The Henry County Board ofCommissioners has approved anintergovernmental agreement with the Citiesof Hampton, Locust Grove, McDonough,and Stockbridge to proceed with putting areferendum on the upcoming November2013 election ballot regarding a one percentSpecial Purpose Local Option Sales Tax tofund capital and transportation projects inthe community. The action took placeduring a joint meeting with the four cities at

the Henry County Administration Buildingon July 29, during which the cities alsoconfirmed their approval of theintergovernmental agreement.

By entering into anintergovernmental agreement, HenryCounty, together with the four cities, ispermitted to collect the sales tax for a periodof six years, rather than the five year limitthat would be the cap without such anagreement in place. In addition, the County

the henry county update 1

BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

Called MeetingsAugust 5th at 10:00 a.m.

Regular MeetingsAugust 6th at 9:00 a.m.August 20th at 6:30 p.m.

Meetings held at: Administration Building

Community Room140 Henry Parkway

McDonough, GA 30253

Regular Commission meetings will air Fridays,Saturdays, Mondays and

Wednesdays on Henry TV Channel 14 andAT&T U-Verse Channel 99,

at 9 a.m. & 7 p.m.

August 1, 2013

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Commissioners Approve IntergovernmentalAgreement For a SPLOST IV Program

Henry County Commission Chairman Tommy Smith signs the SPLOST IV intergovernmental agreement with the citiesof Hampton, Locust Grove, McDonough, and Stockbridge, as the mayors look on, (from left to right), Mayor RobertPrice of Locust Grove, Mayor Billy Copeland of McDonough, Mayor Chris Moore of Hampton, and Mayor Pro TemRichard Steinberg of Stockbridge.

www.hen r ycoun t y -ga .o rg

With Henry County public schools reopening thisweek, both the Henry County Police Department and theHenry County Sheriff’s Office are reminding drivers to slowdown and be aware, not only of increased traffic on the roads,but of school children waiting for school buses.

According to the Henry County Board of Education,approximately 24,000 Henry County students, or 65 percentof the district’s enrollment take the busto school. That means 24,000 schoolchildren from kindergarten to 12thgrade will be standing on the cornerwaiting for the school bus or exitingthe school buses every weekday.Buses run from 6:30 until 9:00 a.m.and then again from 2:30 to 5 p.m.

With the new school yearabout to begin, Henry County Policeand the Henry County Sheriff’s Officeare working together to take steps toinsure the safety of our children asthey start their school year.

Henry County Police want the public to know that thepolice department is gearing up for the start of the newschool year and patrol units will be concentrating on thetraffic around the schools and monitoring compliance totraffic laws.

“We would like the public to be aware that there willbe children and teenagers out in the morning on the cornerswaiting for the school buses and to be cautious untileveryone gets used to the traffic. We also want motorists to

be mindful of the school crossing guards, and we wantcitizens to be respectful, as the guards have a tough job,”said Sgt. Joey Smith with the Henry County PoliceDepartment. “Traffic is always a little hectic at the beginningof the school year, but we’ll get through it, just like we always do.”

According to the Sheriff’s Office, a foremost concernis the growing issue of motoristsplacing school children at risk bypassing school buses while they areloading or unloading at bus stops. Toassist the Sheriff’s Office SchoolResource Officers in the prosecutionof careless drivers, many schoolbuses are equipped with stop-armvideo cameras. The Student Guardiansystem uses high resolution camerasthat begin operation when the schoolbus activates the red stop lights andextends the stop bar.

“Drivers who choose to illegally pass after the signalsare activated are recorded,” said Sheriff Keith McBrayer.“Traffic tickets are then generated by Sheriff’s Deputies. Weview this technology as a necessary tool that will allow ourDeputies the ability to detect and enforce this most flagrantviolation, endangering our children.”

For more information on the Henry County Policedepartment, log on to www.henrycounty-ga.org/police. Formore information on the Henry County Sheriff’s Office, visitwww.henrycountysheriff.net.

Officials Urge Safety with School Year Beginning

HENRY COUNTY D.O.TROAD RESURFACING SCHEDULE

For the week of August 5, 2013Deer Trace Subdivision will be resurfaced.*

*Weather permitting.

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and cities were together able to decide how the funds wouldbe allocated, resulting a 75/25 split between the County andits four municipalities. Of the 25 percent that will go to thecities, Hampton will receive 11.64 percent, Locust Grove willreceive 8.99 percent, McDonough will receive 36.74 percent,and Stockbridge will receive 42.64 percent.

Based on a revenue projection of $190 million, HenryCounty’s portion of 75 percent will yield $142.5 million forcounty projects. This includes approximately $42.5 millionin county-wide, tier 1 projects, including the following:

• 911 Radio Communications System for the County and Cities $7 million• Ambulances $380,000• 2nd Building of Southern Crescent Technical College $5 million• DOT Construction Equipment Replacement $450.000 • Jail Renovation/New Pod Design $1.5 million• Airport FBO $1 million• Animal Control Facility Improvements and Equipment $100,000• 30 Police Patrol Vehicles $1,406,806

• Fire Stations (3 new) $6 million• Fire Department Capital Equipment $2.1 million• Probate Court Building Improvements $220,000• Police Station (north end of county) $4 million• New Interchange on I-75 South of SR 155* $5.5 million• SPLOST Program Management $3.9 million• Sewer to Airport $2 million• Sewer to Fairview $2 millionThe balance of approximately $100 million will be

divided equally among the five commission districts,providing each one about $20 million to allocate for capitaland transportation projects, according to their district’s needsand priorities. To view a complete list of all the SPLOST IVprojects, please visit http://tinyurl.com/l6paery.

As the SPLOST III program expires in March 2014, ifthe SPLOST IV program is approved by voters in November,it would continue the penny sales tax beginning in April foranother six years. It would not be an additional tax.

SPLOST From Page 1

Domestic Short Hair-Black/Tabby Mixwww.petfinder.com/petdetail/26712850It is kitty season once again and because no one thought to get my mom anddad sterilized, I am here at the shelter, lonely, and without a home. I am oneof the many kitties here at the shelter in need of a lifetime companion thatwill give me the love that I so deserve. If you would like to meet me, you canvisit me here at the shelter or call my friends at (770) 288-PETS. My ID#6/19-1623 black white neutered male. 6/19-1622 tabby female is and I hopeto see you soon. Lost and stray animals are held at the Henry County AnimalCare and Control Shelter for four (4) calendar days (excluding Sundays andcounty holidays) in order to give their owners a chance to reclaim them. Afterthat time period, adoptable animals are held as long as space allows.

www.hen r ycoun t y -ga .o rg

District V Commissioner BruceHolmes will hold his monthly Town HallMeeting on Saturday, August 24, 2013at 9 a.m. at Crossroad Christian Church.This month’s meeting will feature a

discussion on economic developmentand entrepreneurship, with a focus onaccess to capital for small businessesand aspiring entrepreneurs.

Special guest speakers includeMarc Parham, managing partner at thePartec Consulting Group and DanBarnes, Ph. D., along with Toni Davis,an Organizational Leadership &Development Consultant, with expertisein Human Resources & BusinessManagement. As the Founder of"WeAreHr", Davis also has a passion forStudent Development in the careerareas of Business Administration andHuman Resources, M.S.A.

Parham and Barnes will discussa myriad of topics, including how to

develop and write a business plan andgain access to capital. Davis will discussthe idea of implementing a BusinessLeague servicing area south of Atlanta.

The Town Hall meeting is opento the public and all are encouraged toattend. Crossroad Christian Church islocated at 5365 North Henry Blvd. inStockbridge. Also, watch forannouncements about an upcomingSmall Business Development WorkshopSeries hosted by the Partec ConsultingGroup and Commissioner BruceHolmes, to be held at TooLooPeasSavory Southern Cuisine, located at 282E. Atlanta Rd. in Stockbridge. Dates andtimes to be announced.

Commissioner Bruce Holmes To Host Town Hall MeetingFocus will be on Business and Entrepreneurship

The Henry County Police Department is proud toannounce that Police Chief Keith Nichols has received the“Member of the Year” award from the Georgia Chapter of the

Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Academy. ChiefNichols is attending the F.B.I. National Academy AssociatesAnnual Training Conference hosted in Orlando Florida fromJuly 27th – 30th, where he received his award from theGeorgia Chapter. Each State has a Chapter and membersnominate the recipient of the award. Chief Nichols is 1 of 900Graduates from Georgia who have attended the FBI NationalAcademy in Quantico, Virginia. Outstanding Job Chief!

“I consider it an awesome honor to have beennominated and selected as the Georgia chapter FBI NAmember of the year," commented Chief Nichols. "I appreciateyour loyalty and confidence that you have in me as the leaderof our department. I appreciate the fact that you haveaccepted the challenge also in our quest to make HCPD oneof the finest agencies in our state. I hope that we will alwaystreasure what the NA experience meant to us and try andimplement the principles of our organization here at HCPD.Thank you and be safe out there.”

Henry County Police Chief Receives Award from FBI Academy

Henry County Police Chief Keith Nichols (3rd from the right) is shown holdingthe "Member of the Year Award" he received from the Georgia Chapter of theFBI National Academy.