Newspaper Page Text
PACE 2A
THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 4, 2012
The Year in Review
JANUARY
•Action by the Baldwin
City Council to move forward
with an investigation into the
conduct of council member
Jeff Parrish was vetoed by
Mayor Jerry Neace. City ad
ministrator Jerry Presley re
quested the formal investiga
tion into alleged threats and
intimidation by Parrish.
•The Banks County Sher
iff’s Office issued warrants
on two people in connection
with the sale of an alleged
narcotic at Sam’s Citgo Food
Mart at Banks Crossing.
•The City of Maysville and
Maysville Family Practice
reached a settlement in the
year-long dispute resulting in
a new lease agreement for the
local business.
•A winter storm that cov
ered Banks County with snow
shut down the county with
government offices, schools
and businesses closed.
•In a split vote following a
one-hour called meeting, the
Baldwin City Council voted
not to over ride the mayor’s
veto regarding the investi
gation into allegations of
threats and acts of intimida
tion by council member Jeff
Parrish.
•The boundaries of Gills-
ville will be a little larger
following action by the city
council to annex two parcels
of land into the city limits.
•Ron Gardiner was named
chairman of the Banks Coun
ty Board of Education.
•A job description for the
new county position to over
see economic development
was approved by the Banks
County Board of Commis
sioners.
•The BOC voted not to re
instate a business license for
Sam’s Food Mart after “fake
pot’’ was found at the conve
nience store.
•The governor recom
mends eliminating the Fam
ily Connection program.
•Banks County’s primary
school, elementary school
and middle school were
named Georgia Title I Distin
guished Schools by the state
school superintendent.
•Lula officials announced
that the wastewater plant
would be in operation by
mid-February.
FEBRUARY
•In a 3-2 vote at a called
Baldwin City Council meet
ing, a motion to fire city
administrator Jerry Presley
failed. Twice, Mayor Jerry
Neace called for a motion
to terminate Presley after re
porting that the city admin
istrator had failed to com
municate the city’s financial
situation to the council.
•A Booster Club was
formed to support the coun
ty’s recreation department.
•Lula Elementary School
was named a “School of Ex
cellence” for student achieve
ment.
•The Homer City Council
discussed the feasibility of
continuing to keep up the
Garrison Civic Center. No
action was taken.
•The Maysville City Coun
cil and fire chief James Lyle
are at odds over the town’s
funding for fire services. The
council approved a budget of
$11,500 for fire protection
for Banks County residents
who live in the city limits.
The fire department had giv
en the council a $23,000 fee
for providing these services.
•Head football coach and
athletic director Blair Arm
strong resigned.
•The top three candidates
for the economic developer
position were named: Dan
Gasaway, Pepe Cummings
and Brad Day.
•Alto city council mem
ber Cathy Armour resigned.
She also served as mayor pro
tem.
•Baldwin city administra
tor Jerry Presley resigned
following a month of closed
door meetings and an effort
by the mayor and some city
council members to get rid of
him.
•Vishal Patel and Laura
Rose Pickens were named
Mr. and Miss Banks County
High School.
•The Grand Jury appointed
the following to serve on the
board of equalization: Hank
Parker, Billy Thomas, Tom
Poole, Bev Thompson and
Louise Boswell.
MARCH
•A storm that passed across
Banks County led to downed
trees in the road and power
outages.
•Margaret Beaupre was
named as Alto’s mayor pro
tem.
•Sam Eller was named as
the interim city clerk in Bald
win.
•Brad Day was hired to
handle the economic devel
opment for Banks County in
the newly-created commu
nity planner position.
•The BOC agreed to spend
$285,000 in revenue from the
2006 SPLOST for water sys
tem improvements, includ
ing replacing meters that are
seven to 10 years old.
•Banks County voters over
whelmingly voted in favor of
the education sales tax.
•Brad Day held a “brain
storming” session with coun
ty leaders on his first day on
the job.
•Karen Degges was ap
pointed interim city clerk in
Baldwin.
•Phillip Jones was named
head football coach for Banks
County High School.
•Banks County was one of
73 counties recognized at the
capital by Gov. Nathan Neal
and the Georgia Film, Mu
sic & Digital Entertainment
Office as a “Camera Ready
Community.”
•Scott Ledford was named
chairman of the Banks Coun
ty Development Authority.
APRIL
•Jim Fuller resigned as the
Banks County fire chief.
•The Banks County All
Sports Booster Club held a
meet and greet for the com
munity to meet the high
school’s new football coach.
•The BOC agreed to fund
$10,000 to participate in a
regional broadband study in
hopes that the effort will im
prove economic development
efforts.
•The board of education
discussed a possible addition
for the high school. Plans and
site drawings were reviewed.
•The Lula City Council
was given a report on the
new wastewater plant that is
up and running. The plant re
leased its first discharge and
there were no problems.
•The annual Relay for Life
was held in Banks County.
•The BOC agreed that the
Commerce Business Cen
ter would remain open and
operating under its current
license pending an investiga
tion into allegations of illegal
gambling.
MAY
•Homer was named as a
Tree City USA.
•Maysville leaders began
looking at redistricting the
city wards before the No
vember election.
•Banks County Head Start
teacher Susan Collins was
named “Staff Person of the
Year.
•The BOC approved an al
cohol license for Funopolis.
•Construction began on a
veterans’ monument in Banks
County.
•The chamber of commerce
and convention and visitors
bureau were combined as a
unified organization.
•The Baldwin sewer rates
were increased by 15 per
cent.
•Plans were announced for
a thriller feature film, “This
Old Machine,” to be filmed
in Banks County.
•More than 45 people at
tended a Baldwin City Coun
cil meeting to voice their con
cerns about water issues in
the Wynn Lake Road, Moss
Farm Road, Moss Mill Drive
and Old Hwy. 441 areas.
•Graduation was held at
Banks County High School.
•A Memorial Day program
was held at veterans park in
downtown Homer.
•First Georgia Banking
Company, which has branch
es in Banks County, was
taken over by the Georgia
Department of Banking and
Finance.
JUNE
•High school graduation
test results were released and
Banks County ranked 17th in
the state.
•Maysville leaders made
plans for a public safety day
to be held in June.
•A pottery festival was held
in the county with 40 potters
displaying their work.
•Jeanette Jamieson, the
former state representative
for Banks County, pled guilty
to two counts of tax evasion.
She was charged in 2009 for
not paying her state income
taxes in 2006 and 2007.
•Plans were under way for
improvements in the Town of
Gillsville to downtown build
ings and parks.
•The Baldwin finance di
rector sought secrecy in the
budget process as evidenced
through an email sent to city
officials. Early budget work
showed a possible 8.3 per
cent tax hike.
•Several Baldwin residents
turned out at a Baldwin bud
get session to question the
proposed budget.
•A ribbon cutting was held
at the new wastewater treat
ment plant in Lula.
•The Lula City Council ap
proved a budget that is down
three percent.
•Baldwin finance director
Karen Degges claims that an
email she wrote city officials
should not have been re
leased because it falls under
“attorney-client” documents,
but Georgia Press Associa
tion attorney David Hudson
said that is not the case and it
is an open record.
•Tim Vaughan was named
police chief in the City of
Alto.
•The BOC continued to
meet to trim the budget with
$466,000 in cuts made.
•Thirty acres of county
land was transferred to the
development authority by
the BOC. A business park is
among the possible plans for
the property.
JULY
•A woman was parked at
Wal-Mart just after mid
night on July 4 when she was
robbed by a man who said he
had a gun.
•The Maysville City Coun
cil declined to address its fire
protection agreement with
the Maysville Volunteer Fire
Department, which some city
officials claim expired on
June 30.
•The BOC approved a new
health care plan for county
employees.
•The city of Baldwin began
pulling the town out of a fi
nancial tailspin in fiscal year
2010, but the city’s financial
problems weren’t totally
fixed, according to the data in
the town’s recently released
audit.
•Buddhist Temple mem
bers sought water service
from the City of Baldwin for
its facility in town.
•Personnel officer Judy
Greer was dismissed after
she outlined issues she has
had with the commissioners.
•Jeff Parrish was named
mayor pro tem in Baldwin.
•American Legion mem
bers held a Veteran’s Memo
rial Park dedication in the
downtown park in Homer.
•All four schools in Banks
County made the state’s Ade
quate Yearly Progress report.
•In a 3-2 vote, the Baldwin
City Council approved its
$1.52 million budget.
AUGUST
•Classes started in Banks
County with a projected en
rollment of 2,925 students,
up about 25 over the past
school year.
•The Maysville City Coun
cil ended its fire protection
agreement with the volunteer
department responsible for
fighting blazes in the Banks
County portion of the city
fore more than 20 years.
Banks County 911 and the
Banks County Fire Depart
ment will now cover the ser
vice area.
•The 134th Sunday School
celebration was held in Banks
County.
•Baldwin council member
Sandi Rudeseal resigned.
•Chad Conard was named
interim public works director
in Baldwin.
•The BOE approved a mill-
age rate of 13.336, up slight
ly over the current rate.
•The BOC agreed to allo
cate $175,000 to be used for
economic development. No
details were given on how the
money would be allocated.
•The district attorney de
cided not to take action on a
case involving alleged gam
bling at Commerce Business
Center.
•The Homer Town Council
began studying how to capi
talize on its designation as a
recognized historic district.
•County leaders held a
ground breaking for the 41-
acre Hudson River Business
Park on Hwy. 441.
•A Congressional map pro
poses that Banks County get
a new representative in the
U.S. House that will come
from the 9th district, which
will cover most of Northeast
Georgia in the state’s moun
tain region.
•Plans were announced
for a Dollar General store to
open in Baldwin.
•Arlene Ivey was named
the county personnel officer.
SEPTEMBER
•When qualifying ended
for the town elections, races
were set in Maysville, Lula,
Alto and Baldwin.
•Banks County School
System superintendent Chris
Erwin was named a finalist
for the 2012 Superintendent
of the Year award.
•The BOC approved a 8.79
millage rate for the third year
in a row.
•The Baldwin City Council
approved a .25 mill decrease
in the city’s millage rate.
•The Maysville City Coun
cil approved a two to three
percent raise for city employ
ees.
•The Baldwin City Council
upheld the firing of the city’s
public utilities director.
•Two young Gillsville chil
dren escaped serious injury
when they were run over by
an electric golf cart acciden
tally started by a dog.
•The BOE voted to keep
the millage rate at 13.336
mills.
•Carolyn Cabe and John
Closs were appointed to fill
two unexpired seats on the
Alto City Council.
•The development author
ity met in closed session to
consider land acquisition for
two projects, but no action
was taken.
•911 director Deidra Moore
was named “Communica
tions Director of the Year”
and Toni Herbert received
the Leadership in Service
Award.
OCTOBER
•A prank call at a Banks
Crossing hotel at 4 a.m. led
to a hotel evacuation.
•John Closs resigned from
the Alto Town Council.
•A sewage spill was report
ed at Baldwin Park.
•Farm Day was held at the
primary school.
•The Baldwin City Coun
cil approved several budget
adjustments and officials
reported the city should end
2011 with $200,000 in re
serves.
•Five people qualified for
the special election to fill the
unexpired term of state Sen.
Jim Butterworth: Rick Aus
tin, Curtis Burger, Mary Beth
Focer, David Strickland and
John Wilkinson. Wilkinson
won the election.
•An electronic recycling
day was held in the county.
•Annie Thomas, assistant
teacher at the Adult Learning
Center, was honored by the
Technical College System
of Georgia’s Office of Adult
Education.
•Maysville Mayor Jerry
Baker targeted the police de
partment for possible budget
cuts.
NOVEMBER
•A rezoning that will pave
the way for a business park
to develop in Banks County
moved forward when the
planning commission recom
mended approval of rezoning
the 41 acres. The BOC also
approved the zoning change.
•A dedication and ribbon
cutting was held at the Lee
Arrendale Equine Impound
Facility.
•Richard Presley won the
mayor’s race in Maysville.
Kathleen Bush and Junior
Hardy won the council rac
es.
•Audrey Turner was re
elected as mayor of Alto.
•Larry Shuler was re-elect
ed to serve on the Lula City
Council.
•The BOC approved the
purchase of firefighting
equipment.
•Theron Ayers was sworn
in to serve on the Baldwin
City Council.
•150 apply for the Christ
mas gifts program offered by
Family Connection.
•The development author
ity agreed to spend $10,250
for erosion and sedimenta
tion control work at the new
business park.
•The BOC called for a
SPLOST election to be held
in March.
•A special election was set
in Baldwin for March 6 to fill
the Post 3 seat on the council.
DECEMBER
•BOE members Ron Gar
diner and Neal Brown were
recognized at the Georgia
School Board Association’s
meeting for serving 15
years.
•The Alto Town Council set
an election for March 6 to fill
three seats on the council.
•Christmas celebrations
were held around the county
with Santa being spotted at
several events.
•Misuse of computers was
reported at the recreation
department with one person
being fired and the director
and another employee being
reprimanded.
•The Homer City Council
withdrew its funding support
for the downtown develop
ment authority in regards
to the lease of the Garrison
Civic Center.
•Banks County leaders be
gan to look at ways to make
improvements at Banks
Crossing, especially in the
area around the former loca
tion of The Pottery.
•The Lula City Council
approved several expendi
tures aimed at mapping out
parts of the city’s wastewater
treatment plant, which went
online earlier this year.
•The Baldwin City Council
discussed the refusal of prison
officials to pay the new sew
er rates. The council met in
closed session for 30 minutes
to discuss possibly taking le
gal action against the prison to
get money. Instead, the coun
cil decided to put a gate valve
in place that would allow the
prison sewer service to be shut
off, if necessary.
•The U.S. Department of
Justice approved the congres
sional and legislative maps
passed into law this sum
mer by the state of Georgia.
Banks County will be served
by the newly-created Ninth
Congressional District, the
28th state House district and
the 50th Senate district.
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