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Progress
A publication of
Arts & Community | Sunday, march 24, 2013
Space in a public place Gainesville area strives to bring more art into the open BY SAVANNAH KING
sking@gainesvilletimes.com In the hustle and bustle of daily life, you’ve probably missed a few details. For instance, have you ever noticed the folk art created by Gainesville’s own R.A. Miller on a brick wall in downtown Gainesville? What about the bronze animal statues at Memorial Park Cemetery? Or the war memorials at Rock Creek Park? Or the statues on Brenau University’s front lawn? “I think that we take for granted that they’re there or don’t even notice them,” Cindy Wilson, board member of Vision 2030 and member of the Vision 2030 Public Art Committee. “I really believe that there is truly a good bit of art here already.” The Vision 2030 Public Art Committee was founded last year with the focus of implementing a public arts program in Gainesville and Hall County. “One thing that our committee has done is kind of catalogue our existing public art and taken pictures of it all,” said Meg Nivens, executive director of Vision 2030. “We’re trying to develop a brochure for the community that shows where everything is here in Hall County and maybe even provide a walking tour of public art that they can find and access and learn about. There are probably so many pieces that we as citizens pass every single day and don’t even realize what’s here.” Wilson spent an afternoon last summer walking around the city with other committee members looking for public art. They categorized
This piece by renowned folk artist R.A. Miller hangs on the side of a downtown building on Bradford Street, where it has been for several years, providing a colorful enhancement to the brick-and-mortar walls.
“Miss Scarlet,” a metal horse sculpture created by artist Eric Strauss in 2004, stands playfully in front of the Quinlan Visual Arts Center on Green Street. More of Strauss’ horse sculptures can be found on the campus of Brenau University and in front of The Longstreet Clinic on Jesse Jewell Parkway in Gainesville.
their findings into architectural, memorial and basic art structures. “People don’t realize what public art is,” Wilson said. “There is a ton of memorial art around the court house area downtown.” She said a lot of people will probably be surprised to discover the 9/11 memorial at the Brenau Downtown Center or to-scale solar system walking town through downtown Gainesville. She said the group also found some breathtaking architectural details in the homes and buildings along Green Street and at Brenau. “Art can be interpreted in so many ways,” Wilson said. “What we found were some of these incredible building on the square and campus of Brenau have beautiful details over an entry way or on a doorway. We are blessed here in Gainesville just to have such beautiful architecture.” Part of the committee’s goals are to not only record what does exist but plan for future public art spaces. They are also working with city and county government and community organizations to create strong partnerships that will ■■Please see space, 3A
People walking through downtown Gainesville will not only spot the R.A. Miller piece, a large Coca-Cola advertisement painted on brick, and a statue of a Confederate soldier, they also will see a built-to-scale model of the solar system, which continues around town and along Wilshire Trails.
Brenau University’s new 2,200-pound bronze tiger sculpture which was designed by Georgia artist Gregory Johnson, rests on its granite tabletop on Brenau’s Gainesville campus.
Also on the grounds of the Quinlan Visual Arts Center is a painted aluminum sculpture titled “Lithely Verdant/ Gravity Fritz” created in 1990 by artist Stephen Kline. Various genres of art can be found around Hall County, ranging from realistic busts of historical figures to abstract sculptures, folk art and even architecture both postmodern and Victorian.
Photos by Times staff
INSIDE: Wilshire Trails gets a spring spruce, 3A; Georgia Mountain Food Bank continues an ‘incredible’ journey, 4A
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Progress is a publication of The Times, Gainesville, Georgia |
Sunday, March 24, 2013
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The arts in our community
Theater
Hall County has several visual and performing arts organizations. Some are in conjunction with Brenau University in Gainesville and UNG Gainesville in Oakwood. Others are standalone organizations that aim to further the arts in the area. Here is a look at some of the arts organizations and the services they provide.
Visual Arts
Quinlan Visual Arts Center The Quinlan Visual Arts Center exhibits local and national artists, along with providing a venue for high-quality art for purchase. The center also hosts summer art camps, ongoing adult education classes and special events.
For The Times
The Georgia Mountain Players recently performed “Opal’s Baby” and will next perform “The Dixie Swim Club.”
Address: 514 Green St. NE, Gainesville Contact: 770-536-2575 or www.quinlanartscenter.org
Georgia Mountain Players
Upcoming exhibitions
This “family” of actors has been providing fun, family-friendly entertainment at the former Georgia Mountains Center for years. Productions range from comedies to slapstick musicals, with a menagerie of characters, from a dancing vampire to a sweet little old lady. This will be the Players last season.
What: Youth Art Month: Sponsored by Gainesvillle Kiwanis Club When: Through April 13
Upcoming performance What: “The Dixie Swim Club” When: 7:30 p.m. April 11-20 Where: Brenau Downtown Center, 301 S. Main St., Gainesville Contact: 770-536-4677 or www.georgiamountainplayers. org
Gainesville Theatre Alliance The Gainesville Theatre Alliance, a collaboration between drama departments at Gainesville State College and Brenau University, showcases theater to the public while helping students develop stage skills.
Upcoming performance What: “Twelfth Night” When: 7:30 p.m., April 9-13 and 16-20; 2:30 p.m. matinees on April 14 and 20, free stage tour 6 p.m. March 26 Where: The Ed Cabell Theatre, Gainesville State College, 3820 Mundy Mill Road, Oakwood How much: $16-$18 adults, $14-$16 seniors 65 and older and $10-$12 for students/children Contact: 678-717-3624 or www.gainesvilletheatrealliance. org
Fifth Row Center This South Hall-based community theater provides an opportunity for any member of the community to get involved in drama, no matter their level of experience.
Upcoming performance What: “Through the Looking Glass” When: April 12-13 Where: Historic Downtown Train Depot, Flowery Branch Contact: 678-357-7359, www.fifthrowcenter.com
For The Times
What: The Car Show When: Spring 2013
“Run, Zola, Run” by Yvonne Mendez.
Brenau Galleries: Sellars Gallery, Presidential Gallery and Leo Castelli Art Gallery
What: American Society of Marine Artists When: June 13-Aug. 17
These galleries, on the campus of Brenau University, exhibit visual artwork from artists around the nation and the world, as well as art from current Brenau students. The Sellars and Presidential galleries are in the Simmons Visual Arts Center, just a few doors down from Pearce Auditorium’s entrance on Washington Street in Gainesville, while the Leo Castelli gallery is located in the Burd Center for the Performing Arts on Academy Street.
What: Summer Art Camp for children When: TBA
Address: 500 Washington St. SE, Gainesville Contact: 770-534-6263
Upcoming exhibitions
For The Times
What: “The 2013 Brenau Collaborative,” the undergraduate juried exhibition and portfolio exhibit When: April 5 through May 5. Opening reception 5:30-7 p.m. April 13. What: Brenau Family Ties exhibit, Gainesville. When: May 9 through July 7. Simmons Visual Arts Center, Presidents Gallery. Opening reception 5:30-7 p.m. June 6.
Work by Mabi Ponce de Leon was recently exhibited by the University of North Georgia.
Roy C. Moore Art Gallery at UNG Gainesville campus The Roy C. Moore Art Gallery features exhibits from faculty and students as well as special exhibitions. The gallery space is adjacent to the Hosch Theater in the school’s Continuing Education building.
What: President’s Summer Art Series, Gainesville. When: May 16 through June 30. Simmons Visual Arts Center, Presidents Gallery. Opening reception 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. May 16. Featuring Patricia Burd, Jane Hemmer, Jean Westmacott and Mary Hart Wilheit.
Address: 3820 Mundy Mill Road, Oakwood Contact: 706-867-2746, ung.edu
What: “Bowden: A Collector’s Legacy” When: July 11 through Sept. 1. Opening Reception 5:30-7 p.m. July 11. Featuring artwork by Joseph Albers, Alex Katz, Michael Graves, John Cage and Marisol.
Current exhibitions What: The 2013 Faculty Biennial exhibition When: Through March 27
Performing arts The Gainesville Ballet Company
The Arts Council Many arts organizations in Hall and surrounding counties get a boost from The Arts Council. But this organization also holds its own concert series, including the Evenings of Intimate Jazz series, summer movies on the lawn and a songwriter series. The Arts Council also administers Arts in Schools, a program available to any school in the Gainesville and Hall County school systems that helps teachers implement a lesson plan that reinforces academic requirements with a creative twist.
The Gainesville Ballet Company has brought dance to Northeast Georgia through theatrical dance performances as well as its relationship with the Gainesville School of Ballet. Two productions highlight Gainesville Ballet’s season, including a Christmas production of “The Nutcracker” and a springtime performance of a classic children’s tale.
Upcoming events What: “Cinderella” When: 2 p.m. March 24 Where: Pearce Auditorium, Brenau University, 500 Washington St., Gainesville Contact: 770-532-4241 or www.gainesvilleballet.org
Northwinds Symphonic Band
Upcoming performances
Twenty-nine years ago, Ron Evans and his wife got the idea of starting a community band. Today, the Northwinds Symphonic Band has played concerts all over North Georgia and has taken two tours around the state.
When: 7 p.m. March 28 What: The Arts Council & Gainesville State College Independent Film Series: “Free China” Filmmaker Q&A reception Where: Arts Council Smithgall Arts Center, 331 Spring St. SW, Gainesville Tickets: $7 adults, $5 students and seniors What: The Arts Council’s Evenings of Intimate Jazz Series: Annie Sellick Trio When: 8 p.m. April 13 Where: Arts Council Smithgall Arts Center, 331 Spring St. SW, Gainesville Tickets: $30 When: 7 p.m. April 18 What: The Arts Council & Gainesville State College Independent Film Series: Sellick “Strong!” Filmmaker Q&A Reception Where: Arts Council Smithgall Arts Center, 331 Spring St. SW, Gainesville Tickets: $7 adults, $5 students and seniors
Gransden
When: 8 p.m. May 18 What: The Arts Council’s Evenings of Intimate Jazz Series: Joe Gransden & Kenny Banks Wjere: Arts Council Smithgall Arts Center, 331 Spring St. SW, Gainesville Tickets: $30 Contact: www.theartscouncil. net
FILE | The Times
Gainesville Ballet recently performed “The Nutcracker.”
South Korean pianist Yoonie Han performed in Gainesville as part of the ProMusica Concert Series. FILE The Times
Lanier Chamber Singers
Now in its 21st year, this vocal ensemble performs a cappella literature from the Renaissance and 20th century periods. Its members draw from a variety of professional backgrounds, and the group recently performed at the American Choral Directors Association’s annual convention. Contact: www. lanierchambersingers.org
What: Memorial Day Concert When: 7 p.m. May 27 Where: Gainesville First Baptist Church, Green St., Gainesville Contact: www.northwindsband.com
Gainesville ProMusica The goal of Gainesville ProMusica is to bring affordable classical music to the masses, including providing free music for kids in local schools. Each season includes three concerts with a community-driven theme. Contact: 770-535-7342 or promusicaconcertseries.com
Voices of North Georgia The members of Voices of North Georgia are dedicated to presenting both secular and sacred music to the Gainesville area. This community chorus not only offers an outlet for anyone who loves choral music, it also provides a forum for members to gather for fellowship.
Upcoming performances What: “Georgia On My Mind” When: April 26 and 28 Where: St. Paul United Methodist Church, 404 Washington St., Gainesville. Contact: www.voicesofnorthgeorgia.com
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Area colleges provide both venues and artists in residence to create and display works, like this sculpture by Maria Artemis titled “Traces of the Song Singing” on the campus of Brenau University, for public enjoyment in Northeast Georgia.
Bonnie Martin, above, Sally Wise, at left, and Les Krause, below, join a host of Hall County Master Gardeners preparing the butterfly gardens at Wilshire Trails for the upcoming growing season. More information about the master gardeners can be found at hcmgs.com.
SPACE: ‘A great way to enhance Hall’ allow the community to share its public art resources. “One of our goals is to plan for the placement of new meaningful public art throughout our community,” Nivens said. “We’re also working on ways we can secure funding for our public art initiative. Our goals there would be through corporate partnerships, donations, government support, grants and any other type of funding opportunities we find.” Nivens said the committee has already identified some funding opportunities and locations for future art spaces. Amanda McClure, executive director of the Quinlan Visual Arts Center and member of the Vision 2030 Public Art Committee, said she thinks the Midtown Greenway “seems like a ripe for possibility kind of area.” In the more immediate future, the center itself will also house a new public art space in the former location of the historic MoonApperson building adjacent to the center. The historic home had fallen into disrepair and was demolished this year. McClure said it was not the center’s desire to have the building demolished but all other options for the buildings repair or removal had failed. In it’s site the center plans to build a sculpture garden to use for outdoor classes and youth activities. McClure said the center has a couple of plans drawn out but will likely wait to make any decisions about what the garden will look like until after the summer.
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Digging in!
STAFF | The Times
■■ Continued from 1a
Sunday, March 24, 2013
“We’re reviewing plans and talking about what kind of art we want in there,” McClure said. “ We want it to be not only in harmony with what’s going on in the neighborhood but also appropriate for our building. It’s going to be complimenting the communitywide vision.” She said it’s a project that will likely take several years to complete. In the meantime, the community’s public art collection is continuing to grow. Brenau recently received a 7«-foot tall, 14-foot long, 2,200-pound bronze statue of its mascot, the Golden Tiger. The statue was created by sculptor Gregory Johnson of Cumming. It was a gift to the university from Irwin “Ike” Belk, son of the Belk Department Store founder. Melissa Morgan, director of Brenau’s three galleries told The Times the tiger will quickly integrate itself into the fabric of the community and will unify the campus and the community even more. “Public art can be a great way that we can enhance Gainesville and Hall County’s image locally, regionally and nationally,” Nivens said. “Because of great public art people will come in and visit and see it in our community. It’s a great way to promote economic development. We also see public art as a way that we can preserve our community’s heritage as a legacy for future generations. Vision 2030 seeks to act as a catalyst to help unite and motivate our community volunteers and governments to help elevate public art in our community.”
Photos by SCOTT ROGERS | The Times
August 17, 2012 A new beginning for northeAst georgiA A community project, the Georgia Mountain Food Bank was built to address the growing demand for food assistance in our neighborhoods & communities. With hunger on the rise, the new food distribution warehouse gives us the technology, storage and transportation to bring in new resources of food and open new channels of distribution! The new facility not only allows us to deliver a higher quantity and quality of food, it also means we can expand outreach programs & nutrition education, which addresses the root causes of hunger. Since taking our first food delivery in 2008, the Georgia Mountain Food has distributed almost 6 million pounds of food throughout Dawson, Forsyth, Hall, Lumpkin & Union counties.
1642 Calvary Industrial Dr, SW Gainesville, Georgia 30507
770-534-4111
gamountainfoodbank.org
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Sunday, March 24, 2013
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Storing for the future New home helps food bank expand mission by savannah king
sking@gainesvilletimes.com It’s been a big year for the Georgia Mountain Food Bank. Since moving its new home last August at the Boomershine Family Logistics Center on Calvary Industrial Drive in Gainesville, the food bank has been able to provide food to many more families. Kay Blackstock, the food bank’s executive director, said it’s incredible what the food bank has accomplished in the last seven months, all thanks to the new building. The 20,000-square-foot facility provides plenty of storage for shelf stable foods and has 3,500 square feet of freezer and cooler space to store frozen foods, a luxury it lacked in the past.
For years, the food bank operated out of donated space at Hollis Transport Agency in Flowery Branch. Since moving, the food bank has taken in 1.5 million pounds of food and distributed 1.2 million pounds to its 46 partner agencies in five counties. Blackstock said the food bank’s ability to get so much food to people who need it was made possible by having the increased storage of the new building and the ability to transport it. The Georgia Mountain Food Bank acts as the logistical hub for the Atlanta Food Bank. It collects, briefly stores and distributes food to local banks that, in turn, provide that food to the needy. “The key part of that is connecting the food to the people. We have
SCOTT ROGERS | The Times
Georgia Mountain Food Bank Warehouse Manager Brian Wiggins moves food around on pallets as it is delivered to the new warehouse on Calvary Industrial Drive in Gainesville.
the transportation to go and get it and then also redistribute it,” Blackstock said. “A lot of our partners are these small community-based or faith-based organizations that don’t have refrigerated vehicles, or they
don’t have trucks at all. To be able to go and pick up these large loads and sit on it until we’re able to get it out, that’s made all the difference in the world to us. That’s why you’ve seen the dramatic increase in food com-
ing in and food going out.” The food bank’s recent improvements were made possible by generous donations. ■■Please see FOOD, 5
Volunteer opportunities Looking for a way to help out in your community? Here are some ideas of places to start; please contact these agencies for additional information. Affinis Hospice. Volunteers needed to help around the facility, sit with hospice patients to relieve family members, shop, clean, do yard work or run errands for patients. Training is provided by Affinis. No experience needed. Flexible scheduling. Contact Volunteer Coordinator Lisa Crane at 770-877-9757 or email lcrane@ affinishospice.org for more information. American Cancer Society. Drivers to transport cancer patients to and from treatment centers. Contact 770-297-1176. American Red Cross. Disaster relief teams needed to train the community in preparedness services such as CPR, first aid, baby-sitting and life guarding, to welcome and register blood donors and serve refreshments, to assist in administrative services such as fundraising, public relations, translating, interpreting and office support. Contact Barbara Barber, 770-219-0343. American Red Cross. Blood services needs registration and canteen volunteers at the donor center and at mobile blood drives in Hall County. Contact Volunteer Manager Kathy Dalton via email at DaltonK@usa.redcross.org or at 706-5460681 ext 221. Angel Flight Southeast. Need pilots to provide free air transportation to medical facilities for citizens who are financially distressed or otherwise unable to travel on public transportation. Contact Scarlett Auten, 770-904-0904. Autumn Breeze Assisted Living. Help residents stay active with activities such as bingo, indoor horseshoes and music. Contact Ellen Bates, activities director, 770-297-1100. Boys and Girls Clubs. Help with general supervision of children, tutoring, art and physical education programs. Need coaches and referees. Help needed after 2 p.m. Monday-Friday. Contact 770-5328102. BPI-Safe Rides. Volunteer to drive an impaired driver home. In need of licensed drivers 25 and older to volunteer for upcoming holidays. 770-965-2870 or www.bpi-saferides.org. CASA. Court Appointed Special Advocates are needed to advocate for the best interests of abused and neglected children. Volunteers are trained, screened and supervised. Contact Lisa McCarthy, 770-531-1964 or casaofhall@bellsouth. net. Catholic Social Services Inc. Bilingual volunteers needed to assist in serving lowincome Latino population. Needs include translation and interpretation for clients in the community, office assistance and computer class instruction. Contact 770534-3337. C.C. Cloud Youth Center — Veterans and Community Outreach Foundation. Assist children in afterschool program with homework, arts and recreational activities. Provide computer lab instruction for children and adults. Work in community garden, office and kitchen. Weekend coaches and mentors needed for young adult basketball league. Flexible schedule. 770-531-0046 or vcof@bellsouth.net. Center Point Mentor Program. Mentor Hall County and Gainesville students. Time requirements include a two-hour training session and a commitment to meet with your student one hour a week (this includes travel time) for the duration of the school year. Trainings are offered at noon and 6 p.m. throughout the year. Contact Staci Tunkel, mentor coordinator, 770-535-1050, or mentor@centerpointgainesville.com. Challenged Child and Friends. Work in classrooms with children 6 weeks old to 6 years old at Northeast Georgia’s Early Intervention Center. Contact Robyn Shoaf, 770-535-8372, ext. 120 or robyn@ challengedchild.org. Compassionate Hospice. Help people an their families cope with a terminal illness. Flexible scheduling. Also looking for organizations to sponsor or participate in a charity event each year. Contact Steven Vanlerberghe, 678-717-0969. Court Visitor Program. Monitor the care, condition and assets of dependent adults, work with families at problem solving and report to the court. Volunteers will be screened, trained and supervised. Contact Denise, Hall County Probate Court, 770533-7830. Crossroads Hospice. Hold a hand, listen, sing, run errands for a family or help in the hospice office. Free ongoing training.
Flexible hours. Contact Ella, 770-270-9898 or hospicevolunteer@bellsouth.net. Disability Resource Center. Help people with disabilities remain independent through peer support, advocacy and helping with independent living skills. Also, volunteers needed to build ramps and make other home modifications. Contact Bob McGarry, 770-534-6656. Disabled American Veterans Transportation Network. Drive veterans between Gainesville and the VA hospital in Decatur in the organization’s van. Contact Jay Lieberman, 706-380-4601. Dogwood Forest Assisted Living. Volunteers needed for bingo on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 1:30 p.m.; crafts, music, exercise, games in the evenings, pet therapy and church services on Sunday afternoons or during the week. 3315 Thompson Bridge Road, Gainesville. Email Kathy at kpittman@ trinitylifestylesmanagement.com or call 770-531-7800. Embracing Hospice. Visit with patients in homes, read to patients, write letters, provide transportation, run errands, prepare meals, provide hair care and light housekeeping. Contact 678-570-7363 or mandisha.thomas@americanhospice.com. Family TIES Gainesville. Looking for board members/volunteers. Call Dee Dee Mize at 770-287-3071. Feed My Sheep The Grace of Christ Ministries. Help serve free lunches ever other Saturday. Contact Eric Johnson, 678-622-1458. First Steps. Volunteers needed to help support, educate and give referrals to parents in early months of parenting. Contact Angela Ricks, 770-219-7959. Gainesville Action Ministries. Answer phones, schedule appointments, greet clients, help with building maintenance and entertain children while parents are being counseled. Will train volunteers to work with clients if desired. Bilingual volunteers needed. Contact Terri Armour 770-5310144 Ext. 3 Gainesville-Hall County Alliance for Literacy. Tutor in basic literacy class serving adults up to a fourth-grade reading level. Math tutors needed to help students prepare for the GED exam. Contact Dorothy Shinafelt, 770-531-4337. Choices Pregnancy Care Center. Assemble favor bags given out at high school health class presentations. Supplies provided. Call GCC during business hours, 9 am to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday at 770-535-1413. www.choicespregnancy. org Gateway House. Work with children who have witnessed or experienced domestic violence. Contact Shelby Kinsey, 770-5399080. Georgia Mountain Food Bank. 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. Contact Kay Blackstock or Randi Dyer at 770-967-0075, www. gamountainfoodbank.org. Good News Clinics. Need Spanishspeaking interpreters, medical assistants, dental assistants and hygienists, nurses, physicians, nurse practitioners and volunteers to assist with administrative duties for the hours of 9 a.m.-noon or 1-5 p.m. Monday-Friday. Contact Jean Peeples, 770-503-1369 or jpeeples@ goodnewsclinics.org. The Guest House Adult Care Center. Talk with clients, help with activities and crafts. Contact Sandy Pearson, 770-535-1487. Habitat for Hall County. Assist in pickups and store inventory at the Habitat ReStore. Contact Dee Ann, 770-718-1070. Also need volunteers for builds. 678-450-5998. Hall County Animal Shelter. Volunteers needed to walk and play with animals, assist at rabies clinics and off-site mini adoption events. Please contact Gwen Trimmer at 678-450-1587 or 770-5316831. Happy Tails Pet Therapy Inc. Need volunteers 18 and older and their pet dogs, cats or rabbits to brighten patients’ days at local health care facilities. Orientations held periodically. Contact 770-740-8211. Homestead Hospice. Volunteers needed throughout the Gainesville area for patient companionship, community outreach, clerical support, clinical support, special skills/therapies and bereavement. Free training. Contact jarp-dunham@ homesteadhospice.net or call 706-5488444; www.homesteadhospice.net/ Volunteers Hospice of Northeast Georgia Medical
Center. Sit with terminally ill patients in their homes, run errands and provide relief for family members in Banks, Barrow, Dawson, Forsyth, Franklin, northern Gwinnett, Habersham, Hall, Jackson, Lumpkin, Stephens, Union and White counties. Also need help with clerical work in hospice office. Free office support volunteer training is available from 12:304:30 p.m. second Tuesdays at the hospice office. Contact Carol Jewell, Hospice of NGMC volunteer coordinator, at 770-5338888 or 888-572-3900. Humane Society of Northeast Georgia. Play with and walk shelter adoption pets, assist with adoptions taking place at Gainesville PetSmart on Saturdays and help with special events. Options no matter how much or how little time available. Contact Kelley Uber, 770-532-6617. Interactive Neighborhood for Kids. Supervise exhibits, lead story time or teach arts and crafts activities on a one-time or ongoing basis. Contact 770-536-1900. J.A. Walters YMCA. 2455 Howard Road, Gainesville. Greeters, maintenance, clerical, child care and after-school program volunteers needed. Contact Sue Adams at 770-344-9345 or msadams1@ mac.com. Judicial citizen review panel. Review the circumstances of children in Hall County who are in the custody of the State Department of Family and Children Services and work to ensure they are being properly cared for and are given the opportunity to be placed in a permanent home. Two-day training period required along with one morning a month thereafter. Contact Lorena Marceleno, 770-5316928 or 770-531-4930 email lmarceleno@ hallcounty.org. Junior Achievement of Georgia: Northeast District. Present lessons to students in grades kindergarten-12th that inspire and prepare young people to succeed in a global economy. Using hands-on experiences, JA brings the real world to students, opening their minds to their full potential by bridging the business and education communities. Materials and training provided. Serving 14 counties in Northeast Georgia. Contact Lee D. Highsmith, 770-297-1222 or lhighsmith@ georgia.ja.org. Keep Hall Beautiful. Assist with administrative duties, make phone calls, do outside presentations or litter pickups. Contact Cindy Reed, 770-531-1102 or hallbeautiful@windstream.net. Lanierland Civitan Club. Help people with developmental disabilities and work on various area projects. Meet 12:30 p.m. first and third Tuesdays, Turnstile Deli, 109 Green St., Gainesville. Ed Standera 770532-3622. Legacy Link. Help Medicare recipients getting prescription drugs and other services. Need clerical help and outside speakers. Training provided. Contact 770538-2650. LifeLink of Georgia. Assist with educational programs pertaining to organ and tissue donation and transplantation in North Georgia and other areas of the state. Contact 800-544-6667. Make-A-Wish Foundation of Georgia and Alabama. Create, design and implement wishes in North Georgia. Contact Shandy Arwood at sarwood@ga-al.wish.org or 888-517-9474, ext. 14. Meals on Wheels. Deliver meals within the city of Gainesville. Routes take approximately one hour; training provided. Contact Milon Christman, 770-503-3330. Mended Hearts of Northeast Georgia. Visit with heart patients and their families at Northeast Georgia Medical Center. Volunteer in Ronnie Green waiting room or attend meetings at 6 p.m. the second Tuesday of each month. Must be former heart procedure patients or spouses. Training provided. Contact Peggy Vardeman, 770-532-2326. Mentor Me North Georgia. Volunteer for one-on-one and group setting programs with at-risk youth. Call Amber at 678-3418028 or e-mail amber@mentormenorthga. org. For more information: www. mentormenorthga.org Northeast Georgia History Center. Provide assistance with day-to-day tasks — greet visitors, answer telephones, prepare mailings, help with special events, guide tours, serve on standing committees. 770297-5900 or www.negahc.org. Northeast Georgia Medical Center. Assist
with non-medical duties and provide comfort and support to patients, family members and visitors. Call 770-219-1830 to request an application and schedule a time for a brief interview. Odyssey Healthcare Athens. Volunteers are needed to provide support and companionship for patients and families. Free training required; no minimum time commitment. Additionally, we are seeking administrative support in our office. Training is provided. Contact Gail Manter at 770-533-4445 or 706-410-5340. E-mail gmanter@odsyhealth.com. Odyssey Healthcare Gainesville. Gainesville area volunteers are needed to provide support and companionship for patients and families. Free training required; no minimum time commitment. Additionally, we are seeking administrative support in our office. Training is provided. Contact Hope Senador at 706-621-8371. Pacific Intercultural Exchange. Host families for foreign teens are needed for the new school year. There are also travel/ study program opportunities available for American high school students as well as possibilities for community volunteers to assist and work with area host families, students and schools. Call 866-546-1402 for more information. The Phoenix Society of Gainesville. Raise funds to support local service organizations. Meetings held at 7 p.m. third Thursdays of every month at the Gainesville Civic Center. Contact Deanna Fawcett, 770-532-4641, DDFawcett@aol. com. Rape Response. Respond to hotline phone calls. Training and support is provided, and on-call volunteers can maintain their own schedule while using a cell phone to respond. Contact Heather Weaver, 770-503-7273 or heather@ raperesponse.com. Regency Hospice. Provide assistance and care to patients and family members. Contact Elizabeth McFarland, 888-6031303. RSVP: Retired & Senior Volunteer Program. Looking for volunteers 55 and older to help at the following sites in Hall County: Center Point, mentors for public school children; Keep Hall Beautiful, event volunteers; Hall County Senior Life Center, computer teachers and scrap booking teachers; Meals on Wheels, delivery drivers and phone reassurance volunteers; and Hall County Emergency Management, CERT and Web site volunteers. Contact Terry Shuler, RSVP director (Legacy Link Inc.), 770-538-2650. Safe Kids Gainesville/Hall County. Help with educational programs about car seat safety, helmet safety, fire safety, poison prevention and more. Contact Kim Martin, 770-533-8095, kimberly.martin@nghs. com. Sautee Nacoochee Community Association. Meet and greet visitors at the History Museum of Sautee Nacoochee and the Folk Pottery Museum of Northeast Georgia. Chris Brooks, 706-878-3300, snca.org. Toys for Tots. Volunteers needed beginning to collect toys and sort toys at various locations throughout Hall County. Call 770-530-7473 or email devildog1341@ att.net for more information. United Hospice. Provide companionship, family support and respite for caregivers in homes and nursing facilities. Training provided. Contact Sandy Hatfield, Hospice Volunteer Coordinator, 800-844-9641. Veterans Community Outreach. Help with after-school program, computer lab and homework assistance. Contact 770-5310046. Vietnam Veterans of America. Help create a network for the local families of soldiers who will be overseas next Christmas and plan a party for next Christmas. Contact Ron Kelner, 770-534-2509, or Dave Dellinger, 770-718-7676. Widowed persons volunteer aides. 5:15 p.m. fourth Tuesdays, Community Service Center. 770-536-0072. Willowwood Nursing Center. Adopt a grandparent, spend free time with residents. Contact Tina Gipson, 770-9672070, ext. 20.
CMYK Progress is a publication of The Times, Gainesville, Georgia |
gainesvilletimes com
Sunday, March 24, 2013
5
FOOD: More ways to feed the needy ■■ Continued from 4 A longtime supporter of the food bank, PFG Milton’s, donated a tractor and trailer and a standup pallet jack to the food bank. The new facility was built with the help of several supporters, including the Boomershine family and The Medical Center Foundation. Over the next five years, the food bank plans to handle and distribute more than 6 million pounds of food, along with building stronger relationships with local partners. Blackstock said a lot of the food that comes through the food bank is donated by local partners. Proview Foods recently donated 1,300 pounds of frozen chicken. “There is just no way we could have ever accommodated something like that before,” Blackstock said. In addition to building and moving into a new facility, the food bank also expanded its summer feeding program from two sites to four. The mobile food pantry takes packages of food directly to targeted communities and distributes food from trucks. The program distributed more than 50,000 pounds of food that fed 2,000 families. “Our firm commitment is to do that again this year,” Blackstock said. She said the food bank has also seen a lot more involvement from the community. The new facility has a Volunteer Action Center and an educational facility that teaches students about the food bank’s role in the community. She said the Boys & Girls Clubs of Hall County have been helpful and have taken field trips to help at the food bank.
Georgia Mountain Food Bank volunteer Franklin Talley sorts through food to be distributed to senior citizens at the food bank’s warehouse Monday morning. SCOTT ROGERS The Times
Georgia Mountain Food Bank When: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays Where: 1642 Calvary Industrial Drive SW, Gainesville More info: Contact Kay Blackstock or Randi Dyer at 770-967-0075, or the food bank’s office at 770-534-4111. Sign up online at www.gamountainfoodbank. org for volunteer opportunities or a list of partner organizations.
2nd annual Legal Food Frenzy A local competition between law firms, corporate law offices and legal organizations helps families who need food assistance by raising funds for the Georgia Mountain Food Bank. This competition is a joint effort by the Young Lawyers Division, the attorney general’s office and the Georgia Food Bank Association. The winner will receive the “Attorney General’s Cup” from Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens. Awards will also be given in Sole Proprietor, Small Firm, Medium Firm, Large Firm, Legal Organization and Corporate Law Firm divisions. For more information go to galegalfoodfrenzy.org. The competition is April 22 through May 3.
Since moving in, volunteers have provided more than 17,000 hours of service. “It’s just incredible,” Blackstock said excitedly. “It’s just been an incredible journey.”
Support groups
Need someone who understands? Here are some of the many groups offering their support in our community: Addictions
Al-Anon. Noon and 8 p.m. Tuesdays and 8 p.m. Fridays, 781 Green St., Gainesville. Monica, 404-553-4916. Al-Anon. 9 a.m. Saturdays and 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays, Unitarian Universalist Church. 439 S. Park St. Dahlonega. 706-867-6869. Al-Anon. 6:30 p.m. Thursdays, Dawsonville United Methodist Church, 94 Mills Ford Road, Dawsonville. Al-Anon Serenity Seekers. 4 p.m. Mondays, Lanier Village Estates, intersection of Thompson Bridge Road and Price Road. 678-450-3000. Al-Ateen/Nar-Ateen. 8 p.m. Tuesdays, 781 Green St., Gainesville. 770-534-3777. Alcoholics Anonymous. 2 and 8 p.m. Sundays; noon, 5:30 and 8 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays; noon, 8 p.m. and midnight Fridays; 7:30 a.m., noon, 8 p.m. and midnight Saturdays. 781 Green St., Gainesville. For closed meetings schedule, call 770-534-3777. Alcoholics Anonymous. 8 p.m. Mondays and Saturdays, Laurelwood, 200 Wisteria Drive, Gainesville. 770-531-3800. Alcoholics Anonymous. 8 p.m. Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays, St. Luke Church, Gainesville. 770-983-3057. Alcoholics Anonymous — Chestatee group. Meetings every day at noon and 6:30 p.m., 9 a.m. Sundays. Intersection of Warhill Road and Dawsonville Highway. For information call 770-983-3057. Alcoholics Anonymous, Gainesville Classic Group. 5:30 p.m. daily, 7 p.m. Monday-Thursday, St. Luke Church, 113 Washington St., Gainesville. 770-5408710. Adult Children of Alcoholics and/or other dysfunctional families. 7 p.m. Mondays, St. Luke Church, 113 Washington St. NW, Gainesville. 404-432-5512. Celebrate Recovery. Christian-based recovery group; gender specific; child care is provided. 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays, Lakewood Baptist Church, 2235 Thompson Bridge Road, Gainesville. 770532-6307. Celebrate Recovery. Christ-centered recovery group; gender specific; child care is provided. 7-9 p.m. Fridays, 6:30 p.m. Coffee-house, Lifepoint Church, 1537 Pine Valley Road, Gainesville. 770-534-2888, www.lifepointgainesville.com. Celebrate Recovery. Christ-centered recovery group; gender specific; child care is provided. 7 p.m. Mondays, Concord Baptist Church, 640 Main St., Clermont. 770-983-7272. Celebrate Recovery. Christian-based recovery group; gender specific; child care is provided. 5:30 p.m. Mondays, Blackshear Place Baptist Church, 3428 Atlanta Highway, Flowery Branch. 770534-7058. Celebrate Recovery. 6-10 p.m. Thursdays, Chestnut Mountain Church, 4903 Chestnut Mountain Circle, Flowery Branch. Meal at 6 p.m. followed by large group and small group fellowship time. Child care is provided. 770-967-3197. Emotions Anonymous. 6:45 p.m. Tuesdays and 4 p.m. Sundays at Laurelwood Hospital, 200 Wisteria Drive, Gainesville. 770-531-3800. Narcotics Anonymous. 8 p.m. Sundays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays Thursdays, Saturdays; 6:30 p.m. Mondays; 11:30 a.m. Fridays. Halt Club basement, 817 Holly Drive, Gainesville. 706.974-9990. Narcotics Anonymous. 6:30 and 8 p.m. Sundays, Mondays; 8 p.m. Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays; 6:30 p.m. Wednesdays. 781 Green St., Gainesville. 770-534-3777. Narcotics Anonymous. 8 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays; Laurelwood, 200 Wisteria Drive, Gainesville. 706-974-9990. Narcotics Anonymous. 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays; Clermont Community Center, 6008 Highway 129, Clermont. 706974-9990. Narcotics Anonymous. 7 p.m. Sundays; noon Mondays; 8 p.m. Wednesdays and Saturdays; United Bethel Church, 100 Lumpkin Campground Road, Dawsonville. Narcotics Anonymous. 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays. McEver United Methodist Church, 3606 McEver Road, Oakwood. 706-974-9990. Narcotics Anonymous, Addicts in the Attic. 8 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays, 1137 W. Ridge Road, Gainesville. 770-287-7249. Reformers Unanimous. 7 p.m. Fridays, Bible Baptist Church, 145 Clarks Bridge Road, Gainesville. 770-503-4784 or 770534-2456. Serenity House of Buford Inc. Alcoholic
recovery programs. 12:15 p.m. MondaysSaturdays, 6:30 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays, 6 p.m. Sundays, 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 8 p.m. MondaysThursdays and Sundays and 9:30 p.m. Thursdays. 4295 Ga. 20, Suite 1 D, Buford. 770-932-9064. Veterans and Community Outreach Program. 7/12-step program. 6 p.m. Tuesdays, Veterans Community C.C. Cloud Center, 996 Athens Highway, Suite E, Gainesville. 770-531-0046.
Diet, weight
Overeaters Anonymous. 6:30 p.m. Fridays, Laurelwood, 200 Wisteria Drive, Gainesville. 770-531-3800. Public information lectures on weight loss surgery. 9-10:30 a.m. first Saturdays, Gainesville Civic Center, Sidney Lanier Room; 6:30-8 p.m. third Wednesdays, Northeast Georgia Medical Center’s Lanier Park campus, Blue Ridge Room, Gainesville. Both sessions presented by ObesitySolutions. 770-534-0110. Weight Watchers. 5:45 p.m. Mondays; 5:15 p.m. Tuesdays; 8:30 a.m., 10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. Wednesdays; 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Thursdays; 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Fridays; 8 and 9:30 a.m. Saturdays,975 Dawsonville Hwy Suite 14 Gainesville. 800651-6000 or www.weightwatchers.com.
Grief
Bereaved Parents of the USA, Northeast Georgia chapter. 7 p.m. third Thursdays. Open to those who have lost a child, grandchild or siblings. Contact Bill Patterson for locations, 770-402-5294, moreinfo@negabpusa.com. GriefShare Recovery Support Group. 6-7:30 p.m. Wednesdays through May 22. Room 209B, First Baptist Church, 751 Green St., Gainesville. Contact Kurt Schuler, 770533-4505. Good G.R.I.E.F. Giving Resources Individually and Enjoying Friends, for widows and widowers. Contact Billy Hendrix, 678617-2760. Pet Loss Support Group. Aiken-Harrison Conference Room, Adoption Center, Humane Society of Hall County, 845 W. Ridge Road, Gainesville. 770-532-6617. Grief Education Group. 10-11:30 a.m. first and third Tuesdays. Eight sessions through May 7. Group limited to 10 participants. Facilitated by Bereavement Coordinator Susan Collins. United Hospice of Gainesville, 700 S. Enota Street, Suite 202, Gainesville. Free. RSVP to 770-297-1970. Grief Support Group. 5-6:30 p.m. first and third Tuesdays. Group limited to 10 participants. Facilitated by Bereavement Coordinator Susan Collins. United Hospice of Gainesville, 700 S. Enota Street, Suite 202, Gainesville. Free. RSVP to 770-2971970. Post Abortion Support & Treatment (PAST Class) for women. Next class 1 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 20, at Gainesville Care Center. Call 770-535-1413 or visit www. gainesvillecarepartners.org. Widowed persons volunteer aides. 5:15 p.m. fourth Tuesdays, Community Service Center. 770-536-0072.
Relationships
Adolescent young men’s sexual recovery support group. Access Christian Counseling, 101 Pilgrim Village Drive, Cumming. Contact Jeffrey Stull, 770-8887754. Caregivers’ support group. 4-5:30 p.m. Second Thursday of each month. The Guest House, 320 Tower Heights Road, Gainesville. 770-535-1487. Divorcecare ministry class. 7 p.m. Tuesdays, Fountain of Faith Worship Center, 6028 Spout Springs Road, Flowery Branch. 770-572-6152. The Gainesville District Office of the United Methodist Children’s Home. Provides free parenting, educational counseling, financial aid, foster care services, diapers/ wipes and other donated items to families who are in need. 604 Washington St., Suite A-6, Gainesville. 770-531-3063, www. umchildrenshome.org. Grandparents Raising Grandchildren and Relatives Raising Nieces and Nephews. 1011:30 a.m. fourth Mondays, Habersham County Senior Center. Contact Julia Jessee, 770-538-2650. Grandparents Raising Grandchildren and Relatives Raising Nieces and Nephews. 10-11:30 a.m. fourth Wednesdays, The Legacy Shoppe, Lakeshore Mall, 150 Pearl Nix Parkway, Gainesville. Contact Julia Jessee, 770-538-2650, or Jenise Proctor,
770-503-3330. Help for Women Bullied at Work or Church. Dates and place to be determined. helpforthebullied@yahoo.com. Infidelity support group. For women seeking emotional healing following infidelity. Meets the first Tuesday of each month, 7–8 p.m. at Gainesville Care Center, 434 Green Street Place N.E. isggainesville@yahoo.com. MOMS Club of Gainesville. 10 a.m. first Tuesdays, Family Life Center, behind the First Baptist Church of Gainesville. momsclubgainesville.homestead.com Mothers of Preschoolers. Moms can call for child care reservations. 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. second Thursdays, First United Methodist Church, 2780 Thompson Bridge Road, Gainesville. 706-867-1573 or www. gainesvillemops.com. Mothers of Preschoolers. 9:30 a.m.-noon first and third Thursdays, First Baptist Church, Gainesville. 678-677-8066 or coordinator@fbcgmops.org. Gwinnett Area Mommies. Online group with monthly playdates and support meetings. www.GwinnettAreaMommies. com. Newborn parenting. 6:30-9:30 p.m. second Mondays of every other month, Northeast Georgia Medical Center. 770535-3357. Operation Patriot’s Call. For the families of local U.S. Army troops in Charlie Company who will be deployed to Afghanistan in the spring. 4 p.m. Thursdays, 153 Alta Vista Road, Gainesville. Parenting support group (Englishspeaking). Sponsored by Family TIES — Gainesville, for parents who have children ages from infancy to 17. Learn coping skills, new discipline techniques, anger management and managing stress. 6:30 p.m. Mondays and 9:30 a.m. Tuesdays. 770-287-3071. Parenting support group (Spanishspeaking). Parenting Support Group (Spanish Speaking). Sponsored by Family TIES — Gainesville, for parents who have children ages from infancy to 17. Learn coping skills, new discipline techniques, anger management and managing stress. 6:30 p.m. Thursdays. 404-452-4803. Spouses of sexual betrayal support group for women. Access Christian Counseling, 101 Pilgrim Village Drive, Cumming. Contact Jeffrey Stull, 770-888-7754. Teen parent support group. 6 p.m. Wednesdays, The Veterans & Community Outreach Foundation and C.C. Cloud Youth Center, 996 Athens Highway, Suite E, Gainesville. Contact Victor Lamar Johnson, 770-531-0046. Women’s sexual recovery support group. Access Christian Counseling, 101 Pilgrim Village Drive, Cumming. Contact Jeffrey Stull, 770-888-7754. Encourage Me support group for single moms. Dinner, childcare provided. 6:30 p.m. first Tuesday of each month, Lakewood Baptist Church, Thompson Bridge Road. E-mail Jessica Hart, hartjn@yahoo.com or call 770-5351413.
Health, disease
Alzheimers support group. 2-3:30 p.m. second Tuesdays, The Guest House, 320 Tower Heights Road, Gainesville. 770-5351487. Alzheimer’s/dementia caregiver support group. 10-11:30 a.m., first Tuesdays. First Presbyterian Church, 800 South Enota Drive NE, Gainesville. Contact Roger Ray at 678-936-9764, or ray5023@gmail.com. Alzheimer’s Caregiver Luncheon Program. Noon-1 p.m. third Tuesdays, Bentley Center, 135 Hoyt St., Athens. 706549-4850, eanthony@accaging.org or cboozer@accaging.org. Asperger’s Syndrome support group. 7-8:30 p.m. first and third Thursdays, Rooms 1 and 2 on the third floor, Barrow Regional Medical Center, 316 N. Broad St., Winder. Marcia Singson, 770-307-0672, or www.georgiaaspergersorganization.org. Breast cancer support group. 6:30 p.m. second Thursdays, Gainesville Civic Center, 830 Green St. NE. 770-538-7210. Breast cancer support group. Includes newly diagnosed or longtime survivors. 7 p.m. third Tuesdays, Dahlonega Community House, 111 Park St. N. Corner of Hawkins Street and Park Street North. Contact Reita Snipes, 706-864-1708, or Jessie Souther, 706-864-6696. Breast Cancer Survivors’ Lunch Bunch. 11 a.m.-1 p.m. second Thursdays, 4293 Skyline View, Oakwood. Contact Vicki Castleberry, 770-535-8331 or 678-315-
9216. Breastfeeding support group. 11 a.m. second Thursdays, Hall County Health Department. 770-531-5600. Breastfeeding support group. 12:30-2 p.m. second Tuesdays, White County Library conference room. Contact Liane Varnes at 706-969-0999 or elvarnes@yahoo. com; or Alisa Weakley at 706-200-6651 or alisaweakley@yahoo.com. Breastfeeding support group. 12:30 p.m. second Tuesdays, Cleveland Library; 6 p.m. third Thursdays, First Baptist Church, Cleveland; 11:30 a.m. every 2nd to last Monday, Dahlonega Library. Open to all moms. Contact Amanda Bales at 770-5307138. Burn survivors support group. 7:30-9 p.m. first Tuesdays, Suite A-2, 621 Washington St., Gainesville. 770-287-1356 or 770-9833593. Cancer support group. 7 p.m. second Mondays, Radiation Therapy Waiting areaOutpatient Services Building, (ground floor) Northeast Georgia Medical Center. 770535-3563. Cancer support group. 1:30 p.m. Wednesdays, Stephens County Senior Center, Toccoa. 706-886-4740. Celebrate Recovery. Hurts, habits or hang-ups. KJV Bible-based. 7-8 p.m. Tuesdays, Refreshments. 28 Industrial Blvd., Cleveland. 770-900-5110 or 678677-6352. Diabetes support group. 10 a.m. third Thursdays, Blue Ridge Room at Northeast Georgia Medical Center’s Lanier Park campus; 6 p.m. third Thursdays, Diabetes Education Classroom at Northeast Georgia Medical Center’s Lanier Park campus. 678-343-4887. The Gainesville Lake Country Shakers. First and third Thursdays at St. Paul United Methodist Church. Contact Bob and Marie Bridges, 770-532-8849, or Ray and Louell Roper, 678-546-5455. GA Galt support group. For anyone suffering from the metabolic disorder galactosemia. Join at gagalt.webs.com. Gainesville Parkinson’s support group. 11 a.m. first and third Thursdays, St. Paul United Methodist Church. 770-532-8849 or 678-546-5455. The Greater Hall County Area Chapter of the Visually Impaired. 10:30 am to noon on the second Saturday of each month September through June. Activity Room at Smoky Springs Retirement, 940 South Enota Drive, Gainesville. Support group hosts speakers who share information and resources for the visually impaired. For more information and directions, call 770535-8349. HIV/AIDS education and prevention seminar. 6-7 p.m. Tuesdays, Boys & Girls Clubs, Gainesville. 770-297-7755. Insulin pump support group. 7 p.m. every other third Tuesday, Blue Ridge Room, Northeast Georgia Medical Center’s Lanier Park campus. 770-531-3899. Mended Hearts of Northeast Georgia. For heart patients and caretakers. 10:30 a.m. third Thursdays every month except December with light lunch following meet, Auxiliary Conference Room, Northeast Georgia Medical Center. 678-450-9223, www.nghs.com/mendedhearts. National Alliance on Mental Illness Family Support Group. 7-8:30 p.m. second and last Tuesdays. Room 208, First Baptist Church, 751 Green St. NW, Gainesville. 678-9365295; Family to Family 12-class course call 678-989-9653. North Georgia Women Surviving Cancer Support Group. 11 a.m. every third Saturday of the month. Gainesville First United Methodist Church. Free. 770-536-2341. Nursing Mothers support group. 12:30 p.m. second Wednesdays in the conference room at the Cleveland branch of the White County Library. Contact Liane Varnes, 706969-0999 or elvarnes@yahoo.com. Post Abortion Support and Treatment. 6:30 p.m. Mondays. 770-535-1245. Lake Country Shakers Parkinsons support group. 11 a.m. first and third Thursdays, St. Paul United Methodist Church, Washington Street, Gainesville. 770-9670161 or 678-546-5455. Parkinsons support group, Blairsville. 3 p.m. second Wednesdays, January November, Cadence Bank, Blairsville. 706747-2183. Thyroid support group. 7-8 p.m. Tuesdays, Northeast Georgia Medical Center, Room ED3-1, third floor, Ocie Pope Building, Gainesville. Contact Deborah, 770-9659224.
CMYK 6
Sunday, Month 24, 2013
Progress is a publication of The Times, Gainesville, Georgia |
gainesvilletimes com
CMYK
Progress
A publication of
BUSINESS & Industry | Sunday, march 24, 2013
MANUFACTURING IS BIG BUSINESS
Jobs more plentiful in Hall than elsewhere Rates beat national, state averages in 2012 By D. Kelley Hudgins For The Times
Photos by Tom Reed | The Times
Leo Vongdasy works on the assembly line making utility vehicles at the Kubota plant in Gainesville.
Hall manufacturers make things used worldwide BY sarah mueller
smueller@gainesvilletimes.com Hall County companies make a surprising assortment of things that are used around the world, including drugs, wind turbines, heavy-duty vehicles, bar codes and molded products for the medical industry. The top three industries in Hall County include services, manufacturing and government, according to statistics on the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce website. Manufacturing makes up about 24 percent of all of the industries in the county. In 2012, 24 new and expanded industries created 1,232 jobs, retained 742 existing jobs and generated $164 million in capital investment for the metro area containing the city of Gainesville and Hall County. Local manufacturers include Zebra Technologies Corp., SKF Group, Kubota Manufacturing of America Corp. and Alkermes Gainesville LLC. Kubota Manufacturing of America Corp. has headquartered in Gainesville since 1988. The heavy-duy equipment and vehicle manufacturer currently has 1,015 employees and made a big investment in 2012 when it added a production line, creating 95 new jobs for a completely new line of turf products. The company did research, development and product-testing locally. Kubota saves Hall County more than $30,000 annually in grass-cutting contracts by giving Kubota access to local parks and utility sites for turf product testing. The corporation won the chamber’s 2013 Industry of the Year in the large category. Phil Sutton, the company’s chief administrative
Leo Vongdasy works on the assembly line making utility vehicles at the Kubota plant in Gainesville.
The ongoing slow growth in the U.S. economy diminishes the likelihood of a dramatic improvement in the national unemployment rate over the next year. The Congressional Budget Office has projected that those rates will hover around 8 percent throughout 2013. However, Hall County has a different outlook and will probably continue to outpace the employment picture of the country as a whole. The 2012 unemployment averages for the county continued a two-year trend of beating the national average. There are a few other communities across the country that have also fared better than most. They don’t all use the same strategies; however, as participants in the larger economy, they are all affected by the same challenging issues facing the rest of the nation. Communities in North Dakota, Oklahoma and Texas have weathered the downturn by using their oil and gas energy resources. Some university centers have also been less affected. Others have recession-proofed themselves by becoming outstanding health care centers. Unlike the communities that have a single industry that drives their success, Hall County has effectively developed its economy through its diverse private sector business activities. A closer look at Hall County and its adjacent communities offers some insight into how it has been accomplished. The elevated unemployment numbers for the larger Hall Area reflect the varying levels of development in the individual counties from which the data is drawn. The Hall Area comprises Hall County and its nine adjacent counties: Banks, Barrow, Dawson, Forsyth, Gwinnett, Habersham, Jackson, Lumpkin and White. The best unemployment numbers from the 10 consistently come from Banks, Forsyth and Hall, with Dawson and Gwinnett counties tracking closely. Counties with less development tend to have higher jobless rates. The Hall Area number is a calculated average of the higher and lower numbers from the individual counties. Despite the statistical differences, the economies of Hall and neighboring counties are interconnected and both sides benefit from an exchange of resources. Tim Evans, vice president of economic development for the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce explains that connection. “Hall County is a regional employment center,” he said. “Long-term investments in infrastructure, access, business parks, education and training job skills have made the community an attractive place to do business. Additionally, the county has actively promoted policies to create a favorable business climate. “When companies do decide to locate in Hall County, there is a mutual benefit to the adjacent counties. Those new businesses typically hire almost 30 percent of their workers from other counties. Other areas of Hall County’s economy also benefit from the retail, professional service and health care of those regional commuters as they travel to and from work.” Another significant reason for Hall County’s more favorable unemployment numbers is the heterogeneous industry base that operates in the area. The top industry ■■Please see JOBS, 2
officer, said the manufacturing base in Gainesville produces the entire vehicle from frame to paint, except for the engines and transmissions, which come from Japan. Before the vehicle is built, it’s already been purchased by one of the Kubota sales companies, with many going to the tractor sales team in Torrance, Calif. About half of all Kubota-branded equipment sold in the United States is manufactured or assembled at its 151-acre Gainesville facility. Equipment also goes to Australia and New Zealand. “The plant (here) is not like any other plant in the world,” Sutton said. “We assemble them and drive them out the door.” Albert International is a German company that ■■Please see MAKE, 2
D. Kelley Hudgins | For The Times
INSIDE: Get the latest updates on changes at Lakeshore Mall, 3
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MAKE: Some manufacturers expanding in Hall County ■■ Continued from 1 manufactures molded medical devices and other products out of a building on Athens Street. Some of its products include nasal aspirators, breast pumps, foot pumps and suction bulbs. The company was recognized by the chamber for its environmental stewardship this year for changing all of its products to environmentally friendly material. The manufacturer is also doubling to 50,000 square feet and creating five new jobs this year, a chamber news release said. Albert currently has 40 employees. Another local manufacturer profiting while paying attention to the environment is Swedish-based company, SKF Group. A factory plant in Flowery Branch became part of the company in 1986 and makes ball bearings. The plant employs more than 300 workers, and General Manager Jean-Luc Gardelle said the company culture cherishes respect for people as much as it cherishes respect for the environment. The Business Excellence program began at the Flowery Branch location in 2009 and included values such as empowerment, openness and teamwork. Gardelle said one employee’s suggestion about leaks in the plant’s use of compressed air saved the company $17,000 annually. “We treat sustainability with the same priority as profitability,” Gardelle said. The green industry made some companies start producing products to meet a future demand, such as the ZF Wind Power plant, which opened in 2011 off New Harvest Drive at the Gainesville Business Park. Gainesville’s ZF Group, based in Germany, also encompasses ZF Industries, a transmission-manufacturing company that opened a plant in 1987. The plant, which employs about 160 workers, produces gearboxes for wind turbines. And the companies keep growing. Zebra Technologies has expanded twice in the five years it has done business in Hall County, Plant Manager Pao Sengkhammee said. The business, which is manufacturing labels, went from five employees and 20,000 square feet to 38 people and 40,000 square feet last year. “We’ve expanded twice since we’ve been here,” Sengkhammee said.
Tom Reed | The Times
U.S. Rep. Doug Collins is escorted through the SKF plant in Flowery Branch by Manager of Operations James Beatty Jr. during a February visit. The company, which manufactures ball bearings, has replaced its lighting with high-efficiency bulbs and also shut down a furnace to save energy. The sustainable initiatives are about saving the environment and money.
Companies save green by being green BY SARAH MUELLER
smueller@gainesvilletimes.com Hall County and Gainesville companies are making profits while making the energy conservation and sustainability part of their business strategy at their facilities. These include SKF Group and Zebra Technologies Corp. in Flowery Branch and Kubota Manufacturing of America Corp. in Gainesville. “If sustainability is on the agenda, we can find the solutions,” said Jean-Luc Gardelle, general manager of the local SKF manufacturing plant. SKF manufactures ball bearings. SKF Group, an international
manufacturer based in Sweden, acquired the 63-acre Flowery Branch plant property in 1986 and employs more than 300 workers. The company issued its first environmental policy in 1989 and certification in 1998. Gardelle said the factory replaced its lighting with high-efficiency bulbs about two years, leading to reduced energy use. The plant also switched from a septic tank to Flowery Branch’s sewer system and shut down a furnace to save on energy and carbon emissions. SKF has saved more 3,200 metric tons in carbon monoxide emissions. Company workers also brought the issue of leaks in the air com-
pressors to management, which saved the company $17,000 a year. “He said ‘I never thought that air had a cost,’” said Gardelle, quoting the employee who had the idea. Because of the “We Care” philosophy the company has created, the employees have sustainability on the agenda, he said. Zebra Technologies had been looking for an opportunity to recycle the waste it has left over when it manufactures barcode labels and private labels. The goal is to reduce as much as possible before it goes to the landfill, said Pao Sengkhammee, plant manager. The company, which has been at its Hall County location for about five years, arranged two years
ago to have Waste Management transport the plant’s mostly paper waste to Pratt Industries. Pratt burns the paper waste for their plant, Senkgkhammee said. “We’ve been trying to do that for a long time,” he said. Zebra also uses sensor lighting in some offices and the bathrooms. Kubota Manufacturing of America, headquartered in Gainesville, builds vehicles including turf equipment, sub-compact tractors and utility vehicles locally. Chief Administrator Officer Phil Sutton said the company is environmentally certified 14001, which is a set of environmental criteria. “It’s very difficult to get that certification,” Sutton said.
JOBS: Experts say outlook is good for area as retail development continues ■■ Continued from 1 employers are diverse in an economically healthy way. Those employers include manufacturing (including food processing), health care and social assistance, government, which includes public schools and the state facilities such as Lanier Technical College and UNGGainesville; the separate category of educational services includes private schools such as Brenau University, Lakeview Academy and Riverside Military Academy. Other important industry employers in Hall County include retail trade, administrative and support services, accommodation and food service, wholesale trade, finance and insurance and construction. As a collective, most of these industry employers are not expected to dramatically change their hiring strategies in the
ongoing sluggish recovery. However, the construction and health services employers may be more directly impacted by changes in federal policies, specifically those that affect interest rates and control the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. A CBO projection that interest rates will remain low over the year, coupled with a slowly improving housing market, offers some encouragement that employment in the construction industry will gradually improve. The health care services sector is expected to face significant changes over the next few years, as the ACA is enacted. The broadened base of health services recipients will increase the demand for those services. However, specific details about how that challenge will be met, and the number and types of health care pro-
fessionals that will be needed, have not yet been fully clarified. Evans discussed several additional reasons why Hall County may show a greater level of improvement over the coming year. ■■ The numbers indicating the county’s strengthening economy are not anomalies or data glitches or due to having had less impact in the area from the downturn and recession. Hall County was fully impacted and its positive recovery has drawn attention over the last couple of years. ■■ The Milken Institute ranked the Gainesville-Hall Metropolitan Statistical Area 39th overall for job growth and No. 2 in short-term job growth for the past 12 months. It previously ranked the GainesvilleHall MSA sixth among its 179 Best Performing Small Cities for one-year job growth in
TOM REED | The Times
Holly Ojeda sets up a display earlier this year in the new and enlarged location of Shoe Dept. Encore in Lakeshore Mall. The mall’s planned redevelopment should create new jobs, including 100 employees for the planned Dick’s Sporting Goods store scheduled to open by this summer.
2010-2011. A Garner Economics study noted that the Gainesville-Hall area is one of only a few areas that outperformed the U.S. job growth numbers for more than two consecutive years. ■■ Several ongoing and planned commercial projects in Hall County will generate construction hiring. Additional jobs will also be created as companies begin to staff their new and renovated facilities. Some of the projects currently under way include the following: ■■ The New Holland Market, at Limestone and Jesse Jewell parkways, which will be anchored by one of the largest Kroger grocery stores in the region and will include office and commercial space, as well as multifamily housing. The store opening is scheduled for the spring of 2014. ■■ The Lakeshore Mall redevelopment will feature a new
Dick’s Sporting Goods store that is scheduled to open by this summer and have 100 employees. The old buildings are now being removed. ■■ The new Riverplace Hospital will be an estimated 240,000-square-foot, 100-bed facility. It is expected to be completed in early 2015 and create 500 jobs. Turner Construction, which is in charge of the project, has made a commitment to use local suppliers and contractors to the greatest degree possible in order for the project to have the most favorable impact on the local economy. ■■ The new 518-acre Gateway Industrial Centre in northeast Hall County that will be home to the $11 million Georgia Poultry Laboratory. Hall County’s industry diversity, favorable business climate and capable work force likely will help position it to continue beating the numbers.
39 GainesvilleHall Metropolitan Statistical Area ranking for job growth, according to the Milken Institute
2
Metropolitan Statistical Area ranking for short-term job growth, according to the Milken Institute
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Lakeshore Mall making big changes By Shannan Finke For The Times
Photos by TOM REED | The Times
Demolition of a portion of Lakeshore Mall in January makes way for the Dick’s Sporting Goods that is set to open by summer.
Lakeshore Mall in Gainesville has been making some big changes, shifting store locations and making way for a new anchor store, Dick’s Sporting Goods, which should open by JEMC_C&I_innovate_GT_Progress_Layout 1 3/11/13 12:57 PM Page 1 this summer.
Ashley Fortner, left, and Lee Fortner, both with Wilson and Fortner Electric, put wiring in the ceiling of the expanded Shoe Dept. Encore store in Lakeshore Mall late last year.
Gainesville’s largest retail establishment is well on its way to an upgraded floor plan, complete with relocated store locations and new retail tenants. Lakeshore Mall, owned by Garrison Investment Group since September 2010, is undergoing renovations expected to cost its owner more than $20 million until the redevelopment’s scheduled completion in 2015. Although the mall received an aesthetically focused upgrade in 2006 under different ownership, its new owners believed the time had come for bigger improvements. “They saw the potential of the property and saw it needed to be developed,” said Kirsten Boettcher, Lakeshore Mall’s marketing manager, about Garrison Investment Group. “They’ve been very proactive about rejuvenating the center.” Boettcher said phase one of the renovations involved moving stores located between J.C. Penney and Sears to new locations between J.C. Penney and Belk. This phase is complete, and the stores that relocated have been reopened. The next major development will be the opening of Dick’s Sporting Goods, whose construction of more than 50,000 square feet between J.C. Penney and Sears is scheduled for completion this summer. “The side of the mall where Dick’s is opening has already been torn down, and you can see that area being cleared,” Boettcher said. “We’ll turn everything over to Dick’s at the end of the summer, and then it’ll be up to them to take care of things like hiring and getting their merchandise.” In addition to the new array of merchandise Dick’s will offer, the mall’s owner and employees hope the renovations will “keep people shopping local” and contain business in Hall County. “Bringing in Dick’s is going to be a positive for the county. We have a great need for a sporting goods store, and we hope to continue to offer our customers the best retail mix that we can in the small space that we have,” Boettcher said. While work on Dick’s progresses, the mall’s owner and leasing team are working to find new tenants for the center’s empty spaces. According to Boettcher, the interest expressed by prospective retailers is high, partly due to the mall’s reputation in the area. “Lakeshore Mall is one of the more established shopping areas in Hall County. It has been opened for around 50 years, which is pretty outstanding for any mall, really,” Boettcher said. “It has shown it can withstand the test of time, we have a loyal base, and people like shopping here.”
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Real estate poised for improvement by D. Kelley Hudgins For The Times
Improving job prospects and pent up housing demand will continue to spur local real estate activity even as area home values start to show signs of stabilizing, experts say. The relationship between housing supply and consumer demand is straightforward. However, there are numerous forces that control each side of that equation. The trends for several of those factors in the local area are beginning to shows signs of improvement. These include: increased population growth, tightening in available rental housing, an increase in home sales, a decreasing inventory of existing homes, the clearing of distressed properties, consistent and accurate property valuations, an increase in employment and continuing low interest rates. Rising population rates drive housing demand. Statistics from the Governor’s Office of Budget and Planning show an annual increase in the 2 percent range for the county over the past year. Projections are that the annual population growth in will continue at 2.2 percent over the next two years and edge toward a 2.5 percent annual increase in 2016. The increased demand has only partially been met
by the consolidation of several generations of families into a single household, and a turn toward rental housing. The pressure for housing is reflected by apartment occupancy rates that have risen in the area. According to Frank Norton Jr., chief executive officer of The Norton Agency in Gainesville, the apartment occupancy number is up from 70 percent to 90 percent. While the time-tested path for families to acquire homes and move up has been to buy a starter home and live in it while it appreciated, then sell it and reinvest in a larger home, that pattern has been at least partially been disrupted during the economic downturn. However, as the increased population competes for available rental housing, it creates upward pressure on rental prices, and renting becomes more expensive. Households then have to decide if it is cheaper to rent or take advantage of low interest rates and purchase a home. The increase in fair market sales and the decrease in existing home inventory suggest that at least some are deciding to buy. The Hall County Tax Assessor’s Office reports that in 2012 the number of Fair Market Sales has increased from a five-year low of 723 in 2011 to a fiveyear high of 1,710.
Hall County housing
Foreclosures Fair market sales
Bank sales
2007 400
2,851
59
2008 886
1,660
548
2009 1,145
951
811
2010 1,476
1,087
983
2011 1,192
723
882
2012 1,035
1,710
473
Source: Hall County Tax Assessors Office
Norton said there is also a decreasing inventory of existing homes in the area and “the current four-month inventory is expected to be drawn down even further to between 2 1/2 and 3 months.” There are also indications of a stabilization of the downward pressure on housing values and real estate activity from foreclosures, short sales and bank sales. Data from the Tax Assessor’s Office shows the 2012 number of foreclosed properties at 1,035. That number is down for the second year from a 2010 high of 1,476. Some of that improvement may be attributed to a diversion of foreclosures into pre-foreclosure sales as reflected in a report on the national averages from RealtyTrac, a company that specializes in data for distressed property buyers. That shift likely reflects a response to initiatives by The Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program
administered by Fannie Mae to streamline the short sale process and make it simpler and faster for homeowners and banks to complete the necessary negotiations. Under guidelines from the Federal Housing Administration, homeowners who are current with payments, and do a short sale according to specific criteria, may qualify quickly to buy another home. That will enable qualified buyers to return to the market sooner as their economic situation improves. Home value averages in the community also take less of a hit with the higher price that is usually negotiated in a short sale. Downward pressures on home values over the last several years have been significant. The expertise of Hall County Tax Assessors, headed and directed by Chief Appraiser Steve Watson has become essential in analyzing the extent of the decline and implementing
changes to accurately value properties under changing market conditions. During presentations in January and February of this year with residents of the Village of Deaton Creek and Reunion Subdivision, Hall County leaders including Watson and other members of his office explained the valuation process and how the economic downturn has affected property values. A few of the topics that they discussed in detail included: The challenge for their office to incorporate data for the high number of bank sales in a way that ensures a consistent fair market value to all property owners. The circumstances leading up to the moratorium on increased valuations that started with a scheduled three-year review of the county’s tax digest, conducted by the state’s Department of Audits. During that audit inconsistencies stemming from the volume of bank sales, appraisals and auctions were identified. Part of the remedy for dealing with the inconsistencies included a legislative moratorium on raising valuations from January 2009 to January 2011. It also required a complete review of the 75,000 parcels in the county. Eighty percent of that review was complete by the end of 2012. The remaining 20 percent will be reviewed this
year. The review process has ultimately meant that valuations in Hall County reflect a fair market value and are equitable according to a standard determined by the state of Georgia. The lifting of the moratorium on raising values will also allow valuations to stabilize as they reflect current conditions going forward. The county’s favorable employment level relative to the national averages also impacts real estate activity. A Garner Economics study noted that the GainesvilleHall area is one of only a few areas that outperformed the U.S. job growth numbers for more than two consecutive years. Development projects that are already under way are continuing to create construction jobs, and as they are completed, staffing requirements for the completed facilities will increase additional jobs in the area. The Congressional Budget Office has projected that interest rates are expected to remain favorable for borrowers over the next year. Low rates will continue to push the market, especially in local economies where unemployment is low. There are other evolving pieces to the real estate outlook that will become clearer over time through the lens of hindsight.
Developments will bring retail BY MEREDITH PRUITT
mpruitt@gainesvilletimes.com This year is expected to be an important one for retail in Hall County. Expansions and additions are under way that will affect commerce in the area. The New Holland Market, now under development, will be 500,000 square feet and will be located on Jesse Jewell Parkway. It is expected to be the largest retail development venture in the area. A new Kroger will be built there that is expected to be larger than most other Kroger stores. The total land area of this new store is 123,000 square feet, which will be 20 percent larger than other Kroger stores. The store will include a Fuel Center as well. Another new development initiative is located at the intersection of Beechwood Boulevard and Ga. 53 across from the already standing Olive Garden. This will be called Beechwood Crossing and will include two restaurants that are new to the Gainesville area market. It will also include four sites for new retail development. Tim Knight of Knight Commercial Real Estate said they are in negotiations with a few outfits, including a 70,000-square-foot retailer. The developer’s plans call for a total 246,000-square-foot center on the 15-acre property owned by America’s Home Place. Knight said said they may have an announcement by this summer on at least one anchor store. Lakeshore Mall is also developing the area in between J.C. Penney and Sears to make room for a new Dick’s Sporting Goods store. Various improvements are planned to the rest of the mall, with the hopes of developing more exterior entrances to improve convenience. In addition, Oakwood is hoping to expand its retail appeal, mainly with new restaurants that are geared toward the growing student population. “There’s a lot of single retail development happening in Oakwood,” said Tim Evans, Vice President of Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce. “We’ve got a growing student population that needs places and choices to eat.” Additional development includes a new McDonald’s which is being built in front of Sam’s Club near the demolition site of the old McDonald’s. A new Burger King and Dunkin Donuts was recently built there as well. The development happening right now is expected to improve the economy and match the recent growth in population in the area.
TOM REED | The Times
Development work continues for the planned New Holland Market development at the intersection of Limestone and Jesse Jewell parkways in Gainesville. The development will feature a new Kroger and fuel center.
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Industrial expansion continuing in Hall BY JEFF GILL
jgill@gainesvilletimes.com Hall County is getting stronger in terms of industrial expansion, as the nation’s economy slowly recovers from a devastating recession. Tim Evans, the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce’s vice president of economic development, said Hall County has about 72 “active” prospects, up from 50 in past years. He defines such prospects as companies “with a defined need, timeline and ability” to expand. “They’re ready, willing and able, as we say,” Evans said. In 2012-13, Hall County had 24 new and expanding businesses, creating 1,660 jobs and a $203 million investment in the economy. Many companies announcing expansions or new locations are hiring this year, “so their impact to the unemployment rate hasn’t been felt yet,” Evans said. “We should continue to see our unemployment ratchet down.” Hall County is faring well “despite the national economy,” Evans said. A diversified economy has helped, with people working in health care, automotive, poultry and other sectors. “We are not overinvested in any one sector of goods producing,” Evans said. Also, he noted, “we’re a regional center for employment. A lot of people in the counties to the north of us depend on us for jobs.” One example of industrial development involves Germany-based Atlanta Biologicals, a biotechnology manufacturer moving to Tanners Creek Business Park off Thurmon Tanner Parkway in Oakwood. A new 36,000-square-foot facility will headquarter the international company’s North American operations. Renate Gerle, president of Atlanta Biologicals, said at a ground-breaking ceremony last year, “When growth needs caused Atlanta Biologicals to consider a larger facility, we started an exhaustive search for a suitable building site. Hall County became our top choice for many reasons.” She credited the chamber of commerce, local economic plans and Tanners Creek developers for offering a business environment. “The area, with its sheer beauty of lake and mountains, offers a high quality of life for our staff and will
Photos by SCOTT ROGERS | The Times
Atlanta Biological’s new location at the Tanners Creek Business Park in Oakwood is nearing completion. The German-based biotechnology manufacturer’s new 36,000-square-foot facility will headquarter the international company’s North American operations.
greatly assist us in attracting and retaining the best talent in our industry,” Gerle said. ProCare Rx, a national pharmacy benefit management company, moved its headquarters to Gainesville in 2012 from Duluth, bringing with it 120 employees. Its office is the cornerstone of the ProCare Park, a 23-acre site on Candler Road at Interstate 985. Plans call for development of a mid-rise office building and additional office, warehouse and retail space. Also, Patillo Industrial Real Estate is marketing a 77,000-squarefoot building at Gainesville Business Park, 1845 New Harvest Road, off Calvary Church Road. “That’s great bait on the hook for us,” Evans said. “We are getting some looks at that building.” Another major project in formation is the Gateway Industrial
Centre off Ga. 365, north of White Sulphur Road. The 518-acre park, an effort involving Hall County government and the Gainesville-Hall County Development Authority, has about 150 acres of rail frontage. Infrastructure, including sewer service and a road network, is being set up for the park, which will be home to the new Georgia Poultry Laboratory Network headquarters. In Gateway, “we can put together 100 acres on rail, and those (sites) are extremely scarce,” said Evans. Overall, “you need to have a broad availability of different sizes, buildings and sites, because every project is unique,” he said. “This has been kind of a weak point for us because we have been running out of inventory in some sizes, particularly large sites — anything above 50 acres, we’re pretty much out.”
Construction is under way on about $4.4 million worth of new roads that will make up the access to the new Gateway Industrial Centre development in northeast Hall. Work on the project is expected to finish in September.
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Flocking into backyards
Photos by Scott Rogers | The Times
Flowery Branch resident Cookie Karp keeps a pen with Rhode Island Red chickens and a rooster in her backyard.
Residents don’t look past their own land to roost BY CAREY SARTAIN For The Times
Backyard chickens have recently started gaining popularity in urban areas, and though poultry has been king in Hall County for years, the trend of the small-time poultry farmer seems to be extending to Hall County. Clint Hamlin grew up around chickens and now his family have a chicken of their own. “My grandmother had chickens, so I’ve been around chickens my whole life. We were the one family on Green Street Circle that had a chicken for a while,” Hamlin said. “She just ran around the yard. Her name was Happy.” Hamlin said it was his wife’s idea to get chickens for their family and that is was a learning experience. “We didn’t know what we had. It turned out we had one chicken and one rooster,” he said. “We wanted the kids to see God’s creation up close.” Hamlin said that while keeping chickens is beneficial and fun for his kids, there is a downside. “Oh yeah, they’re a chore. They will perch anywhere they want. You can build the nicest little thing for them, but they are going to go wherever they want,” Hamlin said. “They like our windowsill right above the air conditioning unit so there’s just a mess over there that I have to clean up.” Michael Wheeler, Hall County extension coordinator, said his office has seen in an interest in different aspects of keeping chickens. “We have a lot of folks that have been interested in egg candling,” Wheeler said. The process ■■Please see FLOCK, 2
Flowery Branch resident Cookie Karp feeds her Rhode Island Red chickens in a covered pen in her backyard.
Chicken companies learn to live with high feed costs By William Roenigk For The Times
WASHINGTON — Record high feed costs during the second half of 2012 and undoubtedly at least for the first half of 2013, if not the full year, make any predictions about the chicken business somewhat more difficult and a bit more precarious than usual. With market-ready live chicken costs over 50 cents per pound and ready-to-cook weight costs essentially twice that amount, the one primary
question is “how much will production have to adjust to find the sweet spot where prices rise to cover at least break-even costs”? With the unprecedented cost challenges, chicken will venture into new, uncharted territory in 2013. Little did chicken producers and processors know that the challenges of the past few years were just a warmup to the likely operating environment in the year ahead. Factors impacting production, consumption Factor in a continued
so-so U.S. economy and a global economy that is less than robust and the forecast becomes even more interesting. There remains much uncertainty about the general economy, government programs, and federal policy changes. Before 2006, when chicken consumption peaked at 88 pounds per person, there was an attitude that chicken’s very favorable value equation with consumers would help insulate chicken from the vagaries of a soft economy. Recent years’
experience has proven that equation and attitude to be somewhat less than correct, especially at foodservice. Chicken wings maybe the exception to that general conclusion. USDA is calling for a modest decrease in chicken production in 2012 and for another modest decrease in marketing in 2013. Never in the history of the chicken industry has there been two consecutive years of decreases; that is, back-to-back negative production adjustments. A number of analysts
outside of USDA see a much more dramatic drop in chicken production for 2013, that is, something beyond “modest.” And, such a situation is not just unprecedented and painful, but unnecessary if there was an appropriate federal government energy policy, especially for cornbased ethanol. Pork production is expected to pull back a percent or so in 2013 while beef’s downward adjustment may be more significant with a decrease of something over 4 percent. With the decline
in the combined production of beef, pork, veal and lamb and with exports of red meat staying steady or better in 2013, per capita consumption of red meat will be less than 102 pounds per person for the year, the lowest consumption level since the 1930s. Combined meat and poultry consumption will be less than 200 pounds per person on average in 2013, the first time it will be below 200 pounds since 1990.
INSIDE: USDA sees poultry on the rise in 2013, 5
■■Please see FEED, 4
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Poultry, egg exports set records in ’12 From staff reports Thanks in large part to the industry’s ability to adapt to changing global marketplace dynamics, 2012 was a record-setting year for exports of U.S. poultry meat and eggs. Combined export value of U.S. poultry meat and eggs reached $5.722 billion in 2012, 12 percent ahead of 2011, the previous record year, according to year-end trade data released last week by the Foreign Agricultural Service. “The global landscape is in a constant state of transition,” said Jim Sumner, president of the USA Poultry & Egg Export Council. “While our traditional markets of Mexico and Russia remained at the top of the broiler markets, there were numerous changes, such as Angola and Taiwan moving into the top 10 broiler markets and Mexico growth as a market for eggs. The greatest benefit for our industry is a much greater balance than we’ve ever before realized.” Sumner said the U.S. industry,
which for years depended on a few behemoths such as Russia and China for a majority of its export sales, is now much less dependent on singular markets as new markets have opened and sales expand to the ROW (the rest of the world.) “The only constant in the export marketplace is change,” he said. “And fortunately, our industry is very good at adapting to these changes. In 2008, for example, we exported products to 109 countries. In 2012, we shipped to 121 countries.” For 2012, for example, doubledigit declines in shipments of U.S. chicken meat to several markets, including Korea and Vietnam, were more than offset by increased sales to markets such as Mexico, Russia, Angola, Congo, Kazakhstan and Ghana. The top six markets for U.S. broiler meat exports for 2012 were Mexico, 560,544 tons valued at $641.2 million, up 23 and 42 percent, respectively; Hong Kong, 296,085 tons valued at $396.2 million, down 46 and 47 percent; Russia, 266,995
tons valued at $301.7 million, up 25 and 23 percent; China, 239,897 tons valued at $283 million, up 149 and 137 percent; Angola, 182,027 tons valued at $214.4 million, up 11 and 18 percent; and Canada, 173,037 tons valued at $498.8 million, up 22 and 32 percent. Last year was also a recordsetting year for total U.S. poultry meat exports in both quantity and value. Export value of U.S. poultry climbed to nearly $5.5 billion, 11 percent over 2011, while quantity hit 4.1 million metric tons, up 5 percent. The quantity record was 0.6 percent higher than in 2008, the previous record year. Meanwhile, 2012 U.S. egg exports also reached record levels. Total exports (table eggs plus processed egg products in shell-egg equivalents) were 274.1 million dozen valued at $263.7 million, up 24 and 35 percent from 2011, respectively. Broiler meat exports in 2012, excluding chicken paws, set records in both quantity and value, reaching 3.3 million tons valued at $4.2
billion, up respectively 4 and 15 percent from 2011. Compared to the previous record set in 2008, U.S. broiler meat export quantity for 2012 increased by about 1 percent, while value rose by 17 percent. Exports of chicken paws in 2012 reached 363,974 tons, an increase of 5 percent from the previous year, while export value was $450.1 million, down 10 percent from 2011. Of those exports, 53 percent went to Hong Kong, and 40 percent went to China. U.S. turkey exports last year also reached record highs, with exports in 2012 climbing to 361,597 tons valued at $678.5 million, up 14 and 13 percent, respectively. The top U.S. turkey markets are Mexico, 187,201 tons valued at $371.8 million, up 3 and 4 percent, respectively; China, 45,910 tons valued at $70.7 million, up 22 and 32 percent; the Philippines, 14,379 tons valued at $12.9 million, up 167 and 123 percent; Canada, 14,150 tons valued at $31.4 million, up 38 and 29 percent; and Hong Kong, 12,063 tons valued at $20.7 million,
down 30 and 17 percent. For table eggs, exports in 2012 were 127.6 million dozen valued at $122.6 million, up 54 and 59 percent, respectively, both records, and driven by increased shipments to Mexico, Hong Kong, and the European Union. The top five export markets for table eggs are Hong Kong, 46.7 million dozen, up 30 percent; Canada, 26.1 million dozen, up 19 percent; Mexico, 16.6 million dozen vs. 1.3 million dozen in 2011; the U.A.E., 13 million dozen, up 66 percent; and the EU, 8.9 million dozen vs. 0.78 million dozen in 2011. For egg products, 2012 was also a record-setting year, as total export value rose by 20 percent to $141 million. Export value to Japan, the top export market for U.S. egg products, decreased by 28 percent to $45.1 million, accounting for 32 percent of U.S. total export value worldwide. Export value to the EU rose by 88 percent to $38.3 million, while sales to Mexico increased sixfold to $16.5
Agricultural groups Groups support support change in US-EU trade pact truck weight limit By Barbara Olejnik
bolejnik@poultrytimes.net
By Barbara Olejnik
bolejnik@poultrytimes.net WASHINGTON — Agricultural groups, including poultry organizations, have endorsed a transportation bill that would permit states to increase truck-weight limits to 97,000 pounds with inclusion of a sixth axle on trucks. The bill, the Safe and Efficient Transportation Act (House Resolution 612), was introduced in Congress by Reps. Reid Ribble, R-Wis., and Mike Michaud, D-Maine. In a letter to the two congressmen, the agricultural coalition said, “As members of the agriculture industry, we are hindered by antiquated transportation rules and regulations that are inconsistent and impede the flow of commerce for agribusinesses. Inconsistencies promote unsafe shipping on all roads and lead to greater transportation costs that strain the budgets of familyowned businesses. On behalf of the agriculture industry we thank you for supporting improvements in shipping efficiency and safety.” The letter pointed out that the federal weight limit has been set at 80,000 pounds for more than 25 years. “Increasing the truck weight limit to 97,000 pounds means that smaller operations can consolidate their
goods into fewer shipments, which means there will be fewer trucks on the roads and less expense for small businesses. This is a safe and cost-effective alternative that does not impede commerce,” the letter stated. In a press release Ribble noted that H.R. 612 “would permit states to increase their truck weight limit to allow shippers to move the same amount of product using fewer trucks and less fuel. Infrastructure is a central link between the manufacturer, supplier, distributor and consumer, and this legislation will help reinforce this chain and increase economic growth ... all across the country.” The agriculture group also referenced two studies: ■■ Since the United Kingdom raised its gross vehicle weight limit to 97,000 pounds for six-axle vehicles in 2001, fatal truck-related accident rates have declined by 35 percent. ■■ The Transportation Research Board determined that a six-axle truck carrying 97,000 pounds has the same breaking distance as an 80,000-pound truck with five axles. “These are just two of many existing studies that prove that increasing the truck weight limit to 97,000 pound with an additional axle is a safe alternative to
putting more trucks on our roads,” the coalition’s letter stated. “We are consistently at a disadvantage to other trucks on the road,” the letter continued. “These trucks are allowed to haul a 100,000-pound load of foreign goods on a five-axle trailer to many of the same markets as outs Unfortunately, our goods, which are produced domestically, are limited to 80,000-pound loads. Many of us often hit the federal weight limit with significant space in our trailers, and we are forced to use more trucks than necessary. “Agriculture cannot afford to continue delaying this issue any longer. The evidence shows that this is a safe and efficient alternative to putting more trucks on the road.” Organizations signing the letter included the Agricultural Retailers Association, Agricultural & Food Transporters Conference, American Trucking Associations Inc., American Farm Bureau Federation, American Meat Institute, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, National Chicken Council, National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, National Milk Producers Federation, National Pork Producers Council, National Turkey Federation and the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association.
Scott Rogers | The Times
Flowery Branch resident Cookie Karp built a pen in her backyard for her Rhode Island Reds to save them from coyote and hawks feeding on the birds.
FLOCK: ‘I can tell what hen is laying what’ ■■ Continued from 1 involves holding a light to the egg to determine its condition. Those who plan to sell their eggs must be certified in the process. Wheeler said that when the Agriculture Field Office hosts the events, they fill up quickly. As far as keeping your own backyard flock, Wheeler suggests you do your homework. “You should make sure you have the facility to protect the birds from predators, weather, etc.,” Wheeler said. “Understand the commitment. Chickens are easy but still it’s something you have to water and feed, so people need to keep in mind the financial commitment.” Hall County residents can keep chickens provided they are adequately contained. In the city of Gainesville, residents can keep up to two chickens. Flowery Branch resident Cookie Karp got into keeping chickens more than two years ago. She has six hens and a rooster. “I just like them; they’re fun to watch,” she said. “I eat (the eggs). I boil them, I scramble them — I mean ask me how to cook eggs and I can tell you because I always have a kazillion of them.” Karp said she hasn’t gotten any complaints
from surrounding neighbors about her rooster, which has a tendency to crow when it wakes up, however early that may be. She said one of the reasons she purchased the land was because it is zoned for agricultural uses. “(The rooster’s) not that loud. You really have to listen and realize, oh yeah, that’s the rooster,” Karp said. Karp said the expense for her averages out to about $60 a month, including the feed and keeping bedding in the area. That means you won’t necessarily be saving the money you usually spend on eggs. The chickens also require day-to-day care. “You’ve got to take the eggs every day, because if not the chickens will start to roost. What that means is they’re going to sit on that egg for 21 days until there is a baby chick,” Karp said. “You can tell when you crack an egg if it’s fertile or not and I can tell what hen is laying what.” According to the U.S. Poultry Organization a chicken will start laying eggs around 19 weeks old. The size of the egg being laid gets larger the older the hen is, and a healthy chicken can lay roughly 259 eggs in a year. “Once you taste a fresh egg, you’ll never buy another one from the store,” Karp said.
WASHINGTON — U.S. poultry groups have “expressed strong support” for a new international trade initiative — the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership between the U.S. and the European Union. The National Chicken Council, National Turkey Federation, USA Poultry & Egg Export Council and the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association jointly issued a statement in support of the initiative. The statement followed a White House announcement Feb. 13 that based on recommendations from the U.S.-EU High Level Working Group on Jobs and Growth, the U.S. and the EU each will initiate the internal procedures necessary to begin TTIP negotiations. The White House announcement was issued by President Barack Obama, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President José Manuel Barroso. “Through this negotiation, the United States and the European Union will have the opportunity not only to expand trade and investment across the Atlantic, but also to contribute to the development of global rules that can strengthen the multilateral trading system,” the White House announcement stated. U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk added, “The significant benefits foreseen ... include new jobs, economic growth and international competitiveness on both sides of the Atlantic.” The poultry groups noted that Kirk and the other officials at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative not only worked long and diligently to reach this point, but also listened-to and accepted recommendations that agriculture and unwarranted nontariff barriers, especially nonscience-based sanitary and phytosanitary provisions, be an important part of the negotiations and that any final trade agreement successfully address these issues. “The EU has many unwarranted nontariff trade barriers that severely limit or prohibit the export of certain U.S. agricultural products to the EU,” the poultry groups said. “Chief among the issues is the EU’s prohibition against pathogenreduction treatments for poultry. The result of this nonscience based action is that the United States has not been able to export poultry to the EU since 1997. When TTIP negotiations are successfully concluded, U.S. poultry producers look
forward to marketing over $500 million of products to the EU on an annual basis.” The American Farm Bureau Federation said the beginning of U.S.-EU trade negotiations “holds the promise of expanded market access and improved science-based regulatory approach for agriculture and foods.” However, AFBF President Bob Stallman noted that “the misuse of sanitary and phytosanitary standards, including the EU’s restrictions on genetically engineered crops, has long been a tactic to impede trade. “Farmers and ranchers have been frustrated over the seemingly endless array of nontariff-tariff barriers Europe applies to many of our agricultural commodities and products. we are cautiously hopeful that these negotiations will yield positive results for U.S. agriculture,” Stallman added. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative noted that a successfully negotiated TTIP would aim to boost economic growth in the U.S. and Europe and add to the more than 13 million U.S. and European jobs already supported by transatlantic trade and investment. Specifically the partnership would aim to: ■■ Further open markets to grow the $459 billion in U.S. goods and services exports to the EU, the U.S. largest export market, which already supports an estimated 2.4 million well-paying American jobs. ■■ Strengthen rules-based investment to grow the world’s largest investment relationship. The U.S. and the EU already maintain a total of nearly $4 trillion in investment in each other’s economies, supporting nearly 7 million jobs. ■■ Tackle costly “behind the border” non-tariff barriers that impede the flow of goods and services trade. ■■ Seek to significantly cut the cost of differences in regulation and standards by promoting greater compatibility, transparency, and cooperation. ■■ Enhance cooperation on the development of rules and principles on issues of global concern, including on marketbased disciplines for State-Owned Enterprises, combating discriminatory localization barriers to trade, and promoting the global competitiveness of small- and medium-sized enterprises. The Final Report of the U.S.-EU High Level Working Group on Jobs and Growth can be found at www.ustr.gov/ about-us/press-office/reports-andpublications/2013/final-report-us-euhlwg.
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With hot air treatment, bacteria fly the coop
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Spring chicken festival
By Rosalie Marion Bliss For The Times
BELTSVILLE, Md. — While being transported in hauling coops on trucks, poultry that have been colonized with bacteria such as campylobacter can contaminate, through fecal shedding, pathogen-free poultry. Those pathogens can also be passed on to the next group of birds during the next trip, and so forth, unless the cycle is broken. That’s where USDA Agricultural Research Service microbiologists Mark Berrang and Richard Meinersmann and colleague Charles Hofacre at the University of Georgia in Athens come in. The team has reported a treatment that reduces poultry cross-contamination from transport-cage flooring. Campylobacter are foodborne pathogens that can be present in raw or undercooked poultry. Since the bacteria are commonly found in the digestive tracts of poultry, they’re readily deposited, through fecal shedding, onto coops and trucks when contaminated animals are transported to processing plants. Berrang and Meinersmann are in ARS’ Bacterial Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance Research Unit in Athens. Earlier work has shown that drying soiled or washed cages for 24 to 48 hours could lower or eliminate detectable campylobacter on cage flooring. But extended drying times are impractical, so the researchers tested the use of hot flowing air to speed the process. To determine whether the effect was due to heat alone or flowing air alone, hot flowing air was compared with unheated flowing air and static hot air as well as with a control. The numbers of campylobacter, Escherichia coli and coliforms on small squares of washed or unwashed fecally soiled transport cage flooring were measured after drying treatments. When applied after a water-spray wash treatment, flowing hot air for 15 minutes lowered the numbers of campylobacter to an undetectable level. The authors reported that the treatment could provide significant savings in drying time if used by industry, suggesting a potential commercial application. Static heat at similar temperatures was not nearly as effective, and unheated flowing air was moderately effective, but less so than hot flowing air. The authors concluded that processors may be able to use a forced-hot-air treatment to dry cages between transporting flocks, lessening the number of campylobacter on cage flooring, thereby decreasing the potential for cross-contamination during live haul.
Photos by Tom Reed | The Times
David Edelberg of Dahlonega works on his smoked chicken during last year’s Spring Chicken Festival.
Event set for April 27 Annual cookoff, parade this year will include an arts and crafts market of recycled materials From staff reports
Rosalie Marion Bliss is a public affairs specialist with the Agricultural Research Service in Beltsville, Md.
The authors concluded that processors may be able to use a forced-hot-air treatment to dry cages between transporting flocks, lessening the number of campylobacter on cage flooring, thereby decreasing the potential for cross-contamination ...
Adam Saviers checks his raspberry chicken thighs during last year’s Spring Chicken Festival.
Registration is under way for cook teams and parade participants for the ninth annual Spring Chicken Festival Chicken Cookoff, set for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 27 on the square in downtown Gainesville. The cookoff consists of two divisions: Professional and Backyard Barbecue. Prizes will be awarded in both categories. The Grand Champion will receive $700 and possess the Chicken City Cup for one year. The Chicken City Parade will include floats, vintage cars and bands, most decorated with a chicken theme. Participants are encouraged to incorporate recycling when possible. The parade route will include the Gainesville Square. Barbecue samples will be provided by teams for the public to do their own judging. Visitors who purchase tickets can sample the barbecue and also enjoy live entertainment, a quilt show and a kids zone of fun activities. New to this year’s event is a “Re-Hatched” arts and crafts market consisting of art created by recycled or repurposed materials. To participate in the cookoff, parade or market, contact Regina Mansfield at 770-297-1141. Forms and more information are available at www. gainesville.org/spring-chicken-festival. The festival also will also include the Spring Chicken Festival 5K race beginning at 9 a.m. in the Recess Restaurant parking lot, 118 Bradford St. Fees are $18 and $25. More entry information is available at www.lanierrunningclub.org. Proceeds from the event benefit Keep Hall Beautiful. or visit www.keephallbeautiful.org.
FEED: The nation’s ‘Corn Belt’ was long overdue for a significant drought ■■ Continued from 1
Production adjustments/price reactions In 2009 when chicken production decreased 3.8 percent, the wholesale composite broiler price increased 6.2 percent. In 2012, with chicken production estimated by USDA to be off 1.2 percent from 2011, the composite broiler price will most likely increase about 8 percent from the year before, according to estimated USDA data. If USDA’s forecast for chicken production in 2013 proves correct with a 1 percent or so decrease, what can be expected for the upward change in the composite broiler price? Using the 2009 and 2012 experiences as guides, what is a reasonable expectation for an increase in the wholesale composite broiler price? Certainly, a modest increase in the wholesale price will not begin to offset the doubledigit percentage increase in feed costs. If, however, chicken production is down 3 or more percent in 2013 as certain private analysts believe, will the increase in the composite broiler price begin to cover ballooning feed costs? To be redundant, will a possible double-digit percent increase in the wholesale price of chicken be enough to offset and cover record high feed costs? Will consumers continue to make chicken their meat of choice with the price of retail chicken, especially boneless/skinless
breast meat, on a new, higher plateau?
Corn: Feed or fuel? Looking back at last year’s corn harvest, it was noted that without enough corn from the 2011 harvest to adequately meet all needs, animal agriculture found itself as the last man in a somewhat short line of who gets the corn. Although the “Corn Belt” was long overdue for a significant drought, few, if any, weather forecasts were calling for the extremely dry weather conditions experienced throughout the entire major corn-growing region this past summer. In fact, the contrary seemed to be the consensus, despite an overly warm and dry winter season. The bottom line is that the tight corn situation last year was just a modest prelude to the devastation this year. Despite the twice-in-acentury drought in 2012, the federal government policy is to continue to pursue a supposed goal of energy security at the clear risk of jeopardizing food security. Forcing corn to be used to manufacture ethanol through the Renewable Fuel Standard is another demonstration of government’s inflexibility and the difficulty of bringing common-reasoning to a crisis situation. This stance apparently will continue despite the old adage of a “small crop get smaller” proving true once again. With the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency holding fast to its position that 13.8 billion gallons of ethanol must be blended into gasoline
in 2013, no matter what the consequences, the animal agriculture sector is in a more precarious position. More than a dozen poultry companies since the second renewable fuels standard was implemented in 2007 have filed for bankruptcy, sold to other companies or have simply ceased operations. The E10 blend wall was bumped in 2012 and will be more-than-bumped in 2013 since there will not be enough over-the-road gasoline to blend in 2013. It will be interesting to see if EPA provides relief to the ethanol industry in this regard. Since EPA has provided relief for advanced (cellulosic) biofuels, it can be reasonably assumed EPA will do the same for cornbased ethanol. However, the fear is that Congress will change the law to declare corn-based ethanol to qualify as an advanced biofuel. Analysts describe the ongoing cutbacks in animal agriculture as “demand destruction,” meaning that poultry and livestock numbers, including the reproductive animals, are being reduced to levels that if there is an abundant corn crop in 2013 there will not be a normal demand for corn from U.S. animal agriculture. If there is a bumper corn harvest in 2013, corn producers will have to count on a robust export market to provide stepped-up demand. In addition to reduced poultry flocks and livestock herds, ethanol’s demand for corn will be maxed-out as the E10 blend wall will certainly be hit hard in 2013. Ethanol’s
hope that E15 will provide stimulated demand for its product in 2013 will remain just that, “a hope.” A major key to having an adequate corn crop (14-plus billion bushels) in 2013 will be adequate subsoil moisture in time for spring planting. While recent rains have begun to restore some subsoil moisture in certain parts of the Midwest, there is much
replenishment needed. How much insight this outlook provides will depend, as it always does, on a number of factors, such as: ■■ Feed costs/volatility. ■■ The strength of consumer demand, especially at food service and especially at price levels perhaps not experienced before 2013. ■■ The dynamics of the U.S. dollar and foreign con-
sumer demand in world markets ■■ The size of the hatchery supply flock ■■ The competition from other proteins, and a number of other significant factors unknown at this time. William Roenigk is senior vice president of the National Chicken Council based in Washington, D.C.
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USDA projects poultry increases for ’13 By David B. Strickland
ever, there was a strong increase in prices in third quarter 2012, due in considerable part to strong export shipments to Mexico. This pushed the wholesale prices for one dozen grade A large eggs in the New York market to $1.17 per dozen in 2012, 1.9 percent higher than the previous year. “Prices in 2013 are expected to be higher during the first half of the year but to become lower in the second half and average slightly lower for all of 2013.”
dstrickland@poultrytimes.net WASHINGTON — Slight increases are being projected for broiler meat production the first three quarters of the 2013, and then “rising production” for the fourth quarter, with totals at approximately 37.3 billion pounds for the year, the USDA’s Economic Research Service reports in its latest “Livestock, Dairy and Poultry Outlook.” This outlook is an increase from the 2012 broiler total of 37 billion pounds. Production of table eggs is forecast to be 6.78 billion dozen for 2013, which is up from 2012’s 6.7 billion dozen, the department noted. Turkey meat for the year is being projected at 6 billion pounds, an increase of 1 percent from last year.
Turkey
Broilers The broiler outlook for the year is showing a “relatively small increase,” ERS said. “While there is still uncertainty about the course of feed prices in the coming year, prices for a number of broiler products have been strengthening and the forecast for exports is again strong,” ERS noted in the report. “In 2013, most of the increase in broiler meat production is expected to come from a larger number of birds slaughtered, but some added production will come from higher bird weights at slaughter, especially during the first half of the year.” “Broiler product demand is expected to be influenced by a gradually improving domestic economy and strength in export demand,” the report added. Last December, broiler meat production was 2.9 billion pounds, which was slightly lower than the year before, ERS says. Also, the number of birds slaughtered in December decreased 2.4 percent from the 2011. “However, the sharp decline in the slaughter rate was almost totally offset by a strong increase (up 2.2 percent) in average bird liveweight at slaughter to 5.91 pounds,” the report noted. For broiler meat in cold storage, in December, the total was 653 million pounds, an increase of 11 percent from 2011 numbers and an increase of 30 million pounds from 2012’s third quarter, ERS said. “Cold storage holdings rose during fourth quarter 2012, partially
Scott Rogers | The Times
Cantrell’s Dane Woods shows off his company’s new wing segmenter machine in January at the Atlanta World Congress Center during the International Poultry Expo/International Feed Expo.
due to strong gains in broiler meat production during that period, although the increase was likely moderated by strong exports and strong demand,” the report noted. “With higher levels of broiler meat production forecast throughout 2013, cold storage levels are expected to be higher during first quarter 2013 and to have a small gain in the second quarter. With continued strong exports and improving domestic demand, cold storage levels are expected to fall below year-earlier levels in the second half of 2013.” It’s uncertain exactly how production and holdings will affect chicken prices, ERS noted. “With higher broiler meat production expected in the first half of 2013 and 10 percent higher cold storage holdings at the start of 2013, broiler prices in general would be expected to be facing some downward pressure,” the report adds. “This may be countered by relatively high prices for competing
meats, a growing economy, and a continued strong market for broiler exports.”
Eggs ERS is projecting slight increases for table eggs for the entire year. “Production increases are expected to occur in all four quarters, but most of the total increase is expected in the first half of the year,” the report notes. “The production growth is expected to come from increases in the number of hens in the table egg flock, with relatively little change in the rate of eggs produced per bird. “Egg production in 2013 will be sensitive to changes in feed costs, but relatively strong prices in 2012 are expected to encourage expanded production. Higher egg production is also expected to be supported by a gradually expanding domestic economy.” The number of table eggs was higher in 2012, with a 2 percent in-
crease noted in December. “Table egg production totaled 1.73 billion dozen in fourth quarter 2012, an increase of 2.7 percent from the same period in 2011,” the report noted. Hatching eggs for the year are being forecast at 1.04 billion dozen, which is up 0.9 percent from last year, ERS said. This increase is the result of broiler increases for 2013 and the need for additional meattype birds. “The gain in production is expected to come from a small increase in the number of hens in the meat-type egg supply flock,” ERS noted. “The production of hatching eggs is dominated by the production of meat-type eggs to produce broiler chicks for growout. In 2012, these eggs accounted for 93 percent of all hatching egg production.” In regard to egg prices, the department notes that, “the gains in the table egg production throughout 2012 would normally place downward pressure on prices. How-
The forecast for turkey meat production for the year, at 6 billion pounds, if this holds true would make 2013 the third consecutive year with a production increase, ERS said. For the year, the reported noted that, “turkey meat production is expected to be slightly lower in the second quarter compared with the previous year, but this decline is expected to be offset by gains in production in the other three quarters. The increased meat production is expected to arise from a higher average liveweight at slaughter, as the number of birds slaughtered is expected to remain very close to that in 2012. “Turkey producers, like other livestock producers, will continue to be influenced by the uncertainty in the outlook for feed costs.” There were 250.2 million turkeys slaughtered in 2012, a 1.4 percent increase from 2011. The average liveweight of birds at time of slaughter last year also increased by 1.4 percent to 29.8 pounds, the report noted. In December, the average liveweight was 30.8 pounds. Production increases led to an increase in cold storage holdings for both whole birds and turkey parts. “At the end of December 2012, turkey cold storage holdings totaled 295 million pounds, up 40 percent from a year earlier,” the report noted. For prices, ERS adds that, “the national price for frozen whole hen turkeys averaged 96.3 cents per pound in January 2013, a decrease of 2 percent from January 2012, a small decline considering the size of the increase in stocks of whole turkeys. With large stocks and slightly higher production expected during 2013, prices for whole turkeys are likely to remain under strong downward price pressure during at least the first half of 2013.”
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Coach David Ball hits a ball to players on the 12-and-under Cardinals.
An exciting new trend Gainesville Parks and Recreation adds outdoors sports to its program offerings BY ZAC TAYLOR
ztaylor@gainesvilletimes.com The Gainesville Parks and Recreation department is heeding the call of the outdoors, while still maintaining a large youth baseball and softball presence, a longtime mainstay in the community. The upcoming spring/summer program offerings, in addition to the usual youth baseball and softball and the other traditional youth and adult sports, also include a number of new and recently added outdoors sports and activities, taking advantages of the numerous parks and facilities in the area as well as the proximity to the scenic North Georgia mountains.
It’s an exciting new trend for the program coordinators. “We do a lot of evaluations, and that’s one thing people wanted was outdoors programs,” said Missy Bailey, Gainesville Parks and Recreation’s Recreation Division Manager, who helped start a hiking program last season. “It takes a little while to grow a program, but it’s starting to take off. “And we’re in a good area to go.” Meanwhile, the established programs are continuing to expand and even change a little themselves. One thing new this season for the youth baseball leagues, which started play Feb. 19, was ■■Please see Parks, 5
Gainesville Parks and Recreation Parks, playgrounds and facilities Allen Creek Soccer Complex: includes nine soccer fields for youth, adult and tournament play at 2500 Allen Creek Road. City Park Complex: Includes the Gainesville Civic Center, Martha hope Cabin, Candler Softball Fields, tennis courts, playgrounds, two little league baseball fields, three pavilions and restrooms at 830 Green Street. Clarks Bridge Park: Includes picnic tables, grills, beach, boat ramp, fishing and restrooms at 3105 Clarks Bridge Road. Desota Park: Includes playground, tennis court, basketball goals, picnic pavilion, grill and restroom at 1142 Desota Street. Engine 209 Park: Includes a historical park with benches and gardens centered around Engine 209, a coal car and a red caboose at 312 Jesse Jewell Parkway. Frances Meadows Aquatic and Community Center: Includes an indoor competitive pool, instructional pool, outdoor family splash zone with slides, spray fountains and interactive play structure at 1545 Community Way NE. Holly Park: Includes hiking trails, boat ramp, fishing and picnic pavilions at 2603 Old Thompson Bridge Road. Ivey Terrace Park: This park, a link in the Rock Creek Greenway, includes two pavilions and a bike/pedestrian trail at 607 Ridgewood Terrace. Kenwood Park: Includes playground and walkways at 725 Kenwood Drive. Lanier Point Athletic Complex: Includes a boat ramp, picnic pavilion, hiking trails, fishing, as well as being home of fast pitch and adult softball, youth baseball and Ivey Watson Field at 1530 Lee Waldrip Road. Linwood Nature Preserve: A natural area with streams and wetlands on a hilly terrain with wildlife at 160 Springview Drive. Longwood Park: A park with walking trails along the shore of Lake Lanier and serves as the final link on the Rock Creek Greenway. Includes eight lighted tennis courts, picnic tables, grills, two playgrounds, horseshoe pits and two pavilions at 20 Pearl Nix Parkway. Midtown Greenway: A greenspace with a trail system, stage and pond at 682 Grove Street. Myrtle Street Park: A basketball court and playground at 854 Myrtle Street. Riverside Park: A picnic pavilion, grill, playground and paved walkways at 1267 Riverside Drive. Roper Park: Includes lighted tennis courts, playground, picnic pavilion, grill, restrooms and athletic field at 171 Virginia Circle. South Side Park: A picnic pavilion, restrooms, a Safe Kids model playground, ball fields, basketball court and walking trails that serve the Boys & Girls Clubs of Hall County, Fair Street Elementary and the public at Positive Place Drive. Wessell Park: A playground, picnic tables, two lighted tennis courts, a mini-basketball court and walking trail at 493 Holly Drive. Wilshire Trails Park: Walking trails with bridges, boardwalks and rest areas, a playground, pavilion, grills and restrooms at 849 Wilshire Road.
Jimmy Martens throws to first during a practice with the 12-and-under Cardinals.
INSIDE: Newly opened North Hall Park bustling, 4
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Youth movement in golf on the rise Area golf courses Achasta Golf Club 639 Birch River Drive, Dahlonega, GA 30533, 888-988-6222, www. achasta.com. Semiprivate. Length: Gold, 6,967; Blue, 6,434; Birch, 6,034; White, 5,799; Red 4,986. Apple Mountain Resort 901 Rock Ford Creek Road, Clarkesville, GA 30523, 706754-2255, www. applemountaingolfga. com; Length: Blue, 6,428; White, 5,902; Gold, 5,105; Red, 5,003. Brasstown Valley Resort 6321 US Highway 76, Young Harris, GA 30582, 706-379-9900, www. brasstownvalley.com/ golfing. Length: Gold, 7,047; Teal, 6,593; White, 6,011; Red 5,028. Butternut Creek Golf Course 129 Union County Recreation Road, Blairsville, GA, 30512, 706-439-6076, www. butternutcreekgolf.com, Length: Golf, 6,536; Blue, 6,023; White, 5,459; Red, 4,715. Chattahoochee Golf Club 301 Tommy Aaron Drive, Gainesville, GA 30506, 770-532-0066, www. gainesville.org/golf-1. Length: Championship: 6,740; Forward: 4,825; Middle 6,041; Other: 5,600. Chateau Elan 100 Rue Charlemagne, Braselton, GA 30517, 678-425-6050, www. chateauelan.com/ energize/golf. Two 18hole public courses, one 9-hole public course. Length: Chateau course, Gold 7,030; Green, 6,484; White, 5,900; Burgundy 5,092. Woodlands Course, Gold, 6,735; Green, 6,355; White, 5,927 Burgundy, 4,850.
Photos by Scott Rogers | The Times
Gainesville High’s Jackson Bishop drives from the No. 1 tee at Royal Lakes in March during the Hall County Championships.
Local players following national trend of success at early age BY MITCH BLOMERT
Gainesville High's Reeves Bell putts while Avery Hart holds the flag during the Hall County Championships at Royal Lakes.
mblomert@gainesvilletimes.com The days of golf seemingly attracting an older audience is fading. Sure, retirees and traveling businesspeople are still staples of the course, but a new generation of younger golfers are joining the sport at an early age and elevating the talent to an entire new level. Local courses, such as Royal Lakes Golf Course in Flowery Branch, are noticing the upward trend of school-age players visiting the club on a regular basis. And not just for the recreation either. Many come to practice for high school events and junior tournaments. “They see all these younger people on both tours, women and men, that are out there playing,” Royal Lakes golf pro Reno Ronci said. “With the age we’re in, with the iPads and all those things, the coordination is a lot better. Golf is not that scary anymore when they do things like that.” Ronci sees many of the area’s best young golfers come through his course. Royal Lakes hosts the Hall County Championships, the county’s high school tournament, and is also an Atlanta Junior Golf tour site in June for players ages 7-18. Year by year, the scores are getting lower and the golfers are hitting the ball farther than ever. “It’s harder and harder to play with these kids because they hit it so far, because of how they’ve grown up and how they’ve treated their bodies,” Ronci said. “These younger guys are overpowering golf courses. You see it on tours — these guys are hitting 3-woods 270 yards. 350-yard par-4s and they’re driving it on the green.” The youth movement at the professional level appears to be trickling down. The current world golf rankings has the 23-year-old Rory McIlroy atop the list. College golfers are jumping straight into the PGA Tour from the NCAA level and finding success without much, if any, dropoff. But the required hours of practice to reach the pros is still at a fairly rigorous level. For the young golfers competing on tours and setting sights on playing in college, a trip to the links is almost a daily regimen, rain or shine. “We’ve had some terrible weather in this early season so far, and we haven’t missed one day of practice,” Gainesville High girls coach Clay McDonald said. “You just don’t ever know. You never know when you might have to show up and play with an umbrella. There’s an art form to playing with an umbrella and staying dry.” McDonald’s Red Elephant girls are coming off a Class AAA state championship last season and recently won their seventh straight Hall County title. Three of their four golfers shot under a 90 at Royal Lakes on March 11 and 12 to secure the top three spots in the girls county tournament. The Gainesville boys enjoyed similar dominance, with five golfers shooting under a 77. The low-medalist, Spencer Ralston, led the way with a 72. Ralston and his teammates play in tournaments during the summer, making golf practically a year-round endeavor for them. Chattahoochee Golf Course, their home course, offers junior training programs that even incorporate
Chestatee Golf Club 777 Dogwood Trail, Dawsonville, GA 30534, 800-520-8675, chestateegolf.net, Length: Black, 6,877; Blue, 6,475; White, 6,065; Gold, 5,597; Red, 4,947. Chicopee Woods 2515 Atlanta Highway, Gainesville, GA 30504, 770-534-7322, www. chicopeewoods golfcourse.com. School/ Village, Gold, 7,040; Blue, 6,606; White, 6,050; Red, 5,001. Village/Mill, Gold, 7,008; Blue, 6,559; White, 6,052; Red, 4,888. Deer Trail Country Club 224 Country Club Lane, Commerce, GA 30529, 706-335-3987. Nine holes. 18-hole length: 6,093. Double Oaks Golf Course 3100 Ila Road, Commerce, GA 30530, 706-335-8100, www. doubleoaks golfclub.net. Length: Gold, 6,823; Blue, 6,525; White, 5,945; Silver, 5,221; Red, 4,717. Innsbruck Golf Club of Helen Bahn Innsbruck, Helen, GA 30545, 800-642-2709, www.innsbruck golfclub.com. Length: Blue 6,502; White, 5,991; Gold, 5,472; Red, 4,725. Legacy Golf Club 7000 Holiday Road, Lake Lanier Islands, GA 30518, 678-318-7861, www. lakelanier islandsgolf.com. Length: Black 6,580; Blue, 6,193; White, 5,706; Red, 4,852.
weight training to improve driving distance and overall precision on the course. “We talk a lot about practice being so tough,” Red Elephants boys coach Bryson Worley said. “Qualifying is hard, we make no bones about it.” Young golfers have plenty of resources at their access to improve their game, many of which weren’t available when current older players were the same age. Technological advances have done wonders for the sport, from better-quality equipment to in-depth instructional videos available online. A simple click on a YouTube link can improve a player’s handicap, along with a newly-crafted driver. “It has a lot to do with the technology of the golf clubs and golf balls, and a lot has to do with that video,” Ronci said. “You can get on video and see what you’re doing wrong and figure out how to fix it. Not that it’s easy, but it’s a lot easier nowadays to determine what you’re doing wrong by looking at video.” Rossi had an opportunity to witness firsthand how the new technology is benefitting the upcoming generation of golfers when Royal Lakes held its annual club championship last August.
The tournament came down to a pair of brothers, former Johnson High standouts Jared and Grant Cagle. Jared, 23, eagled on the final hole to defeat his brother, a 20-year-old senior currently playing for Georgia State. The third-place finisher, current North Gwinnett High golfer Bailey Ulp, was 16 at the time of tournament. Rossi hadn’t seen a younger field in his time at Royal Lakes. “We’re seeing the younger crowd getting more involved,” he said. “There are a lot of tours in the area. There are lot more events to get involved with.” Ronci doesn’t see the trend ending any time soon. Even if the young players don’t stick with the sport, he often sees them making a return to the course when they get older, cultivating a lifelong past time that’s beginning at an earlier age than ever. “I think this is definitely the game that the earlier you pick it up, the better it is for you,” Ronci said. “People play when they’re 10 and 11, quit playing through their mid-20s, then pick it back when they’re 30 and wish they had played the whole time.”
Mossy Creek Golf Course 7883 Ga. 254, Cleveland, GA 30528, 706-865-2277. Length: Blue, 5,985; White: 5,590; Gold: 4,767; Red: 4,441. Reunion Golf Club 5609 Grand Reunion Drive, Hoschton, GA 30548. 770-967-8300, www.reuniongolfclub. com. Length: Championship, 6,936; Medal: 6,602; Match: 6,003; Forward: 5,006. Royal Lakes Golf and Country Club 4700 Royal Lakes Drive, Flowery Branch, GA 30542, 770-535-8800, www.royallakesgolfcc. com. Semi-private. Length: Championship, 6,871; Men’s: 6,327; Women’s: 5,325; Senior: 5,636.
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Sunday, March 24, 2013
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Drivers wait by their cars to be given a signal to begin heading to the track for their event on the Fourth of July last year.
Motorsports park set for series BY KELSEY WILLIAMSON kwilliamson@ gainesvilletimes.com
Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson is bringing something new to local racing in 2013: The Southern Super Series. The series will feature 16 races across five different Southern race tracks, beginning on April 6 at the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway in Nashville and ending at the All-American 400 in Nashville, where the series champion will receive a $10,000 prize. Gresham will host the second Southern Super Series race, the Racing Radios 125 on April 27, the Slack Auto Parts World Crown 400 over the Fourth of July weekend, and one last race on August 10. This series will bring three of the five major events that Gresham holds each racing season, in addition to two pro-late model races, and management hopes that the introduction of this competitive championship circuit will draw even larger crowds to the track. “With the races that feature the pro-late models or the super-late models, a lot of people will come out and watch these five bigger events,” said Gresham Motorsports Park’s Dan Elliott. “Not a lot has changed since I got here in 2009 other than the races, but (attendance) hasn’t really been up or down.” The region also has five local divisions that compete in every event at the park, so families and friends of these local competitors enjoy coming to watch the races. These natives will be in action at Gresham’s first event of the season, the Larry Fleeman Memorial on Saturday, March 30, along with other drivers from all across the country. “Most of our local divisions other than pro-late and super-late are from the Georgia-South Carolina area, but the pro and super have drivers from Oklahoma, Alabama, Tennessee, and other places as far as Maine and Minnesota,” Elliott said. “That will draw a more var-
ied crowd because these drivers are better known and actually have a following.” Many of the park’s events include a variety of racing types from pro-late models to trucks and everything in between, so Elliott believes Gresham’s races are great entertainment for die-hard and casual fans alike. “We have good races, and it’s a good family environment,” Elliott said. While racing hasn’t been a popular entertainment choice over the past few years, Elliott believes that expanding the scope of Gresham’s events and an increase in local business will help bring the park and racing back to life like the past when Gresham hosted a pair of NASCAR Grand National (now Sprint Cup) races and multiple Late Model Sportsman (now Nationwide Series) Division races in the 1960s. “People are very happy with the improvements that have been made,” Elliott said. “I think everyone wants racing to build back up. It’s not at a decline, but it’s not growing at an exponential rate. With the up-turn of the economy it will help. Construction in the area has started financing a lot of people’s racing.” Large businesses like Kubota have begun building manufacturing plants in Jackson County, bringing jobs and business to the area and providing some sponsorship for local racing, which is crucial for the success of Gresham Motorsports Park. “Sponsorship of the events we have is always a concern for us, but the area is growing, and with the growth comes optimism,” Elliott said. Along with the increase in the local economy, the management at Gresham hopes that by adding more family-oriented and popular events, the park can increase its business. “Our Fourth of July fireworks were new last year, and sponsors for it,” Elliott said. “Our fireworks company is the same as the one that does them at the Mall of Georgia and Lake Lanier Islands, so our fireworks show is second to none. It will draw
about 6,000 people to the park.” Gresham is also planning an Easter egg drop and other related events for the season-opening race on March 30, which should draw even more of a crowd and help start the season in a positive way. “If we can keep a good positive attitude, I think it will be a good season,” Elliott said. “I think that shorttrack racing is going to make a comeback before anything else does. It’s grass roots; it’s close to home, and it’s affordable.” The track offers an affordable alternative to other types of entertainment like other sporting events or concerts, but it also serves as a NASCAR testing facility when local races aren’t happening. “We are a test facility for NASCAR, so Danica (Patrick), Tony (Stewart), Keslowski, Johnson, McMurray, they’ve all been here,” Elliott said. “I could go down the list of drivers that have been here and will be here again. That’s the good thing here is that it’s that good of a facility. And some sons of former NASCAR drivers will be racing in the upcoming races here.” For the near future, Gresham Motorsports Park is focusing on the Southern Super Series and its inaugural season, but Elliott mentioned that the track also had some longer-term goals. “I would definitely like to see a NASCAR Camping World truck race here,” he said. “Some of those steps may already be in the works, but I think the working relationship with NASCAR is good, but the improvements the speedway would have to make are concerns.” Additionally, Gresham is willing to look into more partnerships with other tracks, especially local ones, like Lanier National Speedway, which has been closed since March of 2012 and only hosted a handful of races in 2011. “I wish somebody would buy it and open it back up,” Elliott said. “It would help things dramatically if you could open that facility and
Fans watch from trackside as drivers circle the track awaiting the green flag.
we could work together, and we could run 20-25 events between the two.” In January, Lanier National fans were hopeful as news of a sale spread, but later in the month track officials announced that the deal had fallen through. However, they also stated that a back-up offer had been made and they were working to complete the sale in the best way possible. No other information has surfaced since then. As for Gresham Motorsports Park, Elliott is also working on promoting the facility to increase patronage and improve the future for the local racing hub. “It’s a beautiful facility, and a lot of people probably still don’t know that we exist,” he said. “Sometimes the paths don’t cross, and you try to get the word out to those other people, but I think, too, as the economy turns, racing will pick up with more cars and more fans.”
Schedule of Events Larry Fleeman Memorial 198-lap Pro Late Model Event
general admission, $20; Senior 55+/Military: $17 Students (with ID): $15 Children Ages 12 and under: Free
When: March 30 Time: Opening Ceremonies begin at 5 p.m. Grandstand Tickets: Adult general admission, $25; senior 55+/military, $20; children ages 12 and under, free
30th Annual World Crown Southern Super Series Super Late Model 300
Racing Radios 125-lap Southern Super Series Late Model Event
Pro Late Models 100-lap Event
Presented by Schoenfeld Headers
When: April 27 Time: Openineg Ceremonies begin at 6:45 p.m. Grandstand Tickets: Adult
When: July 4 Time: TBA
When: July 20 Time: TBA
125-lap Southern Super Series Late Models Event When: Aug. 10 Time: TBA
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Sunday, March 24, 2013
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Photos by Scott Rogers | The Times
A pick-up basketball game happens at the North Hall Community Center on Nopone Road.
North Hall Park is booming Newly opened community center houses a gym, basketball courts BY BRENT HOLLOWAY
bholloway@gainesvilletimes.com A year ago, Hall County Parks and Leisure director Mike Little had high expectations for North Hall Park. Today, six months after opening its doors, the county’s newest community center and park is bustling, just as county officials hoped it would. The Nopone Road facility, just south of Clermont off Cleveland Highway, became the third park of its kind offered by Hall County Parks and Leisure in October, and filled a need in its area of the county, according to Little. In the mornings, the indoor walking track and fitness center are popular attractions. In the afternoons, the gyms are buzzing with pick-up basketball games. “This particular park is a long time in the making,” Little said in March of 2012. “The North Hall area has absolutely nothing in the area ... so the community is rallying around it and they’re extremely excited.” The facility’s manager, Elsa Alvarez, said the community response remains as enthusiastic as ever. “The excitement is still the same,” Alvarez said. “Everybody is really, truly excited about this facility. We have people coming in everyday telling us, ‘we are so glad you guys are here in this location.’” The site is home to four youth baseball field, a track, walking trails, a multipurpose field and a children’s play area. Inside the community center, residents can take advantage of a
pair of basketball courts, a fitness center, an indoor walking track, as well as community and game rooms. The park is also home to more than 80 acres of undeveloped land, which, according to Little, will hopefully play host to a multipurpose trail in the future. The parks department has applied for a grant through the Department of Natural Resources to cultivate the land into a trail used for mountain biking, hiking and running. The county budgeted around $14.3 million for the entire project, all of which was funded by the special purpose local option sales tax. It’s a similar set-up to the East Hall Park and Community Center, a 90-acre complex at 3911 P. Davidson Road, and Mulberry Creek Park and Community Center, a 22acre park with a 28,000 square foot community center, a dog park and children’s playground at 4491 J.M. Turk Road in Flowery Branch. At each facility, which are also the home of the Hall County Parks and Leisure youth sports leagues, the various specialty programs offered are some of the most popular attractions. Alvarez said Zumba, a dance fitness program, “is booming” at the North Hall facility. “We had 35 people in our class this week,” Alvarez added. “Starting in April, we’ll have it Monday, Tuesday, Thursday morning and Thursday night.” East Hall Park also offers a Zumba class and will host classes in Krav Maga — the self-defense system used by the Israeli Defense Forces — each Tuesday and Thursday night and Saturday morning beginning April 2.
James Linnane works out in the gym at the new North Hall Community Center on Nopone Road.
At each Hall County Parks and Leisure facility, memberships and daily passes are available to suit a variety of users’ needs. “Monthly membership for individuals is $20,” Alvarez said. “If you’re 60-plus, it’s $10. We also have a daily pass, and that is only $3. If you want to come in and use the fit-
ness center but don’t want the membership, we have that. We also have basketball passes for daily or for the month. We have walking passes, so if you want to come in and use our walking path or the game room, it’s only $1. So it’s really reasonable, and if you’re out of county, it’s only a couple of dollars more.”
The outdoor track is also available for community use at no charge when not being used by schools. The indoor facilites are open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, and closed on Sunday.
Hall County Parks and Leisure East Hall Park and Community Center Address: 3911 P Davison Road, Gainesville, GA 30507 Phone: 678-450-1540 Amenities: Outdoor (four tennis courts, two baseball/softball fields, one softball field, one baseball field, one regulation track, two Concession stands with accessible restrooms); Indoor (fitness center with resistance and cardio equipment, elevated walking track, community meeting room, dance room, art room, two fullsize gymnasiums)
Mulberry Creek Park and Community Center Address: 4491 JM Turk Road, Flowery Branch, GA 30542 Phone: 770-965-7140 Amenities: Outdoor (dog park, playground); Indoor (fitness center with resistance and cardio equipment, elevated walking track, community meeting room, dance room, art room, two full-size gymnasiums)
North Hall Park and Community Center Address: 4175 Nopone Road, Gainesville, GA 30506 Phone: 770-535-8280 Amenities: Outdoor (Four youth baseball fields, running track, walking trails, multipurpose field, children’s play area); Indoor (basketball courts, fitness center, technology center, indoor walking track, community rooms, game room, showers and lockers) Parks close at sunset if no games are scheduled. Community Centers are open 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, and closed Sunday. The North Hall Community Center is on Nopone Road.
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Photos by Scott Rogers | The Times
David McConnell, 11, swims laps at the Francis Meadows Aquatic Center during a Splash Aquatics swim practice.
Swimming a sport for all athletes BY BILL MURPHY
bmurphy@gainesvilletimes.com Andy Deichert has a sales pitch for swimming geared toward the masses through the Splash Aquatics Program. Deichert, the Splash Aquatics head coach based out of the Frances Meadows Aquatics Center in Gainesville, feels like swimming can be tailored to the training regimen of every athlete and those of all backgrounds and interests. Deichert is animated in talking about what Splash Aquatics, one of two major swim programs in Hall County, can offer to swimmers of all levels and ages. He talks about the sport in the big picture, not wanting to get tangled up in the minute that only the most advanced swimmers can comprehend. Deichert, an All-American during his swimming career at Louisiana State University, doesn’t think swimming should be limited to those who want to make it the single focus of their athletic career. “I try to be the biggest advocate for the sport of swimming,” said Deichert, who was hired by the City of Gainesville to run the program in the summer of 2012. “I try to make swimming practice fun and something that people look forward to practice when they come to the pool.” Deichert is not alone. With 45 years of experience in swimming, Lanier Aquatics president and coach Jim Young feels that the long-term benefits of swimming make it an appealing athletic opportunity. According to Young, Lanier Aquatics currently works with about 60 active members in six different groups with training at the Frances Meadows Aquatics Center, a practice group at the Walters Family YMCA and plans to expand to the Oakwood City pool. “We feel like we have one of the best developmental and higher-level swimming programs around,” said Young. “We’re open to anyone in the community.” Young says that the benefits for swimming
in his program are three-pronged: Helping to focus on a specific task, physical development and learning to accomplishing a goal. On top of that, Young points out that swimming is one of the main sports that can be enjoyed all through life. “We have a lot of people that go on to become doctors, lawyers and other professionals because swimming teaches you to set a goal, work hard and achieve it,” Young said. “Swimming helps people focus on concentration.” Divided into four groups based on skill level and age, and about 60 active members, Deichert characterizes his approach to teaching the sport through Splash Aquatics as non-traditional. He feels like athletes could quickly burn out on coming to the pool if expected to perform the same workout at the same level as every other member of the group. He makes his point about swimming that shows how he approaches coaching with the swimmers perspective in mind. “I have an non-traditional approach to coaching swimmers,” Deichert said. “Swimming can be one of the most boring sports. “The water’s cold, it’s lonely, there’s no music, your glasses get foggy,” Deichert said. “What I try to do is make it a positive experience and make practice stimulating.” At Lanier Aquatics, Young is aided in athlete development by assistant coach John Misiak. One of his most accomplished high-school athletes, Gainesville’s Colin Monaghan, went on to place in both the 200 individual medley and 100 butterfly at the GHSA state swim meet on Feb. 9 at Georgia Tech. With his expertise in the sport, Deichert believes his focus is helping share his knowledge with the masses, not just the younger athletes who have dreams of modeling themselves after Olympic athletes in the pool. The Splash Aquatics coach believes that positive national attention on the sport has certainly increased the popularity of swimming. De-
Lily Martin, right, and Shanna Ray, both 9, swim during practice with the Splash Aquatics club at the Frances Meadows Aquatics Center.
ichert would like nothing more than to see the need for more programs to arise in Splash Aquatics. “Our goal is to meet the needs of the community,” Deichert said. “I want the program to be versatile.” Deichert already works with two of the most notable local swimmers, North Hall High students and brothers Paul and Ty Powers, two of the best in the state among the high school age. He feels like Splash Aquatics is the perfect place to also do cross training for those who excel in soccer, cross country, basketball, football and all the other major sports. He adds that there should be a swim group that caters to football’s interior linemen. “There’s no one-dimensional path to swimming,” Deichert said. “We want to offer ver-
satility.” As animated as Deichert can be in talking about swimming, he knows there are serious fundamentals that go into teaching a sport with inherent risks. With the youngest swimmers, he says it starts with breathing lessons. Once that takes hold, different devices such as snorkels and fins can be used to get accustomed to working through the water and any fear that may accompany it. Then lap swimming is incorporated. Deichert wants there to be room for athletes to learn and grow in the sport at their own pace. “It takes kids a certain amount of time to develop,” Deichert said. “Swimming is a sport of acceptance.” Both Lanier Aquatics and Splash Aquatics cater to swimmers starting at age 6.
PARKS: Outdoor programs begin in April ■■ Continued from 1
Tom Reed | The Times
John Wilbanks takes a swing during a practice with the 10-and-under Bombers.
to have all teams re-drafted. Both leagues have been around for awhile. The Little League Baseball Charter dates back to 1952 and the softball program started in the mid 70s, according to Gainesville Parks and Recreation Department Athletics Program Manager Beth Morris. “Little League baseball and youth softball have always been such a huge part of our community,” she said. “It has stayed strong and continues to grow.” The leagues finish up the regular season on May 17 for baseball, and 18 for softball, after which the allstars tournaments, which continue into the summer, will get underway. Most of the outdoors programs will get under way in April and continue into the summer as well. Bailey said the department is even looking into the possibility of adding zip-lining events in the future. It’s a step outdoors for the department, which is adding on to all of its usual youth and adult leagues, camps and other programs. “The outdoors is definitely a direction that we’re going in to,” Bailey said. Along with hiking trips, most accompanied by a program coordinator, Gainesville Parks and Rec is also offering a fishing camp, a general outdoor camp, tubing trips
and rock climbing, among others. Most of the spring programs and camps begin April 1, with many allowing people to do as much or as little as they want of the activity. The outdoors activities are the big new trend in Gainesville, but there’s another program that has people excited, something the department has wanted to do for awhile: Boot camp. Just like those on reality TV shows nowadays, Bailey said the boot camp, which starts in April, will be run much like an Armystyle boot camp. “It’s a boot camp just like you see on TV, which I think people will like,” Bailey said. “We’ve looked into it a couple of times, and it’s something people have wanted.” She added that the instructor will be well-qualified to run the camp — the likely instructor has a military background — and it will be from Monday-Friday, two classes per day. One class will be early in the morning, and one in the evening. Participants can sign up weekly at a price of $20, and can attend one of the two daily sessions or both, Bailey said. “I think we’ll actually have all kinds of people, because you’re working at your own pace,” she said. “I think it’s going to be good.” The camp will be held out at Lanier Point Park, and use many different parts of the park. Bailey is expecting it to be a popular new
program. “The boot camp is something we’re excited about,” she said. “We’ve wanted to do it for awhile.” On the other end of the spectrum from the tough, military-style boot camp, Gainesville is also starting ultimate frisbee, a game that has been gaining in popularity around the country and involves players passing a frisbee from one another to try and score on a soccer-like field. Bailey said the department isn’t sure exactly how popular the new sport will be initially, but she said it’s worth the attempt to see if it catches on. Gainesville will offer a couple of free ultimate frisbee events at first just to gauge interest. “That’s the direction we’re going,” she said. And Gainesville is managing to go in a new direction without forgetting the established programs, like tennis tournaments, youth baseball, softball, basketball, cheerleading and football leagues, and adult flag football, basketball and softball leagues, to name a few, along with baseball camp, football camp, softball camp, a new allsports camp, tennis camps, soccer camp, cheerleading camp, volleyball camp, basketball-shooting camp, and pee-wee and rookie golf. To find out more information about any of the programs, camps or leagues, call the Gainesville Parks and Recreation Department’s main number: 770-531-2680.
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Sunday, March 24, 2013
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Education & Government | Sunday, march 24, 2013
Flowery Branch ready for restart City looks to redevelop part of downtown
Hall County settling into new headquarters
By Lisa Laskey
llaskey@gainesvilletimes.com Flowery Branch had quickly become the darling of developers as the calendar turned from 1999 to 2000. Over the next four years, families sought out the area finding housing affordable, and appreciating its balance between rural rolling countryside and growing suburban amenities. There was less congestion than south of its bucolic surroundings and it lay within minutes of Lake Lanier. The sprouting community began to proactively expand its municipal boundaries. As it developed a greater commercial presence, Flowery Branch wholeheartedly embraced the feather in its cap, the relocation of the Atlanta Falcons headquarters from Suwanee, turning the 50-acre site along Falcon Parkway into the team’s training center. The City Council granted approval for construction of the new facilities on June 30, 2004. Development was flourishing and a 2006 master plan to recreate Old Town Flowery Branch began in earnest. Then 2008: The economy tanked and city administration shuffled and reshuffled as a turbulent period of internal bickering hit a flashpoint, but then began to wane. As new faces entered the political ranks and the fiscal winds began to settle, a finance manager and city planner were on board. The city also revised its charter to support a city manager for administrative dealings with council sign-off, and it began to settle as well.
Photos by SCOTT ROGERS | The Times
Hall County Administrator Randy Knighton, left, is joined by Assistant County Administrator Marty Nix and Finance Director Vickie Neikirk during a meeting in mid-March in the Hall County Government Center’s administration offices on Browns Bridge Road in the former Liberty Mutual building.
Center puts everything together, saves times BY SARAH MUELLER smueller@ gainesvilletimes.com
Restarting the economic engine In late 2012, city officials OK’d the acquisition of downtown land parcels that were remnants of one former developer’s intended Main Street investment-gone-bust using tax allocation district funds designed to fortify areas considered blighted. In January of this year, the city ceremoniously entered its next growth phase as an excavator took its first bite into former furniture fabricator Mooney Manufacturing’s concrete block exterior, located at the corner of Main and Gainesville streets. By the time city planner, James Riker, accepted a position in February 2013 with the city of Duluth, council and city administration were once again firing up the development engine of the little city that has resided by its active railway line since 1874. With the March release of the city’s financial audit, Flowery Branch has been deemed as weathering the storm better than most small cities of its size. The Mooney site is now leveled and will soon green with spring growth, where it will remain as the city once again embarks upon its next step toward re-engaging its economic engine. Flowery Branch is now seeking requests for proposals for a development and marketing analysis that will quantify the community’s strengths and challenges, providing consult on best next steps. The redevelopment plan, budgeted
Ken Reardon is the Director of the Hall County Department of Public Works and Utilities, which is now located in the new Hall County Government Center on Browns Bridge Road.
Public Works The Hall County Public Works Department coordinates the work of several divisions within the county including engineering, fleet maintenance, road maintenance, sewer services and solid waste and landfill. It’s often at the forefront of big, expensive and sometimes controversial projects, such as the Glades Reservoir, widening Spout Springs Road and helping county commissioners decide on sewer options for a new industrial park under construction. Director Ken Rearden, said the third floor of the Hall County Government Center is a one-stop shop for residents who want to start a business or construct a building. Public Works is next to Planning and Zoning, Building Inspection and Business License. Rearden’s department moved from the Joint Administration Building in downtown Gainesville. Many of the other third-floor departments were located on Prior Street. “It’s really handy for the citizens of Hall County,” he said. “They would have to run around a lot and now they don’t have to.” The engineering division designs public works projects, including roads, residential subdivisions, commercial development and stormwater management systems. The department also maintains the county’s heavy equipment and vehicles for every department except for the fire department and the sheriff’s office. County employees were recently awarded the county’s solid waste services contract. This division collects the household garbage at the county’s 13 compactor sites and transports the waste to the landfill for disposal. About 170 tons of solid waste a day is thrown into the Candler Road Landfill from the county and its cities.
Hall County has saved money, time and has improved the convenience for residents needing county services by consolidating many of its functions and departments in a single building. Staff said they have improved their productivity and are more able to form relationships with people in different departments and work more closely as a team. The county consolidated 13 departments that were located in buildings around the county after buying the old Liberty Mutual facility at the intersection of Browns Bridge and McEver roads for $6.1 million in 2010. The Hall County Government Center helps the county serve residents better, said County Administrator Randy Knighton. Residents can also save time because they can come to one location for multiple services. All Hall County government meetings are also held at the center. Before making this investment, the county had to lease space for meetings at former Georgia Mountains Center, now part of Brenau University. “It’s obviously worked out very well for us,” Knighton said. “The seating capacity is greater than we usually had at the mountains center anyway.” The building was constructed in 1982 and has about 118,767 square feet of usable space, said Katie Crumley, Hall County public information officer. The building is five stories on 33 acres, with 525 park-
INSIDE Learn more about other departments that moved to the Hall County Government Center, 2
ing spaces. Carroll Daniel Construction did the renovation, charging $75 per square foot. The building was bought and remodeled using special purpose local option sales tax revenue. Before deciding to consolidate services in the building, Hall County departments were housed in five different locations. Knighton said the elections office was spending nearly $100,000 on rent before moving to the government center. Elections Director Charlotte Sosebee said the department moved into the building in April 2012 and had a very smooth election year. “It was a very positive transition,” she said. The county is more operationally streamlined because of the consolidation, which has saved on overhead costs, including building maintenance, five different phone systems and energy, Assistant County Administrator Marty Nix said. Hall County staff have worked to make the government center more energy efficient and see it as a longterm investment with future room to expand. A number of employees mentioned the added benefit of having ample parking space and many raved about the cafeteria on-site. Tax Assessor Steve Watson said he eats there about 90 percent of the time he’s at work. “It’s very convenient,” Watson said.
■■Please see FLOWERY, 2
INSIDE: A long way to go on midtown, Central Hall greenway, 4
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‘Seeing people more often gives us the ability to be more efficient.’ Bill Moats Hall County Human Resources director STORIES By Sarah mueller smueller@gainesvilletimes.com
Human Resources When departments were interviewing people for county positions, Bill Moats, Hall County Human Resources director, would have to drive across town to different buildings to help with the interview process. Now with the new Hall County Government Center, he just has to travel to another part of the same building. Human Resources recruits county employees and helps in career development. The department also coordinates the county’s wages and benefits programs, employee relations and safety and risk management. Having 13 departments consolidated in one building allows more opportunities to communicate with colleagues more effectively and get issues addressed faster because people are interacting regularly. The space in the new building is more professional-looking and hiring managers in the departments can use the conference area in his office space easily, Moats said. “Seeing people more often gives us the ability to be more efficient,” he said.
SCOTT ROGERS | The Times
Hall County Human Resources Director Bill Moats consults with Nancy Nash at their new offices at the Hall County Government Center, formerly Liberty Mutual.
Tax Assessors
Hall County Government Center Where: 2875 Browns Bridge Road, Gainesville More info: 770-297-5504
Departments relocated ■■ Administration ■■ Building Inspections ■■ Business License ■■ Engineering ■■ Environmental Health ■■ Geographic Information Systems (GIS) ■■ Human Resources ■■ Lake Lanier Convention & Visitors Bureau ■■ Marshals ■■ Planning ■■ Tax Assessors ■■ Tax Commissioner
Courtest Hall County Government
The Hall County Government Center was purchased in 2010 and departments moved in last year.
Property facts ■■ Purchased for $6.1 million using special purpose local option sales tax VI ■■ Renovated for an estimated $2.9 million
■■ 33 acres of land and 118,767 square feet of usable space
Source: Hall County website
‘It’s nice to have everyone together.’ Vickie Neikirk Hall County finance director
Financial Services Financial Services is on the fourth floor of the new Hall County Government Center. It doesn’t interact as much as some departments with residents, but it plays a vital role in all residents’ lives. The department advises the Hall County Board of Commissioners on all fiscal and budget matters, which helps the commissioners make laws and other de-
cisions that affect ordinary citizens. Finance Director Vickie Neikirk, said the budget process will be easier this year because when she needs to ask a question or get information, she can just walk down the hall or a flight of stairs. Housing the finance and purchasing departments together has made both departments more efficient
because they work so closely together. The department is responsible for many functions including tracking financial transactions, overseeing money coming in and out of the departments, developing an annual budget and preparing payroll for county employees. “It’s nice to have everyone together,” she said.
SCOTT ROGERS | The Times
Clerk To Elections Cinnamon Malone works in the new offices of the Board of Elections and Voter Registration in the new Hall County Government Center.
Elections The Hall County Elections Office moved into the new government center last year before the presidential election, but Director Charlotte Sosebee said the transition and the election went smoothly. The office, on the lower floor of the center, is responsible for voter registration for the county and all the cities in the county. It also qualifies candidates seeking election, arranges for the printing of ballots, programs the vote tabulator, coordinates all poll workers and locations and tallies the election results. Being in the government center with
other departments allows Sosebee more accessibility. The county administration staff also has a greater ability to see what’s happening during an election. “It’s been a while since we’ve been housed with other departments,” she said. Sosebee said she also likes that there’s plenty of parking spaces and that there’s a cafeteria in the building. Chief Appraiser Steve Watson said the 2012 election was a very good way to test the county’s efficiency. “People would stop you and tell you it was great,” he said.
Chief Appraiser Steve Watson, of Hall County’s Tax Assessors office, said he’s received a lot of positive comments from residents about the ease and convenience of the new Hall County Government Center. County tax assessors determine the tax digest, or the value of taxable property in Hall County, and give taxpayers the amount of taxes they owe. Their mission is to accurately appraise property at fair market value, mail assessment notices annually, maintain tax records and maps and inspect mobile homes for updated decals. Property is appraised at 100 percent of its fair market value, and taxes are assessed on 40 percent of that value. The tax commissioner sends property owners a bill based on this data. Watson said the space in the new building is better because
it’s more open and there’s better access to other personnel and storage. His office moved from the Joint Administration Building in downtown Gainesville to the center in September. “It’s a much more productive work environment,” he said. The new way county services are organized helps get folks in and out quickly. Watson also finds there’s a better quality of life working in the old Liberty Mutual building. There are hundreds of parking spaces, so there’s less stress trying to find a parking space. The cafeteria in the building provides opportunity for a quick lunch without having to go out and weave through traffic to find something nearby. “Our leaders made a good decision,” he said. “The building’s a gem.”
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FLOWERY: Roads key to changes in S. Hall ■■ Continued from 1 at $95,000, will focus on the Old Town district, area economic viability and redevelopment, and transportation, infrastructure realities.
Transportation Concurrently, nearly every major feeder road into and out of the city is also being extended or expanded as the South Hall area readies for renewed growth and the existing large-scale development under way. Spring 2015 is the expected opening of Northeast Georgia Medical Center Braselton that will provide a commercially stimulating presence. The new hospital will be less than 15 minutes from the Old Town Center. The primary route between Flowery Branch and the new medical complex, Spout Springs Road, has completed its public information phase and continues on track for its widening from Hog Mountain Road to Thompson Mill Road. It is slated to four lanes with multi-use pathways alongside. According to Hall’s 2040 Metropolitan Transportation Plan, the project could take place between 2018 and 2030. In 2011, when the project was set as part of the 2040 plan, the estimated total cost was $44.8 million. The inflation-adjusted estimate in that 12-year time frame is $58.3 million. Intersecting Spout Springs is Ga. 347/Friendship Road whose complete length will now be known as Lanier Islands Parkway with its recently approved (March) vote for renaming by the Hall County commission. In addition, the parkway will be widened from two to six lanes and extended to
Photos by LISA LASKEY | Times regional staff
Above, workers demolish the old Mooney Manufacturing site in downtown Flowery Branch earlier this year. Below, the site has been cleared. City leaders haven’t determined what will be rebuilt in its place but are doing a marketing and feasibility study to give them some ideas.
Ga. 211 / Old Winder Highway to accommodate the developing hospital and River Place complex there. Also under renewed consideration is the completion of the proposed Exit 14 on Interstate 985 between Flowery Branch and Oakwood. The new route would be intended to free up congestion moving north to south in South Hall. Ac-
cording to reports, before this could occur an updated environmental study must be undertaken. The Gainesville-Hall Metropolitan Planning Organization, which oversees transportation planning for the area, proposes to reflect Exit 14’s funding change as part of its 2012-17 Transportation Improvement Program.
Orange barrels line Friendship Road earlier this year, where workers are widening the road that will eventually be called Lanier Islands Parkway.
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Multiuse trails still in the works BY JEFF GILL
jgill@gainesvilletimes.com A planned multiuse trail winding through Midtown Gainesville and eventually through central Hall County still has a ways to go, with preliminary work occupying officials’ time. One half-mile segment of the Midtown trail, running from Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to north of Parker Street, was finished last April. The city has received $500,000 in transportation enhancement money for phase two, which would extend the trail from MLK to Davis Street and Parker Street to the pedestrian bridge on Jesse Jewell Parkway. Gainesville is in the “conceptual design phase” with a Georgia Department of Transportation contractor, Moreland Altobelli, said Jessica Tullar, the city’s special projects manager. “Once we have that in a manner that is cost-effective for the city, with the funds we have available,” then plans will be submitted to Moreland Altobelli, she said. Upon approval, the city would move forward with environmental review and surveys, then final engineering drawings. Construction could start in spring or early summer of 2015. “This is a very deliberate process we have to go through for the transportation enhancement dollars,” which require a 20 percent match, or $125,000, from the city, Tullar said. The Federal Highway Administration established the TE program as a way to “enrich the traveling experience of motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians by helping a community’s transportation system with aesthetic and functional improvements to historical, natural and scenic areas.” The city has applied for a Georgia recreational trails grant to acquire an abandoned east-west spur of the CSX Railroad line. “That would get us a connection toward the Newtown and Milliken area,” Tullar said. The city has a conceptual drawing of the greenway’s third phase, extending the trail southward from Davis Street to Queen City Parkway at Aviation Boulevard. “We have not applied for or earmarked any funding for that (segment),” Tullar said. “Once you get to Aviation, there’s the stretch to Palmour Drive that we would need to look at designing a sidewalk or continuation of the greenway,” she said. The Central Hall Multiuse Trail would start at Palmour.
SHANNON CASAS | The Times
A group walks from the pedestrian bridge toward downtown Gainesville as another group heads in the opposite direction March 13. The bridge spans Jesse Jewell Parkway and is designed to link downtown to the midtown area and greenway.
SCOTT ROGERS | The Times
Costumed youths and their families roam the newly completed greeway walking path through through downtown Gainesville during a Halloween carnival in October 2012.
Currently under design is a stretch that will run along Atlanta Highway between Palmour and near Frontage Road, including through the historic Chicopee Village. The second phase will run from the Department of Labor office off Atlanta Highway to near Lanier Technical College and University of North Georgia’s Gainesville campus. “We are still working on right-of-way acquisition,” said Hall County civil engineer Jody Woodall. Bidding now could take place in August on the project. Construction is then estimated to take eight to 12 months, Woodall said. The trail is expected to “meander along the front” of historic Chicopee Village,
where a stand of large oak trees towers Atlanta Highway and is one of the community’s most recognizable landmarks. “Our intent is to minimize impacts to any of the trees,” Woodall said. “If it is unavoidable to disturb a tree or if the trail damages the roots, we may have to remove that tree. “We are showing areas on the plans for replanting trees in that area, if needed.” Tullar said city officials believe the trails are important because they, along with green space, “add to the aesthetics and overall quality of life in Gainesville. “But also because they are being designed as multiuse trails, they can also provide an alternative means of transportation.”
SHANNON CASAS | The Times
The midtown greenway in Gainesville will eventually link to a trail system that spans Gainesville and central Hall County.
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120 Years
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Gainesville City sChools 1892 - 2012 Academics - Arts - Athletics - Artisans - Alumni
Celebrating our Achievements August 2012- March 2013 Gainesville City Charter School System Renewal Approved through 2023 Gainesville High School Department of Education Award for Advanced Placement For STEM and Overall Achievement Wood’s Mill Academy recognized by Edgenuity as Exemplary Blended Learning Program in Georgia Gainesville High School Academic Team 5-A Region Championship Gainesville High School Robotics Alliance Regional Qualifier for VEX World Championships Gainesville Middle School Regional Winner in LEGO Robotics Gainesville High School ROTC Qualifies for Naval J-ROTC National Championships GHS State AAAAA Football Championship Enota Multiple Intelligences Academy: Finalist for Family Friendly School Award Gainesville Middle School and Enota Multiple Intellingences Academy Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl State Qualifiers Gainesville High School Region 5-A Literary Championship Gainesville High School Boys Basketball 5- A Region Champions and State AAAAA Championship Runner Up
And we continue in 2013… Proud to be ONE GAINESVILLE !
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Colleges offer higher learning Courtesy Brenau University
An artist’s concept rendering of the Georgia Mountains Center under Brenau University’s control as viewed from across Jesse Jewell Parkway.
Remodeling to start soon at old convention center BY SHARON DUNTEN
sdunten@gainesvilletimes.com It could be as early as April 1 when the reconstruction of the Brenau center begins in downtown Gainesville, said Brian Daniel, president of Carroll Daniel Construction Company. With the possible completion goal of Jan. 1, 2014, the old Georgia Mountains Center will turn into a stateof-the art building for classrooms and laboratories. On the outside, a gradual academia-like facelift will occur, but as the demolition and renovation continues inside, the interior will not be recognizable from its original state. “The architecture work (designs) is completed,” said David Barnett, senior vice president for administration and CFO of Brenau University. The matter of addressing codes for an older building, completing permit issues and external signage are the just a few obstacles to be met before the first worker or construction machine sets foot on the property, he said. Once the construction begins, there will be more than 100 people on the construction project, said Daniel. It will be local construction crews working on the project, so the profits will benefit the community, Daniel said. “We are also delighted to be a part of bringing more business to the square,” he said. The new center will become more active when the city owned the building, Daniel said. “It will be a great story for
the city of Gainesville,” he said. The city needed a large enterprise to operate the facility (old Georgia Mountains Center), said Barnett. Brenau University and the city will be great partners, he said. In February the City Council voted to hand over the title of the Georgia Mountains Center to the city’s re-development authority, which in turn will lease the newly renovated building to Brenau University for 10 years. At the end of the 10year lease, the university could purchase of the center or seek to renew. “The city is excited about the start of the construction and is look forward to the development of downtown Gainesville as a whole,” said Angela Sheppard, assistant city manager for the city of Gainesville. “The students are members of our community; they will be visiting its dining and retail shops on a regular basis - compared to the “in and out” of convention center visitors,” she said. For those students walking to campus, Sheppard said the city has worked hard to make sure all the crosswalks are updated and are Americans with Disabilities Act accessible. The center’s adjacent parking garage will also be available for Brenau students to park their vehicles. Whether it is walking or driving to the Brenau center, more than 35,000 square feet of teaching space will be available for the new physical therapy graduate stu-
dents. The university’s goal is to reach 100 students over a period of time, pending accreditation, said Barnett. Accreditation can only occur as the program progresses. “This service (physical therapy) is underserviced in northeast Georgia,” said Barnett. Brenau University is investing in this important medical need to the community. “The university is projecting the construction cost at $3.2 million; start up the physical therapy program at $1.5 million; and technology at $2 million,” said Barnett. A physical therapy program director has been hired, said Barnett, but the name will be announced later. In addition, within the next six months, up to 50 new faculty and staff members will be hired including parttime clinical studies staff, he said. “Within five to 10 years, the university will develop an undergrad program to compliment programs that are already established,” said Barnett. “It will be a progressive study,” he said. Barnett said Brenau University has a strategic plan to fully develop a health service program, nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and some day, clinical counseling and doctoral degrees, he said. “The new faculty may also have practices as clinical counseling ... clinical doctors, not academic doctors,” he said.
PLAY BALL: Cool Springs Park almost ready for games By CHARLES PHELPS
cphelps@gainesvilletimes.com Two years after clearing several county commission votes, Cool Springs Park is ready to play host to some baseball games. “Everyone is excited about (the park being complete),” said Mike Little, director of Hall County Parks & Leisure. “Adding to the inventory of baseball fields, now with six ballfields in the area ... (the park) allows for more practices and games for teams in the area.” The park consists of three baseball fields. Teams in the area had been using Chestatee and Sardis’ ballfields for games and practices, Little said. Games were set to start at the park on Saturday, according to a news release from Hall County on Tuesday. “We have received the CO (certificate of occupancy) on (the park); finishing up the entry-gate; scoreboards should be up in the next two weeks,” he said earlier this month. “The road’s done into (the park). The parking lot’s done. The main infrastructure is all complete.” However, the parks were originally going to have more than just the baseball fields. It was going to include a skate park, tennis courts and walking trails on the 72-acre property, according to Little. “Funding at this time hasn’t allowed for everything but the baseball fields,” he said. The baseball fields themselves were nearly scrapped. A vote in January 2011 saw the Hall County Board of Commissioners abandon the
The Times
A crew adds netting to the baseball fields at Cool Springs Park, which was set to open this weekend.
park, and consider it when the economy had improved. That didn’t last long as they agreed to then vote on one option. A 3-2 vote at a Feb. 24, 2011, commissioners’ meeting gave the park new life, and the baseball fields were to be built. In March 2011, another hurdle had to be cleared before the park was completely clear of further delay. Commissioner Craig Lutz proposed an amendment that would have taken out bathroom facilities, irrigation and other amenities that would’ve added to the operational costs to the facilities. Commissioner Billy Powell, whose district Cool Springs Park falls under, wanted the other commissioners to stay the course with the construction of the ballfields and not reopen the topic for amending. “I’m ready to move on with all of this,” Powell
said at a March 2011 meeting. “We’ve discussed Cool Springs and made a decision. Let’s build it and build it correctly with the proper facilities.” Then-Chairman Tom Olive agreed with Powell, and refuted the proposed amendment. Oliver said, “We’ve already voted for Cool Springs, and now we’re going to come back and revisit it? We’re telling this community that what we vote and what we say doesn’t hold merit because we’re going to change it?” The total cost of the park was an estimated $2.2 million to build, according to Little. The money to build the park came from SPLOST referendum V and VI impacts fees. Cool Springs Park is located off of Price Road on Cool Springs Road.
Scott Rogers | The Times
Prospective Brenau University students take a walking tour of the campus during Winter Weekend.
STORY BY MEREDIETH PRUITT | mpruitt@gainesvilletimes.com
BRENAU UNIVERSITY For 135 years, Brenau University has been a part of the Gainesville community. In 1900, H.J. Pearce acquired the women’s school, known at that time as Georgia Baptist Female Seminary, and renamed it Brenau. It was a word he made up, commemorating the first discovery of gold in Georgia by combining the German metallurgical term for “smelting,” which is “bren,” and combining it with the atomic symbol for gold, “Au.” Standing as the only private institution in our local area, Brenau offers education to students of various ages and locations. This liberal arts school advocates a wellrounded education. In order to accomplish this, Brenau has set up a concept called the “Four Portals,” believing students need broad communication skills, international experiences, exposure to and appreciation for the arts, and curiosity for research and critical thinking. One of Brenau’s unique attributes is its Women’s College, which today also admits men, and Brenau Academy. Brenau Academy is the oldest surviving prep school in Georgia just for girls. High school students can attend Brenau Academy and start earning college credit. “We had a girl who graduated last year with an A.A. degree, who had just turned 16,” says David Morrison, Vice President of Communications and Publications at Brenau. “The idea was, instead of taking AP courses in high school, take college
courses, in college.” Morrison says the program is great for home-schooled students as well. Brenau is making progress with its online programs. One of the fastest-growing programs, which is almost entirely completed online, is the master’s degree program in gerontology. Today, 18 percent of Brenau students take all of their courses online. The school focuses heavily on the arts. Brenau founded the Gainesville Theatre Alliance, which began as an effort that combined Brenau Women’s College and Gainesville College about 30 years ago. “We’re very proud of (our) theater,” said Morrison. The university also offers a variety of intercollegiate teams which compete frequently on a national level. Brenau works to make the application and enrollment process simple for prospective students. “(Enrollment) is pretty straightforward for us,” says Scott Briell, Vice President for Enrollment Management and Marketing at Brenau. The school also recognizes various scholarships. “Every student who’s admitted to the Women’s College is reviewed for a scholarship at the time of admission,” says Briell. “Last year, we gave out a little over $8 million in scholarship money.” This historic school is an active part of the community and hopes to expand even more over the next decade.
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Sunday, March 24, 2013
SCOTT ROGERS | The Times
A University of North Georgia banner is unveiled during the newly consolidated university’s rolling tour stop at the school’s Gainesville campus earlier this year.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH GEORGIA The “new” university in town is not so new to the majority of its students. The consolidation of the schools formerly known as North Georgia College and State University and Gainesville State College have combined, along with their Oconee and Cumming campuses, into the University of North Georgia. This consolidation began as an initiative of the chancellor of the University System of Georgia, Hank Huckabee, when he took office. He made a list of eight schools to be consolidated and UNG’s Dahlonega and Gainesville campuses made the list. Now joined as one university, each of the campuses still has its own unique qualities and culture, but has advanced its academics as part of a common, universitywide goal. The new university offers a range of academic programs, spanning from asso-
ciate’s degrees all the way up to doctoral programs, according to Kate Maine, Director of University Relations at UNG. “It offers students the opportunity to have multiple pathways to begin their educational careers and earn their college degrees,” Maine said. The university is recognized by the University System of Georgia as a State Leadership Institution, because of their focus on leadership development through curriculum. One of the most wellknown programs offered by UNG’s Dahlonega campus is the military program. UNG is designated as the Military College of Georgia. The Dahlonega campus also offers athletics, now named the North Georgia Nighthawks, as well as Greek fraternities and sororities. The Gainesville campus focuses more on clubs for students that are geared
toward their prospective career fields. According to Maine, their fastest-growing and most outstanding club is the Free Enterprise Club, which includes students that excel in business programs. This is the first year that UNG has had its Cumming campus. With this campus just starting up, the university is ready for even more progress and growth. Enrollment and transfers will go much smoother now that the consolidation is complete. “The consolidation will make (enrollment) easier for students in the long run, because (NGSCU), in the past, has had many of its transfer students come from Gainesville State College,” Maine said. “Now, those students who choose to start on the Gainesville, Oconee, or Cumming campus and wish to transition to the Dahlonega campus don’t have to actually transfer to a
SCOTT ROGERS | The Times
Lanier Technical College EMS education instructor Sam Stone, center, answers questions from members of a Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education bus tour in October of last year.
LANIER TECHNICAL COLLEGE Since its humble beginnings as a small trade school, Lanier Technical College has come a long way, and expects to grow more in the years to come. As the use of technology is increasing in all career fields, technical colleges have to keep up and integrate computer skills into the classroom. Lanier Tech works hard to do just that for its students. “All of our programs have evolved,” says Dave Parrish, Director of Marketing and Public Relations at Lanier Tech. “In today’s world, everything is electronically run, so not only do you have to do the skill by hand, but you have to know how to deal with the computers.” Lanier Tech also helps students overcome the difficulty of finding a job out of school. The college values its students and strives to help them find employment. “Right now, we have over 90 percent (job) placement of our graduates,” Parrish said. In recent decades, Lanier Tech has become much more than a simple trade school. It provides relevant and updated curriculum that many other colleges and universities also offer. “The primary educational purpose of the college is to provide high quality technical certificate, technical diploma, and associ-
University of North Georgia
Lumpkin
ate’s degree programs to meet the needs of area students, employers, and economic developers,” says Dr. Dana Nichols, Dean of Academic Affairs at Lanier Tech. Although the college mainly focuses on work-based learning, it also includes core academics. Since it is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Lanier Tech offers core classes that can be transferred to schools in the University System of Georgia at a small cost. Some of the most popular programs that Lanier Tech offers are in health care and cosmetology. According to Nichols, the welding program is growing fast as well. The most unique program offered, a Lanier Tech exclusive, is the Motorsports Vehicle Technology program. This allows students to gain education needed to work in the auto racing industry, which makes it different than any other program in the area. Enrollment is streamlined at Lanier Tech, and when admitted, each student is assigned a program adviser to help them register and provide career guidance when the student nears completion of a chosen program. Students can gain a well-rounded education for the ever advancing work force at Lanier Tech.
separate institution.” Since the Gainesville and Oconee campuses were separate from the Dahlonega campus previously, the school is now doing its best to present the school as one university. “We are working very hard to create a common identity for the institution, yet respecting each campus’s culture as its own,” Maine said. For many in the Gainesville, Oconee and Cumming areas, having the university in place makes a huge difference in education.
Dahlonega campus 82 College Circle, Dahlonega
The consolidated university consists of four campuses, one that was North Georgia College & State University, two that were Gainesville State College and one that was a joint effort between the institutions.
Dawson Cumming campus 300 Aquatic Circle, Cumming
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Hall Forsyth 400
Gainesville campus 3820 Mundy Mill Rd., Oakwood
Barrow
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Clarke
Gwinnett Oconee campus 1201 Bishop Farms Pkwy., Watkinsville
Oconee
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R. KEITH HATCHELL | The Times
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HEalth & Safety | Sunday, march 24, 2013
Photos by Scott Rogers | The Times
June Lawhorne gets exercise by walking along the indoor track at the North Hall Community Center on Nopone Road.
Governments work to help employees, residents stay fit BY MEREDITH PRUITT
mpruitt@gainesvilletimes.com In today’s world, things can become so busy that we can remember everything except what is really important: taking care of ourselves. Health and wellness can get pushed aside quickly in a world where people work constantly or are distracted by technology. Hall County is now working toward a more healthy community with its wellness plans. County employees now have access to many wellness options through their medical plan. One part includes a health coach who checks medications, gives health guidance about nutrition and offers general support. This lowers the employee’s premium. “It’s someone that’s there as a resource from a medical standpoint,” says Bill Moats, human resources director for Hall County. He also says medical plans vary, so employees can choose which one is right for them and their needs. All Hall County employees who qualify for health insurance have access to these plans. Hall County also hosts a health fair every year for its employees, featuring various vendors who provide services such as blood pressure screenings, chiropractic services, glucose screenings and other health-related information. The newest wellness initiative is called Healthy Hall County. This is a program that is available to employ-
Taylen Thompson learns to swim from Carol Werner during the World’s Largest Swimming Lesson at Frances Meadows Aquatic and Community Center.
ees and retirees, plus their dependents. It allows them to use fitness facilities at community centers for free and gives them access to a personal trainer who has boot camp sessions
three times a week. “We are going to constantly evaluate what programs we may be able to offer,” Moats said. The importance of having these
programs has grown in the past decade, as health risks such as obesity and cardiovascular diseases have ■■Please see fit, 2
Roadwork aplenty planned or under way in Hall DOT gearing up to build a bridge on Ga. 284/Clarks Bridge Road BY JEFF GILL
jgill@gainesvilletimes.com Work is well under way on one of the area’s busiest arteries, Ga. 347 between McEver Road and Ga. 211/Old Winder Highway. And the Georgia Department of Transportation is gearing up to build a new bridge on Ga. 284/ Clarks Bridge Road. The new bridge will replace an
aging one, making it safer for the numerous motorists who cross it each day. But it also will serve visitors to Clarks Bridge Park and the site of the 1996 Olympics rowing and canoe and kayak venue. “I’m really glad they’ve been able to move ahead with (the project),” said John Ferriss, president of the Lake Lanier Rowing Club. “It’ll be a huge enhancement when
it’s finished. “I know there’ll be some inconvenience (during construction), but we’ll figure out how to deal with it.” Area officials gave an overview of Hall County’s many projects at the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce’s annual transportation forum on March 13 at the University of North Georgia’s Gainesville campus. Ga. 347 was emphasized at the
event. Split into three phases, it is Hall’s largest road project since the Exit 16 makeover at Interstate 985 a few years ago. Under construction is a merchant-lined segment between McEver Road and I-985. Crews also are working to widen to four and six lanes a mostly residential stretch between I-985 and Ga. 211. The DOT also is looking at add-
ing a center turn lane to Ga. 347 between McEver Road and Lake Lanier Islands. Sidewalks will be on one side and a multiuse trail on the other side. “That’s a tight road (with) a lot of right-of-way issues and tough turns in there,” DOT District Engineer Bayne Smith said at the forum. A public hearing is set for the project this summer. The project also features a roundabout at New Bethany and ■■Please see Work, 6
INSIDE: Medical Center has next big thing in heart bypass surgery, 2
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Progress is a publication of The Times, Gainesville, Georgia |
Sunday, March 24, 2013
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Photos for The Times
Doctors at Northeast Georgia Medical Center are testing a new product called eSVS mesh, which could change how heart bypass surgeries are done. Typically a saphenous vein from the patient is used in the procedure, but it doesn’t always stand up to the increased blood pressure when connected to an artery and is also more likely to degenerate after surgery because it has thinner, less rigid walls than arteries. The mesh is fitted over the vein to make it stronger.
Medical Center has next big thing in heart bypass surgery BY SAVANNAH KING
sking@gainesvilletimes.com What’s it like to be the first in the country to use a new technology that could change the way heart bypass surgeries are performed? Just ask the physicians at Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville. On Feb. 5, NGMC was the first hospital in the nation to use a new technology, eSVS Mesh, that could improve the lives of patients needing heart bypass surgery. Drs. Alan Wolfe and Daniel Winston, cardiovascular surgeons with Northeast Georgia Physicians Group Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeons, performed the first procedure as part of an initial feasibility clinical trial approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The trial will test the product, which was created by Kips Bay Medical. Some countries have already approved the device for use. “We are very early in the process and still have a lot to learn but if this product performs like many in the clinical world think it will, it could be the biggest gamechanger heart surgery has seen in decades,” Wolfe said. “We’re talking about improving a basic principal of the way bypass surgery has been performed since the late 1960s.” Heart bypass surgery is typically performed when one or more of a patient’s coronary arteries are blocked, making it difficult for the heart to pump blood to the rest of the body. The surgeon will use healthy arteries or veins from other parts of the patient’s body and attach them to the blocked artery in a way that allows blood flow to bypass the blockage. The most commonly used veins are saphenous veins because they’re readily available in most patients, but they’re not exactly ideal. Saphenous veins sometimes don’t stand up to the increase in blood pressure when connected to an artery. They’re also more likely to degenerate after surgery because they have thinner, less rigid walls than arteries. Wolfe said vein graft closures are no small problem. “Recent studies confirm that as many as 30 to 40 percent of saphenous vein grafts are closed within one year after surgery, which means patients may have to come back for a second surgery down the road and are put at risk for future heart attacks,” Wolfe said. “As a clinician, our goal is to devise a way to make the vein perform more like an artery. If the eSVS Mesh proves to help accomplish that goal, it may help spare patients
the pain and expense of future heart problems.” The mesh is a very thin, flexible tube made of nitinol, an elastic material commonly used in health care products. The mesh is then fitted over the vein to make it stronger and prevent the vein getting larger. Sudden enlargement of a vein bypass graft often results in a buildup of plaque within the graft, ultimately causing it to narrow and stop working. Because the mesh is elastic, it allows the vein to expand as needed and return to its original size. Wolfe said the trial “truly has got a lot of potential benefits.” In addition to potentially saving money for patients and health care providers, Wolfe said the procedure, if approved, could be used to treat hundreds of thousands of patients and give them a more normal life after bypass surgery. So far, the hospital has performed the procedure twice. Wolfe said both patients are doing well and have not had any heart-related problems since the surgery. They’ll be evaluated again in six months. NGMC is currently the only hospital in the country that has began enrolling patients. Three other hospitals will also be trial sites. Other top cardiac hospitals such as The Mayo Clinic, Emory University Hospital and the Texas Heart Institute also are interested in participating in the trial. The trial site at NGMC is coordinated by the research department of Northeast Georgia Heart Center, a private cardiology practice affiliated with Northeast Georgia Health Systems. Wolfe said patients should know that while the hospital is located in the shadow of a large metropolitan area, they’re not stepping down in care by coming to Gainesville. The hospital was recently recognized as one of America’s 50 Best and Georgia’s No. 1 Cardiology Hospital for 2013 by Healthgrades, the leading online resource for comprehensive information about physicians and hospitals. “We are honored that NGMC is the first hospital in the nation to test this breakthrough in medical technology,” said Carol Burrell, president and CEO of Northeast Georgia Health System. “To lead the way in a clinical trial of this magnitude, a trial that could change the way heart surgery is performed and help millions of people, is further evidence that the future of heart care is already in Gainesville, Ga., and NGMC.”
Dr. Alan Wolfe, a cardiovascular surgeon with Northeast Georgia Physicians Group Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeons, performs a surgery that uses a new technology, eSVS Mesh.
FIT: 40 percent of deaths in Ga. due to cardiovascular disease, doctor says ■■ Continued from 1
Scott Rogers | The Times
Zumba enthusiasts dance and work out at the Frances Meadows Aquatic Center during the Gainesville Parks and Recreation’s Zumbathon to benefit the Children at Play Fund.
become a significant issue in today’s world. The Longstreet Clinic realizes this and has begun to offer many health initiatives of its own in the past seven years. “The main focus of (the wellness program) has been a cardiovascular risk reduction program,” said Dr. Holmes Marchman of The Longstreet Clinic. “What we do is identify and stratify employees’ risks for cardiovascular disease.” He said the main reason for this is that about 40 percent of deaths in Georgia are due to cardiovascular disease. Eliminating this reduces mortality rates and improves health overall. The clinic does a complete work-up to evaluate all possible risks, with lab work, exercise evaluation, family history of disease and a habits survey. It also takes cholesterol levels into
account when identifying cardiovascular risks. “We essentially focus on lifestyle changes that they can make to substantially reduce cardiovascular risk,” Marchman says. He says the risk for obesity is also an important factor when considering wellness initiatives, and the clinic also offers a walking program and Weight Watchers groups. Another important wellness initiative can be found in local parks. Out of the 20 parks, 14 playgrounds and nine miles of walking trails in Gainesville alone, there are many ways for members of the community to get moving and live healthier, more active lifestyles. “Quality, accessibility and affordability are our focus in offering our community ways to lead a healthy lifestyle,” said Julie Butler Colombini, marketing and communications manager for Gainesville
Parks and Recreation. Colombini said the agency offers an average of 700 wellness programs a year for people of all ages. Gainesville parks offer numerous health and fitness classes, including everything from aquatics to Zumba. Youth athletics are also offered in a range of sports, including softball, football, baseball, cheerleading and Pee Wee sports. The parks also offer summer sports camps for children. In order to provide better access to wellness for all members of the community, Gainesville also provides 16 public tennis courts. For members who are highly active and involved in wellness programs, Gainesville parks also offer the Fit Plus Passport, which is a one-time fee paid either annually or per 90 days. The county and the parks hope to make health and wellness a stronger priority in years to come.
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scott rogers | The Times
Couch makes changes BY EMMA WITMAN
Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch has dived in to making visible changes to the office since taking the reins from Steve Cronic in January. Streamlined staff, infrastructure and refurbishments were all implemented in the three months since Couch took office. “We’re streamlining organization and budgets,” he said. “Keeping it simple.” The command staff, previously four, now is two. Majs. Kevin Head and John Latty are atop the Administrative Bureau and Enforcement Bureau. Head is responsible for operations at the Hall County Courthouse and the Hall County Jail; Latty is responsible for the Uniform Patrol Division and the Criminal Investigation Division. “It allows for saving money, which is extremely important, but it also enables the employees — the deputies, the corporals, the sergeants, the lieutenants — it empowers them to actually do their job and place the responsibility on those individuals.” Couch said. “They’re highly capable and highly trained and should be empowered to do their jobs.” Soon, another one of Couch’s directives will be unveiled: refurbished patrol cars. With tight budgets and an aging fleet, Couch said refurbishment is a cost-saving measure for the department. A refurbished car is “basically new again,” he said, at half the price. “It’s usually around $13,000 to $14,000 per vehicle, and a three-year warranty, just like a new car. It’s basically new again,” he said. “It saves the cost of emergency lights, cages, all the other equipment, instead of purchasing a new car, which is around $28,000.” He also still plans on moving forward with promoting healthier, more physically fit deputies, a campaign emphasis. “Benefits for the citizens are improved job performance, reducing sick leave, lower frequency of accidents, overall improved morale of employees, which overall leads to a more professional delivery of services,” Couch said of promoting fitness in the department. He plans to use a newly created training officer position to push toward realizing the idea. “Our training officer is researching policy plans to how to implement a fitness program,” Couch said. “The great thing is seeing how people have
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FIRE safety
Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch consults with Maj. Kevin Head at the sheriff's office.
ewitman@gainesvilletimes.com
Sunday, March 24, 2013
embraced the idea already, on their own accord.” That training position was facilitated by another cost-saving directive from Couch: consolidation of the Hall County Jail’s work release programs. An inmate on work release is allowed to work, and when the shift ends, heads back to jail. Those men and women were previously quartered separate from each other and the jail inmates. Facility operation and staffing costs were a significant financial burden on the department, Couch said, with long-term savings from consolidation totaling $1 million. In addition to the training officer position, Couch added an additional school resource officer and a community service officer, another new position. “The community service officer is part of my plan to put both the citizens and law enforcement working together as partners and improving their services,” Couch said. “The CSO will be stationed at the front. They’ll be the face of the Sheriff’s Office.” Additionally, Couch created a community service clerk. “The clerk will be answering the main phone lines, so when citizens call in they’ll talk to a real person, and it’s more of an immediate service,” he said. “Hopefully it improves our service a great deal.” Previously, a certified police officer had to be contacted and sent to the office when a resident came in to file a report. “When citizens come in to file a report, or get guidance and direction on an issue, they can talk immediately with the community service officer, and any additional information on previous reports can go through that officer as well,” Couch said. Although the county faced staggering budget difficulties that led to employee furloughs, and remain an issue requiring constant attention, Couch is optimistic for the department’s future overall. “It’s an exciting time for the office, and it has been going well,” he said. All of the changes, Couch said, are to better serve Hall County residents without asking for more taxpayer dollars. “We’re in a much better position than we were last year or several years before, but we’ve got a ways to go to completely get back on our feet again,” he said. “We have to look at new and innovative ways of saving the taxpayer money and not increase our budget. That is of prime importance. I’m not going to ask for any increases in our budget. We’ve got to work within our means.”
■■ Put a smoke alarm on every level of your home, outside each sleeping area, and in every bedroom. If you have hearing problems, use alarms with flashing strobe lights and vibration. ■■ Test smoke alarms every month. Replace batteries once a year, even if alarms are hard-wired. ■■ Test your smoke alarms at night to see if they wake up your family. Some children sleep more deeply and may not wake up. If that’s the case, try an alarm where you can program your voice to alert him or her. ■■ Mount smoke alarms high on walls or ceilings since smoke rises. Ceiling-mounted alarms should be installed at least 4 inches away from the nearest wall. Wall-mounted alarms should be installed 4 to 12 inches away from the ceiling. ■■ Replace all smoke alarms every 10 years. ■■ Consider installing both ionization alarms, which are better at sensing flaming fires, and photoelectric alarms, which are better at sensing slow, smoky fires, or dual sensor alarms.
Escape
■■ Plan and practice several escape routes and a safe place to meet outside. Drills should be practiced at least twice a year. ■■ Plan and practice two escape routes out of each room of the house. It is important to have an alternate escape route in case one is blocked by fire. ■■ Have a designated person to help young children and others who might have difficulty escaping. ■■ Fire drills should be practiced at least twice a year. Home fires and home fire-related deaths are more likely to occur during cold-weather months, December through February. ■■ Crawl low if there is smoke. ■■ Touch doors with the back of your hand before opening them. If the door is hot, use an alternative exit.
For the kids
■■ Teach children never to go back into a burning building for anything such as a toy or pet, and to call the fire department or 911 from a neighbor’s home or a cellphone outside. ■■ Teach children that if their clothes catch on fire, they should immediately stop, drop to the ground and roll themselves back and forth quickly to extinguish the flames. ■■ Take children to your local fire station for a tour. Children will be able to see a firefighter in full gear and learn that he or she is someone who saves children — not someone to be afraid of or hide from. ■■ Teach children to never touch or play with matches, candles, gasoline or lighters. ■■ Be sure you are not teaching your children bad habits. Do not let them see you smoke in bed or disconnect smoke alarm batteries. ■■ Check the kitchen for preventable hazards and supervise children at all times in the kitchen. ■■ Keep children away from cooking and heating appliances. Never leave the kitchen while cooking and never leave a child alone. ■■ Establish a “Kid-Free Zone” around fireplaces, including gas fireplaces, and wood-burning stoves. Glass fire screens can get very hot.
Prevent
■■ Keep anything that can catch fire away from your stovetop. ■■ Cook with pots and pans on back burners. Turn handles away from the front. ■■ Keep matches, lighters, and gasoline locked away and out of children’s reach. Keep flammable items such as clothing, furniture, newspapers or magazines at least three feet away from the fireplace, heater or radiator. ■■ Store all flammable liquids such as gasoline outside of the home. ■■ Place space heaters at least 3 feet from anything that can catch fire such as curtains or papers. ■■ Always turn space heaters off when leaving the room or going to bed. ■■ Plug an electric space heater into an outlet with enough capacity. Never plug it into an extension cord. ■■ Place covers over unused electrical outlets and avoid plugging several appliance cords into the same electrical socket. ■■ Replace old or frayed electrical wires and appliance cords, and keep them on top of, not beneath rugs. ■■ Never leave a burning candle unattended. Place candles in a safe location away from combustible materials and where children or pets cannot tip them over. ■■ Have chimneys cleaned and inspected once a year.
Source: Safe Kids USA
CMYK 4
Progress is a publication of The Times, Gainesville, Georgia |
Sunday, March 24, 2013
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Holbrook: ‘Policing in the new millennium’ BY EMMA WITMAN ewitman@ gainesvilletimes.com
Hall County Sheriff’s Office: 225 Green St., Gainesville, 770-531-6900 Hall County Fire Dept.: 731 E. Crescent Drive, Gainesville, 770-531-6838 Northeast Georgia Medical Center: 743 Spring St. NE, Gainesville, 770-219-9000 Hall County Health Dept.: 1290 Athens St., Gainesville, 770-531-5600
Banks County County Sheriff’s Office: 706-677-2248 Fire Chief: 706-677-1812 Health Department: 706-677-2296 Northridge Medical Center: 70 Medical Ave., Commerce: 706-335-1000
Dawson County County Sheriff’s Dept.: Dawsonville, 706344-3535, www.dawsoncountysheriff.org Ambulance Service: 706-344-3711 EMA: 706-265-7813 County Fire Chief: 706-344-3666 Health Department: 706-265-2930
Forsyth County County Sheriff’s Department: 202 Old Buford Road, Cumming, 770-781-2222; www. forsythsheriff.org Fire Department: 3480 Settingdown Road, Cumming, 770-781-2180 Northside Hospital: 1200 Baptist Medical Center Drive, Cumming, 770-844-3200, www.northside.com
Habersham County Central Dispatch: 706-778-3911 Emergency medical services: 706-754-6262 Fire department: 706-754-2822 Sheriff’s office: 1000 Detention Drive, Clarkesville, 706-839-0500 Habersham County Medical Center: 541 U.S. 441 N., 706-754-2161, www.hcmcmed.org
Jackson County Jackson County Sheriff’s Office: 268 Curtis H. Spence Drive, Jefferson, 706-367-8718, www.jacksoncountysheriff.us
Volunteer fire departments: Plainview, 706693-4260; South Jackson, 706-548-0888; West Jackson, 706-654-2500, www. westjacksonfd.com. Community resources Jackson County Health Department: 260 Lee St., Jefferson, 706-367-3643, publichealthathens.com; Commerce Health Clinic, 623 S. Elm St., Commerce, 706-335-3895; Jefferson Health Clinic, 341 General Jackson Drive, Jefferson, 706367-5204.
Lumpkin County Sheriff’s office: 194 Courthouse Hill, Dahlonega, 706-864-6101 Chestatee Regional Hospital: 227 Mountain Drive, Dahlonega, 706-864-6136; www. chestateeregionalhospital.com
Towns County Sheriff’s office: 4070 Ga. 339, Young Harris, 706-896-4444 Emergency response: 1400 Jack Dayton Circle, Hiawassee, 706-896-2228 Ambulance: 706-896-6254 Fire: 706-896-2090 Health Department: 706-896-2265
Union County Sheriff’s office: 378 Beasley St., Blairsville, 706-439-6066 Fire and rescue: 439-6095
White County County Sheriff’s Office: 1210 Hulsey Road, Cleveland, 706-865-5177 Cleveland Police: 85 S. Main St., Cleveland, 706-865-2111 White County Fire Dept.: 706-865-3855 Helen Fire Dept.: 706-878-3676 Emergency Communications Office: 706-8651224 White County Health Department: 1241 Helen Highway, Unit 210, Cleveland, 30528, 706865-2191 Ambulance Service: White County EMS, 1331 Helen Highway, Cleveland, 706-8657475
The proposed site for the Northeast Georgia Health area of detail System’s River Place campus: 211
Planned River Place campus
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Hall County
BRASELTON — Work is getting off the ground, quite literally, for the new Northeast Georgia Medical Center Braselton in South Hall County. Grading of the hospital site off the planned new Ga. 347 off Ga. 211/Old Winder Highway has been completed, said W. Rudy Lonergan, the hospital’s director of facilities development. Workers now have moved into setting the foundation for the 100-bed hospital, which will be joined by a second medical office building, a total of 325,000 square feet. Steel construction will begin later this year, once the foundation is finished. The hospital is projected to see its first patients in May 2015, Lonergan said. “But we expect substantial completion, which means it’s basically finished but not occupied, in February 2015,” he said. “We want to allow enough time for the staff to be fully operational (before it opens).” The medical office building probably will open in December 2014 or January 2015, Lonergan said. The hospital and medical building are part of the 119acre River Place campus, which includes a second, now-operating medical office building. River Place sits next to Village at Deaton Creek, a sprawling active-adult community geared to people older than 55. It also will front a new six-lane road, which is part of a larger project to widen Ga. 347 between Ga. 211 and Interstate 985. The Hall County Board of Commissioners voted in February to name the stretch Lanier Islands Parkway. Interstate 85 is about 2-3 miles away. The current building project is expected to cost between $185 million and $190 million, Lonergan said.
Where will the campus be located?
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In an emergency, knowing which agencies to contact can help in any situtation. In addition to calling 911 in a crisis, here is contact information for health and public safety agencies throughout Northeast Georgia.
BY JEFF GILL
jgill@gainesvilletimes.com
der
Whom to call
Work moving along on new S. Hall hospital Win
Scott Rogers | The Times
Gainesville police investigator Dan Schrader uses the department’s new fingerprinting software system, which links the department to the federal criminal database.
For The Times
An artist’s rendering of the new Northeast Georgia Medical Center Braselton.
Old
Police investigations, enforcement and communication have become increasingly sophisticated in the past year, Gainesville officials said. “It’s policing in the new millennium,” Gainesville Police Department spokesman Cpl. Kevin Holbrook said. Technology like the forward-looking infrared system for searches, license plate-reading technology for locating suspects and online databases of pawnshop goods are making criminal investigation safer and more effective. “It’s worked wonders for us with the new technology. Our solvability rate has been really good,” spokesman Cpl. Joe Britte said. “We are just able to solve more crimes more efficiently.” Britte said that key is the ability to approach crime and law enforcement proactively, rather than reactively. Promoting greater community awareness and vigilance, Britte said, is part of what makes new technology in the social media age proactive. “Definitely technology keeps the community aware of different things,” he said. “NIXLE, getting updates, bulletins, not only just road
hazards, but what’s been going on within the city. And it’s free; you just sign up. And the media outlets have played an awesome role in getting the word out to our citizens as well.” Budget constraints previously did not allow the Gainesville Police Department as much access to new technology as officers hoped. The infrared system, purchased with grant funds about a year ago, allows officers to better protect themselves and citizens in the dead of night, police said, and can be used in total darkness, through smoke, fog, and light foliage. In December, the department acquired a sophisticated license plate recognition tool. It allows the officer operating the technology to record and run license tags using a character recognition software. If the software records a tag that indicates a reason for the owner to be pulled over, from a warrant to expired tags, an alarm goes off. That new crimesolving tool did come with a cost of $19,050, but police expect it will eventually pay for itself in fees, police spokesman Kevin Holbrook said. And in January, the department got the training and access to run fingerprints through a federal database. Advances in technology made access to the system,
called I-AFIS, more affordable, Gainesville police said. Looking ahead, further technology integration is ideal, Britte said. “I think eventually our goal is to go paperless and definitely probably get more technology involved in dayto-day things,” he said. And when crimes aren’t being solved more quickly, Britte said, more resources can be put to crime prevention. “An officer spending less time on paperwork can spend more time out on the streets and being proactive within the community,” he said. Things previously only conceived in science fiction and spy movies are a reality. Technology called “crash zone” is a computer program that assists in mapping crash scenes as well as crime scenes, Britte said. “Instead of an investigator, whether it being a crash scene or a crime scene technician having to physically document a scene by hand, which is very time-consuming, this is a computer automated system and it can map the scene in a short time,” Britte said. “It spins around, catches anything and everything there, and creates that scene again on a computer.” The technology has been around and was integrated recently. “It’s a pretty cool system that was updated and implemented this year,” Britte said.
Deaton Creek Parkway
Technology aids police force
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R. Keith Hatchell | The Times
Lonergan, who was involved with previous hospital construction projects, said the new building will feature a rotunda similar to the North Patient Tower opened in 2009 at Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville. The only access to the campus will be through Ga. 347, with no access currently planned between the present 104,000-square-foot medical office building and the hospital. A road will encircle the new hospital, which also will feature an emergency room, helicopter pad and a lower-level cafeteria. Floors would be added to the patient tower if future growth occurs. The hospital is certified for 100 beds, but “we know we’re going to grow,” Lonergan said. Gov. Nathan Deal announced at a groundbreaking ceremony in December that the Northeast Georgia Health System is seeking gold-level Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design health care certification for the hospital. “LEED is an internationally recognized building program that certifies a construction project as being “green,” or using environmentally conscious process and materials,” according to a hospital press
release. The new certification was created this year “to specifically certify projects related to health care,” the release states. “There are only 12 projects across the nation currently seeking that distinction and, depending on timing, the (Braselton) project may be the first in the nation to receive the certification,” according to the hospital. Hospital officials are beautifying a pond that sits on the property. “The plan is that, ultimately, we would have some walking trails down to and around the pond,” Lonergan said. Tim Evans, the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce’s vice president of economic development, said that the hospital plans to hire 500 people “over an extended period of time, as they ramp up (operations).” “That’s a huge impact,” he said. “The average salary starting off in 2015 is projected to be around $75,000 and that will grow over time.” Also, “wherever you have this kind of investment in a health care facility, you have other surrounding uses — pharmacies and other private practices, and that’s good for everyone,” Evans said.
CMYK Progress is a publication of The Times, Gainesville, Georgia |
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Sunday, March 24, 2013
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Kids learn self-rescue in water BY SHARON DUNTEN
news@gainesvilletimes.com Twenty seconds. That is how long it takes an adult, child or infant to drown. The highest risk of death due to drowning is between ages 1 to 4, reports the Centers for Disease Control. And as the Georgia weather gets warmer, people are opening up pools and heading to the lake. Even with safety-latched gates or fences, door alarms or a watchful eye of a parent, sometimes a child might fall into the water by accident without a parent or caretaker knowing. One final defense to consider is Infant Swimming Resource SelfRescue. It could save a child’s life by teaching them the skills of rolling on their backs to float, to rest and to breathe. Children as young as 6 months old can learn to maintain this position until help arrives. Robin Vance Adams of Gainesville initially saw her sister enroll her children in the ISR class in North Palm Beach, Fla., and was amazed how children, including the very young, learned skills to rescue themselves in the water. She said her husband encouraged her to investigate the concept online. After contacting a master ISR instructor, she enrolled in a six-week, 80-hour course to become a certified instructor. Presently, Adams is the only certified instructor in the Lake Lanier area and teaches private lessons. She said each child requires individualized instruction. Adams is also a full-time teacher at Buford High School, where she has taught marketing education for 10 years. “She knows the drill,” said Emily Howell, a Jefferson orthodontist, about her 15-month-old daughter Georgie, who is enrolled in the ISR class at Adams’ home pool. In her multicolored striped swim suit, Georgie knew what was coming when she entered the pool. “Robin warned me that she may scream all the time,” said Howell. But for Howell, the fear of her child not knowing how to survive an accidental fall into water was even more frightening. Immediately, Adams cued Georgie to flip, float and breathe. And yes, Georgie was screaming. But it would be her first communication to her parents if she had fallen into the water. And she was floating on the top of the water — with her face out of the
water. “For younger children, it is first about breath control, then flipping over on their back and crying for help,” Adams said. She said older children include the step of swimming toward a target. “I could see how the course could scare a child,” Howell said. But again, the alternative is even scarier, she said. Natalie Johnson of Cleveland said she stumbled on the ISR website. “I am not wasting time with any other swim lessons right now,” said Johnson. It gives us a piece of mind right now, she said. Johnson said her family has a lake house and uses a pool in its home in the winter, so ISR lessons were one way to keep her children safe. Her children Emma, 5, and Campbell, 2, have learned the ISR course. While Emma jumped happily into the pool to demonstrate her ISR skills, her brother Campbell cried while he flipped and floated. Adams said she now just blocks out the screaming and crying. It is about teaching self-rescue and the children using the skill to survive, she said. “It is also about the posture of the child in the water,” said Adams. When a child is vertically in the water, their head will go down, so I teach them to flip, then float, rest and breathe, she said. “It usually takes four to six weeks and the kids are done,” she said. The classes are approximately 10 minutes long depending upon the age of the child. Adams said parents first have to be CEOs or “Constant Eyes On” their children when around water. She said water safety, including proper supervision, pool fences, alarms and CPR, are the first defense to keeping children safe from pools and bodies of water. According to the Infant Swimming website, Harvey Barnett founded ISR in 1966, and the program has become a leader in survival swimming lessons for infants and young children. To date, 7,750,000 ISR lessons have been given. Furthermore, the website states that ISR instructors learn that children are curious, capable and have an uncanny ability to overcome obstacles like pool fences. The ISR takes that ability and teaches children the skills to potentially save themselves if they find themselves in the water alone. For more information, contact Adams at r.adams@infantswim.com.
SCOTT ROGERS | The Times
Robin Vance Adams keeps an eye on Emma Johnson, 5, while she practices her floating technique in a lap pool at Adams’ home. Adams teaches an infant safety rescue class so children as young as 6 months can help themselves survive if they accidentally fall into a body of water.
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Construction is under way on the new section of Friendship Road near Ga. 211 in Braselton.
WORK: Friendship Road name to change ■■ Continued from 1 Big Creek roads, Smith noted. “That has generated some interest,” he added. Also drawing interest is the local road name for Ga. 347. It has been known for several years as Lanier Islands Parkway between the islands and I-985. The Hall County Board of Commissioners voted Feb. 28 to change the name of the rest of Ga. 347 to Lanier Islands Parkway. The mostly residential stretch between I-985 and Spout Springs Road will be Friendship Road — as it has been known for decades — until the name change takes effect in 2015. In a March 12 vote, Braselton Town Council approved Friendship Road as Ga. 347’s name within the
town’s boundaries. Elsewhere, the state is gearing up for an $8.7 million effort to replace the 55-year-old Clarks Bridge on Ga. 284/Clarks Bridge Road at Lake Lanier. Work is expected to start this spring or summer, with completion set for Dec. 31, 2015. The new two-lane bridge will feature bike lanes, sidewalks and a 63-foot pedestrian tunnel. Officials have said the new bridge will be 952 feet long, nearly 50 feet wide and have five columns in Lake Lanier. Bike lanes and sidewalks will run along Ga. 284 for 2,781 feet. All totaled, the bridge and approaches to the structure will run for more than a half-mile. The current bridge, built in 1958, is 834 feet long and nearly 24 feet
wide. Other projects being planned include replacing a bridge on Ga. 53/ Dawsonville Highway at the Chestatee River, widening U.S. 129 from Ga. 323/Gillsville Highway to the Pendergrass Bypass and widening Ga. 13/Atlanta Highway from Sawnee Drive in Buford to Ga. 347. Also, the DOT plans to replace Browns Bridge on Ga. 369/Browns Bridge Road, widen Ga. 60/Thompson Bridge Road from Ga. 136/ Price Road and build a new interchange (Exit 14) between Flowery Branch and South Hall. One project that is rising in public attention is the widening of Spout Springs Road from Hog Mountain Road to Thompson Mill Road in Braselton. The project could take place between 2018 and 2030.
Friendship Road will soon have a new name: Lake Lanier Islands Parkway between the islands and Interstate 985.
In 2011, when the project was set as part of the 2040 plan, the estimated total cost was $44.8 million.
The inflation-adjusted estimate in that 12-year time frame is $58.3 million.
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