The Paper April 19 2012

Page 1

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SPORTS: Mill Creek clinches top 2 seed region tennis, 1B

‘Lady’ showcased at Fur Ball. 3B 50¢

THURSDAY, april 19, 2012

Alcohol questions on July 31 ballot By LEANNE AKIN lakin@clickthepaper.com Jackson County voters will have two questions on the July 31 ballot related to Sunday alcohol sales in the unincorporated area. The referendum relates to an amendment to the county ordinance regulating sales of distilled spirits, wine and beer. The county ordinance was passed Sept. 11, 2006. After the State of Georgia gave local governments the authority to put the issue of Sunday sales to the voters, municipalities in Jackson County and surrounding counties had referendums which were approved. District 3 Commissioner Bruce Yates said

that created some confusion for some alcohol license-holding restaurants and commercial businesses which were located in unincorporated Jackson County. Some suggest there is also a competitive disadvantage for those establishments. Yates said he had been requested to give the voters the opportunity to consider Sunday sales for Jackson County. County Manager Kevin Poe said, if approved, the referendum would allow for Sunday sales at the five restaurants with pouring license and 10 locations where package sales are currently permitted. Voters would decide whether “to allow or disapprove of consumption of distilled spir-

its, wine and malt beverages on Sundays between the hours of 12:30 p.m. and midnight in any appropriately licensed establishment.” The other question would be “to allow or disapprove of the retail packaged sales of wine and malt beverages on Sundays between the hours of 12:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. in any appropriately licensed establishment.” Yates made the motion on the measure with Chairman-elect Chas Hardy, who presided in the absence of Chairman Hunter Bicknell, providing the second. The motion was unanimously approved. In other business, approval was given by the commission of the list of roads for paving with Special Purpose Local Option Sales

Preparing for Panther Project

Tax (SPLOST) 5 dollars, which is expected to generate $6.8 million during its entire collection. Poe said he is recommending that $1.7 million of SPLOST 5 be spent for 23.54 miles of road paving in 2012. Poe said he hopes the county can negotiate with the contractor selected by the Georgia Department of Transportation for work under its Local Maintenance & Improvement Grant (LMIG). County crews will prepare the roads for paving. Jackson County will get 6.55 miles paved under LMIG this year including Mize Road, Pond Fork Church Road, Cedar Trail, Indian Creek Lane and Oconee Lane.

See COMMISSION, page 3A

More jobs on the horizon, hints Governor

Deal addresses 9th District GOP convention hosted at Jefferson Civic Center By ASHLEY FIELDING Regional staff

LeAnne Akin The Paper

Ground was ceremoniously broken Tuesday for the Panther Project, a new arena gym and a fine arts facility at Jackson County Comprehensive High School. During a break in the Jackson County Board of Education’s annual retreat, the board joined with school officials to grab hardhats and gold shovels to mark the project which will get under way in May. Kendall S. Dutton of Bowen & Watson, the construction manager at risk, and Steve McCune of the architectural and engineering firm of Southern A&E, were on hand for an update on the project. The ceremony included Superintendent Dr. Shannon Adams moving some dirt after James Savage readied the area in front of the existing auditorium for the occasion. Students applauded as Dr. Adams handled the job. According to Dutton, 128 proposals were received for the project including 72 from subcontractors or vendors from a 50-mile radius. Dutton said the anticipated $10.8 million came in under budget when bids were opened last week. The bid packages are still under review.

JEFFERSON — Gov. Nathan Deal, fresh off jobs announcements in Jackson and Clarke counties, hinted at more to come as he spoke to Republicans from the 9th Congressional District on April 13. Deal told Northeast Georgia Republicans that nearly 30,000 new jobs have been created in Georgia since he became governor in 2011. Deal mentioned a February announcement of 1,400 new jobs in Clarke and Oconee counties by tractor manufacturer Caterpillar. “You’re going to hear some more good news in the not-too-distant future,” Deal told the crowd. He declined to be more specific on coming jobs announcements after his speech. But he said a future announcement likely will be as big as the February Caterpillar announcement in Athens. “We’re hoping there will be some big ones — prob-

See GOVERNOR, page 2A

Candidates for new 9th rally GOP faithful By ASHLEY FIELDING Regional staff

Hoschton planning board gathers more input on senior development By LEANNE AKIN lakin@clickthepaper.com A 55 and better community is proposed within Creekside Villages, a single-family residential subdivision which remains undeveloped adjacent to Hoschton Park. The Beverly Searles Foundation of Duluth is requesting that 14 acres of the 119-acre subdivision parcel be rezoned to allow for 72 multi-family residential units for persons 55 and older. The Hoschton Planning and Zoning Commission convened Monday to hear the request for a change of conditions for Hoschton Senior Village. The commission tabled action until a 7 p.m. April 30 meeting at which additional comments will be received. A second round of public hearings will be conducted before the commission would make its nonbinding recommendation to the Hoschton City Council. The council is to consider the matter at its May regular meeting.

INSIDE Church Entertainment Events Features Forum

4A 5B 6B 3B 6A

Also at the Monday meeting, the commission elected Richard Shepherd as chairman and Tracy Jordan as vice chairman. Also serving on the commission is John Schulte, Mark Castleberry and Chuck Fisk. While the existing zoning is R-3 High Density Residential, a change in conditions is being requested as the multi-family within a developing suburban neighborhood as the property is not designated on the city’s Future Land Use Map. The current zoning is single-family detached residential. Surrounding parcels are zoned Agriculture, Light Industrial, Medium Density Residential and General Commercial Highway Oriented, according to consultant Guy Herring of McFarland-Dyer & Associates. Phillip Searles said his father and his uncle created the foundation to honor his grandmother who died three months before he was born. The foundation uses low income tax credits to meet its mission of providing affordable housing to

Volume 6, Number 24 Government 5A 4A Obituaries Pastor’s Pen 4A Puzzles 5B Sports 1-2B

seniors. Sweetwater Terraces in Duluth is an example of the type of housing provided through the foundation. Searles invited the commission to visit and take a tour of that independent living community which is much like what he envisions for Hoschton. One- and two-bedroom units are proposed with the estimated 40 two-bedroom units renting for an average of $625 per month and the 32 one-bedroom units renting for a monthly average of $560. Ten units would start at $445, Searles said of the rental attached villa product. Searles said tax credits are provided by the federal government through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to the states based on population. In Georgia, the Department of Community Affairs administers the program. He hopes to be successful in applying for $8 million in low income tax credits to go toward the $10 million proj-

See HOSCHTON, page 3A

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JEFFERSON — They are “the base, the bedrock and the foundation” of the region’s Republican Party. And they are getting ready for November. GOP faithful from the 9th Congressional District gathered in Jefferson last weekend, filling a convention hall to elect representatives to this summer’s national party convention and to reignite the fire in their bellies to rally around the Republican cause. Of the nearly 500 people organizers said attended the weekend’s district convention, only six can represent the district this August in Tampa. One will be Hall County Republican Jim Pilgrim. But U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, in a Saturday morning speech, called the rest “the base, the bedrock and the foundation of the Republican Party,” because of their role as party evangelists this fall. While there are no U.S. Senate seats up for election in Georgia this year, Isakson urged 9th District Republicans to reach out to friends in other states and to work for the party’s cause there. There are 33 Senate seats up for election in other states, most held by Democrats. “If you don’t think November is important, then think again,” Isakson said. And although they’ve not yet officially chosen a nominee for president, Isakson and others at the weekend’s convention urged unity for November, which may be a concern for the party with such a long primary season. Though Mitt Romney is the presumptive nominee, a

See CONVENTION, page 2A

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