According to Pickens County Commissioner Robert Jones, plans are to begin grading work on a $100,000 animal control facility near the Pickens County Adult Detention Center in approximately one month.
At October’s commissioner’s meeting, Jones reported the county and the sheriff’s office are now completing drawings for the facility, which will be large enough to house 30 dogs and 15 - 25 cats.
The commissioner decided to expedite previous plans to build an animal control facility after discovering our county’s agreement with Gordon and Gilmer counties to house captured animals is no longer a viable option as a result of “run over,” Jones said.
Jones said the county is “handling [the run over] right now, but with what we are having to pay them, we can build our own facility, and that’s what we are going to do.”
Pickens Animal Rescue volunteer Kirk Kondos asked the commissioner if it would be possible to use prisoners as caretakers for animals housed at the new containment building, saying it would be a “win-win” for the animals, the sheriff’s department and the inmates.
Kondos, who said he has been researching the inmate animal care program since news came of a county facility, said inmates benefit greatly from “quality time” with animals and also that the return rate of inmates to jail tends to be lower when they have the opportunity to interact with animals.
“They tend to be much friendlier, much nicer, if they have the love of a dog or a cat,” Kondos said.
Jones thanked Kondos for his work and said the county has already been looking into an inmate-operated program. The commissioner reported the facility will be located on county-owned property adjacent to the Pickens Adult Detention Center. Jones also said there will be one full-time employee working at the facility but that inmates assigned to the daily inmate work detail through the sheriff’s office will spend mornings cleaning the building and feeding animals before beginning other tasks for the day.
Inmates will return to the facility at the end of the day for a second feeding and cleaning, Jones said.
Kondos suggested inmates not only clean the facility but should also be given time to interact with animals housed there. Commissioner Jones said that would be “an option.”
Jones estimates grading on the site will begin in the next 30 to 45 days.
Jones staying neutral about multi-person commission until first of year
A man attending the meeting asked Jones what he thought of the multi-person commission enabling legislation draft soon to be sent to the General Assembly for expected approval early next year.
Jones said, while he is familiar with the draft, created by the Citizens’ Advisory Committee on Commission Structure, he would not make any comments on either the CAC or Pickens’ possibility of transitioning to a multi-person commission until after the draft is approved by the legislature, something expected to occur early 2010.
Jones said, “I’d rather the citizens make their own judgment on that. I’d rather not make any comment…
“The county has stayed out for the simple reason, because…the government itself doesn’t need to change its own government. If you look in the past, Adolf Hitler and Stalin did the same thing [changed the government by the will of the government], and I’m not going to fall in that category,” Jones said.
“No, we have not been involved in procedures. We helped where we could if they needed documentation, but other than that, we haven’t gotten involved,” he said.
Sales tax collections for August up 13 percent over previous month
Financial director Mechelle Champion reported sales-tax collections for the month of August were up approximately 13 percent for both LOST and SPLOST programs.
According to Champion, the county collected $252,541.51 in LOST monies for August compared to $219,394.56 in July for an increase of 13.13 percent. Year-over-year LOST collections have increased 6.98 percent for the month of August.
Year-to-date, Champion said the county is behind $462,000– behind the budgeted amount for LOST.
SPLOST collections for the month of August were $359,492.43, and increase of 12.59 percent when compared to the $314,238.22 collected July of this year. Year-over-year SPLOST collections are up 6.1 percent in August.
August figures are the latest numbers available. All counties in Georgia receive sales-tax checks nearly two months after actual collection dates.
Year-to-date SPLOST collections have been $3.2 million, according to Champion.
While both LOST and SPLOST taxes are an additional one percent on top of state taxes, county collections for LOST are significantly lower, because the county pays out a percentage to each incorporated municipality. Jasper receives 25 percent, Talking Rock receives two percent, and Nelson receives three percent.
County signs agreement with school board for use of school gymnasiums
The county has agreed to pay the Pickens County School Board $50,000 for a one-year lease of three school gymnasiums.
Jones said the county will have “full control” of the Jasper Elementary School gym and permission to use Hill City Elementary and Harmony Elementary gyms for the Pickens County Recreation Department.
County still exploring stimulus funds
According to Champion and Jones, Pickens County is still interested in pursuing federal stimulus money for several county improvements, including a new water tank in Tate and waterlines on the west end of the county.
The county was required to notify the federal government by November 1 if county government was still interested in receiving federal stimulus money.
“We are not waiving allocation for that money,” Champion said. “It doesn’t mean that we have to take the allocation. We’re just telling them that we want to explore,” Champion said.
In the past, Jones has expressed frustration with stimulus packages offered to Pickens County, which have demanded large matching funds.
Jones has said the county may be required to pay two-percent closing costs and two-percent closing costs on 60-percent matching funds.
Because of Pickens County’s tier ranking as the 9th wealthiest county in Georgia, gaining access to federal funding and grant money is difficult, Jones has said.
The Department of Community Affairs’ ranking system is based on population growth, unemployment rates, and per capita income and is meant to determine the economic stress of Georgia counties. Tier 1 counties are considered the most stressed––tier 4 the least stressed.
“There could be some other strings attached, and we don’t know what those strings are, but we don’t want to give up our allocation in case we can work everything out,” Jones added.
“We’ll finally get to look over [the conditions of the package offered to Pickens] when all the paperwork gets here from Washington, D.C..”
Other news from the commissioner’s
meeting:
•November 2009 was declared National Home Health Care Month in Pickens County.
•Commissioner Jones signed a joint agreement with City of Jasper Mayor John Weaver declaring the week of October 23 through October 31 as Red Ribbon Week.
•Jones also declared November 1, 2009 as Retired Educators Day in Pickens County.
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