Vision 2012

Moreland Council Meeting

Victims Airlifted

■ Moreland’s mayor to hold office hours every Friday, 2A ■ Blueprints survey still sought, 11A

6 Sections, 62 Pages

147th year — Issue 78

Head-on wreck on Hwy. 29 — see page 3A

Established 1865

ISSN. NO. 0883-2536

Newnan, Georgia

Sunday, March 18, 2012

$1.25 Sunday edition

Coweta’s Local Daily

SPECIAL REPORT: VISION 2012

Hospitality brings people to Coweta

By NICHOLE GOLDEN nichole@newnan.com

and understand what’s behind these walls.”

The 364,000-square-foot, nine-story facility will house 136 beds and 23 Emergency Department treatment rooms.

The new Piedmont Newnan Hospital will officially open its doors to patients in May 2012.

All rooms at the new hospital will be private and have large windows, following the findings of studies showing that

In recent months, Newnan and Coweta County community leaders have participated in sessions to determine a vision for the future — identifying goals ranging from adding green space, creating sidewalk connectivity, and recruitment of businesses.

Three Coweta residents, all who have lived in the area between five and seven years, recently discussed quality of life, the community’s assets, and echoed some of the ideas previously covered in the vision meetings.

Jackie Phillips received a job promotion that required a move to metro-Atlanta from Mississippi. She and her husband selected Coweta and have lived here for five-and-ahalf years.

“Several people who live near Atlanta that we spoke with tried to encourage us to purchase a home north of Atlanta. However, we looked in all directions (north, south, east, and west) of Atlanta,” said Phillips. “We were looking at some houses in the Peachtree City area and stopped for lunch. We saw a flyer for a local car show in Senoia that upcoming weekend. We attended the car show, and fell in love with the small town.”

Phillips said that, in short, it was the hospitality of Coweta that brought them here.

Anna Pearce has lived in Coweta for seven years, moving after her husband’s job transfer to Georgia. “We searched many areas when we found out that we were relocating, but really loved the Senoia area,” said Pearce.

Coweta’s neighborly attitude is a big selling point for Pearce.

“One of my favorite things is the close-knit community that we have in Coweta,” she said.

“People are very friendly and always willing to extend help to a neighbor.”

Small business owner Sara Byars and her husband lived in Coweta as newlyweds. After a

See ERA, page 6A

See HOSPITALITY, page 2A

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

A public open house for the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital at Poplar Road and I-85 will be 1-4 p.m. on March 24. Cowetans will be able to get a first glimpse of the brand new hospital, which is scheduled to open later this spring. A formal ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place at the main entrance at 2:15 p.m.

New hospitals create top flight health care center

By ALEX McRAE alex@newnan.com Transportation and health care have been critical to Coweta County’s prosperity as far back as the Civil War, when Newnan was the site of several military hospitals.

Newnan’s strategic location on the major rail line connecting south and central Georgia to Atlanta made it an ideal location as a medical hub.

Those railroad lines haul freight instead of people these days, but transportation is still a key to Coweta’s current and future success. Situated only 30 miles from the world’s busiest airport and split almost in half

by Interstate 85, Coweta County has long been a preferred location for business and industry.

The same assets that made Coweta attractive to business — transportation links, good

government, excellent schools and sensible taxes — also made Coweta a natural choice for new or expanded health care facilities in the growing metro Atlanta area.

When two new hospitals open in Coweta this year, the county will be acknowledged as a health care center the equal of any place in metro Atlanta and the entire region.

See HOSPITALS, page 6A

It’s new era of health care Editor’s note: This is the 11th installment in a series of articles leading to the planned May opening of the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital on Poplar Road.

By ALEX McRAE alex@newnan.com A new era in health care for Coweta County is one step closer to reality.

Last week, officials of Piedmont Newnan Hospital

took possession of their showroom-new, state-of-the-art hospital from KBR Building Group, which has been in charge of the project since ground was broken on the new facility more than two years ago.

“Everywhere I go people are excited at what they have seen going up here on Poplar Road,” said Michael Bass, president and CEO of Piedmont Newnan Hospital. “I know the community is excited and ready to see

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

Jackie Phillips moved to Senoia from Mississippi some five years ago following a job promotion. After searching for a home throughout metro-Atlanta, she and her husband settled on Coweta due to its “hospitality.”

Sara Byars of Newnan is a new business owner. Byars and her family moved back to the area five years ago and she believes it’s a great place to raise children. Byars is pictured at her studio, In the Art of It.

We Got It Covered Vision 2012 stories appear inside today on pages 2A, 4A-7A, 10A, 4B-6B and 1D-9D.

New I-85 interchange tops highway projects SPLOST vote means $67 million for roads

By SARAH FAY CAMPBELL sarah@newnan.com Recent approval of the extension of the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax means Coweta County will get nearly $67 million for road and transportation projects over the next six years.

An upcoming vote on a regional transportation sales tax — TSPLOST — will determine whether Coweta will get some $200 million more for transportation projects over the proposed 10-year life of that one-percent tax.

The TSPLOST, as it is commonly known, was created by

the Georgia G e n e r a l Assembly through The Transportation Investment Act. The vote on the regional TSPLOST will be held during the July generGay al election primary. Coweta is part of the Three Rivers Regional Commission region, which includes Carroll, Heard, Troup, Meriwhether, Pike, Spalding, Upson, Lamar, and Butts counties. The tax lives or dies by the

overall vote — it doesn’t matter whether the tax passes or fails in a particular county.

The TSPLOST “adds a whole other component” to Coweta’s transportation funding picture, said Coweta County Administrator Theron Gay. “The transportation aspect will ramp up even faster, and be more detailed, if that is successful,” Gay said.

Coweta’s biggest future transportation project is, of course, the proposed Interstate 85 interchange at Poplar Road.

Photos by Jeffrey Leo Fifteen million dollars for the A new Interstate 85 interchange at Poplar Road is the only project that is on the project lists for both interchange was included in the Coweta’s Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, which was approved by voters March 6, and the regional transportation sales tax, or TSPLOST, that will be on the ballot in July. If the TSPLOST is

See ROADS, page 2A approved, the $15 million from the Coweta SPLOST will be used for other transportation projects.

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Index Classified . . . . . . . 6C Community Forum . 4A Obituaries . . . . . . . . 3A

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2A — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

LOCAL

Hospitality/Coweta

Moreland’s mayor to hold office hours every Friday

By W. WINSTON SKINNER winston@newnan.com Moreland Mayor Josh Evans is going to be keeping office hours once a week — a decision he made during the town council’s first work session in years.

Councilman Dick Ford suggested the council hold a work session with no items for action but time for the council members to discuss issues that are important to them. Evans and all the council members — Allyn Bell, Carmen Brown, Jeff Burgess and Ford — all attended this week’s meeting in the Town Hall at the Moreland Mill.

During a discussion about communications, Evans made a commitment to spend much of each Friday at the Town Hall.

Evans said he will be at the Town Hall each Friday from 9 a.m.-1 p.m.

If the mayor cannot be there on a given Friday, Ford volunteered to fill in. Ford said Evans is the town’s de facto administrator since Moreland’s only employees are part-time.

Evans said he would be glad to be available to the citizens — face-to-face — every Friday.

Ford said council members need to be vigilant about checking email and responding to messages from other council members — as well as from constituents.

Taking personal responsibility to be prepared for meetings is also needed, Ford said. “It’s important we all do our homework,” he said.

Ford said the clerk’s office

needs to be straightened and suggested the town might need to pay Clerk Jimmy Haynes for extra hours or get some help for him. Haynes works three days a week for the town.

Ford said storing more documents electronically is also a need.

He said the town needs to access available training.

“Somebody needs to go to some of these classes the state offers,” he said. He said budgeting is one area where the town could use some training.

“They offer these classes.

Somebody can go,” he said. Bell said it is important for people attending the training to make sure they are attending sessions aimed at small municipalities.

Evans noted the classes are offered across the state. “They are spread out. They try to make them available for everybody,” the mayor said.

Evans regularly attends meetings of the NewnanCoweta Chamber of Commerce’s Economic Prosperity Council. Those meetings provide connections with people from other towns as well as from businesses and banks.

Ford said someone from the town also needs to attend Three Rivers Development Center meetings. “You hear about the freebies and who can help us,” he said.

Being collegial is important, Ford said. “It is important to work together. We don’t have to all agree, but we should keep an open mind and do what’s best for our community,” he

said.

Bell indicated he thought the work session was a productive venture for the council. “I wouldn’t see what would be wrong with doing this about once every three months,” he said.

“We all got some food for thought,” Ford commented, near the end of the Monday meeting. “We can maintain a smalltown feel and still have growth and prosperity.”

Also during the work session: ■ The council discussed planned work in the two-story section of the mill. There are plans for a museum media center on the upper floor.

Bell said it is imperative to determine the shape of the first floor before proceeding with plans on the upper level. He said nothing should be done “until we get close to the ground over there.” He added, “I think that ought to be the first order of business. We need to get this nailed down.”

Ford talked about the town’s opportunity to attract tourists and the role the mill building could play in that. “This thing could be a jewel, but why don’t we do this right?” he asked.

Ford said doing the mill restoration in a first class way will bring brides to the mill for weddings — and can help get grants for other projects.

Grants “haven’t all dried up,” he said.

It was agreed to hold a meeting with the Moreland Cultural Arts Alliance, which is coordinating tourism activity in

HOSPITALITY Continued from page 1A

Moreland.

There was discussion of having Evans a written agreement between MCAA and the town.

“Then we’ll know what the town’s responsible for and what the MCAA’s responsible for,” Bell said.

■ the council talked about future development of the Megasite, a large industrial tract that runs from Interstate 85 to Moreland’s northern border. Ford said he believes there will be sewer service in Moreland in a few years as that project gets under way.

“I hope it does come. I hope natural gas comes,” Bell said.

Ford remarked that recent recommendations from the Georgia Conservancy’s Blueprints program recommended the town look at small lots in areas of the town that are likely to grow. Smaller lots will maximize the number of taxpaying properties in the city.

“Even though we don’t have a lot of space available, we do have some space,” Ford said.

■ Bell said the town needs to stay in touch with Three Rivers to make sure the Transportation Enhancement Act grant project moves forward soon.

■ Burgess talked about the type of pipe used for city projects. “For the long range, we need to go back to the concrete pipe,” he said. He said metal pipe may be cheaper but is not as durable.

Transportation projects ROADS Continued from page 1A 2013 SPLOST, which was narrowly approved by voters on March 6. The interchange adjacent to the site of the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital is also on the list of projects to be funded with the TSPLOST. If the TSPLOST passes, the local SPLOST funds originally allocated for the interchange will be used for other road projects.

Most of the preliminary engineering on the Poplar Road interchange has already been completed, but there is more to be done. Completing the engineering phase “will allow us to have right-of-way plans,” Gay said. And that will enable things to really start moving with the interchange project.

The majority of the construction of the interchange will be paid for with federal and state funds. However, Coweta County is solely responsible for both engineering and right-ofway acquisition.

If the county can get things moving with right-of-way, hopes are to “try to ramp up and push the state to move forward even more rapidly with that project,” Gay said. “It is still going to be a project that is going to take a few years to get done.”

But with the new hospital opening and the increased need for access, as well as the economic development opportunities, “we think the state will help us” in speeding things up, Gay said.

The county has recently gotten the go-ahead for another new interstate interchange.

This one is proposed to be located between Bullsboro Drive at Exit 47 and McCollum-Sharpsburg/154 at Exit 51. It will be accessed on the west side by an extension of Amlajack Boulevard from Shenandoah Industrial Park, and on the east side by an

extension of Hollz Parkway at Creekside Industrial Park.

The Federal Highway Administration approved the “interchange justification report” for the Amlajack interchange in January.

The interchange is many years away. However, Gay said the county will start working with property owners in the area sometime this year.

“We want to be sure we do some good route planning,” he said. And “be sure we are preparing and planning for the day when the interchange might come.

“We want to be sure we have good routing plans on the connecting roads. Those are going to be critical,” Gay said. “This is an opportunity we do not want to miss.”

The majority of the SPLOST dollars, $34.8 million, is allocated for road rehabilitation and maintenance projects, on a long list of roads.

The rest of the SPLOST transportation money is set to go to intersections ($4.5 million), bridges ($10 million) and culverts (2.2 million).

Except for the Poplar Road interchange, there are no specific projects on the SPLOST list. However, the projects to be done with the SPLOST funds will be drawn from the county’s transportation plan, and there is an extensive priority list.

Seventy-five percent of the TSPLOST money will be used on a specific project list, which was determined last fall by representatives from each of the 10 counties who made up the Regional Transportation Roundtable. One-quarter of the total TSPLOST proceeds will go back to the counties as “discretionary” funding that can be used on any kind of transportation related project.

Coweta’s projects on the TSPLOST list, which include projects submitted by the city of Newnan and one Senoia project, are the Poplar Road interchange, widening of a portion of Lower Fayetteville Road, engineering and right-of-way

WEATHER

Intersection improvements at the “Five Points” intersection of East Newnan Road, Poplar Road, Turkey Creek Road, and Martin Luther King Drive is one of the projects that will be funded by the regional transportation sales tax, if the tax is approved by voters in July.

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

An intersection improvement at U.S. 29 South, Ga. Hwy. 16 East and Pine Road in Coweta County is on the list of projects to be funded with the proposed regional transportation sales tax, which will go before voters in July. The project already has funding through the 2006 Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax. If the transportation tax is approved, however, the existing SPLOST funds will be used for other road projects on the 2006 SPLOST list.

acquisition for the Amlajack interchange, extension of Amlajack Boulevard to Coweta Industrial Parkway, operating and capital assistance for the Coweta County Transit System, improvement of the Five Points intersection, regional van pool service, projects at the Newnan-Coweta Airport, the extension of the bypass from Turkey Creek Road to Hwy. 16 East, four-laning of Hwy. 154 from U.S. 29 to Hwy. 34, with upgrades from Hwy. 34 to Hwy.

54, a roundabout at the Hwy. 16/Hwy. 54 intersection, widening of Hwy. 16 from I-85 to U.S. 29, intersection improvements at Pine Road, U.S. 29 and Hwy. 16, intersection improvements at Bullsboro Drive, Parkway North and Amlajack Boulevard, a multi-use path along Bullsboro Drive in two sections: Farmer Street to Lakeside Way and Lakeside Way to the Fayette County line, widening of the railroad bridge on Hwy. 74/85, and Xpress Bus Service.

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■ Today’s Forecast: Partly cloudy with a 20 percent

chance of thunderstorms. High in lower 80s ■ Tonight: Partly cloudy. Low of 57.

■ Monday: Partly cloudy. High of 84.

■ Tuesday: Overcast with chance of thunderstorms

in afternoon.

For up to the minute weather information, check out our website at www.times-herald.com

Craig and Anna Pearce

a sno-cone stand on every corner,” she said.

Phillips would like to see additional walking and running trails, particularly in the Senoia area, and more local 5K events.

“I really enjoy running and it seems like I always have to go to Atlanta to run a 5K,” she said.

Phillips also added that more jobs in the area would be welcome.

“I would like to see another high school built closer to our area for White Oak, SummerGrove and surrounding neighborhoods,” said Byars.

“We also would love to see more new neighborhoods being completed with sidewalks as the market is able to handle the increase.”

Byars hopes that a roller skating rink will be completed, as that was a favorite childhood pastime. A center is planned to open at Andrew Bailey Road at Hwy. 34 East this summer.

“I would love to see more jobs of course,” said Pearce. “I would love to see more local farm markets that sell home grown vegetables.”

In December 2011, representatives of the Newnan-Coweta Chamber of Commerce, the Coweta County School System, the Coweta County Development Authority, and county and city governments attended a Newnan Business Development “Visioning Session.”

Among the priorities identified in the brainstorming session were: ■ More “Class A” office space, and perhaps a “special corporate campus.”

■ Continued targeting of the film and TV industry for filming opportunities.

■ A central point of contact for businesses to interact with local government.

■ Continued development and expansion at the local airport.

■ New incentives to attract businesses and industries.

■ A branding campaign to help Newnan and Coweta “evolve” into a unique destination. Downtown areas within the county should be seen as destinations, and should include “a night life, with sidewalk cafes,” and maybe even a “soda fountain, a mom-and-pop grocery, and a downtown drug store.”

■ More educational options, including higher education available in downtown Newnan.

■ More green space, including landscaping, walking trails, and recreational opportunities.

“First impressions mean everything,” said one session participant.

Kick-Off Supper to Re-Elect

MIKE YEAGER

Sheriff, Coweta County

Sunday, March 18, 2012 • Record High: 86 (1945) • Record Low: 23 (1895)

move to Alabama, they returned to Newnan five years ago.

“My husband is originally from Tyrone/Peachtree City area. When we got married 15 years ago we built a house in the first phase of SummerGrove and one year later moved to Huntsville to go to Bible College,” said Byars.

“When we returned six years later with two children in tow, we knew right away that Coweta County was a great place to raise them with affordable homes and great schools.”

Phillips enjoys having plenty of “mom & pop” restaurants to choose from and stores that offer great deals.

“I love all the consignment stores we have! I am a bargain shopper and love that these are popping up all over in Coweta,” she noted.

The faith community is also important to Phillips.

“We are members at Senoia First Baptist Church and are heavily involved in community activities,” she said. “It is nice how several churches come together to host an event or promote specific Christian projects throughout Coweta.”

Pearce likes the choices offered in Coweta’s retail market.

“Ashley Park has brought in even more additional options to our shopping,” she said.

The Byars family enjoys being able to do things together.

“We love the community events like the parades, art walks and fairs in downtown Newnan, the fairgrounds and Ashley Park,” said Byars.

All three ladies believe that they will be living in Coweta 10 years from now.

“If we had another opportunity to relocate, I do not think we would leave Coweta. We have truly fallen in love with this area and the people are like family. Living in Coweta is also so convenient. It is a country area, but only 30 miles from Atlanta (and seems hundreds of miles from any large city),” said Phillips.

She added that with the movie theater, bowling center, and small towns in Coweta, there’s always something to do with family and friends.

Byars said they “love” Newnan and recently opened an art studio, “In the Art of It,” near Thomas Crossroads. She and husband Clint pastor the Forward Church in Sharpsburg.

“Coweta County will definitely be home in 10 years,” said Byars.

“We look forward to the continued growth and success of the county and we continually encourage friends and family to move here.”

Pearce also plans to make this county her long-term home. “Absolutely, I’m very happy in Coweta,” she said.

In any community, there’s always room for improvement.

Phillips said she would like to see public ATV trails for use by families. “We own a 4-wheeler and do not have anywhere to ride it,” she said.

Sno-cone stands — a favorite childhood stopping place for Phillips — also make her list of things that Coweta is lacking.

“Growing up in Mississippi, in the summer time, there was

Temperatures • Yesterday’s high: 76° F • Yesterday’s low: 59° F

Rainfall (in inches) • Yesterday (as of 7 p.m.): 0.00 • Year-to-date: • Normal:

9.73 11.44

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Saturday, March 24, 2012 • 6:00-8:00 PM at the Historic Moreland Mill on Main Street in downtown Moreland, Georgia

Come join Mike, Beverly, Kirby and Weston as we thank you for your support throughout the years. We look forward to your continued support and vote in the upcoming election.

Please join us for barbeque, music and fun!

Re-Elect Mike Yeager, Sheriff, Coweta County 1658 Martin Mill Rd. • Moreland, GA 30259 • 770-251-9939 Paid Advertisement

Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 3A

NATION/LOCAL

A look at long-shot strategy by long-shot Santorum BILOXI, Miss. (AP) — Rick Santorum’s strategy for becoming the Republican presidential nominee comes down to this: prevent Mitt Romney from winning enough delegates to arrive at the GOP convention this summer with a mandate and persuade delegates to ignore election results in their states.

The hope is that delegates will go with Santorum as the more conservative option over front-runner Romney. But there’s a hitch: Newt Gingrich is refusing to quit the race.

It’s a long-shot gamble for a candidate who began as long shot and badly trails Romney in delegates leading to the August convention in Tampa, Fla., where Republicans will pick a challenger to President Barack Obama.

Adding to Santorum’s money and organizational challenges is the fact that Gingrich is splitting the conservative vote and is dismissing pressure by Santorum to drop out after losing this past week in Alabama and Mississippi.

Not that Santorum, who has defied expectations to become Romney’s chief challenger, seems daunted by the odds.

“You’ve been listening to math class and delegate math class instead of looking at the

Santorum is competing Tuesday in Illinois, friendly Romney territory, but also looking ahead to Louisiana’s primary next Saturday.

reality of the situation,” the former Pennsylvania senator told reporters in Biloxi last week.

“It’s going to be very difficult for anyone to get to the number of delegates that is necessary to win with the majority at the convention.”

“This isn’t about math,” Santorum says. “This is about vision.”

So far, it’s all adding up for Romney.

He has captured 495 delegates, more than all of his rivals combined. Santorum stands at 252, Gingrich has 131 and Ron Paul is at 48, according to an Associated Press projection.

That puts Romney on pace to

Obituary Mr. William F. “Bill” Martin Sr. "Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings; And, while with silent lifting mind I've trod The high, untrespassed sanctity of space, Put out my hand, and touched the face of God." And so it was for William F. Martin Sr., known to all as Bill, as the warmth of a spring sun climbed high in the noon sky on March 16, 2012, which was three days after his birthday.

Bill Martin was bor n in Charlotte, NC, March 13, 1928, and was the son of James and Rosa Mae Westbrook Martin. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife, Edna Parks Martin, and his son and namesake, William Francis Martin Jr., as well as by a brother, Frederick Wesley Martin.

Early in life, Bill knew his vocational calling was to be in aviation. He served in The United States Coast Guard and plunged headlong into his chosen career and nurtured his affection for flying. He flew for Piedmont Airlines beginning in 1952 and retired as a Senior Piedmont Captain in 1985.

After retirement, he remained active in The Piedmont Silver Eagles. He was a member of Newnan First Baptist Church.

Bill is survived by his son Craig Martin and his wife Meg of McDonough.

Three grandchildren, Haley Martin, Will Martin, and Kelsey Martin, were paramount in his life. Also surviving is a brother, Wiley Martin of Denver, NC, and a sister, Lourine Bryant of Charlotte NC. Funeral arrangements are by McKoon Funeral Home at 38 Jackson Street, where the family will receive friends on Monday, March 19 beginning at 10 a.m.

The funeral service will follow at 11 a.m. in The McKoon Funeral Home Chapel with Reverend Jerry Walker officiating.

Interment will be in Forest Lawn Memorial Park.

Online condolences may be expressed at www.mckoon.com.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Mr. Martin's name to either The American Cancer Society or to The First Baptist Church of Newnan.

McKoon Funeral Home

Santorum lags in both. Also, Gingrich is still kicking and has a chunk of conservative support.

With Mississippi and Alabama showing that Santorum had defeated Gingrich on what essentially was the former Georgia lawmaker’s home turf, Santorum said it was time for conservatives to unite against defeat Romney. Translation: Gingrich should step aside.

About half the states still await the chance to vote.

Santorum wants to make the remaining contests a head-tohead match against the former Massachusetts governor, winning beyond conservative areas in hopes of denying Romney the clinching number.

Santorum is competing Tuesday in Illinois, friendly Romney territory, but also looking ahead to Louisiana’s primary next Saturday.

Santorum is trying to make the case that there isn’t much daylight between Romney and Obama, and that the Democratic incumbent has the edge in that general election matchup.

“People ask me why I am the best candidate to run against Barack Obama. I feel like in some respects like I am running against Barack Obama

here in this primary because Mitt Romney has the same positions as Barack Obama in this primary,” Santorum said Saturday in Effingham, Ill. Santorum hopes to benefit from the deep skepticism among social conservatives about Romney, a Mormon who has struggled with this group of voters since his failed 2008 bid.

According to exit polls conducted in Alabama and Mississippi, only about 1 in 5 very conservative voters backed Romney, while 7 in 10 said his positions on the issues were not conservative enough.

Romney has won among “very conservative” voters in just four states where exit or entrance polls were conducted: Two where he’s lived (Massachusetts and New Hampshire) and two with a significant Mormon population (Nevada and Arizona).

Still, it takes money and manpower to seize the moment. Santorum is raising money, but far less than Romney, and he has virtually no organization.

In the end, Santorum is counting on the GOP base’s apparent demand for ideological purity in the nominee to trump time-tested techniques for winning the nomination.

LOCAL

Two airlifted to hospitals after head-on collision on Hwy. 29 From STAFF REPORTS news@newnan.com A head-on collision at the intersection of Lake Ridge Way and Hwy. 29 trapped two victims, who were extricated by Coweta County Fire Department rescue crews and airlifted to area hospitals Friday night.

One victim was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital and the other was transported to

Atlanta Medical Center for “definitive care for traumarelated injuries,” said Deputy Fire Chief Todd Moore.

According to Moore, the wreck involved two passenger vehicles, a truck and a car.

Victims were treated on-site and transported to an air ambulance landing zone at the former Food Lion parking lot.

Coweta County EMS crews were supported by Vital Care ambulances whose headquarters are located 100 yards from

the accident site. Georgia State Patrol conducted on-site investigation, Coweta County Sheriff ’s deputies provided traffic control and CCFD remained on the scene to remove spilled fluids and reopen the highway.

“It was a serious accident that involved several different agencies and a lot of resources, but we feel it was handled in a coordinated and timely fashion,” Moore said.

Friday’s wreck was the sec-

ond head-on collision in a week near the intersection of Lake Ridge Way and Hwy. 29. Offduty Clayton County sheriff’s deputy Amy Marie Kemper, 39, was critically injured March 11 when an SUV driven by 26year-old Christopher Lynn Brown struck her motorcycle.

Brown has been charged with DUI and leaving the scene of an accident with injury.

Kemper remains hospitalized.

LOCAL

Woodturners meet Tuesday at Redmond Machinery The South Metro Woodturners group meets in Coweta County on Tuesday.

The club meets monthly at Redmond Machinery, Coweta Industrial Parkway off Hwy. 154 between I-85 and U.S. 29, every third Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m.

This month, Frank Bowers, well-known Atlanta area woodturner and instructor, will show tools and techniques for hollowing out various shapes using both hand-held and captive bar tools.

Visitors are welcome.

Anyone interested in wood turning in any of its aspects will find a shared interest within the group.

Those interested in attending a meeting, learning more about woodturning, or who would like a woodturning

demonstration at a local event, contact Rich Aldrich, SMW president, at 678-378-5990, or George Daughtry at 770-9640257.

Bring a portable chair as the group meets in a warehouse environment.

Kam, Ebersbach and Lewis, P.C.

SELECTING A JURY Jurors are selected using a process known as “voir dire,” during which they are questioned by attorneys on both sides in the hope that the answers will reveal any biases or preferences that may have a bearing on an individual’s suitability for serving on the jury. Jurors “challenged for cause” are excused for a specific reason (such as showing a bias). A “peremptory challenge” can be made on the basis of an attorney’s belief that a prospective juror is not sympathetic to his or her client.

The number of peremptory challenges that an attorney may make is limited, but the number of challenges for cause is limited only by the judge’s unwillingness to grant them any further.

HINT: “Voir dire” means “to speak the truth.”

Chosen As Top Performer For three years in a row, West Georgia Health has been recognized as a Top Performing Hospital in a nationwide hospital quality improvement project.

West Georgia Health was one of three Georgia hospitals and one of 93 U.S. hospitals to receive this three-year distinction among the 278 hospitals participating in the Premier healthcare alliance’s QUEST®: High Performing Hospitals initiative. QUEST is a voluntary program in which participating hospitals focus on making improvements in patient care reliability, efficiency and safety.

Ga. man jailed as wife says he used mop to hit her ALBANY, Ga. (AP) — A southwest Georgia man has been jailed after his wife told police he attacked her with a mop.

John Michael Hill is being held without bond at the Dougherty County Jail after his wife called police Friday.

Police say Selina Hill told them her husband was upset because she had been drinking.

She says he grabbed a mop and began hitting her repeatedly with it.

Michael Hill was jailed on charges of battery and cruelty to children.

win the required 1,144 delegates in June.

Romney’s advisers claim it would take an “act of God,” as one put it, for Santorum to take the lead in the delegate count.

“If he is able to pull off a miracle so be it. He’ll be the nominee,” Romney said.

Santorum, whose Catholic faith is central to his campaign, was not amused. “I don’t know about him, but I believe in acts of God,” Santorum said.

One of his strategist’s, John Patrick Yob, put it another way in a recent memo that said the Romney team’s focus on the delegate count was an effort to distract from what Santorum’s

campaign claims is trouble the front-runner faces in county, district and state conventions, where delegates are locked in.

Historically, delegates take their cues from the voters who participate in the primaries and caucuses.

Santorum sees himself as the preferred candidate of conservatives, given victories in the Deep South and elsewhere.

He’s betting that he can buck tradition by getting delegates at the local level to thwart the will of the people and side with him over Romney.

Santorum hopes to ride into Tampa with enough support to deny Romney the nomination on the first ballot. Under this scenario, delegates would be free, in many cases, to back whomever they wanted.

Yob’s memo said Romney “will perform worse on subsequent ballots as grassroots conservative delegates decide to back the more conservative candidate.

Subsequently, Santorum only needs to be relatively close on the initial ballot in order to win on a later ballot as Romney’s support erodes.”

But there are hurdles Santorum is overlooking.

It takes money and organization to twist arms at local, county and state conventions;

We’re really proud of our team’s accomplishments. We truly have a passion for putting patients first. And by putting you first, we’ve risen to the top.

1514 Vernon Road LaGrange, Georgia 30240 706.882.1411 www.wghealth.org

Community Forum

4A — Sunday, March 18, 2012

Editorial Vision 2012 — a special report on our growing, progressive community Coweta County continues to be one of the fastest growing counties in our state, and also among the faster growing counties in the country. This year is going to be a remarkable year in our community, with exciting new ventures as this progressive county continues to head down a path that makes it one of the most desirable places to live.

In today’s edition of the Newnan Times-Herald we are proud to provide readers with our annual update on the community. This special report — Vision 2012 — highlights many of the things that are going on in our county and in the cities that make up the county. Look for this report in sections A, B and D in today’s edition.

One of the highlights of 2012 will be the opening of two new hospitals — the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital will open in May, followed by the Cancer Treatment Center of America opening in August. These two facilities clearly put Newnan and Coweta County in the forefront in terms of health care in

our region. We all can be proud.

We have a new West Georgia Technical College campus being built near Interstate 85 south of Turkey Creek Road. This is just one of the exciting expansions of educational offerings in our community. Other expanded college programs are expected to be announced this year.

As Coweta County continues its journey as one of the most progressive counties in the region, the people keep coming.

While population growth slowed during the economic downtown, growth did continue. The pace of growth will again pick up in the years ahead.

Why do people come to Coweta County? Let some of the people who live here tell you. Turn back to page 1A today and read the story of what people are saying about our dynamic community.

We hope you enjoy today’s Vision 2012 special report. It gives you an update on our community and what’s happening in this place we call home.

Sound off Name tags: Socialist, capitalist, Baptist, Methodist, Protestant, Muslim, Catholic, conservative, progressive, liberal, Indian chief. We are all some of that. None are "all that." It takes all the above and more to make America. Open your eyes and your heart. .....

Entitlements : Government programs are entitlements, and many believe they are to be used from generation to generation. Kids grow up thinking they don't need an education. They can sit home and get a check. .....

Spruce up entrances: If they are not going to finish the bypass reconstruction, at least define entrances to stores better so patrons do not drop off into a hole trying to get to my store. It is like a rat maze to find your way in and out. .....

Abstinence won’t work: Sexual abstinence is completely against human nature and is not a practical solution to birth control. .....

Try soldier in U.S.: I think the soldier that killed all of the Afghan civilians should be tried in America, not by the Taliban. .....

No easy victory? If you think President Obama will attack Iran just before elections and claim a victory, I wouldn't be so quick to say that. Claiming a victory over Iran just might not be so easy and quick.

Better study and learn your enemy. .....

R u s h ’ s p l i g h t : I laughed when I read Rush apologized after he lost sponsors. Not one "major sponsor" left, and out of 2,800 sponsors that advertise during his show, only 29 local sponsors canceled. The media wanted so badly for him to fold. .....

No pajama while shopping: When did fuzzy pajama bottoms become acceptable to wear shopping? If you are too

QuickVote Did you fill out a NCAA men’s basketball tournament bracket this year?

Yes: 51 No: 354 Total votes: 405 * to participate in QuickVote, go to times-herald.com

Do you want to ‘Sound Off’?

“Sound Off” gives readers any opportunity to have their say on a topic without signing their name.

“Sound Off” items should be 50 words or less. All “Sound Off” items and letters are subject to editing.

To “Sound Off,” you can email to editor@newnan.com or fax to 770-253-2538 or mail to Sound Off, The Newnan TimesHerald, P.O. Box 1052, Newnan, GA 30264.

Sour balls According to Bible scholars, this isn’t the forbidden fruit. It should be. I’m referring to those prickly, annoying, indestructible globes of grossness known as sweet gum balls.

I once heard a guy in the forestry business refer to sweet gum trees as “weeds.” That was an insult to weeds, which actually have useful purposes, like feeding cows, sheep, goats and horses. I hear some people even smoke certain weeds.

Sweet gum trees — and their prickly spawn — have no useful purpose at all. I should know.

My property is literally covered with them. I’m ready for real change in that department.

Hiring someone to cut down every sweet gum on my place would cost a year’s pay. That’s out. I figured if I were stuck with the trees, maybe I could rid myself of their droppings.

Times are tough so I started by investigating potential uses for sweet gum balls that might turn a profit.

Surprisingly, the Internet is full of them. All bad.

I found sweet gum balls clumped together, painted and marketed as Christmas ornaments. Some were wired together into decorative wreaths. My favorite was a sweet gum ball necklace. I’m pretty sure this device was first used in the torture chambers of medieval Europe.

I finally admitted the only solution was having the gum balls removed by someone. Or some thing. I coated a few with melted butter, sugar and bird seed to see if local critters would gobble them up.

Even the armadillos turned them down.

I threw up my hands and

lazy or too large to wear sweat pants, stay home. Has our society completely given up? .....

Irresponsible: To cast a vote for a presidential candidate based on what Rush Limbaugh says on his entertainment program is irresponsible. Perhaps you shouldn't vote at all, since you aren't really interested in issues. .....

O b a m a l o y a l : I have seen compassion toward the plight we face as average citizens. He ended one illegal war, punished the culprit, righted the economy, offered to work with a clearly obstructionist Congress, extended health care and fixed Detroit. There are none more blind than those who refuse to see. .....

Good candidates needed: Present some candidates that appeal to the majority, and they will be seriously considered.

The no-compromise stance of so-called conservatives appeals to so few. The days of "my way or the highway" are gone. .....

D r u g s r a m p a n t : Pull your head out of the sand. Drugs are A friend of a reader of this rampant everywhere, and column called the other day in Coweta is no different than reference to a column written anywhere else. sometime ago on Noah’s Ark. She was a very sharp lady who was speaking to a woman’s group on the subject of how difficult it must have been for Mrs. Noah on the ark. I agreed and shared some of my thoughts on the subject.

Mrs. Noah must have asked The Newnan Times-Herald solicits her husband, “With two of Letters to the Editor for publication every animal on board, how do on this Community Forum page. you expect me to keep the ark Readers are encouraged to write clean?” their opinions and mail them to: “Don’t you think that the two Letter to the Editor, The Newnan Times-Herald, P.O. Box 1052, elephants need an entire boat Newnan, GA 30264. Letters can be of their own?” faxed to (770) 253-2538 or sent by “Noah, what were you thinke-mail at editor@newnan.com. ing of? Or were you thinking at All letters must be signed. Also all when you brought two include your address and telephone number for verification of letter. skunks on the boat with all the We will only print letters that are other animals?” signed. Your name and hometown “Even a little common sense will be printed with the letter. We would have told you that the will not print your street address or two of them should be given a telephone number. private room of their own.

Due to space limitations, letters should be no longer than 300 words.

Every time the wind shifts, we All letters will be subject to editing. are rudely reminded of their unwelcome presence with us.”

Alex McRae

sought government help. The Feds don’t have a sweet gum ball removal program, but when it comes to controlling nuisances, you can’t beat the Department of Homeland Security and the EPA. This might be right up their alley(s).

The new, improved, government-mandated “green” light bulbs allegedly save a ton of energy. But some bulbs have a potential health risk. Namely, death.

That’s because some “green” bulbs contain poisonous, highly toxic mercury.

Scary stuff. Scary enough to make me wonder what would happen if an American citizen were attacked by… mercury.

Contained in light bulbs.

Tossed in a yard … by terrorists.

Surely, if a broken mercury bulb thrown by a terrorist can kill innocent taxpayers, the government is duty-bound to clean up the toxins after the attack.

Especially if there are innocent women and children in the area.

It could happen. You never know with terrorists. I wouldn’t be a bit surprised to wake up one day real soon to discover that light bulb-tossing terrorists had attacked my entire yard, filling it with more pollutants than the Love Canal.

When that happens, I’ll insist that Homeland Security order the EPA remove the danger by

Mrs. Noah had tough time on the ark

removing every last trace of grass, weeds — and sweet gum balls — in my yard. If the sweet gum trees are toxic, they’ll have to go, too.

If that doesn’t work, only one scam, uh, solution … remains.

Right now, news stories abound about government agencies closing sidewalk lemonade stands and confiscating the “product.” Maybe I’ll give that option a try.

I’ll start by declaring my entire yard a “U-Pick-It Sweet Gum Ball Farm.”

Then fail to get a business

license or a health department inspection and sit back and wait.

Bet it won’t take a week for representatives of every agency from the Department of Agriculture to the IRS to show up, shut me down, and, best of all, seize and confiscate all my “produce.”

It will be painful, but I’ll choke back the tears and wave goodbye as the Feds haul my sweet gum balls off to food jail. (send your email comments to: alex@newnan.com)

President William W. Thomasson | Vice President Marianne C. Thomasson Publisher Sam Jones | News Editor Ellen L. Corker Controller Diana Shellabarger | Sales and Marketing Director Colleen D. Mitchell Advertising Manager Lamar Truitt | Circulation Director Naomi Jackson Asst. News Editor Winston Skinner | Close-up Editor Nichole Golden Sports Editor Chris Goltermann | Asst. Sports Editor Doug Gorman Classified Manager Joey Howard | Graphics Manager Debby Dye Production Manager Allen Dubberly | IT Coordinator Jonathan Melville

Jim Griffith

News Staff Sarah Campbell, Alex McRae, Angela McRae, John Winters, Rebecca Leftwich Paginators Will Blair, Lindsay Wood Photographers Bob Fraley, Jeff Leo Multimedia Sales Specialists Doug Cantrell, Kevin Dickinson, Mandy Inman, Candy Johnson

“And what’s more, no one has been able to sleep because the hyenas howl all day and night. And I know why you particularly want to have the laughing hyenas located near us.”

“Now, Mrs. Noah you don’t have to bring that up,” Noah said.

“Oh, but I do,” she said.

“All right,” he said. “If it’ll make you feel better, go ahead and say it.”

“It’s this,” she said, “You consider yourself to be a good joke-teller, and the laughing hyenas laugh at everything you say, whether it’s funny or not.”

Classified Advertising Specialist Rhonda Spooner Legal Advertising Clerk Christy Hill Office Staff Lisa Garrett, Jeanette Kirby, Stacie Kittle, Tara Shellabarger Graphic Designers Sandy Hiser, Sonya Studt Production Staff Aubrey Carter, Tina Foster, Rhonda Guy, Anthony Hodo, Allen Holland, Jesiah Huckstep, Jermaine Satterwhite Circulation Staff Penny Hunter, Paula Richardson, David Supperer, Beverly Thomas Published daily by The Newnan Times-Herald, Inc. 16 Jefferson Street, P.O. Box 1052, Newnan, Georgia 30264 ISSN NO. 0883-2536 | Periodicals Postage Paid At Newnan, Georgia Official Organ, Coweta County, City of Newnan, State of Georgia POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Newnan Times-Herald, P.O. Box 1052, Newnan, GA 30264

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Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 5A

VISION

DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY ALSO BREATHING NEW LIFE INTO TOWN

Grantville looks to future with new city manager

By REBECCA LEFTWICH rebecca@newnan.com Strong community ties bolstered by the hiring of a seasoned city manager, a Downtown Development Authority’s commitment to starting small and finishing big, and a renewed effort to attract businesses have g ive n Grantville residents hope the town may finally be on the path to fulf illing its great potential.

“I’m completely devoted to Grantville,” said Mayor Jim Sells, who has called the city h o m e fo r 1 1 ye a rs . “ It ’s a community, a family community. You get the bad with the good but the good far outweighs the bad.”

Economic struggles may have left the town gasping for air, but Sells says he is encouraged by the forward m ove m e n t h e h a s s e e n i n Grantville lately.

“We have suffered more than the rest of the county as far as property values falling, lost jobs and closed businesses go,” Sells said. “But we d o s e e s o m e a c t iv i ty.

We’ve had an increase in the number of people inquiring about property and checking into utilities lately, and to have that gives us hope that we can come up off the bottom.”

Grantville’s inability in the past to live up to its potential has been puzzling. With easy interstate and rail access and a major airport just 35 miles away, t h e c i ty co u l d b e a prime location for businesses and industry that could provide a strong tax base and local jobs. Learning to court those businesses and actively p ro m o t i n g G ra n tv i l l e to industry has become a high priority.

S e l l s sa i d c i ty o ff i c i a l s recently met with a commerc i a l d eve l o p e r a n d M a tt Brass, f ield representative f ro m Co n g re ss m a n Ly n n

Photo by Rebecca Leftwich

Grantville City Manager Johnny Williams, left, relocated from Alabama because he believes so strongly in the city’s potential.

Mayor Jim Sells, right, says Grantville’s stagnant economy is showing signs of movement again.

Westmoreland’s off ice, to discuss establishing a free t ra d e zo n e i n t h e c i ty ’s industrial zone. According to Sells, the move would provide tax incentives for companies to locate in the area.

“What we’re hoping to do is to tie in with some of the growth happening around us and work with them,” Sells said. “We’ve got large businesses like Kia [with its new plant in West Point, Ga.], and suppliers are moving in to help them. Smaller suppliers will create businesses to support those s u p p l i e rs .

Dressing ourselves up and working with them is one of the avenues were going to pursue.”

The recent hiring of City Manager Johnny Williams a n d t h e G ra n tv i l l e D DA’s focused visioning meetings have breathed new life into t h e co m m u n i ty a s we l l .

Williams, who has worked in the public arena since he was i n h i s te e n s , h a s b ro u g h t much-needed knowledge and experience to city hall, while the DDA plans to immediately co m m i t to a n a r rowe d f ield of low-cost projects m e m b e rs h o p e w i l l b u i l d momentum for larger longterm projects.

“There are plenty of things we can at least start and get people behind us,” said Scott Palmer, current DDA chairman. “Once we get a few of the less costly items done, we hope to be able to accomp l i s h s o m e o f t h e b i g ge r items.”

Palmer, who has served in several Grantville government roles, rotates off the DDA in August, completing a two-year term. He says beautification projects would be an affordable place to start fo r t h e D DA , b ut t h a t

members and city officials w i l l s o o n n e e d to b e g i n exploring creative ways to f u n d t h e l a rge r p ro j e c t s Grantville residents can see as tangible proof of growth.

“I’ve lived here for 14 years now, and the only thing I h ave n’ t d o n e i s ( H i s to r i c Preservation Association),” Palmer said. “I did a lot of pro bono work for the city before I was asked to head the DDA. The reason I did it is because I do care and I do want to make a difference.”

Williams brought decades’ wo r t h o f ex p e r i e n ce to Grantville when he was hired earlier this year, and his first order of business was making a difference in the way city council members looked at their town — and each other.

A self-described “lifelong public servant,” Williams immediately had city council members work together compiling a list of priorities for Grantville — including fiscal responsibility, infrastructure, re c re a t i o n a n d e co n o m i c development. No small feat, considering members of the council admittedly have had diff iculty functioning as a unit at times. So Williams set out more unifying exercises for the council, minimizing the potential for contentious behavior while maximizing Grantville’s potential to grow and change.

“I had them analyze where t h ey a re, a n d wh a t t h e i r visions are,” said Williams.

“There’s potential here, with an interstate and infrastructure in place and room to expand.”

Born and raised in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Williams worked his way through the University of Alabama employed by the city’s planning department on a half-time basis and serving in the Alabama National Guard. After graduation, he worked in the same department full-time for two more years before moving to

Blacksburg, Va., to earn his master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from Virginia Tech.

From there, it was on to the Central Midlands Regional Planning Council in Columbia, S.C., to provide planning and management assistance to Lexington County and its seven municipalities, then back to his hometown to work with every city and county in west Alabama in his job with the West Alabama Planning and Development Council.

Williams formed a joint city/county planning department during that time, securing more than $15,000,000 in grants for Tuscaloosa County and the city of Northpoint. He also has experience in the private sector

as well, working in civil projects, urban planning, community development block grants, budgeting and general management assistance throughout Alabama. He has worked in Georgia, Mississippi and, most recently, Florida, where he supervised 13 departments, 200 employees and an annual budget of approximately $46,000,000.

He’s found a home in Grantville, and Williams says he has high hopes for its success in development and growth.

“The council wants its town to become a full-service bedroom community,” he said. “I am ready to give it my best effort to help them get there.”

Spring Art Walk

Join Main Street New Newnan for an evening of strolling the streets of historic downtown and enjoying great local art.

March 23, 2012 5-8pm

www.mainstreetnewnan.com

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6A — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

VISION Special Report: Vision 2012 — It’s a new era of health care in Coweta County ERA Continued from page 1A pat i e n t s h e a l fa s te r a n d staffers work better when surrounded by an abundance of natural light. The new P N H s i te a l s o i n c l u d e s a four-acre fish pond.

Bass praised KBR Building Group for their efforts in constructing the new facility in a timely and professional manner.

KBR Building Group is a d ive rs i f i e d co n s t r u c t i o n services company serving co m m e rc i a l , h e a l t h c a re, institutional and industrial clients.

John Bruce of KBR served as the PNH project superintendent.

“I can’t say enough about the cooperation and help we received from Michael Bass and his team,” Bruce said.

“You always have issues that come up in a project this size, but we have people in place to take care of those issues.”

Bruce said the combination of exterior materials, including brick, stone and glass, presented construction c h a l l e n ge s , b ut sa i d a l l p o te n t i a l p ro b l e m s we re worked out smoothly with the architects and, in the end, everything worked out well.

“At the end of any project you struggle to make sure all the little things are punched o ut a n d eve r y t h i n g i s cleaned up and ready for the opening,” Bruce said. “But everything went off well.”

Greg Wright, president of the Cowe t a Co u n ty Development Authority, visited the completed facility this week and said the hospital will be a major boost for the local economy.

“People can’t wait to get a l o o k a t i t ,” Wr i g h t sa i d .

“Health care is a big reason why businesses choose to locate in an area and with this hospital we’ll have the f inest facilities anywhere.

This is definitely going to set us apart from other communities.”

The public will get a first chance to view the new hospital on Saturday, March 24 during a community-wide “Preview Celebration.” The event will run from 1-4 p.m., with a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony occurring at 2:15 p. m . O ff- s i te pa rk i n g a n d shuttles will be available at A s h l ey Pa rk a n d w i l l r u n throughout the duration of the event.

Th e P i e d m o n t New n a n Hospital Auxiliary will sell a limited edition, commemorative ornament at the event.

This pewter replica of the new hospital will be sold for $15. Proceeds will benefit the PNH Auxiliary, which serves the needs of the hospital.

M i c h a e l B a ss sa i d h e believes the community will be pleasantly surprised when it finally sees the new facility.

“We know for a fact that it’s much more than people had even hoped for,” Bass said. “We know when the public gets to see it they will know that Piedmont is doing a l o t m o re t h a n a nyo n e expected. The scale and the finish are just overwhelming.”

Now that hospital officials f inally have possession of the facility, work has begun to make sure all equipment is installed and tested and all

New hospital wows staff

By ALEX McRAE alex@newnan.com

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

After touring the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital Emergency Department during orientation tours this week, staff members discuss what they saw.

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

Betty Thomas, shown back; Kimberly Dorminey, middle; Leisa Cantrell, front, and Kathy Young tour the baby nursery at the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital.

employees are familiar with t h e n ew fa c i l i ty a n d n ew technology.

Building orientation of all hospital employees, physicians and volunteers will continue through the end of the week of March 19.

Wo rk place organization activities begin in early April.

Teams of employees will work together to stock departments, units and patient rooms with appropriate supplies.

“Prototype” rooms will be set up and room “clones” will be created based on the prototype rooms. This will promote greater standardization and efficiency in workflow processes.

A vendor fair will take place early April, allowing employees to meet with medical vendors to familiarize themselves with new equipment in the building.

Department-specific orien-

tation will take place in all departments to ensure that employees, physicians and volunteers are well-versed in the layout of their departments and the new work flows and operations in their new areas.

“Simulations” will occur, including all emergency codes and drills, so that all employees know exactly what to do and where to go in the new building in the event of a code or emergency.

Bass said the schedule is packed in the days ahead, but the staff is up to the challenge.

“There are bound to be a few glitches,” he said. “You expect that with any new project. But the glitches will be minor and they will not affect patient care. The staff has done a great job of making sure everything gets done, a n d I k n ow we w i l l b e ready.”

Officials of Piedmont Newnan Hospital have finally received the keys to their brand new building from KBR construction.

This week, many Piedmont Newnan staff members got to tour the new Poplar Road facility for the first time.

For years PNH employees had heard how nice the new facility would be. Once construction neared a close, word began to spread that the new hospital wasn’t every bit as good as promised… it was better.

“I had seen it before when it was under construction,” said Jill Deveny, a registered nurse who will work in the Intensive Care Unit. “It was hard to picture what it was going to be like. Now, I can actually envision us taking care of patients. I am so excited to be able to do my job in such a beautiful environment.”

Kelly Hines, the hospital’s director of public relations and communications, visited the site countless times while the building was under construction. Now that final touches are being completed and open spaces are filling with new furniture and equipment, she can’t believe how well it all turned out.

“I have to say that, even after visiting this building various times from the start of its construction — when it was a simple steel structure — until now, I truly didn’t realize the impact walking through the building with the furnishings, equipment and in the presence of other Piedmont Newnan employees would have on me,” Hines said. “It is absolutely phenomenal, and I cannot fully express how proud I am that our community is able to call this hospital its own.”

Other employees getting a first look at the facility were equally impressed. Here is a sampling of their comments: Bea Neal, of the Medical/Surgical department, spoke for most employees when she said, “Wow! It’s so big and so pretty! I just stood with my mouth open. I was just so impressed with everything. I served as a building orientation ambassador on the eighth floor and showed off the fish pond on the back of the property.

Photos by Jeffrey Leo

Michael Bass, left, president and CEO of Piedmont Newnan Hospital, and John Bruce of KBR Building Group congratulate each other at the completion of construction of the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital on Poplar Road.

Everyone really liked it; it surprised a lot of people.”

Yoshelda Melson-White, also of the Medical/Surgical Department, was especially impressed with the building’s size and scope. She said, “Beautiful. Wow! The size of the floors — they are huge! The architecture is so beautiful — it’s just a beautiful place!”

Tracie Ross, a PCT in the Medical/Surgical unit, was impressed with the new technology that will improve patient care.

“I love that every bed will have a scale,” Ross said. “I love that! It is going to help us do our job so much faster and the patients will not be disturbed as much when we need to weigh them.”

Improved patient comfort was also on the mind of Christopher Ertley, an RN in the ICU. “Beautiful. Wonderful. Lots of space,” Ertley said. “We are very proud of this building. All the new equipment and the spaces have been designed to help make our workflow and processes much more efficient.

I am sure we will be able to give the same high quality, very good care to our patients much more efficiently and easily in this space because of such things as computers at the bedside, every bed having

scales, pneumatic tubes, wheelchair accessible bathrooms in every room and other awesome design features.”

Vilma Cajucom, an RN assigned to the PCU, couldn’t pick a favorite spot, saying, “I want to work on every floor. I went with Leslie Mui, RN, PCU, and every floor we went to, we wanted to work in that unit.

Views were so awesome — like you are on top of the mountain.

If I get stressed, I am going to look out the window.”

LPN Karol Meredith, assigned to the new ICU, enjoyed the high-country ambiance, too, and said, “The views remind me of being in the mountains — my favorite place to be!”

Rebecca Orr will spend most of her time at the new hospital crunching numbers in the Accounting Department, but she was impressed with every aspect of the new facility.

“The whole facility is impressive,” Orr said. “But while touring the Surgical & Interventional Services area, as well as the Radiology Department, I was very impressed with the overall look and feel of how these areas will operate for the physicians, nurses and, most importantly, the patients. Patients will have so much more privacy.

Something that is very important.”

At the end of the first day of tours and orientation, Jarrod D. Huey, M.D., PNH director of anesthesiology and member of the PNH Medical Executive Committee, summed up the feelings of all staffers, nurses and physicians when he said, “I just completed the orientation/ tour of the new facility, and the place is simply breathtaking.

I’ve had the privilege of participating and giving input at various stages of the design and workflow planning process for the new hospital, but nothing could have prepared me for what I saw today.

“The large work spaces and welcoming reception areas are incredible. The attention to detail at every level lets you know that lots of planning and a whole lot of hard work went into making this new hospital a reality for the well-deserving community here in Coweta County.”

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

Most of the equipment has been installed in the operating rooms at the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital.

From the time work began on the new hospital, officials said one of their major goals was recapturing many of the Coweta County residents who

presently leave the county for will utilize PNH for their health care. health care services.

They hope that within the Today, that goal looks more next five to 10 years the vast majority of Coweta residents realistic than ever.

Two new hospitals will create top flight health care center in Coweta County HOSPITALS Continued from page 1A Piedmont Newnan Hospital’s new facility on Poplar Road and a new hospital built by Cancer Treatment Centers of America off Newnan Crossing Bypass will add hundreds of high-paying jobs to local employment rolls and pump hundreds of millions of dollars into the local economy in coming years.

Officials of both hospitals say that Coweta was not chosen by accident.

In remarks to area leaders and businesses earlier this year, Jac Counts, regional manager of strategic markets for Cancer Treatment Centers of America, said access to I-85 and Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport were major factors in choosing

Coweta County.

“The southside was very appealing to us,” said Counts.

CTCA’s new hospital is off Newnan Crossing Bypass adjacent to the Ashley Park lifestyle center. As part of the site selection process, CTCA officials brought in patients to review several potential Atlanta area locations. Newnan was the hands-down winner.

“They are coming to Newnan, Georgia, and they will be staying at the hotels here and eating at the restaurants here,” Counts said. “And that goes for the caregivers as well.”

CTCA’s 212,000-square-foot, fully-digital hospital will focus exclusively on treating cancer.

The hospital will offer 50 beds, ICU rooms, surgical suites, state-of-the-art radiation and infusion therapy departments, an on-site outpatient clinic, rehabilitation and physical therapy.

The new Piedmont Newnan Hospital, which opens in May, has already drawn new physician practices and medical specialists eager to offer their patients the finest in state-ofthe-art hospital facilities. More will follow.

The 362,376-square-foot, 136bed Piedmont Newnan facility located along I-85 at Poplar Road will feature 23 emergency department treatment rooms, along with 14 beds for post partum care, 18 for critical care, and 104 for medical/surgical care.

“It’s going to have an enormous impact on this whole area,” said PNH President and CEO Michael Bass. “It’s going to change this county in ways people can’t imagine.”

Bass said new or expanded medial facilities have a “halo” effect that creates an impact far beyond providing for basic health care needs.

“When people from out of town visit a hospital they don’t just see a doctor,” Bass said.

“They shop and go out to eat and spend money on other things. Now they’ll be able to do all that here. And people will always want to visit the newest and best facilities.

That’s what we’ll have.”

Birmingham-based HealthSouth has also proposed building a 50-bed long-term rehabilitation hospital in Coweta County. HealthSouth officials are still pursuing regulatory approval from state authorities and hope to make an announcement soon about their future plans for Coweta County.

Existing health care facilities are also being upgraded. In late 2011, the Coweta County Health Department moved into a spacious new location on Hospital Road on Newnan’s west side. The new 14,500-

square-foot facility cost $1.7 million, almost $1.5 of which was funded by a bequest from the Coweta County Hospital Authority. Officials expect to see more than 6,000 patients annually.

The new health department facility has four immunization rooms, two hearing /vision rooms, four child health rooms, a breast-feeding room and baby changing room, lab, pharmacy.

The former health department location on Jackson Street in Newnan has been taken over by Coweta Samaritan Clinic, which offers care to uninsured Coweta County residents who have medical needs but no health insurance.

Operation of the Samaritan Clinic was made possible when the Coweta County Hospital Authority agreed to lease the former health department building to the Samaritan

Clinic for $1 per year for 10 years if operational funding could be secured.

That need was largely met when the Newnan Hospital Foundation pledged $100,000 in annual support for 10 years.

Volunteer pledges are in place to provide the additional operational funding.

Piedmont Newnan Hospital has agreed to provide lab and radiology services at no charge, and many churches and individuals have made gifts to the clinic.

Good health care facilities help a community survive.

Top-flight, first-rate health are facilities can make a community thrive. In the years ahead, Coweta’s position as a health care destination of choice will make the county’s reputation as a great place to call home even brighter.

Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 7

VISION

COWETA POPULATION ALMOST 130,000 County making redistricting, tax changes based on census

By SARAH FAY CAMPBELL sarah@newnan.com Coweta County is making some changes in 2012 necessitated by figures from the 2010 Census, and is continuing to deal with lowered tax collections and a sluggish economy.

Coweta’s population in the 2010 Census stood at 127,317 — up from 89,215 people in 2000.

Despite the economic dip the region experienced along with the rest of the nation in the latter part of the recent decade, Coweta County and its municipalities continue to grow at explosive rates, according to figures from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Coweta County added 38,102 new residents between 2000 and 2010. That's a 42.7 percent increase in population, which doesn't quite match the 65.66 percent growth the county experienced during the previous 10 years (1990-2000), but is much more growth than that of surrounding counties.

Nearly half that growth is happening in unincorporated areas, which perhaps isn’t a surprise since that’s where many newer residential subdivisions have located.

But three Coweta County municipalities — Newnan, Grantville and Senoia — are experiencing unusually strong growth, accounting for 52.7 percent of the newbies, or 20,098 new residents. All three municipalities doubled their population sizes over the previous 10 years.

This summer, Coweta and its cities will work to negotiate the distribution of proceeds from the permanent Local Option Sales Tax — established to roll back property taxes. “Every 10 years, after the new census, we have to go back to the cities and renegotiate our LOST distributions,� Gay said. “So as we move toward the middle part of the year you will see us begin to meet on that.�

How the proceeds of the onepercent LOST are distributed is based on a number of factors, including daytime population and point of sale. “There is a whole list of criteria you can base it on,â€? Gay said. “We try to go in looking at‌ just what’s fair. And we’ve been able to work those out in the past and we will this year as well,â€? he said.

Gay said he expects to be able to work out the LOST distribution without any major issues. “We have a good working relationship with all the towns,� he said. “We feel like we’re going to be able to successfully reach an agreement with that.�

The LOST distribution discussion may also necessitate “some review of our service delivery strategy,� Gay said.

The service delivery strategy is the agreement between Coweta and its municipalities over who offers — and charges for — what services and where. “Service delivery strategy will probably come after we have all come to terms� on the LOST distribution, Gay said.

Then there is redistricting; the changes to the five county commission districts were fairly minor. The changes were approved by the commissioners in late 2011. The county commission districts and the new districts for the Coweta County Board of Education were included in “local legislation� that has been approved by the Georgia General Assembly.

Both bills were signed by Gov. Deal on Feb. 15 and are now under review by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The county’s population has now officially topped the “magical population line� of 100,000, which triggers new requirements. “With that 100,000 comes a lot of other things that you have to do,� such as different types of reporting. “We’ve had our staff and county attorney reviewing the legislative requirements that are out there,� Gay said. “We don’t think there are any that are going to cause us any problems.

Some we were already doing, like stormwater reporting.�

One required change was in the tax assessors office.

Previously, the three members of the Board of Assessors were also staff appraisers. Once a county hits the 100,000 population mark, assessors can no longer be appraisers. “We’ve already moved to having part-time assessors, and the appraisal staff is just that,� Gay said.

On the public safety side, there were major changes in

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

Among films shooting scenes in Newnan in 2011 was “The Odd Life of Timothy Green� from Disney Pictures. See scenes at http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/the-odd-life-of-timothy-green/ — which adds that the movie is coming soon. According to Internet Movie Database, the story revolves around a childless couple who bury a box in their backyard containing all their wishes for an infant. Soon, a child is born, though Timothy Green is not all that he appears. The story is directed by Peter Hedges, who also wrote the screenplay from a story by Ahmet Zappa. It stars Jennifer Garner, Joel Edgerton and Cameron ‘CJ’ Adams.

2011 — a new emergency medical services provider and a new digital radio system.

American Medical Response became Coweta’s contractor for EMS services in August 2011. Gay said that, in talking with Coweta Fire Chief Johnny Teeters and Deputy Chief Todd Moore, “they are very, very impressed with that group.

They’ve done a fantastic job,�

Gay said. “They’re very pleased with the service and the professionalism we’re getting with the AMR group. They just think everything is going incredibly well.�

The 700 MHz digital radio system has been in the works for several years. “We’ve received a lot of great feedback on that, with the clarity, with the coverage,� Gay said. “All of our public safety folks are very impressed with that. It allows us to deliver better service to the citizens.� The better radio coverage also “protects the safety of our public safety officials who are out and about.�

There was quite a bit of movie and television filming in Coweta in 2011. The second season of AMC network’s “The Walking Dead� was filmed in Coweta; there were also several

movies filmed, including “Footloose,� “Wettest County,� “Joyful Noise� and the not-yetreleased “The Odd Life of Timothy Green� from Disney Pictures.

And there will likely be more movie and television filming in the future. “There’s probably not a week that goes by that we don’t hear from somebody� interested in doing filming in Coweta, said Patricia Palmer, Coweta’s public affairs director. “We feel like that is a really nice addition to the economic development in our community,� she said. “It provides opportunities for small businesses that they wouldn’t have otherwise.�

Coweta citizens “certainly seem to like the opportunity to get involved, as well. We feel like it is a good thing and we support it,� Palmer said.

The county has been looking into possibly making some changes in the way filming projects are approved.

The film industry is seen as an economic development driver for Coweta County.

Newnan-Coweta Airport is also seen as important for economic development, and there are some proposed

improvements coming up. “We’re looking at trying to do an instrument landing system. I think you’ll hear more about that� in the future, Gay said. The system allows planes to land at the airport in poor weather conditions.

Right now, they’re looking at funding options. “We’ve got some support at the state level to do that, as well,� Gay said.

There are also some infrastructure improvements at the airport on the horizon, including new pavement overlay on the taxiway and new striping on the runway, Palmer said, as well as a precision approach system.

Also on the economic development horizon are some possible changes to the county’s impact fee program. “To stimulate more business‌ one of the things we’ll be talking with the board (of commissioners) about is impact fees,â€? said Gay. Currently, the total impact fee must be paid at the time a building permit is issued. “If you’re building a sizable business here, that is a pretty good sum of money to have on day one,â€? Gay said. County staff is considering implementing a

possible tiered program, such as requiring 25 percent of the impact fee with the building permit, then at two other stages of development, with the final 25 percent paid when the certificate of occupancy is issued. “We think that is going to be something that will be good, and well-received,� Gay said.

The county is even looking at some way to give priority to local vendors and contractors in some instances. “Are there ways, with most things being equal, to stimulate the economy [by giving some preference to local contractors, to keep the money in the county]? Gay asked. “We don’t know exactly how that is going to work,� he said. “It’s something we’re talking about and we’re looking at. It’s still something that is out there.�

DeKalb County has that type of program, Gay said.

And the commissioners have scheduled a discussion on calling for a referendum on Sunday alcohol sales.

Resolutions for both Sunday package sales in stores and bythe-drink sales in restaurants are on the agenda for Tuesday’s county commission meeting. Residents in Newnan and Senoia approved Sunday package sales in November.

Sharpsburg and Haralson voters approved Sunday package sales on March 6. Newnan and Senoia approved Sunday bythe-drink sales several years ago.

When it comes to day-to-day county operations, “we’re trying to manage our budget and manage our financial situation,� Gay said. Revenues are

✔ Vine RRipe pee

flat, and they have been for the past few years.

However, “we’re optimistic this is going to be a good year,� he said. “We continue to be very conservative in management. We only spend what we absolutely have to,� Gay said.

The county hasn’t increased the “maintenance and operations� millage rate since 2007. “Despite the fact that we think the tax digest is going to be flat or maybe even down slightly, we still don’t anticipate that we are going to end up with any millage rate increases.�

Gay said that, every week, county officials are looking for ways to save dollars. One way is consolidation. “We’ve been looking at ways to kind of incorporate departments, and consolidate where we can,�

Gay said.

Code enforcement has been moved into the building department, Gay said. One code enforcement officer is no longer with the department; with the remaining code enforcement officer housed at the building department, some of the building inspectors can assist him, as needed. “You’ll see some more consolidations probably this year,�

Gay said. The consolidations will save the county money but will also streamline some processes. “We constantly look at ways to save money and that is a challenge,� Gay said. The county’s department heads have done a pretty good job, and will “continue to think outside the box on that as we go into this year,� he said.

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Sports

For up to the minute sports scores and results, check out our website at www.times-herald.com

sports@newnan.com

8A — Sunday, March 18, 2012

GymCats turn in impressive efforts during home meet FROM STAFF REPORTS sports@newnan.com After a week of good practice Newnan High’s gymnastics team seems to have found their stride.

The GymCats netted some of the highest scores during their third meet of the season Friday against Northgate and Pike County as Newnan School of Gymnastics.

Newnan scored an impressive point total of 111.55, giving momentum to a young team going down the stretch with one meet left before the state qualifier in April.

All three teams followed a rotation of Olympic order in vault, uneven bars, balance beam, and floor exercise.

Newnan’s foursome of junior Alyssa Burnham and freshmen Sydney Goad, Elizabeth Hovey,

HIGH SCHOOL GYMNASTICS and Katie Shelnutt made a statement Friday night by posting all-around scores all above 36.0.

The freshmen trio of Goad (37.95), Shelnutt (37.15) and Hovey (36.45) led the night’s top finishers.

Competing for Northgate were Maggie Shiffert and Connie Hauser. Pike gymnasts included Miranda Rawlins, Carlie Turner, Holly Turner, and Amanda Caldwell.

Newnan’s Hovey took first on vault with a nice “pike tsukahara” that earned a score of 9.65.

Shelnutt followed with the same vault and a near identical score of 9.6. Finishing third was Goad with a 9.2 to give the GymCats a 1-2-3 finish.

Newnan’s team also showed improvement on the uneven bars by scoring a combined 27.35, led by Goad’s first-place effort of 9.55. Hovey and Shelnutt tied for second with 8.9.

A couple of falls on the balance beam went against the GymCats, but they were able to tally 26.8 in the event led by Goad (9.4), Shelnutt (9.0), and Hovey (8.4).

Finishing on floor, the home team really showed power and grace putting up the highest scores of the night. Goad’s tied a GymCat team record with an outstanding 9.8 to follow Hovey’s 9.5 and Shelnutt’s 9.65.

It gave Newnan a 28.95 team score on the apparatus.

The Newnan High team will be in action again at home on March 30.

Special Photo

This year’s Newnan High GymCats gymnastics team is made up of, from left, Sydney Goad, Elizabeth Hovey, Alyssa Burnham and Katie Shelnutt. Newnan put together an impressive score of 111.5 to win Friday’s three-team meet at Newnan School of Gymnastics.

Newnan’s Frazier continues to cash in on FLW Tour FROM STAFF REPORTS sports@newnan.com In less than a decade, Micah Frazier has gone from just a small fish in a big pond to one of the most prominent anglers on the FLW Professional Bass Fishing Tour.

Last weekend, the 23-year-old Newnan native proved himself as an up-and-comer in the major fishing tour by placing second overall at the FLW’s Tour event on Lake Hartwell. A combined catch of 71 pounds, 11 ounces earned him a whopping $35,000 in prize money and vaulted his career earnings over the $100,000 mark for his short career.

Frazier, who at age 16 won the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League’s Dixie Division and more than $4,000, has become one of the “Young Guns” that have started to dominate the FLW Bass Fishing Tour. He came one catch away from taking the title in what was the performance of his young career so far.

Frazier’s largest catch was a 21pound, 14 ounce sack during the final day that vaulted him from sixth place all the way to second overall.

“I managed to make it interesting,” said Frazier. “But just to be up here with these guys is awesome.”

Frazier, who targeted bass in the back of a single creek all week, said he wasn’t about to change things up too much on the final day of competition.

“I did the exact same thing I did all tournament; I fished quarter-mile stretches in the back of that creek,” he said. “Today, the fished moved a little bit further back in the creek and it took a little bit to find them. But I probably had a limit by 10:45 a.m.”

Frazier said that he specifically looked for “transition stuff” such as channel swings and other areas of the creek where bass were moving in and out in preparation for the spawn.

As for his bait of choice, Frazier kept it simple.

“I threw a Rapala Shad Rap all day,” he said. “And all the fish I caught all week came on that bait.”

For Frazier, the highlight of the day was when he hooked into a mammoth bass in the 7-pound range “When I hooked my big fish I didn’t think it was even a bass at first,” he said. “It just started stripping my line. But then I saw it roll over and I realized what it was. I couldn’t believe it. I was so happy to get it in the boat.”

And that probably made all the difference between a fifth-place finish and getting his runner-up check worth $35,000.

“Man, it’s just been an awesome week,” he said. “It’s been a dream come true.”

Brent Erhler of Redlands, Calif., won the major tour event with a catch of 74-13, a little over three pounds more than Frazier’s total. He was helped by a 20-5 catch during last Sunday’s final.

Spring Training

Beachy sharp, Uggla homers in win over Toronto

COWETA COWETA SPORTS SPORTS DIGEST DIGEST LOCAL RACING

Another series title for Joshua HIcks at AMS Senoia 10-year-old Joshua Hicks put an exclamation point on his third consecutive Bandolero Series title at Atlanta Motor Speedway last weekend.

Needing no worse than a thirdplace finish during the last of seven weeks of this year’s Winter Flurry series, Hicks battled within the field to place second for a three-point series victory over Zach Leonhardi.

Hicks started seventh after spinning out in the heat race and despite moving all the way up to seconds, contact following a late race caution moved him back to fourth. Yet he managed to rebound again to move back up to second.

It was Hicks’ second consecutive Winter Flurry title. This summer he’ll now look to repeat in the Thursday Thunder summer series at AMS starting June 7.

Photo courtesy FLW

23-year-old Newnan native Micah Frazier earned $35,000 with a second-place finish during a major FLW Tour event on Lake Hartwell.

YOUTH BASEBALL

YOUTH BASEBALL

SouthTowne goes to bat for Sharpsburg Youth League Opening Day is less than a week away for the Sharpsburg Youth Baseball League, but already they’ve scored a big win.

Through its partnership with the national Chevrolet Youth Baseball Program, SouthTowne of Newnan has provided funds for new equipment and instructional clinics.

In addition to a monetary donation, an opportunity exists to raise an additional $10,000 through a Chevrolet vehicle sweepstakes that kicked off March 1 and runs through July 15.

SouthTowne will present the SYBL with 10 new equipment kits complete with equipment bags, baseball buckets, whiffle balls, hitting net, batting tees and Chevrolet Youth Baseball Tshirts. The sponsorship also includes youth clinics featuring former major and minor league coaches and instructors from Ripken Baseball.

SouthTowne will also present a one-time monetary donation to the SYBL with the potential to raise $10,000 more through the Chevrolet Youth Baseball Fundraiser.

Sponsored leagues across the country each receive 2,000 fundraiser entry tickets to distribute for a suggested donation, and the league keep all of the proceeds raised.

At the end of the fund-raiser a winner from each region will receive a Chevrolet Equinox or Chevrolet Cruze vehicle of their choice. Each participating market will award a secondary prize of a television and Blu-Ray player.

For more information about Chevrolet Youth Baseball, visit www.youthsportswired.com

Special photo

Chilidogs-Bedrosian 14-under team takes first

The Home Plate Chilidogs-Bedrosian 14-under baseball team recently won a USSSA Global Sports NIT Tournament title on Feb. 26 in Peachtree City. Team members include: Front row, from left: Blake Crossing, Sam Sheek, Logan Worley, Scooter Chester, Preston McDuffie and Bill Clark; Back row, from left: Coach Kevin Norred, J.D. Norred, Kyle Barnes, Roderick Thomas, Coach Kyle Bedrosian, Chancellor Johnson, Zack Stotts, Andrew Simms and Coach Tommy Simms. Not pictured: Dylan Faison.

YOUTH BASKETBALL

Special photo

Shockers second at Duluth Shootout The Southside Shockers 14-under travel basketball team, including Heritage School players and Newnan residents Maddux Jeffreys, A.J. Gainwell and Cole Jones, finished second at last weekend’s YBOA Duluth Shootout.

KISSIMMEE, Fla. (AP) — Dan Uggla appears to be on track for a much better start this season, and Brandon Beachy is getting closer to being ready for opening day, too.

Uggla homered in his third straight game and Beachy struck out six in four innings while giving up two hits as the Atlanta Braves defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 5-3 in a splitsquad game Saturday.

Uggla, who didn’t play Friday, connected with a man on in the sixth inning off Blue Jays prospect Deck McGuire and is batting .310 with four homers and nine RBIs this spring.

The second baseman had been known as a notoriously poor spring hitter and his struggles carried over to the first half last season, his first year with the Braves. That’s why he brought a new mindset to camp this year.

“I want to be aggressive. I’m not just going up there with the idea of just watching pitches,” Uggla said. “I was too passive before. Now if I get a fastball, I’m attacking it. I changed my whole approach. I don’t know why it took me so many years to figure it out.”

Uggla began last season in a slump that lasted nearly three months. But he then put together a 33-game hitting streak and ended the year with a careerbest 36 homers.

“I’m glad he’s on our side,” Beachy said. “He’s crushing the ball.”

Beachy was 7-3 with a 3.68 ERA and ranked second among rookies in the majors last season with 169 strikeouts. But he had trouble making it past the sixth inning because of high pitch counts.

Beachy had walked five in his previous start and came in with a 9.00 ERA. But he walked only one and the Blue Jays’ run against him came after a popup to shallow left field ended up a triple.

BRAVES (SS) 3, N.Y. METS 2: David Ross hit a go-ahead, two-run double in a three-run eighth inning Saturday that led an Atlanta Braves’ split-squad over the New York Mets 3-2.

Mets starter Jonathon Niese allowed six hits — all singles — in 5 1-3 scoreless innings with three strikeouts and no walks.

He threw 49 of 72 pitches for strikes and induced two double plays.

Atlanta starter Kris Medlen gave up one hit in four shutout innings, struck out four and walked one.

New York’s Daniel Murphy had two hits, including a tworun single in the sixth.

Martin Prado, Jason Heyward and Ross each had two hits for the Braves. Heyward also stole a base.

Heyward hit a grand slam in the first inning off Wandy Rodriguez on Friday night as Atlanta beat the Houston Astros 9-5 .

Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 9A

SPORTS MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL

Today’s TVSports Schedule ■ AUTO RACING 12:00 p.m. American Le Mans Series: 12 Hourse of Sebring, ABC 12:30 p.m. SPRINT CUP: Food City 500, FOX ■ COLLEGE BASEBALL 1:00 p.m. South Carolina at Kentucky, FSN-SOUTH ■ COLLEGE LACROSSE 1:00 p.m. Denver at Notre Dame, ESPNU ■ MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL 11:00 a.m. NIT: Second round, Northern Iowa at Drexel, ESPN 3:00 p.m. NIT: Second round, Bucknell at Nevada, ESPNU 5:00 p.m. NIT: Iowa at Oregon, ESPNU NCAA Tournament, Third Round 12:15 p.m. Georgetown vs. N.C. State, CBS 2:45 p.m. Michigan State vs. Saint Louis, CBS 5:15 p.m. North Carolina vs. Creighton, CBS 6:10 p.m. Florida vs. Norfolk State, TNT 7:10 p.m. South Florida vs. Ohio, TBS 7:45 p.m. Xavier vs. Lehing, truTV 8:40 p.m. Kansas vs. Purdue, TNT 9:40 p.m. Florida State vs. Cincinnati, TBS ■ NBA 3:00 p.m. Atlanta Hawks at Cleveland Cavaliers, SPORTSOUTH 7:00 p.m. Orlando Magic at Miami Heat, ESPN 9:30 p.m. Portland Trail Blazers at Oklahoma City Thunder, ESPN ■ NHL 12:30 p.m. Pittsburgh Penguins at Philadelphia Flyers, NBC 7:00 p.m. Washington Capitals at Chicago Blackhawks, NBC SPORTS NETWORK ■ PRO GOLF 9:00 a.m. EUROPEAN PGA: Open de Andalucia, final round, GOLF CHANNEL 1:00 p.m. PGA TOUR: Transitions Championship, final round, GOLF CHANNEL 3:00 p.m. PGA TOUR: Transitions Championship, final round, NBC 4:00 p.m. LPGA: Founders Cup, final round, GOLF CHANNEL 7:30 p.m. CHAMPIONS: Toshiba Classic, final round, GOLF CHANNEL ■ SOCCER 4:00 p.m. MLS: Colorado at Philadelphia, NBC SPORTS NETWORK ■ TENNIS 2:00 p.m. ATP World Tour/WTA; BNP Paribas Open, men’s and women’s championships, ABC ■ WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL—NCAA TOURNAMENT 12:00 p.m. Ohio State vs. Florida, Georgetown vs. Fresno State, California vs. Iowa and Georgia vs. Marist, ESPN2 2:30 p.m. Baylor vs. UC Santa Barbara, Georgia Tech vs.

Sacred Heart, Liberty vs. Notre Dame, St. Bonaventure vs. Florida Gulf Coast, ESPN2 5:00 p.m. Penn State vs. UTEP, Delaware vs. UALR, Middle Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt, St. John’s vs. Creighton, ESPN2 7:30 p.m. San Diego State vs. LSU, Nebraska vs. Kansas, Duke vs. Samford and Michigan vs. Oklahoma, ESPN2

Sports Digest Compiled from the Associated Press

Syracuse, Ohio State advance to Sweet 16 in East PITTSBURGH (AP) — It Ratings up from last year had been a while since NEW YORK (AP) —The Syracuse played like the team first two full days of the that spent all season ranked in NCAA Tournament the top five.

Thursday and Friday averIn the second half Saturday, aged a 5.3 rating across CBS, the top-seeded Orange looked TBS, TNT and truTV. CBS like that group and maybe even and Turner Sports said better, pulling away to a 75-59 Saturday it’s up 6 percent victory over eighth-seeded from last year.

Kansas State in the third round Ratings measure the perof the East Regional. centage of homes with tele“The second half, we made visions tuned into a proshots. We haven’t done that gram. lately,” Orange coach Jim Boeheim said. “Our offense was good the first half. We got not good in the first half. We had to pick it up on the offen- killed on the boards. ... Second sive end. Our defense was very half we did a much better job

ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta Falcons agreed to terms Friday on a three-year deal with John Abraham, the team’s top pass rusher and a key part of the defense last season.

He led the team with 9 1/2 sacks and has 58 1/2 in six seasons with Atlanta, a total that ties him with Chuck Smith for second place in team history. The 33-year-old defensive end also had four forced fumbles and one fumble recovery last season. He had 13 sacks in 2010.

Last week, the Falcons re-signed free safety Thomas DeCoud and backup defensive end Kroy Biermann. Atlanta used its franchise tag on cornerback Brent Grimes. Middle linebacker Curtis Lofton also is a free agent.

No other Atlanta play had more than four sacks last season.

The Falcons signed Ray Edwards before the 2011 season to provide a pass-rushing complement to Abraham at defensive end, but Edwards had only 3 1/2 sacks.

WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL/NCAA TOURNAMENT

Georgia Tech, Georgia women look to stay alive today It’s already one of the best years for women’s basketball at Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets are poised to make it even better.

They’ve set a school record with 12 Atlantic Coast Conference wins and received their best NCAA tournament seed. Now, coach MaChelle Joseph’s team is the favorite in Chapel Hill to make it out of the opening weekend.

No. 4 seed Georgia Tech (24-8) faces 13th-seeded Sacred Heart (25-7) today in the first round of the Des Moines Regional.

The winner Tuesday plays fifth-seeded Georgetown (22-8) or 12th-seeded Fresno State (28-5), with that winner advancing to the round of 16 to play the team that emerges from top-seeded Baylor’s corner of the bracket.

For Georgia Tech, that would be new territory.

The Yellow Jackets are making their sixth straight NCAA appearance but have never won more than one game in the tournament.

Georgia coach Andy Landers, whose Bulldogs have the highest seed among the teams playing in first-round action at Tallahassee, said he was hugely mistaken when he initially believed that the 3-point shot wouldn’t make much difference in the collegiate women’s game. Landers said the 3-pointer is vital to the Bulldogs’ chances of advancing in the tournament.

“It drives the ebb and flow in the momentum changes,” he said.

Unlike the two newcomers to the NCAA tournament, Georgia and Marist are no strangers to the event.

No. 4 seed Georgia (22-8) is in the tournament for the 18th consecutive year and 29th time overall, while No. 13 seed Marist qualified for the seventh straight year and eighth time in nine years. They square off in today’s opening game.

shot 44.6 percent overall and 5 for 23 on 3s, and that included making one of their first 13.

OHIO STATE 7 3 , G O N Z A GA 66: Jared Sullinger scored 18 points, including two big baskets in the final 3 minutes to lead Ohio State past Gonzaga and into the round of 16.

DeShaun Thomas also scored 18 for the second-seeded Buckeyes (29-7), while Aaron Craft added 17 points and 10 assists. Ohio State advanced to the East Regional semifinals for the second consecutive year and will play Florida State or Cincinnati in Boston on Thursday.

Titans GM: Manning works out for team

By TERESA M. WALKER AP Sports Writer Peyton Manning worked out for Tennessee on Saturday in Knoxville, Titans general manager Ruston Webster said.

The GM said he thought Manning “looked comfortable throwing the ball and we had a good visit.”

“This is another important step in the process,” Webster said. Manning spent eight hours meeting with Tennessee executives on Wednesday.

Webster was joined at Saturday’s workout by Titans head coach Mike Munchak, chief operating officer Mike Reinfeldt, offensive coordinator Chris Palmer, quarterbacks coach Dowell Loggains and

NFL strength coach Steve Watterson, a person familiar with the session told The Associated Press. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the team has not released details of the workout.

Saturday was Manning’s third workout for teams this week.

On Friday, the four-time NFL MVP worked out at Duke for Denver. Tuesday night he worked out at the Blue Devils’ facilities for San Francisco.

Manning has been rehabbing in North Carolina following a string of neck surgeries.

And the quarterback is getting good reviews.

After throwing for Hall of

Fame QB turned Broncos executive John Elway and Denver coach John Fox in a workout that lasted a little under two hours. When it was over, Elway seemed convinced that Manning is still Manning “We enjoyed visiting with Peyton today in N.C.,” Elway wrote on his Twitter account.

“He threw the ball great and looked very comfortable out there.”

A few minutes later, Elway posted: “Watching him throw today was the next step in this important process for our team and Peyton. It was a productive visit and went well.”

Manning, who turns 36 on March 24, missed the 2011 season with the neck injury, which led to him being released by

Indianapolis.

Duke football coach David Cutcliffe —Manning’s offensive coordinator at the University of Tennessee — said Saturday morning that Manning has been throwing at “game pace.”

Manning also continues to amaze NFL types.

Titans owner Bud Adams declared earlier this month he wanted the quarterback and felt Manning could be the missing piece to a championship.

Adams has said he thought Manning would make a quick decision, and the quarterback seems to want it over quickly.

He worked out Saturday even though it was his anniversary; Manning married his wife, Ashley, on St. Patrick’s Day in 2001 in Memphis.

NASCAR

Sadler wins again in Nationwide Series BRISTOL, Tenn. (AP) — Elliott Sadler went 14 years without a victory in the Nationwide Series. Now, he has two in the last three weeks.

Sadler picked up his second victory of the season Saturday when his crew chief left him out on the track on old tires during the final caution at Bristol Motor Speedway.

The call put Sadler in the lead on the final restart, with 28 laps remaining, and he easily held off Kasey Kahne and Brad Keselowski.

Prior to his win two weeks ago at Phoenix, Sadler had not won in the Nationwide Series since Oct. 31, 1998, at Rockingham. That also was the last season he won multiple races in the Nationwide Series, and the year he scored his only

NFL/FREE AGENCY

Falcons, Abraham agree to three-year contract

on the boards.”

Scoop Jardine had 16 points and eight assists, Dion Waiters had 18 points and James Southerland added 15 for the Orange (33-2), who didn’t wait until the final minutes to seal the win as they did in the second round against 16th-seeded North Carolina-Asheville.

Syracuse scored fewer than 70 points — it averages 74.5 — in five of the last seven games.

The Orange shot better than 46.5 percent from the field — their mark for the season — only once, and the stretch included 3-point performances of 1 for 15, 5 for 20 and 3 for 14.

Against UNC-Asheville, they

other win at Bristol in the second-tier series.

“To win two of the first four races is awesome, and we’ve got to keep adding to them.

There’s blood in the water,” said Sadler, the Nationwide Series points leader.

Sadler raced to his first career Sprint Cup victory at Bristol in 2001, when he stayed out on old tires and pulled off an improbable victory. Crew chief Luke Lambert was a senior in high school watching that 2001 race from the grandstands, and decided Saturday to borrow that strategy.

Kyle Busch brought out the final caution of the race with 38 laps to go, and most everyone headed to the pits. Lambert left Sadler on the track, even as Sadler protested the decision.

TODAY’S SPRINT CUP LINEUP AT BRISTOL After Friday qualifying; race Sunday At Bristol Motor Speedway Bristol, Tenn.

Lap length: .533 miles (Car number in parentheses) 1. (16) Greg Biffle, Ford, 125.215.

2. (22) A J Allmendinger, Dodge, 125.207.

3. (39) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 125.158.

4. (24) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 125.085.

5. (2) Brad Keselowski, Dodge, 124.865.

6. (78) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 124.816.

7. (43) Aric Almirola, Ford, 124.719.

8. (99) Carl Edwards, Ford, 124.686.

9. (20) Joey Logano, Toyota, 124.662.

10. (5) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 124.355.

11. (27) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 124.339.

12. (9) Marcos Ambrose, Ford, 124.331.

13. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 124.178.

14. (29) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 124.106.

15. (56) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 124.106.

16. (15) Clint Bowyer, Toyota, 124.002.

17. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 123.953.

18. (88) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 123.865.

19. (10) David Reutimann, Chevrolet, 123.865.

20. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 123.833.

21. (17) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 123.666.

22. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 123.539.

23. (14) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 123.467.

24. (13) Casey Mears, Ford, 123.419.

25. (55) Brian Vickers, Toyota, 123.419.

26. (38) David Gilliland, Ford, 123.269.

27. (51) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet, 123.182.

28. (30) David Stremme, Toyota, 123.087.

29. (83) Landon Cassill, Toyota, 123.047.

30. (42) Juan Pablo Montoya, Chevrolet, 122.992.

31. (34) David Ragan, Ford, 122.968.

32. (33) Brendan Gaughan, Chevrolet, 122.866.

33. (31) Jeff Burton, Chevrolet, 122.78.

34. (93) Travis Kvapil, Toyota, 122.701.

35. (36) Dave Blaney, Chevrolet, 122.638.

36. (47) Bobby Labonte, Toyota, 122.623.

37. (26) Josh Wise, Ford, 122.38.

38. (74) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet, 122.287.

39. (98) Michael McDowell, Ford, 121.968.

40. (49) J.J. Yeley, Toyota, 121.829.

41. (87) Joe Nemechek, Toyota, 121.713.

42. (32) Ken Schrader, Ford, Owner Points.

43. (23) Scott Riggs, Chevrolet, 121.374.

THE SCOREBOARD MLB Spring Training AMERICAN LEAGUE Detroit Oakland Toronto Seattle Boston Kansas City Los Angeles Minnesota New York Baltimore Cleveland Tampa Bay Texas Chicago

W 11 11 12 11 8 8 8 9 8 5 4 4 3 3

L 1 3 4 5 4 6 6 8 8 7 8 9 9 10

Pct .917 .786 .750 .688 .667 .571 .571 .529 .500 .417 .333 .308 .250 .231

NATIONAL LEAGUE Los Angeles San Francisco Miami Colorado Houston St. Louis Philadelphia San Diego Chicago Milwaukee Pittsburgh Washington Cincinnati Arizona Atlanta New York

W 8 10 7 7 7 6 7 7 6 6 6 5 6 5 5 3

L 3 4 5 7 7 6 8 8 8 8 8 7 9 9 11 10

Pct .727 .714 .583 .500 .500 .500 .467 .467 .429 .429 .429 .417 .400 .357 .313 .231

NOTE: Split-squad games count in the standings; games against non-major league teams do not.

——— Friday’s Games Pittsburgh 3, Philadelphia 2 N.Y. Yankees 4, Washington 3, 10 innings St. Louis 5, Miami 0 Toronto 5, Tampa Bay 0 Baltimore 3, Minnesota (ss) 1 Detroit 9, N.Y. Mets 0 Kansas City 9, Milwaukee (ss) 4 San Diego 8, L.A. Angels (ss) 7 Seattle (ss) 6, Milwaukee (ss) 1 San Francisco 3, Chicago Cubs 2 L.A. Dodgers 5, Texas 2 L.A. Angels (ss) 7, Cleveland 0 Arizona 4, Chicago White Sox 2 Atlanta 9, Houston 5 Minnesota (ss) 2, Boston 1 Cincinnati 4, Colorado 3 Oakland 6, Seattle (ss) 1 Saturday’s Games Minnesota 5, Miami (ss) 2 Atlanta (ss) 5, Toronto (ss) 3 Baltimore (ss) 3, Boston (ss) 3, tie, 10 innings N.Y. Yankees 6, Houston 3 Detroit 10, St. Louis 3 Tampa Bay 2, Pittsburgh 1 Philadelphia 4, Toronto (ss) 3, 10 innings Washington 1, Miami (ss) 1, tie

Atlanta (ss) 3, N.Y. Mets 2 Boston (ss) 7, Baltimore (ss) 4 Seattle vs. Chicago White Sox,4:05 p.m.

Milwaukee vs. L.A. Angels, 4:05 p.m.

Chicago Cubs (ss) vs. Oakland (ss) 4:05 p.m.

Cincinnati vs. Cleveland, 4:05 p.m.

Arizona vs. Texas (ss), 4:05 p.m.

Oakland (ss) vs. San Francisco (ss)4:05 p.m.

Texas (ss) vs. Chicago Cubs (ss), 4:05 p.m.

L.A. Dodgers (ss) vs. Colorado at Scottsdale, Ariz., 4:10 p.m.

San Francisco (ss) vs. L.A. Dodgers (ss) 10:05 p.m.

Kansas City vs. San Diego, 10:05 p.m.

Today’s Games Philadelphia vs. Toronto, 1:05 p.m.

N.Y. Mets vs. Houston, 1:05 p.m.

Pittsburgh vs. Minnesota, 1:05 p.m.

Detroit vs. Washington, 1:05 p.m.

Miami vs. St. Louis, 1:05 p.m.

Baltimore (ss) vs. Atlanta, 1:05 p.m.

Boston vs. Tampa Bay, 1:05 p.m.

Texas (ss) vs. Milwaukee, 4:05 p.m.

Colorado (ss) vs. San Diego (ss) ,4:05 p.m.

Texas (ss) vs. Chicago Cubs (ss), 4:05 p.m.

Colorado (ss) vs. Seattle, 4:05 p.m.

Chicago White Sox vs. Chicago Cubs, 4:05 p.m.

Arizona (ss) vs. Cincinnati ,4:05 p.m.

L.A. Angels vs. L.A. Dodgers, 4:05 p.m.

San Diego (ss) vs. San Francisco, 4:05 p.m.

Cleveland vs. Kansas City, 4:05 p.m.

Oakland vs. Arizona (ss), 4:10 p.m.

N.Y. Yankees vs. Baltimore (ss), 7:05 p.m.

Monday’s Games Detroit vs. Philadelphia, 1:05 p.m.

Houston vs. Miami at Jupiter, Fla., 1:05 p.m.

St. Louis vs. Atlanta, 1:05 p.m.

Minnesota vs. Boston, 1:35 p.m.

Milwaukee vs. Texas, 4:05 p.m.

Chicago Cubs vs. Seattle, 4:05 p.m.

L.A. Dodgers vs. Cleveland, 4:05 p.m.

Arizona vs. Oakland at Phoenix, 4:05 p.m.

Cincinnati vs. Chicago White Sox at Glendale, Ariz., 4:05 p.m.

L.A. Angels vs. Colorado at Scottsdale, Ariz., 4:10 p.m.

Saturday’s Linescores At Kissimmee, Fla. Toronto (ss) 001 000 002 — 3 6 1 Atlanta (ss) 101 002 10x — 5 11 2 A.Hutchison, D.McGuire (4), J.Chavez (7), Coello (8) and d’Arnaud, A.Jimenez; Beachy, C.Martinez (5), Gearrin (7), A.Russell (8), Varvaro (9) and C.Bethancourt, E.Gattis. W— Beachy. L—A.Hutchison. HRs—Atlanta, Uggla (4).

At Port St. Lucie, Fla. Atlanta (ss) 000 000 030 — 3 11 0 New York (N) 000 002 000 — 2 6 1 Medlen, S.Gilmartin (5), Asencio (8), T.Redmond (9) and D.Ross, T.Snitker; Niese, Rauch (6), F.Francisco (7), James (8), R.Ramirez (8), D.Herrera (9) and May, Nickeas. W—S.Gilmartin. L—R.Ramirez.

Sv—T.Redmond. \

NCAA Tournament Glance EAST REGIONAL Third Round Saturday, March 17 At The CONSOL Energy Center, Pittsburgh Syracuse 75, Kansas State 59 Ohio State 73, Gonzaga 66 At The Pit, Albuquerque, N.M. Wisconsin (25-9) vs. Vanderbilt (25-10), 6:10 p.m.

Sunday, March 18 At Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tenn.

Florida State (25-9) vs. Cincinnati (24-10), 9:40 p.m.

Regional Semifinals At TD Garden, Boston Thursday, March 22 Syracuse (33-2) vs. Wisconsin-Vanderbilt winner Ohio State (29-7) vs. Florida State-Cincinnati winner Regional Championship Saturday, March 24 Semifinal winners SOUTH REGIONAL Third Round Saturday, March 17 At The KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Ky. Kentucky (33-2) vs. Iowa State (23-10), 7:45 p.m.

At The Pit, Albuquerque, N.M. Baylor (28-7) vs. Colorado (24-11), 8:40 p.m.

At The Rose Garden, Portland, Ore. Indiana (26-8) vs. VCU (29-6), 7:10 p.m.

Sunday, March 18 At Greensboro Coliseum,Greensboro, N.C. Lehigh (27-7) vs. Xavier (22-12), 7:40 p.m.

Regional Semifinals At The Georgia Dome, Atlanta Friday, March 23 Kentucky-Iowa State winner vs. Indiana-VCU winner Baylor-Colorado winner vs. Lehigh-Xavier winner Regional Championship Sunday, March 25 Semifinal winners

MIDWEST REGIONAL Third Round Sunday, March 18 At Greensboro Coliseum,Greensboro, N.C. North Carolina (30-5) vs. Creighton (29-5), 5:15 p.m.

At Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio Georgetown (24-8) vs. N.C. State (23-12), 12:15 p.m.

At Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tenn.

Ohio (28-7) vs. South Florida (22-13), 7:10 p.m.

At CenturyLink Center, Omaha, Neb. Kansas (28-6) vs. Purdue (22-12), 8:40 p.m.

Regional Semifinals At Edward Jones Dome St. Louis Friday, March 23 North Carolina-Creighton winner vs. OhioSouth Florida winner Georgetown-N.C. State winner vs. KansasPurdue winner Regional Championship Sunday, March 25 Semifinal winners WEST REGIONAL Third Round Saturday, March 17 At The KFC Yum! Center. Louisville, Ky. Marquette (26-7) vs. Murray State (31-1), 5:15 p.m.

At The Rose Garden, Portland, Ore. Louisville (27-9) vs. New Mexico (28-6), 9:40 p.m.

Sunday, March 18 At Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio Michigan State (28-7) vs. Saint Louis (26-7), 2:45 p.m.

At CenturyLink Center, Omaha, Neb. Norfolk State (26-9) vs. Florida (24-10), 6:10 p.m.

Regional Semifinals Thursday, March 22 At US Airways Center, Phoenix Michigan State-Saint Louis winner vs.

Louisville-New Mexico winner Marquette-Murray State winner vs. Norfolk State-Florida winner Regional Championship Saturday, March 24

SPEAK THE WORD “Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth, and all flesh shall see the Salvation of God.”

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10A — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

VISION

Public safety tops Coweta project list for 2012 important for traffic flow when a large number of people are trying to leave at the same time, Palmer said.

There have also been additional improvements to the soccer fields at “Central Park,” the land across from the Central Library off Ebenezer Church Road. The fields were first built in 2010, but there is now lighting, which expands the use.

And the development and engineering department is “working on some more designs for additional fields at that location,” Gay said.

The new soccer fields really

By SARAH FAY CAMPBELL sarah@newnan.com Public safety projects will be Coweta County’s main focus on the construction horizon in 2012.

Work is ongoing at the Coweta County Sheriff’s Office and jail to expand the administration area and make it more accessible to the public, especially the handicapped.

Preliminary site work has begun for the new Coweta County Fire Station 6, which will be located on U.S. 29 just north of The Heritage School.

It will replace the current Station 6, which is located at U.S. 29 and Greentop Road.

Work should also begin sometime this year on a new Coweta County Fire Department maintenance facility that will be located at the fire department’s Station One headquarters on Turkey Creek Road. The new headquarters station was completed in 2011.

The fire department projects are funded through the $20 million fire bond, which was approved by voters in 2008.

In the original plans for the fire bond, it wasn’t expected there would be enough money for either the new Station 6 or the maintenance facility. But the recession meant the county got very good prices on the other fire bond projects and had enough left over.

The maintenance facility will “allow us to do better maintenance” and to do it closer to where the needs are, said County Administrator Theron Gay. The Coweta County Sheriff’s Office expansion project began in July, said Sheriff Mike Yeager.

Previously, members of the public who needed to pick up an incident report or talk to an investigator had to climb a flight of stairs to reach the public entrance. Those who weren’t able to take the stairs had to go through the jail entrance and be escorted through the jail to get to the administrative areas in order to meet with investigators.

Sheriff’s office staff would take reports down to them.

The project took advantage of a small courtyard area that “kind of sat between the buildings,” Yeager said. “We were able to utilize it and build onto our existing structure here,” he said.

The addition is two stories, with the administration area downstairs, and the investigations area upstairs.

There will also be an elevator. Right now, the only elevator is on the jail side.

In addition to better public access, the addition will allow space for a new training room, as well as more offices, a larger evidence room, and a computer forensics lab.

Computer forensics has become a large part of criminal investigations. “Two of our investigators have been trained” by the federal

help relieve stress on the fields at Whitlock Park, said Gay. “I think the fields at Whitlock are better than they have been in a long time,” he said. More upgrades are planned with proceeds from the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax. Other projects include the long-awaited Senoia branch library, which is nearing completion, and the final phase of the Coweta Extension Office, including the public meeting room and demonstration kitchen, which was completed in 2011.

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

An expansion project is currently under way at the Coweta County Sheriff’s Office on Greison Trail. It will make the administration areas more accessible to the public, especially those who can’t climb the stairs that formerly accessed the administrative and investigations area. The expansion will also create more offices, a better evidence room, and a computer forensics lab.

government in computer forensics and “we’re going to be able to do our computer investigations right here in-house,” Yeager said.

Currently, that kind of work has to go through the state crime lab. And the crime lab is “so backed up” that it can take from four to six months — or even longer — to get results, Yeager said. “We’re hoping that this will help move along our caseload,” he said of the computer forensics lab.

The backlog at the crime lab also means the CCSO has to hold on to more evidence. The new evidence room will be updated with a bar-code system. “It’s a better, more updated means of doing it, for our officers to get their evidence processed and get it stored properly,” Yeager said. There will also be proper ventilation.

The expansion will increase space in the record retention area and the area where copies of videotapes are made.

An added benefit is more room for investigators. Right now, investigators are “two and, in some cases, three to a small office,” Yeager said. When the project is done, “hopefully they will have individual offices so we’ll have room to grow.”

Once the expansion is done, there will also be some renovations done to the existing administrative areas, Yeager said.

The expansion should be finished by April and then the renovation of the existing area will begin. “Hopefully, we’ll be through by June,” Yeager said.

There was also one small project on the jail side, turning a holding cell into three isolation cells.

Another project is a new intake facility at Coweta Animal Control. It is being funded with a grant from the Holland Ware Foundation.

Animals brought to the shelter will stay in that area while they are checked out by a vet and for their four-day holding period, said Patricia Palmer, Coweta’s public affairs director.

Another major project that will begin in 2012 is the construction of the first phase of

the development of the Brown’s Mill Battlefield Park.

Coweta County received a grant for the park in 2007; “the first phase of construction is expected to begin in September,” Palmer said. The county’s development and engineering department has been working on the design of the trail head, she said. Phase one will include the entrance drive, parking for about 25 cars, the trail head, and about 2,100 feet of trails. There is also the possibility of a pavilion, Palmer said. “It will come down to

how much everything else costs,” she said.

Phase two, which will be done sometime in the future, will include restrooms and 2,500 additional feet of trails.

Coweta County began quite a number of projects in 2011.

In recreation, long-awaited upgrades and expansion at the Andrew Bailey ball fields were completed.

The work at Andrew Bailey includes a new parking lot, three new fields, a new concession stand, a field house, and a new exit. The new exit is

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Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 11A

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

LOCAL

WEEKLY DOW JONES Dow Jones industrials Close: 13,232.62 1-week change: 310.60 (2.4%) 14,000

37.69

217.97

16.42

58.66

-20.14

MON

TUES

WED

THUR

FRI

Blueprints surveys still sought

By W. WINSTON SKNNER winston@newnan.com

13,000

It is not too late for area residents interested in Moreland’s future to participate in the Blueprints for Successful Communities survey.

Currently, the project is asking for answers to the following questions: “What is your vision for what you would like downtown and the green to be in Moreland? Do you prefer to focus efforts on building connections (streetscapes, sidewalks, bike paths, etc) interior

12,000 11,000 10,000

S

O

N

D

J

F

M

STOCK MARKET INDEXES 52-Week High Low

Name

13,289.08 10,404.49 5,627.85 3,950.66 467.64 381.99 8,718.25 6,414.89 2,498.89 1,941.99 3,060.82 2,298.89 1,405.88 1,074.77 14,792.23 11,208.42 868.57 601.71 4,082.35 3,169.44

Last

Chg

Dow Jones Industrials 13,232.62 Dow Jones Transportation 5,351.32 Dow Jones Utilities 453.60 NYSE Composite 8,270.41 AMEX Index 2,423.89 Nasdaq Composite 3,055.26 S&P 500 1,404.17 Wilshire 5000 14,774.45 Russell 2000 830.18 Lipper Growth Index 4,082.35

YTD 12-mo %Chg %Chg %Chg

+310.60 +189.39 -1.35 +168.30 +1.31 +66.92 +33.30 +315.00 +13.18 +79.19

+2.40 +3.67 -.30 +2.08 +.05 +2.24 +2.43 +2.18 +1.61 +1.98

+8.31 +6.61 -2.38 +10.61 +6.39 +17.28 +11.65 +12.01 +12.05 +15.52

+11.59 +5.84 +13.35 +1.90 +6.67 +15.57 +9.77 +8.95 +4.47 +9.39

STOCK EXCHANGE HIGHLIGHTS

u

u

NYSE 8,270.41 +168.30

+1.31

GAINERS ($2 OR MORE)

GAINERS ($2 OR MORE) Name Last Chg BkAtl A rs 3.64 +1.79 OvShip 12.75 +4.24 Frontline 7.65 +2.38 Guidewre n 32.31 +9.88 iP LXR1K 79.29 +22.29 FedSignl 5.89 +1.46 BkAm wtA 5.28 +1.26 Midas 11.46 +2.61 AtlasEngy 32.87 +7.25 SunTr wtB 3.50 +.75

u

AMEX 2,423.89

%Chg +96.8 +49.8 +45.2 +44.0 +39.1 +33.0 +31.3 +29.5 +28.3 +27.3

Name Barnwell AdmRsc BovieMed TravelCtrs AmShrd AvalonHld Cover-All PMC CT EllieMae n GlblScape

Last Chg 3.99 +.92 55.83 +11.08 2.91 +.51 6.20 +1.08 3.30 +.55 4.29 +.68 2.30 +.35 8.30 +1.03 10.15 +1.23 2.26 +.26

%Chg +30.0 +24.8 +21.3 +21.1 +20.0 +18.8 +17.9 +14.2 +13.8 +13.0

Ain’t It Nifty,

+66.92

GAINERS ($2 OR MORE) Name Last Chg TudouH n 37.71 +22.32 Cogo Grp 3.10 +1.24 PacCapBcp45.40 +16.71 BBC pf II 31.00 +11.35 HeliosM rs 4.15 +1.52 NuPathe 4.84 +1.77 Radvisn 11.70 +4.05 MEMSIC 5.20 +1.77 CarverB rs 8.06 +2.66 Towerstm 3.97 +1.30

%Chg +145.0 +66.7 +58.2 +57.8 +57.8 +57.7 +52.9 +51.6 +49.2 +48.7

LOSERS ($2 OR MORE) Name Last Chg %Chg KeeganR g 4.00 -.72 -15.3 VoyagerOG 2.94 -.53 -15.3 ExtorreG g 6.62 -1.12 -14.5 NovaGld g 7.02 -1.00 -12.5 Nevsun g 3.39 -.48 -12.4 AlmadnM g 2.54 -.35 -12.1 EV NYMu 13.61 -1.79 -11.6 BlkNJMB 15.08 -1.96 -11.5 VistaGold 3.04 -.39 -11.4 NwGold g 9.56 -1.12 -10.5

LOSERS ($2 OR MORE) Name Last Chg %Chg AntheraPh 3.17 -3.25 -50.6 Tranzyme n 3.25 -1.85 -36.3 PrimoWtr 2.06 -.61 -22.8 ExceedCo 3.08 -.87 -22.0 DiscovLab 2.85 -.79 -21.7 AmpioPhm 2.68 -.73 -21.4 ColemanC 9.86 -2.60 -20.9 ChiCera un 3.98 -1.02 -20.4 Zhongpin 8.29 -2.01 -19.5 SkystrBio h 2.23 -.45 -16.8

MOST ACTIVE ($1 OR MORE) Name Vol (00) Last Chg BkofAm 20359597 9.80 +1.75 S&P500ETF6537590140.30+3.34 SPDR Fncl5644884 15.72 +.88 Citigrp rs 3420249 36.69 +2.49 GenElec 3215962 20.20 +1.16 RegionsFn3071507 6.41 +.61 SprintNex 2792031 2.89 +.11 JPMorgCh2783923 44.57 +3.54 FordM 2505493 12.51 -.07 iShR2K 2232273 83.00 +1.40

MOST ACTIVE ($1 OR MORE) Name Vol (00) Last Chg CheniereEn509701 15.88 -.32 NovaGld g 254894 7.02 -1.00 NwGold g 243976 9.56 -1.12 Rentech 221989 2.00 +.14 TanzRy g 132760 4.64 +.25 RareEle g 127131 6.12 -.03 GoldStr g 126317 1.73 -.09 Minefnd g 124468 13.60 -1.21 VantageDrl116149 1.70 +.17 AntaresP 73302 2.82 -.12

MOST ACTIVE ($1 OR MORE) Name Vol (00) Last Chg PwShs QQQ264713066.52 +1.61 Microsoft 2363885 32.60 +.61 Cisco 1933463 20.03 +.23 Intel 1843710 27.73 +.66 Oracle 1664181 29.74 -.39 SiriusXM 1592826 2.26 -.09 Apple Inc 1553967 585.57+40.40 MicronT 1517114 8.82 +.49 RschMotn 969526 14.38 +.80 Yahoo 889661 15.18 +.55

DIARY

DIARY 1,915 1,253 350 38 3,201 33 20,640,532,389

Advanced Declined New Highs New Lows Total issues Unchanged Volume

DIARY

201 309 36 9 529 19 523,340,848

REID COPELAND is 50!

NASDAQ 3,055.26

LOSERS ($2 OR MORE) Name Last Chg %Chg iP SXR1K 15.29 -8.86 -36.7 iP SESPX 16.63 -4.75 -22.2 STR Hldgs 4.95 -1.35 -21.4 MediaGen 5.18 -1.29 -19.9 McEwenM 4.03 -.99 -19.7 OxfordRes 7.31 -1.74 -19.2 DirDGldBll 16.88 -3.70 -18.0 BarcShtC 21.73 -4.12 -15.9 PrUVxST rs24.77 -4.52 -15.4 CS VS3xSlv40.80 -7.07 -14.8

Advanced Declined New Highs New Lows Total issues Unchanged Volume

to the community OR to focus immediately outside of the community to connect it to major roadways? What specific projects would you most like to see SPLOST funds address?�

Responses may be sent to lbarnett@gaconservancy.org or Leah Barnett, The Biltmore, Georgia Conservancy, 817 West Peachtree St., Suite 200, Atlanta, GA 30308.

The website to monitor progress for Moreland Blueprints is: https://sites.google.com/site/bl ueprintsmoreland/home.

Advanced Declined New Highs New Lows Total issues Unchanged Volume

1,708 977 329 56 2,739 54 8,455,850,297

Photo by Winston Skinner

Happy Birthday!

Area residents interested in Moreland’s future are invited to fill out a Blueprints survey.

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STOCKS OF LOCAL INTEREST Name

Ex

Div Last

AFLAC NY 1.32 AGCO NY ...

AT&T Inc NY 1.76 AbtLab NY 2.04 ActivsBliz Nasd .18 AMD NY ...

Albemarle NY .80 AlcatelLuc NY ...

Alcoa NY .12 Altria NY 1.64 Apple Inc Nasd ...

BB&T Cp NY .80 BkofAm NY .04 Bar iPVix NY ...

Baxter NY 1.34 CSX s NY .48 CampSp NY 1.16 Cemex NY ...

Cisco Nasd .32 Citigrp rs NY .04 Clearwire Nasd ...

CocaCola NY 2.04 CocaCE NY .64 Corning NY .30 CrwnCstle NY ...

Dell Inc Nasd ...

DeltaAir NY ...

DineEquity NY ...

DirSCBear NY ...

DirFnBear NY ...

Disney NY .60 EMC Cp NY ...

ErthLink Nasd .20 Equifax NY .72 ExxonMbl NY 1.88 FifthThird Nasd .32 FordM NY .20 FMCG NY 1.25 GenElec NY .68 Hallibrtn NY .36 HewlettP NY .48 HomeDp NY 1.16 HuntBnk Nasd .16 iShBraz NY 1.50 iShJapn NY .20 iShSilver NY ... iShChina25 NY .77 iShEMkts NY .81 iS Eafe NY 1.71 iShR2K NY 1.02 Intel Nasd .84 IBM NY 3.00 JPMorgCh NY 1.20

Wk Wk YTD Chg %Chg %Chg

46.87 51.94 31.59 59.42 12.65 8.20 64.37 2.43 10.54 30.03 585.57 31.06 9.80 21.56 59.81 22.25 32.80 7.58 20.03 36.69 2.27 70.16 27.81 14.33 52.23 17.30 9.21 52.21 17.90 21.00 43.19 28.89 7.77 43.95 86.44 14.33 12.51 38.56 20.20 34.54 24.49 49.05 6.43 67.56 10.10 31.59 38.76 44.09 55.51 83.00 27.73 206.01 44.57

+1.71 +2.75 +.41 +1.47 +.74 +.62 +1.52 +.05 +.73 -.02 +40.40 +1.60 +1.75 -1.78 +.92 +1.35 -.03 -.46 +.23 +2.49 +.16 +1.16 +.30 +1.04 -2.20 +.37 -.16 +.57 -.98 -3.61 +.95 -.12 +.33 +1.32 +2.14 +.57 -.07 -.22 +1.16 -.34 +.43 +.95 +.61 +.30 +.01 -1.63 -.27 +.30 +1.15 +1.40 +.66 +5.39 +3.54

+3.8 +5.6 +1.3 +2.5 +6.2 +8.2 +2.4 +2.1 +7.4 -0.1 +7.4 +5.4 +21.7 -7.6 +1.6 +6.5 -0.1 -5.7 +1.2 +7.3 +7.6 +1.7 +1.1 +7.8 -4.0 +2.2 -1.7 +1.1 -5.2 -14.7 +2.2 -0.4 +4.4 +3.1 +2.5 +4.1 -0.6 -0.6 +6.1 -1.0 +1.8 +2.0 +10.5 +0.4 +0.1 -4.9 -0.7 +0.7 +2.1 +1.7 +2.4 +2.7 +8.6

+8.3 +20.9 +4.5 +5.7 +2.7 +51.9 +25.0 +55.8 +21.8 +1.3 +44.6 +23.4 +76.3 -39.3 +20.9 +5.7 -1.3 +40.6 +11.2 +39.5 +17.0 +.3 +7.9 +10.4 +16.6 +18.3 +13.8 +23.7 -32.4 -43.8 +15.2 +34.1 +20.7 +13.4 +2.0 +12.7 +16.3 +4.8 +12.8 +.1 -4.9 +16.7 +17.1 +17.7 +10.8 +17.3 +11.2 +16.2 +12.1 +12.5 +14.4 +12.0 +34.0

Name Ex Div JohnJn NY 2.28 Keycorp NY .12 Kroger NY .46 LSI Corp NY ...

LeggPlat NY 1.12 Lowes NY .56 MktVGold NY .15 MatrixSv Nasd ...

McDnlds NY 2.80 Merck NY 1.68 MetLife NY .74 MicronT Nasd ...

Microsoft Nasd .80 MorgStan NY .20 NCR Corp NY ...

NewsCpA Nasd .17 NokiaCp NY 1.26 Oracle Nasd .24 Penney NY .80 Petrobras NY 1.23 Pfizer NY .88 PhilipMor NY 3.08 PostPrp NY .88 PwShs QQQ Nasd .49 PrUShS&P NY ...

ProUShL20 NY ...

ProctGam NY 2.10 RegionsFn NY .04 RschMotn Nasd ...

RiteAid NY ...

SpdrGold NY ...

S&P500ETF NY 2.64 SaraLee NY .46 Schwab NY .24 SearsHldgs Nasd .33 SiriusXM Nasd ...

SouthnCo NY 1.89 SprintNex NY ...

SP Engy NY 1.10 SPDR Fncl NY .22 SP Inds NY .75 Starbucks Nasd .68 SunTrst NY .20 Synovus NY .04 TotalSys NY .40 Tredgar NY .18 US Bancrp NY .78 Vale SA NY 1.55 VangEmg NY .91 VerizonCm NY 2.00 WalMart NY 1.59 WellsFargo NY .88 Yahoo Nasd ...

MONEY RATES Prime Rate Discount Rate Federal Funds Rate Treasuries 3-month 6-month 5-year 10-year 30-year

Last 65.12 8.54 24.37 8.80 23.26 30.41 49.93 13.80 97.66 38.03 38.38 8.82 32.60 19.53 21.26 20.01 5.33 29.74 36.24 27.81 21.94 85.81 45.18 66.52 15.20 20.83 67.25 6.41 14.38 2.00 161.30 140.30 21.39 15.32 82.55 2.26 44.34 2.89 74.80 15.72 37.98 53.21 24.38 2.08 22.83 20.62 31.65 23.76 44.45 39.57 60.84 33.89 15.18

Wk Wk YTD Chg %Chg %Chg +.38 +0.6 -.7 +.52 +6.5 +11.1 +.05 +0.2 +.6 +.07 +0.8 +47.9 +1.12 +5.1 +1.0 +.64 +2.1 +19.8 -3.31 -6.2 -2.9 +.32 +2.4 +46.2 +.82 +0.8 -2.7 +.85 +2.3 +.9 -.04 -0.1 +23.1 +.49 +5.9 +40.2 +.61 +1.9 +25.6 +1.16 +6.3 +29.1 -.15 -0.7 +29.2 +.27 +1.4 +12.2 +.27 +5.3 +10.6 -.39 -1.3 +15.9 -1.42 -3.8 +3.1 -.12 -0.4 +11.9 +.46 +2.1 +1.4 +1.20 +1.4 +9.3 +.60 +1.3 +3.3 +1.61 +2.5 +19.1 -.78 -4.9 -21.2 +1.56 +8.1 +15.3 +.32 +0.5 +.8 +.61 +10.5 +49.1 +.80 +5.9 -.8 +.16 +8.7 +58.7 -5.08 -3.1 +6.1 +3.34 +2.4 +11.8 +.01 ... +13.1 +1.19 +8.4 +36.1 +2.07 +2.6 +159.8 -.09 -3.8 +24.2 -.77 -1.7 -4.2 +.11 +4.0 +23.5 +.89 +1.2 +8.2 +.88 +5.9 +20.9 +1.14 +3.1 +12.5 +1.37 +2.6 +15.6 +1.95 +8.7 +37.7 +.11 +5.6 +47.5 +.51 +2.3 +16.7 +.94 +4.8 -7.2 +1.93 +6.5 +17.0 +.69 +3.0 +10.8 +.29 +0.7 +16.3 +.47 +1.2 -1.4 +.76 +1.3 +1.8 +2.23 +7.0 +23.0 +.55 +3.8 -5.9

0.08 0.14 1.12 2.29 3.40

0.08 0.13 0.90 2.03 3.18

Last Australia Britain Canada Euro Japan Mexico Switzerlnd

Pvs Day

.9446 1.5832 .9916 .7592 83.36 12.6706 .9158

.9485 1.5723 .9913 .7635 83.38 12.6462 .9215

British pound expressed in U.S. dollars. All others show dollar in foreign currency.

MUTUAL FUNDS Name

Total Assets Obj ($Mlns) NAV

Total Return/Rank 4-wk 12-mo 5-year

MUTUAL FUNDS 11.05 -0.1 +5.4/D

PIMCO TotRetIs CI 149,075 Vanguard TotStIdx LB 68,078 Vanguard InstIdxI LB 65,810 Fidelity Contra LG 59,470 American Funds GrthAmA m LG 57,936 American Funds CapIncBuA x IH 56,945 Vanguard 500Adml LB 56,336 American Funds IncAmerA x MA 54,945 Vanguard TotStIAdm LB 54,525 American Funds CpWldGrIA x WS 47,952 American Funds InvCoAmA m LB 45,635 Dodge & Cox IntlStk FV 40,102

35.24 129.06 76.78 32.84 51.27 129.90 17.49 35.26 35.76 30.01 33.42

+3.1 +3.6 +4.1 +2.5 +1.9 +3.6 +2.0 +3.1 +2.8 +3.0 +3.0

+13.2/B +14.1/A +14.7/B +9.3/D +9.6/A +14.1/A +10.2/A +13.3/B +6.2/C +10.4/D +0.8/D

Pct Min Init Load Invt

+8.2/A +2.9/B +2.5/B +5.5/B +2.3/D +2.0/C +2.5/B +3.0/C +3.0/A +1.6/B +1.5/C -1.1/A

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CURRENCIES

Last Pvs Week 3.25 3.25 0.75 0.75 .00-.25 .00-.25

Samsung Stratosphere™

NL 1,000,000 NL 3,000 NL 5,000,000 NL 2,500 5.75 250 5.75 250 NL 10,000 5.75 250 NL 10,000 5.75 250 5.75 250 NL 2,500

CA -Conservative Allocation, CI -Intermediate-Term Bond, ES -Europe Stock, FB -Foreign Large Blend, FG -Foreign LargeGrowth, FV Foreign Large Value, IH -World Allocation, LB -Large Blend, LG -Large Growth, LV -Large Value, MA -Moderate Allocation, MB -Mid-Cap Blend, MV - Mid-Cap Value, SH -Specialty-heath, WS -World Stock, Total Return: Chng in NAV with dividends reinvested. Rank: How fund performed vs. others with same objective: A is in top 20%, E in bottom 20%. Min Init Invt: Minimum $ needed to invest in fund. Source:

Stock Footnotes: g = Dividends and earnings in Canadian dollars. h = Does not meet continued-listing standards. lf = Late filing with SEC. n = New in past 52 weeks. pf = Preferred. rs = Stock has undergone a reverse stock split of at least 50 percent within the past year. rt = Right to buy security at a specified price. s = Stock has split by at least 20 percent within the last year. un = Units. vj = In bankruptcy or receivership. wd = When distributed. wi = When issued. wt = Warrants. Mutual Fund Footnotes: b = Fee covering market costs is paid from fund assets. d = Deferred sales charge, or redemption fee. f = front load (sales charges). m = Multiple fees are charged. NA = not available. p = previous day’s net asset value. s = fund split shares during the week. x = fund paid a distribution during the week. Gainers and Losers must be worth at least $2 to be listed in tables at left. Most Actives must be worth at least $1. Volume in hundreds of shares. Source: The Associated Press. Sales figures are unofficial.

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12A — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

Center for Allergy and Asthma of Georgia

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Close-up

Sunday, March 18, 2012 — 1B

Introducing the 2012 Coweta’s Dancing Stars Local celebrities perform to benefit Welcome House

By NICHOLE GOLDEN nichole@newnan.com

Andy Brown

Dr. Charlie Brownlow

Billy Cranford

Ginger Fronebarger Couch

Dan Ricketts

Mandy Gaddy Osburn

Dr. Tina McKay

Steve Swope

Tina Prudeaux

Newnan’s version of the dance reality show experience, Coweta’s Dancing Stars, will return for a fifth year April 18 at the Centre for Performing and Visual Arts in Newnan.

See your favorite local celebrities paired with dance teachers in a benefit for the Community Welcome House of Newnan, a shelter for women and children who have been victims of domestic abuse.

This year’s line up includes five men and six women. The dancers are: Andy Brown of Absolute Medical Equipment, Inc with instructor Barbara Seaman, Billy Cranford of Cranford Homes with Peggy Bern, instructor; Dan Ricketts of BJ’s Wholesale Club and Beverly Ferguson, instructor; Dr. Charlie Brownlow of Georgia Pain Care paired with Carol Carlson, instructor; Dr. Tina McKay of Healthy Life Chiropractic and Lloyd Kanter, instructor; Ginger Fronebarger Couch representing Benton House Senior Living and Guy Garrison, instructor; Mandy Gaddy Osburn of Piedmont Newnan Hospital and Mike Gaddy, instructor; Patrice Evans of Kaiser Permanente with Tony Duke, instructor; Tina Prudeaux of America Grading and Wayne Wilson, instructor; Toni Byrd, a jazz singer and actress with Mac McKinney, instructor, and Steve Swope of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta with Rachel Ferguson, instructor.

The instructors and their students will spend weeks rehearsing for the event.

Coweta’s Dancing Stars will begin at 7 p.m. April 18 at the Centre on Lower Fayetteville Road. Charlie Filkins and Candace Boothby will emcee the show. Rachel’s Dance Connection offers the instruc-

Photo by Bob Fraley

Stephanie White and Tony Duke performing the International Cha Cha at last year’s Coweta’s Dancing Stars event. Mark your calendar for April 18 for the 2012 benefit for the Community Welcome House of Newnan.

tion each year.

Go to www.communitywelcomehouse.org to see the stars, or vote for your favorite star.

There are two ways to win this year — the People’s Choice Awards and Judges Awards. The People’s Choice Awards are determined by the online voting. Each dollar donated equals one vote.

Votes may be cast online or the night of the show.

Periodically, “Leader Board” updates will be posted on the Welcome House website.

The Judge’s Awards are selected by the panel of judges, rating their top favorite performances the night of the show.

Tickets are $10 for general

seating or $20 for preferred seating.

A $100 dollar contribution entitles attendees “to become a friend of Community Welcome House in its mission to end domestic violence,” said executive director Linda Kirkpatrick. Donors receive recognition and four general admission tickets. For details, contact Kirkpatrick at lindakirk@charter.net.

In addition to being available online, general and preferred seating tickets will also be for sale at Toyota of Newnan (cash only), Healthy Life Chiropractic (cash or credit).

Tickets purchased on the website will be at will call the night of the show. www.communitywelcomehouse.org.

Alan Jackson to perform at BamaJam this summer The stellar lineup continues to grow for the three-day, multigenre BamaJam 2012 festival to be held Thursday, June 14 through Saturday, June 16 in Enterprise, Ala. Organizers announced today that Newnan native Alan Jackson will join the ever-expanding list of today’s hottest entertainers which

includes Kid Rock, Tim McGraw, Eric Church and the Zac Brown Band. More artists will be revealed in the upcoming weeks and even more talent will be added to the already impressive list of stars aligning for BamaJam 2012.

Alan Jackson is one of the most successful and respected

singer-songwriters in music.

He’s sold nearly 60-million albums worldwide, topped the country singles charts 35 times, and scored more than 50 Top-10 hits. He’s a 17-time ACM Award winner, a 16-time CMA Award recipient, and a two-time Grammy-honored artist whose songwriting has earned him the

prestigious ASCAP Founders Award and an induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame as a 2011 Songwriter/Artist inductee. Jackson has written or co-written 24 of his 35 #1 hit singles, placing him in the elite company of Paul McCartney and John Lennon among songwriters who’ve written more

than 20 songs that they’ve recorded and taken to the top of the charts. He’s one of the 10 best-selling artists since the inception of SoundScan, ranking alongside the likes of Eminem and Metallica.

Jackson’s latest hit, “So You Don’t Have to Love Me Anymore,” is from his forth-

coming new album, which will be released this year. Jackson recently broke the all-time attendance record in the 62 year history of the San Antonio Rodeo by playing to nearly 17,000 in attendance.

For more information on the event, go to www.bamajam2012.com.

AROUND TOWN…

Adding to your landscape

Jason Lee and the Cyclones John Baker Full Throttle and Denny Payton of Mountain 94.9 will broadcast live and in person. Food, raffles, T-shirts, and family fun will all be part of the event.

For more information, contact Robin DeMaio, rdemaio1961yahoo.com or by calling 678-850-1352.

Springtime is tree-planting time

Egg hunt for kids and dogs A March 31 Egg Hunt for both dogs and children will benefit the Coweta Community Food Pantry.

The egg hunt will be from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at The Dog House, 22 Jefferson Place in Newnan.

Call 770-253-7234 for details.

Bring your Easter basket and a donation of non-perishable food for pets or people or a monetary donation to help the community food pantry.

Straight Spokes to have ride for Welcome House The Straight Spokes Motorcycle Club presents the annual Charity Benefit Ride for Newnan’s Community Welcome House, a safe-haven for women and children The Charity Ride and Family Event will be Saturday April 21 at the Gene Evans Great South Harley-Davidson, located at 185 E. Hwy. 16, Newnan.

Fee is $25 per bike. Sign-up will be from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., and it’s kick stands up at 11 a.m.

Music will be provided by

Senoia Historical Society yard sale April 14 The Senoia Area Historical Society (SAHS) is having a yard sale and is looking for donated items to sell.

Do you know anyone else who wants to clean out their garage? Bring used treasures such as household items, books, tools, furniture, and toys to the Society House, 6 Couch St. in Senoia Fridays and Saturdays prior to April 14. Hours for drop-off are 1-4 p.m.

The yard sale will be April 14 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

to services in Coweta, “Operation Help — Spring Awakening,” will be held Thursday, March 29. Sponsored

by Leadership Coweta, the event will be held from 6-8 p.m. at the Central Educational Center (CEC) Cafeteria, 160 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. in Newnan.

For details, call 770-632-6933.

Non-profits invited to participate in Juneteenth

Organizers of Juneteenth are hoping non-profits will join this community fair-like event to be held Saturday, June 16 at Willie Lynch Park in Newnan. Hours for the event will be from noon to 6 p.m.

Brittany Harrison, event planner, says this year’s theme is “Come out and see who’s in your community.” It’s a great opportunity for non-profits to set up a booth or table and net‘Operation work with the community.

Help’ expo set For more information or if you plan to participate, call An event to connect families Harrison at 404-536-0006.

By MICHAEL J. WHEELER UGA, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences

your new plants.

If lime or fertilizers are recommended, mix in the recommended amounts to the soil you removed to make the hole. Do not add lime or fertilizer at the bottom of the hole. This could potentially burn the plant’s roots and cause more harm than good.

When you bring home new trees and shrubs, keep the rootball moist and out of the sun so it does not dry out and stress the plant. This is especially important if it is going to be a few days before you are able to find a permanent home for the plant.

If the recent warm weather has given you a fever to plant shrubs, trees and flowers, you are not alone. With the promise of spring in the air, it is hard to sit still as the days become longer and the temperatures begin to rise.

I love days like this and really enjoy getting out and experiencing the fresh start as plants wake from their winter dormancy.

If you are going to add to your landscape, University of Georgia Cooperative Check the roots Extension specialists recomWhen you are ready to mend keeping a few things in mind before you dig your plant, take a close look at the rootball. If the roots are first shovel-full of dirt. bound and tangled, score the Sample the soil rootball to loosen the roots Ideally, you should take a from each other or tease soil sample before you plant them apart. new additions. Soil test Only dig the planting hole results from your local UGA deep enough so the top of the Extension office will list what rootball is level with the top your soil needs to provide the of the soil surface. Be sure to best balance of nutrients for maintain or build a solid base

at the bottom so the rootball has a firm place to sit. This will keep the plant from settling deeper in the hole.

Once you have determined your depth, loosen the soil two to three times the diameter of the rootball. This will provide lots of growing room and help the plant become established quickly.

Add mulch Drought stress can kill transplanted trees and shrubs, so do everything you can to give the plant all the water it needs to make it through the first growing season.

Add mulch to reduce moisture stress and help cool the soil in the heat of summer.

When you irrigate, be sure to water slowly and deeply about once a week. A soaker hose placed around the drip line of the tree is ideal.

Take the time to follow these steps, and you will enjoy your new landscape addition for years to come.

2B — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

LOCAL

Miss Vickers weds Mr. Teston Oct. 9, 2011

Newnan author releases novel In “Super Natural Love Crazed,” the new fantasy novel releasing nationwide this month by local author Tamala Callaway, three guys from very different backgrounds endure life’s most difficult situations as they struggle to protect that which is most important to them.

Ramone Stevens, the male half of a teenaged set of twin witches, is forced to protect his family when three deranged witches come to strip his best friend of his powers and impregnate his sister. Gabriel Burks, leader of the pack of hot headed werewolves, is torn between protecting his girlfriend’s brother’s fiancé from one of his pack member’s obsessive stalking or keeping

the pack law by supporting his own pack member. Jarrett Nelson, human love interest of one of the world’s strongest and most temperamental vampires, has to face constant pursuit from bloodthirsty vampires who have it out for his vampire girlfriend and him.

In each story, readers learn how the characters’ supernatural abilities ultimately heighten their belief that love is the greatest power of all.

Callaway lives in Newnan and began writing at the request of her daughters, who wanted to be characters in their favorite bedtime stories.

She is also the author of “Super Natural New Beginnings” and plans on adding more stories to the series.

Shannon Dawn Douglas and Nicholas Alan Kimbro

Miss Douglas to marry Mr. Kimbro May 19 Bruce and Merri Douglas of Newnan announce the engagement of their daughter, Shannon Dawn Douglas, to Nicholas Alan Kimbro, son of Robert and Janette Kimbro of Sharpsburg.

The bride-elect is the granddaughter of Don and Mildred Jones of Newnan, Mr. and Mrs. G. Bruce Douglas of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., and Connie Harper of Vero Beach, Fla. Miss Douglas is a graduate of Berry College in Rome with a bachelor's degree in studio art.

She graduated from Newnan High School in 2004. She attended the Governor's Honors Program as a visual arts major in 2003. She currently teaches art in Boulder, Colo.

The future bridegroom's

grandparents are the late Wade and Gilda Cappleman and Wilda Cappleman of Memphis, Tenn., and the late William (Bill) Kimbro and the late Doris Kimbro and Margaret Kimbro of Chattanooga, Tenn.

Mr. Kimbro is a graduate of Berry College in Rome with a bachelor's degree in English.

He graduated from Northgate High School in 2004 where he wrestled and placed as state runner-up. He is currently seeking his master's of fine arts degree in creative writing from University of Colorado in Boulder, Colo.

The wedding will be an event of May 19, 2012, at Lake Lanier Islands Resort in Buford at the Venetian Pier.

Lori Martin was recently crowned Indian Princess at East Coweta High.

ECHS charity pageant declares title winner From STAFF REPORTS closeup@newnan.com Lori Martin, East Coweta High School senior, recently won the title of Indian Princess at the school’s annual charity pageant.

Martin, the daughter of

Nancy and Bobby Martin, collected $1,100 in donations for One Roof Ecumenical Alliance Outreach. Those attending the event make contributions to the favorite charities of the contestants.

The pageant is in its fifth year.

Early warm weather may mean earlier mosquito problems

By MERRITT MELANCON University of Georgia This year’s exceptionally warm winter and the early spring temperatures mean Georgians may be dealing with warm weather pests, like ticks and mosquitos, earlier this year.

“Because of the early warm weather and the very mild winter, the populations will advance sooner,” said Elmer Gray, a public health entomologist with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. “But, as we get into the summer that will kind of level out, and the populations will be affected by humidity and other limiting factors … (The weather) will give them a head start.”

It’s a myth that very cold winters reduce insect populations and that warm winters lead to more bugs, said Ray Noblet, head of the college’s department of entomology.

Not more bugs, earlier bugs But what warm winter temperatures will do is contribute to the early emergence of insects.

“Their population growth may get underway a little sooner but (the warm winter) won’t have a major impact on the insect population as a whole,” Noblet said.

Georgia entomologists have already seen mosquitos emerging in some parts of the state,

and they have also reported a sighting of a Lone Star tick.

This arthropod usually doesn’t become prolific until after Easter.

Gray, who focuses on studying the public health impact of mosquitos, urges Georgians to start preparing for mosquito season now before they are caught off guard by an early swarm. He recommends homeowners trim overgrown lawns and clear foliage away from walking trails and other areas that families use frequently.

Photo by Angela McRae

Crossroads Garden Club officers are, from left to right, Bylaws Chairman Sam Merrill, Secretary/Treasurer Wilma Smith, President Deberah Williams and Vice President Mike Christie. The club’s next meeting will be March 25.

Crossroads Garden Club held charter meeting The charter meeting of the Crossroads Garden Club was held Feb. 28 with eleven members attending. Those attending learned about joining a garden club and becoming members of both the Georgia Garden Clubs and the National Garden Clubs.

The group then elected officers: President Deberah Williams, Vice President Mike Christie, Secretary/Treasurer Wilma Smith and Bylaws

770-683-3916

Cut grass and dump standing water “Keeping vegetation down along walking and hiking trails – either by cutting or by using some sort of herbicide – will really help when the ticks start to pick up later this spring,” Gray said.

This is also the time to check your yard for containers that are holding standing water. Old tires and planters provide perfect breeding spots for mosquitos. Homeowners should also fix any window or porch screens.

“We’re approaching the season – or the few months at least - when you’re going to want to have your windows open,” Gray said. “So if you’re screens need repair, this would be the time to do that.”

Animal owners should prepare by making sure horses are up-to-date on equine encephalitis vaccines and dogs are current on their preventative heartworm medication.

Committee Chairman Sam Merrill.

The garden club’s meeting time will be the fourth Monday of each month. The next meeting will be March 25 at 7 p.m. at 3072 Highway 154, Newnan. The speaker will be Charlotte Nelson, one of the new club members, and the topic will be Straw Bale Gardening.

The club extends an open invitation to anyone who would like to join or attend.

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Mr. and Mrs. Clinton Wallace Teston Natalie Marie Vickers, daughter of Ms. Tami Conde Vickers of Newnan and Mr. Barry R. Vickers of Smyrna became the bride of Mr. Clinton Wallace Teston, son of Colonel (Retired) and Mrs. Butch Teston of Dahlonega on Sunday, October 9, 2011 at Dunaway Gardens in Newnan with Rev. Larry Patton officiating. Mr. Blake Travis, friend of the bride and groom, provided a program of nuptial guitar melodies.

Miss Shea Cheney, of Savannah, and Miss Lacey Houghton, of St. Simon’s Island served as maids of honor. Bridesmaids were Miss Carolyne Teston, sister of the groom, of Atlanta, Miss Kristin Mitchell, of St. Petersburg, Fla. and Miss Brittany Whitlock, of Knoxville, Tenn. Miss Alexandra Lockhart, goddaughter of the bride’s mother, of Newnan, served as the flower girl.

The attendants wore strapless chiffon dresses in deep amethyst. The knee length dresses featured flowing cascades from the waist and a pleated ruched bodice. They carried handtied bouquets of ivory roses, freesia, purple trillium, green hypericum berries, eggplant calla lilies, and green mini hydrangeas.

The flower girl wore an ivory tea length tulle dress featuring a sash and rows of appliqued blossoms at the hem. She carried a basket and scattered ivory rose petals.

Mr. Brandon Breedlove, of Atlanta, and Mr. Josh Sprayberry, of Griffin, served as best men.

Groomsmen were Mr. Ryan Bley, of Dahlonega, Mr. Tyler Daniel, of Columbus, and Mr. Jeff Zachman, of Atlanta.

The ceremony took place in the gardens with a setting of ivy covered stone terraces where guests were seated and under a canopy of mature trees. The bride entered through an iron garden gate and processed down a stone stairway path to meet her groom. The two processed united together to the ceremony site which was adorned with an iron arbor and featured floral arrangements matching the attendants’ bouquets.

The bride chose an ivory silk taffeta ball gown featuring a strapless bodice and a dropped waist with allover rouching.

The skirt was highlighted with c a s c a d i n g d i m e n s ion a l floral appliques covering the entire skirt and chapel length train. She wore a fingertip veil with a floral

adornment in her hair which was worn up. She carried a hand tied bouquet of ivory garden roses, white freesia, and eggplant calla lilies. The bridal bouquet was personalized with a cloisonné and pearl brooch that was a gift from the groom’s grandmother.

The bridal bouquet also included a sapphire and diamond ring tucked into the flowers which had been a gift from her father to her mother on the day she was born. The bride wore a pearl necklace which had belonged to her maternal grandmother and was also worn by her mother in her wedding. The bride also wore pearl earrings which were a gift from the groom.

After the ceremony guests were entertained with a reception in the historic gardens featuring cocktails, dinner, and dancing.

Following a wedding trip to Hawaii, Mr. and Mrs. Teston reside in Gainesville.

Pre-nuptial Parties: On May 28, the groom’s parents, Colonel (Retired) and Mrs. Butch Teston hosted an Engagement Party at their home in Dahlonega.

On June 12, the maids of honor, Miss Shea Cheney and Miss Lacey Houghton along with Miss Rachel Hinckley of Atlanta hosted a Miscellaneous Shower at Ashford Creek Clubhouse in Atlanta.

On August 13, the flower girl’s mother, Mrs. Susan Botticelli Lockhart and bridesmaids, Miss Kristin Mitchell and Miss Brittany Whitlock hosted a Luau Shower at SummerGrove Golf Clubhouse in Newnan.

On August 11 – 14, the best men and the groomsmen hosted a Bachelor’s Party in Panama City Beach, Fla. On September 10, g room sm a n , M r. Jeff Zachman hosted a Stock the Bar Party in Atlanta.

On September 24, maid of honor, Miss Lacey Houghton along with Miss Victoria Epshteyn, hosted a Bachelorette Party in Atlanta.

On October 8, the bride’s mother, Ms. Tami Conde Vickers hosted a Bridesmaids’ Brunch at Grille 1904 Restaurant in Newnan honoring the bridal attendants and special guests.

On October 8, the groom’s parents, Colonel (Retired) and Mrs. Butch Teston hosted a Rehearsal Dinner at Ten East Washington Restaurant in Newnan honoring the bridal party and special guests.

Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 3B

LOCAL/STATE

Coweta Remembered

January All Stars at Welch Elementary School were: Pre-K – David Waters; kindergarten – Jaylin Trice, Jonathan Mears, Kayla Jove, Emma Jonassen, Amanda Caban, Mariana Torres and Daisy Garcia; first grade – Anjelina Bridges, Kelsee Boyer, Jada Billingsley, Sofia McMurtry, Abby Enright, Syknia Clark and India Glenn; second grade – Olivia Janes, Christian Richardson, Nicholas Enright, Hope McClellan, Morgan Hendrix, Hamin You and Cordell Rober; third grade –Hans Jeudy, Jada Clowers, Danielle Garger, Jack Shuman, Emily Whitaker, Reaghan Byrom, Madison Badertscher and Kaylynne Parks; fourth grade – Isabella Nouryeah, Keegan Rich, J.J. Freed, Breanna Schaefer, Elmer Berganza, Morgan Smith, Kaitlyn Coleman, Dynahsty James, Micayla Harris, Wesley Chambless and Angelica Zavala. Thomas Crossroads Chick-Fil-A operator Ronnie Clotfelter was January speaker, and he told students they could be the light of the school and their community, brightening up the world around them. He also told them to be the spice, like salt, that makes things a little better.

Welch Elementary names All Stars for January, February

Welch Elementary School All Stars for the month of February included: Pre-K – Noah Thomas; Kindergarten – Carolyn Mock, Eerae Lee, Sam Brodbeck, Breanna Faulkner, Alecia Reid, Emilee Zeringue and Nathan Greenwood; first grade – Mondriques Jordan, Corey-ssa Thanton, Hannah Nicholas, Kyle Collins, Brycen Aliffi, Braden Ray and Anne Marie Phillips; second grade – Ji Eun Bae, Melissa Antrim, Matthew Setter, Kameron, Strickland, Arely Gutierrez-Constreras, Aanchal Patel and Chloe Sullivan; third grade – Haylee Ray, Maggie Phillips, Kourtine Thomas, Brooke Blalock, Kyle Waters, Zachary Carlton, Lamar Rascoe and Seunga Baek; fourth grade – Kessoca Dalderson, Cameryn Sumner, Bridgett Blalock, Karretha Alfred and Parker McLain; fifth grade – Isabella Reyes, Hudson Nowell, Doha Akid, Cole Dozier, Summer Watson and Hope Dean. Pastor Shawn Smith from Southcrest Church was February speaker, and he told Welch All Stars that “leaders see the things that others don’t and do the things that others won’t.”

Project preserves Chinese community history in Ga. 1873, when workers came here to deepen the Augusta Canal, Tom’s family was one of many who came to Augusta to open grocery stores after the turn of the century.

Tom said most of the Chinese groceries were established in Augusta’s black neighborhoods.

The number steadily increased until the late 1960s he said.

“There were opportunities there,” said Tom. “Just little, bitty mom-and-pop grocery stores. That’s what I grew up in.

My mom and dad’s store was at 11th and Laney Walker across

*** Newnan-Coweta Historical Society coordinates Coweta County Remembered, which appears in each Sunday issue of The Times-Herald. To submit a photo or item, call Herb Bridges of the Newnan-Coweta Historical Society at 770-253-4934 or contact him by mail in care of the NewnanCoweta Historical Society, P. O. Box 1001, Newnan, GA 30264. Or contact News Editor Ellen Corker at The Times-Herald office, 770-253-1576, ext. 727; fax 770-253-2538; or email at “ellen@newnan.com.” Photos may also be brought to Ellen Corker at The Times-Herald office, 16 Jefferson St., P. O. Box 1052, Newnan, GA 30264; or to historical society volunteers at the Male Academy Museum at Temple Avenue and College Street, 770-251-0207. Please include a name and telephone number. The museum offers permanent and rotating historical exhibits with furnishings of the early 1800s, period clothing and Civil War items, and has a shop with gift items including books on Coweta County history such as its “History of Coweta County, Ga.”

from Immaculate Conception Church.”

Tom recalls that almost all his Chinese friends and relatives were in the grocery business.

After work and on weekends they would gather at the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association on Walker Street, to share food, play games and discuss business.

“We used to come down here every weekend,” he said. “We had a special bond, we were tight.”

Coweta’s Greatest Generation available in a Limited Edition Hardcover Book

Stop by today and pick up your copy!

Recently The Newnan Tim Re Times-Herald spent over a year y highlightingg the th sstories of surviving local World World d II veterans vet in a project called “Our “Ou Greatest Generation.”

This award-winning award-winn series presented the stories o off o over 120 local men and women men and w was a favorite of readers young oung and a old. Since the series ended ended, ed we have had countless requests to reproduce this re req collection of stories so they may be preserved for future generations and enjoyed time and again in their entirety.

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AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — Gary Tom’s voice marks him as a native Georgian.

A “y’all” rolls off his tongue as easy as pie. He says “thang” instead of thing and “sir” and “ma’am” just like most people of his generation who grew up in Augusta.

Those who don’t know Tom, however, can be taken aback by a soft east-Georgia drawl coming from a face whose features might be more familiar in Hong Kong than in Hephzibah.

“I get that a lot,” said Tom, 58.

“I visit relatives in San Francisco and crack people up when they hear me.”

That’s because Tom counts himself among Augusta’s wellestablished ethnic-Chinese community, the oldest such community in the Southeast.

“I was born here in Augusta and lived here all my life, except for going off to college for a few years,” he said. “My father’s family moved here in 1927.”

Now Tom’s voice and his family’s story will be preserved for future generations to hear.

Tom is one of about 50 Augustans of Chinese descent who are taking part on an oral history project that intends to capture their family stories while there are those around who can still recall how it happened, said Ray Rufo, president of Augusta’s Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, which is behind the project.

The project is nearing completion, said Rufo, a retired dentist. Rufo and his wife, Kathy Rufo, have been interviewing members of the Chinese community and collecting family photos, all of which will be compiled on DVDs to be distributed to association members, he said.

Several DVDs will be placed for public use at the Augusta Library. A special ceremony and historical exhibit is scheduled to open May 12 in the library’s main auditorium.

The exhibit, designed by Tom’s nephew, Travis Tom, celebrates the Chinese community’s history in Augusta, and received an award from the Georgia Historical Records Advisory Board in October.

The Oral History Project and the related exhibit were funded in part by a grant from the Georgia Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities, Rufo said.

Although Augusta had Chinese residents as far back as

Mr. and Mrs. Gordon Carter are shown at Turin Baptist Church Aug. 25, 1991, when Mr. Carter was being honored as a Deacon Emeritus at the church. The image shows the church sanctuary. It was submitted to The Newnan Times-Herald by Sophie Carter of Sharpsburg when the newspaper was gathering photos for its pictorial history books several years ago.

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Focus on Education

4B —

Sunday, March 18, 2012

EDUCATION NOTES:

WGTC students win big at PBL event From STAFF REPORTS education@newnan.com West Georgia Technical College was represented by 27 Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) students in the 2012 North District Competition held at the Murphy Campus recently, and every student placed in at least one event, with 17 students earning awards in both of their competitive events.

In total, West Georgia Technical College Carroll, Coweta, Douglas and LaGrange PBL chapters brought home 43 awards and 15 first place awards in 24 different events.

“West Georgia Technical College students continue to excel competitively and academically,” said President Dr. Skip Sullivan. “I’m proud of them all and congratulate them on a job well done.”

First place winners were Mindy Runyan, Carroll Campus, for Business Communication; Ann Bolen, Douglas Campus, for Client Service; Matthew Monahan, Douglas Campus, for Computer Concepts and Contemporary Sports Issues; Bruce Constantine, Douglas Campus, for Cyber Security; Anita Welch, Douglas Campus, for International Business; Dallas Owens, Douglas Campus, for Job Interview; Christopher Bass, Douglas Campus, for Justice Administration; Beth Candler, Carroll Campus, for Management Concepts and Public Speaking; Terry Elkins, Douglas Campus, for Networking Concepts; Dee Dixon, LaGrange Campus, for Parliamentary Procedure; Katrina Price, Carroll Campus, for Retail Management and Hope Merritt-Rice, Douglas Campus, for Statistical Analysis and Strategic Analysis and Decision Making.

Each of the West Georgia Technical College PBL chapters participated in the Battle of the Chapters. Carroll Campus earned second place, Coweta Campus received third place, Douglas Campus won fourth place and LaGrange Campus received fifth place. Each campus is eligible to compete in the Battle of the Chapters at the State Leadership Conference, which will be held in Atlanta on April 13-15.

“I expected my students to excel and they did,” said Karen Carpenter, Business Administrative Technology Instructor. “I don’t expect anything less at the state competition in April.”

•••

Degrees Columbus State University (With Honors): Michael Davis of Grantville and Cherae Gamble of Newnan graduated from the College of Education and Health Professions with Bachelor of Science degrees in Health Science; Joi Richardson of Fayetteville and Adam Wadsworth of Newnan graduated from the College of the Arts at with Bachelor of Arts degrees in Communication. Wayne Butler of Fayetteville, GA, graduated from the College of the Arts Justice Administration program with a Master of Public Administration.

Columbus State University: Amber Freeman of Hogansville graduated from the College of Education and Health Professions Early Childhood Education program with a Bachelor of Science in Education; Shannon Harris of Fairburn graduated from the College of Education and Health Professions Secondary Education program with a Specialist in Education; Kimberly Powers of Hogansville graduated from the College of Education and Health Professions (Curr. and Instr. in Accom. Teaching Program) with a Master of Education; Jennifer Rabaduex of Newnan graduated from the Turner College of Business and Computer Science Business Administration program with a Master of Business Administration.

Emory University: Amanda Hooda of Atlanta, daughter of Laura Theodos of Fayetteville and Chris Theodos of Ocean Gate, N.J., received a Master of Science in Nursing from the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing; Anne Compton of Atlanta, daughter of Barry Michael Compton of Fayetteville and Bonnie Schoonmaker Compton of Atlanta, received a Master of Science in Nursing from the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing; Brittni Collins of Atlanta, daughter of Steve Collins and Jeannie Collins of Fayetteville, received a Bachelor of Arts from Emory College; Louis Darden of Fayetteville, son of Louis Darden and Betty Johnson Darden, received a Bachelor of Arts from Emory College; Richard Mannion of Fayetteville, son of Richard Gene Mannion and Janet Mannion, received a Bachelor of Arts from Emory College.

•••

Certificates Columbus State University: Jason Edens

See NOTES, page 6B

Times-Herald file

Dr. Steve Barker, center, took the helm as Coweta’s superintendent of schools on April 1, 2011. At a Coweta Board of Education meeting are, left, Associate Supt. Jerry Davis, and right, Sue Brown, chairman.

Coweta schools superintendent Steve Barker knows each rung of ladder that led him to post

By REBECCA LEFTWICH rebecca@newnan.com Dr. Steve Barker has not yet spent a calendar year behind the Coweta County School Superintendent’s desk, but he’s intimately acquainted with each rung of the ladder that led him here.

In his 22 years as a Coweta educator, Barker has been a teacher, an assistant principal and a principal — even a coach. His wife, Dr. Karen Barker, is the system’s director of

elementary education, and the couple’s two young children attend a county elementary school. Barker believes in Coweta County’s commitment to education because he has witnessed it first-hand, not just within the school system, he says, but within the community itself.

Barker officially became superintendent in April 2011, following the retirement of another long-time Coweta educator and superintendent, Blake Bass. He assumed the role with conviction.

the nation,” he said. “They are absolutely committed to doing what’s best for the student.”

The school system and board have thriving partnerships and ongoing dialogue with city and county officials, Barker said, as well as groups such as the Coweta County Development Authority and the “I firmly believe that in Coweta Chamber of Commerce.

County, our employees — classified “We don’t hesitate to work togethand certified — are the most dedi- er to find solutions that benefit the cated, committed, hard-working employees of any school system in See BARKER, page 5B

School facilities: Drake Stadium rebuild has stayed on schedule — see page 5B

What does No Child Left Behind Act waiver mean for Coweta schools?

By REBECCA LEFTWICH rebecca@newnan.com Coweta County School System Superintendent Steve Barker has worked his way through the 154page ESEA Flexibility Request, which the State of Georgia used to obtain a release from rigorous mandates set out in the No Child Left Behind Act. While he supports the document’s basic purpose, he and the rest of the state’s educational network will have to wait for implementation to fully judge its effectiveness.

“Its intent — and I believe it’s a good one — is to no longer label a school according to narrow criteria,” Barker said of the waiver request, which outlines the state department of education’s plan to improve Georgia schools. “A lot of details have to be worked out, but it will score schools on a broader range of indicators.”

Barker culled some of the broader points directly from the document: ■ “Georgia made this waiver request in order to strengthen accountability by replacing current AYP calculations to reflect the defi-

nitions of Priority, Focus and Reward Schools. This will allow Georgia to increase emphasis on the state’s very lowest performing schools in all subject areas and highlight subgroup achievement gaps.

This plan will serve to increase the quality of instruction in all subject areas.

■ The flexibility described in Georgia’s request does not include any requests relative to the implementation of the College and Career Ready Performance Index (CCRPI) as described in this request.

■ Even after full implementation of the CCRPI, identification of Title I Priority, Focus and Rewards Schools will be based on the U.S. Department of Education definitions and guidelines.

■ Georgia is also requesting to serve three categories of Title I schools that fall into an alert status.

These are schools with significant deficits in subgroup graduation rates, or subgroup performance on state assessments or subject area

See WAIVER, page 5B

West Georgia Technical College Coweta campus under construction Facilities set to open spring 2013

By REBECCA LEFTWICH rebecca@newnan.com

Newnan investors who donated a 38-acre piece of land for the Coweta County campus for West Georgia Technical College were honored with the Technical College Foundation Association of Georgia's 2009 Benefactor of the Year award. Orchard Hills Golf Properties won the award for its support of the West Central Technical College Foundation. The campus in 2012 is under construction at the site off Turkey Creek Road and north of Orchard Hills Golf Club. Ron Jackson, left, and Beverly Smith, right, present the Benefactor of the Year award to Jim Mottola, representing Orchard Hills Golf Properties.

When Dr. Skip Sullivan was named president of West Georgia Te c h n i c a l College, a question he heard repeatedly on his visits to Newnan was “When are you building a campus in Coweta?”

The community’s enthusiasm, tangible commitments — Sullivan including the donation of a parcel of land — and the efforts of Coweta’s legislative delegation paved the way for Sullivan’s eventual answer: spring 2013.

Although land had been designated in an industrial park, purchasing the parcel was going to be a lengthy and difficult process, especially as the economic downtown worsened.

But three years ago, Orchard Hills Investment Group donated approximately 38 acres on Turkey Creek Road south of Newnan.

“That was really the catalyst to

begin the campus d eve l o p m e n t ,” Sullivan said.

“Along came the investment group that said, ‘Guys, why don’t you — see page 6B consider building it over here?

We’ll donate the property because we know that we need what you do in this community on a more long-term and permanent basis.’”

Sullivan took the project to the West Georgia Technical College Foundation, which agreed to provide one of the buildings. With commitments of land and a building, WGTC’s next step was the Georgia Capitol — where then-Gov. Sonny Perdue summarily struck the project from the budget. Sullivan said he knew necessary resources were not readily available to build in Coweta, which made the community investment a crucial component of the project.

State Representatives Lynn Smith, R-Newnan, and Billy Horne, RSharpsburg, worked throughout the session and got the Coweta building

Newnan attracting satellites of colleges, universities

See WGTC, page 6B

Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 5B

VISION

2012

School facilities: Drake Stadium rebuild has stayed on schedule

By REBECCA LEFTWICH rebecca@newnan.com Newnan High School’s football Cougars made the playoffs last fall, and while excitement was building for their push toward state, plans were mounting for a Drake Stadium upgrade.

“We had to wait for football season, and to their credit, Newnan made the playoffs,” Associate Coweta County School Superintendent Jerry Davis said. “We would have been glad to have those three or four weeks, but we wished them the best and were proud they went that far.”

And the project has stayed on schedule, with a projected completion date of mid-May. “Our goal is to have it for graduation, and to do that, we’ve had to be on time,” Davis said. “We’re working six days a week right now and we’ve had rain that’s slowed us down a little, but we haven’t had a very difficult winter. Every day, we’re working on something we can do despite the weather.”

As with football season, workers are conscious of baseball, lacrosse, soccer and tennis games as they put Drake Stadium back together.

“It’s been interesting with the close proximity of the work we’re doing,” Davis said. “On game days, we try to shut down the work close to the games, so we have a few obstacles to work around.”

Davis said the press box took precedence in early March, and that upper level bleachers were delivered mid-month and installation was to begin at that time. Outermost buildings, including a freestanding restroom and concession stand, as well as restrooms and storage under the bleachers were early-spring priorities as well.

An additional building on the north end of the stadium will house restrooms because of building code changes, and a first for the Coweta school system will be an elevator required by the Americans with Disabilities Act. “It’s the first time we’ve encountered that,” Davis said, adding that block and brickwork were scheduled for completion the second week of March. The elevator tower will be built off the side of the pressbox.

As the oldest of the three current high schools in Coweta County, Newnan has undergone a two-year upgrade and modernization. Although Davis said short-term school system plans include a new middle school which “we’d like to think we’ll start next year,” and a six- to 10-year, long-range goal plan has potential for another high school and possibly another elementary school, it’s the maintenance and modification of existing facilities that currently is a priority.

“In the past, we would have been looking at building new schools, but growth has slowed just a little and we’re not picking up 1,000 new students a year like we’ve been doing,” Davis said. “We’re not having

to build schools as frequently.

We still have some of those out there in the future, but we are starting to look in-house to take better care of the facilities we already have. We have enough lead time to take care of some major needs right now.”

A bid process for muchneeded work at White Oak, Ruth Hill and Western elementary schools began in early March, according to Davis, and the school system will continue to revisit its facility plan annually as well as continue to meet Georgia standards so Coweta can qualify for state money.

“We’re required to do a fiveyear facility plan with the state, and that sets the tone of what we have to make fit,” Davis said. “We have to make application to the state for any projects we do to get state funding back. We utilize local money, but we get everything the state is willing to apply toward that money as well.”

Budget is a major concern, and Davis said CCSS is careful not to overextend.

“We set preliminary budgets and make sure we don’t overcommit and live within our means,” Davis said, adding that all summer 2012 projects include state money but that upcoming bid processes will determine the final plans.

“If bids come back out of range, we have two choices,” Davis said. “We can not do another project, or we can value engineer to see what we can live without.”

Facilities Director Ronnie Cheek deserves much of the credit for keeping projects on schedule and within budget, according to Davis.

“He does a great, great job,” Davis said. “If you get down to it, he’s what makes us work in that area. He’s very knowledgeable, very conscientious and stays on the go, checking a lot of locations every day.”

Coweta County’s current Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (ESPLOST III) provides most of the local funding for capital improvements within the school system, and a review of past, current and upcoming projects was part of the Coweta County Board of Education’s Building and Grounds committee’s January meeting.

“We identified our projects going in to voters for our SPLOST, and we take the budget that we have and update construction plans based on our SPLOST,” Davis said of the 2012 facilities plan review.

ESPLOST III (2007-2012) has been used to finance construction of: ■ Brooks Elementary School.

■ School expansions at Eastside Elementary School and Evans Middle School.

■ Three ninth-grade campuses for Coweta’s three high schools.

■ Renovations and modifications at East Coweta Middle School.

■ General refurbishing and improvements (including painting, flooring, HVAC and

paving) at Arnall, Evans and East Coweta middle schools, Winston Dowdell Academy, Arnco-Sargent, Atkinson, Canongate, Elm Street, Jefferson Parkway, Moreland, Newnan Crossing, Northside, Thomas Crossroads, Western and White Oak elementary schools, as well as Northgate, East Coweta and Newnan high schools.

■ Sewer improvements at Thomas Crossroads.

■ The purchase new school buses to meet growth and replace aging vehicles.

■ System-wide technology improvements.

■ Purchase and renovation of central office facilities at 167 Werz Drive in Newnan.

■ The purchase of tracts of land for future school sites across the county.

The committee also reviewed plans for several current and upcoming projects funded by ESPLOST III. They included: ■ Ongoing renovations and modifications at Newnan High School.

■ Renovations and modifications at Western, White Oak, Ruth Hill, Atkinson, Elm Street elementary schools.

■ Possible renovations and modifications at Northside Elementary Schools and Winston Dowdell Academy.

■ Possible re-roofing at Evans Middle School.

■ Floor Covering at the Central Educational Center, East Coweta and Northgate high schools, Smokey Road and Madras middle schools and Willis Road elementary school.

■ Painting at the Central Educational Center and Glanton Elementary School.

■ The purchase of new buses.

■ Technology upgrades and expansions.

■ Construction of a new middle school.

The committee also heard plans for the re-roofing of the Central Educational Center, scheduled for spring 2012, which is being funded by local construction funds.

Planning for all of those projects is being considered within the updated long-range facilities plan, along with potential ESPLOST IV projects and their sequencing.

The Coweta County School System also received an unqualified — or “clean” — audit report from the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts, brought forward by department representatives who spoke at the school board’s February meeting.

“The financial statements of the school district are considered to present fairly the financial position and results of operations as of and for the year ended June 30, 2011,” Senior Auditor Jennifer Thomas said, presenting her report summary alongside Audit Supervisor Brad Freeman.

Photos by Jeffrey Leo

Drake Stadium at Newnan High has new seating in place and construction proceeds on the press box and elevator tower. Plans are to have the rebuilding complete for graduation this spring.

Crews work the first week of March on the press box and elevator shaft at Newnan High’s Drake Stadium. The project is aimed for completion in time for graduation this spring.

State released from No Child Left Behind WAIVER

Continued from page 4B concerns.

■ Georgia will also apply these calculations to non-Title I schools and serve in the same manner using state funding.

■ The calculations related to the CCRPI are separate from the US ED required methodology for identifying Title I

Priority, Focus and Rewards Schools.

■ Georgia will fully implement its differentiated recognition, accountability, and supports in 2012-13, in compliance with U.S. Department of Education guidelines and requirements. Georgia will identify Priority Schools, Focus Schools, and Reward Schools on or before July 15, 2012, and will fully implement the interventions and supports for Priority Schools and Focus

Schools in August of 2012.”

Coweta County Board of Education Chair Sue Brown objected to the idea forwarded by some opponents of the waiver that release from NCLB’s mandates could weaken Georgia’s educational standards by reducing federal oversight.

“This is not the end of accountability for schools,” Brown said. “It is the beginning of more accountability.”

Coweta schools superintendent looks back over career moves BARKER

Continued from page 4B

entire community,” Barker said.

“That doesn’t exist everywhere, and I feel very much responsible to do my part to keep those partnerships going.”

Schools’ partnerships with organizations such as Certified Literate Is Coweta’s Key (CLICK), civic organizations, governmental agencies and parent associations reach beyond the boundaries of the education industry, building strong networks that foster a sense of belonging.

“Coweta County has a true commitment among its citizens and the leadership within the community to truly make Coweta County the best place to live, grow and family and experience life,” Barker said.

And it doesn’t hurt to have school board members with shared goals.

“Each board member that serves truly serves with the intent of doing the best they can to serve the students and citizens of the community,” Barker

said. “When that’s a fundamental motive, schools are going to experience success.”

But it takes more than just commitment and shared goals to move forward, and Barker said the Coweta County School System has made significant progress in several priority areas over the last year, including: ■ Researching and building a uniform literacy plan framework for all grade levels. Efforts by the committees working throughout the district to build that framework and maintain consistency throughout the district is “well under way,” according to Barker.

■ Increasing dual enrollment and offering more immediate benefits to students — particularly through college credit — by partnering with higher education institutions. West Georgia Technical College, the University of West Georgia and Mercer University all have Newnan locations, and the possibility of dual-enrolled students to work toward an associate’s degree while still in high school has tremendous potential in terms of money and time

saved. Coweta schools are seeking to double the number of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) internships, pursuing partnerships with local businesses and industries that would provide more worksites for students.

■ A three-year technology plan funded through the education-earmarked Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax based on national and state technology reports and the most recent Southern Association of Colleges and Schools accreditation assessment. SACS assessors praised the effectiveness and frequency with which Coweta schools utilize classroom technology and recommended a further step: get technology in the hands of students.

The three-year plan focuses on increasing bandwidth; wireless at every location upgrading teacher workstations and increasing the number of student responders; and a “bring your own technology” initiative.

Leveraging that initiative required a waiver from the state and “some changes to our policies,” but it allows students to utilize personal devices such as

smartphones, iPads, iPods and flip cameras to improve instruction.

Where a lab experiment may have taken two or three weeks for a teacher to assess using the traditional method of watching each student perform the steps, for instance, a student could video the lab, post it for the teacher to review, and get immediate feedback. Barker said he has been receiving “a lot of requests” from teachers and administrators across the district who are ready to expand the program.

■ Leadership academy.

Coweta teachers who express an interest in becoming administrators and assistant principals ready to bridge the wide gap to principalships work through a series of modules dealing with all aspects of administration.

Each module consists of a whole group and activity-related component, after which participants are paired with a mentor, whom they shadow.

“It’s an opportunity for training and insight for our employees,” Barker said, adding that classroom time is not lost because module sessions are

offered in the evenings and shadowing is set up around the teacher’s classroom schedule, taking place before or after school.

■ Accounting system and human resources software system upgrade. With a more than 3,000-employee base, the Coweta County School System had an acute need for the upgrade, which will streamline all records. “It’s gone very well,” Barker said, and with limited interruptions. He emphasized the enormity of the undertaking and the necessity for an openended transition timeline.

Piggybacking on its forward progress in ongoing priority areas, the Coweta school system has several upcoming focus areas, according to Barker. They include: ■ Common core curriculum.

English/language arts and math roll out next year, Barker said, which pushes common core to the forefront.

■ Monitoring legislation.

Much of current legislation has the potential to impact Coweta schools, especially a proposed Title 20 waiver.

■ Eighth grade charter col-

lege and career academy.

Beginning next fall, eighthgraders will have the option of spending an entire year at Central Educational Center, where they will experience a variety of courses designed to help put them decide on a career track. The program puts Coweta students ahead of the upcoming state-mandated Career Pathways program.

■ Georgia College 411. A webbased system for assessing career choices, Georgia College 411 will offer student assessments as early as the elementary school level.

■ Exploring expanding virtual learning opportunities for students.

Pursing ever-broadening learning opportunities, constant attention to changing technology needs, encouraging excellence in instruction and administration and partnering with all aspects of the community is Barker’s quantitative data proving Coweta’s commitment to educational excellence.

“That the backbone of our school system, and that’s the biggest indicator of success,” Barker said.

6B — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

VISION

2012

Newnan attracting satellites of colleges, universities In addition to core classes, UWG Newnan offers two full undergraduate degree programs, Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood Education and Bachelor of Science in Nursing degrees. High demand for nursing degrees has required expansion of facilities and faculty, Wright said, adding that Master of Science in Nursing and Doctor of Education in Nursing also are offered 95 percent online.

Graduate degree programs offered at the Newnan Center include Master’s in Early Childhood Education, Master’s in Special Education, Master’s in Middle and Secondary Education, Ed. S. in Educational Leadership and Master’s in Business Administration. Wright said UWG Newnan is also a popular test-proctoring site — where students come to take midterm and final exams — for students taking online courses through USG eCore or through online programs at dozens of universities across the country.

UWG Newnan has several upcoming projects, Wright said, including: ■ Summer core classes at UWG Newnan for new high school graduates, transfer students and transient students.

By REBECCA LEFTWICH rebecca@newnan.com Colleges and universities are meeting demands for more accessibility by creating satellite campuses across Georgia, and as a result Newnan is now home to units of the University of West Georgia, Mercer University and Brewton-Parker College in addition to West Georgia Technical College which will open its own Newnan campus spring 2013.

UWG has been a presence in Coweta County since 1988, located on 14 acres in the Shenandoah Industrial Park.

Enrollment has quadrupled over the past decade, and Coweta students account for about 40 percent of the Newnan Center’s enrollment, according to Cathy Wright, director of UWG Newnan.

UWG’s Newnan Center offers day and evening core curriculum classes, both in person and online through USG eCore. The classes are designed to start students on the path to any of the 106 degree programs offered by the main UWG campus in Carrollton. High-performing high school juniors and seniors can dual-enroll in UWG core classes through the ACCEL program, which covers the cost of tuition and books.

■ A partnership with the Coweta County School System to increase the number of dually-enrolled high school students at the Newnan Center.

■ The nationally recognized UWG Debate Team’s presentation of a mock debate in the historic downtown Newnan courthouse on the evening of April 17.

■ A newly formed Circle K Club, at college-age version of Kiwanis Club, for UWG Newnan students.

Brewton-Parker’s Newnan campus makes its home at Central Educational Center and features large classrooms, state-of-the-art labs and a Christian-based educational philosophy shared by its faculty.

All classes are offered in the evening, allowing new high school graduates and non-traditional students to learn side-by-side in BrewtonParker Newnan’s degree programs, which include Bachelor of Business Administration, Bachelor of Arts in General Studies, Bachelor of Ministry, Associate of Arts and Associate of Business Administration.

Brewton-Parker Newnan offers all programs in an eight-week accelerated format that allows students to take a

full load of 12 semester hours so that they are full-time students and qualify for the maximum amount of financial aid.

By taking 12 semester hours in the fall, 12 semester hours in the spring, and 6 semester hours in the summer, students will complete 30 semester hours of college credit per year and earn their degrees in a timely manner, according to Tim Hammett, BrewtonParker Newnan director.

Responding to numerous requests, Mercer University worked with the leaders of Coweta County’s business and education communities to establish a satellite campus specifically aimed at working adults and also located at CEC. Beginning fall 2010, Mercer began offering undergraduate degree programs for working adults from its Tift College of Education and the College of Continuing and Professional Studies. Additional programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels are planned for future terms.

Undergraduate degree programs currently offered at Mercer Newnan include Bachelor of Science in Education, Early Care and Education; Bachelor of Science in Education, Early Childhood/Special Education; and Bachelor of Science in

Social Science, Public Safety.

Graduate programs offered are M.Ed. in Early Childhood Education and Professional Master of Business Administration.

P ublic safety is another degree program students may pursue at Mercer Newnan.

Students interested in law enforcement — local, county, state and federal — fire service, emergency medical services, telecommunication operators at 911 centers, crime lab employees and private security can benefit from the course offerings in Newnan.

A BS in P ublic Safety requires 120 credits and can be completed entirely online.

Many general education courses are offered online as well. Students can pursue two tracks: criminal justice and homeland security/emergency management, plus a common core. Students can mix courses from both tracks, taking courses online or in the classroom. Courses are offered in eight-week terms and students can choose to attend any Mercer campus center to attend.

Mercer Newnan offers MS in Public Safety Leadership degrees, requiring 36 credits.

The program is an online hybrid, in which classes meet mostly online but are held in a classroom at least twice dur-

ing the term. Each term is eight weeks and four terms make up two academic year semesters. Students pursuing the MS in P ublic Safety Leadership can complete the degree program in one calendar year by adding one summer term, and Mercer rotates required courses to make this possible regardless of the term of entry to the program.

The GRE or the MAT is required for admission.

Catering to the needs of non-traditional or working students, Mercer’s eight-week terms allow full-time attendance for each semester while students are taking only two courses each term, or four courses each semester — 24 credits for the full academic year. Mercer’s format is ideal for students with work and family responsibilities, and it also allows for quicker completion of both public safety degrees.

In addition a summer session provide an additional term so two more courses can be completed during summer sessions. The accelerated program for fall, spring, and summer sessions allow completion of 30 semester credits in one academic year while never requiring students to take more than two courses at a time.

West Georgia Technical College Coweta campus to launch in spring 2013

WGTC

Continued from page 4B back in the budget, where it went through the Senate and through conference committee.

A Coweta campus building was in the budget when it was sent back to Perdue, and this time, he signed off on it.

“Our local legislators really stepped up to the plate and said, ‘we need this,’” Sullivan said.

In addition to land, donations

of cash and in-kind contributions have supported the community’s quest for a campus, and the first phase consisting of two buildings is tentatively set to open in spring 2013. A more formal opening is projected for the following fall. “(A Coweta campus) fit well with our mission to provide a skilled workforce for business and industry, to meet the needs of adult education and for economic development,” Sullivan said. “From early days, our focus been on how we can provide a full-service campus in Coweta

with the limited resources that are available to us but having the greatest impact and the greatest investment that we can.”

Specifically following the pattern of growth in the area’s health care industry, the Newnan Hospital Inc. Allied Healthcare Building will offer Registered Nursing, Licensed Practical Nursing, Medical Assisting, Physical Therapy Assistant, Health Information Technology, Dental Assisting and other medical support programs. A library, community

room and other amenities will be part of the Allied Healthcare building, and a state-funded classroom building will complete the first phase of building.

“We will be keeping students in the community while providing one of the least expensive secondary educational opportunities,” Sullivan said. “What we do is specifically tied to business and industry, so there is flexibility to what we do. We can turn (career education) around very quickly, and we speak specifically to to needs of business and industry.”

West Georgia Technical College has long been a part of Coweta County’s educational community, with a blended Career Academy based at Coweta School System’s charter high school Central Educational Center. Sullivan said no plans are in place to shut down operations at CEC, and that the new full-service campus will increase WGTC’s ability to offer more opportunities to a greater number of students.

“It is a player in higher education,” Sullivan said. “We are

fully SACS [Southern Association of Colleges and Schools] accredited, and it was that initial investment by the people of Coweta that helped us get that state building, and it certainly has fueled the Foundation’s fire to build a state building as well.

Contributions by Newnan Hospital Inc. and many other companies and individuals in this community have fueled that passion to provide the citizens of Coweta the things that they truly deserve in terms of education.”

EDUCATION Wesleyan College named ‘Best Value’ by Princeton Review From STAFF REPORTS education@newnan.com Wesleyan College in Macon was named a "Best Value" private college for 2012 by The Princeton Review, one of America's most widely known education services and test preparation companies.

The Princeton Review teamed with USA TODAY, the nation's most widely read print newspaper, to present its list, "The Princeton Review Best Value Colleges for 2012." The list features 150 schools in 37 states — 75 public and 75 private colleges and universities. Of the 75 schools chosen in each category, the top 10 are ranked 1 to 10, and the remaining 65 are listed in alphabetical order and unranked.

Wesleyan College has consistently appeared on the list since the program was launched in 2004.

“We recommend these extraordinary colleges as our 'best buys' for 2012 and salute them for all they are doing to keep costs down and/or offer generous aid to applicants with f inancial need," said Robert Franek, Princeton Review's senior VP/publisher and lead author of The Best Value Colleges book. "We appreciate the deep concerns families have about affording college. Among the 12,000 teen and parent respondents to our 2011 'College Hopes & Worries Survey,' 86 percent reported financial aid would be 'very necessary' for them to pay for college."

The Princeton Review

chose its "Best Value" schools based on analyses of data the company collected from an initial list of 650 institutions it identified as having excellent academics. More than 30 data points were assessed across three primary areas: academics, cost of attendance, and financial aid.

Cost and financial aid data came from the Company's Fall 2011 surveys of school administrators. Data on academics came from its Fall 2010 through Fall 2011 surveys of school administrators. The Princeton Review also factored in data from surveys of students attending the schools who shared assessments of their professors and their satisfaction with their financial aid awards.

Education notes NOTES Continued from page 4B of Sharpsburg, Jason Ercole of Senoia and Chadwick Myers of Fayetteville, One-Year Certificates from the College of Letters and Sciences in Criminal Justice.

•••

Honor List Emory University’s Oxford College: (Fayetteville) –Shaheen Kurani, daughter of Shehnaz Kurani of Fayetteville and Shiraz Kurani of Lilburn; Danelle Shuler, daughter of Thomas Shuler and Janel Shuler; Khatdija Meghjani, daughter of Amin Meghjani and Dilshad Meghjani; Raheem Lalani, son of Raf iq Lalani and Sonali Lalani; Shaista Lalani, daughter of Nizar Lalani and Karima Lalani; Richard Obiora, son of Innocent Obiora and Emily Obiora.

•••

Merit List Emory University’s Oxford College: Turner Byrd, son of Paul Byrd and Terri Byrd of Fayetteville; Ross Fogg of Fayetteville, son of Paul Fogg and Barrie Fogg; Zachary Vann of Newnan, son of Dr. David Vann and Dr. Jodi Vann; Jordan Mills of Newnan, son of Stuart Mills and Doneen Mills; Brittany Fears of Newnan, daughter of Belinda Fears; Sana Bhojwani of Fayetteville; Krysten Johnson of Sharpsburg, daughter of Jared Johnson and Kimberly Johnson; Anthony Chirillo of Senoia, son of Anthony Chirillo and Heather Chirillo.

•••

Dean’s List Columbus State University: (Newnan) – Carlos Amey, Marketing; Joseph Barrera, Health Science; Mary Beaucham, Theatre Arts; Nikolas Carleo, Theatre Arts; Telea Davis, Special Education; Cherae Gamble, Health Science; Amy Gamino, Pre-Nursing; Joshua May, Biology; Shari

Taylor, Early Childhood Education; Karen Vaughan, Theatre Education; Brittney Weaver, Health Science; Kyle White, Music Performance.

(Fayetteville) – Rylee Bunton, Theatre Arts; Robin Burton, Theatre Arts; Joshua Evans, Music Education; Ford Fourqurean, Music Education; Joshua Franklin, Music Education; Amanda Mazzillo, English Language and Literature; Sarah Tinsley, English Language and Literature; Benjamin Wardell, Criminal Justice. (Sharpsburg) – Laurie Dishman, Early Childhood Education; Casey Hall, Music Education.

(Grantville) – Shantell Hall, Criminal Justice; Jonathan Smith, Music Education.

(Senoia) – Jessica Harris, Education; Jessica Reffitt, Music Education. (Hogansville) – Alan Hetzel, Mathematics; William Jones, Management; Kalie Worley, Exercise Science.

(Fairburn) – Amanda Panter, Special Education.

••• (Submit education news to education@newnan.com .)

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Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 7B

CA L E N DA R Monday — March 19

Wednesday — March 21

■ “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” is

■ Free tax help at Whitesburg Public Library is Wed., March 21 . AARP representatives will

the spring musical at Newnan Theatre Company. “Joseph” has remaining shows Sun., March 18 at 3 p.m.; Thurs., March 22 at 8 p.m. (all seats just $7); Fri., March 23, 8 p.m.; and Sat., March 24 at 3 p.m. For reservations visit Newnan Theatre Company’s website at http://newnantheatre.org. The theatre building is in historic downtown Newnan at 24 First Ave. For questions regarding the content of this or any show, email Artistic Director Paul Conroy at artistic-director@ newnantheatre.org.

■ Legacy Studios students present Thoroughly Modern Millie, Jr.! — A shortened ver-

sion of Broadway’s smash hit for young people, Millie Jr. is a highspirited, zany, 1920s musical that tells the story of young Millie Dillmount, who has just moved to New York City in search of a new life. Show dates through Sun., March 25 . Show times: Wed.-Fri. 7:30 p.m.; Sat. 3 p.m. and 7:30p.m., and Sun. 3 p.m. Tickets: adults/senior $15, children 12 and under $10. The Legacy Theatre, 1175 Senoia Road, Ste. C, Tyrone; 404-895-1473.

Monday — March 19 ■ Baby Time is Mondays 10:30

a.m. at A. Mitchell Powell Jr. L ibr a r y on Ho spit a l Road , Newnan. (Registration required) Remaining for winter quarter: March 19, 26; April 9, 16, 23, 30.

For children ages 0-24 months.

Baby time is designed for oneon-one sharing of books, songs, and rhymes between babies and caregivers.

■ To m my T ho m p s o n S e n io r Center 29 Hospital Rd., Newnan,

has activities normally weekdays Monday through Friday.

Lunch for a small fee, meals on wheels. Director Ida Johnson.

Details: 770-683-8600 or 6838602. Activities weekdays 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. — daily Koffee-Klatch, exercise, card games, crafts and quilting, Wii Games, computer/ Internet; Pool Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday; Line Dancing; afternoon activities 1-3:30 p.m. Card games, Pool and computer room. Also, Grantville Senior Center is at 123 LaGrange St. in Grantville. Details on daily activities or specia l events, 770-583-2706.

■ Newnan Shrine Club meets 6:30 p.m. third Monday of each month at Coweta Lodge No. 60 on Sewell Road in Newnan. For details contact 678-416 -2362.

Next: March 19.

■ Business Networking Group meets Mondays at 5:30 p.m. in

Dunkin Donuts. Free. Call to confirm: 678-461-4580.

■ Coweta-Fayette Rotary Club

meets at Senoia Coffee & Café at 1 Main Street in downtown Senoia.

M o n d ays 6:30 p.m. Details: www.cowetafayetteruatary.org.

■ Spelman College Glee Club

is at Centre for Performing and Visual Arts, Lower Fayetteville Road, Newnan, 7 p.m. March 19 . Sponsored by Patrons of the Centre. Tickets $8 adults, $5 students, $5 seniors 55 and older. Tickets at Centre, Scott’s Bookstore and Morgan’s Jewelers in Ashley Park or reserve at www. thecentreonline.net . Details: 770-254-2787.

■ Newnan Optimist Club meets first and third Mondays 6 p.m. at Country Inn and Suites, Newnan Crossing Boulevard. Details: Tom Little, wlittle@coweta.ga.us or Donna Rainey, 770-251-4974.

Next: March 19.

Tuesday — March 20 ■ Newnan Kiwanis Club meets noon Tu e s d a y s at Newnan

Country Club, U.S. Hwy. 29 North.

■ South Metro Woodturners

me et mont h ly at Red mond Machinery, Coweta Industrial Parkway (off Hwy. 154 between I-85 and U.S. 29), third Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. Visitors welcome.

Anyone interested in wood turning in any of its aspects will find a shared interest within the group.

If you are interested in attending a meeting, learning more about wood turning, or would like a wood turning demonstration at a local event, Contact Rich Aldrich, SMW president at 678-378-5990, or George Daughtry at 770-9640257. Bring a portable chair as the group meets in a warehouse environment. Next: March 20 - Frank Bowers, well-known Atlanta area wood turner and instructor, will show tools and techniques for hollowing out various shapes using both hand-held and captive bar tools.

■ Bigham Masonic Lodge F&AM in Moreland, Ga., meets

first, third Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m.

(March 20)

assist low-to-moderate income citizens of any age 9 a.m.-1 p.m. both days. For joint income tax returns, both spouses must be present to sign the returns, but those attending the session do not have to be library patrons. The AARP asks that anyone seeking tax assistance bring any or all necessary supporting documents. Details: Whitesburg Public Library at 770-834-0713 or AARP at 1-800-227-7669 or www.aarp. org/taxaide .

■ Free tax help — Coweta County Public Library System and AARP Foundation volunteers have partnered to prepare federal and state tax returns for free. Volunteers are at A. Mitchell Powell Jr. Library, 25 Hospital Rd., Newnan, 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Wednesdays through April 11 (770-253-3625).

Free help also offered at Central Library, 85 Literary Lane, east Coweta, 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Thursdays through April 12 (770683-2052). Bring a copy of last year’s (2010) tax return, copies of W-2 forms, 1099 forms, Social Security Benef its Statement, interest or dividends received statements, unemployment compensation statements, forms indicating a tax paid in 2011, dependent child care provider information, receipts or canceled checks for itemizing deductions and Social Security cards or other official documentation for the taxpayer and dependents. Free electronic filing encouraged, said coordinator Jimmy Taylor. All ages welcome. Some extensive or complicated returns will not be accepted.

■ Senior Friends of Piedmont Newnan Hospital offers fun,

fellowsh ip a nd i n formation .

Membership $15 per person per year or $25 per couple; and two years is $25 per person and $45 per couple. Details: 770-254-3372.

Meets 3rd Wednesdays (March 21) in the convention center at Coweta County Fairgrounds on Pine Road. Doors open 9:15 a.m., meeting 10 a.m. Lunch buffet. Senior Friends has a bridge club Wednesdays 1-4 p.m. at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Roscoe Road, also open to non-members.

Reservations required. Details: Betty Smythe 770-502-8702 or President Louise Swint 678-4239289. Reservations, contact Senior Friends office at 770-254-3372.

■ Oil, acrylic and watercolor

painting offered on an ongoing basis by instructor Kay Stanley at A&O Bridges Community Center in Sharpsburg W e d n e s d ay s 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Fee is $48 for a four-week session or $14 a class, plus supplies. (Basic drawing offered in separate session.)

Details: 770-254-9409, kayart1@ bellsouth.net.

■ Dog obedience classes for beginners are offered in a 10-week session beginning March 21 at the Johnny Brown Building, a heated and air-conditioned, multi-purpose facility at Coweta Recreation Department, 39 Hospital Rd. Classes meet Wednesdays 7-9 p.m. Dogs must be at least 5 months old. Cost is $125 per dog.

Exercises taught include: heeling on leash with automatic sits, figure eight heeling, stand for examination, heeling off leash with automatic sits, coming on command - on and off leash, sit and down stays - on and off leash, behavior modif ication and socialization. Instructor is Vicky Jones with more than 42 years teaching experience with all breeds, specializing in dogs with behavior and temperament problems. Children are welcome to participate but must be physically able to handle their dogs and understand lengthy instruction.

Details: Jones, 770-253-1427; or Coweta Recreation Department, 770-254-3750.

Thursday — March 22 ■ BizGro Coweta meets every

other Thursday at 9 a.m. at White Oak Golf Club. Next is March 22 . Focus is on personal referrals between local businesses and learning marketing ideas for members to grow their business.

Visitors welcome or contact 678561-7111 or check online at BizGro. biz .

■ Kiwanis Club of White Oak Golden K meets at Sprayberry’s,

on Bullsboro Drive, at 9 a.m.

Thur s d ays . Members gather

for breakfast coffee, about 8:30.

Details about membership: Mel Hayden at 770-304-0305. Web site is www.whiteoakgoldenk.org and e-mail is webmaster@whiteoakgoldenk.org .

■ K i w a n i s C l u b o f C ow e t a C o u n t y meets 2nd and 4th

Thursdays 10 a.m. at Newnan Country Club U.S. Hwy. 29 N. Details: Pres. Louise Davis, 770253-7147. Next: March 22.

“Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” is

the spring musical at Newnan Theatre Company. Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice originally wrote “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” in 1968 as a 15-minute “pop cantata” for a boys’ school choir in London. By 1982 Webber and Rice had expanded the piece to a 90-minute musical, which ran for 824 performances in New York and won a Tony Award. A film version in 2000 starred Donny Osmond.

“Joseph” has remaining shows Sun., March 18 at 3 p.m.; Thurs., March 22 at 8 p.m. (all seats just $7); Fri., March 23, 8 p.m.; and Sat., March 24 at 3 p.m. For reservations visit Newnan Theatre Company’s website at http://newnantheatre.org. The theatre building is in historic downtown Newnan at 24 First Ave. For questions regarding the content of this or any show, email Artistic Director Paul Conroy at artistic-director@newnantheatre.org.

■ Basic drawing classes offered

on an ongoing basis by instructor Kay Stanley at A&O Bridges Community Center in Sharpsburg Thursdays 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Cost is $48 for four weeks or $14 a class, plus supplies. Details: 770254-9409, kayart1@bellsouth.net.

■ Plant Fair — Head to Callaway Gardens with a plant list and a vehicle large enough to take home all of the great finds from the Callaway Gardens Annual Plant Fair and Sale, March 22-25 .

There will be an array of flowering plants and shrubs as well as some gardening books and garden decor, said Patricia Collins, director of the Gardens. A dozen nurseries and specialty vendors from throughout the Southeast will have plants for sale, answer plant-related questions and offer t hei r u n ique ga rden-related wares. The Plant Fair and Sale will be open to the public Thurs., March 22 from 3 to 7 p.m.; March 23 and 24 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and March 25 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission to the Plant Fair and Sale at the Beach Dome at Robin Lake Beach is free when entering through the Beach gate on U.S. Hwy. 27.

■ Civil Air Patrol PTC-Falcon Field Composite Squadron meets Thursdays 7-9 p.m., PTC United Methodist Church, 225 Robinson Rd., Peachtree City. For ages 12 adult interested in aviation, radio communications, search and rescue, and drill team. Details: Lt. Col. Ed Guilbert, 770-487-9526; web site www.capga116.com.

Friday — March 23 ■ Main Street Newnan events: • Spring Art Walk; March 23.

• Spring Taste of Newnan; April 19.

• Wine Walk; June 15 • Fourth of July Parade; July 4 • Sunrise on the Square Road Race; Sept. 1 • Fall Art Walk; Sept. 21 • Fall Taste of Newnan; Oct. 4 • Oktoberfest Boutique Beer Tasting; Oct. 26 • Downtown Trick or Treat; Oct. 31 • Holiday Open House; Nov. 11.

• Santa’s Arrival; Nov. 23.

■ First Baptist Church will close Madison Street from throughtraffic from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. to host a mobile food pantry to distribute food to the needy. Remaining dates: March 23 and April 27.

Down The Road ■ Preview the new Piedmont N ewnan Hos pit al — Get a

sneak peak of the brand-new, state-of-the-art hospital Piedmont Newnan Hospital before the new doors open. An open house of the new facility at 745 Poplar Road in Newnan (near the intersection of Popla r Road a nd I-85), is Saturday, March 24 , 1 to 4 p.m. All community members are invited to tour the new facility and enjoy refreshments a nd enterta in ment th roughout the afternoon. The formal ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place at the main entrance of the building at 2:15 p.m. The 364,000-square-foot, nine-story facility will house 136 beds and 23 Emergency Department treatment rooms. The new Piedmont Newnan Hospital will officially open its new doors to patients in

May 2012. Details: newpiedmontnewnan.org.

■ Spring Rabies Low Cost vaccine clinic will be held Sat., March 24 , by Newnan-Coweta Humane Society at the fire station on Ebenezer Church Road (about 1 mile south of Thomas Crossroads off Hwy. 154) and also at the Dixon Road station (off Welcome Road). Hours 1 to 3 p.m. at both locations. Veterinarians from the HELP Spay Neuter Clinic and Lakeview Animal Hospital in Carrollton, are volunteering their services to this community outreach. Rabies vaccines for dogs and cats 12 weeks or older are only $9. Payment by check or cash. Dogs must be on leashes and cats in carriers.

Limited other vaccines will for reduced costs as well. All proceeds benefit the foster pet program. Details: NCHS 770-2534694 or email to nchs_rescue@ numail.org.

■ 2nd annual Luncheon and Fashion Show by New n a n

Carnegie Library Foundation is

March 24 on the theme “The

L a ng uage of Flowers .” T he gala event will again be held at Something Special in downtown Newnan. The term “the secret language of flowers” was coined in the Victorian era when every f lower signaled a certain feeling or emotion. Today we send flowers to celebrate, to remember, and to mourn — so this language continues to expressed in a very personal way. Keynote speaker Jennifer Hopkins, owner of Virtu Floral and Event Design, will reintroduce this custom by cleverly working messages into bouquets. Dillard’s, Blue Moon Boutique, Coldwater Creek , Ann Taylor and Wedgewood Boutique will present their newest spring and summer fashions.

Pianist Sue Royal will provide light background music. Tickets, $25 each, available at Carnegie Library and Scott’s Bookstore.

Doors will open at 11 a.m., the program will begin at 11:30 followed by lunch and modeling at noon. The day’s events will conclude with the raffle and winners of the silent auction. Proceeds will be directed towards special Carnegie programs slated for the summer and fall. Details: www. newnancarnegielibraryfoundation.com or contact the Carnegie at 770-683-1347.

■ Georgia Heartland Humane Society pet adoptions noon- 4

p.m. Saturdays, Newnan PetSmart a nd Sundays at Fayetteville PetSmart from 1 -5 p.m. Check www.gaheartland.com. Coweta Pet Savers www.pleaserescueme. com volunteers take pictures of adoptable animals at animal control in Newnan several times a week and post them. Large lost & found database.

■ Newnan - Coweta Humane Society pet adoptions held

weekly at PetSmart, Newnan Pavilion off Highway 34 East near I-85, Sundays 12:30-3:30.

Pictures of pets in foster care, along with those featured from Coweta Animal Control, may be viewed at nchsrescue.org. Details: 770-253-4694 or nchs_rescue@ numail.org . HELP Low Cost Spay/ Neuter Clinic, in Avery Park (12 The Crescent Drive, off U.S. Hwy. 29 North, Newnan).

■ Bingo by American Legion Post 57— $1,000 Jackpot and

5 $100 games. Non-smoking. 6 p.m. Sunday, 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Hwy. 29 N, half mile from 34

bypass (across from A & W Nursery). Benef its Veterans Relief, Com munity Projects 770- 251-6949.

■ Roscoe Jenkins Funeral H o m e p a r a d e celebrat i n g

more than 100 years benefits the Coweta Community Food Pantry and One Roof, on March 25, at 4 p.m. in downtown Newnan.

■ Masonic Lodge 429 of Sargent meets 7 p.m. second and fourth Mondays. Details: James Jones, 770-253-5790. (March 26) ■ McIntosh Lodge 735 meets second and fourth Mondays at 7 p.m. on East Washington Street.

Includes dinner. Details: Curtis Grice, 770-253-8327. (March 26).

■ South Metro Rose Society meets March 26, 7 p.m. at The

Heritage Bank at 440 N. Jeff Davis Drive in Fayetteville. All rose growers from novice to expert are invited to attend free of charge. Program features Stephen Hoy of Warner Robins, GA on “Singularly Beautiful Roses.” Hoy is an ARS Rose Show Judge who collects rare and unusual varieties of roses.Details or answers to rose questions: 70-487-7615.

■ Coweta Lodg e 60 Fr ee & Accepted Masons meets 2nd

and 4th Tuesdays. Supper 6:30 p.m.; lodge Sewell Road, Newnan, opens 7:30 p.m. Next: March 27.

■ Canc er Su p por t G r ou p of East Coweta meets 2 p.m. fourth Tuesdays. Sponsored by Senoia United Methodist Church, corner of Seavy and Bridge Streets.

(March 27) Coordinated by Ivie Bowman, a retired school nurse and parish nurse, who along with her pastor, recognized the need for a support group ministry for cancer patients and their families.

Details: Bowman, church office, 770-599-3245 and senoiaunitedmeth@bellsouth.net.

■ Trivia Bee hosted by Certified Literate Is Coweta’s Key (CLICK) is 7 p.m. Tues., March 27, at the Carnegie Library in downtown New n a n . Pa r ticipa nts compete in a series of rounds, and a final bonus round will determine the winner. It is the literacy group’s primary annual fundraiser Sponsorships available.

For details contact CLICK at 678423-2000 x339 or e-mail CLICK Executive Director Lisa Johnston, lisa.johnston@cowetaschools.net .

■ Scholarship Dinner Event — The 2012 Wyatt James Gentry Memoria l Schola rship Fund Raising Dinner & Entertainment will be held by Newnan Theatre Company and The Gentry family March 31. The evening will begin with wine and refreshments at 5:45 pm, progress to dinner at 6:30 pm, move into the main stage theatre for entertainment, and end with a coffee and tea reception after the show.

Dress: Cocktail Attire. Tickets are $30, and are available at: http://newnantheatre.org/page/ wyatt-scholarship .

■ Masterworks Chorale’s 20112012 concert season continues with Music of Joseph Martin, March 31, 7:30 p.m. at the Centre for Performing and Visual Arts.

—Spring Concert, June 1 at 8 p.m.

All concerts are at the Centre.

For information or to support the Chorale’s efforts and scholarship, send gifts to Masterworks Chorale, P.O. Box 2373, Newnan, GA 30263.

April 2012 ■ Community Welcome House

women’s and childrens’ shelter for victims of domestic abuse holds volunteer orientation first Mondays. (Next: April 2) Details and location: staff.cwh@numail. org; call 770-304-0966 Ext. 1; or check www.communitywelcomehouse.org .

■ La Leche League of Newnan — Mother to Mother Breastfeeding Support, first Mondays 6:45 p.m., Cokes Chapel United Methodist Childcare Center, 4096 Lower Fayetteville Rd., Sharpsburg.

Contact Debbie 770-253-5796 or Lara McCarthy 678-423-9881.

Meetings free. Babies and children welcome. Next: April 2.

■ Newnan-Coweta Lions Club

meets noon f i rst Tuesdays, Golden Corral, Bullsboro Drive.

Details: Peter Burns, secretary, at 770-252-6935 or 678-850-0738.

April 3.

Ongoing/ Upcoming ■ A yard sale by Senoia Area Historical Society is Sat., April 14 at the headquarters house. Donations of items are being accepted. Clean out your garage and bring your used treasures of household items, books, tools, furniture, toys, etc. Items may be dropped off at 6 Couch Street any Friday or Saturday between 1 and 4 p.m. If you have any questions, contact Margaret at 678 477-2787. The sale will be 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. – shine or moderate rain.

■ Annual Charles Wadsworth and Friends concert is April 21, at the Charles Wadsworth Audito-

rium. The hall is named for the famous Newnan son.

■ Straight Spokes Motorcycle Club presents the

annual Charity Benefit Ride for Community Welcome

House safe-haven for women and children Charity Ride and Family Event Sat., April 21. Gene Evans Great South Harley-Davidson 185 E. Hwy. 16, Newnan, GA; $25 per bike. Signup 9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m.

Kick Stands up at 11 a.m. Music by Jason Lee and the Cyclones John Baker Full Throttle and Denny Payton of Mountain 94.9 live and in person. Food, raffles, T-shirts, family fun. Contact Robin DeMaio, rdemaio1961yahoo.com or 678-850-1352.

■ Newnan High School Class of 1971 plans their 41st class reunion April 21 at the Wyndham Conference Center in Peachtree City. Deails: contact Melvin Bolton at 678-933-7921, Wanda Teagle-Florence at 770328-0487, or Theresa Gould Pritchett at 770-328-4071.

8B — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

EDUCATION

Heaberlin, Pollard advocate for education on Capitol Hill From STAFF REPORTS education@newnan.com Dr. Bob Heaberlin, the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) Middle School Federal Relations Director from Georgia, recently met with Georgia’s federal lawmakers in Washington, D.C., during the second session of the 112th Congress.

This was part of the annual NAESP Federal Relations Conference held in Washington, D.C., Feb. 6-8.

Heaberlin, along with Eddie Pollard, the NAESP Elementary School Federal Relations Director from Georgia, met with Congressman John Lewis and Congressman Lynn Westmoreland, along with staff members from the offices of Congressman Tom Price,

Submitted photo

Dr. Bob Heaberlin, left, and Eddie Pollard, right, recently met with U.S. Representative John Lewis of Georgia, center, in Washington, D.C. at the National Association of Elementary School Principals Federal Relations Conference.

Congressman Jack Kingston, Senator Johnny Isakson, and Senator Saxby Chambliss.

Heaberlin and Pollard brought forth issues such as the role of the principal in schools, Title I, Title II, and the overhaul of the

Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).

Heaberlin is principal at Lee Middle School in Coweta County and Pollard is principal at Tyrone Elementary School in Fayette County.

$26.5 million dining, housing complex planned for UWG From STAFF REPORTS education@newnan.com A $26.5 million, multi-phased building project — the East Village Housing and Dining Complex — is under way at the University of West Georgia.

RA-LIN and Associates, Inc. has been selected by the Board of Regents to provide construction management services for the project, which will be built on a parcel of land at the highly visible east entrance to the UWG campus off West Georgia Drive and Maple Street in Carrollton.

Two existing residence buildings, Downs Hall and Boykin Hall, will be razed, as will the existing Art Annex building.

They will be replaced with two new residence halls totaling 460 beds and a new state-of-the-art, 30,000 square-foot dining facility with seating for 320.

Plans also call for construction of office space for universi-

ty housing and residence life staff within the dining facility. In addition, Bowdon Hall, a 290bed residence hall, will be renovated inside and out to include ADA accessibility, updated bathrooms, wireless IT, and other improvements.

Construction could begin as early as July 2012, with an estimated completion for all projects of August 2013.

The residence halls that will be replaced or renovated were built between 1964 and 1977 and have had only minor upgrades such as paint, carpet, and roofs over the years.

“These and other recent changes will provide us the opportunity to more effectively compete with peer institutions in Georgia and the Southeast,” said James Sutherland, UWG’s vice president of business and finance. “These new facilities will be an asset to the entire UWG community. The goal is to enhance the student experi-

ence on campus by providing attractive and modern on-campus accommodations and amenities that will attract new students in support of our institutional goal of becoming a destination university. The aim is to increase student satisfaction with residence life facilities at UWG in an effort to increase enrollment, and improve our retention, progression and graduation rates.”

In addition to RA-LIN, the project team includes HADP as architect-of-record, Collins Cooper Carusi as associate architect, and Hal Gibson Companies as program manager.

Garrett said funds were not available to completely finish the interior of the Athletic Office Building at the campus sports complex at that time, but that UWG has decided to complete that work in tandem with the East Village project.

EXPLORE THE MOST FORWARD-LOOKING UNIVERSITY IN THE STATE – IT’S RIGHT IN YOUR BACKYARD. What will you discover at the University of West Georgia? With 106 mind-opening majors, more than 150 student organizations, and countless research and internship opportunities, the possibilities are endless.

Once you Go West, you can go anywhere. gowestgeorgia.com

MARCH is Colon Cancer Awareness Month

Providing Complete Gastrointestinal Care Dr. Thelma Lucas

Services Available Colonoscopy Flexible Sigmoidoscopy Esophagogastrodueodenoscopy (EGD) Esophageal Manometry Bravo pH Probe Capsule Endoscopy (Pill Cam) Hemorrhoid Banding ERCP Dr. Seeman is a graduate

of Columbia University and Boston University School of Medicine. He completed his residency at St. Mary’s Hospital / Yale University School of Medicine and a fellowship at Griffin Hospital/Yale University School of Medicine Affiliated Hospital Program. He is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology. Dr Seeman has been in private practice in Carrollton since 1991. He specializes in esophageal reflux and colon cancer screenings.

Newnan 770-251-5559 at

Dr. Arledge is a graduate of the University of Virginia with a B.S. degree in Biology.

He completed medical school at the Medical College of Virginia. He completed his residency at the Medical College of Virginia and his fellowship in Gastroenterology at the University of South Florida. He is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology. He is also a Flight Surgeon rank of Major in the Georgia Air National Guard Savannah. Dr. Arledge joined West Georgia Gastroenterology Associates in September 2008.

www.westgagastro.com

Dr. John Arledge

Dr. Howard Seeman

We specialize in Colon Cancer screening and in the diagnosis and treatment of: Reflux and Heartburn Stomach and Digestive Disorders Crohn’s and Colitis Hemorrhoids Hepatitis Liver, Pancreas and Gallbladder Disease Dr. Lucas is a graduate of

the University of Illinois at Urbana and University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago. She completed her residency and fellowship at University of Illinois Hospitals and Clinics.

Prior to joining West Georgia Gastroenterology Associates in 2007, Dr. Lucas served as Medical Director of Liver Transplantation at University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine and at Rush University Medical Center. She is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology. She specializes in diseases of the liver.

Vision 2012

Sunday, March 18, 2012 - 1D

Hospitals — page 4D

I n d u s t ry — p a g e 5 D

Hometowns — pages 6D, 7D, 8D

— Cancer hospital opens in summer — CTCA focused on patient care — Piedmont open house March 24

— Film industry impacting Coweta — DA chairman sees bright future — Kia Motors helps revitalize region

— Senoia keeps growing — Blueprints project to help Moreland — Sharpsburg, Palmetto, Turin news

College campus on city’s wish list

By JOHN A. WINTERS john@newnan.com The possibility of a downtown college campus, the opening of a state-of-the-art multiuse center and major construction projects are on the city of Newnan’s horizon.

At the same time, the economic situation is slowly improving, with key taxes and fees showing increases over previous years. Despite that, city officials are not planning anything major other than what is funded with the new Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax. The big ticket items — a $9 million public safety center and new fire station and fire trucks — are possible solely to passage of the 2013 SPLOST. Without that tax, those

Inside Do young people want to come back here after college? Find out what else teens have to say about Coweta County on page 3D projects are dead. The public safety center alone would take up more than half of the city’s general operating budget. To build it without SPLOST would require borrowing on the city’s part, something officials are loathe to do.

The public safety complex will be the city’s largest individual investment ever.

However, there probably won’t be any groundbreaking for either that facility or the northside fire station until next

year because the city still needs to select design firms and site locations.

In the meantime, there’s been continued discussion about what to do with the old Newnan Hospital on Jackson Street. One option is to put the University of West Georgia’s Newnan campus there and expand it.

“Talks are in progress,” said Mayor Keith Brady. “It’s a very exciting possible use for that facility.”

Exactly how that would happen, and more importantly, who would pay for it, are all part of those discussions.

“It’s definitely something the city of Newnan is interested in pursuing,” said Hasco Craver IV, the city’s business development director. “It has the potential to create a lasting

of a new Piedmont Newnan Hospital this spring and a new Cancer Treatment Centers of America facility later this summer, the city is poised to become a premier health care center.

Officials familiar with the negotiations say moving the university branch to the old hospital facility would allow it to expand and offer additional programs, especially those focusing on health care, and Photo by Jeff Leo degrees related to that such as There’s been continued discussion about what to do with the old Newnan Hospital on Jackson Street. One option: putting the business administration and University of West Georgia’s Newnan campus there and expanding insurance. That, in turn, could it. “Talks are in progress,” said Mayor Keith Brady. “It’s a very excit- further enhance the area’s position as a major medical coming possible use for that facility.” plex.

Funding is still up in the air master’s degrees in business and covers a wide range of posfoundation for the economy.”

As of now, the Newnan cam- administration, early childhood sibilities — from the university pus offers undergraduate education, middle grades and degrees in nursing and early special education.

See NEWNAN, page 2D With the upcoming opening childhood development, and

Newnan getting two new history museums Include furnishings, children’s museums

By NICHOLE GOLDEN nichole@newnan.com

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

The Newnan Centre, a city of Newnan conference facility, is taking shape adjacent to the Coweta school system’s Centre for Performing and Visual Arts on Lower Fayetteville Road.

NEW CONFERENCE FACILITY

Newnan Centre set to open in July

By JOHN A. WINTERS john@newnan.com For more than 10 years, it was talked about, kicked around, dropped, revisited, redropped, re-evaluated and reeverything.

And it still almost didn’t happen.

But in a 4-3 vote in June 2011, Newnan City Council approved construction of a new convention center on Lower Fayetteville Road.

But don’t call the Newnan Centre a convention center.

“It’s not really a convention center, it’s more of a multi-use

facility... at least for now,” said Parks Avery, who chairs the Newnan Convention Center Authority, which oversees the complex.

“It’s an event center — a ‘conference center’ pigeonholes us,” he added.

Slated to open in July of this year, the $5 million center encompasses about 16,500 square feet.

The facility includes a 6,270square-foot ballroom that can seat 500, and a 700-square-foot boardroom.

A covered walkway leads to a 1,000-square-foot pavilion that in turns leads to the

nearby Coweta County School System’s Centre for Performing and Visual Arts.

There is also a grass amphitheater, village green and ample parking.

Focusing on that multi-purpose use, the ballroom can be walled off to create smaller rooms, and the boardroom can be used as a bride’s room for weddings.

Already the center has booked three weddings, three Christmas parties, and a couple of other events.

And everything is state of

See CENTRE, page 2D

Newnan-Coweta Historical Society will soon be opening two new museums for Coweta residents and visitors to enjoy.

The Hollis-McRitchie Furnishings Museum in Newnan is expected to open in November or December 2012. Planned nearby is the Children’s Museum of Newnan, slated for a fall 2013 opening.

The Hollis-McRitchie Furnishings Museum will be located in the classic, Georgian-style mansion at 74 Jackson St., at the corner of Clark Street. The former home of Dr. and Mrs. Jimmy Thomasson, it most recently served as offices for the former Newnan Hospital.

Although the museum was originally set for a late spring opening, the home will be undergoing modifications such as adding a sprinkler system and improving restrooms. The work will not be completed until later in the year.

The home’s features include a foyer with a curved, suspended staircase and alcove midway. Other highlights are a walnut paneled den, beautiful crown molding throughout, and antique carriage lanterns.

Now owned by the city of Newnan, the home was donated by the Newnan Hospital Board of Directors.

The city will lease the building to the historical society.

A bequest from Newnan native Edgar Baldwin Hollis, including $2 million in funds

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

Passersby at the busy intersection just north of downtown Newnan have likely noticed the significant changes to the soon-to-be HollisMcRitchie Furnishings Museum’s lot at the corner of Jackson and Clark streets. The old magnolias have been pruned to allow a clearer view of the home.

and a collection of antique furniture, makes the museum possible.

Although originally from Newnan, Hollis spent most of his career in Washington, D.C., working for the National Security Agency’s InterLibrary Loan Division. Hollis’ mother was Margaret McRitchie, who was born and raised in Newnan.

The antiques on display will include a beautiful desk, chairs, and a grandfather clock, said Pamela Prange of the NewnanCoweta Historical Society’s Board of Directors. Visitors to

the museum will also enjoy Hollis’ books. “We have a fabulous collection of first-edition books,” she said.

Prange said the society is consulting with the Thomasson family to restore some of the original colors and details of the home.

While the kitchen will be updated for use, its decor will be reflective of the more quaint 1920s era. “We’re hoping to take it back to the very closest,” said Prange.

A landscape architect has

See MUSEUMS, page 3D

Years of planning pay off with opening of state park Volunteers continue to build trails at the 3,000-acre site; more attractions are in the works

By SARAH FAY CAMPBELL sarah@newnan.com After years of hoping, planning, and hard work, Chattahoochee Bend State Park became a reality in 2011.

The nearly 3,000-acre state park along the Chattahoochee River in northwest Coweta opened to the public on July 1, 2011 — 12 years after the property was acquired by the state.

Though it will be hard to top 2011, 2012 is shaping up to be an impressive year for Chattahoochee Bend.

Volunteer groups building mountain bike and equestrian trails have coalesced, and

several miles of trails have already been “flagged” by the two groups.

Construction continues on hiking trails, and the trail network also continues to grow.

All the trail-building has been done by volunteers associated with the Friends of Chattahoochee Bend State Park.

The friends group formed in late 2008 and was officially “chartered” in early 2009.

Volunteer clean-up days started soon after, and once the years of accumulated trash and junk were cleared out, the volunteer days became trail-building days.

As of late February, the Friends of Chattahoochee Bend has completed a total of 7.25 miles of hiking trails, as well as several bridges, according to Steve St. Laurent, trails chairman for the friends group.

The main Riverside Trail is five miles long; there is also the East West Trail, and the Tower Trail begins at the visitor’s center.

Volunteers added a new quarter-mile section to the East West Trail at the February work day, St. Laurent said.

“It will be a well-used trail, as it connects the two tent/RV campgrounds to the Riverside Trail near the boat launch,” St.

Laurent said. “Until now, our visitors had to walk along the road or drive to the ‘Hooch.

Now there’s a nice winding trail to a picturesque spot on the river.”

The focus of the March volunteer days will be continuing that new section of the East West Trail and connecting via a spur to the Riverside Trial, closer to the observation tower.

“That will provide our guests with a loop trail about threequarters of a mile long,” St. Laurent said.

More hiking trails are planned.

“The long-range trail project includes reviews by Georgia

Department of Natural Resources leaders, archeologists, and botanists, so it will be some time before we see physical progress on those,” St. Laurent said.

Building a trail isn’t a onetime thing — the trails need regular maintenance. The friends group has a few volunteers who “adopt” a trail section and, on their own time, do regular maintenance.

Horse trails and mountain bike trails have always been a part of the plans for Chattahoochee Bend State Park.

But it wasn’t so long ago that those trails were only an idea

and any actual trail building was thought to be many years into the future.

When interested individuals took the initiative, however, things started to happen.

Mountain bikers have flagged 13 miles of trails and are waiting on DNR review and approval. “A few volunteers got together and put boots on the ground, sparking interest,” St. Laurent said. “With a little social media marketing, we’ve formed a group of nearly two dozen folks eager to get started.”

The Southern Off-Road

See PARK, page 2D

2D — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

VISION

Planning pays off/state park

PARK Continued from page 1D Bicycle Association and the International Mountain Bike Association are also interested in working with the friends group, St. Laurent said.

“Just as awesome are the horse trails that are being scouted,” he said. “Experienced horse trail builders have grabbed the reins and are working toward making 20plus miles of trail a reality. The equestrian group has a good number of interested folks.”

There are some non-trail related things going on at the park, as well.

“Next year, the DNR wants us to promote more geocaching at our park,” said Glenn Flake, president of the Friends of Chattahoochee Bend State Park. The activity uses global-positioning devices in a treasure-hunt sort of search.

The friends group also has some grant money to spend.

Flake said he would like to see the organization purchase a few canoes and/or kayaks that could be rented to visitors.

Because there is currently only one river access accessible by vehicle, park visitors who rent the boats would have to paddle up river and then float back down.

Eventually, there will be public access to the north end of

the park — the actual “bend” in the river that gives the park its name.

Platform camping sites, steps down to the river, picnic areas, and a restroom are already there but can only be accessed either by water or by hiking along the Riverside Trail.

A dirt road leads to the northern area. Plans are to eventually upgrade that to a two-lane gravel road to allow the northern area of the park to be used, including two large fields.

A major part of improving the road will include moving it away from the rear of three residences that border the park property. That is expected to be quite expensive, according to Flake — so expensive that it may be many years into the future.

Last October, the friends hosted “October Outdoors at the Bend,” featuring food, games, a hayride, and various educational activities.

It was a tremendous success.

“We planned for 300 people and 1,000 showed up,” said Flake.

“October Outdoors exceeded all of our expectations — from the perfect weather to the number of people attending and the fantastic vendors and volunteers,” said Pam Giles, events chairwoman for the friends group. “Everyone complimented the park and the festivities, and parking brought in

State Representative Lynn Smith cheers the opening of the new Chattahoochee Bend State Park in July 2011.

$1,125 for the park. And they sold 12 new membership to the Friends of Chattahoochee Bend.”

Plans are to make October Outdoors an annual event.

Coming up next month, Chattahoochee Bend will be the host site for the U.S. Individual Orienteering Championships.

Orienteering is the sport of using a map and compass to find various checkpoints. It is a timed event.

The championships will be held on April 13, 14, 15.

Completion on April 13 will be on the campus of the University of West Georgia.

For more information, visit www.ousa2012.org.

“Since opening on July 1…

far: 5 miles of trail built in the first year, and another 2.5 in the second year! And it’s not all intensive work. Sometimes all you need is a good rake. We’re always glad to see new people at our volunteer days, and positively ecstatic when they return again and again.”

The trail days are held the fourth Saturday of each month, except November and December, when they are moved because of the holidays.

The organization is also adding additional volunteer days.

For more information, visit www.bendfriend.org.

Chattahoochee Bend State Park is open daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Admission is $5 per passenger vehicle. Or admission is free to Chattahoochee

everything has exceeded our expectations,” said Flake. “I never thought we’d have nearly 400 paid friends volunteers; I never thought we’d already have over 7 miles of trail already cut. I didn’t think we would get to equestrian discussion and activity until phase two,” Flake said.

“The most important part of our progress is the people who have chosen to get involved,” said St. Laurent. “We could never have gotten all our trails and bridges built without their contributions of time, labor and a lot of perspiration. When people like our awesome volunteers get involved, the better our brand-new park becomes,” he said. “Volunteers are the key to our phenomenal success so

Times-Herald file

Bend — and the rest of Georgia’s state parks — with a friends membership. The visitor’s center and store is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

To get to the park, take State Hwy. 34 West or State Hwy. 16 West, and follow the signs.

The park features two developed campgrounds, two platform camping areas, and an Adirondack-style campground for small groups. There are two pavilions, and numerous picnic tables with grills along the river at the boat ramp area.

There are also playgrounds at the campground and at the river.

For park information, visit www.gastateparks.org/chattahoocheebend or call 770-2547271.

Scheduled to open in July, Newnan Centre will be used as a multi-purpose facility CENTRE Continued from page 1D the art, Avery said, who shows off artist renderings of the facility like a proud parent.

“This will be the most wired building in the state of Georgia,” he said. “It is total ‘plug-and-play.’

“This place is going to be gorgeous... people are going to be bowled over, it is that pretty,” Parks added. “The people of Newnan are going to be very proud.”

One thing the center has in its favor starting off is that there is no debt — various taxes and Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax funds covered building costs.

Overall, the total construction budget was $5,044,000; that number includes owner costs and a construction contingency fund. Those total owner costs include design /engineering fees,

kitchen equipment, tables and chairs, and related items.

Funding came from the following: $1.638 million from 2002 SPLOST, $2.742 million from 2007 SPLOST, $662,620 from Hotel/Motel and rental car taxes.

The center authority receives 40 percent of the Hotel/Motel tax and 100 percent of the local Motor Vehicle Rental tax. The hotel tax counts for about $110,000 to $120,000 and the car rental tax brings in $80,000 to $100,000 each year.

With an annual operating budget in the $260,000 to $280,000 range, the center needs to come up with somewhere around $80,000 in revenue to break even.

Avery estimates the center needs to be occupied about 10 percent of the time each year to break even. That’s a lower number than many conference centers that need a 40 percent to 50 percent occupancy, and that’s because of the taxes the Newnan facility receives.

The center probably will

always need some help on revenue with the taxes, but Avery hopes the center can also be an economic engine for the community.

Take a wedding, for example — the party would need caterers, musicians, florists, waiters, bartenders and so forth. And all that could come from local businesses.

“The whole idea is to benefit the local economy,” Avery said.

“We can do a lot of things for the city if we are successful.”

Exactly what the future holds for the Newnan Centre is still a little unknown, at least in terms of who will use it.

Avery sees it as an excellent place for training classes — there’s plenty of room and the audio/visual components are state of the art. Regional trade shows, charity fundraising dinners, office parties, community events and civic group meetings are also possibilities.

“It’s still up in the air as to who is going to use it,” Avery said, adding the center will focus on those groups that do.

The center has room to expand.

The original plan was to build a hotel alongside the Newnan Centre. That proposal was presented to Newnan City Council several years ago, but was voted down.

“It just never made good business sense,” said Newnan Mayor Keith Brady about the first proposal. “The numbers just didn’t work.”

The authority went dormant somewhat, but took another look around 2005. That proposal called for a conference center three to five times the size

of the one now under construction, as well as another developer building the hotel.

The location was to be along Interstate 85.

The cost was prohibitive, with Avery saying the city still would have to kick in about $700,000 annually for it to break even. The authority didn’t even present that option to council for a vote.

Then in 2010, the authority was asked to revisit the issue — building a center on the land it already had on Lower Fayetteville Road with the money it had. The result is the

Newnan Centre, but without the hotel.

Although council split on the vote, Brady said all council members are now behind the project.

“That is a great thing about our council,” he said.

“Everyone pulls together and everyone is a team player.”

There is room for the center to expand, and also for a developer to build a hotel.

“Three years from now, it could be too small and hopefully we will have the revenues to justify increasing the size,” Avery said.

College campus downtown among goals NEWNAN Continued from page 1D system simply paying for it outright to some consortium or partnership between the hospital’s board, the university, the city and possibly even Coweta County’s government.

A partnership, for example, could result in bonds being issued, backed by the city and county; or another funding source could be found using the city’s Downtown Development Authority as a conduit to obtain needed financing if necessary.

On the economic front, Newnan appears to be coming out of the financial nightmare of the last few years.

In 2011, the city gave employees raises and bonuses, something not seen for the previous two years.

Grants and tax revenues from the previous SPLOST also helped the city complete other projects and purchases. Among those included improvements to Willie Lynch Park off Wesley Street, renovating the public works building, a new fire truck, completion of a streetscape program, and rehabilitation of 26 homes for low/middle income residents.

“It’s been a transition year... financially a good year and we ended 2011 very healthy,” said City Manager Cleatus Phillips.

“Signs are looking good, but I’m not willing to say we’ve cleared every hurdle yet,” he added.

Brady agreed, saying “we are in much better financial shape than we thought we’d be.”

One such uptick is the franchise fee from Georgia Power, which is paid to the city based on utility usage.

Brady said the latest check was $20,000 over what was budgeted and $14,000 over the previous year.

Other economic numbers

also are improving.

Motor vehicle taxes, for example, are starting to move upward, about $25,000 over the previous year.

And one big indicator is the permanent Local Option Sales Tax, a one-cent sales tax. In 2010, that tax brought in about $4.187 million. In 2011, that number was $4.367 million.

It’s still not as much as the biggest recent year — 2008 — when the city brought in $4.616 million, but it’s a lot better than 2009, when the city only got $3.860 million.

“We are not there yet, but we are showing positive signs in the right direction,” Phillips said.

Brady wants to keep the city moving forward, but at a careful pace.

“We know what we’re doing right,” he said. “We don’t want to make any mistakes that cost us in the long run.”

For city officials, it’s the idea of “sustainability of community,” a place where, as the mayor says, one’s children and grandchildren want to live.

Part of that involves just keeping up with basic maintenance on roads.

One big project is the “Sprayberry” intersection — located at the corner of the original barbecue restaurant at the intersection of Jackson Street, Roscoe Road and Sprayberry Road.

The city’s share is about $600,000 and will come from 2007 SPLOST funds. The project involves closing off one road section and rerouting others.

Another road project involves Newnan Crossing Boulevard between Bullsboro Drive and Lower Fayetteville Road. The road is tearing up prematurely and, depending on what needs to be done, could end up costing in the $400,000 range.

Another big project is in the Pinson Street neighborhood, which involves new water and sewer lines, as well as

repaving the area.

Focusing again on the community aspects, renovations to Ray Park on Newnan’s west side and a new nature/fitness trail at the new convention center on Lower Fayetteville Road also are planned. The “Newnan Centre” is under construction adjacent to the Coweta School System’s Centre for Performing and Visual Arts.

The upcoming 2013 SPLOST tax also includes funds for a $1 million recreation center and another $500,000 for other recreational improvements.

Two other key issues are upcoming this year: Redistricting and negotiating the new LOST percentage split with Coweta County.

The addition of the SummerGrove neighborhood threw the city’s council districts way out of whack. As it stands now, Clayton Hicks, whose Ward A encompasses that area, currently represents 21,000 out of the city’s 33,000 residents.

According to Phillips, redistricting must be completed and approved by the U.S. Department of Justice before qualifying begins for the city’s November 2013 elections.

“We will begin the process this year because we are not certain how long the process will take,” he said. “The city has always undertaken this process in the year before the election.”

Then there’s work to agree on what percentage of the LOST funds the city will get. It’s a big negotiation among Coweta County and its municipalities, as whatever is set lasts for the next 10 years.

“After the census, the city and county have to renegotiate the new sales tax certificate... it sets out the percentage the city and county get,” Phillips said.

“Fortunately, the city and county have always had a very good working relationship.”

Right now, the city gets just under 22 percent of the LOST.

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Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 3D

VISION

What do teens say about Coweta County?

Sense of community, plenty of extra-curricular activities among their highlights

By NICHOLE GOLDEN nichole@newnan.com The sense of “community” is what 14-year-old Isis Cousin likes about life in Coweta County.

Cousin, an eighth-grade student at Smokey Road Middle School, moved to Newnan from New Orleans, La., five years ago.

The Newnan Times-Herald convened a Youth Roundtable March 1 at the Central Library in east Coweta. Eleven teens participated, and overall expressed contentment with what Coweta has to offer in the areas of education, recreation, leisure, and future opportunities.

The youth attending represented East Coweta, Newnan, and Northgate high schools, as well as Smokey Road Middle School.

“It’s a great hometown to have,” said Laura Lambert, a Newnan High senior.

Mary Brooks Gallagher, also a senior at Newnan High School, agreed. “I always like coming home to Newnan,” said Gallagher.

The hobbies and interests of the roundtable members are varied and include playing basketball, being involved in soccer, band, piano lessons, swimming, bowling and just spending time with friends.

Photo by Nichole Golden

Members of The Newnan Times-Herald Youth Roundtable included, front from left, Jameka Bronlwee, Mary Brooks Gallagher, Isis Cousin, Rachel Adornato, and Laura Lambert; and back from left, Jermerion Grier, Shaquille Williams, Chris White, Bryce Walburn, Jacob Pitts, and Daisja Cook. The group met at Central Library to share what they like about life in Coweta.

Jameka Brownlee, an East Coweta sophomore, says she enjoys going to movies with friends, and playing basketball.

Jacob Pitts, a junior at Northgate High School, postponed an afternoon fishing trip to join the roundtable. Pitts enjoys outdoor activities that the Georgia climate allows year-round, especially with Venture Crew 55, a co-ed scouting group in Newnan.

The roundtable members agreed that there are plenty of extra-curricular activities for youth in Coweta whether offered through school, church or organizations such as the Newnan-Coweta Boys & Girls Club.

Rachel Adornato, a Northgate sophomore, feels very “biased” in a positive way toward the community.

Adornato was born and raised

here, but has spent time in California with her sister. “It’s just very different,” she said.

According to these teens, there are a few things that Coweta is lacking.

“We don’t have a skating rink, said Adornato.

“I’d really like it if there were more walking trails,” said Lambert. She plans to attend Furman University in Greenville, S.C., and study

neuroscience. Lambert said that Furman has a lot of walking trails nearby.

Chris White, a 10th-grade student at Newnan, said he would like to see “another college” locally.

While several students mentioned enjoying shopping at Ashley Park, Brownlee said she would like to see “more places to hang out.”

Newnan High ninth-grader Jermerion Grier moved to Coweta last year from Woodbury, which he calls “the country.” Grier says “it’s better” here.

Also needing improvement, according to the roundtable members, were more recreational areas, and more jobs.

All of the youth roundtable members said they feel safe in the community, and 10 of the 11 participating said they are receiving a good education.

Pitts is unsure of his college plans, and what he would like to study. “I’ll stay in Georgia,” he said. The HOPE Scholarship is the factor playing into the decision to remain close to home.

Bryce Walburn, a Northgate freshman, and Daisja Cook, a freshman at Newnan, both would like to be veterinarians.

“I love animals,” said Walburn.

He has not decided where to go to college, and Cook is eyeing the University of Georgia.

Adornato, who is an athletic trainer with her school’s football team and involved in music, plans to attend Auburn University. “I’d like to be a music teacher,” she said.

Cousin, the only middle school student on the panel, hopes to fly airplanes one day.

Is Coweta a place these teens can envision living following college?

“I think I’d like to live outside of Newnan for a while,” said Gallagher. She plans to major in international business at UGA. Gallagher’s father works in international business, and although the family lives in Newnan, his job is in Carrollton.

Newnan High Senior Shaquille Williams wants to attend Columbus State University to study science. He plans on becoming an anesthesiologist. “I’m planning on going somewhere else,” said Williams about pursuing a career. “The big ol’ city,” he added.

Cook, who plays trombone in the band, moved to Newnan from Smyrna when she was in the fifth grade.

“I like it here,” she said. “I’ve made a lot of lasting friends.”

Cook does see Newnan in her plans after college. “I think I’d come back,” she said.

Both a furnishings museum and a children’s museum planned for city of Newnan MUSEUMS Continued from page 1D also been contacted about the grounds and how plantings can reflect the home’s history and architectural period.

The Hollis-McRitchie Museum will be an admission museum with costumed characters and guides offered as “part of the experience,” added Prange. The museum and grounds will be available for

rent for events.

The historical society has been drawing on the expertise of Joanna Arrieta, director of historic homes for the Atlanta History Center. Arrieta, who is in charge of the collections and interpretations for the Margaret Mitchell House, the Swan House and the Smith Family Farm, is helping NCHS with an interpretative plan for the furnishings museum and the children’s museum.

The Children’s Museum of Newnan is to be situated on

Clark Street in a brick house that was once home to the Newnan Hospital Education Department. The NCHS board shared its proposal for the museum for families following its March meeting.

“The museum’s objective is to have exhibits and programs that help children to learn about everyday life, principles of natural and physical sciences, music and the arts, and appreciate history by using local products and people,” according to the society’s proposal. “Our mission is to pro-

vide a fun, interactive environment for children to explore the ever changing world around them. The Children’s Museum hopes to have great, unique, and different exhibits and will always be searching for new, exciting opportunities to bring to the community of Newnan.”

Multi-sensory exhibits will include “Life & Times in Early Newnan” and “From Pecan Tree to Pecan Pie.” A fundraising effort for the children’s museum is a public-

city art exhibit of painted horses, organized by NCHS and set to begin in April. The funding is coming through secured sponsorships of the artsy horses that will be on display around Newnan.

The society continues to operate the Male Academy Museum at 30 Temple Ave., adjacent to the city park. The proceeds from sale of items at the Male Academy’s gift shop help fund the non-profit’s efforts to preserve local history including establishment of these new museums.

“With partnerships, community support, grants and a dedicated board, we hope to offer a children’s facility that will include hands-on exhibits that support the strategic direction of the existing museums,” said Prange. “We look forward to a bright future.”

To make a donation in support of NCHS, send to P.O. Box 1001 in Newnan, GA 30264.

Information on the society is available at www.nchistoricalsociety.org.

Piedmont Newnan Hospital's

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On Saturday, March 24, we’ll be opening the doors for a sneak preview of the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital, which will open in May. We’re inviting our community and the entire Piedmont family to be among the first to see this amazing new facility. Bring your family, kids and neighbors to enjoy exclusive tours of the building, our formal ribbon-cutting ceremony, live entertainment and refreshments. Offsite parking will be available in the parking lot behind Dillard’s at Ashley Park. Shuttles will run between the Dillard’s parking lot and the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital for the duration of the event.

Visit newpiedmontnewnan.org for more information and details on the completion of the new facility.

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4D — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

VISION

Cancer hospital opens in summer Regional hospital could have bigger economic impact than previously anticipated

By JOHN A. WINTERS john@newnan.com The newest Cancer Treatment Centers of America complex, a Southeast regional hospital opening this summer in Newnan, may have a much bigger economic impact than previously thought.

Original estimates said the Newnan facility, the company’s fifth hospital, would generate 500 jobs and have a $500 million economic impact over a five-year period.

Those numbers may well turn out to be an understatement.

For example, CTCA’s Philadelphia center opened in December 2005 with 160 fulltime employees. Now, that employee number is closer to 800, said Kane Dawson, president and CEO of the Newnan hospital.

The Newnan center will open with 170 employees; of those, about 60 are in-house transfers and the other 110 will be new jobs hired within the region. The company could be hiring between 10 and 20 employees each month over the next five years as it ramps up services.

Average salaries are in the $50,000 range.

“It’s a conservative estimate,” Dawson said about the jobs and economic impact numbers.

“I’m confident that we will exceed expectations.”

In the first year alone, CTCA’s Newnan hospital expects to see 700 new patients — and that number is expected to increase about 30 percent annually over the next five years. Fifth-year estimates show an expected 1,500 new patients.

Already, there are more than 300 CTCA patients in the Southeast, a region not yet served directly by the company.

Besides Philadelphia, the company’s other locations are in Chicago, Phoenix and Tulsa.

CTCA’s use of the most advanced, state-of-the-art equipment, its patient treatment model and a growing national reputation for cancer treatment are all big positives — and draws — for the Newnan hospital.

In addition, “the Southeast is underserved in terms of cancer treatment,” Dawson said.

“It’s a game-changer for the city of Newnan and business development,” said Hasco Craver IV, business development director for the city of Newnan.

“The economic impact is strong... it’s not simply health care, it’s an economic driver,” he added.

The health care angle is obvious — new doctors, nurses and specialists moving into the area, buying homes, cars, furniture and the like. At the same time, Craver pointed out the addition of CTCA adds another cog in the health care wheel that Newnan is becoming.

“This could lead to a health care cluster,” Craver said. “ You could have big medical support facilities, medical device manufacturers, moving in.

“The opportunities are endless,” he added. “This is a field (health care) that is going to stay around. It’s a great foundation for the local economy.”

Greg Wright, president of the Coweta County Development Authority, said the new cancer treatment hospital will “bring a lot of attention to Coweta County.”

“From an image standpoint, having a company the caliber of CTCA with its national reputation is very positive for the community,” Wright said. “Our name will be out there to a

See IMPACT,

It’s not often healthy people want to visit a hospital, but officials of Piedmont Newnan Hospital are hoping that everyone will take the time to drive to the intersection of Poplar Road and I-85 on March 24 in order to get a first public glimpse of the brand new hospital scheduled to open later this spring.

The open house will run from 1 to 4 p.m. A formal ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place at the main entrance of the building at 2:15 p.m.

All community members are invited to tour the new facility and enjoy refreshments and entertainment throughout the afternoon.

The 364,000-square-foot, nine-story facility will house 136 beds and 23 Emergency Department treatment rooms.

The new Piedmont Newnan Hospital will officially open its new doors to patients in May. Visitors will see the latest in hospital technology and innovation and enjoy the kind of ambiance more closely associated with resort hotels than health care facilities.

The traditional hospital model has changed rapidly in recent years. PNH will showcase some of the major innovations in modern health care, beginning with a difference in the role between patients and health care providers.

In August 2012, Cancer Treatment Centers of America will open its first Southeastern facility in Newnan. The 212,000-square-foot, 50bed facility off Newnan Crossing Bypass is the fifth for CTCA.

Focused on ‘Patient Empowered Care’

By ALEX McRAE alex@newnan.com

High quality health care facilities are high on the list of lifestyle options people evaluate when choosing a new community to call home.

Coweta County will soon be home to a medical facility that attracts patients from across an entire region.

In August, Cancer Treatment Centers of America will open its first Southeastern facility in Newnan. The 212,000-squarefoot, 50-bed facility off Newnan Crossing Bypass is the fifth for CTCA .

“We are partnering with the city of Newnan, Coweta County and the state of Georgia to make this hospital a gateway to better serve cancer patients throughout the Southeast, and serve the community,” said Kane Dawson, president and CEO of CTCA in Newnan.

CTCA officials say their facility is a health care “destination” that will draw patients from across the region. About two-thirds of the center’s patients will come from outside of Georgia.

Company officials have already seen their model at work in other CTCA facilities to which cancer patients and their families travel hundreds page 9D of miles one way to receive the

Public gets first glimpse of new Piedmont Newnan Hospital March 24

By ALEX McRAE alex@newnan.com

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

Piedmont Newnan President and CEO Michael Bass said that while hospitals have traditionally been oriented toward “what’s convenient for the physicians and what’s convenient for the staff,” the new focus is on patients.

PNH officials say having a local health care provider with newer, expanded facilities, updated technology, and expanded service capabilities in the areas of neurosciences, women’s services, cardiovascular services, and orthopedic services is the primary community benefit of the replacement hospital project.

All rooms at the new hospital will be private and have large windows overlooking pleasant vistas, following the findings of studies emphasizing the importance of big windows, gardens, decks and views in the design of new hospitals. Those same studies show that patients heal faster and staffers work better when surrounded by an abundance of natural light.

The new PNH site also includes a four-acre fish pond, which will enable families to take a break from the hospital.

A key objective of PNH officials is recapturing many of the Coweta County residents who presently leave the county for health care. They hope that within the next five to 10 years the vast majority of Coweta residents will utilize PNH for their health care services.

unique CTCA treatment model known as Patient Empowered Care.

The Patient Empowered Care model combines state-ofthe-art clinical treatments and technology with an array of complementary therapies — including nutrition therapy, naturopathic medicine, pain management, oncology rehabilitation, mind-medicine and spiritual support — that help manage side effects and improve quality of life.

CTCA also encourages and empowers patients to take an active role in treatment decision-making.

“That patient philosophy boils down to treating patients the same way you’d want your mother treated,” said Jac Counts, regional manager of strategic markets for Cancer Treatment Centers of America.

“Our philosophy is, we ask the patient if they are ready to see their doctor. It’s not, ‘the doctor is ready to see you.’”

Dawson related the history of CTCA at groundbreaking

ceremonies during the summer of 2011. He said that in 1980, Mary Stephenson was diagnosed with bladder cancer. Her son, Richard, a merchant banker, looked for the options for the best care for her and was sorely disappointed in what he found.

Questions about the role of nutrition in cancer treatment were referred to a nutritionist, and questions about spiritual support were virtually ignored.

Doctors often did not communicate with each other.

Stephenson’s mother died, and he began a quest “to change the face of cancer care,” Dawson said.

Stephenson bought out other investors in a hospital in Zion, Ill. He “hired physicians who shared his view” that cancer treatment is “about the patient,” Dawson said.

The Newnan hospital will start out with medical oncologists, surgical oncologists, radiation oncologists and radiologists. Some other specialties — including urology and cardiology — will be handled through

‘That patient philosophy boils down to treating patients the same way you’d want your mother treated’

partnership agreements.

“Our new hospital marks a significant step in fighting cancer in the Southeast and giving patients and their families the access to high-quality care they deserve,” Dawson said.

“We look forward to opening the doors of this hospital and bringing our unique model of care closer to the patients and families we serve.”

The typical CTCA patient is late stage or has a complex cancer, company officials said.

Many have found the hospital through friends or the Internet and have gone the extra mile to be treated at CTCA — often including hopping on an airplane.

“The folks who select us are typically fighters,” Dawson said, adding that CTCA will be bringing in technology “that doesn’t exist anywhere else in Georgia.”

Company officials say they are excited not just about offering clinical services, but becoming active members of the community.

“We are here to serve the community and to be your neighbors as well as partners,” Dawson said.

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Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 5D

VISION

Development authority chairman sees bright future

By W. WINSTON SKINNER winston@newnan.com David Brown knows two Cowetas well.

As chairman of the county’s two development authorities, he often is involved in issues relating to industrial properties and the amenities needed to attract new employers and economic growth. Personally, Brown and his wife, Rita, live on a 420-acre cattle farm near Haralson in the rural southeastern corner of the county.

From his unique perspective — seeing the county’s industrial promise and its rural beauty, Brown said he sees a bright future for Coweta County.

Cowetans “respect the past,” he said, but are preparing for a bright — and different — tomorrow.

“We’ve got a great history, but our future is even better,” he said.

Brown said he believes the economy has hit the bottom and is heading upward. Some industries such as housing — Brown noted the large number of foreclosed homes scattered

“Our becoming a medical center” will have far-reaching impact. “That’s going to stimulate quality jobs like we’ve never had.” —David Brown

across the county — will be slow in recovering.

Construction of two major medical facilities and the advent of a local technical college campus, however, both point to a bright future for Coweta County — and one different from the past in some ways.

Brown referred to Coweta’s

statistics in a regional economic study done by the University of West Georgia. “We were the only county that showed an increase in jobs,” he said.

“Our becoming a medical center” will have far-reaching impact, Brown predicted.

“That’s going to stimulate quality jobs like we’ve never had,” he said.

Brown said Coweta County has spent the last half century moving from an agricultural economy — largely tied to cotton and the industries using it — to a true industrial economy.

Coweta County has had a variety of businesses and industries for many of those years. The economic downturn has been “not nearly as bad as in many other locales because of our broad-based businesses and industries,” Brown said.

Among Georgia cities, he noted Dalton has a strong economy, but one that is probably 90 percent reliant on the carpet industry and related businesses. The diversity in Coweta means that a weakness in one field does not so negatively impact the county

Coweta feels economic impact from film industry

By LINDSAY WOOD lindsay@newnan.com The motion picture industry’s estimated economic impact in Georgia is an astounding $2.4 billion, according to an analysis by the Georgia Film Office.

That’s just for 2011. Since 1972, the impact totals $7 billion.

Currently, there are 12 because other industries may be in an steady or even upward status.

Cancer Treatment Centers of America will be bringing staff “from all over the country,” Brown noted. Those people — with their income, education and interests — will have a great impact on the future of the county.

television series and two feature films shooting within the state. Eight feature films and seven television programs are in preproduction. The Georgia Film Office estimates more than 700 feature films have been shot in Georgia since 1973.

A total of 47 feature films and television shows have been filmed in Coweta County since 1973, according The opening of CTCA, the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital and other medical offices and facilities will create good-paying jobs — for people who have the right skills.

“It all boils down to education,” he said. “If you’re not an educated community, you’re not going to compete in the modern world.”

to the Coweta County Convention and Visitors Bureau.

“There is no sign that it will stop,” Lee Thomas, division director of the Georgia Film Office, said. “We anticipate continued growth.”

The growth is thanks, in part, to the tax incentive program implemented by the

See FILM, page 9D Brown said the West Georgia Technical College campus will be a key to continuing economic growth. “The missing piece we’ve had is the technical college,” he said.

When an industry considers locating in a community “the first thing they want to know is

See FUTURE, page 9D

Kia Motors helps revitalize Three Rivers region

By LINDSAY WOOD lindsay@newnan.com

The 500,000th Kia vehicle — a pearl white Optima SX — rolls off the assembly line at the plant in West Point, Ga.

Last year, Bloomberg Business Week named Coweta County a “Best Affordable Place” to live — the only county in Georgia to make the list.

Affordability, access to Atlanta and proximity to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport are some factors that draw people to Coweta County from Atlanta and its busy surroundings. Not only do these factors lure commuters to the county and its surrounding areas, but also big business.

The South Korean-based company Kia Motors is a prime example of a big business that’s made a noticeable impact on the Three Rivers region. Kia built its 2,200-acre facility and opened its doors in 2009 with the promise to bring jobs and a $1 billion investment to a dwindling area — West Point, Ga. Earlier this year, Kia completed its $100 million expansion of the plant. More than

3,000 people are now employed there; 500 more jobs than the plant originally guaranteed. Kia can also take credit for producing about 7,500 supplier jobs — bringing the jobs total up to more than 10,000.

Some of those employees live in Coweta County, and the county reaps the benefits of having these commuters settle in the area.

Randy Jackson, vice president of human resources for Kia’s West Point operation, said that the community can expect “conservatively three times the impact” on the local economy. When new business opens, it trickles down to construction, teacher, fire, police and restaurant jobs — just to name a few. Several new residential areas and 38 new businesses have opened in the West Point area since Kia opened.

According to a 2011 report by the Center for Automotive Research, 1.8 indirect jobs are produced in the U.S. economy for every one job at Hyundai, partial owners of Kia. A study

by Georgia Institute of Technology commissioned by the Georgia Department of Economic Development found that the statewide economic impact will approximate to $4 billion per year. The study also predicts 20,000 new jobs will be made in the nine counties surrounding the Kia manufacturer. Coweta County is part of that nine-county region.

From 2000 to 2010, West Georgia’s employment rate has grown 18.2 percent, a study by the University of West Georgia found. Manufacturing jobs account for 25 percent of the employment base in the Three Rivers region. Georgia could also expect more companies to expand in the state since the recent administering of tax incentives for corporations allowing them to minimize their state tax liability. By providing jobs, training and competitive wages for prospective employees, businesses can earn tax credits from the state. Kia’s incentive tally — including local, state and federal tax

breaks, land and other benefits — cost $469 million, according to a 2010 report by the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

“The state of Georgia is a very good partner,” Jackson said. The “workforce was available” and Kia was willing to make the investment in the people and the area, he said.

Since the expansion, the plant has the ability to build 360,000 cars per year. In February, Kia produced its 500,000th vehicle — a pearl white Optima SX — since it opened on Nov. 16, 2009.

“Building 500,000 vehicles in just over two years is quite a milestone for our first U.S. manufacturing plant to accomplish,” Byung Mo Ahn, Group President and CEO for Kia Motors America and KMMG, said. “The commitment from each one of our team members is a big reason we’ve been able to achieve 17 consecutive months of record sales. Their dedication to building high quality vehicles is apparent in each vehicle we produce.”

After downturn, home sales have started to pick up in Coweta

By ALEX McRAE alex@newnan.com From the mid-1980s to the mid-2000s, Coweta County’s economy boomed as a mix of modest taxes, sensible home prices and easy access to just about anywhere made it a magnet for commercial, industrial and residential growth.

The population soared from 39,268 residents in 1980 to 89,215 in 2000 and passed the 100,000 mark in 2003. Former cotton fields overflowed with new houses, and businesses seeing gold in the growing population followed the crowd.

When the U.S. economic recession began in 2008, population numbers continued to rise, but at a slower pace.

Census figures released in 2011 show Coweta’s April 2010 count at 127,317 — a 42.7 percent increase since 2000.

While Coweta’s economy remained among the strongest in the metro Atlanta area, new construction in the oncebooming real estate market remained flat through 2008 and 2009. After a modest uptick in 2010, new home and commercial construction starts dropped in 2011.

Figures from the Coweta County Building Department show that in 2010, some 237 residential homes valued at $75,821,526 were permitted. In 2011, that number dropped to 181 homes permitted at a value of $67,224,119.

Commercial construction numbers matched the residential trend. 2011 records show only 11 projects permitted at a value of $16,238,047, down from 2010’s 25 commercial permits valued at $116,968,331.

But while new construction starts remained stalled, home sales began to pick up, and that trend continues, according to Tom Barron of Lindsey’s Realtors and president of the Newnan-Coweta Board of Realtors.

“Things are finally looking

up,” Barron said. “For the first time in a while we are seeing some new home starts and there have even been some sales in the high end of the market. We haven’t seen that in a few years.”

Barron said that in January 2012 Coweta home sales jumped by 30 percent over 2011, among the top increases in metro Atlanta.

Sales of new and existing homes are driven by a growing population, and Barron said the expansion of health care facilities, especially the 2012 openings of the new Piedmont Newnan Hospital and Cancer Treatment Centers of America’s hospital in Newnan, have made a significant positive impact on the local real estate market.

“Both hospitals are bringing in new people and that trend will probably get even better once they are up and running,” Barron said.

“The health care industry has really helped our local real estate market.”

Barron said that for the past few years Coweta’s inventory of homes for sale has hovered between 1,300 and 1,500 homes.

In late February 2012, that number had fallen to about 950.

“We have increasing demand from new people moving in and a smaller inventory of homes, and that means we will probably be seeing an increase in new home construction,” Barron said. “That’s always a good sign.”

Predicting the future is always risky, especially in real estate, but Barron said, “I am very optimistic. I think things are going to get better, especially with all the new job growth. I think things are finally close to stabilizing.”

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6D — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

VISION

Despite recession, Senoia keeps growing

By SARAH FAY CAMPBELL sarah@newnan.com While the “great recession” has caused things to slow down or stagnate in the rest of Coweta County, and across the nation, Senoia just keeps on moving.

The little town that could will be getting a new restaurant soon, and will once again be the host city for the Southern Living Idea House.

The city’s long-awaited new library will be opening in a few months, and city officials have plans for several recreation improvements, all based on the recently completed parks and recreation master plan.

“I think as we look forward to 2012… our big step will be the parks and recreation plan,” said City Administrator Richard Ferry. The plan was presented to city council, and adopted, in early February, Ferry said.

It was the culmination of roughly nine months of work by the city’s recreation committee. Surveys were put out in the summer and there were around 200 responses. “I think that gives us a really good sample of the city,” Ferry said. With those responses, and the ideas of committee members, they came up with a plan for 20 years of recreation improvements.

The idea of the master plan is not only to meet the needs of the city’s residents but to “do it right the first time … to meet those needs in a way that doesn’t just put a Band-Aid on things,” Ferry said. “It was really an eye-opening experience.”

The idea is to also use recreation dollars “so that we are not just doing recreation, but we’re trying to do something that will do other things as well,” Ferry said. Multi-use trails, for instance, are also an economic development activity and can provide access to shopping.

The number-one priority coming out of the plan, and by far the number one request of city residents, is more multiuse trails.

The city allows for the use of

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

Senoia has been chosen by Southern Living for a second Idea House to be open this summer.

Photo by Jeffrey Leo

Senoia just keeps on moving. The little town that could will be getting a new restaurant soon, and will once again be the host city for the Southern Living Idea House.

golf carts, and the multi-use trail connecting downtown to the subdivisions along Rockaway Road has been a tremendous success. Plans for the next two trails include one accessing the Cumberland Village shopping center and one to connect the Stonebridge subdivision to downtown.

Ferry thinks the Stonebridge trail can be completed this year.

The Cumberland trail will take more time because rightof-way will need to be acquired.

One day, likely many years into the future, there will also be some way for carts to cross State Hwy. 16 at Cumberland in order to get to the other shopping center at Rock House Road.

Or, a cart crossing may be included when improvements are done to the intersection of Hwy. 16 and Pylant Street. That intersection project is “very long-term,” Ferry said.

The other two priority recreation projects are an “event lawn” at Marimac Lakes and a restroom at the Seavy Street

park. The event lawn is proposed to have a large, elevated gazebo that can “act as a wedding gazebo or a stage for a band,” Ferry said.

The Downtown Development Authority currently sponsors one outdoor movie each summer. “If it becomes popular enough … we might be able to turn it into a series,” Ferry said. He doubts the construction will begin this year, but the plans could be completed.

A major construction project is under way at city hall. When

Senoia City Council meetings moved to the municipal court/police complex, there was no longer any need for the large meeting room at city hall.

So now the building is being transformed into something more functional.

Right now, “my office is in a trailer out in the parking lot,” Ferry said.

The renovation project started in late February, and “everything seems to be moving really well,” Ferry said.

Hopes are that construction will only take about 90 days.

The finished product will be “fantastic,” he said. “There will be excellent lobby space for the citizens to come in and take care of whatever business they need to take care of,” he said.

Offices for city staff will be enlarged, and there will be a new workroom.

The council recently held a retreat in Dillard, and one of the things discussed was the move to a “manager/council” form of government.

“It’s going to be a lengthy process. It won’t be completed in 2012,” Ferry said.

There are two major differences in a manager/council style and the current strong mayor format.

Currently, the mayor is responsible for creating and presenting the budget, and is in charge of hiring and firing personnel.

Under the new system, Ferry will have those responsibilities.

He already does most of the budget work, but Mayor Robert Belisle “provides a lot of input,” Ferry said.

The change is “long-term thinking,” Ferry said. “The city is just growing. We’re not stopping, we’re not stagnating, we’re continuing to move forward. This is a more professional style of government where it relies on the professional manager to carry out those day-to-day operations rather than relying on a mayor to delegate from his office.”

Realistically, Ferry said, without the change the mayor’s position would eventually have to become full-time.

The council is also thinking

about some tweaks to the historic district and working on a gateway ordinance or plan.

“We talked about the entrances into town, not just focusing on development but more looking at city projects,” Ferry said, such as doing a streetscape project along Hwy. 16, as well as along Rockaway Road.

A big focus of the recent retreat was “doing it right the first time,” Ferry said. That might cost a little more up front, but you don’t have to go back and fix it again later.

The new library has been a long time in coming, but construction is nearly complete and opening is only a few months off. “We’re looking forward to that happening,” Ferry said.

The old library on Main Street downtown has been closed since the end of February because the building where it was located has been sold.

The building is being turned into a barbecue restaurant, Ferry said. The owner hopes to have it open by the time the Idea House opens in June.

“Southern Living” chose Senoia for the 2010 Idea House, a decorators showcase that attracts thousands of visitors.

They liked the town so much they decided to come back for 2012. It’s not only the first time any town has been the location of two Idea Houses, it’s also the first Idea House that is a historic home.

Restoration and expansion of the house is in full swing. The house will close in October for a short time to be redecorated for Christmas, and then will be open through December.

Other development might be slowly starting up, as well.

“I’ve had a lot more meetings at the end of 2011 and in early 2012 than I have had in the past three years, when it comes to commercial development,” Ferry said.

Ferry said he sees some projects being completed in 2012, but it will “really be a year of getting some planning done on what we are going to put in place all over the city.”

Blueprints project will help Moreland plan for future Now accepting applications for the 2012-2013 academic year

By W. WINSTON SKINNER winston@newnan.com The town of Moreland is getting some expert advice to help leaders chart the city’s future.

Moreland was selected for the Blueprints for Successful Communities program — offered through the Georgia Conservancy. The initial community meeting was held March 3 at the Moreland Mill, with graduate students from the Georgia Institute of Technology offering ideas for the town’s future development.

Moreland has a number of projects in the works, including a U Pick It farm that will eventually include an antebellum house and a barn with farm implements. Restoration of the upper floor of the Moreland Mill as a media center showcasing the works of hometown authors Lewis Grizzard and Erskine Caldwell is another planned project.

An effort to deal with longrunning drainage issues on Cameron Street is also planned, as is expansion of Southview Cemetery.

Blueprints is giving the town some tools to deal with several of those projects — as well as to look at Moreland’s future in light of the eventual development of the Megasite, a large industrial tract that starts at Moreland’s edge and extends along the railroad to Interstate 85.

“Moreland has a lot of potential,” said Katherine Moore, who directs the Blueprints program. She said the final report from Blueprints should be available sometime between April and June.

“We very much believe that at the end of the day you will get a document that will help you going forward,” Moore said at a meeting in Moreland earlier this month.

Being prepared for the Megasite’s development — and in particular how it will impact the existing town — is one facet of the Blueprints study.

Susannah Lee, one of the Georgia Tech students working on Moreland’s Blueprint project, said there is a need to look more “long range than just the

Photos by Winston Skinner

Attendees at the recent Moreland Blueprints meeting were each given three red dots to place beside ideas raised through the discussion process. Moving the Caldwell birthplace museum to a planned U Pick It farm on Railroad Street was among the top items receiving votes.

next few years.” Being prepared for the Megasite is a need, she said, suggesting a plan that shows how housing will be developed when sewer comes could give the city more control of what Moreland looks like decades from now.

Richard Dagenhart, the Georgia Tech professor supervising the Blueprints team, said sewer will come — and will change what can happen in Moreland.

“It could be a couple of years. It could be 10 years — depending on the economy,” Dagenhart said. The town needs “a master street plan that’s part of subdivision regulations and zoning,” he said.

Development of much of the town is limited now because of properties that are served by septic tanks. If a sewer system were installed — which would likely come with development of the Megasite — different types of development would be possible.

“You could have smaller lots,” student Susannah Lee said. Currently — largely because of septic tank requirements — home lots must be at least 1.6 acres. Student Logan Tuura said the smaller lots possible with sewer would, in fact, be “very similar to some of the lots that are around town” already.

Typical subdivision development with cul-de-sacs and non-connecting streets often separate one area in a town from another. “To get from one place to another can be difficult,” Conservancy staffer Deanna Murphy said.

She said planning in advance can be extremely important because roads and related structures tend to stay in place for a long time. She noted that the basic transportation corridors in downtown Savannah have been in place since the early 18th century.

“If you do not choose options for your future, someone else will decide them for you,” Moore told community leaders.

Dagenhart expressed similar thoughts — asking who will decide what course Moreland’s future takes. “Is it going to be Moreland, or is it going to be a developer from somewhere else?” he asked.

Murphy said a goal is to create plans that lead “to a more walkable and healthy atmosphere.”

Carol Chancey of Reel Southern Adventure has been working with the town and area tourism venues in an effort to bring more visitors to the city. The presence of the Erskine Caldwell Birthplace has put the town on the Southern Literary Trail, and Lewis Grizzard’s writings about his hometown have made people in far distant places aware of Moreland.

A smalltown pace and Southern flavor make Moreland a great place for visitors to have a Mayberry kind of experience. As she showed a group through the Caldwell home recently, Chancey remarked, “Moreland — in lots of ways — is a mythic place.”

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Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 7D

VISION

Plans in works to revitalize ‘Old Town’ Sharpsburg

By SARAH FAY CAMPBELL sarah@newnan.com Several plans to revitalize “Old Town� Sharpsburg are in the works for the eastern Coweta town; the town has also acquired property that will be both a place to hold festivals and a year-round park.

As soon as the weather gets warm and dry enough, crews will start paving Stovall Street.

It’s always been gravel. “I know that is not news for big towns. They pave streets all the time,� said Sharpsburg Mayor Wendell Staley. But “it’s a big deal for us to get a city street paved.�

It’s taken almost two years to get to this point, with engineering, land acquisition, and lots of paperwork. It will still be a single lane road, but two cars can pass if they’re careful. The town didn’t want to make the road too wide because it would take too much property away from homes along Stovall Street.

There are also plans for several recreation-related improve-

ments. One is a new city park where the tennis courts are currently located. The town has also purchased some land adjacent to the site.

Work should begin in the next few months, Staley said.

The tennis courts get very little use, Staley said. The new park will be something that everyone in the town can enjoy, “not just a handful of tennis players that can very easily go to a nicer court down the street [at the Hunter Complex].�

Plans are for a grassy park with walks, porch swings, and a small “tot lot.� There will be a large pavilion/bandstand area that will be big enough for bands, Staley said, and a picnic pavilion on the opposite side.

Hopes are to have it be nice enough that it can be used for weddings, along with the A&O Bridges Recreation Center/Town Hall. “If they were to get rained out for any reason, we can move that gathering inside,� Staley said.

The recreation center/town hall has gone through some

major improvements.

They have been very well received, according to Staley. “The rentals for the building have definitely picked up,â€? he said. There are plenty of other things going on at the center as well, including dance lessons, art classes, and the meetings of the quilting club and gardening club. “The building is being utilized, I’d say, 80 percent of the time now,â€? Staley said. That’s compared to about 50 percent before the renovations. “Everybody who comes and sees the renovations we’ve made‌ they don’t even hesitateâ€? when it comes to renting the building, he said. Most of the rentals are through word of mouth or from people who have been to the building for dance lessons, meetings, or some other reason.

The town has purchased property in the “triangle� at Terrentine Street and Hwy. 54 with hopes that it can be used as grounds for festivals, as well as a park throughout the year.

Sharpsburg is also entering

into a long-term lease on some adjacent property, to create a large enough space for a town festival. “We’ve had it cleared and cleaned,� Staley said. “And by mid-summer we should have that sodded and looking beautiful. It’s going to be a beautiful asset to the town.�

The small town is also primed for some commercial development. In early 2011, the council voted to annex 109 acres along Hwy. 16 for a mixed-use development.

The conceptual plans for “Oakhall� include a 45,000square-foot, grocery-anchored center with commercial and office space, 148 homes, and a 10- to 12-acre recreation complex.

Actual development of the site is currently contingent on the economy. “We are still working with the landowners and possible developers,� Staley said. A group recently came in and did a demographic survey of the area for a senior citizen develop-

NEWNAN-COWETA ART ASSOCIATION

ment. “They found it to be ideal for what they wanted. Whether it will materialize, we don’t know.� “We also, of course, would love to do our commercial up front,� Staley said. “We can have some restaurants, a child care center, room for a bank. There are the things that we have on the drawing board.� “We really need that development,� Staley said. “We have very few businesses in town that can produce any kind of revenue for the town.�

Staley said Sharpsburg has been working with the town of Turin and the Coweta County Water and Sewerage Authority to “supply water to that area and to any other needed areas within the town.�

They’re also looking into doing some upgrades on the water systems.

The water supply for the Oakhall development has been an issue. Sharpsburg and its residents are customers of the Turin Water System. However, the town had requested the

Coweta Water and Sewerage Authority serve the development.

The Coweta County Commissioners must give permission for the water authority to serve annexed property. So far, that permission has been denied.

The town has another plan to improve commercial prospects, by helping to revitalize downtown.

Most of the buildings along Main Street are vacant. A major reason for that is there aren’t restrooms or running water in them. “We recently passed ordinances updating facilities requirements for a business license,� Staley said. For businesses to operate in buildings in the town, “they have to be brought up to safety code and inspected,� Staley said. “These ordinances have been implemented by the mayor and council of Sharpsburg to bring downtown up to code as far as all the safety factors, and to stimulate business,� Staley said.

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8D — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

VISION

Palmetto, Turin, Haralson look to expansion projects

By LINDSAY WOOD lindsay@newnan.com Coweta County is growing, and some of the county’s smaller communities are making headway to keep up.

Haralson, Palmetto and Turin are all undertaking new projects for the year to improve their quality of life and attract people to their communities. *** Haralson’s city park was opened on July 3, 2011, and dedicated to former mayor Davis Camp. The opening was followed by a Fourth of July celebration of fireworks and communion among the town’s residents. This year, playground equipment will be added and dedicated to former mayor Bill Estes. “I did not know him, but I understand he was instrumental in Haralson and a longtime public servant of the community,” Mayor Ted Bateman said of Estes.

So far, Haralson has seen a lot of activity at the city’s new park on Dead Oak Road. Later this year, another Independence Day celebration will be held there as well as a Christmas tree lighting in the pavilion.

A project to improve the sidewalk system throughout the town is in the works.

Sidewalks were installed last year at the park, but Bateman would like to see them extend from the park to the community where citizens could walk from their homes to the shops downtown. “From one city limit sign to the other.”

Haralson’s city park was opened July 3, 2011, and dedicated to former mayor Davis Camp.

On Super Tuesday, March 6, Haralson residents voted to allow Sunday package sales of beer and wine.

One expansion the mayor and its residents would like to see is a hardware store downtown.

“We’re a low-key, small town,” Bateman said. “The citizens like that.”

The city council meets the second Monday of each month, except July and December, at 7 p.m. Council members are Bonita Rosemas, Fred Rudbeck and Belinda Wilson. *** Like many other towns throughout the nation, Palmetto had a tough year in 2011. According to Mayor J.

Clark Boddie, excessive spending and a drop in revenue left the community high and dry.

This year, expenditures are being monitored closely.

Palmetto is joining Newnan and Coweta County in expanding its medical services. On March 1, the Palmetto Community Health Council, located at 643 Main St., opened its doors. The center — a 21,000-square-foot, three-story facility — employs 50 people, three doctors, a dentist and a pharmacist.

This summer the city of Palmetto will dedicate its newly-renovated train depot and museum. The museum will focus on Coweta, Fulton and old Campbell counties.

Palmetto’s city council meets the first Monday of each month at 7:30 p.m. Its members are Laura Mullis, Larry Parrott, Lucinda Rockemore, Gregory Rusch, Leon Sumlin and Patty O’Hara Willey. *** The town of Turin is turning its attention to its water system and streets for 2012.

Renovation of the water system will be begin this year with the replacement of the main lines to both downtown Turin and Sharpsburg. SPLOST funds have already been allocated for the renovation. Within the next five to 10 years, Turin can also expect a new well source and water tower.

“This is a major financial

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undertaking,” Turin Mayor Alan Starr said. “We are proceeding carefully.”

In 2011 an engineering study was completed to map the strong and weak spots in the lines. Now all that’s left is to open bidding for the replacement to find the actual cost, and to begin the line work.

The town will also be repaving Turin Road in the third quarter of the year. The main stretch will be redone using a process called fulldepth reclamation, which recycles the old pavement by grinding it up, mixing it with a cement base and using the mixture to rebuild the road. The project will be handled by Coweta County and will cost

just under $50,000 for less than a mile.

“We’ve kind of let our streets go in Turin,” Starr said. “We are starting this program to consistently maintain our roads and keep up longevity.”

Starr also says the town plans to turn the old town hall into a community center for local events. Some will be revenue producing and some will be for fun, he said. Last year, the council moved from the old community building into the newly-renovated Walter B. Hill School building. The council has talked of using SPLOST funds to make a future museum at the school — built as part of the Rosenwald initiative in the 1910s and ‘20s to put AfricanAmerican schoolhouses in small towns.

“That’s why SPLOST is so important because we take those funds and put them back into the community,” Starr explained.

Turin plans to bring back its “Turin Family Daze” in the fall.

Last year’s first Family Daze event was a successful day of music, fellowship, food and fun sponsored by the town.

Another popular event in town is the annual Turin tractor parade and pull events each August, showcasing the equipment that once powered Coweta area farms.

Turin’s town council meets the third Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. Council members are Tony Crunkleton, George Harris, Cindy Purcell and Susan Reimer.

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Sunday, March 18, 2012 — The Newnan Times-Herald — 9D

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Coweta County feeling the economic impact of movie industry as filming continues FILM Continued from page 5D state to draw in production crews. Under the tax credit program, filmmakers receive a 30 percent credit on qualified expenditures to offset their tax liability. If the film company is not located within the state, the credit may be sold to a Georgia-based company, usually at a discount.

A study by Myers Norris Fenny found that for every $1 spent by the state in tax credits $1.24 was earned in local revenues. The tax credit program put Georgia on the map, but diverse landscapes, accessibility to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and the production company Raleigh Studios Atlanta in Senoia lure filmmakers to Coweta County.

“The film incentive has revitalized the state,” Scott Tigchelaar, president of Raleigh Studios Atlanta, said.

“It’s a very well-crafted incentive program and designed for sustainability.”

Coweta County was one of the first 16 counties chosen to participate in the statewide Camera Ready initiative, a liaison program for filming companies. Camera Ready liaison Pam Mayer assists production companies with permits, traffic control, catering, location scouting and finding other resources in Coweta.

“We immediately got attention,” Mayer said. “Our community has opened its arms to filmmakers.”

Senoia is one of the areas that has seen the most growth as a result of the film industry.

From the revamping of down-

Photo by Bob Fraley

Workers Robbie Martin (foreground) and Jonathan Smith (in window) spruce up an old town Sharpsburg shop last July to pose as a pharmacy for AMC TV zombie show “The Walking Dead” during 2011 filming.

town to the 2010 and 2012 Southern Living idea houses, Senoia is now an up and coming area. There’s even a waiting list for store fronts on the downtown strip, according to Tigchelaar.

“We’re rebuilding this town and that wouldn’t be happening if it wasn’t for the film industry,” Tigchelaar said. “Business is coming into the county that wouldn’t otherwise be coming.

We have a huge opportunity to plan development and polish gems like Newnan, Senoia and Sharpsburg.”

The average television series spends from $25 to $50 million per season. Shows like AMC’s

“The Walking Dead” and Lifetime’s “Drop Dead Diva” have been repeat customers here in Coweta County, and for every season the television shows return the area receives a cash injection.

Money paid to the crew is spent on renting homes or apartments, hotels, food, gasoline, rental cars and throughout the county’s shops. Food provided on set is bought locally.

Casting calls for extras provide work for local people.

Utilities are often needed, as was the case with “The Wettest County in the World,” a $25 million budget feature film that set up its headquarters in the

former Bible Baptist Church property on U.S. Hwy. 29 while filming. NuLink was called in to wire and set up telephone and Internet service in the building for the film crew.

“We look at the movie industry as full circle,” Mayer said. “We want [film companies] to stay and when they stay, that’s economic development.”

Infrastructures like Raleigh Studios Atlanta attract vendor business — another component that adds to the positive economic impact. The studio acts as a turn key establishment for companies that want to come in and film without having to lug equipment cross country. Tigchelaar reports the studio is booked for the next year, possibly two — a good indicator that the cash will also keep flowing for the county.

Not only does the f ilm industry provide revenue for the county, but the tourism it produces also brings in money. Tourists who want to see the places where movies like “October Road” were filmed come in for a day and spend about $100 in the community, according to Mayer. In addition, the SPLOST tax brings in an extra penny on each dollar the tourists spend.

“We’ve been real busy with it over the past few years,” Tray Baggarly, director of event services for Coweta County, said. “We know they’re out spending money. If you ask the people who run businesses, they just smile because they are getting business from it. It’s a good deal for the state and the county.”

TV, movies filmed in Coweta County Among television and motion picture productions filmed in Coweta County since the 1970s are: “Moonrunners”: Haralson, Turin, 1973 “Our Winning Season”: Newnan, 1977 “The Sheriff and The Satellite Kid”: Newnan, 1979 “Guyana Tragedy”: Senoia, 1979 “Desperate for Love”: Senoia, 1988 “Driving Miss Daisy”: Senoia, 1989 “Decoration Day”: Newnan, 1990 “Manhunt in the Dakotas”: Newnan, 1991 “I’ll Fly Away”: Newnan, 1991 “Wife, Mother, Murderer”: Newnan, 1991 “White Lie”: Senoia, 1991 “Fried Green Tomatoes”: Newnan, Senoia, Haralson, 1991 “Silent Victim”: Newnan, 1991 “Grass Roots”: Newnan, 1991 “Carolina Skeletons”: Senoia, 1991 “Pet Sematary II”: Senoia, Dunaway Gardens, 1992 “Stolen Babies”: Sharpsburg, Turin, 1992 “Gordy”: Sharpsburg, 1993 “The War”: Grantville, Sharpsburg, Newnan, 1993 “Fluke”: Dunaway Gardens, 1994 “Andersonville”: Coweta County, 1994 “Raney”: Senoia,

Sharpsburg, 1996 “Zoobilee Zoo”: Raleigh Studios Atlanta in Senoia, 1997 “A Christmas Memory”: Sharpsburg, Senoia, 1997 “Flash”: Coweta County, 1997 “Mama Flora’s Family”: Haralson, 1998 “Noah Dearborn”: Newnan, Roscoe, 1999 “Passing Glory”: Newnan, 1999 “Sweet Home Alabama”: Wynn’s Pond, 2002 “The Fighting Temptations”: Senoia, 2002 “Severed”: Haralson, 2002 “The Unseen”: Haralson, Senoia, 2004 “Angel From Montgomery”: Senoia, Moreland, 2005 “Motor Home Massacre”: Senoia, Haralson, 2005 “October Road”: Newnan, 2006 “Get Low”: Newnan, 2008 “Zombieland”: Newnan, 2008 “The Wronged Man”: Newnan, 2009 “Drop Dead Diva”: Senoia, Peachtree City, 2009 “The Fat Boy Chronicles”: Newnan, 2010 “Footloose”: Senoia, 2010 “Joyful Noise”: Newnan, 2011 “The Wettest County in the World”: Senoia, Newnan, 2011 “The Walking Dead”: Senoia, 2011 “The Odd Life of Timothy Green”: Newnan, 2011

Development authority chairman David Brown sees bright future ahead for Coweta FUTURE Continued from page 5D what employees will be available,” Brown said.

In the past, many Cowetans had to travel to technical school campuses in Carrollton, Griffin or LaGrange for certain types of training.

“A lot of those people didn’t have the money or the car — so they got left out,” Brown said.

Having a technical college campus in the county is “so important for a larger percentage of our young people and people who want to learn a new job skill at any age,” Brown said. He pointed out that “it’s not just kids right out of high school” who attend technical program classes.

While many Cowetans in the past could have a good career simply from being able and willing to work hard, a higher level of credentials and training will be needed in the future. At the same time, well-educated people coming to the county to work at industries and the hospitals will change the county in positive ways.

“You’ve got people who are going to be involved in the community,” Brown said.

Those well-educated people will bring with them interests, hobbies and passions that will translate into richer social and cultural experiences for the entire community.

What is coming is “a top echelon of people,” Brown said, who will “be involved in our community” in many different arenas.

He noted CTCA has invited employees from other CTCA hospitals to consider relocating to Newnan. Those who are coming “read up on our community and saw something they liked about it,” Brown observed. “The new people coming in are going to be a great addition to our county.”

The availability of water puts the county in a good position.

“We have a surplus of water.

We don’t have to worry about not having enough money for any industry that might come,” Brown said.

There is a plenitude of water because “this county has had some really farsighted leaders in the past,” Brown said.

“Another thing that’s going for us in the future is I-85.

We’re more convenient to the Atlanta airport than Gwinnett County or Cobb County. That’s going to have a huge impact on the future of Coweta County,” Brown said.

“From just about anywhere in Coweta County, you can be at the Capitol in an hour,” he added. “You couldn’t ask for us to be in a better position.” He said Coweta is close enough — but not too close — to the economic hub of Atlanta, the state’s capital and largest city.

Coweta’s historic areas, particularly in Newnan, and the upscale shopping at Ashley

Park are both pluses as the county seeks to attract growth.

He referred to Newnan as “a jewel” and talked about the historic homes and buildings.

He spoke of the restoration of the historic 1904 Coweta County Courthouse — which he said “is so important to the perception people have of our county.”

When industrial prospects visit Coweta, they invariably are introduced to the charm of Newnan’s Court Square and historic neighborhoods, but there is history elsewhere, too.

“I try to get them down to Senoia,” Brown noted.

He described Ashley Park as “a modern shopping center, well planned” and said the attractive commercial area was “one of the things CTCA was looking for.”

Brown, 75, grew up in Carroll County. He became a Coweta resident about 40 years ago, when he transferred to work in the local U.S. Department of Agriculture office as the district conservationist.

He worked with farmers and helped local governments with various projects. “I enjoyed every day at work,” he reflected.

Looking back over his years in Coweta, he said the most surprising thing he has seen is the rapid growth that hit — starting about 15 years ago. “I didn’t expect it to change to quickly. The doubling in population over a 10-year period was due to the housing boom,” he

said. That growth has led to 60 percent of Coweta residents working outside the county, a much larger percentage than earlier.

Brown said he and his wife, Rita, are “the staff ” on their farm where they raise cattle with “no growth hormones.”

The steers from the Brown

farm eventually are sold as “all natural beef ” by a North Carolina firm, he said.

“I grow timber and have a lot of wildlife,” he said.

Brown has been a member of the Coweta County Development Authority and the Development Authority of Coweta County for about 12

years. He has been chairman of the two bodies for three years.

The two authorities have some differences. By having both of them — and having the two share many of the same members, “we can do any project that comes along,” Brown said.

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Cancer hospital set to open in summer IMPACT Continued from page 4D nationwide audience. And that attracts other companies that want to be close by.”

There are the obvious economic benefits — potentially hundreds of well-paid employees; other businesses moving into the area to support the cancer center, in turn bringing in more jobs.

There’s also the impact of patients and the families as well.

Under the terms of the Certificate of Need approved for CTCA, two-thirds of the patients must come from outside of Georgia, Dawson said, adding that was a stipulation negotiated in the certificate to protect existing hospitals in the state.

Those people will need places to stay and to eat. And that in turn means more business for area hotels and restaurants.

And patients — and their caregivers — also need a break.

They’ll want to shop, go to movies, play golf and other activities. All of which means

more money coming into the local economy.

CTCA officials estimate, by the fifth year, there will be 18,000 to 24,000 total patient visits annually.

“You have all the traditional economic impacts — new doctors, housing — but also hospitality, tourism, where to shop, where to eat,” Craver pointed out.

There are other impacts as well, some big and some that just add up over time.

CTCA is buying a fleet of vehicles to pick up patients and transport them around town.

They’re buying golf carts.

The company’s Guest Services division already is working with area businesses for various tours — a tour through historic Newnan or shopping at Ashley Park or downtown — for example.

“The more activities we can provide for our patients, the better,” Dawson said.

Then there’s the food.

Dawson said the hospital will need distributors and also will focus on organic food and local farmers markets.

Linen services are needed, office supplies, plates and silverware, glasses, basic medical

supplies as well as landscaping and florists.

And window washers.

“We don’t do windows,” Dawson joked.

While some of those seem to be small numbers, especially when compared to millions in equipment purchases, they add up.

“These are dollars generated in the local community, people are going to be coming from all over the Southeast,” Wright said. “They are staying in the local hotels, shopping in the local stores.’

“It’s just a tremendous impact from a business standpoint,” he added.

CTCA’s focus, according to Dawson, is not only to provide the best cancer treatment, but to be a strong community partner.

Already the company is working with other area businesses to set up various types of wellness programs. It also is negotiating with the major insurance carriers to ensure it gets in-network status.

“We are all living here,” Dawson said. “We want to create something that will be a cornerstone for this community.”

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10D — The Newnan Times-Herald — Sunday, March 18, 2012

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