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Published by Permar Publications • P.O. Box 20539 • St. Simons Island, Ga. 31522 • 912-265-9654 • www.theislanderonline.com • ssislander@bellsouth.net
August 17, 2009 Established 1972 Vol 37 Issue 33
School board
faces drop in
tax digest
• Adjustments made;
no change in budget
or millage
By Matthew J. Permar
Last week the Glynn Coun
ty School System Chief Finan
cial Officer Andrea Preston
had some good news, some
bad news and some more good
news for her employers on the
Board of Education (BOE).
During a BOE Finance
Committee meeting on Tues
day, Aug. 11, Preston gave the
board the first piece of good
news - the county tax digest
has been completed and sub
mitted to Tax Commissioner
Florence Dees’ office.
The digest was due on July
31, but Dees’ applied for an
extension when it became
known that the Tax Assessors
office would not be able to meet
the deadline.
Next was the bad news -
the school’s tax digest is down
a net of $60.8 million, about
1.12%, from last year’s digest.
The main reason, according
to Preston, is Senate Bill 486
that provided an exemption
from school taxes for residents
over 65 who take in less than
$40,000 per year net in Geor
gia Taxable Income.
The way the bill was writ
ten allowed some owners of
high value property, such as
Sea Island, to qualify for the
exemption.
“Almost $135 million in tax
able property was exempt from
the digest due to SB 486,” said
Preston.
The SB 486 exemption
applied to almost 2,100 county
property owners.
But, said Preston, the
other good news is there were
enough off-sets to the decline in
property tax to allow the BOE
to operate with no change to
the 2009-2010 budget and no
increase in the millage rate
from last year.
“New construction, which
was approximately $72 mil
lion, helped offset the $135 mil
lion in new tax exemptions,”
explained Preston, “leaving
Turn to Page 5
BOE tax digest
B&GC Teen Center Grand Opening
Pete and Adalee Correll (center with scissors) were on hand last week to cut the rib
bon officially opening the Boys and Girls Club of Glynn's (B&CG) new Teen Center in
Brunswick. The B&GC Board of Directors chose to name the facility the Elizabeth F.
Correll Teen Center in honor of Mr. Correll's mother, after the family made a substantial
donation for the project. Also taking part in the Grand Opening Ribbon Cutting cer
emony were members of the Correll family to the left and right of Pete and Adalee,
Diana Murphy, B&GC Capital Campaign Chairwoman and County Commission Chair
man Jerome Clark are to the left rear of the Corrells, past B&GC board chairman
Gene Rackley is to the right rear with sunglasses, next to him is B&CG board member
Col. Tom Fuller. Current board chairman Mike Warren is to the front right with board
Islander Staff Photo
Teen Center
opens with
fanfare
By Matthew J. Permar
Friday, August 7 was a
monumental day for Pete and
Adalee Correll and their fam
ily-
After several years in the
planning stages and one con
troversial location change, the
Correll family was able to cut
the ribbon and officially dedi
cate the Boys and Girls Club of
Glynn's new Teen Center that
bears the name of Correll's
mother - Elizabeth F. Correll.
After the ribbon cutting cer
emony, the Corrells played host
Turn to Page 7
Teen Center opening
member Bernard McCloud next.
Making his comments during the Grand Opening of the
B&GC Teen Center, Center Director David Herndon (left)
thanked the Correll family and the local community for
their support of local youth. Islander Staff Photo
Connolly named
to GICA Business-
Community post
By Matthew J. Permar
Tom Connolly, the for
mer chairman of the Golden
Isles Career Academy (GICA)
Board of Directors, was named
as the new technical school's
Business-Community Director
early this month.
GICA CEO Andy Lundell
made the announcement at
the GICA board meeting on
Thursday, Aug. 13.
Connolly tendered his res
ignation from the GICA board
at the end of the July 9 board
meeting, at which time he also
announced his intention to
seek the Business-Community
Director position.
It was earlier at that same
July 9 meeting that the board
voted to fill the position.
According to the minutes
of the July 9 meeting, GICA
board member Millard Allen,
who is also chairman of the
Glynn County Board of Educa-
Turn to Page 7
GICA
A Century of
Glynn Academy
Football
By Bob Dart
Reprinted with permission
from the Glynn Academy
Alumni Association
A Century of Glynn Acad
emy Football. Just think of it.
I am a proud part of this
brotherhood that has sent
former players to two World
Wars, Vietnam, Korea and
Iraq as well as to college foot
ball stadiums across the South
and even to the National Foot
ball League. Johnny Pittman,
one of my senior teammates on
the 1963 Red Terrors, played
fullback for the Florida State
Seminoles. Dan Kaufman, who
also played on that region-win
ning team, became an Army
general and the academic dean
of the U.S. Military Academy
at West Point.
My "G" jackets still hang in
my closet, beside the camou
flage field jacket with the Big
Turn to Page 6
GAJootball
