Newspaper Page Text
THE ISLANDER, NOVEMBER 3, 2008, PAGE 7
Visitation Center
Continued from Page 1
League ‘sustained and advisor, was
instumental in getting the League
together with CASA as a partner for
assistance with the project.
Junior League membership liaison
Beth Respess explained, “The local
junior league, the Golden Isles proj
ects, is a branch of the Junior League
of Savannah. Along with CASA some
of our other projects include Harmony
Learning Center for Kids, Kids in the
Kitchen, St. Mark’s Towers, where
we’ll be doing a Christmas dinner next
month and Habitat for Humanity in
the spring.”
Jennifer Wilcoxon, another local
Junior Leaguer who helped with the
visitation center said, “Every four or
five years the Junior League develops
a new focus for our volunteer projects.
Currently our focus is women and chil
dren’s advocacy. That’s why we were
happy to partner with CASA.”
Respess said, “We had funding assis
tance for the visitation center through
the Junior League of Savannah. We
purchased some of the items and some
were donated. There’s a TV in one
room that we bought at the Savannah
junior league’s big thrift sale.”
Wilcoxon said, “They have the sale
every October, it’s huge, they have
it at the convention center. It’s their
big annual fundraiser that funds all
the projects for Savannah, Glynn and
Hilton Head.”
East, who was obviously very happy
at how the visitation center turned
out, said, “We talked to the junior
league, formulated a plan for each
room and what we wanted each room
to look like and they went out and got
the materials and toys and everything
we needed.”
‘We added the warm fuzzy,” said
Wilcoxon, ‘We thought about the kids’
safety, yet we worked hard to keep it
inviting.”
Addressing the safety issue, East
said all three rooms have video and
audio surveillance.
‘We want the children and their
families to have good, quality time
together,” explained East, “but safety
is the priority, so we monitor the visits
carefully.”
The Coastal Family Visitation Cen
ter opened in mid-October. □
Rose rules for county
Continued from Page 1
LLC.
In his ruling, the Special Master
specifically concluded that the con
demnation action was being undertak
en for “legitimate reasons” and explic
itly rejected the argument that it was
being undertaken in “bad faith”.
Torras and his attorneys appealed
the Special Master’s decision to the
Superior Court and a hearing was held
on October 13.
Not only did the Superior Court,
serving as the Appellate Court, adopt
all conclusions of law and findings of
fact of the Special Master, including
the conclusion that the condemnation
action was undertaken for “legitimate
reasons," the Court ordered that the
property be condemned for the use of
the Glynn County and further deter
mined that there was no evidence of
any misuse of discretion relating to the
County’s decision to expand the Deten
tion Center at the proposed location.
According to a press release issued
by the county on Friday, Oct. 31,
"Glynn County hopes that the decision
in this case will finally conclude this
matter and allow necessary improve
ments to the current detention cen
ter to commence. Glynn County takes
great pride in all of its well maintained
public facilities and anticipates that
this facility will be an asset to the com
munity for many years to come." □
County-wide reval
Continued from Page 1
will require a $176,700 increase to the
Fiscal Year 2009 Property Appraisal
Operating Budget.
Seven temporary workers will be
paired with full time employees in
four teams. One temporary worker
will be responsible for data entry,
while the ninth will handle photo
graphs of the parcels.
Three teams of three workers will
inspect 1,500 parcels a month, while
the fourth team of two workers will
inspect 1,000 per month.
At this rate, Gerhardt told the
finance committee they could finish
the reval in eight months. Starting
this month, Gerhardt predicts they
will be finished by June of 2009.
Finance committee member Com
missioner Uli Keller (Dist. 2) said, “I
have some concerns about this plan.
I think your monthly goals are opti
mistic. First, this won’t be approved
by the full commission until our Nov.
6 meeting, so you’re a week behind.
Then you’ve got Thanksgiving. Then
in December you’ve got the holidays,
which will set you back even more.”
“I’d rather hear you say, ‘I need
twelve months to do this’,” said
Keller, “I’d rather you take twelve
months and get a reval that is 99.8%
accurate, than do it in seven or eight
months and have a product that is
only 80% accurate.”
“In addition,” Keller continued,
“your office will have its regular work
load and the digest to prepare in May
and June. It may cost more to do it in
twelve months, but we’d know we’d
get a better product that does not
leave us open to criticism.”
Gerhardt said, “The time frame
is a projection. We really don’t know
how long it will take.”
Committee members Tony Thaw
(Dist. 3 and Carl Johnson (Dist. 1)
agreed with Keller.
Thaw said, “I don’t want people
just riding by the property and tak
ing a look from their car.”
Doing the math, Johnson said, “I
don’t see how a team can do 75 par
cels in one day.”
Keller said he’d still rather give
Gerhardt more time. “If we give you
twelve months and you do it in ten,
then that’s good,” he said.
The finance committee agreed to
recommend to the full commission to
fund the reval at $22,000 per month
for eight months out of the General
Fund fund balance.
Gerhardt also told the committee
that while some property values may
go down, some may go up depending
on the neighborhood. □
P
oJ^€f L C€/ZC& The Retreat at Marsh’s Edge.
At The Retreat, you’ll find friends who care about you and a compassionate staff
dedicated to your well-being, providing unparalleled peace of mind for you and
your family. Our lovely community offers a warm, home-like setting for whatever
your needs may be. Residents can relax knowing they will not only receive
support with the activities of daily living, they will also receive companionship,
understanding, and a warm smile. Offering a full continuum of care, The Retreat
provides you with the care you need in an exceptional atmosphere located in the
heart of its beautiful community.
Offering private Assisted Living, Alzheimer’s Care, and Skilled Nursing in an
upscale and luxurious environment. Fully licensed staff available 24 hours a day,
7 days a week.
• Bright private one-bedroom apartments with private baths
• Peaceful living areas
• Exquisite daily dining
• Full and active social calendar
• Personalized wellness program
Call 912-291-2023 to schedule your private appointment today!
ill £v SENIOR LIVING COMMUNITIES • FLORIDA • GEORGIA • NORTH CAROLINA • SOUTH CAROLINA
It’s more affordable than you think! No large entrance fees.