Cherokee Progress Edition 2010

PROGRESS 2010

PUBLISHED BY THE

CHEROKEE TRIBUNE

PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 2E

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

Growth: Cherokee continues to expand From staff reports

Cherokee County continues to grow despite the slowdown in the economy and local homebuilding.

According to the Atlanta Regional Commission, the year between April 1, 2008, and April 1, 2009, was the first the region was fully impacted by the housing slump.

The result was an increase of 27,400 people in the area, the slowest annual growth since the ARC began estimating population in 1990.

During the yearlong period, Cherokee’s population grew by 2,900 people, going from 203,000 to 205,900.

Cherokee ranked fourth in the 10-county metro area in population growth for the time span behind Fulton (6,400 new people), Gwinnett (4,500) and DeKalb (3,600).

Cherokee’s average annual population growth has been on a consistent upward climb since 1970, growing from an annual population growth rate of 2,000 in the 1970s to 4,000 in the 1980s, 5,000 in the 1990s and 7,100 from 20002009. Fulton and Henry counties are the only other metro counties to see an increase for each decade.

Interest in Cherokee is starting to warm up again, according to Diane Galvin of Re/Max Town & Country in Towne Lake, immediate past president of the Cherokee Association of Realtors.

She credited Cherokee’s sustained population growth over the years to lower taxes and having more land available for Diane Galvin growth.

“We still have room to grow,” she said.

Buzz Ahrens, chairman of the Cherokee County Board of Commissioners, said the status of the housing market is making Cherokee even more attractive.

“There are terrific housing values that will never be the same again,” said Ahrens, a member of the ARC board.

He said the way the county is managed could be another draw, adding local oversight of finances and resources “seems to be significantly better” than surrounding areas.

He said county leaders also are taking “serious steps” to provide more quality-oflife amenities, such as new parks.

Canton Mayor Gene Hobgood said lower taxes, less expensive homes and good schools make Cherokee attractive. He said the county’s distance from downtown Atlanta also helps.

“People like to be away a little bit from the downtown area, but have convenience to those areas,” he said, noting that is exactly what Cherokee’s location offers.

The sluggish economy hasn’t stopped Cherokee County’s growth, but it did slow it down.

U.S. Census Bureau’s latest reports show Cherokee still is among the 100 fastestgrowing counties nationwide with populations of more than 10,000.

The county ranked at No. 64 for its population growth of 3.4 percent — or 6,859 people — rising to 210,529 in July 2008 from 203,670 in July 2007.

The total means, on average, more than 18 people moved to Cherokee every day.

For its growth through July 2007, the county was ranked much higher: at No. 18 for its growth of 5.3 percent or 10,281 people.

For growth between July 2007 and July 2008, St. Bernard Parish, La., saw the country’s biggest population leap of 12.8 percent or 4,283 people.

Cherokee also remains among the top 25 long-term, fastest-growing counties, according to the report.

The county comes in at No. 22 nationwide for its population growth of 48.4 percent — or 68,626 people — from 141,903 in April 2000 to

210,529 in July 2008.

Kendall County, Ill., leads the long-term list with a population boom of 89.6 percent or 48,900 people over the same eight years.

Ahrens said 3.4 percent is about what he expected. The economy, he said, is hindering home sales for people who want to relocate to Cherokee and elsewhere in north Georgia.

“Cherokee is and will remain an attractive location to live — and hopefully to work,” he said. “We are close enough to Atlanta, per se, but just look north to the mountains and east or west to the lakes … it is a peaceful, stimulating, invigorating environment.”

He also noted the efforts under way to improve Cherokee’s amenities like the retail growth, development of more office and industrial parks and expansion of the county’s airport, recreation system and arts and culture options.

That, he said, is on top of the low taxes, high-scoring schools, strong housing values and options and ample water supply.

Misti Whitfield Martin, executive director of the Development Authority of Cherokee County, said she sees 3.4 percent as a “manageable rate” that still keeps the county in the top 100.

“In today’s economy, I think that is encouraging,” she said. “It tells us that people still value the lifestyle and quality that Cherokee County offers. This will continue to help our economic development efforts as we expand our talented workforce.”

Pam Carnes, president and CEO of the Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce, noted making the top 100 list comes on the heels of the Gallup poll showing Cherokee residents are the happiest in the country.

“The way we look at it is, ‘Why would someone not want to move here?’” she said, adding that were it not for the economy, Cherokee’s rate still would be “full speed ahead.”

But because of the economy, she said, not as many people are willing to relocate, especially without a job.

“We would get people who would say, ‘I was ready for a change,’ ‘I wanted to move to the South,’” she said. “But I don’t think as many people are doing that because of uncertain economic times.”

Despite its drop in the rankings, Cherokee remains

in a very enviable position, according to Mrs. Carnes.

“Many communities would love to have these rankings,” she said.

Last year was a slow one for residential construction in Cherokee County, but 2010 is expected to be a better year, according to industry experts.

There were 25 single-family housing permits issued throughout the county in December, down from 32 issued in November and equal to the number issued in December of 2008.

There were 530 permits issued all of last year, down significantly from 928 issued through the year 2008.

Mike Shina of Windsong Properties in Woodstock, president of the Greater Atlanta Home Builders Association Cherokee Chapter, said the new year brings more opportunities for builders.

“For the guys that are still standing, it will be a better year than last,” he said.

“There is definitely a short supply of new homes.”

Mike Shina Shina said the market has changed from buyers looking for big houses a few years ago to buyers today now being more concerned with value.

“Anybody still in business has reset their prices to reflect the new economy,” he said.

Rick Porter of Porter Development in Woodstock said confidence in the economy and availability of money for builders has kept the number of new housing starts low.

“There is not one builder I know that can get a loan,” he said.

The county building department, which covers unincorporated Cherokee as well as the city of Waleska, issued 17 permits in December, slightly up from 16 in November and from nine in December 2008. The county approved 275 permits last year, down from 521 in 2008.

Woodstock granted four permits in December, down from 14 in November and six in December of 2008. The city issued 87 single-family permits last year, down from 113 in 2008.

Canton issued just one permit in December, a drop from two in November and eight in December 2008. There were 67 permits granted by the city

last year, down from 132 in 2008.

Holly Springs approved three permits in December, up from none in November and two in December of 2008.

The city gave out 75 permits last year, down from 139 in 2008.

Ball Ground did not issue any permits in December or November, nor any in December 2008.

City Manager Eric Wilmarth said he doesn’t think builders working in Ball Ground will be active for some time.

“We are not anticipating any for the next couple of months,” he said. “If we get anything, it will be a real nice surprise.”

Nelson did not issue any single-family permits in the county in 2009 or 2008.

There were 30 single-family housing permits issued throughout the county in January, an increase from 25 in December, but down from 34 in January last year.

Shina said builders in niche markets, such as active adults and starter homes that are priced right, are selling houses. “It is the move-up houses that are still a problem,” he said.

This year, he said, will be a better one for builders who have made it through the difficulties of the past two years.

“This is the year that people who survived, made good decisions and are positioned to grow will thrive,” he said.

The county building department, which covers unincorporated Cherokee as well as the city of Waleska, approved 10 single-family permits in January, down from 17 in December and 18 in January 2009.

The building department in Woodstock is off to a better start with 11 permits issued in January, a jump from four in December and five in January last year.

Canton’s building department approved seven single-

family permits in January, a rise from just one in December and five in January 2009.

The building department in Holly Springs issued two single-family permits in January, a small drop from three in December and six in January last year.

The building department s of Ball Ground and Nelson issued no permits in the month of January.

House sales in Cherokee County finished down last year, but there is optimism for 2010 among industry experts.

There have been 166 house sales reported in Cherokee County so far for December, according to the First Multiple Listing Service, a data services provider for real estate professionals. The total could increase as all numbers are not reported right away.

Sales dropped from the 228 reported in November, but rose from 153 in December 2008.

For 2009, 2,380 house sales were reported in the Cherokee County, down slightly from the 2,394 sales in 2008.

There were 361 new listings on the market in Cherokee in December. That number fell from 455 in November and 438 in December 2008.

The average sale price for a home in the county in December was $221,804, rising from $199,091 in November. The average cost of a house in the county in December 2008 was $218,515.

Wanda Roach, a real estate agent with Century 21 Max Stancil Realty in Woodstock, said the market is improving because of tax credits and the amount of property available.

“There are all these good deals. People are going ahead and taking advantage,” she said.

She is anticipating 2010 to

be a stronger year in the housing market.

“Not great, but better,” she said.

Cherokee Association of Realtors President Terry Moore of Prudential Georgia Realty in Woodstock said 2010 has gotten off to an “awesome” start.

The extension of the $8,000 tax credit for firsttime home buyers until April has brought on an early spring season, she said.

The credit was set to expire in Terry Moore November.

The extension included a $6,500 credit for homeowners moving into a new house.

“I think we will see some increase this year,” she said about the prospects for the local housing market in 2010.

“We will not see a boom. It will be marginally better.”

Patricia Wudel, a real estate agent with Prudential Georgia Realty in Canton, is optimistic for the new year, but feels the market is not yet completely healthy.

“Maybe it will be a little better, but who knows,” she said. “I think 2010 is still going to be slow. We are definitely not out of the bad economy and the bad real estate market yet.”

There have been 111 house sales reported in Cherokee County for January, according to FMLS. Sales are down slightly from 116 in January of last year and 179 sales in December 2009.

There were 588 new listings on the market in Cherokee in January. That number rose from 367 in December 2009, but dropped from 617 in January of last year.

The average sale price for a home in the county in January was $197,237, down from $220,207 in December and $225,845 in January of last year.

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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 3E

PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 4E

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

County: Airport, parks, jobs top goals From staff reports

The Cherokee County Board of Commissioners is continuing with its goals of expanding the airport, parks and employer base while keeping a close eye on the budget.

Dealing with reductions in revenues is weighing on the minds of the county leaders.

In the 2010 budget, which began Jan. 1, general fund revenues dropped from $62 million in 2009 to $60.9 million. The sales tax budget dropped from $34.9 million to $27.6 million.

Commission Chairman Buzz Ahrens said the board needs to stay within the parameters of the budget and develop servicelevel measurement criteria.

Commissioner Jim Hubbard said he is hopeful that the county Buzz Ahrens can “survive financially without laying off employees or raising taxes.”

One of the successes the board touted for 2009 was managing the downturn in revenues “without doing anything drastic,” Commis- Jim Hubbard sioner Harry Johnston said.

“That was a pretty big success to absorb the decrease in revenues in ’09,” he said.

Ahrens and Johnston both have the goal of developing a greenspace plan for the county.

Johnston said he would like to see the board use the parks bond funds to purchase greenspace this year. He said the county’s focus for the past year has been on using the funds to acquire land for future parks.

“We have not focused much at all on greenspace. It is time to focus on that now,” he said.

Johnston said it was a Harry success for the Johnston board to “substantially complete” the purchase of park space last year as part of a $90 million bond to improve parks and recreation countywide.

“I think we made some good purchases,” he said.

Ahrens and Commissioner Karen Bosch said they would like to see a transportation special purpose local option sales tax passed through the Georgia G e n e r a l Assembly this session.

Ahrens said he also wants the board to start working jointly with the Development Karen Bosch Authority of Cherokee County to develop a brand-based marketing plan for the county. Together, he said, they also can work together to facilitate the completion of the Cherokee County Regional Airport expansion, as well as draft a “forward-looking” marketing plan for development of the airport area.

Commissioner Derek Good said he wants to see ground broken on an aquatic center in 2010. The county has a location for a center on Bells Ferry Road in southwest Cherokee County as part of a residential development. He said the project has not moved forward due to the uncertainty surrounding the development.

“It is a matter of getting Derek Good development rolling,” he said about the center, adding he also is eager to see the completion of the 17-field soccer complex on 50 acres on Blalock Road in Toonigh.

Mrs. Bosch has made the widening of Bells Ferry Road and the Ronnie Chastain Memorial Bridge a top priority.

She also wants to start on park projects, including the expansion of the Blankets Creek Bike Trails parking area.

“Blankets Creek is one of the most active bike trails in the Southeast, and the additional parking is long overdue,” she said.

She also is working on a

project to develop a Georgia Children’s Park and Family Refuge in the county.

Hubbard said he wants to work with the state legislature to update the annexation laws.

Deannexation laws are unequal, he said, as property can annex into a city without needing approval from the county but a property owner must get permission from the city to deannex.

“That seems unfair,” he said.

The Cherokee County Board of Commissioners during its annual retreat prioritized goals for building new parks.

The board agreed to create active parks on 150 acres on Cherokee Tribune file photo Highway 20/Cumming Highway in Macedonia and on 33 A big crowd of county and state officials turned out in May for the groundbreaking ceremony to start construction on acres on Kellogg Creek near the new terminal at the Cherokee County Regional Airport. The terminal is part of a $34 million expansion project.

Victory Drive in southwest Regional Airport expansion is Cherokee. continuing to soar.

The land for both parks was Ground was broken in May purchased last year as part of for the $1.4 million terminal the $90 million parks bond ref- project at the airport off Intererendum approved by Chero- state 575 south of Ball Ground. kee voters to improve parks The Board of Commissioners and recreation opportunities. approved the bid from Dominy The county staff will now Construction in April. be charged with developing As part of the groundbreakconcept plans for the two sites. ing ceremony in May, former No time frame was set, but airport authority member commission Ahrens said it William “Bill” Johnston was would be “sooner rather than honored by state Reps. Charlater.” lice Byrd (R-Woodstock) and “It is incumbent on us to get Calvin Hill (R-Hickory Flat) as started on the next phase,” he well as by Ahrens for his role said about the two sites. in making the airport expanMrs. Bosch, who represents sion happen. the area where the Kellogg The new terminal, which Creek Road park is planned, includes a lobby, conference said the parks department staff room, an office for the fixed will look at the properties to base operator and a pilot’s determine what type of activi- lounge, is part of a $34 million ties will fit. expansion. The building is “Density wise, it makes nearly complete, and parking more sense to start there,” she lots are being constructed. said about the site, adding peoThe expansion funds ple who are using Hobgood include $15 million in Special Park in Towne Lake may find Purpose Local Option Sales the new site more convenient.

Tax revenues committed by the Johnston, who represents county government. the area where the Macedonia The project includes park is planned, said that loca- extending the 3,414-foot runtion is also a high priority. way and parallel taxiway to “Highway 20 is right in the 5,000 feet to accommodate heart of where people are clam- corporate jets. It also increases oring for parks,” he said. the hangar space to maximize Johnston said it could be a the number of planes that can minimum of two years con- be based there from 100 to 300. struction on the parks begins.

“Everything is tracking perThe board also agreed to fectly,” Phil Eberly of WK ask county parks staff for more Dickson, the manager of the detailed improvement plans for expansion project, said about Sequoyah and Hobgood Parks the timeline for the project. The as well as the recreation center runway, which was extended on Highway 5 in Woodstock to 4,100 feet, last year was and the City Club of Canton. overlaid and marked.

All of these are sites listed as Eberly said the third needing improvements as part phase of the runway extenof the bond. The latter is a for- sion will lay out dirt to mer private business the coun- extend the runway to 5,000 ty government has purchased feet. to transform into a senior recreThe airport authority has ation center. $4 million allotted for the The board at its retreat also phase, which it voted this talked about greenspace acqui- month to put out to bid. sition, another function for the The fourth phase, which parks bond money. Possible will pave the runway to properties to acquire were 5,000 feet, will be done next. reviewed as was the idea of The cost of that phase is forming a committee, but the about $2 million. board came to no conclusions.

Don Stevens, chairman of “We moved a little closer, the airport authority, said a but we are still not ready to marketing campaign will start make a purchase,” Johnston as soon as the new terminal said about greenspace. officially opens.

The board also talked about He said the expansion prothe possibility of charging a ject is raising tenant interest in blight tax for unoccupied prop- the airport. erties. The system, which is WK Dickson recently used in other communities, signed a lease for office space assesses higher taxes to at the airport. encourage property owners to prevent the sites from becoming eyesores.

Other issues the board addressed included whether to support drafted state legislation that would add arts to the list of permitted uses of revenues from Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax. The current law allows the proceeds from a county government SPLOST to fund roads and capital improvements for parks and recreation, libraries and public safety.

Ahrens said he supports the idea as “another tool in the toolbox” for funding the arts locally.

A possible name change for the Development Authority of Cherokee County also came up for review, with one suggestion being the Cherokee Business Development Office. The board also talked about the authority’s survey about what jobs Cherokee residents leave the county for and how to use that information to benefit the county.

The

Cherokee

County

PROGRESS 2010

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

PAGE 5E

Sheriff: ‘Training is our best insurance’ From staff reports

The Cherokee Sheriff’s Office is developing plans for construction of a new training facility as part of its 2010 efforts to improve service to the community.

Sheriff Roger Garrison said the agency is developing county-owned property near its headquarters and jail on Chattin Drive in Canton for the facility.

It will include an indoor firing facility, a rifle and shotgun range, and a fourstory rappelling tower.

“Training is clearly our legacy,” he said. “Training is our best insurance policy. It keeps us in a defensible position if we are sued.”

Capt. Joe Satterfield, training and Special Weapons and Tactics commander for the sheriff’s office, said the agency currently has to send officers to places such as Hall and Douglas counties for training.

“It limits our opportunities for training,” he said. “(This facility) will greatly increase our capacity to train our officers.”

Satterfield said the sheriff’s office would keep its current handgun range, which is also adjacent to headquarters, open after the new facility is complete.

Site and floor plans as well as environmental studies are under way for the project.

A total cost for construction of the facility is not yet known.

“This year is all planning and design,” Garrison said, adding they Roger would break Garrison ground for construction “as soon as we could” in 2011.

With the budget being tight, Garrison said the agency has to find ways to work smarter.

“One way we can do that is through the use of technology,” he said, adding a top priority is to keep his office “moving forward in a positive, efficient manner while we navigate these waters of financial uncertainty.”

The agency employs 421 people, down from 427 in 2008, and it’s unlikely more staff will be added this year, sheriff’s office Public Information Officer Lt. Jay Baker said.

The 2010 budget for the sheriff’s office also has been trimmed to $28.6 million from $28.8 million last year.

Planned technology upgrades include installing a Livescan fingerprinting unit at the BridgeMill Precinct.

The agency already has one at the jail and added one in its South Precinct last year.

Livescan fingerprinting allows law enforcement agencies to take a digital fingerprint, which then can be forwarded electronically to the FBI, Department of Justice or another authorized agency.

The sheriff’s office also will update the audio and visual equipment in vehicles

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Cherokee County Sheriff Roger Garrison, second from left, shakes hands with new Cherokee Sheriff’s Office Deputy Sarah Sager of Cartersville, while her fellow new deputies, from left, Michael Miller of Acworth, Myrlene Joseph of Atlanta, Lance Olson of Canton and Johnny Richards of Ball Ground sign official paperwork at the agency’s headquarters in Canton. assigned to the warrant division.

Another goal for the year is to update pursuit policy, which could add new offensive tactics that would end pursuits as quickly as possible.

The agency also is adding new equipment to its fleet: a BearCat armored vehicle for use by the SWAT team. The purchase was approved last year by the Board of Commissioners.

Garrison said the past year saw many successes for the agency, including fully putting into use its automated fingerprint identification system, which networks the office’s data with other agencies on a national and state level.

It can match fingerprints against a database of known and unknown fingerprints and identify a person suspected of a crime or link a suspect to other unsolved crimes.

“It has proven to be an invaluable resource as more and more crimes are multijurisdictional,” Garrison said.

Fingerprints now are even more valuable evidence to Cherokee County law enforcement officers.

The sheriff’s office now has automated latent fingerprint comparison capability and is connected to the state and federal Automated Fingerprint Identification System.

This means investigators can tap into state and federal databases from the sheriff’s office headquarters and compare fingerprints gathered from crime scenes and evi-

dence to those already in the system.

The system also will benefit other local and surrounding law enforcement agencies, as they now can bring their latent prints to the sheriff’s office for comparison.

“We are very excited about incorporating this type of technology into our criminal investigations,” Garrison said.

“It will be a definite advantage to our detectives as well as investigators with other agencies that work in this region.”

The new system quickly proved valuable, Public Information Officer Lt. Jay

Baker said. While training on the new equipment last year, investigators were able to positively match a fingerprint on a counterfeit check with a suspect’s fingerprint in the state database, he said.

The second phase of the project allows the sheriff’s office to locally store every fingerprint obtained during the normal course of business.

This upgrade allows searches not only within the state and federal databases, but also against every fingerprint obtained by the sheriff’s office.

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PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 6E

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

Fire: Training facility, education are focus From staff reports

Starting construction of a new training facility is the top priority for Cherokee Fire and Emergency Services this year.

The Cherokee County Board of Commissioners in November approved the purchase of the former Pike Nursery property on Highway 5.

The price tag for the 14.29 acres was $850,000.

“We need it for our (Insurance Services Office) rating,” Chief Ray Gunnin said about the new training facility. “The last time we were rated, if we had that facility, we could have scored lower.”

The Insurance Services Rating is used to rate how well fire departments are serving their area. The scale runs from one to 10, with one being the best fire service and 10 being the least desirable. The ratings are used to calculate homeowners’ insurance costs.

Eddie Robinson, Cherokee Fire-ES division chief of training, said the first objective for the facility is to hire an architect to develop a master site plan. He said the facility will be phased in over a few years with the initial portion being an administrative building with classrooms and an emergency management services laboratory.

The facility ultimately will include a burn building, a multi-floor training tower, an outdoor classroom, a driving course and a rescue pad.

“We want to build an aesthetically pleasing facility,” Robinson said. “We want to make it as environmentally friendly as possible within reasonable costs.”

He said there is no cost estimate for the project right now, adding the facility will be offered for use by other fire departments.

“It will increase our ability to train in a more realistic fashion and also reduce the amount of travel,” Robinson said, adding that firefighters currently travel to a training center in Forsyth.

The agency has also started another paramedic class, which will add 25 more paramedics to the department.

Gunnin said this class, which should be done in the fall, would make one-third of the department trained paramedics.

Among the accomplishments for 2009 Gunnin cited was the opening in February of a new logistics warehouse, allowing the department to have a more centrally located facility for supplies.

T h e 3 0 , 0 0 0 - Ray s q u a r e - f o o t Gunnin warehouse on Univeter Road near Canton was purchased by the county government for $1.5 million, according to Gunnin.

It supplies all of the county’s fire stations with living supplies, uniforms and medical supplies. The building also has an office for Cherokee Area Transportation System and a room for storage of county records.

“The old facility we had was an old station in Holbrook,” Gunnin said. “We

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services Logistics Specialist Gary Shiflett takes inventory of supplies in the general supply stock room at the agency’s new supply warehouse in Canton. were cramped in one corner of the county. Now, it is centrally located.”

Gunnin said another achievement from 2009 was adding a ladder truck, which he said has served the agency very well during the times it has been called into service.

He said the department last year also began working on upgrading the department’s radio system and added thermal imaging cameras at each station.

The Canton and Woodstock Fire Departments are balancing an increase in calls with tightening budgets.

The Woodstock Fire Department responded to 3,605 calls for service in 2009, up from 3,546 in 2008.

Chief Dave Soumas said he thinks the increase can be attributed Dave to the Septem- Soumas ber flooding. The department made 128 rescues and evacuations related to the flooding.

The Canton Fire Department responded to 2,686 calls for help last year, a rise from 2,658 in 2008. Assistant Chief Donnie Arp said the increase can be tied to growth in the city.

Both departments’ operations will be status quo this year because of limited funds.

No new hirings, purchasing of equipment or rolling out new programs will take place in

either department, according to Soumas and Arp. “It’s going to be very challenging,” Soumas said. “We’re just going to keep the equipment we have maintained and running properly.”

To help supplement city government revenues, Soumas said the department has applied for the Staffing for Adequate Fire & Emergency Response grant to hire at least three new employees. The department has 46 employees, the same number it had in 2008 and 2009.

Soumas said one new goal for the year is to bring the department’s fire safety education programs to more schools and day cares.

“We’re trying to come up with ideas that don’t cost money,” he said. Soumas also said he’s proud of his department’s accomplishments in the past year.

Those include: Completing First Aid and CPR training for all city employees; participating in the Ghost Out antidrunk-driving event at Woodstock High School; appointing James Eley as assistant chief and fire marshal; promoting staff from sergeant to lieutenant and from firefighter to sergeant; outfitting a former Ford F-250 truck that wasn’t used by the police department into a fire rescue truck; and developing a Rapid Intervention Team, a group of firefighters that intervenes on calls if firefighters need help.

Soumas said he is most proud of renovating the vehicle, which he said saved taxpayers nearly $100,000.

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Other achievements he noted include the purchase of four self-contained breathing apparatuses and a thermal imaging camera, all of which totaled r o u g h l y $34,000. Arp Donnie Arp said his department is starting a new fiveyear strategic plan, which outlines its vision, mission and values. The department has 23 on its staff, up from 22 last year.

Budget constraints have forced the department to put its plans to build a fire station near Laurel Canyon on hold.

Arp said the department will continue to focus on training.

Firefighters are required to have 240 hours of training

each year, and administrative staff is required to complete 120 hours.

One of the goals for the year is reaching out to more children through its fire prevention program. He said the department also wants to expand the program by taking it into neighborhoods. The goal is to share the program with 2,000 children this year.

Last year, 1,500 children were touched by its fire prevention and severe weather programs.

“We love doing that,” he said of providing fire education to children.

A new chief was appointed last year to lead the Woodstock Fire Department.

Assistant Fire Chief and Fire Marshal Dave Soumas

was selected as the new chief

by City Manager Jeff Moon.

Soumas had served for 11 years as the city’s assistant fire chief.

Soumas succeeds longtime Fire Chief Jerry Smith, who retired after serving as chief for 12 years. Smith was employed by the city government for 24 years.

Lowering the city’s ISO rating from 3 to 2 is one of Soumas’s long-term goals.

The rate is used to determine the cost of homeowners’ insurance, and the lower the rating number the better the fire protection and the lower the insurance cost.

Soumas said he also would like to look for land for a third fire station, possibly along the Highway 92 corridor near Parkway 575.

Another possible location is near the new Rope Mill Road interchange at Interstate 575 that’s in the works, but Soumas added that would depend on growth in the area.

Soumas wants to increase youth involvement and education, and one way will be through the creation of an Explorer Post. The program, which is part of the Boy Scouts organization, allows teens and young adults to learn about careers in fields such as firefighting and also do community service projects.

Also last year, James Eley, a longtime member of the city’s fire department, was tapped to fill the assistant fire chief post after Soumas was promoted to chief.

“He has been with this department for 19 years,” Soumas said of Eley.

“He has played an integral part in building our training and our fire inspection program. I look forward to working with him, as we always continue to strive for excellence in serving the City of Woodstock.”

PROGRESS 2010

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

PAGE 7E

Legislators: Budget, taxes dominate session From staff reports

The economy will dominate the Georgia General Assembly this year, according to Cherokee County’s legislators.

While the state government’s budget will be their main focus, the county’s representatives and senators also are pushing some of their own legislation.

“I don’t think anything is more serious than that,” Sen. Jack Murphy (R-Cumming) said of balancing the budget.

“It is not going to be pretty.

We have to cut $1 billion dollars in addition to the cuts we Jack Murphy have already made. It will be painful.”

Rep. Calvin Hill (R-Hickory Flat) said he expects to see bills pass this session that would stimulate the economy.

“The budget will overshadow everything,” he said.

Hill has his own legislation to push through. He has introduced an amendment to the state Constitution Calvin Hill that would prevent anyone to be forced to participate in a health care system and authorizes people and employers to pay directly for legal health care services without penalty.

Rep. Sean Jerguson (RHolly Springs) is authoring a bill that will stimulate job growth.

“We are trying to reduce state regulation for small businesses,” he said. Sean “Until we Jerguson address the underlying problem of overreaching regulations, we will have a very difficult time recovering.”

Jerguson also is carrying over a bill from last year that would give interior designers the right to design non-load bearing walls.

Senate Majority Leader Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock) has proposed a bill that would overhaul of the property tax a s s e s s m e n t Chip Rogers and appeals process.

“The system is broken and needs to be changed so as to support property owners, not government,” he said, adding he also will be working on education reform.

Murphy is bringing back his Senate bill that will require drivers license tests to be administered in English. He also will be working on bills that revise the state transportation code to require charter companies to show insurance and certification information and to allow assisted-living facilities to have some of the same abilities under Medicare and Medicaid that nursing homes have.

State Rep. Charlice Byrd (R-Woodstock) still is pushing her Government Accountability Act. It would require state

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Cherokee County state legislative delegation members, from left, Senate Majority Leader Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock), Rep. Mark Hamilton (R-Cumming), Rep. Charlice Byrd (R-Woodstock), Rep. Calvin Hill (R-Hickory Flat) and Sen. Jack Murphy (R-Cumming) met with Cherokee County Board of Commissioners members at the Historic Canton High School school board auditorium. agencies to come under review by a legislative committee that would recommend changes or eliminate the agency.

State Rep. Mark Hamil- Charlice Byrd ton (R-Cumming) is bringing back two pieces of legislation this year.

He said he will keep pushing his bill that would create a process for recently annexed property to dean- Mark nex and one Hamilton that would allow electronic absentee voting for military personnel.

Qualifying for state office is still two months away, but the campaign season already is under way for Cherokee County legislators.

All six of Cherokee’s incumbent legislators have announced plans to run for reelection in the July Republican primary.

Candidates for state House and Senate can begin qualifying on April 26 for the July 20 primary election.

So far, only one challenger has announced plans to run: Michael Caldwell of Woodstock, who is seeking the seat held by state Rep. Byrd.

Rep. Byrd said she has “every intention” to qualify for a fourth two-year term and continue her work such as seeing her Government Accountability Act passed.

“I heard through the grapevine that I will finally get a hearing,” she said of the act.

Caldwell, a political newcomer who will be running as a Republican, said he’s “very uneasy” with the idea of incumbents running for reelection without opposition.

“I believe that, as a liberty minded, eligible citizen, it is my responsibility to offer myself up to the district as an alternative,” he said.

Jerguson (R-Holly Springs), who first was elected to the

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“The state and our community still have issues that need to be addressed,” he said. “We still have a lot of unfinished work on” those issues.

Hamilton (R-Cumming), who was elected to his first two-year term in 2006, said he also is running to continue his efforts, noting he recently was named chairman of the government affairs committee.

“I still feel led to work for the people,” he said.

Murphy (R-Cumming) said he is going for another twoyear term because of his desire to help solve the state’s budget crunch.

“After eight years, I’m in a position that I know what to look for and where to look for it,” said Murphy, who was first elected to the state House in 2002 and elected to the Senate in 2006.

Rogers (R-Woodstock) said while he has not made a formal announcement, he does intend to seek another two-year term.

Rogers was elected to the state House in 2002 and the Senate in 2004.

Hill (R-Hickory Flat) also is expected to qualify in May.

Cherokee lawmakers at a glance: Rep. Charlice Byrd Age: 58 Residence: Woodstock Political experience: Elected to the state House in 2004 Political party: Republican Committees: Vice chairwoman of Children and Youth; secretary of Science and Technology; Economic Development and Tourism, Health and Human Services and Judicial Non-Civil Occupation: Retired educator Family: Husband, Mike Byrd District address: P.O. Box 906, Woodstock, Ga. 30188 Capitol address: 411 Coverdell Legislative Building, Atlanta, Ga. 30334 Contact: (404) 557-2218, (404) 656-0126 at the Capitol; charlice.byrd@house.ga.gov

Rep. Mark Hamilton Age: 53 Residence: Cumming Political experience: Elected to the state House in 2006 Political party: Republican Committees: Children and Youth, Government Affairs, Industrial Relations and Transportation Occupation: Owner of H&H Staffing and Applied Wisdom Family: Wife, Sandy; three children and one grandchild District address: 108 Colony Park Drive, Suite 400, Cumming, Ga. 30040 Capitol address: 504 Coverdell Legislative Building, Atlanta, Ga. 30334 Contact: (770) 844-6768, (404) 656-0188 at the Capitol; mark.hamilton@house.ga.gov Rep. Calvin Hill Age: 62 Residence: Hickory Flat Political experience: Elected to the state House in 2002 Political party: Republican Committees: Vice chairman of the Appropriations and Banks and Banking committees; Budget and Fiscal Affairs Oversight, Special Rules and State Institutions and Property Occupation: Retired businessman Family: Wife, Cheryl; six children District address: 145 Mountain Brook Dr., Canton, Ga. 30115 Capitol Address: 613 Coverdell Legislative Building, Atlanta, Ga. 30334

Contact: (770) 712-2879, (678) 493-7257, (404) 6560129 at the Capitol; calvin.hill@house.ga.gov, www.calvinhill.org Rep. Sean Jerguson Age: 37 Residence: Holly Springs Political experience: Elected to the state House in 2006 Political party: Republican Committees: Vice chairman of Regulated Industries; secretary of State Institutions and Property; Health and Human Services, Legislative and Congressional Reapportionment and Game, Fish and Parks Occupation: Businessman Family: Wife, Kate; two children District address: P.M.B. 220 at 2295 Towne Lake Parkway, Woodstock, Ga. 30189 Capitol Address: 607 Coverdell Legislative Building, Atlanta, Ga. 30334 Contact: (770) 401-2490, (404) 656-0287 at the Capitol; sean@electsean.com Sen. Jack Murphy Age: 68 Residence: Cumming Political experience: Elected to state House in 2002 and to the state Senate in 2006 Political party: Republican Committees: Chairman of the Public Safety Committee; vice chairman of the Economic Development Committee; Appropriations, Banking and Financial Institutions, Ethics, Insurance and Labor, Regulated Industries and Utilities, Retirement and Veterans, Mili-

tary and Homeland Security Occupation: Owner of Lanier Athletic Center Family: Wife, Linda; six children and 11 grandchildren District address: 3830 Adams Road, Cumming, Ga. 30041 Capitol address: 304-B Coverdell Legislative Building, Atlanta, Ga. 30334 Contact: (404) 656-7127 at the Capitol; jack.murphy@ senate.ga.gov Sen. Chip Rogers Age: 41 Residence: Woodstock Political party: Republican Political experience: Elected to the state House in 2002 and the state Senate in 2004; serves as Senate Majority Leader Committees: Secretary of the Finance Committee; Administrative Affairs, Committee on Assignments, Banking and Financial Institutions, Economic Development, Insurance and Labor, Reapportionment and Redistricting, Appropriations and Rules Occupation: Owner of Rogers Communications and Rogers Realty Family: Wife, Amy; four children District address: P.O. Box 813, Woodstock, Ga. 30188 Capitol address: 236 State Capitol, Atlanta, Ga. 30334 Contact: (404) 463-1378 at the Capitol; chiprogers21@comcast.net, chip.rogers@senate.ga.gov

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PROGRESS 2010

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

PROGRESS 2010

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

PAGE 9E

Development: Authority targets job growth From staff reports

The Development Authority of Cherokee County this year is focused on job creation efforts.

This year, one of the agency’s is beginning its white collar strategy, which was developed to attract more jobs to the county.

Development of the strategy started last year with the help of Del Boyette of Boyette Levy economic development consultants. The strategy includes identifying the types of white-collar jobs the county wants and attracting companies that offer those positions.

Authority Executive Director Misti Martin said the goal is to bring in companies that will hire local residents and reduce the number of Misti Martin people commuting out of the county for work.

An early step in the process is a possible name change for the authority. One name that has been suggested is the Cherokee Business Development Office.

“Hopefully, that will come about this year,” Mrs. Martin said about the name change.

“It will tweak the way we market ourselves.”

A big accomplishment for the authority in 2009, according to board members, was acquiring about 55 acres off Highway 92 in southwest Cherokee County for the site of a future business park.

Mrs. Martin said the project is now in the preliminary layout design phase. A timeline for construction has not yet been set.

“We want to see if we can turn it loose and let people see it,” board member Skip Spears of Canton, co-owner of Bagwell & Spears, said about attracting businesses to the new park.

Board member Robert Logan of Canton said developing the Highway 92 park is a top goal for the year.

“Our bottom line goal is to bring new jobs and improve the tax base,” said Logan, a retired Georgia Power executive.

The authority isn’t done searching for more property to house new employers.

“We will continue to look at opportunities to expand,” said authority Vice Chairman Steve Holcomb of Ball G r o u n d , C h e r o k e e Steve president for Holcomb United Community Bank. “We are looking in high-traffic areas. Land value is depressed right now.”

Mrs. Martin said another accomplishment for 2009 was the announcement by ProCom, which manufactures gas space heaters, gas fireplace systems and gas log sets, that it would relocate its Georgia operations to the Canton-Cherokee Business and Industrial Park.

The company is renovating the 84,000-square-foot site in Canton to meet its needs, and will continue to operate at its Smyrna plant through the winter, Mrs. Martin said. ProCom will start out with 20 employees in Canton, but has the potential to grow to 60 to 75 employees.

Cherokee County has earned national recognition for its job growth so far this decade.

Cherokee was ranked 16th in a CNNMoney.com story charting the 25 counties in the United States that have seen the most new jobs generated over the last eight years.

The county experienced job growth of more than 52

percent between the years 2000 and 2008, according to the news Web site. The article notes Cherokee’s proximity to Atlanta, good schools, low taxes and plentiful greenspace as reasons why families from around the state are coming to the county.

Buzz Ahrens, chairman of the county Board of Commissioners, said the mention was like a “feather in our cap.”

“It is excellent PR material,” he said about the publicity the article has created.

“This is really positive news.”

Ahrens said the county government is working on a few projects to attract even more jobs. One is the whitecollar initiative, which was launched to generate interest in Cherokee among businesses that employ salaried workers in professional, managerial, administrative or sales-ori-

ented positions.

Another is the expansion of the Cherokee County Regional Airport south of Ball Ground and the planned construction of a regional hospital by Northside Hospital adjacent to the new Canton Marketplace development.

Mrs. Martin said job growth in the county has been a “mixed-bag,” coming across all sectors of the economy during the period of time covered by CNN Money.com.

She specifically mentioned growth in existing industries and small businesses as well as the construction industry. Two of the county’s largest industrial employers, Pilgrim’s Pride in Canton (850 employees) and Meyn America/Hill Parts in Ball Ground (280 employ-

ees), are involved with poultry processing.

Mrs. Martin said she has received congratulations on making the list from several colleagues in the economic development field.

“This is added exposure for our community. It is something that people have taken notice of,” she said, adding the news is being seen by brokers and statewide project managers.

“For businesses that read this, it helps put us on the top of their mind,” she said.

“You can’t pay for that kind of publicity.”

Cherokee County’s unemployment rate held at 9 percent in December, according to the Georgia Department of Labor. The rate was 6.9 per-

cent in December 2008.

Cherokee’s labor force dropped slightly, falling from 106,786 in November to 106,295 in December. The number of employed people also saw a small drop, slipping from 97,763 in November to 96,687 in December.

Cherokee was tied with Gwinnett County for the second lowest unemployment rate in the region.

Jey Willis, a member of the Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, said he is optimistic about an improvement in the local rate.

“Once spring comes around, I think we will see more activity,” said Willis, a State Farm insurance agent in Canton, adding that construction plays a big part in local employment. “That is what I am hoping for.”

PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 10E

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

Health care: Growing to meet demand From staff reports

Two major health care companies are seeing growth in the number of patients they are serving in Cherokee County.

Northside Hospital-Cherokee saw 89,100 patients during its 2009 fiscal year, which ran from Oct. 1, 2008, to Sept. 30, 2009.

Those numbers increased from about 87,000 in fiscal year 2008, said Russ Davis, director of marketing and public relations for Northside Hospital.

While Davis would not disclose year-to-year patient totals by specific services, he did say increases occurred across the board.

“We have seen growth in most all major clinical service areas from 2008-2009,” he said.

WellStar’s Urgent Care facility in Towne Lake served 12,985 patients in 2009, an increase from 11,293 in 2008.

Keith Bowermaster, marketing and public relations director for WellStar, said growth in the county’s population is a factor in the influx of patients.

The WellStar Kennestone at Towne Lake Medical Imaging Center also saw gains to 15,460 patients in 2009 up from the 14,811 the previous year, manager Kimberly Hartley said.

The center in 2009 completed 2,305 computerized tomography scans up from 1,774 the previous year, 1,144 magnetic resonance imaging scans up from 727 and 5,409 mammograms up from 5,360.

In 2010, Northside will focus on new facilities to serve its growing patient base in Cherokee County.

The Northside-Holly Springs Medical Office Building opened this month.

“This is what we need to do to take care of the growing medical needs of Cherokee County,” NH-C

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Certified Surgery Assistant Casey Bullard, right, of Georgia Urology uses a da Vinci Surgical System robot to assist with a prostatectomy on William Hutchison, 66, of Jasper at Northside Hospital-Cherokee in Canton. Northside Hospital now leads the state in the number of robotic surgeries performed each year.

CEO Billy Hayes said of the new facility.

The 75,000square-foot medical office building sits on seven acres on Sixes Road at Inter- Billy Hayes state 575 exit 11.

Housed at the facility will be a full-service imaging center, an urgent care physicians group, an obstetrician and gynecology practice, urology specialists, open radiology, and family and internal medicine physicians.

The building, he said, will be leased with equity ownership and “It’s filling up nicely.” He said the entire building could be filled by mid-year.

“We are very pleased with the outcome of the medical office building and think it will be a major medical asset to the community in the days and years ahead,” Davis said.

Northside is also finalizing the master site plan for a 140,000squre-foot hospital to be built at the Canton Marketplace development on Highway 20 at I-575 exit 19 to

replace the current facility on Hospital Road in Canton.

The new hospital will include 120 to 150 beds in the first phase, expanding to 350 beds over a 15year build-out.

The current location in Canton has 84 beds.

Plans are on hold for construction of Northside’s 40,000-squarefoot medical office building adjacent to the new Kroger shopping center on Hickory Flat Highway.

Also in 2010, Davis said Northside will look at possibly making additional changes to the Canton

hospital’s emergency room “for growth opportunities.”

A sleep lab that will match the Atlanta hospital’s facility will begin operating in March at the Canton hospital. The sleep lab will perform studies, readings and interpretations.

Looking back, Davis said 2009 was an innovative year for Northside.

The company expanded the surgical capacity at the Canton hospital by increasing the number of rooms from four to six. Bariatric and robotic surgeries both have increased at the hospital.

“It’s allowed us to provide more care,” he said of the expansion.

The hospital employs 700 people, making it one of the largest employers in the county.

Northside’s positron emissions tomography/computerized tomography mobile unit shared by the Canton and Forsyth hospital’s has become an important tool for those diagnosed with cancer in the county.

“It’s been well-received,” he said. The mobile unit is at the Canton hospital once a week to perform cancer checks.

At WellStar’s Imaging Center, Ms. Hartley said a new high-field open MRI scanner and a new Toshiba 16-slice CT scanner were added to the facility in 2009.

The 10-employee center also extended its hours for mammography and MRI services to keep up with demand. “They’re doing really well,” she said of both services.

The center hours are from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesdays through Fridays, 8 a.m. to noon on Saturdays and on Mondays, the center opens at 7:30 a.m. and stays open until 8 p.m. for MRIs and mammograms.

For 2010, Ms. Hartley said she would like to see the center further extend its hours to stay open later on Saturdays.

Retail: Canton Marketplace sees strong season From staff reports

Mike Evans of Canton did not mind the long line to shop at Best Buy’s “sneak peek” event.

Evans was one of hundreds of people to show up for the chance to shop at the grand opening last year of one of the first stores to open at the new Canton Marketplace shopping center.

The 800,000-square-foot center is on Highway 20/Cumming Highway at Interstate 575 exit 19.

The electronics store was open for a couple of hours the night before its official grand opening the next morning.

“This is great. The closest one is in Kennesaw and I buy a lot from Best Buy,” he said.

“Plus, it is going to help out the economy.”

The Best Buy electronics store at its grand opening welcomed its first shoppers with $20 gift cards, special coupons, a ribbon-cutting ceremony and hefty donations to charities.

In addition to Best Buy, early stores to open in the center included Lowe’s home improvement store, Taco Mac restaurant and Canton Jewelry.

Following Best Buy, Kohl’s department store, SuperTarget, Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, Visionworks and TJ Maxx opened.

Other stores and restaurants in the center opened over the course of 2009.

They include: American Body Works fitness center,

Angela and Brian Mensonides of Canton shop for Cinderella toys and dress-up gear with their daughter, Ashley, 2, at the SuperTarget store in the new Canton Marketplace shopping center.

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Barker & Jackson Master Barbers, Bed Bath & Beyond, Books-A-Million, Cheeseburger Bobby’s, Chick-fil-A, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Famous Hair salon, GameStop, International House of Pancakes, Kirkland’s, La Parilla, Mattress Firm, OfficeMax, Olive Garden, PetSmart, Rack Room Shoes, Rue 21 clothing store, Serenity Nails, Subway, SunTrust Bank and Ulta Cosmetics beauty store.

Canton Marketplace quickly lived up to its promise to be

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Alma Cash, 52, of Holly Springs was eager to check out the new shopping center its

first week, as it means she no longer will need to drive to Cobb County as often.

“Traffic is so bad down there,” she said. “You have to really want it to go down there.”

Andy Summers, general manager of the Best Buy, said 700 people came through the

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“There hasn’t been anything new at RiverStone for 10 years,” he said, referring to Canton’s major retail corridor.

“This is a shot in the arm for Canton.”

Tim Henderson, managing partner of Taco Mac, said

there was a more than a twohour wait for a table on its opening night.

“Every other table are people so happy that we are here,” he said.

Troy Van Every, sales manager for Lowe’s, said he also was happy with the turnout for the store’s “soft” opening.

“What I keep hearing from customers is that they are happy to have Lowe’s here. They are also excited about having the whole center,” he said. “It is almost like a mall for them. They are pumped to have everything close together. It is the convenience factor.”

James Johnston, a retired insurance executive from Canton, showed up to shop at the new Lowe’s the first week.

“This whole center is good,” he said. “I’m glad that it is providing jobs.”

Along with new revenue for the city, the shopping center created 1,200 jobs, according to Nick Gold of Gold Concepts Public Relations, spokesman for The Sembler Co., which developed the center.

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PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 11E

PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 12E

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

Business: Growth slowed but steady From staff reports

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce 2009 Chairman Nathan Brandon of Canton, left, passes the gavel to incoming 2010 Chairman Mark Goddard of Canton during the organization’s annual meeting at the Northside Hospital-Cherokee Conference Center.

Chamber: Going green in 2010 From staff reports

The Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce’s new board chairman will be pushing environmental and mentoring programs during his year in the office.

Mark Goddard of Cobb EMC took the gavel from outgoing Chairman Nathan Brandon of Cameron Hall at the chamber’s annual meeting in January at the Northside Hospital-Cherokee Conference Center.

Goddard said he was “encouraged and excited” about the opportunity to lead the chamber in 2010.

“I was learning under Nathan, who led us through a great year,” said Goddard, 36, of Canton, who has been involved with the chamber for 10 years. “It gave me great experience, and I’m looking forward to a great year.”

A commercial and industrial account manager for Cobb Mark EMC, Goddard graduated from Goddard Kennesaw State University with degrees in marketing and professional sales. In addition to volunteering with the chamber, he is also a member of the WellStar Foundation Board of Trustees and the Marietta Metro Rotary Club and is a graduate of Leadership Cherokee.

He and his wife, Jennifer, have two children and attend Bascomb United Methodist Church in Woodstock.

Goddard said one priority of the chamber this year is to form a full-fledged Going Green committee. The chamber created a task force last year in preparation for this expansion.

The committee will encourage and recognize local companies for accomplishments in conservation.

“It is a good image that you are doing things less wasteful,” he said. “It is attractive to new customers. It is good financially and for goodwill.”

Goddard said he also plans to increase the marketing for the chamber’s Resource Services from Valuable Professionals program, which offers free consultations for small business owners.

“It is a valuable resource for people who want to start a business and also want to grow their business,” he said.

Goddard said his other goals include expanding the Partners in Education program that matches businesses with schools they can assist; and working more closely with the Development Authority of Cherokee County to recruit new businesses.

During his tenure as chairman, Brandon said he was Nathan pleased the chamber exceeded Brandon its goal of adding 175 new members by recruiting 178.

“I’m most excited about the new business starts,” he said.

The chamber conducted 73 ribbon-cuttings in 2009, up from 63 in 2008.

Brandon said he and the chamber board entered 2009 with “a little anxiety” because of the uncertainties of the economy, but were happy to help so many new businesses open.

“There is a general momentum that the chamber had built up that was conducive to people starting a new business,” said Brandon, of Canton, who remains active with the chamber as the chairman of the finance committee.

Goddard said chamber goals could not be accomplished without a “tremendous amount of volunteers.”

The 2010 executive committee is made up of Goddard, Brandon, Chairman-elect Ben Looper of Southeast Restoration Group; Vice Chairwoman of Community Relations Karen Lance of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers; Vice Chairman of Small Businesses and Economic Development William Anderson of Atlanta Gas Light; and Vice Chairman of Chamber Services Randy Gravley of WLJA 101.1 FM. The new board members are: Renee Cavan of Wachovia Wells Fargo; Earl Darby of Darby Huey Funeral Home; Phil Eberly of WK Dickson & Co.; Tom Heard of the Cherokee County Water and Sewerage Authority; Mike Owen of Lusk Construction; David Simmons of Chattahoochee Technical College; and John West of Express Impressions.

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Business activity in Cherokee County slowed slightly in 2009, but local leaders are optimistic about seeing numbers rise this year.

Local government offices issued 135 new business licenses in December, an increase from 109 in November, but down from 138 issued in December of 2008.

There were 1,991 new licenses approved throughout the county last year, a little off the pace from the previous year. In 2008, 2,026 new licenses were granted.

“Maybe people were wanting to get a jump start on the new year,” Karen Lance, a member of the Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce board of directors, said about the growth from November to December.

A real estate agent with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, Mrs. Lance said she is upbeat about Cherokee’s business opportunities this year.

“Everybody keeps saying 2010 will be the year,” she said. “It will be a slow process, but we are hoping that 2010 will be the year Karen Lance that we get back and get businesses opening again.”

Nathan Brandon, immediate past chairman of the chamber of commerce, said other indicators are showing signs that the economy is slowly recovering.

“There is a general sense of optimism, even though we know it is not going to be quick,” said the director of Cameron Hall assisted living center.

The county business license office issued 102 new licenses in December, up from 55 in November and 94 in December 2008.

The county office granted 1,282 licenses last year, down from 1,383 in 2008.

Holly Springs issued seven new licenses in December, down from 10 in November and 11 in December of 2008. The city approved 110 licenses last year, up from 104 in 2008.

Woodstock granted 17 new business licenses in December, a decrease from 31 in November and 24 in December 2008.

The city issued 353 licenses last year, a jump from 336 in 2008.

Canton issued nine new business licenses in December, a climb down from 13 in November but equal to the number issued in December 2008. There were 218 new licenses approved in the city last year, an increase from 164 in 2008.

Ball Ground did receive any new business license requests in December. It also issued none in November or December 2008. The city granted 26 new business licenses last year, down from 39 in 2008.

Waleska and Nelson both had no new business license requests in December.

Waleska issued two new licenses in 2009, an increase from none in 2008. Nelson did not approve any new business licenses in the county last year or in 2008.

Business activity in Cherokee County was running just behind last year’s pace one month into 2010.

Local governments issued 170 new business licenses in January, as compared to 176 in January 2009.

Ben Looper, chairmanelect of the Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce, said activity could be Ben Looper slowed some by talk of budget cuts at the state level, creating an atmosphere of uneasiness.

“When money was more plentiful, banks were more willing to lend money,” said Looper, owner of Southeast Restoration Group in Holly Springs, adding the state of Georgia’s budget is leading to a “general feeling of concern.”

The number of licenses in January did jump from 135 Pam Carnes issued in December, which chamber President Pam Carnes sees as “phenomenal.”

“It shows optimism and potential for the year,” she said. “It is Cherokee’s way of fighting back against a tough economy.”

The county business license office, which serves unincorporated Cherokee, approved 117 new licenses in January, up from 102 in December, but down slightly from 121 in January of last year.

Holly Springs filled 14 new license requests in January, up from seven in December and 10 in January of last year.

The Woodstock city government issued 26 new licenses in January, an increase from 17 in December and equal to the number in January 2009.

Canton approved nine new licenses in January, equal to the total in December, but down from 16 in January 2009.

Ball Ground issued four licenses in January, up from none in December and three in January of last year.

The cities of Waleska and Nelson did not issue any licenses in January or in December or January 2009.

PROGRESS 2010

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

Shelter: Renovations done From staff reports

The Cherokee County Animal Shelter is showing off its new look.

The shelter, which was closed for a month for renovations, celebrated its grand re-opening in January.

Changes to the facility on Univeter Road near Canton include new epoxy floors in the shelter and intake buildings that replace the old tile.

“It resists bacterial and mold buildup. It doesn’t absorb any dirt or disease,” Executive Director Sue Garcia said of the epoxy floors.

“It makes for a safer, cleaner environment.”

She said she hopes to install new flooring in the dog kennels in the future.

Other improvements include new paint and a remodeled surgery room that brings all necessary surgical material into one unit.

The Cherokee County Board of Commissioners in November approved a $1,596 agreement with Cherokee Floor Covering to remove the old flooring and an $18,264 contract with Mc’s Painting and Decorating to install the new floors.

Other goals for the shelter, she said, are to increase adoptions through a new program in development.

The Lucky Dog program, which would also include cats, will allow people from the community to sponsor an animal who has been at the shelter for a long time.

The sponsorship would cover the adoption fee for the animal, so it could then be adopted out for free. Usually, adoptions are $75 for dogs or cats.

“People who are adopting tend to want younger puppies,” she said about the need to help older animals get adopted.

She hopes to get the program running by March.

The shelter adopted out 1,245 animals last year, down slightly from 1,256 in 2008.

The shelter took in 6,415 animals last year, an increase from 6,247 in 2008.

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Carol Mudd of Sutallee, a volunteer at Cherokee County Animal Shelter, walks with a dog in the newly renovated hallway at the shelter of Univeter Road near Canton. The shelter was renovated in late 2009, and improvements included new flooring and paint and a remodeled surgery room.

The shelter had to euthanize 3,701 animals last year, up from 3,602 in 2008.

There were 869 animals rescued from the shelter last year by local organizations, an increase from 841 in 2008.

Ms. Garcia said this year she also wants to expand Shelter Friends, a volunteer program that trains the dogs at the shelter.

“They help increase the

mental health of the animals and decrease the stay of dogs by six months,” she said of volunteers who train the animals.

Volunteer Carol Mudd of Sutallee, who helped develop the program, said about nine volunteers come by the shelter every week to train dogs.

“We would love some additional support,” she said.

“Our goal would be to have several people here each day.

Water: Upgrades on the way From staff reports

The Cherokee County Water and Sewerage Authority will replace lines and upgrade facilities in the coming year.

No major projects are planned for 2010 as a result of a tighter budget, but improvements to better the system’s efficiency have been identified.

“We are trying to just maintain and keep our infrastructure in good stead,” authority Board Chairman Gary Winchester said.

The authority added 468 water customers in 2009, bringing the total number of water connections to 63,928. It added 360 sewer customers, bringing the total to 26,374.

The 2010 budget calls for $43.4 million in revenues and $43.19 million in expenditures.

The 2009 budget was approved at $45 million for revenues and $42.5 million for expenditures.

Winchester said one bigger project the authority will take on is the replacement of water lines in the Mountain Park area of southeast Cherokee.

“In that section of the county, the pipes are old. We are trying to be proactive where we can,” Winchester said about the planned line replacement. “We just want to make sure we are keeping the system at the level it needs to be.”

Authority General Manager Tom Heard said the new lines will also improve the fire flow in the area. “Those lines are reaching their life expectancy,” Heard said.

Work on the $134,900 project could be completed by June.

Heard said Tom Heard the authority also will be “rehabbing” some of its facilities this year.

Installation of new landscaping is under way at the Fitzgerald Creek wastewater treatment plant in southeast Cherokee. The authority also will perform electrical and computer updates at its Rose Creek wastewater treatment

plant in Towne Lake this year.

The authority also will be replacing some water lines on Highway 20/Cumming Highway at various locations in east Cherokee from Scott Road to Highway 369.

This work is in conjunction

with climbing lane construction by the Georgia Department of Transportation.

Heard said the authority’s biggest accomplishment for last year was staying within budget without having to lay off any employees.

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PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 14E

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

Roads: Construction projects countywide From staff reports

Roadwork will be plentiful in Cherokee County this year as local governments take on projects to improve the commute for residents.

One major project is the reconstruction of a bridge in northern Cherokee. The new bridge on Howell Bridge Road over Sharp Mountain Creek is expected to be complete by the end of the year, according to Geoff Morton, director of public works for the county government.

“It is just an outdated bridge,” he said. “The existing structure is not something that could be improved.”

The project, which is being done in conjunction with the state Department of Transportation, costs $2.3 million.

Drivers will also soon see improvements to Wade Green Road in southwest Cherokee. Geoff Morton Work should start in March on the county government project. The work includes the installation of stamped color concrete median and sidewalk paving, median landscaping and lighting on both sides of the road. The cost of the project is $430,000.

Also in the works is construction of a connector road between Hunt and Priest roads in southwest Cherokee. The $2.1 million project by the county government will go to bid in March.

The City of Woodstock this year is working on a Haney Road roundabout, which is currently out for bid. The estimate for the project is $450,000.

“The city determined it would be better for traffic flow,” Woodstock City Manager Jeff Moon said of the traffic-controlling roundabout.

Woodstock leaders also are looking forward to the start of the Rope Mill Road interchange project at Interstate 575, the construction contract for which Moon said would be awarded in March. The total cost of the project is $26.7 million.

The City of Holly Springs will start a project later this year to thermostripe Hickory Road to the city limits. The project

will make the lines on the street reflective and easier to see at night. The project is about $8,000.

“When the traffic lanes are hard to see, it is hard to stay in the lane,” Holly Springs City Manager Robbie Rokovitz said.

Ball Ground City Manager Eric Wilmarth said he will recommend the city council fund some resurfacing projects: one on a stretch of Valley Street and another stretch on Depot Street. Wilmarth said the roads are due for maintenance work.

Canton Mayor Gene Hobgood said he hopes the city will be hanging a red light on Highway 20 at its intersection with the entrances for the Governor’s Walk neighborhood and Canton Marketplace development.

He also said the city this year should see traffic light resignalization on Highway 5 from Highway 140/Reinhardt College Parkway to the Canton Mill Loft Apartments.

The state DOT will be finishing up some projects in Cherokee this year already in progress.

A $1.7 million project to resurface eight miles of Highway 140/Hickory Flat Highway from I-575 to the Fulton County line is expected to be complete by the end of next month.

A $1.1 million resurfacing project on Highway 372 from Highway 369 to Highway 5 in east Cherokee is expected to be done by the end of April.

Mohamed Arafa, a spokesman for the DOT, said work on a project to install a continuous turn lane on Highway 140 from Arnold Mill Road to Mountain Road in southeast Cherokee is “just about complete.”

Scheduled to go to bid later this year by the DOT is a $615,000 intersection improvement project at Marietta Road and Highway 140/Hickory Flat Highway in Canton and a $20.9 million project for passing lanes on Cumming Highway/Highway 20 in east Cherokee from Union Hill Road to Greenwood Court.

Local road improvements made in the past year include the rehabilitation of the Little River bridge on Highway 5, improvements to the intersection at Arnold Mill Road and Mill Creek Road and a turn lane at Wigley Road in Woodstock.

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Construction on the Howell Bridge Road Bridge in Ball Ground continues. The $2.3 million new bridge over Sharp Mountain Creek is one of the major road projects planned in Cherokee County this year.

Reversible lanes to make interstate commuting easier From staff reports

Commuting through Cherokee and Cobb counties may become less stressful by 2013.

To relieve traffic congestion, the Georgia Department of Transportation plans to add reversible lanes on sections of interstates in both counties.

If the lanes become reality, which is expected, construction could start next summer and take three years to complete, said Earl Mahfuz, Public Private Partnership program director for the GDOT. The reversible lanes planned for Interstates 75, 575, 285 and 20 would mitigate rush-hour traffic by changing direction to meet demand.

Drivers will be able to merge onto the lanes at limited access points along the interstate. When

lanes change directions, access points to enter the lanes in the opposite direction would be barricaded. The lanes would be high-occupancy vehicle/high-occupancy toll, and riders would be required to place a small scanner in the upper corners of their windshields. Sensors would be set up to track the mileage of the cars riding in the new lanes.

Cars with three or more passengers would turn the scanners off and ride in the lanes free of charge. Those with fewer than three would turn the scanners on and be charged a fee per mile, which would be displayed at the access points so drivers can know ahead of time what they will be charged.

The GDOT is looking at two separate projects. The first, which is expected to cost about $1.1 billion, would create two reversible

HOV/HOT lanes in between the existing north and south lanes on I-75 between I-285 and I575. Once the new lanes reach I-575, they split.

One lane is proposed to continue up I-75 to Hickory Grove Road near Acworth and another would continue up I-575 to exit 11 at Sixes Road in Cherokee. Access points are proposed along I-75 at Terrell Mill Road, Roswell Road, the Big Shanty Connector and Hickory Grove Road.

Points along I-575 are proposed at Big Shanty Road, Shallowford Road, Dupree Road and Sixes Road.

Since the lanes are reversible, Olens said they will open to cars driving south in the mornings and to those traveling north in the afternoons.

Mahfuz said traffic issues during construction will be minimal to nonexistent as they are being constructed in between the existing north and

south lanes.

The second project, expected to cost $900 million, will add lanes along I-285 and I-20.

They are planned to be constructed almost simultaneously with the I-75 and I-575 project.

The second project includes two reversible lanes along I-285 between I-75 North and I-20 West and along I-20 West between I-285 and Highway 6. Access points are proposed along I285 at Cumberland Boulevard, Mt. Wilkinson Parkway, Orchard Road and south of Bolton Road, while points along I-20 West are proposed at the Chattahoochee River, Factory Shoals Road and Highway 6.

A similar project along Georgia 400 also is being considered by the GDOT, Mahfuz said.

“The idea is to connect all the dots,” Mahfuz said.

PROGRESS 2010

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

PAGE 15E

Public schools: Test scores stay high From staff reports

Scores for Cherokee County School District third-, fifth-, and eighth-graders in reading and writing improved.

Last school year’s Georgia Criterion Referenced Competency Test scores released in May showed gains in fifth- and eighth-grade math scores, which took a dive the previous school year.

The statewide test is administered every spring to all students in the first through eighth grades.

The results for third-, fifth- and eighth-graders on the reading and math sections are used to help determine whether students should be promoted.

Students who did not pass a portion receive remediation and are retested during the last week of school.

Of the 3,163 third-grade students who took the reading portion, 95 percent passed, the same as the previous school year.

Also like the previous school year, 93 percent of the 2,881 fifth-graders who took the reading test passed.

Eighty-eight percent of fifth-graders tested in math passed, which is seven points higher than the previous school year’s 81 percent.

Of the 2,711 eighth-grade students who were tested, 97 percent passed reading, up from 95 percent, and 83 percent passed math, 10 points higher than the previous school year’s numbers.

District officials welcomed the news about the rise in its scores.

“I’m really happy with those scores,” county Superintendent of Schools Dr. Frank Petruzielo said.

Petruzielo noted he is especially pleased Frank with the performance of the district’s Title I Petruzielo schools, which have a higher percentage of students receiving free or reduced lunch.

“I was blown away by how much improvement there’s been with our kids that live below the poverty level,” he said.

“A lot of people are doing some things right.”

Of the 67 third-graders at R.M. Moore Elementary in Waleska, a Title 1 school, 99 percent passed reading. The previous school year, of its 81 students, 95 percent passed.

For fifth-grade math, 85 percent of the 74 students passed, as compared to 61 percent for the 76 students the previous school year.

Principal Keith Bryant said his teachers revised the schedules to give fifth-graders an 80-minute math period.

“Our teachers and students have worked hard this year … and it’s paid off,” he said.

The passage rate for fifth-grade reading did decline slightly to 93 percent from 97 percent.

The principal of Teasley Middle, which is considered Title I this school year, applauded his school’s success.

This year, out of 463 eighth-graders, 68 percent passed the math exam, up from the previous year’s 58 percent for 418 students. The passage rate for reading increased to 93 percent from the previous school year’s 90.

“Even though we know that there is still room for improvement, the (Teasley) test scores… show an increase over” the previous school year, Hill said.

Gwen Lince, principal of Canton Elementary, a Title I school in its first year last school year, said she was

impressed by their debut results.

“Our teachers have worked diligently this year, and I’m so proud of them,” she said.

Out of 108 third-graders there, 93 percent passed reading and out of 86 fifth-graders, 81 percent passed math.

Ms. Lince said it’s usually difficult opening new schools and merging different staff members, but Canton Elementary overcame those obstacles.

“I think we’ve had a good beginning … but we have to continue working hard,” she said of plans for next school year.

Out of 342 eighth-graders tested at Freedom Middle School in Canton, 99 percent of students passed the reading portion and 95 percent passed math. The previous school year at Freedom, out of 327 eighth-graders, 98 percent passed reading and 84 percent passed math.

“I have to give credit to the teachers,” Freedom Principal Karen Hawley. “They worked hard with them.”

Ms. Hawley said her teachers offered tutoring sessions for students during school breaks to prepare them for the new, more rigorous Georgia Performance Standards-based exam.

Creekland Middle Principal Dr. Deborah Wiseman said her school is “celebrating” the “significant and phenomenal” gains they saw over the previous school year.

Of the 446 eighth-graders enrolled, 98 percent passed reading and 90 percent passed math.

The previous school year, out of 409 eighth-graders, 96 percent passed the reading and 74 percent passed the math.

She said her teachers and staff “want to maintain those good scores as well,” so they will continue to look at the data and see where students can improve.

For district first-grade students, 95 percent met or exceeded standards in reading, 91 percent in language arts and 91 percent in math.

For second grade students, 96 percent met or exceeded standards in reading, 93 percent met or exceeded standards in language arts and 93 percent met or exceeded standards in math.

Ninety-six percent of district third graders met or exceeded standards for reading, 94 percent met or exceeded standards for language arts, 88 percent met or exceeded standards for math, 90 percent met or exceeded standards for science and 88 percent met or exceeded standards for social studies.

The district’s fourth-grade students also performed well.

Ninety-four percent met or exceeded reading standards, 93 percent met or exceeded language arts standards, 83 percent met or exceeded math standards, 89 percent met or exceeded science standards and 84 percent met or exceeded social studies standards.

For district fifth-grade students, 92 percent met or exceeded standards for reading, 95 percent met or exceeded language arts standards, 88 percent met or exceeded math standards, 85 met or exceeded science standards and 83 percent met or exceeded social studies standards.

Ninety-five percent of the district’s sixth-grade students met or exceeded reading standards, 94 percent met or exceeded language arts standards, 87 percent met or exceeded math standards and 82 percent met or exceeded science standards.

For district seventh-grade students, 95 percent met or exceeded reading standards, 95 percent met or exceeded language arts standards, 93 percent met or exceeded math standards and 87 percent met or exceeded science standards.

Ninety-seven percent of the district’s eighth-grade stu-

dents met or exceeded the reading standards, 95 percent met or exceeded language arts standards, 83 met or exceeded math and science standards and 78 met or exceeded social studies standards.

Cherokee County School District SAT scores dipped slightly for the last school year, but still remained ahead of state and national averages.

Results released in August showed the district had an overall average score of 1560, a decline from the previous year’s 1578.

Last school year, 983 seniors took the exam, which is 20 percent less than the 1185 students who took the exam the previous year.

The district’s overall average remains higher than the state’s average of 1460 and the national average of 1509.

“We’re always excited when we are well above the state,” said Dr. Susan Padgett-Harrison, district director of student assessment.

Dr. Padgett-Harrison said the 18-point decrease “was not statistically significant,” noting the decline in the number of students taking the exam could have played a role.

In its report on the SAT scores, the school Susan district notes the economic recession could Padgetthave impacted student participation rates at Harrison the local, state and national levels. Students must pay $45 every time they take the exam.

Creekview High School earned the highest average of the county’s five traditional high schools.

The school’s first graduating class averaged 1,588, with scores of 540 in math, 529 in reading and 519 in writing.

Principal Bob Eddy said he was pleased his first graduating class performed so well.

“Obviously, we are excited about those results with our first senior class,” he said. “The kids worked hard, and the teachers worked hard.”

Eddy said Creekview’s SAT preparation classes as well as daily instruction helped his students perform well on the three-part exam.

However, in fairness to other schools that saw slight decreases, Eddy noted a different set of students take the exam each year, and the SAT is the “hardest to track and get a handle on.”

“We all do what we can to prepare (students) academically,” Eddy said of district principals and teachers.

Sequoyah High School saw its average increase to 1,572 from 1,565, with reading jumping to 525 from 519 and writing to 518 from 511, but math dipping to 529 from 535.

Cherokee High School’s average dropped to 1,527 from 1,537, with scores up in math to 523 from 520, but down in reading to 512 from 520 and in writing to 492 from 497.

Etowah High School’s overall average also decreased to 1,548 from 1,623, with reading declining to 514 from 543, math dropping to 532 from 557 and writing dipping to 502 from 523.

Woodstock High School’s average dropped slightly as well to 1,573 from 1,582. The school’s reading score remained at 524, but math dropped to 531 from 537 and writing to 518 from 521.

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PAGE 16E

PROGRESS 2010

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

PROGRESS 2010

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

PAGE 17E

Public schools: New facilities opening From staff reports

Another new school filled with innovative technology and security opened for Cherokee County students when classes started in August.

The 187,000-square-foot Mill Creek Middle School on Arnold Mill Road in southeast Cherokee has a similar design to that of Creekland Middle School.

The county school board in October 2007 unanimously approved a $32 million contract proposal from Gilbane Building Company to build the new school at Arnold Mill and Mill Creek Roads in southeast Cherokee. Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax revenues are used to fund new school construction.

The school is designed to hold 1,225 students. The twostory building houses 74 instructional units, a nurse’s station, barrier-free bathrooms, a ticketing and concessions area for school events, a cafetorium, girls’ and boys’ locker rooms, a gymnasium, and band and chorus rooms.

Mill Creek’s colors of garnet and gold and the Wildcat mascot are featured throughout.

The school has a total of four computer labs with 28 computers in each; two business computer labs for business-related classes; security cameras placed strategically throughout the building; 11 science labs; a family living center for special needs students equipped with a sink, stove, washer, dryer, refrigerator and microwave; and a family and consumer science room with 14 computers.

Inside each classroom are five computers, an LCD projector, a laptop docking station for teachers and a SMART board.

The school’s media center is equipped with 12 computers, a SMARTboard with a LCD projector attached to the ceiling and is equipped with MediaCAST, an on-demand learning platform. MediaCAST centralizes media storage and distribution. It places digital content on school servers and allows teachers to access videos and other instructional lessons through laptop computers in their classrooms. A projector is used to display the information on a screen in the classroom so students can view it.

The system allows for ondemand media retrieval, ondemand digital TV channels and viewing morning announcements.

Operations are computercontrolled with mechanical equipment stored in a mezzanine level.

What sets Mill Creek apart from other schools will be the use of key cards to access the building. Faculty and staff will be equipped with access cards instead of keys.

Phil Parrott, district construction supervisor, said no criminal incident brought on the change, noting the district’s new technology facility on Keeter Road uses the same system.

He added that 50 percent of Cobb County schools have this technology, and Carmel

Elementary has eyed installing the system in the recent past.

“You have a lot of schools evolving toward this aspect,” Parrott said.

District officials said they believe the use of key cards is a better solution than metal keys both from cost and safety standpoints. All doors will be locked from the outside except for one.

“This is really necessary to secure the building,” county Superintendent of Schools Dr. Frank Petruzielo said. “This is another step towards the future.”

The superintendent added the new system “will be a very responsible reform.”

Last school year, the middle school, which only had seventh-grade students, operated out of the old Little River Elementary building that Cherokee Tribune file photo became available after its new Mill Creek Middle School opened in August on Arnold Mill Road in southeast Cherokee. home was built on the same property. The old elementary and 2,000 students when it sits on 41.45 acres. sit on about 43 acres, will be building will be used for opens in August.

Once finished, it will have 134,824 square feet with the preschool classes, Parrott 77 instructional units, a media capacity to hold 1,250 stusaid.

Other construction projects center, cafetorium, two art dents. The building will have The new middle school sits under way include: rooms, two music rooms, two 77 instructional units, a on 97 acres of property at the computer labs, a gym, a mechanical mezzanine above corner of Mill Creek and R.M. Moore Elementary mechanical mezzanine in a the ceiling, a media center, Arnold Mill Roads. in Waleska will see a 24,052- corridor above the hallways computer labs, a gymnasium On the other side of the square-foot addition open in and a family living center for and art/music rooms. property is the new River August. special-needs students. OutRidge High School building Construction of a The $3.5 million facility side, the school will have a under construction. The new contains 26 classrooms. One basketball court, two play- replacement Ball Ground Elefacility will open this August. part will be for grades kinder- grounds and open green field mentary School in the city River Ridge’s ninth-grade garten through third grade and space. limits soon will begin. class, which began this school the other part is for grades The school board recently year, is housed in the lower fourth A new elementary approved a $18.7 million conthrough sixth. portion of Mill Creek Middle. Headley Construction was school on Hunt Road in south- tract with Hardin ConstrucTheir area includes about 18 selected to build the addition. west Cherokee County also is tion Company to build it. classrooms, but the freshmen set to open in August 2011. share the cafetorium and the Also in 2009, the district A $15.4 million contract The Univeter Road elegymnasium and classrooms mentary school being built was awarded in August to opened new gymnasiums and for family and consumer sci- near Canton will open in Evergreen Construction to classrooms at both Etowah ences and art with the middle August 2011.

High School in Woodstock build the facility. schoolers.

JKH Architects, the same and Macedonia Elementary The school board last year The $55.3 million project approved a $17.6 million con- company that designed Knox, School. built by Barton Malow Con- tract with Evergreen Con- also will design the Hunt The 73,000-square-foot struction Services will be struction to build the 140,000 Road facility. addition at Etowah High in ready to hold between 1,800 square-foot building, which The building, which will Woodstock includes a new

gym, 12 instructional units, a weight room, a wrestling area, physical education locker rooms, team locker rooms, office space for school coaches and a horticulture lab for agriculture and veterinary science classes and family and consumer science classes and labs.

Etowah’s cafeteria also was renovated, with adjacent classroom walls removed to add more space. A greenhouse and a storage building were added to the campus as well.

The $11.8 million addition was built by Doster Construction Company using SPLOST revenues.

The new fitness room has 24 stationary bicycles, two universal weight machines, three treadmills and between 25 and 30 step aerobic stations.

The 37,243-square-foot addition at Macedonia Elementary included a replacement gym and classroom .

The $6.13 million addition was built by Womack, Smith & Lewis Inc. The two-story addition to the newer portion of the school includes 16 classrooms.

The new gym is a “stateof-the-art” facility, according to Russ Sims, district assistant superintendent of support services and facilities/construction management.

The old gym, which was completed in 1968, can’t be heated or cooled properly, Sims said. “The idea for climate control was not a consideration,” he said of when the gym was constructed, adding it can’t be retrofitted.

Also, the five portable classrooms on the campus were removed to allow for improved parking, Sims said.

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PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 18E

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

School board: Maintaining service on budget From staff reports

Riding on a wave of academic achievements last year, the Cherokee County school district is hoping to continue that trend in 2010.

The district is also continuing to build new schools to alleviate potential overcrowding and come up with cost-cutting measures to stay in the black without hindering performance and resources in the classroom.

“The No. 1 goal and challenge for 2010 is to attempt to continue to deliver the level of educational excellence and student achievement that our community has come to expect,” county Superintendent of Schools Dr. Frank Petruzielo said.

Petruzielo added the district takes on this challenge while dealing with issues beyond its control: “massive” state budget cuts, revenue shortfalls because of dwindling property tax collections, rising foreclosures, state caps on property assessments and a student population that grows by 1,000-plus students each year.

Board member Janet Read said the looming state government budget crisis will greatly affect local schools.

Mrs. Read said she is busy informing parents and the greater community about the proposed budget cuts and the impact they will Janet Read have at the local level.

“It’ll call for more tough choices,” she said for the crisis.

“We still owe it to every kid that comes to our classrooms to

give them an education.”

Both she and board member Debi Radcliff said they want the district to focus on allocating resources to teachers in the classroom and to lower-performing schools.

“We need to keep the focus on educating our children and to maintain high expectations and performance standards for all of our students during this tough economic period,” Mrs. Radcliff said.

Mrs. Radcliff added she would like to see Debi Radcliff the district continue to pursue federal stimulus dollars to replace E.T. Booth and Teasley Middle Schools as well as “other viable funding options for school construction, replacement or repair.”

The district is keeping up with its annual growth by building sales-tax funded new schools and additions to existing facilities.

Both the classroom addition at R.M. Moore Elementary School in Waleska and the new River Ridge High School facility in southeast Cherokee will open in August.

The district also is making progress on its new elementary schools under construction on Univeter Road near Canton and on Hunt Road in southwest Cherokee.

Land has also been found for a replacement Ball Ground Elementary School in the city limits, and the board approved an $18.7 million contract in January with Hardin Construction Company to build it.

Petruzielo added he was thankful for being able to open Mill Creek Middle School in southeast Cherokee and new gymnasiums and classrooms at both Etowah High School in Woodstock and Macedonia Elementary Schoo this school year.

“We continue to be appreciative to the voters of Cherokee County for renewing the last Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax,” Petruzielo said, referring to the tax that is used to fund school construction and technology.

The superintendent and board members said 2009 was a year of great strides — particularly in the academic area.

Last year, the district was one of only three school systems in metro Atlanta to make Adequate Yearly Progress, and all but one district traditional school achieved this state testbased benchmark.

Four of the district’s Title I schools, Boston Elementary, Oak Grove Elementary, R.M. Moore Elementary and Woodstock Elementary, were recognized by the state as Distinguished Schools for making AYP for three or more consecutive years.

For the first time, the district’s graduation rate surpassed 80 percent.

The district’s special education programs also continue to win state and national recognition for closing the achievement gap between its special needs and regular education students.

Mike “The performance of our system was above Chapman reproach,” board member Mike Chapman said.

Federal stimulus money may help public schools From staff reports

The Cherokee County School District plans to seek federal stimulus money through the Department of Education’s Race To The Top Fund.

The initiative, funded by stimulus dollars set aside for education, is a competitive grant program that will dole out as much as $4.35 billion to eligible states and school districts. Eligible districts are those that advance education reforms in four key areas: tying teacher pay to student performance, adopting internationally bench-marked standards to prepare students for college and to compete in the global economy, turning around lowest-achieving schools and developing proficient data assessment systems to better measure student growth and academic success.

“We see this as an opportunity and another example where the federal government is willing to make a strong investment in public education throughout the country,” county Superintendent of Schools Dr. Frank Petruzielo said.

The Georgia Department of Education is eligible to receive between $200 million to $400 million in grants, said Kathleen Mathers, executive director of the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement, which is

coordinating the state’s application.

Federal guidelines for the grant program stipulate that the state will be awarded 50 percent of its share, and the other half will be divided up among its local districts that signed onto the initiative.

Each district’s share is determined by the number of Title I students enrolled in its schools. A Title I school is one where at least 40 percent of students receive free or reduced-price lunches.

In the district, there are 10,681 Title I students out of the total population of 38,154.

Cherokee’s Title I schools are Boston, Hasty, Oak Grove, R.M. Moore and Woodstock Elementary and Teasley Middle.

Ms. Mathers said state leaders are strongly pursuing the grant.

“It’s an unprecedented opportunity to get a lot of money from the federal government to do things for the children in Georgia,” she said.

Twenty-two districts in Georgia, including Cherokee, have sent in memorandums of understanding to the state to participate in the first phase of Race To The Top. The memos require the signatures of the district’s superintendent and the chairman of the local board of education.

The first round of applications were due to the federal Department of Education on Jan. 19.

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Mill Creek Middle School seventh-grader Stephanie Santillan, daughter of Armando Santillan and Guadalupe Alvarado of Woodstock, takes a pre-test in her math class.

School enrollment up From staff reports

The first day of classes could not have gone smoother for the Cherokee County School District, officials said, despite a larger enrollment increase than expected at some schools.

When classes began in August at county public schools, 37,210 students showed up for the first day, an increase from 36,085 the previous school year.

With the use of portables, no schools were deemed “critically overcrowded,” by the district this school year. Under its policy, schools are labeled critically overcrowded when they exceed 140 percent of their enrollment capacity with the use of portables.

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Ms. Mathers said the federal government will make award decisions in early April for phase one of the grant process. If the state is unsuccessful in the first round, Ms. Mathers said the state will “definitely” apply to be considered for the second phase. The applications for the second phase are due June 1 and award decisions will be made in September.

To put the state on its path of receiving grants, Gov. Sonny Perdue on Tuesday proposed to pay teachers based on how well they teach and not on the number of years they’ve been in the classroom or level of education.

The new structure would be adopted in 2013, and all new teachers hired after Jan. 1, 2014, would be inducted into the new system. Current educators would have the opportunity to opt in or remain with the current system. Petruzielo said he is comfortable with the stipulations President Barack Obama and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan have set forth as part of the grant program.

“All are (things) we can support if the right infrastructure is put into place,” he said.

He added the standards the grant outlines already have been addressed in Cherokee.

Petruzielo touted the district’s data warehouse program, through which teachers have access to student’s performance on tests right on their

computer desktops.

He said he and his staff also continue to turn around the performance of lower-achieving schools, and noted their record of closing the achievement gaps between regular students and students with disabilities.

Dr. Carla Cohen, a Cherokee district assistant superintendent, applauded the grant’s emphasis on using uniform, national standards to compare U.S. students with those in other countries.

She said national standards also would give states the opportunity to use tangible data to measure their success in educating students.

“This will help us know where we are in the nation,” she said of the standards.

The superintendent said he also is “very comfortable” with tying teacher pay to student performances.

However, Petruzielo said this can be tricky because incentives to cheat often are the outcome of a “merit-pay based on performance.”

Teachers, he added, deal with other factors in the classroom that can affect academic performance, such as truancy, learning disabilities and a student’s life outside the classroom.

Overall, he said, the program would continue his efforts to ensure students receive the best education from the best teachers and are prepared to compete in the global job market.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 19E

Private schools: Enrollment steady, facilities expand From staff reports

Cherokee County’s private schools say they still are thriving despite the economy.

Cherokee Christian Schools’ enrollment for the 2009-10 school year exceeded expectations.

Superintendent Mike Lee said 390 students were enrolled on the first day of classes at the Woodstock school. The administration had estimated about 372 students would show up.

“We just didn’t know,” Lee said of what the economy’s impact would be on enrollment. “We’re obviously doing better than what we planned.”

The school’s first-day enrollment is on target for the previous year when roughly 396 students were enrolled. Twelve seniors graduated in May. Lee said the school’s competitive tuition and its focus on providing quality, Christian-based education keeps parents coming back.

“People will spend money on things they feel are most important,” he said. “We’re at the top end of the scale in terms of what we are producing here.”

Tuition increased between 3 and 5 percent from the previous school year, Lee said.

High school students pay $9,200 each year and first through eighthgrade students pay $8,550.

Kindergarten students enrolled in half-days pay $5,600, and those enrolled fullMike Lee time pay $7,400.

What’s also helping keep interest high for Cherokee Christian Schools is HB 1133, which was signed into law by Gov. Sonny Perdue in 2008.

The bill allows private citizens and corporations to redirect money to state-approved scholarship organizations, which in turn allows public school students to transfer to private schools.

Private citizens and corporations receive income-tax credits by donating money to one of 10 stateapproved scholarship organizations.

These organizations then provide scholarships to parents who

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Braedon Olivia, son of Peter and Tonya Olivia of Woodstock, listens to his first-grade teacher at Cherokee Christian School in Woodstock.

wish to transfer their children from a public school to an accredited private school.

Lee said about 20 students at his school have been enrolled under the bill.

“H.B. 1133 is almost like a miracle for some parents,” he said.

Cherokee Christian this school year also expanded with construction of a new high school building on its Trickum Road campus.

The $4.2 million, 26,000square-foot facility was designed to hold up to 200 students.

It contains 10 classrooms, all equipped with digital projectors, screens and surround-sound speakers, a science lab, two physical education rooms and a media center.

Other features include a multipurpose cafeteria, boys’ and girls’ locker rooms, one medical room, two conference rooms and nine offices.

Lee said the facility is equipped with security cameras in the hallways, stairways, lobby and parking lot; a fingerprint security access

system for the main exterior doors; and a fiber-optics cable network system.

The project was financed by bonds issued by the Cherokee County Development Authority.

Cherokee Christian also purchased another 10 acres of land that sits to the north of the campus for $1 million.

Lee said the extra land could make way for a baseball field, five tennis courts, a small track and multi-purpose building for a gym and fine arts rooms.

Frederick Furtah Preparatory Academy in southwest Cherokee enrolled about 130 students for the first week of classes.

H e a d m a s t e r Frederick Frederick Furtah Furtah said the school usually does “rolling enrollment,” meaning it adds students throughout the year.

The school usually adds up to 20

students throughout a normal school year, Furtah said.

This school year, the school began a program called Thinking Maps, a computer-based visual learning program for students.

For the half-day Montessori program, students are charged $5,767, Montessori and pre-kindergarten students are charged $7,812, firstthrough third-grade Montessori students pay $9,796.50, upper elementary school students pay $9,796.50, middle school students pay $10,678.50 and high school students are charged $11,891.25.

Furtah said he and his staff are inching toward making a land acquisition deal for a new home in south Cherokee.

“We’ve been really aggressive,” he said.

If a new campus is built, the school would sell its current facility, he said.

Furtah said the new facility likely would include a gym, between 12 and 15 classrooms, labs, fine arts and drama rooms, a media cen-

ter and outdoor greenspace for horticulture studies. Ideally, it would house as many as 325 students, he said.

He said he’s also been consulting with a Massachusetts company on how to incorporate green technology in the planned new building, which he said will foster a better learning environment.

Lyndon Academy added a thirdgrade level this school year.

Fifty-five students were enrolled by the first day, up from last year’s 45 students. Headmaster Linda Murdock said she also increased her teaching staff from seven to 13.

This school year, 4-year-old students are taking Spanish classes and first-grade students are taking Mandarin Chinese, Mrs. Murdock said.

Mrs. Murdock said she is not surprised that her enrollment keeps rising each year.

“Parents are very happy with the quality,” she said.

Lyndon also is building a new facility on 6.66 acres on Toonigh Road, about a quarter-mile from Highway 5 in Holly Springs.

When finished, the school will accommodate 500 students in kindergarten through fifth grade.

Construction will be completed in three phases over the next three years.

Phase one includes 10 classrooms, administrative offices and a temporary cafeteria/gymnasium.

The first phase of the project cost $4.65 million, and phases two and three are expected to cost another $5 million.

Mrs. Murdock said she’s grateful to parents who return to Lyndon each year.

“They have an opportunity to be part of something that’s growing quickly,” she said.

American Heritage Academy in Canton during its 10th anniversary festivities in May celebrated the completion of a new 36,000square-foot multi-purpose building on its campus.

The building, which costs $4 million to build, created space for its drama and theater departments, a gym, music, band and chorus rooms, showers and concession stands and offices for its physical education classes.

Tracking Your

all year long online at www.cherokeetribune.com

CHEROKEE TRIBUNE

Chronicling Cherokee County’s People & Events

PAGE 20E

PROGRESS 2010

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

PROGRESS 2010

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

PAGE 21E

Colleges: Reinhardt renamed as university From staff reports

It’s official: Cherokee County will soon be home to a university.

The Reinhardt College Board of Trustees voted in January to change the institution’s name to Reinhardt University effective June 1.

College President Dr. J. Thomas Isherwood suggested a name change almost a year ago during the staff’s strategic planning process. The idea was shared with the board of trustees in September.

“The reality is that, with the depth of our 40 undergraduate programs, the strength of our graduate programs, the comprehensive nature of our professional and liberal arts degrees and the evolution of our schools into strong academic units, we have grown into an institution that is more accurately described as a university,” Isherwood said.

“It’s not something we aspire to become — it’s what we are,” he added.

Alan King, an ex-officio board member as president of the college’s Ambassadors, made the motion in favor of the change.

King said everyone he has talked to about the new name sees “it as such a positive step, not just for the college, but also for the community, for students, for faculty, staff and for alumni.”

Board of Trustees Chairman William “Billy” G. Hasty Jr. of Canton, a Reinhardt alumnus, said the new name is a change in the right direction.

“If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you always got,” he said.

“Reinhardt is just beginning to understand how much of an opportunity we have in the Atlanta area with all the growth and the interest in Christian education. This is another positive step to ensure that we’ll be around for another 100 years.”

The private college, which has been operating for more than 125 years in Waleska, is affiliated with the United Methodist Church.

Reinhardt now offers graduate as well as undergraduate programs at the main campus and its education center in Alpharetta.

Isherwood said the name change

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Reinhardt College Board of Trustees Chairman William ‘Billy’ G. Hasty Jr., college President Dr. J. Thomas Isherwood and Student Government Association President Christopher R. Williams celebrate the board’s approval to change the college’s name to Reinhardt University effective June 1. They are holding the college’s first billboard design featuring the new name. will not affect the values or operations of Reinhardt.

“We are still going to be a private institution affiliated with the United Methodist Church, which is committed to transforming lives,” he said.

“We plan to keep faculty-student ratio at about 14-1 and our average class size at 14. “Our core strengths will continue to be our small classes, our caring faculty who have strong academic credentials and who excel at teaching, our challenging academic and our complementary extracurricular programs,” he added.

Adding more degree programs and sports teams are goals on the minds of Reinhardt officials for the coming year.

Isherwood said he’s in the process of developing a new fiveyear strategic plan for the college.

“It continues to be an exciting time at Reinhardt College,” he said.

The school saw its largest enrollment of 1,124 students in the fall quarter.

It’s also seen growth in its new Master’s of Arts in teaching for early childhood education program, Police Academy and its Working Adults Into Teaching programs, which allows working adults to earn early childhood education degrees.

“They’ve all grown way beyond everyone’s expectations,” Isherwood said of the three programs.

Dr. Jim Curry, dean of the Price School of Education, said the master’s of arts in teaching program has 38 students enrolled.

The program gives adults with college degrees the opportunity to earn a master’s degree to teach.

Curry said this year he would like to add English and biology at the secondary level as concentrations for the program.

Reinhardt will add another graduate program this summer: a master’s degree in music.

Isherwood said he hopes to soon add master’s degrees in education and special education to the college’s growing list of areas of graduate study, as well as expand the offerings on the associate’s and bachelor’s levels.

To attract more working adults, Isherwood said he wants to offer new programs in the legal and public administration arenas.

This year, the school’s Public Safety Institute will expand to Cartersville and Marietta.

An associate degree program in fire management is also being eyed as another option for working adults.

Peg O’Connor, associate vice president for academic Peg O’Connor affairs, said the program would meet the U.S. Fire Administration’s Fire and Emergency Services Higher Education program requirements.

Ms. O’Connor, who oversees the college’s North Fulton Center in Alpharetta that caters to working adults, is working to develop a master’s program in homeland security as well, which she said will be a degree high in demand in the future.

The college completed one bricks-and-mortar project last year: Jones Hall was renovated and

transformed into an academic building.

The building had been closed down to help the school save on energy costs.

A goal for the coming year, Isherwood said, is to begin raising funds to build a new science building on campus.

The number of sports teams Reinhardt has available to students is also growing this year.

In February, the men’s lacrosse team began its first season, said Steve Ruthsatz, athletic operations manager.

He said he hopes to soon announce the addition of women’s lacrosse and a new coach.

To better serve its students, the athletic department recently installed lights on the baseball and softball fields.

Ruthsatz said this would give the college an opportunity to play games at night.

Another goal for the year, he said, is to see all Reinhardt’s teams finish in the top three of the Appalachian Athletic Conference.

Ms. O’Connor said she’s expecting overall enrollment growth at Reinhardt this year because of its continued efforts to offer a wide range of degrees and programs.

“I feel we are meeting a real need in the community right now, which is part of the college’s mission,” she said.

Reinhardt enrolled 1,110 students for the college’s fall quarter — an increase from the previous year total of 1,050.

Isherwood said the school continues to be ahead of the curve when it comes to offering a diverse range of courses.

“We have brought many new students to Reinhardt, particularly adult students,” he said.

About 250 nontraditional students are among the 1,110 students, an increase from 75 the previous year.

“Folks are being laid off … and are looking to refine their skills,” Director of Admissions Julie Fleming said of the reason why more older students are enrolling at Reinhardt.

PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 22E

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

Colleges: Merged Chattahoochee succeeds From staff reports

Enrollment at the recently merged Chattahoochee Technical College is booming, especially at the Woodstock campus.

Officials reported an enrollment of 11,365 students for the winter quarter that began in January.

This is a 27.3-percent increase from the winter quarter of 2009.

Individual campus enrollment numbers also continue to climb, with the Woodstock campus (73 percent) and Appalachian campus in Jasper (59.4 percent) experiencing the greatest percentage increases.

“While the downturn in the economy continues to play a part in college enrollment increases, we also believe that the continual high numbers also reflect the fact that we are offering a program mix that our students want and need and that is enabling them to find jobs upon graduation,” said Ron Newcomb, provost and executive vice president of the college.

Appalachian Technical College, North Metro Technical College and Chattahoochee Technical College merged on July 1, making the college the largest technical college in the state of Georgia and the ninthlargest post-secondary school in the state.

Dr. Sanford Chandler, the former president of Appalachian Tech, was tapped to serve as the merged college’s president.

The college’s eight campuses are the Appalachian Campus in Jasper, Canton Sanford C a m p u s , Chandler Marietta Campus, Mountain View Campus in Marietta, North Metro Campus in Acworth, Paulding Campus, South Cobb Campus and Woodstock Campus.

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Chattahoochee Technical College President Dr. Sanford Chandler awards Nicole Flint of Canton an associate's degree in interior design at the fall commencement at Cobb Galleria Centre. It was the first graduation since three colleges merged to form the new school.

The Canton Campus is now under construction in the Bluffs at Technology Park north of RiverStone Plaza.

College officials said they hope to open the 62,500square-foot two-story building in early 2011.

“I’m excited about having that facility coming out of the ground,” Chandler said.

The college also recently opened two new facilities: one at the North Metro campus and the other on the Paulding campus in Dallas.

The Allied Health Building will house all medicalrelated areas of study on the Acworth campus, and the classroom building in Dallas also will have a library, an allied health section and a student gathering section.

Chattahoochee has seen an influx of students in its healthrelated areas of study, according to Dr. Trina Boteler, vice president of academic affairs.

“There’s very little that’s still open,” she added.

Dr. Boteler said the college has been noticing a trend toward more students enrolling in health-related fields.

Other areas of study seeing an increase include the physical therapy, radiology, welding and auto collision, TV production and culinary programs.

For the near future, Dr. Boteler said the college is looking to expand offerings at the Woodstock campus. That campus, which has been open on Main Street in downtown

Woodstock since 2005, may offer more core and pre-health classes in the future.

Dr. Boteler added the merger also has boosted the name of Chattahoochee Tech across the north metro Atlanta area.

Chandler agrees, adding he has a positive outlook on his institution’s ability to handle the influx of students.

“It’s a major growth spurt for us,” he said.

Nicole Flint of Canton long has loved decorating, but couldn’t find a school that offered quality courses and accommodates her busy schedule.

After learning about Chattahoochee Technical College’s

interiors program, she decided to take a chance and enroll in the school.

Less than two years after enrolling, Mrs. Flint was among the 938 students who graduated in December from Chattahoochee Tech — the first class to do so since the college’s merger.

About 300 of those graduating students participated in the commencement ceremony at the Cobb Galleria, according to Jennifer Nelson, college executive director of external affairs.

Dr. Scott Rule, college vice president of student affairs, said he expected the graduating class to be as big as it was.

“It was a very large number,” he said, adding the total was larger than what the three schools have done collectively in the past.

Chattahoochee Tech in July merged with Appalachian Technical College in Jasper and North Metro Technical College in Acworth to become the largest technical college in the state of Georgia.

In 2008, Chattahoochee had a combined total of 971 students graduate during the fall 2008 and the winter 2008 quarters.

Appalachian had 235 students and North Metro graduated a combined 613 students during both quarters.

About 11,515 students enrolled at the merged college beginning in the fall quarter in September, an increase from the combined enrollment of 9,232 in fall 2008.

Rule said many students are attracted to the merged college’s diverse number of programs and the convenience of its seven campuses.

Usually, Rule said, colleges that merge typically see an enrollment decrease because of “confusion” about the process, but Chattahoochee Tech “reversed that trend.”

Plus, with the addition of basketball and other sports programs, Rule said he’s expecting more students to

show interest in the school.

“The students are really pleased,” he said.

With her associate’s degree in interiors in hand, Mrs. Flint also is pleased.

“It’s been such a relief to get it done and start the next chapter in my life,” she said.

Mrs. Flint’s next chapter is focused on her interior design business, Divine Living Interiors.

She said she was inspired to go back to school and learn interior design by TV shows airing on HGTV. “I watched it all day long, and I wanted to know more,” she said.

She checked out schools such as the University of Georgia, but said Athens was too far away. She enrolled at Chattahoochee Tech in January 2008 — four weeks after her son was born.

During her first quarter, she took only online courses, which she said was “flexible and so easy.”

With Chattahoochee Tech’s multiple campuses and friendly atmosphere, Mrs. Flint said the school should be a top choice for anyone looking to further their education.

Also, with the use of online courses, diverse courses and areas of study and lowcost tuition, Mrs. Flint said the college offers a great experience for any student.

“There really isn’t a reason not to go,” she said.

“There’s a way to fit it into your schedule.”

Another surprising fact, officials said, is how many students are taking courses online.

During the fall quarter, 3,127 students took at least one course online. In 2008, that number was just 1,818.

“It’s amazing how they fill up,” Jennifer Nelson, the college’s director of external affairs, said of the online classes.

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PROGRESS 2010

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

Parks: County land grab From staff reports

The Cherokee County Board of Commissioners are putting the $90 million parks bond approved by voters to use by grabbing up future sites and funding construction.

Land purchased by the county for future parks with the bond monies includes: 150 acres on Highway 20 in Macedonia for $30,000 an acre; 141 acres on Alison Lane along the Etowah River near the Cherokee County Regional Airport north of Canton for $2.82 million; 103 acres on Bluffs Parkway near Fate Conn Road adjacent to the Bluffs at Technology Park in Canton for $20,000 an acre; 51.06 acres on Univeter Road near Canton for $2.39 million. The land is next to the existing Kenny Askew Park; 39 acres on Highway 92 in southwest Cherokee for $1.55 million; 33.88 acres at Kellogg Creek and Victory Roads in southwest Cherokee for $2.1 million; 5.2 acres on Sixes Road adjacent to Blankets Creek for $275,000 for parking and restroom facilities for the Blankets Creek Trails; The board also bought from Reinhardt College for $608,000: Cline Park on about 12 acres on Bartow Street off Reinhardt College Parkway/Highway 14 and Waleska Park on about 18 acres on Highway 108 near the intersection of Reinhardt College Parkway/Highway 140.

Two highly anticipated city park projects also will receive funding from the parks bond.

The board has approved agreements to fund the development of a Canton park in the Cherokee-Canton Industrial Park on the Etowah River as well as Woodstock’s Greenprints Initiative.

The Canton park at the end of Brown Industrial Parkway off Highway 20 near Interstate 575 exit 19 will include baseball and softball fields, multiuse fields and tennis and basketball courts, as well as a pedestrian bridge to Heritage Park. The cost of the park is estimated at $7 million.

The Greenprints Initiative would create new trails, parks and greenspace throughout Woodstock as part of a network connecting city and county

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Cherokee County Board of Commissioners Chairman Buzz Ahrens saddles up for the grand opening ‘ride out’ at the new Garland Mountain Horse and Hike Trails in northwest Cherokee. trails and parks. The county has agreed to give as much as $5 million for the project.

According to the agreements, the county will be responsible for the cost of the design and construction management of the parks.

The city governments would be responsible for annual operation, maintenance and all repair and capital costs related to the maintenance of the parks.

Commissioner Harry Johnston said he thinks the Canton park could be ready by the fall or late summer of 2011.

Canton Mayor Gene Hobgood said the money from the county parks bond was crucial to its construction.

“Without that, we would not be able to move forward, at least not at this time,” he said.

Woodstock Mayor Donnie Henriques said the city will soon advertise a request for proposals for its Greenprints project. The money from the bond will speed up completion of the project, he said.

“We would be able to do it, but not as quickly,” he said of the project’s feasibility without the county funds. “The trails

would be done over a longer period of time.”

Cherokee’s first public horse trails opened last year, which officials see as a new path to increased tourism.

The Garland Mountain Horse and Hike Trails in northwest Cherokee County is a partnership between the county government and the Cherokee County Saddle Club to provide greenspace for horseback riding and hiking.

The county purchased more than 400 acres on the mountain northwest of Waleska in 2003 for $1.1 million in state greenspace funds. The trails were designed and constructed with volunteer labor and some donated machinery.

The first phase of the trails, which stretches for 6½ miles, now is open. Eventually, there will be about 13½ miles of trails.

The trails, when finished, will offer interconnecting loop trails going around hardwoods, streams and mountain scenery.

They are open to the public to use at no charge.

Libraries: Check out growth From staff reports

While library patrons want more materials, overall they are satisfied with the Sequoyah Regional Library System’s eight branches.

A new survey conducted between Aug. 15 and Sept. 30 shows patrons as being pleased with the libraries that serve Cherokee, Pickens and Gilmer counties and their staff members.

The survey asked questions related to staffing, programming, buildings and the availability of books and other library materials.

System Director Susan White said 536 people completed the survey.

Ninety-eight percent said they were either “satisfied” or “really satisfied” with staff at the libraries.

“I feel good that the staff is doing a good job,” Ms. White Susan White said, noting the system employs 110 people.

The system includes six libraries in Cherokee: Ball Ground Public Library, the Cherokee County Law Library in Canton, Hickory Flat Public Library, R.T. Jones Public Library in Canton, Rose Creek Public Library in Towne Lake and Woodstock Public Library. It also oversees the Pickens County Public Library and the Gilmer County Public Library.

Ninety-five percent of respondents said they were satisfied with the library’s hours of operation. Ninety-eight percent were satisfied with the library buildings and areas such as parking, seating, study areas and the quality of the buildings.

The library received many comments about the lack of certain materials available in the library, such as books, CDs, children’s materials, books on CDs or reference books.

Mrs. White said patrons commented they would like to see more children’s programming, more programs geared toward adults and more up-to-date book selections.

She said the lack of funding for more materials and more staff is why the system isn’t able to fulfill these needs.

The library system is funded with state and local dollars. Its total budget is roughly $4.1 million. Cherokee, Pickens and Gilmer county governments contribute 65 percent of the funds, while the state covers about 18 percent.

The cities in the three-county area contribute

about 2 percent total. The funds are used for the purchase of books and other materials. The remainder is from sources such as donations, fines and grants.

With the state decreasing its book funding by 53 percent, Mrs. White said the libraries are feeling even more of a pinch.

“It’s extremely hard for us right now,” she added.

Fortunately, Mrs. White said, the system has been helped by book donations and grants, but noted grant money for materials is scarce.

Another request patrons made was for the check-out period to be extended from two weeks to three weeks.

Mrs. White said that isn’t feasible because it would lead to even fewer books being available to other patrons.

Patrons also questioned why nicer library buildings lack a variety of books.

Mrs. White pointed out that different funds are used to purchase books than to construct new buildings. She noted R.T. Jones Memorial Library would undergo a renovation this year.

Planned improvements for the Canton library include construction of a larger computer lab, an enhanced teen library and youth story time area and more bookshelves and tables.

The system also has designs on building a library in the southwest part of the county and in Waleska.

“We want to make sure we are serving the population that is growing around us,” said library system Board of Trustees Chairman Scott Rule of southwest Cherokee County, vice president of research, planning and knowledge systems for Chattahoochee Technical College.

While Mrs. White said she understands patrons’ concerns, the system’s “hands are tied” on many issues because of funding.

“If I could do something, I would,” she said.

Woodstock Public Library Branch Manager Sue Stephens said most of the patrons understand the funding situation and are pleased with the customer service.

“We try to go out of our way to meet their needs,” she said.

Woodstock resident Stephanie Ware said she enjoys visiting Rose Creek Public Library because of the materials and service.

A part-time nanny, Ms. Ware said she’s never had a problem with finding children’s books there.

“I love it here,” she said.

PAGE 23E

PAGE 24E

PROGRESS 2010

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

PROGRESS 2010

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

PAGE 25E

Arts: Curtain rising for new venues, programs Cherokee Photography Club Cory Shannon of Canton prepares his photographs for the group’s winter exhibit at the Cherokee Arts Center in downtown Canton.

From staff reports

Arts organizations in Cherokee County are raising the curtain on a year filled with events they hope will appeal to a wide range of audiences — with some groups working in new venues and planning more.

A proposal to bring the arts into downtown Woodstock is gaining momentum.

Residents are working to restore a historic home to house the Elm Street Cultural Arts Village, which would be “a gathering place in the middle of the city,” said Ann Litrel, owner of Ann Litrel Art gallery and studio in downtown.

Ann Litrel The proposal would transform the vacant historic Reeves home, which is between 2,500 and 3,000 square feet, into a visual arts center. It also, organizers said, could serve as an educational tool to teach about life in Woodstock a century ago.

Also on the property would be the Market Street Theatre, a “black box” theater where acting classes and small-audience performances could be conducted downtown.

A chunk of greenspace on the property, which is about four acres total, would be left open for outdoor gatherings.

Also, a portion of the city’s proposed Greenprints Trail would cut through the property, allowing for pedestrian or bike access.

“It’s a long-term plan, but it’s doable,” Mrs. Litrel said.

The house, a two-story abode with a spacious front porch and multiple bedrooms, sits on roughly 1-and-a-half acres. It was built between 1897 and 1906 by Luther Reeves. The site was part of Hedgewood’s plan to create a grid network of streets on the west side of downtown. Those plans then were put on hold as the site went into foreclosure.

The home, which has been vacant for about three years, is currently owned by the former Bank of Woodstock, which now is Ameris Bank.

Since the summer, Mrs. Litrel and other interested residents have worked to clean up the property, which was overgrown with vines, brush and kudzu.

Mrs. Litrel said the next step in the project is to work with the city and county government to acquire the Reeves home. How the cost would be split and what funding sources will be used has not yet been determined.

Once the property is purchased by the governments, Mrs. Litrel said the nonprofit organization spearheading the proposal would work with the Towne Lake Arts Center to acquire grants and donations to aid in the restoration and landscaping. The nonprofit is temporarily called the Elm Street Cultural Arts Village.

Woodstock City Councilman Steve Faris said he thinks the arts center could bring

Cherokee Tribune file photo

more people into the downtown area. The proposal, he said, was the most convincing one that could make the city an “actual destination” he’s seen in a long time.

The Towne Lake Arts Center is expanding its presence in Woodstock this year.

The center late last year entered into an agreement with the Woodstock City Council to present performances at the Woodstock Community Church, which the city government now owns, to present plays and classes there.

“It’s a more c o n v e n i e n t Gay Grooms location for those on that side of town,” center Artistic Director Gay Grooms said of the church, which is on Main Street downtown. The center will continue to offer classes and plays at its location on Commerce Parkway as well.

Mrs. Grooms said the second venue also gives the center a chance to develop more partnerships with local businesses.

Mrs. Grooms said she’s also applying for a grant to continue The Big Read, an initiative with the National Endowment of the Arts that encourages literacy by having the community come together and read the same book and attend events to celebrate the story. The center has won the grant for the last two years.

This year’s The Big Read is focused on the book “To Kill a Mockingbird.” The center and the Sequoyah Regional Library System are partnering on the project to present community events from now through the spring including a play based on the book. Children who read the book through the program will receive a coupon to see the play at the church for free.

With plans to reach thousands this year through classes, performances and partnerships, Ms. Grooms said her outlook for the center is positive.

“I have high hopes,” she said, noting she thinks the center’s new presence downtown could boost visibility for business there as well. “It’s going

to be a big year for everyone involved.”

In addition to staging “Mockingbird” at the church from March 5 to 27, the musical “The Music Man” will be there from April 23 to May 8.

The season’s other shows all will be presented at the center’s main facility: “The Sneetches & Other Stories,” from March 6 to 28; “Treasure Island or Who’s Got the Map?” from June 9 to 27; and “Disney’s Mulan Junior” from July 7 to Aug. 1.

Ric Sanchez, director of the Falany Performing Arts Center at Reinhardt College in Waleska, said tickets have sold well despite the economic downturn.

Sanchez said the center sold about 6,000 tickets during the first half of its 2009-10 season. Falany’s season runs concurrent with Reinhardt’s semester system. He said he expect- Ric Sanchez ed a drop in ticket sales. “I thought people wouldn’t spend

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money,” but he was surprised by brisk sales for many events.

“I feel very comfortable with how things have gone.”

Sanchez said some of the most popular events so far have included “Conversations with Robert Osborne,” the Turner Classic Movies TV channel host in January and last year’s performance of Elaine Bromka in “Lady Bird, Pat and Betty: Tea for Three,” an intimate portrayal of three former First Ladies of the United States. Sold-out shows have included the Christmas concert series in December, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and the Hotlanta Dixieland Jazz Band performances in August and performances by the college choir and the jazz ensemble.

Sanchez, who plans to retire in November, said he already is in the middle of planning the 2010-11 season.

Shows still to come in this season include Celtic Crossroads on March 9 and 10, the Redeemer Piano Ensemble on March 13 and the Big Chicken Barbership Chorus on May 8.

Spring faculty and student performances begin on March 21 with artist-in-residence Dr. George Lucktenberg followed by the college wind ensemble

on April 15, the concert choir on April 18, the symphony orchestra on April 19 and the jazz ensemble on April 22.

A change in venues has boosted the attendance for Cherokee Theatre Company’s productions by 20 percent, said President Ed Palombo.

The organization in May moved its performances from the Cherokee Arts Center to the Canton Theatre.

He said the Ed Palombo move also gave the organization the ability to move from “dinner-type theatres” to traditional stage productions. The company drew nearly 500 people to its four shows last year.

Upcoming shows include “The Great American Trailer Park Musical” on weekends from March 5 through 14 and the play, “Mornings at Seven,” on weekends from May 7 through 16.

Dianne Langston, executive director of the Cherokee Arts Center in downtown Canton, said she hopes to increase the organization’s membership, which hovers around 160.

The membership grew by 70 last year, and Ms. Langston said she would like to have a membership of 500 by the end of the year.

In the past year, the organization made repairs to the facility that were long overdue including upgrades to the facade and a new banner.

The center’s biggest draw in the past year was its exhibit featuring artwork by local school children, which a t t r a c t e d Dianne between 300 Langston and 400 visitors.

This year, Ms. Langston said she will focus her efforts on marketing and branding.

Upcoming shows includes “Route 66,” a 1950s rock and roll show by Springer Theatre, on March 23. Kennesaw Opry bluegrass concerts also will continue at the center on the first Saturday of every month.

The merger of the Artist Guild of the Georgia Foothills and the Arts Alliance of Georgia Inc. is giving local artists bright ideas for the future.

Now called the Arts Alliance of Georgia, the organization will participate in the 32nd annual Spring Atlanta Home Show at the Cobb Galleria from March 19 to 21.

Alliance Secretary Regina Hines of Ball Ground said the group also will host a high school art exhibit from March 15 to 27 at Chattahoochee Technical College’s Woodstock campus.

Another goal, she said, is to restore the annual art exchange program between Cherokee County students and Japanese students.

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PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 26E

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

Come Worship With Us! YOU’RE INVITED TO WORSHIP WITH US

BASCOMB UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

3615 Reinhardt College Parkway • Canton, GA 30114

770-479-9415 www.heritagebaptistfellowship.com

390 Crisler Street Canton, GA 770-479-9691 www.stpaulame-canton.org

Rev. Lemora B. Dobbs, Pastor

2295 Bascomb Carmel Road, Woodstock, GA 30189

Loving God, Growing in Faith, Serving Others Sunday Worship 11:00 am Sunday School 9:45 AM Wednesday Activities 6:15 PM

St. Paul AME Church

770-926-9755

AWANA - Wednesdays, 6:00-7:30 PM Adult Bible Study - Wednesdays, 7:00-8:00 PM Intercessory Prayer - Wednesdays, 6:30-7:00 PM Teen Bible Study - 4th Sunday, 5:00-7:00 PM

SUNDAY WORSHIP TIMES 9:00AM - Contemporary 11:00AM - Traditional 10:00AM - Sunday School Visit our website for more information www.bascombumc.org

Sunday Church School - 9:30 AM Sunday Service - 11:00 AM Our Mission: Saving Souls and Building Stronger Christian Lives, One Person at a Time.

Waleska United Methodist Church

Worship with us at

Cherokee High School 930 Marietta Highway • Canton, GA 30114 (678) 493-8920

Pastor: Sam Hamby

Worship: 10:30 AM Weekday Preschool Available

SUNDAY WORSHIP TIMES

7340 Reinhardt College Pkwy P.O. Box 8 Waleska, GA 30183 770-479-4428

9:45 A.M. Sunday School (Adults and Children) 11:00 A.M. Worship

wum1@reinhardt.edu • www.waleskaumc.com

Visit our website for more information: www.libertyhillumc.org

490 Arnold Mill Road • Woodstock • 770-516-0009 www.stmichaelthearchangelwoodstock.catholicweb.com Father Larry Niese, Pastor

Weekend Mass Schedule Saturday Vigil - 5:30 pm Sunday - 7:30 am, 9:00 am, 11:00 am, 12:45 pm, 5:30 pm 2:30 pm (Spanish)

Daily Mass Schedule Wednesday - 6:30 am Monday through Saturday - 9:00 am

We’re located on the corner of Main & Towne Lake Pkwy 8534 Main St. - Woodstock, GA 770-926-8990

Canton First United Methodist Church Invites you to worship with us.

2795 Ridge Road, Canton (1/4 mi. from Hwy 5, just off exit 14, I-575)

770-345-6722 www.stclementscanton.org

Sundays at 8:30am, 9:45am, and 11am Located on Lower Scott Mill Road near Hwy 140 East and I-575 exit 16 Phone: 770-479-2502

Sunday Services 8 a.m. - Early Holy Eucharist, Rite II 9 a.m. - Family Holy Eucharist 10:15 a.m. - Sunday School/Rector's Forum 11 a.m. - Choral Holy Eucharist, Rite II

Confession: Wednesday - 5 pm • Saturday - 9:30 am Adoration: Monday - 9:30 am, Saturday - 8:30 am Preschool Office - 678-213-1517 Religious Education Office - 770-516-9699

WALESKA FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH Dr. Herman T. Williams, Pastor Traditional Worship Services Sunday Mornings 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.

Sunday School 10:00 a.m.

Wednesday Night Worship 7:00 p.m.

Team Kids & Youth Activities 7:00 p.m.

A CHURCH ALIVE IN CHRIST (770) 479-1024 www.waleskafirstbaptist.org New Worship Center located at 10657 Fincher Rd in Waleska

SUNDAY Worship at 11:00 a.m.

Sunday School at 9:45 a.m.

Evening Worship at 6:00 p.m.

WEDNESDAY

2146 Hickory Road Canton, GA 30114 770-345-2296

AWANA at 6:30 p.m.

Adult Bible Study at 7:15 p.m.

Refuge - student ministry at 7:00 p.m.

Senior Pastor Kevin Griggs Youth Pastor Chris Swick

www.hickoryroad.org

WOODSTOCK CHRISTIAN CHURCH 7700 Highway 92 Woodstock, GA 30189

2632 HOLLY SPRINGS PKWY CANTON, GA 30115 (One mile south off of exit 14)

770.345.5349

(Located on Hwy 92, between Bells Ferry & I-575)

www.woodstockchristian.org 770-926-8238 Mr. Lynn T. Eynon - Sr. Minister Roger Brooks - Minister of Music & Youth Chip Ward - Minister of Children & Adults

SUNDAYS @ 10:45 BIBLE STUDY 4 ALL AGES @ 9:30

fbchollysprings.com

Service Times Sunday School 10:00am Sunday Worship Service 11:00am Wed. Bible Study & Youth 7:00pm

March through May 2010

137 Hightower Road • Ball Ground • Georgia • 770.887.6982 www.calvarybaptistweb.org

PROGRESS 2010

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

PAGE 27E

Downtowns: New businesses open, Main Street starts Jenna Beegle of Woodstock knits at The Whole Nine Yarns store in downtown Woodstock.

Fourteen new businesses have opened in the city’s central business district and are bringing more people to the area to shop, eat and for entertainment.

From staff reports

The downtown districts of Canton and Woodstock are seeing more businesses open, which along with existing merchants are being supported by new Main Street Programs.

Woodstock is nearing completion of its efforts to become a Main Street city — a major step in its revitalization plan for downtown.

The city this month is about “85-percent finished” with its application to the state Department of Community Affairs to win the designation, said Woodstock Director of Economic Development Services Billy Peppers.

The Main Street Program, which is coordinated by the department’s Office of Downtown Development, assists participating Georgia cities in revitalizing their downtown commercial districts.

It uses a four-point approach to economic revitalization: organization, promotion, design and economic restructuring. The program integrates practical management strategies with the physical improvement of building and public spaces, aggressive promotion and image building and the economic development of the area.

Participants in the program have a better Billy Peppers chance of winning grants, Peppers said, and are offered reduced costs for design and other services from the DCA and Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation.

The Main Street Program is reserved for cities with populations between 5,000 and 50,000. Cities already participating include Acworth, Duluth, Douglasville, Suwannee, Cartersville and Stone Mountain.

“It’s been tough,” Peppers, who also is executive director of the Woodstock Downtown Development Authority, said of gathering the paperwork to participate. He added he’s positive about the city’s chances of winning the designation.

He said he hopes Main Street Woodstock Inc., the nonprofit organization tasked with raising funds for the Main Street Program, will be officially incorporated by the first week in March. In the meantime, Main Street Woodstock is moving ahead with its plans to build membership and to start projects.

A board of directors has been appointed to lead Main Street Woodstock Inc. Members are Kyle Bennett, Woodstock director of tourism and Dean’s Store operations; Julie Branch, Flegal Insurance Inc.; Sharon Brewer, resident; Jonathan Davis, Ameris Bank; Woodstock Mayor Donnie Henriques; Woodstock Downtown Development Authority Chairman Jimmy T. Long; Jo Marchildon, Maxsell Real Estate; Mike Morgan, Morgan Ace Hardware; Woodstock City Councilman Bob Mueller; Jennifer Nelson, Chattahoochee Technical College; Jamey Snyder, The Right Wing Tavern; Woodstock City Planner Brian Stockton; Pat Tanner, resident; Ellen Ward, FoxTale Book Shoppe; Cheryl West, Seven Arrows Art Gallery.

Peppers is the organization’s president.

He said he’s expecting Main Street Woodstock to garner $50,000 in revenue for 2010. It will receive about $30,000 from the city’s hotel/motel tax, $10,000 from membership fees, $3,000 from fundraising and events and $3,000 in sponsorships.

Main Street Woodstock is planning a series of events to promote its efforts.

To rally merchants, the organization will conduct a “Main Street Morning Buzz” breakfast meeting once a month to talk about the organization’s efforts.

Revitalization projects planned for the year include applying for a rear entrance façade matching grant, coordinating fall and spring beautification days, façade design assistance and grants and a centralized downtown signage program.

Cherokee Tribune file photo

After losing and gaining dozens of businesses in the past year, downtown Woodstock leaders and merchants expect 2010 will be steadier.

In addition to new businesses poised to bring more shoppers and diners to Olde Towne Woodstock, government projects are planned to make the area more attractive.

The area lost 12 businesses in 2009, but saw 14 openings this year as well, Peppers said.

“That’s pretty good,” he said, noting it resulted in a net gain of two new businesses.

The past year, he said, was difficult for businesses for a number of reasons, such as decreased revenue, the impact of the Woodstock Downtown foreclosure and the Sept. 21 flooding.

New businesses that have opened since December 2008 include: Ameris Bank, Bella Boutique, HoneyButter, Main Street Nail Studio, The Magnolia Thomas Restaurant, Pure Taqueria, Punctuation Boutique, Salon Bastille, Sawhaven Renovations, Springfield Photography, Theatre Concepts, Val’s Happy Shack and Vingenzo’s.

Earlier this year, the Whole Nine Yarns expanded its store to add a classroom studio.

The store has added more classes and now employs 12 instructors. Along with basic and advanced knitting, classes such as spinning, crocheting, rug hooking and weaving are offered.

“Things are going very good,” owner Debi Light said.

Also, with the city actively pursuing Main Street City designation with the state Department of Community Affairs, Peppers said merchants and volunteers are working to “rebrand” and market Woodstock.

“We want you to come and enjoy life in our community,” Peppers said, adding the rebranding was based off the classic board game, Life.

While merchants want to progress toward prosperity, they must contend with its elephant downtown: the foreclosed property owned by the former Bank of Woodstock, which is now Ameris Bank.

The Woodstock Downtown mixed-use development created by Hedgewood went under late in 2008. City leaders are now trying to work with various owners of the property to move new retail into the spaces.

The long-awaited restaurant, J. Christopher’s, Peppers said, could move into its Woodstock Downtown location between 45 and 60 days once its location in Brookhaven in western DeKalb County opens.

Peppers added by the end of the first quarter in 2010, downtown Woodstock could see “a handful” of new businesses announce they are coming to the area.

The Woodstock City Council also plans to expand Woodstock City Park to include an amphitheatre downtown.

The city government also plans to move forward on its Livable Communities Initiative streetscapes project.

The $1 million project will improve the landscaping from the Main Street/Arnold Mill Road/Towne Lake intersection to Oak Street.

A proposed pedestrian crosswalk over the railroad tracks downtown is coming soon, too. The crosswalk will run across Main Street from

Elm Street to Chambers Street.

A proposal to widen Arnold Mill Road and Towne Lake Parkway is in the design phase, with construction to start as soon as next year.

Business activity also is heating up in Canton’s historic downtown district.

Leasing has started for office suites at the new 151 Main building as construction nears completion, and two new businesses recently opened downtown.

Stan Rogers of Highridge Partners, which is constructing the three-story, Class A 151 Main building on West Main Street, said his company will be the first tenant and will occupy the top floor.

Rogers said he hopes to have tenants for the other two floors moved in by spring.

“We have gotten a lot of interest, mainly from attorneys,” he said about the prospects for the building. The building has 24,000 square feet of professional office space.

“I hope what we are doing will be a springboard for others,” Rogers said. “When the county government left, it left a vacuum. We just need people to come to downtown Canton.”

A pair of new businesses — Fabiano’s, an Italian restaurant in the old Café 190 location, and Bleu Dame, an accessories boutique next door to Key’s Jewelry — recently opened downtown.

Jeff Merbank is the owner of Fabiano’s, which includes a family pizzeria on the bottom

floor and a tavern upstairs. It is the third Fabiano’s he has opened in downtown area.

“People are starting to rediscover them,” he said of downtown areas, noting many people in the South grew up in them, but they were forgotten with the advent of shopping centers in the 1980s and 1990s.

Along with business openings downtown in the past year like the Store at Grant Design on East Marietta Street and The Worship Studio art gallery on Brown Street, there also have been closings.

Katherine Cressler, owner of Fringe Artful Goods, said the economy forced her to drop the store, which sold artwork and gifts, and focus on Old Towne Diner, the downtown restaurant she co-owns.

Ginger Garrard, Main Street

Program coordinator for Canton, said the city government and merchants are working together to energize the district.

The merchants offered candlelight shopping during the holiday season, with Dickensinspired carolers walking the streets downtown to serenade shoppers. A Winter Wonderland Window contest was established to encourage shopping, and a similar promotion was held for Valentine’s Day. “We are having more events downtown and exposing it to more people,” she said.

“People know we are having events, so they are coming back.”

John Curving owns the vacant lot next to Downtown Kitchen on East Marietta Street, which he plans to develop. He said they have obtained a building permit and impact fees have been paid, but the project is on the back burner for the time being.

“We are going to hold on until the economy changes,” he said. “Lending is hard to come by right now.”

Doug Flint, who co-owns a Canton-based real estate rehabilitation and management company, is managing the former Jones building/administration building for the Cherokee County government until the firm’s purchase of it closes next summer.

He said he is actively recruiting tenants for the building, which is on the square between North and Main Streets, and can be subdivided in “countless” ways.

The firm also recently acquired the building at 170 North St. The former florist shop is being renovated for use as office space, a retail shop or restaurant.

PAGE 28E

PROGRESS 2010

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

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PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 29E

City police: Eyeing new technology, programs From staff reports

Cherokee County’s city police departments have seen an overall decrease in calls for service in the last two years.

Overall, there were 82,141 calls for service to city police departments in 2009, down from 83,725 calls the previous year.

The Woodstock Police Department saw the biggest decrease, from 35,056 in 2008 to 27,895 calls in 2009.

Police Chief David Bores said he’s not sure what has led to the drop in calls, noting there David Bores have been increases in property crime and burglaries in the city.

Last year, the city responded to 43 residential burglaries, up from 26 the previous year. Commercial burglaries also slightly increased to 38 from 32, and car break-ins climbed to 101 from 62.

To crack down on these crimes, Bores said he plans to introduce a Police and Citizens Together initiative, which would assign officers to neighborhoods for patrols. They would also serve as nonemergency contact for services.

Bores said this year he will continue his efforts to gain Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies for the department, and may fill one patrol officer vacancy if the budget allows.

“We’ve got a full plate,” he said.

The department has 63 people, including 53 sworn officers and 10 civilians, on staff, an increase from 52 people including 44 sworn officers and eight civilians in 2008.

Bores said he was glad to see his department achieve a full staff last year.

The department in 2009 also reorganized its staff, brought reserve Chaplain Ron Anspaugh on board and secured funding for laptop computers to be placed in police cars.

Because of the Woodstock High School gun scare in 2009, Bores said the department also provided training for rifle use for officers. All officers using patrol vehicles now have a rifle on board with them.

Bores, who was tapped in January

Cherokee Tribune file photo

Woodstock Police Department Officer Leigh Ellerbee of Dallas enters reports using a laptop computer in her patrol car. The department added the technology to its fleet last year, a goal the Canton Police Department has set for itself this year.

2009 to lead the department, said he is especially proud that morale has increased in the department.

“I think the climate is showing it’s being taken care of,” he said.

The Canton Police Department received 18,096 calls for service last year, down from 18,571 in 2008.

Chief Jeff Lance said he hopes the effort by his staff to “be a proactive department instead of reactive department has been a factor” in the decrease.

Lance said his goals for the year include completing the department’s communications upgrade, which will improve its radio system and Jeff Lance repeaters.

Lance said he also wants to install laptop computers in patrol cars, which would give officers the ability to file reports from their cars.

Another goal, he said, is to “give the department a facelift” by renovating the station. Among the

changes he’s proposing are the construction of two rooms for more office space and evidence storage and updating the building’s façade.

The installation of a new roof already has been approved.

Lance said he and assistant Chief Todd Vande Zande this year also will do public evaluations to gauge how the community feels about the department.

The department had a tough year in 2009 on it personnel side, Lance said, adding the staff picked up the slack.

“These guys kept doing the job they were expected to do,” he said.

The staff dipped to 50 people down from 55 in 2008. Lance said he froze five positions: two patrolmen, two clerks and one training/evidence custodian.

“We feel really good,” he said about the outlook for 2010. “With the economy, we’re hoping everything will turn around.”

The Holly Springs Police Department received about 36,000 calls for service in 2009, up from 30,000 the

previous year.

Chief Ken Ball said the economy is a factor in the increase, but noted there was a decrease in felony crimes such as murder, burglaries, rape or domestic violence.

His goals for the year include expanding its Teamwork, Results, Accountability, Communication and Enforcement program.

The program focuses on reducing crime by working with the community to address concerns and correct problems as they occur. “We certainly can’t do it alone,” he said.

Ball said he also Ken Ball wants to begin replacing older patrol cars, but the economy will be a factor in determining what route he takes. The department still has been able to provide each officer with a take-home vehicle, he said.

The department had 23 people on staff in 2008 and added one last year.

Because of budget cuts, part-time

positions have been eliminated, and the total now is down to 22.

“We’ve been very good stewards of watching the budget,” he said.

The Ball Ground Police Department saw a drop in its calls for service. In 2009, the department received 4,793 calls, down from 5,190 made in 2008.

City Manager Eric Wilmarth said the city continue to see a low crime rate, which could be attributed to its decrease in calls.

For 2010, Wilmarth said the department’s goals include providing more leadership, crime scene investigation and accident reconstruction training to its staff.

The department Dana Davis employs two fulltime officers and Police Chief Dana Davis. In 2008, the department had three officers on staff.

“We’ve got an aggressive training program going on right now,” Wilmarth said.

The department had set a goal of gaining full accreditation. However, since it’s not a 24-hour-per-day operation, it can not obtain the accreditation it would like, Wilmarth said.

The Nelson Police Department also saw a rise in calls for service to 150 last year, up from 98 in 2008.

Chief Brad Carroll said the department stepped up its DUI and drug patrols and investigations.

The department made 15 DUI and 23 drug arrests in 2009, up from the one drug and nine DUI arrests made in 2008. “It’s been happening here for years,” he said of drug use in the area.

The department successes for the past year also included the creation of a Web site at www.nelson police.com.

Carroll said his goals for the year include beginning a reserve police program with three to five people to start.

The department has two fulltime officers including himself and, if the budget allows, he’d like to add a third.

Carroll said he also hopes to upgrade the department’s communications equipment, possibly obtain another vehicle and replace older guns and shotguns.

PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 30E

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

City governments: Doing more with less From staff reports

Cherokee County’s cities are planning for a tight budget year, but not one without improvement projects.

The City of Ball Ground’s 2010 budget is $1.5 million, which was reduced almost by half from the $2.7 million budget in 2009.

Mayor Rick Roberts said the goal this year is to avoid the need to cut services.

“We are not out of the woods yet,” he said about the economy.

Councilman John Rick Roberts Byrd said while his top priority this year is “keeping all the bills paid,” he also would like to see residents have more opportunities to walk around the city.

“We’d like to do more sidewalks and walking trails. We are in line for some grants for that,” he said.

The council has applied for a Georgia Department of Natural Resources Recreational Trails grant.

The council also is excited to see work begin on improvements to the city’s community center.

The city received $85,000 as part of the 2009 action plan for $850,000 the Cherokee County government received through a Community Development Block Grant by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

“It is pretty run down,” Councilman Frank Homiller said about the need for improvements to the community center on Civic Drive, which is used for various programs including the weekly meeting of the Ball Ground Senior Center.

Other goals for Roberts include helping the Cherokee County school board with the construction of a new elementary school in the city and locating a second water source for the city.

Completion of the streetscapes project was the biggest accomplishment for Ball Ground in 2009.

The $1.15 million project included improved sidewalks, crosswalks and lighting in the downtown district from the intersection of Old Canton Road and Gilmer Ferry Road down Gilmer Ferry to Northridge Road.

Improving traffic flow and recreation services are among the top priorities of the Canton City Council for 2010.

One goal is to see the installation of a traffic light at the intersection of Highway 20 and Northside Hospital Parkway at the Canton Marketplace development.

“We’ve got the money. We just don’t have the permission,” Mayor Gene Hobgood said about hanging a light at the intersection. The city is waiting on approval for the Georgia Department of Transportation. The city and state “both have a responsibility to make it as safe as possible.”

Councilman John Beresford said he wants to see a trail connecting Heritage and Boling Parks constructed this year.

“That will have a multi-faceted impact on the city.”

Councilman Bill Bryan said the trail would increase awareness of the Etowah River and “the great asset it is for our community.”

Councilwoman Pat Tanner said in addition to the trail, she wants to see a groundbreaking this year for the city’s planned park on Brown Industrial Parkway. The park will include baseball fields as well as softball, multi-use soccer fields and tennis and basketball courts.

Hobgood said the city government this year would also work on streamlining its meetings and purchasing mitigation property to complete the Hickory Log Creek Reservoir.

Councilman Jack Goodwin Gene wants to add Hobgood heart defibrillators to every city police department patrol car, with funding coming from a private source.

Offering more community events in the city to bring in visitors and starting a recycling program are other goals, he said, as is finding funds to increase parking downtown.

“It gets crowded,” he said, especially on days when court is in session at the Justice Center. “We need a parking deck.”

Hobgood reported the city’s finances are improving as part of his “state of the city” address.

Through good, conservative management, Hobgood said the city’s finances are “changing for the better.”

“We were headed down hill. Now, we are on level ground,” he said.

The city had no reserve funds two years ago, but could end the 2010 financial year with as much as $1.5 million in reserves.

“This is significant progress,” Hobgood said.

Hobgood said the city had improved revenues through an audit of its storm water fund and adding customers who had not been paying.

It also grew revenue by increasing collections from businesses that were not paying for business licenses.

Holly Springs city leaders said their goals for the year are modest due to the economy.

“Goals for 2010 will be conservative simply because of the economy and where we are heading,” Mayor Tim Downing said.

“Economic indicators are still very unsure, but Tim Downing we continue to look for opportunities to start our downtown project.”

Though he is not optimistic that it will happen this year, Councilman Jeremy Smith said he wants to see some activity on the downtown project.

The revitalization plan includes construction of a new Holly Springs City Hall, a

retail area and a town green.

“I just want us to stay focused on the downtown area,” he said.

Downing said the council will be looking for opportunities to buy up park land throughout the city. Another goal, he said, is using grant funds to build a citywide trail system for biking, running and recreation.

Councilman Tommy Sanders said for him, public safety is a priority for 2010.

“I’m still passionate about the fire department,” he said about starting a city fire department.

The city government currently contracts with Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services to provide fire service to the city. Property owners in the city pay a county fire tax for the protection. The council for the past few years has talked about bringing the fire service under its control.

Sanders also said working with North Metro Waste to provide recycling bins throughout the city to give residents opportunities to recycle is another goal. The city government recently arranged for the company to set up bins at fire Station 8 on Hickory Road downtown.

Accomplishments from the past year cited by the council include the completion of the realignment of Holly Street and winning a Multi-Use Trails grant from the Department of Natural Resources.

Cleaning up the city, creating partnerships with surrounding governments and possibly moving City Hall are goals on the minds of Nelson officials.

Mayor David Leister said the city government is looking at “organizational enhancements.” City employees currently are David Leister reviewing their procedures and policies to see how they can better streamline operations.

The mayor added he would like to reach out to the neighboring City of Ball Ground government to talk about how both cities could benefit from sharing resources.

Nelson council members said they also are committed to working with residents to clean up city property.

The council recently passed an ordinance that gives the city government the authority to repair, close or demolish buildings or structures that are deemed unfit.

Another goal, Councilwoman Penny Thacker said, is to explore the option of moving City Hall into one former Georgia Marble Company office building that sit behind it.

The buildings were purchased in 2006 from property owner Walter Davis for $139,000. The Blue Ridge Marble and Granite Company currently operates in one building while the other is vacant.

“This would allow more space for meetings,” she said, adding the space is large enough to provide a nice courtroom and more room for city

staff offices. “We can start looking.”

For 2009, city officials said top accomplishments included the hiring of new Police Chief Brad Carroll and the addition of another full-time officer to help with patrolling the streets.

Leister also noted the city’s new partnership with the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office, through which deputies routinely patrol streets on the Pickens side of the city.

The mayor said he would like to enter into a similar partnership with the Cherokee Sheriff’s Office for the Cherokee side of the city that sits on the county line.

A new library and more recreation facilities are among the top priorities set by Waleska city leaders for 2010.

Mayor Doris Jones said the main focus for the city government is opening a public library.

Waleska owns about three acres of land next to Doris Jones Waleska City Hall on Fincher Road. Ms. Jones said the city is working on acquiring three more acres, giving it enough land to build a library.

She said the city currently ranks at No. 28 on the state government’s list of library projects to be funded. “We can move up that list rapidly,” she said. “This year, I’m hoping that we will do that.”

Another priority is to see the splash pad operating at Cline Park this year. In November 2008, the Cherokee County Board of Commissioners approved a $103,944 contract with Timberwolf Pool and Design for installation of an aquatic playground at the park.

Construction of the pad has been held up because of environmental concerns. Ms. Jones said she would help the county’s parks and recreation department in any way to open the water feature this year.

Councilman Floyd Puckett said completing the water line improvement project on Highway 140 would be a big accomplishment for the city.

The city is replacing the current six-inch line on Highway 140 from Lower Burris Road north to Reinhardt College with a 10-inch water line.

Construction should begin in the summer. The city also is extending a water line down Arlington Way. Ms. Jones said a big accomplishment in 2009 was improving the city’s streetlights.

Another accomplishment for 2009 touted by council members was the addition of a water line on Friendship Road, connecting the system between Highway 108 and Land Road.

Woodstock city leaders are counting 2009 as a year of accomplishments, with another slew of projects planned for this year.

Topping officials’ lists of notable achievements are: securing funding for the longanticipated Rope Mill Road interchange at Interstate 575, increasing downtown parking,

forging a partnership with the county government to fund the Greenprints initiative, opening a new senior center and avoiding job cuts.

Officials also touted as successes the government’s move to the City Hall Annex on Highway 92, which gave staff more space and centralized city operations; not increasing property taxes or cutting services; approving the downtown pedestrian crosswalk; and purchasing Woodstock Community Church as its future City Hall site.

The Woodstock City Council in July voted to take out a short-term loan to purchase the church and a 23,030square-foot parking lot next to Morgan’s Ace Hardware downtown. The parking lot opened the weekend before Thanksgiving.

In May, the council announced the state and federal government would fund the bulk of the $22 million proposed Rope Mill Road I-575 interchange. The city used Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax funds to fund rightof-way acquisition, which totaled $3.1 million. The diamond-shape interchange would be between Sixes Road and Towne Lake Parkway and will relieve traffic on both roads. The project is expected to take between 18 and 24 Donnie months to Henriques complete.

Mayor Donnie Henriques said he’s expecting dirt to be turned on the proposed interchange by spring.

The proposed pedestrian crosswalk would allow foot traffic across Main Street from Elm Street to Chambers Street.

The city also secured as much as $5 million in county parks bond revenues to begin constructing portions of its Greenprints Initiative. It will add trails, parks and greenspace throughout Woodstock and connect to surrounding city and county trails.

For 2010, leaders said they would like to move forward with plans to demolish the old municipal complex and expand Woodstock City Park. The expanded park would include an amphitheatre and would

allow more space for the city’s annual summer concert series.

City Manager Jeff Moon said he would like to see the city start the first phase of Towne Lake Parkway and Arnold Mill Road improvements, which would install a left-turn lane at the intersection. He added it’s unlikely the project would begin in 2010 as the design is not yet ready.

Henriques said he would like to see construction begin on the proposed roundabout at North Main Street and Haney Road, one of two planned for downtown.

After a year of operating with decreased revenue, the city is ready for the challenge of another tough budget year.

The city, Henriques said, already has done the “heavy lifting” in the last two years by trimming its budget from $35 million to $29 million.

With the recession looming, Henriques said the city government faces a budget process that will be just as challenging as last year. “In other words, as an offshoot from last year, this coming year is ‘Doing even more, with even less’,” he said.

Henriques also highlighted milestones reached on city projects over the past year.

City officials began the design phase on the Rubes Creek portion of the Greenprints Trail and completed the design of the Taylor Randall Mountain Bike Trail, which encompasses 15 miles of trails connected to the Greenprints Trails.

Officials are moving ahead with plans to create an Elm Street Cultural Arts Village in downtown, which would add an arts center, theater and green space downtown.

The mayor also lauded the launch of the city’s Main Street Program, which unites residents and business owners in revitalizing downtown.

The city government in 2009 gave the area’s senior citizens a permanent home with the renovation of the former Building Department’s facility.

The building now is the new home of the William G. Long Senior Center.

Henriques also applauded the construction of the new Veteran’s Memorial in Woodstock City Park downtown. Its bench dedication program has exceeded the council’s expectations.

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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010/Cherokee Tribune

PROGRESS 2010

PAGE 31E

Religion: Ministerial association raising funds From staff reports

The Cherokee Christian Ministerial Association wants to expand its capabilities to help out in the community this year.

Made up of local pastors and other church leaders, the association aims to Larry Baker raise additional funds to support the needs of the community in 2010.

The Rev. Larry Baker, president of the association,

said the idea for an emergency fund rose out of the September floods that devastated parts of Cherokee County. At $52 million in damage, it was the worst natural disaster the county has seen.

“It would be good if each church could make a contribution,” Baker, pastor of Prayer & Praise Christian Fellowship in Woodstock, said about the new fund.

The association, he said, would not dictate any figure for a church to contribute.

“We need to have a designated fund as things pop up as they do from time to time.”

Woodstock Christian Church Pastor Lynn Eynon, treasurer for the association, said this is an area where the association can be more proactive.

“We can pray and we can talk, but without funds, we are not able to do real things,” he said, adding that the money raised by the association’s membership fees do not go very far.

The association kicked off 2010 with its monthly meeting conducted the first Wednesday of every month at Dayspring Church in southwest Cherokee.

Baker and Eynon were reelected for second one-year terms, as were Secretary Marya Wroten, a member of Dayspring, and Vice President the Rev. Fred Goodwin, pastor of Church of the Messiah in Hickory Flat.

The association also is trying to grow its numbers this year. A goal for 2010 is to double the membership from 25 to 50.

Mrs. Wroten said the ministerial association tries to grow through word of mouth and by inviting church leaders to its monthly meetings, which include lunch and

guest speakers.

“All we want to do is help in our community,” Mrs. Wroten said. “The more churches that are involved, the more we can do.”

Other goals for the year, according to Baker, include encouraging local pastors through personal contacts, emails and phone calls; inviting local pastors to participate in the Billy Graham crusade at the Georgia Dome in April; and continuing to support ministries such as Give Kids A Chance, the Hope Center, Bethany Place and the National Day of Prayer.

The association also is planning a mission trip to Haiti to conduct evangelistic and leadership seminars for Haitian pastors. The group has been backing a mission in Haiti since 2005, where more than 100 Haitian pastors and laypeople are being discipled

by Pastor Jean Paul.

Baker said one of the successes the association had last year was starting a discipleship program. He said some churches have implemented the program, which includes taking disciples through a workbook of lessons so they can be a disciple of their faith.

Senior services: Membership, programs rising From staff reports

More Cherokee County seniors are turning to local support organizations for activities and resources.

Both Cherokee County Senior Services and the City of Woodstock’s William G. Long Senior Center have seen increases in membership.

At the senior center in Woodstock, there were 375 active members in 2008. In 2009, that number increased to 500, and today the center has 570 members.

Betty Rice, senior services coordinator, said the increase is due to the wide variety of programs the center offers.

She said some older seniors come to the center believing there won’t be a diverse offering of activities for them to participate in.

“They get a little surprise,” she said of when new senior citizens visit the new facility on Arnold Mill Road.

At Cherokee County Senior Services, they are averaging 40 people each day at each location, which include the daily programs at the Canton center and weekly programs in Waleska and Ball Ground and on Bells Ferry Road in southwest Cherokee. In 2009, each location saw between 30 and 35 a day, and in 2008, they averaged about 30 daily.

The Canton center’s congregate meal program, which includes lunch and activities on Mondays through Fridays, is seeing 150 people each day, up from 130 last year and 125 in 2008.

The county’s program is also seeing growth with its homedelivered Meals-on-Wheels program. In 2009 and 2008, the county averaged about 160 meals delivered each day. So far this year, the total has jumped to 175 each day.

Barbara Dobyne, the county’s director of senior services, said the increases can be attributed to the growing senior citizen population.

“We also provide good services,” she said.

Barbara Both organizations have big plans for 2010. Dobyne Ms. Rice said she would like to get more Woodstock senior citizens involved in the spring Senior Olympics, recruit more volunteers to work at the center and add more classes to its Learning Enjoyment After Fifty program.

LEAF offers classes in such subjects as painting, singing, crocheting, local history, grandparenting, yoga, knitting, mahjongg, greeting card creation, bridge, basket weaving, woodcarving, mosaics and exercise.

Ms. Rice also said the center will conduct classes this year in identify theft, adult protective services and scam prevention.

“You’ve got to learn and know what to offer,” she said when asked about how class subjects are selected. “If you don’t, they are not going to want to come.”

The Woodstock city government also is applying for a Community Development Block Grant to fund improvements to the center’s courtyard and expansion and resurfacing of its parking lot.

The city is asking for $80,000, said Preston Pooser, Woodstock’s parks and recreation director.

Ms. Dobyne said she would like to reach out to more businesses in the community that could provide services to county senior center patrons, expand program offerings at the four locations and possibly start a basic computer training class.

Ms. Dobyne also mentioned she would like to begin a partnership with the Cherokee County Animal Shelter to allow some seniors to walk pets during the day.

She said the program would benefit both seniors and the pets as they all will get exercise and companionship Along with increasing membership, both organizations saw other successes in 2009.

Ms. Dobyne said her department saw 175 of its seniors “adopted” for its annual Adopt-A-Senior Christmas program, which provides presents to Meals-on-Wheels clients.

Ms. Dobyne said about 20 children were placed through its Kinship Program, which arranges for grandchildren of senior center members to attend day camps at the Canton Family YMCA or the Mimms Boys & Girls Club.

Senior Services also partnered with Comfort Keepers to provide in-home care items such as walkers, wheelchairs and lift chairs for seniors in need.

Ms. Dobyne said budget constraints last year prevented her department from presenting its annual “Bankers and Business”

bowling challenge, which raises money for the county senior services. She said she hopes the fundraiser will be presented this year.

The move from the Woodstock Community Center to the former city building department facility was perhaps the biggest success the city’s senior center saw in 2009, Ms. Rice said.

After the city government moved its operations to the Woodstock City Hall Annex on Highway 92, the senior center was able to move into the building department space.

Ms. Rice said starting the LEAF program, beginning defensive driving courses, conducting movie and ice cream socials as well as various once-a-month informational programs were successes as well.

The center in 2009 also began a weekly lunch or dinner social for which volunteers cook a gourmet meal to serve to seniors at the facility.

Ms. Rice said the center’s New Year’s Eve party was successful, too, with 65 people attending.

Another new addition for the center last year was offering overnight trips last year. In September, senior center members went to Savannah. In June, they will travel to Branson, Mo. to see county and western shows, and will visit Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, Tenn., to see the Great Smoky Mountains.

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PAGE 32E

PROGRESS 2010

Cherokee Tribune/SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2010

Courts: Technology easing caseload From staff reports

The Cherokee County court system is eyeing technological upgrades to improve efficiency throughout the Justice Center.

Clerk of Courts Patty Baker said she hopes to launch a new case management system as soon as March.

The current system is “not as current as the technology could be,” she said.

The new system will be Web-based and allow for data sharing between the county’s superior, state and magistrate courts. It also will be linked to the sheriff’s, district attorney’s and solicitor’s offices as well as probation and pre-trial services and the City of Woodstock.

“This system has added bells and whistles my current system does not have,” she said.

The software for the case management system is free to the county, as Mrs. Baker won a $326,000 data exchange program grant from the Patty Baker Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia.

County State Court Judge Alan Jordan said the new system will cut down on the number of times information is entered into a computer. This, he said, will streamline the court system and cut down on opportunities for information to be entered incorrectly or be lost.

“Sometimes, information literally gets lost,” he said. The new system “is just better for everybody.”

Mrs. Baker said this year she also would like to install two flat-screen TV monitors at the Justice Center to display a daily schedule of court activities. The monitors would be placed at each entrance. Her office currently posts paper sched- Alan Jordan ules throughout the courthouse.

“It would save paper and a lot of time,” she said of the monitors, adding it can take as long as 30 minutes to distribute the paper schedules throughout the entire courthouse.

The monitors are expected to cost about $29,000, and the money will come from the clerk of court’s technology fund.

She said she hopes to have the monitors in place before the end of the year.

Mrs. Baker also is working on installing an electronic warrant program. It would allow law enforcement officers from a laptop computer in their patrol car or their precinct to communicate with a judge to get search and arrest warrants.

Magistrate Court Judge James Drane said an electronic warrant system would keep officers in their patrol area rather than on the road to and from the court at the Justice Center.

“As an example, if you’re an officer in the Bells Ferry area, and you have a warrant that needs to be signed, currently you have to make a trip to the courthouse, find a judge, make copies and then make a return trip back to your James Drane precinct,” Drane said. “The electronic warrant project will save the officer at least a 20-minute ride to and from the courthouse.”

Another project, Mrs. Baker said, is to install video conferencing between the Justice Center at Adult Detention Center. This system would reduce the need to transport inmates back and forth from the two facilities and also would be a convenience for staff.

Both programs are being funded by Department of Justice grants: $76,360 for the electronic warrant system and $46,200 for video conferencing.

Mrs. Baker said her goal is to have the both programs operat-

ing within a couple of months.

“It will really bring Cherokee County into the 21st century,” she said.

The Probate Court is expanding its online services this year.

Last year, the court put applications for firearm licenses, marriage licenses and temporary guardianship forms on its Web site, giving the applicant the ability to read and print them from home. The site can be accessed through the county government’s Web site at www.cherokeega.com.

Probate Court Judge Keith Wood said he wants to add a searchable index of estates to the site so interested parties can see if a copy of the estate documents is held by the court.

“It could save trips and save time on requests of the staff to look up estates,” Wood said about the benefit of the feature.

He said if an estate is listed, the interested party still would need to come to the court’s offices at the Justice Center to study the document. If it is not listed, it would cut down on the number of unnecessary trips made to the court.

Wood said the court also will continue adding historical re-cords to its digital database. The court Keith Wood has made “great strides” in placing records into a digital format.

Most estate files dating back to the 1930s have been digitized and are available for review via a computer terminal in the court’s research room.

Cherokee’s courts also are dealing with increasing caseloads, but some relief is on the way.

The county’s state court judges said they are eagerly awaiting an appointment to the newly created third state court position. The position was approved by the Georgia General Assembly last year.

County Solicitor General David Cannon Jr., Appalachian Judicial Circuit Assistant District Attorney Allen Dee Morris and attorney Jeffrey Rusbridge of the Dyer & Rusbridge law firm in Canton are the three finalists for the position.

Interviews with the candidates have not yet been completed, according to the office of Gov. Sonny Perdue. It is up to the governor to name an appointee to the post.

The new judge will join Judge C.J. Gober and Jordan on the bench. Gober said because of the delay, the court is bringing in an outside judge four or five days a week to help with the caseload.

The state court had 4,013 civil cases last year, an increase from 3,545 cases in 2008. The court did see significantly fewer criminal cases last year. There were 12,389 such cases last year, down from 17,207 in 2008.

Jordan said he also would like to expand the domestic violence court. The court is a special day just for arraignment and bond issues for those specific cases. By doing all of them on the same day, Jordan said the court is able to have victims sub- C.J. Gober poenaed for arraignment (usually victims are subpoenaed only for trials), and they can have input on what sentence the defendant will receive if they plead guilty.

Jordan said he would like to see the court create a separate mental health court to give extra attention to those cases as well.

It would work in the same manner as the domestic violence court.

“We don’t just need to lock them up,” Jordan said. “We need to get those folks back on their feet instead of in jail.”

Gober said a big achievement for the court in the past year was the continued success of the DUI and Drug Treatment Court he founded.

The court, which coordinates substance-abuse intervention for repeat DUI offenders with judicial support through sanction and incentives, opened its own laboratory at the Justice Center last year. The lab is used for drug and alcohol testing, which is required for people enrolled in the program.

“Ultimately, we hope to have it used by other courts and other agencies,” Gober said.

Drane said he also is focused on providing the highest possible service to the county despite a reduced budget and increasing caseload.

There were 31,038 items requiring a hearing or opinion addressed by the court last year, and Drane expects that number to increase.

Drane said the court’s accomplishments in the past year include helping the state, juvenile and probate courts with their caseloads instead of having the county spend money on bringing in judges from other counties.

The court also redesigned in-house court forms and began closing files that had accumulated over a number of years, allowing the court to move the files from its office and into storage, which conserves office space.

The court additionally came to an agreement with the Ninth District Judicial Office and Forsyth Magistrate Court to eliminate any cost with cases involving the recusal of a judge.

Under the agreement, Cherokee will forward recusal cases to Forsyth County, and vice versa, at no cost to either county government.

Wood said last year’s accomplishments also include selecting John Cline as an associate judge for the probate court. As a second probate court judge, Cline can handle cases that need immediate attention.

In 2009, there were 5,597 total filings in the probate court, an increase from 4,821 filings in 2008.

“This year, I will anticipate another increase,” Wood said.

The number of delinquent juvenile cases in the county’s Juvenile Court also continues to grow, In 2008, the court had 1,862 cases, 796 of which were delinquent juvenile cases. Last year, the court had 1,806 cases, 929 of which were delinquent juvenile cases.

Identifying more effective anti-drug and alcohol programs is on his to-do list, Judge John Sumner said, as he is seeing juveniles abusing drugs at younger ages.

Sumner said building two more courtrooms for the court in the Justice Center in downtown Canton is his top goal for 2010.

“We are just about finished with the plans,” Sumner said, noting a timeline for construction has not yet been set.

John Sumner The courtrooms will be built in the thirdfloor space vacated by the county Board of Commissioners when they moved to the new Administration Building at The Bluffs in Canton.

Sumner said he would like to see construction get started as soon as possible, as he and Judge Tony Baker currently share Courtroom 2B. The move, he added, would open up Courtroom 2B for other court system needs.

The juvenile court also has a small room on the ground floor that is used for special cases and overflow, “but it is very small.

There is just one pew for sitting,” Sumner said.