Newspaper Page Text
o
o
JULY 27, 2023
Merged with The Corner News and The Daniclsvillc Monitor, 2006 4 MadisonJoumalTODAY.com
Vol. 40 No. 25* Publication No. 1074-987* Danielsville, Madison County, Georgia 30633 • A Publication of MainStreet Newspapers Inc. *16 Pages, 2 Sections Plus Supplements $1.00
SEWER
DANIELSVILLE
Comp
plan
follow-up:
planned
growth
and sewer
By Alison Smith
The final draft of the
county’s five year com
prehensive plan update is
approved and now govern
ment officials are working
to implement its sugges
tions and action items.
Utilities are a major
component of the over
all plan for the county in
its growth and quality of
life for current residents.
Throughout the process,
citizens identified broad
band internet service as a
necessary expansion priori
ty. Water is another piece to
the utilities puzzle that the
county is exploring with a
proposed restructuring of
the Industrial Development
& Building Authority to re
move the utilities function
from the authority’s duties.
However, the cost and
intergovernmental agree
ments needed to expand
sewer may make it a more
complicated endeavor than
water and broadband. At
this point the county has
three disconnected sewer
systems and two are owned
and maintained by cities in
Danielsville and Comer.
The other is located in Hull
and serves few customers.
County commission
chairman Todd Higdon
says the recently autho
rized water and sewer
feasibility study from the
Appalachian Regional
See Sewer, page 2A
Index
News — 1-3Aand 7A
Opinions — 4A
Crime — 6A
Socials — 5A, 8A and 3B
Schools — 8B
Churches — 3B
Obituaries — 5B
Sports — 1-2B
Classifieds — 6B
Legals — 7B
The home on Holloway Rd. is destroyed after last Thursday’s storm.
Photos submitted
Family seeking support after home gets destroyed
By Hannah Barron
hannah@mainstreetnews. com
A family has turned to the com
munity for help after last Thursday’s
storm destroyed their home on Hol
loway Rd. in the Shiloh community
of Danielsville.
Jenny Benton took to Facebook
and GoFundMe after the storm blew
two trees onto her mother’s home.
She reported that her mother,
Mary Ann Strickland Bridges, and
two brothers, Noah Fowler and
Brace Benton, were inside at the
time but came away mostly un
scathed with only cuts and braises.
Since her husband passed away in
2012, Bridges has been on a fixed in
come from disability and can’t afford
home insurance.
“She cannot work,” Benton said.
“[Both brothers] work, but Noah’s
money goes towards his two chil
dren and fiancee, who are living with
her mom for now. Brace’s money
mostly goes to child support for his
son, but he was saving some money
to get a place. Unfortunately, he had
to spend the little bit he had saved on
an old used car for work.”
Everything of monetary value was
also destroyed in the storm, so there
is no option to sell or make money.
Bridges and one of the brothers
are living in an old camper, while
the other brother stays at his father’s
home.
The family has lost everything and
need clothes and other necessities,
though currently have nowhere to
store them. They also cannot cook
or shower properly. They have been
using a generator for power, but it
has been expensive to keep gas in it,
Benton added.
As of July 25, the community has
raised $881 on GoFundMe to help
the family find a new home. Benton
also plans to put donation jars out at
some local stores.
Those wishing to donate via Go
FundMe may do so at https://gofund.
me/3d04f5fl.
Benton can also be contacted at
benton.jennyc@gmail.com for fur
ther information.
Hr
g-x,,
I m
m\
hm
11
Damage from the trees is pictured.
Contact
Phone: 706-367-5233
Email: hannah@mainstreet
news, com
Web: MadisonJoumalTODAYcom
MAILING LABEL
SCHOOL
‘Welcome back:’ School bells to ring again August 4
By Hannah Barron
hannah@mainstreet news. com
School bells will ring Friday,
August 4, and the district is prepar
ing for students to enter the halls
once again.
Included in the preparation is
getting school supplies ready for
students. Supplies will be provided
by the district for the second year
in a row.
Each student will receive a kit of
school supplies at the first day of
school. Parents will only need to
provide a bookbag, refillable water
bottle and optional lunchbox.
“We’re able to provide [supplies]
this year for our students and we’re
glad to do that,” superintendent Mi
chael Williams shared. “Hopefully
that will help all of our families this
year moving forward.”
In other back-to-school news,
Williams shared that there will be
another Pre-K class this year, mak
ing it a total of eight Pre-K classes
for the class of 2037.
Williams also extended a wel
come to the Class of 2037 and a
“welcome back” to everyone else,
saying he and the school system are
excited for the new year.
“We have some new administra
tors that we’re excited about, new
teachers, new staff members,” Wil
liams said. “As a school system, it’s
a little different from other jobs,
per se, as we get to start off fresh
in August and have a new group
See School, page 2A
COMER
Comer moving toward becoming a “Tree City USA”
By Alison Smith
Four years in the making, Comer
is officially moving toward mark
ing the perseverance and beauty of
its trees.
City councilmember Michael
Wilder presented the steps to ap
plying to become a Tree City USA
next year at the council’s regular
meeting on Monday. Mayor Jimmy
Yarbrough told the audience that
the initiative has been the work and
special project of several residents.
According to its website, the Ar
bor Day Foundation established
the Tree City USA program in 1976
to encourage a greener, healthier
America and inspire change in the
nation. In order to become eligible
for Tree City USA designation, a
city must meet four criteria.
First, the city must maintain a
tree board or department. The City
Council selected volunteers Kalen
Young Nash, Jennifer Berry and
utilities superintendent Scott Porter
at its meeting Monday to create that
board. Second, the city must have
a community tree ordinance. Wild
er presented a sample ordinance to
the council but it took no action on
Monday. The city currently meets
the third requirement to spend at
least $2 per capita on urban forest
ry. Finally, the city must celebrate
Arbor Day, which is typically cel
ebrated on the last Friday in April.
Since applications do not open
until September, the council will
work in the next couple months to
finalize plans for its application,
due in December.
OTHER UPDATES
Yarbrough and Porter also shared
reports on sewer system rehabilita
tion and improvements. The coun
cil approved a bid of $626,845 for
the rehab of 3500 ft. of sewer lines
and three or four manholes. The
project is funded by ARPA funds
and a matching grant from the state
and will come in at or just under the
budgeted amount. The work on the
sewer lines is set to begin this fall.
While the rehab project is going
well, a project to upgrade the exist
ing sewer plant and pond is suffer
ing budgeting problems. The city
must update its system to comply
See Comer, page 2A