Local entities come together to seek solutions
From Dahlonega Nugget
Published on: April 8, 2009
By Wayne Knuckles
Local leaders and elected officials talked about ways to foster better cooperation at an unusual joint meeting of the Lumpkin County Commission and the Dahlonega City Council March 31.
Representatives of the Lumpkin County school system and North Georgia College & State University also attended the meeting to discuss possible avenues of future mutual aid between the respective entities.
"We feel this is a somewhat historical moment," said "Dr." John Raber, county commission chairman. "We've finally brought the four groups together to start a dialogue."
In a wide-ranging discussion that lasted over an hour, participants touched on a number of local issues that will impact the community and ways they might be better able to work together to resolve them.
"Everybody always says the city and county don't get along," said Dahlonega Mayor Gary McCullough. But he pointed out that the city and county have worked together on a number of local issues "going back to the J.B. Jones days," including ballfields, the bypass, the Chamber of Commerce building, the fire department, the reservoir and the hospital.
"There are a lot of things we have worked with the county to do," McCullough said. "In spite of what people say, we've been cooperating a long time. Will there be disagreements? Sure there will. But that does not mean they will not be resolved."
County school superintendent Dewey Moye and NGCSU President Dr. David Potter pointed to the creation of more local jobs as one area that will require a cooperative effort.
"We're graduating some really top-notch students we can't retain in this community," Potter said. "As a group, we need to work together to diversify this economy and try to grow the economy we want. Economic development is an area that is very important to this region, and we've tried to stay involved in that. I really think that this county has a unique quality of life. The challenge we face is how to keep that identity without being overwhelmed [by growth]."
"Technology is where it's at," Moye said. He added that environmentally-friendly industries should be recruited whenever possible.
"We've got green space, clean air, clean water, and we want to keep it that way," Moye said.
"I believe we an have the best location for business and retirement in the country. We're trying hard to have the best rural school system in the country. We're not there yet, but we're working hard at it. If we can sell Lumpkin County as the most literate county, with the highest graduation rate, in our state, we would have an excellent selling tool for our county."
Each entity spoke of the ongoing collaborative efforts they've already established within the community, and the unique challenges they will be facing in the future.
County manager Stan Kelly pointed out that 31 percent of Lumpkin County is national forest, and "that's not taxable. That has an impact on all our budget numbers."
City manager Bill Lewis said a second wastewater treatment plant will be needed in the next decade or so, "and that's $30 million at today's cost."
Lewis also said that the current reservoir will only meet the water supply needs of the community up to a certain point as growth continues.
"By 2025 or 2030, the reservoir will not be adequate to handle growth," Lewis added. "This county is going to run out of water in about 2025 or 2030 at the projected growth rate."
NGCSU has been the fastest growing institution in the Board of Regents system in the state of Georgia over the past decade in terms of percentage, said Potter, but rapid growth has also presented some challenges.
"Our challenge is managing that growth so it doesn't overburden our community," Potter said. "We also face the challenge of an aging campus, and doing extensive campus renovation work."
Moye said the local school system is increasingly having to do more with less.
"Right now, we're looking at losing about $2 million in revenues with state cuts and senior tax exemptions," he added. "We started cutting back in 2002, and that's the reason we have avoided any layoffs. The biggest issue is we have around 3,000 students and that number is growing. We really want to work together to help the community grow."
In the end, the entities agreed to work toward better communication and to meet again to discuss areas of mutual interest.
Dahlonega councilman Michael Clemons said the county and city need to do more than pay lip service to the idea of mutual cooperation.
"If we're going to play ball, let's play ball together," Clemons said. "But I've got to be honest with you, I'm not sure that we always do. Let's come together, let's get something rolling, and let's do something."
From www.thedahloneganugget.com/articles/2009/04/08/news/01%20solutions.txt
