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PACE 2A
THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2008
Art in the Park set Sept. 20-21
Silent auction, miniature golf to be featured
Baldwin approves bid for 2008 audit
BY SHARON HOGAN
The Baldwin City Council
unanimously approved a bid
of $12,800 for Rushton &
Company, Gainesville, to per
form the city's 2008 audit at
its council meeting last week.
Bids on the audit were also
submitted by Jay Greene,
$8,000, and Duncan & Kitch
ens, $10,500.
Council member Jeff Mur
ray said his recommendation
was to go with Rushton &
Company.
“The municipalities (con
tacted) said they (Rushton)
cost a little bit more, but they
are very thorough,” Murray
said.
Interim Mayor Ray Hol
comb said, “They all have
a clause they can raise their
BY SHARON HOGAN
Two DOT engineers spoke
to Banks County Convention
and Visitors Bureau members
at its monthly meeting last
week about future projects
planned for Banks County.
Cliff Hill, Georgia Depart
ment of Transportation (DOT)
Assistant District Maintenance
Engineer, and Bill Cantrell,
DOT District Planning & Pro
gramming Engineer, discussed
the status of several area road
projects.
Cantrell said several bridg
es are slated for replacement
throughout Banks County over
the next eight to 10 years, but
the projects lack funding.
“There is no funding cur
rently for these projects,”
Cantrell said.
The list of bridges include:
State Route (SR) 59 at Grove
Creek, SR 98 at Grove Creek,
SR 98 at Hickory Level Creek,
SR 323 at Grove Creek, SR 63
at Middle Fork Broad River,
County Road (CR) 16/Wilson
Bridge Road over Hudson Riv
er and CR 16/Harden Bridge
Road over Grove Creek.
Other items on the prior
ity list include the Maysville
Streetscape project and the
widening of Interstate 85 to
the South Carolina line.
Cantrell said 1-85 will be
price.”
OTHER BUSINESS
In other business at last
week’s meeting:
•the council unanimously
approved payment of an in
voice from Engineering Man
agement, Inc., Lawrenceville,
in the amount of $1,500 for
professional services rendered
on the Park Avenue water line
project. This money comes
out of grant money the city
obtained for this project.
•the council tabled action
on a proposal to add a service
charge to water bills that are
not brought into city hall with
payment. Holcomb said this
would only apply to customers
who come into city hall to pay
without their bills. “This has
been a problem that’s getting
widened to three lanes in each
direction over the next seven
to 10 years.
Cantrell and Hill told the
group that up to $50,000 is
available for each county
throughout the state for land
scaping projects. These funds
come from billboard permit
fees. Cantrell told the CVB
members to contact Bill
Wright, DOT Maintenance
Department, on this.
Cantrell said DOT members
were in a meeting Wednesday
with Governor Sonny Perdue
on state funds.
“They are in a meeting
on state funds as we speak,”
Cantrell said.
OTHER BUSINESS
In other business at last
week’s meeting:
•CVB members unani
mously approved the August
monthly income and expense
report. The total of income for
the month was $12,266 and
expenses totaled $5,923.
•CVB board member Deyon
Corey, membership commit
tee, welcomed Keith Holiday,
Christian Bookstore & Coffee
Shop, Commerce Crossing, as
a new member.
•Sherrard White said the
sponsorship letters have been
mailed out for the car show set
for 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Satur-
worse all the time, especially
on the 15th of the month when
a large number of people come
in without their water bills,”
Holcomb said. Someone in
the office has to look the bill
up on the computer and hand
write a receipt, Holcomb said.
“Alto charges $2.50 if you
don’t bring you bill in,” Hol
comb said. Baldwin resident
Linda Caudell said, “Ray, can
you do this?” City attorney
David Syfan said, “I think you
can charge. You would have
to amend your ordinance to
cover this.” The motion was
tabled to give Syfan time to
check on this.
•the council met in closed
session for over an hour to
discuss potential litigation. No
action was taken.
day, Oct. 4, at Denny’s, Banks
Crossing. White said over
4,000 flyers have been distrib
uted about this event also.
•White reported that the an
nual chocolate fair is sched
uled for Monday, November
10. White’s wife, Brenda,
is looking for some chefs to
serve as judges for the event.
White said.
•Ray Wilkings, Atlanta
Dragway, announced upcom
ing events: National Muscle
Car Association Pro Hot Rod
& Muscle Car Nationals/Sum
mit Racing Series/Muscle Car
Point Race to be held at the
dragway on Friday and Satur
day, Sept. 19 and 20 and the
2nd Annual Bikefest slated for
Saturday, Oct. 25, a fundraiser
for the American Cancer So
ciety.
•Wilkings said the National
Hot Rod Association is look
ing for a block of 75 rooms
at one of the local hotels/mo
tels for one week during the
Southern Nationals. Anyone
interested in supplying these
rooms should contact Wilk
ings at Atlanta Dragway.
The next regularly sched
uled meeting of the CVB is
set for 2 p.m. on Wednesday,
Sept. 24.
The location will be an
nounced at a later date.
A silent auction and min
iature golf are new additions
for the Art in the Park festival.
The 18th annual event will be
held Sept. 20-21 at Hurricane
Shoals Park, located between
Jefferson and Maysville.
The festival hours will be 10
a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept.
20, and noon to 5:30 p.m. Sun
day, Sept. 21.
Silent auction items will in
clude two Georgia-Tennessee
football game tickets, a kids
bicycle and a canoe made
from trees at the park. The
silent auction will be held at
the Tumbling Waters Society
booth.
The new “Spirit of the Riv
er” miniature golf course at
Hurricane Shoals Park will
be open during the festival.
Carved bears. Native Ameri
cans and replicas of the chapel
and cabins at the park are de
picted in the course.
A wide variety of food, in
cluding barbecue, hamburg-
The weather will soon be
changing, which means our
lawns will be going through
a transition period during the
next month or so.
The warm season grasses,
such as bermudagrass, cen
tipede, and zoysia have pro
vided that lush, green growth
all summer, but will soon start
slowing down their growth as
the cooler season arrives. The
cool season grasses that have
been lying around trying to
survive the heat these last few
months are beginning to show
some life again as the nights
get cooler.
The warm season grasses
do not need to be fertilized
now since their growth is
slowing down, and they will
begin to turn brown and go
dormant once the first frost or
two hits.
Tall fescue varieties and
Kentucky bluegrass are the
main cool season grasses
grown in this area. They need
an application of fertilizer
sometime during the middle
of September to the first of
October. If you don’t have
soil test recommendations
to go by, apply fertilizer at
ers, bratwurst, fried pies, fun
nel cakes and boiled peanuts,
will be offered.
Tours of the chapel, log
cabins and other buildings in
the Heritage Village will be
offered. A blacksmith will be
at his forge and there will be
soap-making, quilting demon
strations and a beekeeper with
his honeybees. James Mathis
will display his arrowhead col
lection and a video on Clyde
Freeman will be on view.
Craftsman from all over
North Georgia will demon
strate their work and have
handmade items for sale. Chil
dren’s art will be displayed in
the round pavilion. Children's
activities will include a Moon-
walk, obstacle course and gi
ant slide, ponies and a petting
zoo. Games and activities for
children will also be offered.
Splash, the festival mas
cot, will entertain children
throughout the festival. Enter
tainment featuring area bands
the rate
of six
pounds
per
thou
sand
square
feet,
using a
16-4-8
com
mercial
fertil
izer.
Optimum seeding dates
for the cool season grasses
are Sept. 1 through Nov. 1 in
North Georgia. Seeding rates
for cool seasons grasses are 4
pounds per 1000 sq. ft. for tall
fescue, 11/2 pounds per 1,000
sq. ft. for Kentucky bluegrass,
and 3 pounds per 1000 sq. ft.
for creeping fescue.
If you want that temporary
winter lawn grass that is a
bright, emerald green color,
you can sow annual ryegrass
seed in your dormant warm
season grasses between Sept.
15 and Nov. 15. Apply an
nual ryegrass seed at 10 to 12
pounds per 1,000 sq. ft.
Fall is also the time to do
soil testing to help you plan
will also be offered both days.
The 5K Mill Race will be
held at 3 p.m. on Sunday. A
one-mile Fun Run or Walk
will take place at 2:30 p.m.
Fees are $15 to pre-register
and $18 on race day. For more
information, contact Keith
Ariail at 706-335-5519.
The grand finale will be the
Duck Dash on Sunday. Ducks
can be sponsored for $5 each or
five ducks for $20. Prizes will
be: a 26-inch LCD flatscreen
TV and DVD player, a $300
Home Depot gift certificate
and a $200 Home Depot gift
certificate.
Admission and parking will
be free.
The Tumbling Waters Soci
ety hosts the annual event. All
proceeds will be used to main
tain and improve the park.
For more information, con
tact the Tumbling Waters So
ciety at www.hurricaneshoal-
spark.org or by contacting
Becky Perry at 706-335-6723.
your fertilization program for
next year. You should apply
lime during the fall if your
soil test results recommend an
application.
Winter annual weeds, such
as henbit or purple deadnettle,
can be controlled by apply
ing pre-emergent herbicides,
such as atrazine or simazine.
These herbicides need to be
applied during September.
And, if you don’t control all
the weeds before they start
growing above ground, apply
post-emergent herbicides,
such as 2,4-D and dicamba.
Although above ground the
grass goes dormant or slows
down growth during winter,
the roots still need nutrients
and water to grow a strong
root system for the next
spring.
So, don't forget to irrigate
your lawn even during the
winter months when we have
long periods of dry weather.
You should apply water about
once a week, giving the lawn
a good soaking by either rain
or irrigation system.
Bob Waldorf is the Banks
County extension agent.
Flu vaccine exercise scheduled for Oct. 10
BY SHARON HOGAN
Banks County's Pandemic Flu Committee
has a live flu vaccine exercise planned for 9
a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, Oct. 10, at Banks County
Middle School.
Pandemic committee members will conduct
the full-scale exercise at the middle school to
prepare in the event of a pandemic flu outbreak
in the county.
The committee has been meeting to develop
plans and to develop the full scale exercise for
the past several months.
The full-scale exercise will put all of the
plans into play and there will be several evalu
ators on the scene to evaluate each segment of
the plan. The committee will meet at 3 p.m. on
Oct. 10 at the school to go over the evaluation.
The next planning meeting for the full-scale
exercise is set for noon on Thursday, Sept. 25,
at the Banks County Fire Department's training
room, Yonah-Homer Road, Homer.
All committee members are urged to attend
as this will be the final planning meeting before
the full-scale exercise is put into play.
No reason required for absentee voting
Voters will no longer have to give a reason
for voting early when they go the registrar's
office during the 45-day absentee voting pe
riod.
In the past, absentee voting was only al
lowed for several specific reasons. A new
law now makes absentee voting open to ev
eryone regardless of the reason they want to
vote early.
This is also the case with mail-in absentee
voting. Voters may go to the State of Geor
gia election site and request that an absentee
ballot be mailed to them. No reason has to
be given. This ballot is then mailed to the
county voter registrar’s office.
In Banks County, the voter registrar office
is located in the new county annex located
in Homer.
Early voting for the November election
will begin on Sept. 22.
Georgia Farm Bureau to award scholarships
Georgia Farm Bureau will award a total of
$14,250 in scholarships to ten high school se
niors who plan to pursue a college degree in
agriculture or family and consumer sciences,
Henry D. Banks, Banks County Farm Bureau
president, recently announced.
The top three students will each receive a
scholarship of $3,000. The remaining seven
students will each receive a $750 scholarship.
Students are eligible to submit an applica
tion if they, a parent or legal guardian were a
member of Georgia Farm Bureau as of Sept.
1,2008.
The scholarships are sponsored by the Geor
gia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company
in cooperation with the Georgia Farm Bureau
Women’s Committee.
Applicants must plan to enter a unit of the
University System of Georgia or Berry Col
lege during the 2009-2010 academic year to
pursue an undergraduate degree in agricul
tural and environmental sciences, family and
consumer sciences or a related agricultural
field. All applications must be submitted by
December 12, 2008. Scholarship recipients
will be announced in March.
Contact the Banks County Farm Bureau
office at 706-677-2215 for more information
about the scholarship program or to obtain an
application. You may also download a copy of
the application by going to www.gfb.org and
selecting GFB Programs, then Youth Educa
tion and finally GFB Scholarships.
All scholarship applications must be ap
proved and signed by the Farm Bureau presi
dent of the county where Farm Bureau mem
bership is held before being submitted to the
Georgia Farm Bureau home office.
DOT projects discussed at CVB meeting
Advice for fall lawn care
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