CMYK Local
The Paper | Thursday, June 21, 2012
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Primary election is Tuesday, July 31
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Braselton’s Mayor and Council cut the ceremonial ribbon June 11 to open Davis Street in its historic downtown. “We are pleased this street is complete,” said Mayor Bill Orr, “as Davis Street, the prime local artery connecting GA 53 and 124, serves as the gateway to the town’s library.” Town Manager Jennifer Dees said, “it’s wonderful to see this creating economic development opportunities in the downtown and eliminating the safety concerns of the offset interchange.” Left to right: State Sen. Frank Ginn, Bayne Smith of Georgia Department of Transportation, Councilman Dudley Ray, Mayor Bill Orr, Councilman Tony Funari, Councilwoman Peggy Slappey and Downtown Development Authority members Cindy Phillips and Kathy Robinson, State Rep. Tommy Benton, Brady Kriegel and DDA member Peggy Kriegel.
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Authority has position to be filled ing to adopt its budget which includes funding for the director’s position and equipment and materals for setup of that office. The temporary message boards put up by the road contractor on the Zion Church Road project were very helpful, the authority agreed, but Dees said the city’s contractor did not have those signs. A short-term solution would be directional street signs that can be ordered through the Georgia Correctional Institute and be delivered in two weeks. Special order signs take longer. Since brown is the historic district, parks and other attraction sign color, the DDA went with brown rather than standard green which Dees said she thought may be overlooked. Six large brown signs reading “Downtown Braselton Business District” will be ordered in a motion by Eubanks which was seconded by Cindy Phillips. A $700 maximum purchase was authorized for the signs, posts and u-channels for erecting the signs. The desired locations were discussed and Dees will coordinate the final location and installation.
Town Green start is slowed
Work on the Town Green which was to begin when the roadwork was wrapping up is being delayed as the town waits for the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA) to approve the documents for the release of $500,000 in Community Development Block Grant funds. Although the schedule called for the project to go out for bids in May, DCA has not yet finalized the funding request. “We are waiting on DCA,” said Dees.
Authority has opening No applications have yet to be received for the vacant position on the DDA although two applications have been picked up. The post was vacated by Pat Graham, who resigned when she officially qualified to seek election as commission chairman of Barrow County. As the lone qualifier, she will assume the office in January. Graham, who was at the meeting, said she became involved with the DDA as an interested citizen prior to her election as mayor of Braselton. Applicants for the DDA position may live in Braselton or be and owner/operator of a business in the downtown area.
on the campaign trail. The candidates had appeared in other communities during the day. Each provided an opening statement and then fielded questions from moderator Bob Ragsdale, State Director of Field Services for Georgia Farm Bureau. Among the most important congressional priorities for Georgia revolve around bring government back around to the principles of the founding fathers, said Fitzpatrick. The power grabs by the President and the judicial branch should be stopped but Congress had chosen not to stop it. Cutting spending is vital, according to Zoller. A better taxation plan is also needed and Zoller says she is a FairTaxer but is willing to look for a change in legislation. “We have a little problem, we hit it with a hammer,” said Zoller of the knee-jerk reaction to issues such as the banking crisis, for example. For Zoller, the region has to needs: agriculture and water. “We all need it, and there are about 26 states with similar issues. We need to partner up and get this system right.” She suggests there must be a real solution. Consistent conservative action is what Collins maintains is needed. “One thing we’ve done in Georgia is we’ve balanced the budget. Yes, we are constitutionally required to but we did it without taxes.” A zero-based budget is one example of what is happening in Georgia that is needed on the Federal level, Collins suggests. They were asked about a guest worker program since agriculture, Georgia’s number one industry, is heavily dependent on guest workers. Zoller said the borders must be secured, and the visa problem must be fixed. “More people are overstaying than are coming in,” she said. Having a work permit is the answer although it will require some effort
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by the farmer. She suggests looking at the plan the United States had in the 1950s. An executive order is not a fix. Collins agreed the border must be enforced. “Congress needs to go back to being congress” and determine how we can get a legal workforce for agriculture and other business. “We are a nation of laws,” said Fitzpatrick. “If it’s a law, obey it. If it’s a bad law, change it. We have people who have come into this country illegally and they have broken the law.” He suggest that most Americans are immigrants and a policy must be followed. Federal regulations are increasingly costly and cumbersome to the business community. Candidates were asked about ideas to reduce and/or streamline the regulatory process. Collins said those regulations are strangling out new business’ entrepreneurial spirit. The ability to focus on the pursuit of happiness is impeded by government as it overstepped its role. Collins suggests examining what is benefit and what is cost of a regulation. He says it’s time to get back to accountability. Fitzpatrick said it’s government run amuck when you lose the farm because EPA says that water in the ditch is a navigable waterway. “Total elimination of the EPA at the national level would be one of the best things we could do,” said Fitzpatrick, who said going back to the Constitution would show that EPA is not one of the specific powers given to the federal government. The state has a division for handling the same area. He would also eliminate Department of Education, because it is not in the Constitution – it is a state responsibility. Zoller agreed that there are departments that need to be eliminated, and others need streamlining. “We need to get back to 50 percent of the regulation we currently have,” she said. On term limits and no pensions, Fitzpatrick said he opposes pensions and favors term limits as does Zoller. Collins said elections take care of turnover. More at ClickthePaper.com