Henry County Update - Newsletter

April 10, 2015

BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

Henry County First in State to Offer Tag Renewal in Retail Location

Regular Meetings April 21st at 6:30 PM May 5th at 9:00 AM Meetings held at: Administration Building Community Room 140 Henry Parkway McDonough, GA 30253 Regular Commission meetings will air Fridays, Saturdays, Mondays and Wednesdays on Henry TV Channel 180 and AT&T U-Verse Channel 99, at 9 a.m. & 7 p.m.

Henry County Tax Commissioner David Curry cuts the ribbon on the new kiosk at Kroger in Ellenwood.

Henry County Tax Commissioner David Curry officially cut the ribbon on a new self-service kiosk at the Ellenwood Kroger, now making it easier for residents to renew car registrations, with just the push of a few buttons and a credit card.

The new kiosk system is a great benefit to taxpayers as it allows for renewals to take place after hours and on the weekends.

Henry County is one of only four counties to offer self-service kiosks within the State of Georgia and the first one in the state to offer a renewal kiosk at a retail store.

Curry, along with members of his staff, Henry County Commissioner Bruce Holmes, representatives from the Georgia Department of Revenue, representatives from the Chamber of Commerce and

other county officials helped celebrate the occasion on Wednesday, April 1, 2015, opening the new kiosk, which is located in the foyer of the Kroger Store, at 101 Fairview Rd. in Ellenwood.

The kiosk offers the user the ability to enter the tag number, VIN number or driver’s license number to retrieve registration. Upon payment and approval, the renewed registration prints out, including the new sticker, which can be placed immediately on the vehicle.

This service offers citizens the added convenience of renewing registrations outside of traditional business hours.

For more tax and tag information, visit henrytc-org. the henry county update

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April 10, 2015 Henry County Fire Department Welcomes New Recruits

Henry County Fire Department Recruit Class 14-02.

After eighteen weeks of intense training, the building of an indestructible team bond and a lot of hard work, eleven rookie firefighters have graduated from firefighter training and have joined the Henry County Fire Department. Graduation ceremonies were held at the Locust Grove Recreation Center on Friday, April 3, 2015, where Recruit Class 14-02 commenced with a grand ceremony and a reception to follow.

“These men have worked hard to get where they are and I am extremely proud of our Training Staff for the job they have done preparing them,” said Training Chief Ike McConnell.

The eleven recruits were subjected to comprehensive testing and successfully completed

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all necessary classes, satisfying all requirements and finishing 640 hours of firefighter training. Recruit Michael Johnson was the recipient of the Top Boot Award, which recognizes one individual in the class who demonstrated the ability to excel in academics, skill evaluations, physical fitness and teamwork.

The new firefighters will continue their training on their respective shifts.

“I am excited to welcome these new members to our team,” said Fire Chief Bill Lacy. “They have performed admirably during recruit school and I believe they will continue to excel on line.”

For more information on the Henry County Fire Department, please visit www.henrycounty-ga.org/fire.

Henry County Building Department Utilizes New Technology to Assist Customers County goes live with eplanreview software, providing plan submittal with electronic plan review options.

The Henry County Building and Plan Review Department has now made it easier and more efficient for those doing business with the department to submit plans and permit applications electronically, by partnering with SagesGov in unveiling its new Electronic Submittal and Plan Review software. The software developed and implemented by Sages Networks Inc., an Atlanta-based software solution provider to local governments, will enable the County to eliminate the current paper-based plan review process and improve plan review turnaround times for Henry County’s customers.

“SagesGov eplanreview, together with Bluebeam Revu software, provides our plan reviewers an integrated solution that enables us to receive plans and permit applications online, review and markup plans electronically, collaborate with other departments

and track projects, all from one single online location,” said George Patterson, Director of the Building and Plan Review Department. “Our plan review process prior to this new electronic offering was heavily paper based and we were looking at ways to move to a paperless system.”

Builders, contractors, architects and citizens can register for a free account to submit electronic plans and permit applications though the Henry County website. At this time, users can submit Commercial & Residential Development Permits, Commercial and Residential Building Permits and Final Plat Review projects online. Henry County’s Building and Plan Review Department will also continue to receive paper plans and drawings however, they intend to make all plan submittals and reviews electronic by the end of 2015.

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April 10, 2015 Henry County Animal Control on an Adoption Push Campaign

Henry County Animal Care and Control is on a mission. The same mission they are always on but amped up in the interest of time. The mission is to find all of their beautiful dogs and puppies forever homes— the time factor—to do it in 30 days.

Henry County Animal Care and Control facility will undergo much-needed and mandated renovations with having the dog and puppy rooms coated in a new epoxy that will disease proof the walls. Currently, those walls are coated with latex paint and through nearly a decade of use, the paint is worn and peeling, allowing the porous surface to hold bacteria and disease. Work is scheduled to begin May 1.

However, in order for the work to take place, which includes sandblasting the current rooms, the application of epoxy and the necessary time for the product to cure, the puppy and dog kennels need to be empty for approximately 30 days—hence the campaign to find forever homes for the canines. Additionally, services for taking in animals will be curtailed as well and dogs will only be taken in in the case of dog bites or medical emergencies for dogs in which no one comes

forward to take responsibility. Gerri Yoder, Director of Henry County Animal Care and Control, said the shelter will begin curtailing services on April 1 and by April 13 will only be taking in the emergency cases.

She expects full service to resume by the end of May.

“This is really a two-fold program, because not only do we need to empty the kennels for this work to be completed, we have to curtail services to citizens, because continually taking in dogs while trying to empty the shelter is counter-productive,” said Yoder.

Yoder is calling for all rescue groups and local humane organizations to step forward as well as any person or family that is looking to add a new family member in the form of a four-legged friend.

She said the shelter has reduced adoption fees from $65 to $35 to help defray costs for those interested in adopting. The $35 adoption fee covers the cost of a distemper/parvo vaccine, an intranasal bordetella (kennel cough) vaccine, a prepaid rabies certificate good at area veterinarian offices and a preregistered microchip, and most importantly, a furry, loving friend who needs a good home. Yoder said fostering is not an Continued on Page 7

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April 10, 2015 Henry County to Unveil Proposed New Floodplain Maps Open House to be held on April 23 to view new flood hazard maps proposed for Henry County.

The Henry County Stormwater Management Department is hosting an open house for citizens, businesses and interested parties to view the proposed, updated floodplain maps and preliminary flood insurance rate maps on Thursday, April 23, 2015 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Henry County Emergency Management E911 Communications Building in McDonough. The Open House is a joint effort between Henry County Stormwater, Atkins Global and the Department of Natural Resources Flood Management Department.

Maps show areas in Henry County at risk for flooding and staff will be present to answer questions and discuss changes that may affect your property, insurance and building requirements.

Using the latest technology, floodplains and flood-prone areas of Henry County have been identified and re-mapped in a project conducted by the Federal

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Emergency Management Agency. Various factors affect floodplains, including construction, building and natural occurrences, and floodplain maps are updated as needed.

Property owners are encouraged to attend the open house and view the new maps, where officials and experts will be on hand to answer questions and concerns, and give updated information on how the new maps may impact property owners. Following the open house, there will be a 90-day comment period for input on the maps and a final version could take up to 18 months to be officially adopted.

The Emergency Management E911 Communications Building is located at 526 Industrial Blvd. in McDonough, GA.

For more information, log on to www.henrycounty-ga.org/stormwater.

Dog Adoption from page 4

option because it leaves the County open to liability if during the fostering period, something goes wrong with the dog; however, she said if a rescue group comes forward to take dogs, they in turn can place dogs with foster families.

The renovations are funded under SPLOST IV and will cost $57,728. Work will be performed by Stonhard of Atlanta and it is the same coating that is used by the Atlanta Humane Society.

Yoder said that the renovation work is long overdue because of no funding due to tight budgets in past years and she is grateful that funding was made available under SPLOST IV this year. She added that the primary goal of her department is to serve the public interest through public safety and enforcing ordinances with the ancillary goal of adopting out as many animals as possible.

“There has been a lot of concern over euthanizing dogs, but that is always an absolute last resort. We are on a campaign, a mission, to find our dogs homes in the next month so that these necessary repairs can be made. We couldn’t drag this project out piecemeal over the course of a year, primarily because we can’t cut service to citizens for that length of time, and it needs to be done for the safety and health of the animals and workers in the shelter,” she said.

Dogs available for adoption can be found through the county’s website at hcacc.org or though www.adoptapet.com. There you can view photos of dogs available for adoption and both sites are updated regularly.

For more information, please contact Henry County Animal Care and Control at 770-288-7387.

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April 10, 2015 Henry County Commissioners Approve Onsite Healthcare Clinic for Employees

The Henry County Board of Commissioners approved a measure that will see the creation of an onsite health clinic for employees and their dependents who are enrolled in the County’s healthcare insurance plan.

The action came at a called on meeting held Tuesday, March 31, 2015.

County Manager Jim Walker introduced the plan to commissioners, detailing the expected savings not only to employees, but to the County as well. He said that initially the clinic will be open approximately 32 hours a week and staffed by a nurse, nurse practitioner and a receptionist and will also include a prescription dispensary. Patients would not be required to pay any co-pays at the clinic and there would be no additional billing to insurance by clinic staff. The clinic would also operate a prescription dispensary, carrying up to 40 of the most commonly prescribed medications, available at no cost to patients. The clinic will be located in the Community Room of the Public Safety Building located at 110 S. Zack Hinton Parkway in McDonough and is expected to open in October of this year.

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Walker said that he and county staff members visited several onsite health clinics as part of a study on the benefits of such a clinic and the County received seven proposals, of which staff recommended CIGNA as the operator of the onsite clinic. Start-up costs to build out the clinic, including setup and service fees, are not to exceed $700,000; however Walker said the benefit to employees will be more than worth the preliminary cost.

Commissioners also approved a resolution regarding the employee health insurance plan, choosing to renew with its current carrier, CIGNA, and adding the option of a Kaiser Permanente plan. The Employee Healthcare plan also includes adding a surcharge of $50 a month for employees or family members who engage in the use of tobacco products, as well as a surcharge of $50 a month for employees whose spouses are eligible for health insurance with their own employer, yet choose to enroll in the Henry County plan. Commissioners also approved a measure to cover this year’s 10.5 percent premium increase, to help to lessen the burden to employees.

HC Employees Show Support for Autism Awareness

Henry County employees in the Administration Building show their support for Autism awareness on Thursday, April 2, 2015 for Light It Up Blue Autism Awareness Day.

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