cov
enants to make sure they are
correct. Administrative of
ficer Angela Sheppard said
the conditions would need
to be included in the sale
agreement just like the pre
vious sale agreement with
Ledford.
The authority unanimous
ly approved the sale of the
four acres at $25,000 per
acre, plus the reimbursement
of the authority’s expenses
on the four-acre tract. Led
ford abstained from voting.
In other business at the
meeting on Wednesday:
•the development author
ity members authorized Erin
Decker, clerk, to draft a let
ter to Dr. Keith Ash stating
the covenants of the prop
erty he purchased from the
development authority in the
Industrial Park. Hart said, “I
recommend sending a regis
tered letter to Dr. Ash about
the issue.” The covenants
state that within one year of
purchase some plans need
to be made or construction
should begin on the building
on the property. Decker has
been unable to contact Ash
about this matter.
•Hart reported that the
county has approved the
type of wastewater treatment
plant they plan to build.
The direct discharge plant
will have capacity of one
million gallons per day,
Hart said. The footprint can
easily be expanded on the
property that has been pur
chased, Hart said. “It can be
expanded up to four times,”
Hart said. The county has al
ready received its discharge
permit and the engineers are
in the process of doing the
design, Hart said. The cost
of building the plant is fig
ured at $8 per gallon, so the
county is looking at a total
of $8 million. “I don’t know
what it would cost to operate
the plant daily,” Hart said.
The county has submitted
plans to the Corp of Engi
neers for the transmission
line for the Martin Bridge
Road area, Hart said. The
gravity sewer lines are in
the works. Rights of way
acquisition is underway and
work is being done on the
wetlands mitigation, Hart
reported.
•Sheppard said the county
is in the process of updat
ing its comprehensive plan.
This is required by the state
and the work has been going
on for several months with
MacTec Engineering. The
plan has been submitted to
the Regional Development
Commission and the state
for review, Sheppard said.
The plan will come back to
the BOC at their October
meeting for them to do the
final adoption, Sheppard
said.
Sheppard said the plan
shows industrial growth
around the Martin Bridge
Road area and continues to
show commercial growth
at Banks Crossing. The full
plan can be downloaded
from the county’s website at
www.co.banks.ga.us.
•Stewart asked that the
authority provide a nametag
for each member. Hart said
when the county offices
move into the new annex
building they will have a
badge-making system and
they could do this for the au
thority.
•Sheppard said, “This
is the last week we will be
meeting in this building.”
The next regularly scheduled
development authority meet
ing at 9 a.m. on Wednesday,
Sept. 17, will be held in the
new Banks County annex
building on Hudson Ridge,
Homer.
•the authority met in
closed session for 40 min
utes to discuss land acquisi
tion. No action was taken.
Simmons reunion
planned Sept. 28
Baldwin changes meeting time
BY SHARON HOGAN
Baldwin addresses signs in the city
BY SHARON HOGAN
Realtors and politicians
beware. If you put up a sign
on the City of Baldwin’s
right of way, the sign will
be removed. The council
agreed at Monday’s meeting
to have the signs removed to
make grass cutting easier for
the street department.
The signs will not be de
stroyed. They will be taken
to the city shop and they can
be picked up from 7 a.m. to
4:30 p.m. Mondays through
Fridays.
Council member Jeff
Murray said, “We’re try
ing to keep the grass cut on
the rights of way but we’re
getting real estate signs,
yard sale signs and cam
paign signs. The guys cut
ting grass are having to cut
around them, or pull them
up and then re-set them, or
have a guy weed eat around
them.”
Murray said the street de
partment employees asked
him to check on this. The
council agreed that starting
with the next grass cutting
set to begin next week the
signs will be removed and
can be picked up at the city
shop.
Murray said the city cuts
5-6 feet off the shoulder of
the road or to the bank.
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JEFFERSON
'AMERICAN LEGION
Albert Gordon Post 56
Each 3rd Tuesday, 7:30 p.m.
Harvie Lance, Commander
Phone (706) 654-1274 310
White Plains Baptist Church
Faith Bible Class meets every Sunday morning
at 10:00 a.m. It is a place where strangers
become friends and friends become family.
706-367-5650
White Plains Baptist Church
3650 Hwy. 124 West, Jefferson, GA 30549
The Jackson Co. Republican Party
Would like you to meet us for
breakfast the second Sat. of each
month, 8:00 at The Jefferson
House. For more information, call
706-652-2967 or email
fishyglass@yahoo.com Pci.ii/os
BANKS COUNTY
AMERICAN LEGION
Post 215
Meets each 3rd Thursday, 7 p.m.
In Homer, GA at the
American Legion Building on
Historic Highway 441 Pd.06/09
VETERANS OF
FOREIGN WARS
Post 4872, Hurricane Shoals Convention Ctr.
Each 4th Monday, 7:00 p.m.
Mike Buffington, Commander
Phone 706-335-6532 26.1
JEFFERSON LIONS CLUB
Meets 2nd & 4th Monday
Jefferson City Clubhouse
6:30 p.m. *(706) 387-1156
Mack Cates, President
UNITY LODGE
F&A.M.
No. 36, Jefferson, GA
1st Tuesday of each month, 7:30 p.m.
Dwight Wier* 706-367-5882
Borders St. behind Tabo’s 260
JEFFERSON ROTARY CLUB
Meets Tuesdays
Jefferson City Clubhouse
12:30 p.m. *(706) 367-7696
Gina Mitsdarffer, President
BANKS COUNTY
HISTORICAL SOCIETY, INC.
meets first Monday each month
7:00 p.m. in the Banks Co. Historial
Courthouse at 105 U.S. Hwy. 441
North in Homer pd.-07/09
Citizens Organized for
Pipeline Safety
investigating the health risks to citizens from
underground pipelines and booster stations in
Madison Co. Meetings 6:30 p.m. at the Colbert
Grove Baptist Church the 2nd Thurs. of each
month. 706-783-4702. Pd.04/09
Baldwin resident Andrea
Harper said, “Isn’t this a
code enforcement issue and
shouldn’t they be doing this
anyway?”
Murray said this is a code
enforcement issue.
Baldwin City Council members have rescheduled their
September work session meeting for 6:30 p.m. on Wednes
day, Sept. 3.
The council has a Joint Local Government meeting to at
tend on Thursday, Sept. 4 in Cornelia.
The council meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Monday,
Sept. 8.
The monthly meetings are held in the courtroom at the po
lice department on Willingham Avenue.
Family and descendants of
James Willis and Catherine
‘Smith’ Simmons are invited
to the third annual Simmons
family reunion from 11:30
a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 28, at
Henderson Falls Park Shelter
#4 in Toccoa.
Lunch will start at
12:30 p.m.
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