500
THE
5 LAND E R“s
www.theislanderonline.com •
June 21, 2010 Established 1972
ssislander@bellsouth.net
Vol 38 Issue 25
Library waiting
final BOE
budget decision
• Bwk-Glynn lowest
funded in Three
Rivers System
By Matthew J. Permar
After appearing before the
Glynn County Board of Educa
tion (BOE) at a recent meeting
to ask for financial support,
the staff and Board of Trustees
at the Glynn Brunswick Public
Libraries are waiting, rather
anxiously, for the BOE's final
decision on the school system's
2011 budget.
Depending on whether the
BOE includes $40,000 for the
two local libraries (Brunswick
and St. Simons Island) in their
budget, the impact of losing
the funding could have dire
consequences for the libraries.
Currently the $40,000,
which the BOE has provided
to the library for a number
of years, is on the BOE's list
of $11 million in budget cuts,
along with several other 'out
side agencies,' such as 4-H and
Communities in Schools.
Three Rivers Regional
Library System (TRRS)
Director Linda Kean and the
library's Board of Trustees
only recently learned of the
school system's proposed bud
get cuts.
After learning their $40,000
was on the chopping block, a
large group of library support
ers attended the BOE's Tues
day, June 8 meeting asking
that the funding be restored.
The library staff and trust
ees were concerned about
more than just the loss of the
$40,000.
According to the Georgia
Public Library Service, there
are a number of requirements
that a public library system
must meet in order to be eli
gible for state and federal aid.
The requirements are referred
to as ‘maintenance of effort
requirements’ (MOE).
According to State Librar-
Turn to Page 7
Library funds
Saying "Good bye"
Above: Glynn County Com
mission chairman Howard
Lynn (left) had nothing but
praise for County Administra
tor Charles Stewart (right) at
a reception last week honor
ing Stewart on his upcoming
retirement.
Islander Staff Photo - Permar
Right: The large crowd that
turned out to honor Stewart
included many former coun
ty commissioners including
Jack Hardman (right) who
served as chairman of the
commission in 1995.
Photo by and courtesy of Cindee
Overstreet, County Clerk
'So long Charlie'; County Administrator retires
By Candice Temple, Glynn County Public Information Officer
Charles T. Stewart, our
County Administrator, has
announced that he will retire
on June 30, 2010, after more
than 20 years serving the
Glynn County Board of Com
missioners.
At the end of what he calls
his most challenging budget
year, Stewart will hang up his
captain’s hat.
The man that most people,
(friends, colleagues and profes
sional associates) fondly refer
to as Char be, has seen Glynn
County grow from a vantage
point that most people never
get to experience. He has been
a citizen, a department head
and finaby, our administrative
head.
His career in local govem-
Turn to Page 5
Stewart to retire
Administrator
search down to
top three
By Matthew J. Permar
When hiring a County
Administrator, Georgia state
sunshine laws require coun
ties to release the names of
the top three candidates for
the position, to the pubbc, two
weeks before the final decision
is made on who to hire.
After a 45 minute closed
session last week, during
which they discussed person
nel and pending legal issues,
the Glynn County Commission
did just that - they reconvened
in open session and released
the names and resumes of
their top three candidates for
Charles Stewart's job as Coun
ty Administrator.
The candidates are:
• Cynthia 'Cindy' Coto -
Ms. Coto has a B.S. degree in
Liberal Sciences from the Uni
versity of Central Florida. She
Turn to Page 5
Admin candidates
IPC turns down
rezoning request
By Pamela Permar
Shierling
A request to rezone 1.157
acres on Arnold Road, St.
Simons Island, from R-6 (one
family residential) to PD
(Planned Development) was
met with much criticism and
opposition from residents of
adjoining neighborhoods.
Property owners Dr. Har
vey Simpson, III and SSI Fun
LLC presented a PD Text to
the Islands Planning Commis
sion (IPC) requesting contin
ued usage of the two exist
ing residences and accessory
structures as vacation rentals
with the added ability to use
the property for private social
gatherings of up to 120 per
sons in conjunction with the
cottage rentals. The PD text
created a use cabed a "recep
tion facility."
Turn to Page 6
Rezoning request
Surfin’
the
News
CASA Volunteer
of the Year
Community News
- Pg 2
County-Wide News - Read County-Wide
The A-Team
Movie Review
-Pg 12
Pew News
Feature Column
-Pg 18
Back Talk
Editorial Column
-Pg 20
