Tues., Nov. 6
ELECTION RESULTS |
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Our Time and Place:
A History of
Jackson County, Ga
A complete history of Jackson County, Georgia
from 1796 to the present. Written in narrative style for easy
reading. Includes material not found in other books about Jackson
County.
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Hoops 01-02
Banner season ahead for Panthers, Dragons?
COMING off a 6-for-6 year in terms of playoff appearances, how
can Jackson County's basketball teams improve in the coming season?
How about a final four sweep? According to coaches at Jefferson
and Jackson County, the 2001-02 basketball season could be their
most successful ever.
Tigers Get 'Extra Game' Friday Against Morgan Co.
Don't be surprised if you see a few trick
plays and some new faces Friday night at Tiger Stadium.
Neighboorhood News ..
MADISON COUNTY
Health dept. offices to combine
Madison County will soon have only one county
health department office.
Bioterrorism:Health official talks about need for local
preparedness
The medical director of the Northeast Health
District told Madison County Board of Health members that the
country needs to be better prepared for bioterrorism outbreaks.
Neighborhood News...
BANKS COUNTY
Who will move the dead?
Coroner, EMS in verbal brawl over who will
transport. An argument over who was responsible for the removal
of a body from a home earlier this month was the center of another
heated dispute during Friday's meeting of the Banks County Board
of Commissioners.
Architect chosen for jail
The architectural firm of Pieper, O'Brian, Herr has been chosen
by the Banks County Board of Commissioners to do the architectural
design of the county's new jail.
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The Jackson Herald
Jefferson, Georgia
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HOME DESTROYED BY FIRE
The home of Katie and Joshua Key on Hwy. 82 Spur was
destroyed by a fire Monday afternoon. The fire started as a brush
fire, according to reports. Another brush fire Sunday afternoon
in Jefferson in the Hickory Hills subdivision led to a homeowner
receiving second-degree burns while trying to put out the fire.
Like much of the state, Jackson County is under an outdoor burning
ban because of extended dry weather this fall.
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Jefferson may
OK conditional use zoning
Jefferson residents wanting conditional
use of their land in ways not congruent with their zoning may
soon have a route to take.
The Jefferson City Council voted unanimously Monday night to
give it the right to grant conditional use permits in residential
zoning. The Jackson County Planning Commission will vote on the
amendment at its December meeting. Then, the city council will
have to approve the planning commission's recommendation before
the amendment becomes effective.
The council's decision stemmed from Freddie and Shirley Pethel's
request to rezone 0.75 acres on Benton Road from R-1 to C-1 to
locate a model home and beauty shop. The planning commission
voted last month to recommend denial of the rezoning, and city
council members said they would not permit C-1 zoning in that
residential area.
The council considered allowing the Pethels to operate their
business in the R-1 zoning as a home occupation. However, because
the business did not meet some of the home occupation requirements,
the council abandoned the idea.
Councilman Steve Kinney suggested adding conditional uses to
the city's residential zoning ordinances, which would allow the
council to approve the Pethels' business as a conditional use
in R-1.
"I'd like to add conditional uses to our zoning ordinances
so we can set conditions that they must follow, and if not, they
get rejected," Kinney said. "This will come up again.
We need to address it."
Martin Roberts, a Benton Road resident, spoke in opposition to
the rezoning and to the council's decision to add conditional
uses.
"Even with a conditional use, what is to prevent a welding
shop from coming in," Roberts said. "It opens up a
whole can of worms."
City attorney Ronnie Hopkins explained that conditional use permits
only allow a specific use with requirements set up by the city
council. Any violation of the requirements or sale of the property
voids the permit.
"Conditional use is specific," Hopkins said.
But Roberts said the council was deliberately trying not to act
on the Pethels' rezoning request..
"We have no conditional use right now," he said. "You
are trying to stall it in order to accommodate the Pethels. You
are trying not to deny it even though people are here against
it."
After the council voted to amend their zoning ordinance, the
Pethels withdrew their rezoning request and agreed to begin the
application process for a conditional use permit.
BOE pushes for
JMS to open in Jan.
All the Jefferson Board of Education wants for
Christmas is for its new middle school building to be ready when
students and staff return in January.
Whether the board will get its wish remains to be seen, but there
was little doubt at the BOE meeting Thursday that getting that
wish will be a close call.
During the meeting, board members questioned Southern A&E
representative Mike Raeisghasem about progress on the project.
"January 3 is when the kids come back," BOE chairman
Ronnie Hopkins said. "Our goal is to have fire marshal approval,
have the certificate of occupancy in hand...Mid-December is basically
it. We need to know 'Yes' or 'No' when we leave for Christmas
vacation."
BOE member Willie Hughey added: "The kids need to know when
they leave for Christmas (Dec. 19) where they will go when they
come back in January."
"It will be very close," Raeisghasem replied. "It
can be done. It can physically be done, but they're going to
have to crack the whip."
Raeisghasem said contractors believe the classroom wings will
be ready by the first of December for new furniture to be moved
in. However, he cautioned that he would like to do the punch
lists for those wings before anything is moved.
Other furniture and technology equipment will be moved later
in the month. Teachers will also have to set up their classrooms
before students return, if the building is to be open at the
start of second semester, superintendent Dr. John Jackson pointed
out.
In addition to the classroom wings, the cafeteria and administrative
wings would also need to be completed for school's start. When
questioned about the school's gym, Raeisghasem said he was told
it might be done in mid-January, but he cautioned that "they
will push so on the rest of the building, the gym may be pushed
back...If they fall behind on the classroom wings, the push behind
the rest of the wings you'll have to have."
During the discussion, Hughey questioned the progress of the
project, saying, "They first said it would be done in November;
now we're not sure it will be done in January. It doesn't look
like it."
Hopkins reiterated the need for the project to progress as rapidly
as possible.
"We're really under the gun here. We've got to know. I know
in construction, things happen, but we've got to know. We need
to be through."
In related matters, Dr. Jackson reported that work is progressing
on what has been a troublesome sewage system at the site, but
added that he is still withholding $65,000 until the system is
functional and approved. He also voiced some concern about dirt
accumulated in front of the building from the excavation work
required for the sewage system.
Raeisghasem arranged to sit down with Dr. Jackson, Tony Salloum
and anyone else available to discuss the project.
In other construction matters, Dr. Jackson reported that paving
has begun at the middle school site, that the fire marshal was
to visit the high school gym Friday for a final certificate of
occupancy check and that the University of Georgia School of
Landscaping and Design will develop a landscaping concept for
the new middle school.
The BOE approved payment of construction bills, including $4,583
to Southern A&E, $93,853 to Driver Construction and $385,643
to Salloum Construction Company.
Maysville again
top tax district
Residents in the town of Maysville again
have the dubious honor of paying Jackson County's highest tax
rate - this year a combined 28.88 mills.
All across the county, tax rates went up dramatically this year,
in large part due to an increase in county government tax rates
after last year's one-time dramatic decrease. The largest increases
were in the Harrisburg and Plainview Fire Districts where the
overall tax rate rose 39 percent. Those districts doubled their
fire tax rates in addition to the jump in the county government
tax rate.
The smallest tax increase came in the town of Jefferson where
the overall rate rose 23 percent. A drop in the city's tax rate
offset some of the other increased rates, leading to the lower
overall jump.
Because it has three school systems, nine towns and a multitude
of fire districts, Jackson County's tax structure is among the
most complex in the state. t
County schools'
growth plan to be presented in Dec.
A proposed five-year growth plan for the
Jackson County School System will be presented next month, according
to consultant Charles Reeves.
Reeves told the Jackson County Board of Education Monday night
that the plan will include additions and/or improvements at East
Jackson Middle School and Maysville, North Jackson and South
Jackson elementary schools, as well as plans for a new East Jackson
high school.
Reeves also presented members with initial plans for a 20-classroom
addition at West Jackson Middle School. The project, which will
take the facility up to its projected enrollment of 900, could
be completed by next fall.
"Hopefully, we'll let bid by early February," Reeves
said of the projected eight-month contract. "By the time
we finish it, we'll fill it up."
PERSONNEL CHANGES
The BOE also approved a number of personnel changes during its
meeting. Among those changes were the approval of 16 substitute
teachers.
Approved as substitutes were: Pam Stevens, Melissa Bruce, Misty
Riordan, Sherri Shaw, Jennifer Wetherford, Samantha Wells, Michael
Townson, Tina Lee, Mary Ann Ewing, Carla Rylee, Judy Cato, Kasey
Sheridan, Jimmy Hembree, Brandy Shaver, Kristi Gavalier and Tiffany
Ingle.
The board accepted five resignations: Brandy Logan Smith, BES
reading aide; Janet Watson, BES reading aide; Carolyn Harper,
NJES secretary/bookkeeper; Ronnie Garmon, MES bus driver; and
Patricia Garrison, MES teacher.
Terry Tatum, Donna Huntsinger, John Feagins, Tammie Morrow and
Julie Sanders were hired as substitute bus drivers.
Transfers were also approved for Debbie Smith (SJES bookkeeper
to parapro), Teresa Dearman (NJES office clerk to secretary/bookkeeper)
and Cynthia George (bus driver to substitute teacher).
Other personnel matters included the hirings of Virginia Cooper
(JCCHS custodian), Rebecca Francis (BES reading aide), Cindy
Bates (WJMS special ed parapro), Tommy Brooks (WJMS custodian)
and Lucinda Chambers (JCCHS food service).
In other business, the BOE:
· met in a 90-minute executive session to discuss personnel
and a student appeal of a Discipline Tribunal decision. After
the session, the board voted unanimously to uphold the tribunal's
decision.
· presented a commendation for Citizens for Better Education
Committee members Rhonda Sailors, Stephanie Carroll and Tim Cornelison,
regarding that group's support of the recently-approved SPLOST
extension.
· held an election of board member Stephanie Kitchen as
Legislative Liason.
· discussed a revision of the system's school day policy.
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Early
deadlines given for next week
The Jackson Herald will have early deadlines next week due to
the Thanksgiving holiday.
The deadline for news will be at 5 p.m. on Friday. The deadline
for classified and display advertising will be 3 p.m. Friday.
The Herald will be printed a day early next week due to the holiday.
The paper will go to press on Tuesday night and be mailed on
Wednesday instead of Thursday. It will also be on the news stands
late Tuesday night.
The Herald office will be closed Thursday, Nov. 23, for the Thanksgiving
holiday.
Jefferson mayor
charged with DUI
Jefferson Mayor Byrd Bruce was charged
with driving under the influence of intoxicants (DUI) Friday.
Bruce, 76, was also charged with following too closely by the
Georgia State Patrol. The charges came after he was involved
in a wreck around 3 p.m. Friday at Washington Street and Old
Pendergrass Road.
A trooper with the Georgia State Patrol in Gainesville said the
accident occurred when Bruce hit a car in front of him that had
stopped for traffic. The trooper said Bruce then backed up and
struck the vehicle behind him.
He refused to take the Breathalyzer test and was then charged
by the state patrol.
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