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THE MADISON COUNTY (GA) JOURNAL THURSDAY. AUGUST 13. 2009 — PAGE 3A
County dept, heads
shave their budgets
By Margie Richards
margie@mainstreetnews. com
The whittling knife
remains in action.
Budget hearings contin
ued last week, and county
department heads continued
to show up with reductions
in their departments’ bottom
lines for 2010.
Commissioners met
with information technol
ogy director Gary Venable,
E-911 director David Camp,
Emergency Medical Services
director Dwayne Patton and
county clerk Linda Cox,
who represented the county
chairman office’s budget.
And all four departments
reduced their budgets collec
tively by almost $175,000.
INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
Finance director Kathy
Clark told commissioners
that Venable has taken 12
percent off his department’s
bottom line for next year.
The IT budget does include
several line item increases,
however, including replac
ing three computers in
the 911 office ($2,400)
and five computers in the
probate office ($4,000).
Venable said the computers
are all at the end of their
life cycles. Venable’s total
proposed budget for 2010
equals $211,269, a $29,000
reduction from the current
budget.
“Good job, Gary, good
job,’’ District 2 commission
er John Pethel said.
E-911
The E-911 budget includes
a $58,341 overall decrease
for 2010. Camp did ask for
a new GCIC tech/warrants
clerk position, but pointed
out that this request will not
increase salary expenses.
He told commissioners that
long-time warrants clerk
Ann Brooks is retiring by
the end of the year and
that he wants to combine
that position with a GCIC
tech position. Brooks cur
rently makes $28,500 annu
ally and Camp said the new
combined position’s salary
will be from $23,000 for a
new employee to $26,600
for a current, experienced
employee.
“Either way we’re saving
money,’’ Camp said, adding
that the new position will
also take a lot of stress off
dispatchers.
EMS
The EMS budget has been
reduced by $54,106 for
2010.
Commissioners reviewed
electricity payments for the
four EMS stations, two of
which are leased from fire
departments. The annual bill
for Hull is $3,618 and the
annual bill for Danielsville
(Station 1) is $5,843. Both
Comer ($6,264) and Ila
($5,726) include invoices
for both the EMS offices
and the fire stations in which
they are housed.
Patton reported that there
are currently 60 people on
staff in the EMS depart
ment.
CHAIRMAN’S
OFFICE
County clerk Cox said the
chairman’s office budget has
been decreased by 14 per
cent overall for next year,
from $237,231 for 2009
to $204,004 for 2010. The
chairman’s budget includes
the salaries of chairman
Anthony Dove, the clerk’s
salary, human resources
director Donna Sisk’s sal
ary and half-time salary of
Rhonda Wooten, who also
works half-time in building
inspections, and for stu
dents who operate record
ing equipment during BOC
meetings.
NEXT MEETING
The BOC planned to hold
another budget hearing
Wednesday, Aug. 12, at 4
p.m. with the probate court,
registrar’s office, the solid
waste department, the rec
reation department and the
sheriff’s office.
City of Carlton
MUNICIPAL ELECTION
The City of Carlton will hold municipal elections on November 3, 2009. The
following offices are scheduled for election:
Mayor:
Incumbent: Rufus Kidd
Term of office will begin on Jan. 1, 2010 and end Dec. 31, 2011.
Council Member:
Incumbent: Robert Tucker
Term of office will begin on Jan. 1, 2010 and end Dec. 31, 2011.
Council Member:
Incumbent: David Seawright
Term of office will begin on Jan. 1, 2010 and end Dec. 31, 2011.
Council Member:
Incumbent: Marty Tucker
Term of office will begin on Jan. 1, 2010 and end Dec. 31, 2011.
Council Member:
Incumbent: Claudia Thornton
Term of office will begin on Jan. 1, 2010 and end Dec. 31, 2011.
Council Member:
Incumbent: Myron Hedgelon
Term of office will begin on Jan. 1, 2010 and end Dec. 31, 2011.
Qualifying will begin on Tuesday, September 1, 2009 at 1:00 p.m. and will close
on Thursday, September 3, 2009 at 4:30 p.m. at the Carlton City Hall/Fire Hall
from 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on September 1, 2009; September 2, 2009; and
September 3, 2009. Section 21-2-131(a)(l)(A) of the State of Georgia Municipal
Election Code requires a qualification fee of $48.75 for mayoral candidates and
$32.50 for councilmember candidates.
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I
Ila Elementary School gains pre-K
By Ben Munro
ben@mainstreetnews.com
Three of five Madison County
elementary schools now offer
pre-K with Ila Elementary gaining
a program.
Class could start in four to five
weeks, according to the county
school system central office.
“We’re excited to get it,” Ila
Elementary principal Lynne Jeffers
said. “We just wish that we could
have started when regular school
started.”
Ila now joins Hull-Sanford
Elementary and Danielsville
Elementary in offering pre-K.
Madison County Schools
Superintendent Mitch McGhee
made the announcement at Tuesday
night's school board meeting, fol
lowing uncertainty over the sum
mer as to whether Ila would land
the program.
“Originally, we were told ‘yeah,
you're going to get it,’’’ McGhee
wouldn’t mean your life, but
maybe your dealership.
“If somebody got a picture
of them and it got out, a dealer
could possibly lose his fran
chise," Sorrells explained.
The building is a little less
shrouded in secrecy these days.
In fact. Comer will begin a
grant-funded transformation of
this 100-year-old building into a
museum later this year. Fittingly,
the theme of the museum is the
development of the automobile
in the 20 th century.
Work could start as early as
September.
The city accepted a $344,000
bid for the renovation and will
send that paperwork to the DOT
— the funding agent for the
project — for the final OK.
Comer sought a different
approach when seeking this
transportation grant, opting
to honor the auto when most
towns pay homage to the train.
“You see a lot of towns look
ing at railroad, railroad, rail-
said. “And then over the summer
they called and said ‘no, you're not
going to get it.’”
But Jeffers received confirma
tion late Friday, the second day
of school, that Ila would join the
pre-K ranks.
“It went topsy-turvy after that,”
Jeffers said.
Registration for the 20-student
class runs through Aug. 19.
Some students may have admis
sion priority over others, based on a
few factors: having siblings already
enrolled at the school, living within
the Ila attendance zone, gender (the
class must have a certain number
of boys and girls) and “other needs
assistance.”
After that, “names are pulled out
of a hat,” Jeffers said.
She hopes to inform parents by
Aug. 21.
Meanwhile, Ila and the school
system work to ready to the class
for its first day. The BOE approved
personnel at Tuesday night’s meet
ing to fill the new pre-K positions.
McGhee said adding pre-K
classes to elementary schools is
one of the school system's goals.
“That was part of the strategic
plan,” he said. “That was part of
the push in the county for early
literacy.”
Overall enrollment
short, but some classes
getting full
Madison County's system-wide
enrollment fell 120 students below
projections when classes started
Thursday.
School leaders expect that gap
to close, however.
“We do have students continu
ally flowing in,” McGhee said.
“I’m sure we've made a lot of that
up right now.”
While system-wide numbers
were down, student enrollment
exceed projections at two cam
puses: the Madison County High
School Freshmen Academy and
Hull-Sanford Elementary School.
The system may also have
to apply for waivers for a few
elementary school grade classes
close to reaching capacity.
The potential list includes
some kindergarten classes at
Hull-Sanford Elementary and
a fifth grade class at Colbert
Elementary.
The state puts a cap on the
number of students per classroom,
but does allow for exceptions —
especially now.
“We’ve been assured by the
state in these economic times that
waivers will be granted,” McGhee
said. “We’re not quite there yet,
but we feel like we will be having
to ask for a waiver or two.”
But for the most part, the back-
to-school attendance was what
school leaders expected
“There's nothing really out of
whack from what we thought we
would be dealing with,” McGhee
said.
things we can do ... I think
we’ve got some good ideas."
The museum will offer more
than history.
Plans include a 17 x 11 con
ference room. Among other
things, this conference room
would provide the city council
private quarters to adjourn to
during closed sessions.
The museum’s open area is
also 2,500 square feet, provid
ing potential space for group
meetings and presentations.
The $344,000 bid is consid
erably lower than the DOT’S
grant total of $609,000, leaving
money for other projects poten
tially. But anything extra must
fall within the scope of the
original grant and be approved
by the DOT.
So for now, the focus right is
turning this one-time clandes
tine storage garage into some
thing new.
“The idea is to get the build
ing where it can be a center-
piece,” Sorrells said.
Comer .cont’dfrom 1A
road," Comer clerk and finance
officer Steve Sorrells said.
While trains were certainly an
integral part of Comer’s history,
the automobile played a big role
in the city's development, too,
Sorrells said.
Not coincidently, the building
selected has certainly seen its
share of cars. But its history
predates the auto.
The building — which dates
back to 1907 at least — once
served as a livery stable where
blacksmiths repaired horse
shoes and harnesses and even
provided temporary boarding
for horses, Sorrells explained.
Then came the car.
In the roaring 20s, the build
ing housed Ford Model-Ts sent
to Comer via train. The dealer
would uncrate them, perhaps
performing minor reassembly
there as well, before moving
them to the showroom in town.
But the building was perhaps
never more important than it
was in the 1950s and 1960s
when it hid those coveted new
Ford models.
According Sorrells, the cars
came into town covered up on
the trucks and were kept under
wraps at the building until the
much-awaited unmasking.
Reminders of the building’s
top-secret past are still visible
today. The plywood covering at
the windows kept the cars from
view of passers-by.
“We were told that that’s the
reason,” Sorrells said.
More recently, the building
served as the city’s mainte
nance shop until a few years
ago. Since then, it's sat empty
in preparation for the renova
tion.
Once Comer receives the OK
from the DOT to proceed, con
struction crews have 240 days
to finish the work, meaning a
completion date in either April
or May.
As for what Comer might
display in the museum, Sorrells
said, “we’ve got some lines on
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City of Danielsville
QUALIFYING NOTICE
For The November 2009 Election
The City of Danielsville will hold a Municipal
Election on Tuesday, November 3, 2009. The
following offices are scheduled for election:
The following seats are up for election, each with
terms from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2011:
Mayor - Incumbent: Walter Glenn Cross
Council Member - Seat 1 - Incumbent: Philip Croya
Council Member - Seat 1 - Incumbent: Barbara Dove
Qualifying will begin Monday, August 31, 2009 and
end on Friday, September 4, 2009 between the hours
of 8:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Those wishing to qualify
may do so during this time period at Danielsville
City Hall. Qualifying fee for Mayor is $82.19; for
Council Members $56.41.
The State of Georgia Municipal Election Code sets
the mandatory qualifying dates, times, and fees. The
deadline to register to vote in the November 2009
election is October 5, 2009. You may register to vote
at the Madison County Registrar’s office in the
Madison County Government Complex in
Danielsville or pick up a registration form at
Danielsville City Hall.
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City of Colbert
QUALIFYING AND ELECTION NOTICE
Notice is hereby given - a Municipal Election will be
conducted November 3, 2009, in the City of Colbert at
the Colbert depot for the following offices:
Mayor (Incumbent - John A. Waggoner)
Councilperson (Incumbent - Chris Peck)
Councilperson (Incumbent - Roger Fortson)
All offices are for a two (2) year term beginning
January 1, 2010, ending December 31, 2011.
Those persons wishing to qualify for this election
shall file notice of candidacy in the Colbert City Hall,
23 South 4th Street, Colbert, Ga., with the Election
Superintendent on August 31, September 1 and
September 2 between the hours of 8:30 am and 1:00
pm. The qualifying fee for Mayor is $111.20 and the
fee for Councilperson is $45.20.
Voter Registration forms may be picked up at Colbert
City Hall or the Registrar’s Office, Danielsville
Courthouse Complex in Danielsville, Ga. The
completed form must be mailed or carried to the
Registrar’s Office in Danielsville. The deadline for
voter registration for the November, 2009 election is
October 5, 2009.
Business Hours:
Registrar’s Office - Monday thru Friday 8 am - 5 pm
Colbert City Hall - Monday thru Friday 8 am - 1 pm
Early voting will begin October 13, 2009 and end
October 30, 2009, in the Colbert City Depot during
normal Colbert City Hall business hours. On election
day November 3, 2009, the polls will be open from
7:00 am to 7:00 pm in the same location.