Recreation Park Work Continues

The work at the Brantley County Recreation Park continues. In recent days, the road up to the park has been finalized, the County crews are working to prepare the parking lot dirt work for base and paving and other members of the County crews are working to prepare the football and soccer fields. The fence contractor has completed swapping out some troubled poles and has begun capping the fence with protective foam. The Commission is working with the OREMC to bring in appropriate electrical service to power the well. As that comes together, a well will be installed for irrigation purposes. That irrigation is currently out for bids. While the project has met with some setbacks, the County is optimistic that as long as the dry weather holds out, the football and soccer fields will be ready for the fall, but there is much work to do. The County is also having to balance the work load carefully between construction and road maintenance. Where the County saves significantly when work is completed in-house, the primary role of the road department is to maintain County roads. So, this has to be a top priority. At present, both are being accomplished without too many issues.

As you've heard stated before, everything the Commission does has a cost component which is taken very seriously. The recreation project has been completed thus far with the use of Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) dollars. So, that extra one cent that you pay when you purchase a Coke, biscuit or hamburger helps provide these kind of facilities. When the next SPLOST referendum comes before the community, please ride by these facilities and look at all the road paving projects that are under way (five currently) and realize what a "YES" vote on a SPLOST referendum does for the community WITHOUT raising your property taxes.

The Recreation Park is located near Lulaton, off of Highway 82 behind the Georgia Forestry Commission.

Courthouse Facelift Continues

The low bidder for the courthouse renovation project is hard at work sanding, painting and replacing old wood and trim. D&D Decorators, a Brantley based firm, won the bid and is working to make the County Courthouse more presentable. They have pressure washed the courthouse, started scraping, priming and painting over and under each window, repairing trim, eaves, etc. around the roof, worked on the gable ends and much more. The balcony's are also being repaired with new wood and paint to make them more presentable. D&D will also clean up and paint the clock. The County is seeking out a firm or individual that might be able to repair the clock, as it hasn't worked in many years. We'd love to see this back in service.

The County should take pride in the courthouse and this step by the Commission is in line with what has been a focused effort to reestablish the County seat's center place in the community. The halls have been completely cleared of filing cabinets and books. There are only a couple of items left that need to be sorted through by the Clerk of Court and the and Probate Judge, and those will be gone in a week or two. If funds are available, the inside may be painted, now that the walls are accessible.

Recently, the carpet was replaced throughout the courthouse by Spires Carpet, which caused some disruption of services, for which the Commission would like to apologize. This was something that had been needed for a long time. Likewise, the roof was repaired by Brantley Roofing to stop the leaks, and the old jail was torn down by the County's own staff to save money and to make room for much needed parking. A land exchange is under way with a neighbor that will improve the property that the County already owns, where the rock parking lot is located next to Highway 82. This could serve as the home for a new Courthouse Annex one day down the road. This is across from where the new Jerry J's is going to be located.

An evaluation of the windows was completed, as many of the dual panels have failed, causing them to fog and many of the windows will not properly close, causing gross inefficiencies with heating and cooling, which increase ongoing operational expenses at the courthouse. Options for repairs or replacements are still under review. Independent of our efforts, the Clerk of Superior Court, Cindy Crews, is working with funds from the law library and with the Superior Court Judges to upgrade the sound system
in the courtroom.

The good news is that all of this has been accomplished within the budgeted funds for the courthouse renovation, so these improvements are completely budget neutral. That is a fancy way of saying that we didn't go over budget. With everything the Commission has undertaken, the burden on the tax payer and public safety is always center stage. The Commission sincerely appreciates the kind words and comments from the community on the efforts to whip the Courthouse back into shape. As new potential citizens and businesses travel to Brantley County, the Courthouse needs to be an impressive site of the combination of history and current County government working in concert. This is the goal of the Commission.

Needed Right of Way for Buster Walker Road Paving Project‏

The County has worked through the 76 property owners on Buster Walker Road and lack only the six parcels from the five land owners below. If you have a contact method for any of these individuals, please contact the County Commission office at (912)462-5256. If these owners can't be located, the property will have to be condemned, so that the road can be widened and paved. The County has already given the attorney the authority to do this, but they wanted to make one last effort to locate these individuals.

Ronald E. Ham
Chairman - Brantley County Commission

Parcel #36 - Alanzo & Joy Brady, Parcel #37 - Errol & Claudine Sadler, Parcel #54,55 - Dufort Joseph & Widline Senatus, Parcel #60 - Maria Punch, Parcel #45 - Chesterfield & Jacqueline Wilson.

Brantley County Selected for Grant on Boat Ramp‏

The following was a note received from Jennifer Kline with DNR. She's been working on this with Brantley County for the last 12 months.

"I just wanted to congratulate you and Brantley county. Georgia DNR/Coastal Resources Division and NOAA have selected your Coastal Incentive Grant Proposal to construct a new boat ramp for public access. This is a project that the commissioners and myself have been aiming for over a year now. It is great to see it coming to life. This grant project will start October 1 2010. You will be receiving a letter with more details, but I just wanted to let you know the great news. Please feel free to give me a call if you have any questions.

Jennifer Kline
Coastal Resources Specialist
Georgia Department of Natural Resources"

County Commission Continues to Make Progress

In the Public Hearing to discuss the Mobile Home Ordinance and Section 801 of the Subdivision Ordinance, very few people were in attendance. Since there was little if any public comment, the vast majority of the conversation took place among the Commissioners and members of the planning commission that were in attendance. Some changes were recommended to the proposed language in the mobile home ordinance. Section 801 remained as submitted.

During public participation at the Regular meeting, the Board heard from a variety of individuals that were concerned over items. They also received an update from Courtney Reich, the grant specialist helping with the Future Land Use Technical Advisory Committee (FLUTAC). Ms. Reich explained the process to the Board, provided a status update and presented a number of maps that have been created throughout the process. The project is well on its way to meet the deadlines of this fall.

In the regular meeting, the Commission approved several items on the consent agenda, including,
• the submission of and participation in a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) for a new building for the Satilla Community Services group.
• the Satilla Community Services annual contract renewals for 1) Behavioral Health Services to inmates at the county jail and 2) Mental Health Services, Developmental Disabilities Services / Substance Abuse Services.
• Appointing Terry Steedley and reappointing Shane Courson to the Recreation Advisory Committee.
• Amending the Human Resources Policy to define bereavement leave at 8 hours per day.
• Approving the consolidation of several old capital projects accounts that totaled $80,279.78, which will be assigned to the Recreation Facilities account, which has approximately $15,000 in it now.
• Accepting the bid from D&D Decorators for painting and repairs to the outside of the courthouse for $9720.
• Approving the lease purchase agreement for the infield machine for the Recreation Department, to be used to maintain the fields at the new and older parks.
• Approving to enter into a contract with the Area Agency on Aging for Congregate Meals and home Delivered Meals (Senior Center).
• Approving the closing of Tiger Bay Road from the Intersection of Perry Hickox Road and Tiger Bay to Highway 82.
• Approving a Proclamation proclaiming the week of May 16 through 22, 2010 as National Emergency Medical Services (EMS) week.

On the regular agenda, the Commission opened up with a presentation by the Tax Assessors Office. They presented a request to hire a new Tax Appraiser. The Tax Assessors have budgeted for the manpower for next year and feel that having had an absence for the last 3 months with no Chief Appraiser, there will be sufficient funds to not run the department over budget this year. Ken Davis and Billy Lee were in attendance at the meeting and both explained that they would do everything within their power to deliver the digest on time. But, they made it clear that the additional position would not be here in time to help deliver this year’s digest. Having two new and well trained personnel in the office to fill occasional vacancies due to illness or vacation would provide for much smoother and more timely processing overall. The men also asked that the old Ford Explorer with 233,000+ miles on it be retired and a new more economical vehicle be purchased. The Commission asked the County manager to work with their office to define the needs and bring some recommendations back to the June meeting.

The Board decided to leave Lee Cemetery Road as is. Much discussion took place about gating the road or where the County could legally “block” the road so as to keep it available should someone need to get to the cemetery that is at its end. Since no legal solution could be discovered, the road will be left open.

Language from the Attorney was provided to the Commission, which attempted to give the Board much more latitude in granting or denying a liquor license and to grant some additional requirements for persons who happen to fall within the final 10% of the distance limitation to a residence. After much discussion and some confusion, the motion to adopt the language failed.

The Board asked the County manager to work with the County attorney to publish a request for bids for the purchase and removal of scrap steel from the land fill. The current contract calls for $40 per ton and, with the price of steel at an all time high, the County would be better served for the fee to be tied to an index for scrap steel. This will be presented at next month’s meeting.

The Commission approved the new Section 801 of the Subdivision Ordinance with an effective date of June 1, 2010. The proper advertisements and publications have been completed.

The County attempted to approve the newly modified mobile home ordinance, but the motion was withdrawn. When it was realized that the entire ordinance was not included in the new language and that there was conflict between new and what would be remaining text, the Commission asked the County Manager to get with the County attorney and the planning commission and let them go through the language. A called meeting will be held in approximately 2 weeks to review and hopefully approve the new language. The Board’s intent is to do away with the age limitation, migrate to a “minimum safety standards” definition and inspection and to define language that allows for licensed mobile home dealers and installers to bring a mobile home to their lot, make repairs within a timely manner and then move the mobile home to a final destination after appropriate inspections have been passed.

The Commission adopted the Intergovernmental Agreement between the City and the County for fire protection services. The County will create a special fire district in the City of Nahunta and fire taxes collected from those citizens will go to the Nahunta VFD for those services. This will not take effect until January 1, 2011. Much preparation will need to be completed before this can all be accomplished. The County attorney was asked to draw up the resolution to define the Nahunta Special Fire District.

The County approved the low bidder for the Volunteer Fire Department Substations for 110 North, Post Road North, Raybon, Hoboken and Mt. Calvary/High Bluff. The low bidder was $46,350 and includes a the building and installation for a 40x70 building with 3 - 12’ x 12’ drive-in doors, 2 3’-0” walk in doors, 2 4’ by 4’ windows, 3” insulation all around, complete 4000 psi foundation, 40’ by 40’ aprons in front of the drive bay doors with gutters front and rear. The fire fighters will have to finish out the inside and install wells and septic tanks at these locations. USDA financing will be used, along with hopefully some grant money for the buildings with a short term loan of 48 to 60 months. The increased fire tax last year was implemented for the construction of these stations, with a goal of lowering home owner insurance premiums. The County has received numerous reports of individuals having their ISO ratings go from a 10 to a 5 or 6, which lead to a $500 or more reduction in homeowner’s insurance. The County has a fine group of volunteer fire fighters and should be proud.

Memphis Way was discussed, as there were some that were in attendance that requested the road stay open. They explained that while it is short, it is a critical road when old 32 road is too wet to travel. The Board voted to leave this road open.

The Board approved right of way (ROW) deeds for Buster Walker Road as they keep coming in. This week the Board has released for proposals Waynesville Road, Boots Harrison Road and Satilla Church Road. There should be much activity in the next 90 days around road construction and paving around the County. ROW deeds are being sought for Mt. Calvary and Dude Circle. Mt. Calvary will be paved from the church all the way through to High Bluff Rock Road.

The Board also agreed to advertise for the proposed land exchange with Mr. William “Pryce” Brooker, where he will exchange a small portion of his holdings across from the courthouse up close to Highway 82 at the rear of the rock parking area now for a 60’ strip of County property on the East border of that same lot. This will give the County more property facing the courthouse for the time when the County is able to use the property for more than a parking lot.

The County Commission also authorized the County attorney, the airport authority director and the Chairman to complete the negotiations with Berkley Surety, Nicholson Consulting, LPA Group and Littlefield Construction to get the airport project moving again. Meetings and discussions have been held this week and last that have the project moving. There are in excess of $1.5 million in funding at risk if the project can’t get back on track. A part of this process also includes cleaning up a situation that was created when Folsom failed to perform on their contract to build the airport. A “take over” agreement was presented to the Board tonight ,with several edits which were the culmination of LPA, airport authority and County Attorney inputs throughout this process. Lord willing, in a week or 10 days there will be a contract in place which will get Littlefield back on the job.

The County manager explained that he’d been asked by one Commissioner to suggest that the County have the County Attorney write a letter to the Board of Education asking their intention on meeting their obligation on the 1997 agreement. But, another Commissioner explained that he had arranged a meeting for himself and the Chairman to meet with the superintendent to discuss how progress might be made on this issue, so the Board took no action on the request for the letter.

Dumpsters Removed

Based on the voting of the Board, and after the necessary advertisements, sign postings and dispersal, the dumpster sites that were formerly on 110 North and Browntown Road have been eliminated. These sites have been consolidated into the 259 South dumpster location. The County is moving forward with house to house garbage. A target date to begin pickup is mid to late July of this year. The contractor is working hard to move that date up so that the remainder of the dumpsters can be eliminated.

The County appreciates the patience and cooperation of all citizens through these transitions that will certainly bring about a cleaner Brantley.

Ronald E. Ham
Chairman - Brantley County Commission

Brantley County Airport - Project Meeting

In order to get the airport project moving, the Chairman called a meeting with the bonding company for Folsom, and all other parties involved, to get the ball rolling and complete this project. Departments represented included the Folsom's Bonding Company, their sub contractor, the LPA Group - Airport Engineering, Georgia DOT, the BC Airport Authority, BC Attorney, BC Engineering Consultant, BC Surveyor and others. The meeting was archived and a sign up sheet was completed for the official record.

Late last year, the Folsom Company was building the airport. For one reason or another, they were unable to finish the contract and eventually went under. The bonding company then stepped in and took over all of Folsom's projects, including ours. For one reason or another, the information needed (the amount of dirt, concrete and asphalt) needed to complete the airport took far longer to assess than was originally expected. Last month, the LPA Group made that information available to Nicholson Consulting, who is the subcontractor for the Bonding Company. They had already bid the project based on "remaining volumes", which were very close to those calculated once the March Survey results were made available by the LPA group. Littlefield Construction was the winning bidder on a "per unit" bid, based on the previous volumes. Since the per unit price is slightly less, there will be no increase in cost to complete the airport. If there were, it would be the responsibility of the bonding company anyway. The airport runway is 3 to 4 inches lower than the specification that was approved by GDOT and FAA. Many asked if the airport could just be paved at its current elevation. This would require approval from the GDOT and the FAA, which could take much longer. Littlefield understands that the airport has to be raised and they are prepared to move in and finish the job within 120 days of a signed contract and their arrival. The lighting contractor understands that the lights will have to be adjusted and the fee for that is already known.

Based on the meeting Wednesday, the following actions were agreed upon and are to take place in the next 8 business days.

1. Andy with Nicholson is to get the modified units of work for the contract with Littlefield back to Jacob at LPA before 5pm Thursday. Jacob is out Thursday.
2. Mike with Berkley will email a copy of the RFP response from Littlefield with a copy of the details, the bid specifications and units of work that went out to vendors.
3. Jacob with LPA group on Friday will review the modified number of units and return them to Andy.
4. Andy will check with Littlefield to see how soon they can be on site to begin construction after the contract is approved.
5. Mike with Berkley will draft a 3 way tendering agreement between Brantley County, Littlefield Construction and Berkley and deliver same by Monday noon Eastern to Mary Gibson, Tom Lee and Chairman Ham.
6. Tom Lee, Brantley County Attorney, will review the language and provide his feedback that business day.
7. Tom will deliver a draft to Dale Halligan during the day on Tuesday for inclusion in the meeting of the Brantley County Commission Tuesday night. That night, the Commission will consider approval of the contract, subject to legal review and finalization.
8. Wednesday - Thursday, Tom will work with Mary Gibson, Airport Authority Director, and Berkley, to adjust the legal language in the contract so that it is acceptable to all parties.
9. Friday, Jacob with LPA will email Chairman Ham and Mary Gibson PDF files of the specification drawings of the airport (11x14s) for BC file copy.
10. Mary Gibson will follow up with Mr. Evans from GDOT to file for reimbursement for work Brantley County completed.
11. The first goal is to have a complete and executed contract by close of business next Friday to complete the airport to the original specifications in a timely manner.
12. Secondly, we desire to clean up the mess left in the wake of Folsom's departure.

During the conversations today, the following outstanding debts or necessary incremental costs were discussed as the bond company's responsibility:

* Electrical work of $9600 to raise the lights that are already installed.
* Dirt from Franklin Griffin for $21,000.
* Douglas Asphalt's request for $100,000 for work which remains to be defined and negotiated.
* LPA additional Engineering costs for $12,600.
* The cost of the survey in March for $4,500 to Brantley County Airport Authority.
* And others.

The other concerns that were raised by Brantley County and Ga DOT included the fact that there is DOT and One Georgia monies that are at risk of being taken back if the airport isn't completed in a timely manner. Where Littlefield has accepted that they can complete the airport within 120 days of an executed contract/start of work, the hope and prayer of the Commission is that their funding partners will stand by them through these tough times to completion. The entire group realized that the fastest way to ensure this doesn't happen is to GET MOVING!

Everyone's cooperation and positive attitude toward bringing this project to closure and cleaning up the mess is sincerely appreciated.

Ronald E. "Ron" Ham
Chairman - Brantley County Commission

Called Meeting to discuss the Airport

In a called meeting, the County Commission discussed the Airport Project. When Folsom Construction defaulted on the contract some months ago, the project was turned over to the bonding company, Berkley Surety Group. They in turn hired a subcontract group by the name of Nichols, out of Atlanta, that would drive the rest of the project. The LPA group, who serves as the engineer for the project, was responsible for defining the scope necessary to complete the project. The bonding company was also to see that vendors or subcontractors to Folsom were paid for services rendered.

The LPA group was reporting to the Airport Authority, Nichols and Berkley that there was a problem with the elevation of the airport and that it was 3 to 4 inches too low. When this was communicated to local engineers and surveyors, they felt this was easy enough to check. In March, another survey was completed by Harry Strickland, County Surveyor, and a meeting was set up with Golden Isles Engineering Company who serves as the County’s engineering firm. A review of that survey and the specifications for the airport in a meeting with these men, the Airport Authority and Commissioners revealed that there was, in fact, no issue with the height of the runway.

For this reason, the Chairman has called a meeting with Berkley Surety, Nichols Consulting, LPA Group engineers, Georgia DOT, the county Attorney, county engineer, county surveyor, the Airport Authority Attorney and others to bring this issue to resolution. In the meantime Berkley Surety, through Nichols Consulting has bid the project on a “per unit” basis and awarded the bid to the low bidder, Littlefield Construction. With this in place, all that is needed now is for the engineers to agree on the actual elevation of the runway, calculate the needed units of dirt, concrete, asphalt, etc. and complete the contract between Brantley, Littlefield and Berkley. The outcome of this meeting will be a detailed list of action items necessary to complete the project.

The good news is that there are sufficient funds in place to complete the airport and this being the dryer and warmer time of the year, things should move quickly once the paperwork is out of the way.

County Commissioner Work Session May 4

In the May 4, 2010 Work Session, the County Commission heard a presentation from Viva Steed of Satilla Community Services, who was asking for the County to participate in a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) for a new building for the mental health facility. The County has property available that could be used for a facility next to the Department of Family and Children Services (DFaCS), which was their preference. The Commission placed support for the grant on the Consent Agenda. Likewise, the annual contracts with Satilla Community Services were also placed on the Consent Agenda.

The contract with the Ware Correctional Institute for inmate work details was discussed. A letter will be sent to WCI of the County’s intention to renew the contract.

The County placed the closing of Lee Cemetery on the Regular Agenda. There has been discussion about potentially gating the road, so that if others wish to gain access to the cemetery in the future, the County could grant access.
Potential language modifications to the alcohol license ordinance were placed on the regular agenda so that the Board members would have time to review the language.

The reappointment of Mike Hendrix and Shane Courson to the Recreation Advisory Committee was placed on the Consent Agenda.

The County placed the release for quotes for the sale of scrap material from the County on the regular agenda. Some vendors, who failed to bid during the last round of bidding, complained to the Commission that the $40 per ton price that was negotiated back in January is no longer adequate, given the price of scrap steel. Since the majority of the steel hauled from the landfill took place at the signing of that contract, the County has not lost significant revenue. The former vendor was also charging the County $87 per ton to haul off the scrap steel and subtracted that from the price. The steel from the jail was discussed. Since extra manpower and oxygen and setline tanks were needed to remove the steel, the County’s $40 per ton price was in line, given the extra overhead. It was also brought to the Commission’s attention that some persons had been salvaging at the dump and old jail, removing high dollar copper and other items, reducing the revenue to the County and to the scrap vendor. A letter will go out explaining that this practice is not to continue.

The next discussion centered on the Capital Projects account. During the evaluation, the County was able to consolidate monies from older accounts into the recreation capital outlay account, bringing that total up to $95,395.45. The accounting system will be modified to keep up with these individually so that better visibility is available in the future.

The board discussed the 801.1 section of the Subdivision Ordinance, briefly, that will be the subject of a public hearing next Tuesday at 5:30 pm at the Brantley County Courthouse. The Mobile Home Ordinance was the next topic of discussion. The County Manager has consolidated the input from the Mobile Home Manufacturers Association (MHMA) with the State of Georgia Minimum Safety Standards for Mobile Homes. The consolidated check list will be made available at the Public Hearing next week, where the County will discuss modifying the mobile home ordinance, eliminating the “age” limitation and leveraging the inspection for all used mobile homes. The State document and procedures should also address the concerns about mobile homes that are repossessed or purchased and brought into a dealer’s site for remodeling before reaching their final destination. The County discussed possibly issuing a commercial permit that would have a sunset clause of 45 to 60 days for repairs to be made, at which time an inspection would be triggered, unless one was requested sooner.

The VFD substation quotes were reviewed with the Commission. The low bid of $46,350 per substation from Steel Structures Inc. was placed on the consent agenda. The Chairman pulled all VFD Chiefs into a meeting, where they settled on a single specification for all departments that was sent out for bids. With the price of steel moving up daily, and the County purchasing 5 of these buildings, a 25% swing in steel prices could have cost the County $50,000 more than it had to.

The property exchange with Mr. Pryce Brooker was discussed. An updated plat taking the city alley into account needs to be reduced. The property is a near even exchange with no money involved. This will give the County more property adjacent to the Courthouse, to make way for a Courthouse Annex on that property in years to come. Along the same lines, the Chairman met with the City Council Monday night and requested that the streets on the East and West sides of the Courthouse be closed. They agreed and also decided to deed those streets over to the County. The attorneys will start the paperwork. Nothing will change immediately. Once the County is ready to move forward with the new parking lot between the Courthouse and Highway 82, this will allow that parking lot to cover from side walk to side walk and provide for many more parking places for court and other heavy traffic days. This item was put on the regular agenda.

The bids for the outside painting, vinyl and balcony work were reviewed and the low bidder, D&D Decorators, for approximately $9,000, was accepted. In a review of total funds spent thus far on the Courthouse in 2010, the County is still below the $50,000 that was allocated for these upgrades.

In this meeting with the City, the Chairman also discussed with the City Council the opportunity of revisiting the Code Enforcement relationship between the City and the County. They agreed to allow negotiations to take place, so those will begin in the near future.

The County Manager presented the infield machine requested by the Recreation Department to help process the new and existing fields. They placed and item on the consent agenda to fund the cost of a three year lease for this equipment for the recreation department.

The meals on wheels contract was renewed.

Clarification on the closing of Tiger Bay Road and Memphis Way were discussed. The Commission placed items on the consent agenda to define the closing of Tiger Bay Road span from Perry Hickox to Highway 82. The Commission placed an item on the consent agenda to further define the closing of Memphis Way to include both sides of highway 32.

The Board placed an item on the Consent Agenda Approving a proclamation honoring May 16th through 22nd as National EMS Appreciation Week.

A Waynesville Recreation Park was discussed. This item stems from a 1997 agreement between the Board of Education and the County, whereby the County sold 17 acres of land to the BOE. In the transaction, the Board of Education agreed to replace the softball field that was at that location with a concession stand and bathrooms. Every 4 or 5 years this commitment comes to light. In various conversations this week with the School Superintendent and Board Members, the County has expressed a potential willingness to assist where it can legally with the moving of dirt and other internal expense items. While the County’s number one priority in recreation is to complete the recreation park near Lulaton that is for the “entire County”, there is a willingness to help the Board of Education, should they decide to pursue this. One Commissioner expressed concerns that with the school furloughing teachers, consolidating where they can and trying to eliminate night time practices to save money, are they really at a point where they can build a softball field, concession stand and bathrooms? Others were concerned with having a facility that adults will use in such close proximity with children and who will police the place prior to children playing behind those adults.

The final and most exciting conversation of the night came around a discussion about the payment of fees to the Regional Development Commission. The Board has voted to request a change to the Coastal RDC from the Southern RDC. The boundaries of the RDC are defined by the Department of Community Affairs and not the counties. A letter was submitted to the DCA requesting a change, but since the City of Nahunta chooses to stay in the Southern RDC, which spans 18 counties and has a board of almost 60 members, the DCA will not approve the County’s request to move. The rules of law around which the RDC boundaries are defined dictate the payment of membership fees by the County to the RDC, or all State funds could be halted, based on information received from DCA. The loss of funds would cripple a number of local aid agencies that survive on State dollars.

Chairman’s Corner - One Nation Under God

The definition of impressive came to life at the Exchange Club’s Annual Dinner, dubbed "One Nation Under God". Jack Kingston was the keynote speaker and did a wonderful job defining this nation’s Biblical history. He gave specific historical accounts of how Christianity and the Bible influenced our Country and our founding fathers. He discussed the Primer that was used to teach reading and writing. There were many other factual accounts. As great as it was to hear one of our most popular elected officials speaking those things which most of us know to be fact and feel very strongly about, that was only part of the definition. A special thanks to Representative Kingston and his staff for coming to visit our community. He is a fine man who has amassed a fine team.

The ROTC group stood in attention in the rain outside welcoming each patron with a rifle salute. Then there was the Color Guard. They marched into the room, colors flying in what could only be defined as perfect precision. After the presentation, pledge and National Anthem, they marched out as one body. Then there was the MIA/POW presentation. On the stage, in the back of the room, almost overlooked by all stood a small lone table. It was draped in a white table cloth, empty chair, single red rose, lemon and salt on the small plate, single glass overturned, all sitting in the shadow of a single ROTC officer. Then slowly the narrator explained the numbers of lost soldiers by each branch of service. With each, a new ROTC officer would march in, place a shining silver helmet on the table and step back with a humble salute. After these, each item around the table was explained as to how it related to the missing or fallen soldier. It was one of the most touching things I’ve ever seen or heard. After each definition of the items on or around the table, the narrator would say “Remember”. I pray we do.

After these presentations, there is no wonder why the ROTC team is bringing home trophy after trophy. It is easy to see how young men and women are joining the service with a leg up and possibly advanced placement because of this program. My hat is off to their leadership and my heart goes out to our men and women in uniform whereever they are serving tonight. They stand watch so that we can rest easy.

Good night and God Bless.

Ronald E Ham
Chairman – Brantley County Commission