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o Vol. 24 No. 35 • Publication No. 1074-987 • Danielsville, Madison County, Georgia 30633 • A Publication of MainStreet Newspapers Inc. • 28 Pages, 2 Sections Plus Supplements Down, set, hut CITY NEWS Football is here! Waggoner stepping down Colbert mayor served city for 40 years Inside: Qualifying for municipal ELECTIONS AHEAD, PAGE 3A By Ben Munro ben@mainstreetnews.com F or the first time since man walked on the moon, Colbert will have a new mayor. John Waggoner, who's served as the city's chief elected offi cial since 1969, won’t seek a bid for re-election this year. “I’m not going to be qualify ing for mayor next go-round,” Waggoner said Tuesday. His term expires at the end of the year. Waggoner, 73, was never opposed in any election in his 40 years as mayor and called the decision not to run again difficult. “It was,” he said. “I thought about it long and hard and I prayed about it. It just felt like the thing to do now, because I'm almost 74 and we need to be getting somebody else in the harness.” That doesn't necessarily mean that his run of serving the city is over, however. He said he'd like to stay on in some capacity as an assistant. “But that’s up to the new mayor and council,” he said. Qualifying dates for Colbert’s mayoral election are Aug. 31 and Sept. 1-2. Waggoner said Colbert councilman Chris Peck, whose term is expiring, plans to qualify for the mayor’s race. The fee to qualify for that post is $111.20. Councilman Roger Fortson is also up for re-election. The fee to qualify for council races is $45.20. Asked what he’d miss most about being mayor, Waggoner laughed and said, “complaints, I guess.” But he reiterated that he still wants to be of service to the city he’s presided over for 40 John Waggoner years. “Like I said. I’ll be around to help if they want me to assist them in any way,” Waggoner said. MONEY BOC to meet with sheriff Wed. on budget Inside: see the agenda for the BOC’s MONDAY NIGHT MEETING, PAGE 2A By Zach Mitcham zach@mainstreetnews.com Madison County commis sioners have met for weeks on the 2010 county budget, but the most significant dis cussion is still ahead. County commissioners are scheduled to meet with Sheriff Kip Thomas to dis cuss sheriff's department and jail funding at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 2. Thomas submitted a budget request for roughly $1 mil lion in additional funds for 2010 for the sheriff’s depart ment ($726,969) and jail ($328,590), which represent increases of 46 percent and 25.9 percent. But the sheriff has post poned the budget meeting with the BOC twice in recent weeks, asking for more time to work on his budget. Thomas wrote a piece for this paper in July, explaining that he knew he wouldn't get everything he presented in his budget request. “I turned in a budget for next year and I know that anyone who saw it probably thought I was crazy,” wrote Thomas. “Well, I promise that I am not crazy and that I don't expect to get everything that I asked for on that budget ... Budgets are turned in and then worked and reworked numerous times before they are approved for the next year. I know that what I turned in will be done the same way.” County commissioners were also scheduled to meet Wednesday, Aug. 26, with several department heads, including the senior center, buildings and grounds, road department/vehicle repair and maintenance, tax assessor’s office and Madison County — See ‘Budget’ on 2A ANIMALS HEALTH H1N1 suspected at county schools Inside: Seasonal FLU VACCINE AVAILABLE AUG. 31, Page 2 A (L-R) Noelle, an 11-year-old black lab mix; Foxy Gretchen, a 7-year-old retriever; and Lizze, a 6-year-old cattle dog are available for adoption at a reduced price at the Madison Oglethorpe Animal Shelter. Zach Mitcham/ Staff In need of a home No takers yet for pets of deceased Oglethorpe couple; adoptions down at Madison Oglethorpe Animal Shelter By Zach Mitcham zach@mainstreetnews.com The pets of an Oglethorpe County couple that officials believe were mauled by a pack of dogs still need a home. Former University of Georgia professor Lothar Karl Schweder, 77, and his wife Sherry Schweder, 65, a librarian, were found mauled to death earlier this month along Howard Thaxton Road off Hwy. 77 about two miles north of Lexington in Oglethorpe County. The dogs that officials believe attacked them were put to sleep last week at the Madison Oglethorpe Animal Shelter. And the couple's seven dogs were taken to the shelter with the hope that they would find new homes. There’s Jojo, a male 5-year-old spaniel mix; Heidi, a female 9-year-old boxer mix; Santa, a male 4-year-old lab mix; Eliana, a female 11-year-old lab/shep- herd mix; Noelle, a female 11-year- — See ‘Adoption’ on 2A By Ben Munro ben@mainstreetnews.com County schools — the mid dle school and high school in particular — have had a high absentee rate recently and H1N1 is suspected to be part of the cause, though no cases have been confirmed. School system officials heard from six-to-eight par ents last week countywide who say doctors have told them their children probably have H1N1, and the number has since grown. The calls prompted the cen tral office to send a letter to parents addressing concerns. “We didn’t have a hard number, but we were starting to get a fairly consistent run — See ’Flu’ on 11A INSIDE Butldtngs and grounds Index: News — 1-3A 5A Opinions —4A Crime — 6A Schools — 7A11A Obituaries — 10A Socials — 12A Sports— 1-2B Churches — 3B Legate— 4-9B Classifieds — 10-12B Contact: Phone: 706-795-2567 Fax: 706-795-2765 Mail: P.O. Box 658, Danielsville, GA, 30633 Web: MadisonJoumalTODAY. com 2009 tax bills expected this year Madison County taxpayers can expect to get their 2009 tax bills this year, with offi cials hoping to have tax bills out by early November. — Page 3A Man faces arson charge A Danielsville man was arrest ed for first-degree arson last week after allegedly setting fire to a home he shared with his girlfriend. — Page 6A Wanted: Batman County seeks to rid buildings of flying critters By Zach Mitcham zach@mainstreetnews.com T here won’t be any capes or comic book villains. But Madison County needs a batman. Two county buildings — the historic county courthouse and the old Strickland House off Hwy. 98 — have a problem with the real-life nocturnal flying crit ters that can carry rabies and leave droppings — or guano — that can make folks sick. The county government placed an advertisement in this week’s Journal seeking proposals for “bat removal, bat exclusion, clean-up and decontamination” of the Strickland House and old county courthouse. The removal of bats can include a lot of legal red tape. For instance, Madison County buildings and ground director Alan Lapczynski said the county considered addressing the prob lem back in May, but had to wait until after Aug. 15 to avoid spe cial permitting related to dealing with young bats. “Bats have their young dur ing the summer, so we had to — See ‘Bats’ on 2A The historic Strickland House off Hwy. 98 is infested with bats. 14 14 4