Former Braselton mayor Pat Graham announced Tuesday that she wants to be the next chairman of the Barrow County Board of Commissioners. "I am seeking the office of Chairman to provide the positive leadership our County needs in order to secure a brighter future for our citizens,” she said in a press release.
[Full Story »]
Entries by Susan Norman
Alexis Redmond (01-04-12)
Alexis Michelle Redmond, 4, of Auburn died Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2012.
She was a native of Winder and the daughter of Bradford Paul and Darlene J. Edge Redmond, both of Auburn. Her grandparents, Richard Redmond and Mary Sue Edge, preceded her in death.
Survivors in addition to her parents include her brother, Mitchell Gibbs; sisters Heather Gibbs, Maleah Redmond and Katelin Redmond; grandparents Dorissa Shackelford of Auburn and Louis Edge of Winder; and great-grandparents Elsie and Walter Redmond of Transfer, Penn., and Kenneth Redmond of Greenville, Penn.
Visitation is Saturday, Jan. 7, both from 2-4 p.m. and from 6-9 p.m. at Smith Funeral Home in Winder.
The funeral will be at 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 8, in Smith Memory Chapel with the Rev. Phil Williams officiating. Interment will follow at the Auburn City Cemetery.
The family has requested memorial contributions be made to Marcus Autism Center, 1920 Briarcliff Road, Atlanta, GA 30329-4010.
Smith Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
She was a native of Winder and the daughter of Bradford Paul and Darlene J. Edge Redmond, both of Auburn. Her grandparents, Richard Redmond and Mary Sue Edge, preceded her in death.
Survivors in addition to her parents include her brother, Mitchell Gibbs; sisters Heather Gibbs, Maleah Redmond and Katelin Redmond; grandparents Dorissa Shackelford of Auburn and Louis Edge of Winder; and great-grandparents Elsie and Walter Redmond of Transfer, Penn., and Kenneth Redmond of Greenville, Penn.
Visitation is Saturday, Jan. 7, both from 2-4 p.m. and from 6-9 p.m. at Smith Funeral Home in Winder.
The funeral will be at 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 8, in Smith Memory Chapel with the Rev. Phil Williams officiating. Interment will follow at the Auburn City Cemetery.
The family has requested memorial contributions be made to Marcus Autism Center, 1920 Briarcliff Road, Atlanta, GA 30329-4010.
Smith Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Death of 9-year county paramedic reported
A nine-year veteran of Barrow County Emergency Services died Dec. 7 from a possible self-inflicted gunshot wound at his home.
[Full Story »]
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Total forfeited EMS billings over $293,000
Thursday, December 8. 2011
Barrow County’s forfeited ambulance billings during the 32-day lapse of its state license in late August were almost twice the net of $150,000 disclosed this week by Barrow County CFO Rose Kisaalita.
According to a breakdown of the lost revenue figures she provided for the Dec. 13 meeting packets of the Barrow County Board of Commissioners, the total billings during the period were $293,629.
Medicare should have been billed for $110,195; Medicaid for $23,297; and other insurers or patients $160,138.
But based on actual anticipated payments of the invoices, Kisaalita said the projected loss to the county government’s General Fund in FY2011 would be $159,120.
“Both Medicare and Medicaid have stated we cannot bill for this period when the county did not have a license,” she wrote. “The County Attorney advised not to bill the private companies.”
Kisaalita said $4,875.27 would have to be refunded to patients or insurers who had already paid their invoices.
ALSO ON THE DEC. 13 MEETING AGENDA
• An application by Walton Georgia LLC, a Canadian-based land investment company, to rezone a small portion of a 292-acre site and to obtain a Special Use Permit for a master planned development called Barrow Landing that will be within the Highway Corridor Overlay at the corner of Highway 81 and Highway 316 and off Carl-Bethelehem Road. [Full Story »]
According to a breakdown of the lost revenue figures she provided for the Dec. 13 meeting packets of the Barrow County Board of Commissioners, the total billings during the period were $293,629.
Medicare should have been billed for $110,195; Medicaid for $23,297; and other insurers or patients $160,138.
But based on actual anticipated payments of the invoices, Kisaalita said the projected loss to the county government’s General Fund in FY2011 would be $159,120.
“Both Medicare and Medicaid have stated we cannot bill for this period when the county did not have a license,” she wrote. “The County Attorney advised not to bill the private companies.”
Kisaalita said $4,875.27 would have to be refunded to patients or insurers who had already paid their invoices.
ALSO ON THE DEC. 13 MEETING AGENDA
• An application by Walton Georgia LLC, a Canadian-based land investment company, to rezone a small portion of a 292-acre site and to obtain a Special Use Permit for a master planned development called Barrow Landing that will be within the Highway Corridor Overlay at the corner of Highway 81 and Highway 316 and off Carl-Bethelehem Road. [Full Story »]
Winder council poised to approve mid-year raises for employees; vote will be at 6 p.m. meeting tonight
The Winder City Council is planning to vote tonight on giving 3-percent raises in the middle of the fiscal year to all 168 city employees. The raises would be on top of Christmas bonuses that the outgoing mayor reportedly has approved.
The unbudgeted raises would cost $177,000 plus an estimated $13,540 for federal payroll taxes, for a total of about $190,540.
Mayor Chip Thompson proposed the raises at Monday night’s council work session, but the council will vote at tonight's business session, which starts at 6 in the Winder Community Center.
It will be Thompson’s last council meeting as mayor.
Mayor-elect David Maynard said Monday night that he would oppose the raises. He said he could not in good conscience ask local citizens who have lost jobs or been furloughed or lost homes to pay more for the services of city employees who already are making good salaries and getting better benefits than most people in the community.
“It’s not that we don’t care about employees,” he said. “But we are forcibly taking money from people that can’t afford it.”
In fiscal year 2010, taxes comprised one-half of the revenue for the city's General Fund. The other half of the operating fund's revenues came primarily from the sale of utility services to both city and county customers.
Councilman Bob Dixon said he would prefer to award raises based on merit.
However, Thompson’s argument – that most city employees have not had raises in five years – seemed to hold sway over the rest of the council.
Councilman Sonny Morris said that the city has $10 million in “reserves” and can afford the raises. He asked Thompson if that weren’t correct, and the mayor said it is what the city has “now.”
Actually, that figure represents the amount of cash the city has on deposit for the operation of the government for the last half of the fiscal year. Additional revenues will arrive over the next six months from utility profits, though natural gas profits will be directly tied to how cold the winter is.
In response to some of the objections raised – as well as a parting shot to the often-split council he is leaving behind – Thompson noted that the city pays 100 percent of the cost of insurance for council members. He said removing that $120,000 expense would cover most of the proposed cost-of-living raises for employees.
Councilman Bob Dixon and others said they would welcome a full review of compensation and benefits. Dixon and others said they did not realize when they ran for office that free health coverage was a perk. Dixon said he still has to pay about $700 per month for unused Medicare and Medicare supplemental policies that he would lose access to if he canceled them.
Dixon questioned the mayor’s timing in bringing up the last-minute idea of removing the council’s health benefits, since Thompson had been on council previously for eight years and was now winding up his four-year term as mayor.
Thompson said he gets his health coverage through the state’s plan for educators. He also noted that for the current fiscal year, which began on July 1, the financial impact would be about half of the annual cost of the raises.
The unbudgeted raises would cost $177,000 plus an estimated $13,540 for federal payroll taxes, for a total of about $190,540.
Mayor Chip Thompson proposed the raises at Monday night’s council work session, but the council will vote at tonight's business session, which starts at 6 in the Winder Community Center.
It will be Thompson’s last council meeting as mayor.
Mayor-elect David Maynard said Monday night that he would oppose the raises. He said he could not in good conscience ask local citizens who have lost jobs or been furloughed or lost homes to pay more for the services of city employees who already are making good salaries and getting better benefits than most people in the community.
“It’s not that we don’t care about employees,” he said. “But we are forcibly taking money from people that can’t afford it.”
In fiscal year 2010, taxes comprised one-half of the revenue for the city's General Fund. The other half of the operating fund's revenues came primarily from the sale of utility services to both city and county customers.
Councilman Bob Dixon said he would prefer to award raises based on merit.
However, Thompson’s argument – that most city employees have not had raises in five years – seemed to hold sway over the rest of the council.
Councilman Sonny Morris said that the city has $10 million in “reserves” and can afford the raises. He asked Thompson if that weren’t correct, and the mayor said it is what the city has “now.”
Actually, that figure represents the amount of cash the city has on deposit for the operation of the government for the last half of the fiscal year. Additional revenues will arrive over the next six months from utility profits, though natural gas profits will be directly tied to how cold the winter is.
In response to some of the objections raised – as well as a parting shot to the often-split council he is leaving behind – Thompson noted that the city pays 100 percent of the cost of insurance for council members. He said removing that $120,000 expense would cover most of the proposed cost-of-living raises for employees.
Councilman Bob Dixon and others said they would welcome a full review of compensation and benefits. Dixon and others said they did not realize when they ran for office that free health coverage was a perk. Dixon said he still has to pay about $700 per month for unused Medicare and Medicare supplemental policies that he would lose access to if he canceled them.
Dixon questioned the mayor’s timing in bringing up the last-minute idea of removing the council’s health benefits, since Thompson had been on council previously for eight years and was now winding up his four-year term as mayor.
Thompson said he gets his health coverage through the state’s plan for educators. He also noted that for the current fiscal year, which began on July 1, the financial impact would be about half of the annual cost of the raises.
GDOT: Avoid Hwy. 211 north of Winder starting Sunday night
The Georgia Department of Transportation is urging motorists to avoid using Highway 211 north of Winder next week both night and day due to roadwork.
Starting Sunday, Nov. 27, and every night through Friday, Dec. 2, Highway 211 from Beulah Street to Horton Street will be closed from 9 p.m. until 6 a.m. the following morning.
“The detour is necessary to install the new sewer line service that is located on the center line of the road,” said Teri Pope of GDOT. “There will be excavation, pipe installation, and backfilling.”
Then during the daytime, one westbound lane on Highway 211 will be closed from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. while the contractor patches the road in that area and puts down new asphalt.
The closures are due to $1.9 million in improvements being made to the state highway at Horton Street and McNeal Road.
The contractor, R.J. Haynie and Associates, will widen the road and install sidewalks, drainage structures, retaining walls, new traffic signals and strain poles, Pope said.
The road and intersection improvements are being undertaken by GDOT and the City of Winder in order to alleviate a major traffic bottleneck. Winder has purchased the right of way for the project and has relocated utility lines.
The project is on schedule to be completed by April 30, 2012.
Starting Sunday, Nov. 27, and every night through Friday, Dec. 2, Highway 211 from Beulah Street to Horton Street will be closed from 9 p.m. until 6 a.m. the following morning.
“The detour is necessary to install the new sewer line service that is located on the center line of the road,” said Teri Pope of GDOT. “There will be excavation, pipe installation, and backfilling.”
Then during the daytime, one westbound lane on Highway 211 will be closed from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. while the contractor patches the road in that area and puts down new asphalt.
The closures are due to $1.9 million in improvements being made to the state highway at Horton Street and McNeal Road.
The contractor, R.J. Haynie and Associates, will widen the road and install sidewalks, drainage structures, retaining walls, new traffic signals and strain poles, Pope said.
The road and intersection improvements are being undertaken by GDOT and the City of Winder in order to alleviate a major traffic bottleneck. Winder has purchased the right of way for the project and has relocated utility lines.
The project is on schedule to be completed by April 30, 2012.
Two more arrested in abuse of mentally ill; GBI director adding resources to go 'deeper and further'
Two women assisting in the illegal operation of personal care homes for the mentally ill in Barrow County were arrested late Thursday afternoon.
Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said Narquitta Streete and Priscilla Streete each were charged with one count of giving false information to law enforcement personnel and four counts of being a party to the neglect and exploitation of disabled adults.
Their associate, Marlo Kenneth Yarbrough, who has been in the Barrow County Detention Center since Nov. 12, was charged with an additional count of giving false statements to law enforcement.
The women's arrests followed searches of the two homes at 962 Downing Drive and 1144 Otis Drive in the Cambridge Estates subdivision, which yielded “a boatload of evidence,” Smith said.
Yarbrough had allegedly abandoned four of the mentally ill adults in an unheated home in Winder on Nov. 11 in order to avoid further scrutiny of the illegal operation in the Bethlehem subdivision.
Yarbrough and Narquitta Streete lived in and ran the home on Downing Drive, which accommodated about six disabled clients. Priscilla Streete, the sister of Narquitta, ran the Otis Drive home with about three disabled clients.
A sheriff's office press release Friday said the evidence collected during the searches "substantiated the charges taken on all of the suspects at this time."
The sheriff told the Barrow Journal: “We found documentation of the people that were staying there. We found documentation where they were delivered to them, medication documentation, and lists of people that were there and are no longer there. It’s so much.” [Full Story »]
Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said Narquitta Streete and Priscilla Streete each were charged with one count of giving false information to law enforcement personnel and four counts of being a party to the neglect and exploitation of disabled adults.
Their associate, Marlo Kenneth Yarbrough, who has been in the Barrow County Detention Center since Nov. 12, was charged with an additional count of giving false statements to law enforcement.
The women's arrests followed searches of the two homes at 962 Downing Drive and 1144 Otis Drive in the Cambridge Estates subdivision, which yielded “a boatload of evidence,” Smith said.
Yarbrough had allegedly abandoned four of the mentally ill adults in an unheated home in Winder on Nov. 11 in order to avoid further scrutiny of the illegal operation in the Bethlehem subdivision.
Yarbrough and Narquitta Streete lived in and ran the home on Downing Drive, which accommodated about six disabled clients. Priscilla Streete, the sister of Narquitta, ran the Otis Drive home with about three disabled clients.
A sheriff's office press release Friday said the evidence collected during the searches "substantiated the charges taken on all of the suspects at this time."
The sheriff told the Barrow Journal: “We found documentation of the people that were staying there. We found documentation where they were delivered to them, medication documentation, and lists of people that were there and are no longer there. It’s so much.” [Full Story »]
Police raid 3rd illegal home for mentally ill; operator in jail
The operator of one or more unlicensed homes for the mentally ill in Barrow County was arrested overnight after four of his Barrow County clients were discovered abandoned in a Winder home with no food and no heat.
Sheriff Jud Smith said Marlo Yarbrough was charged with four counts of reckless conduct and was booked into to the Barrow County Detention Center, where he remained incarcerated Saturday afternoon.
Family members of the alleged victims told the Barrow Journal on Saturday morning that only four of the nine mentally ill residents that had been housed in two homes in the Cambridge Estates subdivision had been accounted for last night. The whereabouts of the other five were not known, and they apparently do not have their psychiatric medications, sources said.
The residents told their family members that Yarbrough or his relatives had suddenly ordered them out of the Cambridge Estates homes on Friday and had dropped them off at a house on Northcrest Drive in Winder. The home had electricity and water, but no gas heat and no refrigerator or food or blankets.
The frightened mentally ill men and women kept warm by huddling around the open oven door. The house was only partially furnished. In the bedrooms were mattresses on the floors but no linens.
Yarbrough reportedly brought the residents fast food late Friday night and gave one or more of them their psychiatric medications, but he then took the medications with him and left.
Shortly after that, officers from the Winder Police Department and the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office descended on the Winder home. They contacted Yarbrough and demanded that he return to the home. Within five minutes of his arrival, he was in handcuffs, a witness said.
The witness said the police officers and deputies were very compassionate to the residents, accompanying them to the homes on Downing Drive and Otis Drive to retrieve their belongings. Two of the four residents at the house in Winder were picked up by family members. Two others were turned over to the woman who had referred them to Yarbrough and his family for care.
For more on this developing situation, read the Nov. 16 edition of the Barrow Journal.
Sheriff Jud Smith said Marlo Yarbrough was charged with four counts of reckless conduct and was booked into to the Barrow County Detention Center, where he remained incarcerated Saturday afternoon.
Family members of the alleged victims told the Barrow Journal on Saturday morning that only four of the nine mentally ill residents that had been housed in two homes in the Cambridge Estates subdivision had been accounted for last night. The whereabouts of the other five were not known, and they apparently do not have their psychiatric medications, sources said.
The residents told their family members that Yarbrough or his relatives had suddenly ordered them out of the Cambridge Estates homes on Friday and had dropped them off at a house on Northcrest Drive in Winder. The home had electricity and water, but no gas heat and no refrigerator or food or blankets.
The frightened mentally ill men and women kept warm by huddling around the open oven door. The house was only partially furnished. In the bedrooms were mattresses on the floors but no linens.
Yarbrough reportedly brought the residents fast food late Friday night and gave one or more of them their psychiatric medications, but he then took the medications with him and left.
Shortly after that, officers from the Winder Police Department and the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office descended on the Winder home. They contacted Yarbrough and demanded that he return to the home. Within five minutes of his arrival, he was in handcuffs, a witness said.
The witness said the police officers and deputies were very compassionate to the residents, accompanying them to the homes on Downing Drive and Otis Drive to retrieve their belongings. Two of the four residents at the house in Winder were picked up by family members. Two others were turned over to the woman who had referred them to Yarbrough and his family for care.
For more on this developing situation, read the Nov. 16 edition of the Barrow Journal.
Auburn mayor receives national award
Auburn Mayor Linda Blechinger on Friday received national recognition for the quality of her leadership of the city.
At a National League of Cities conference in Arizona, Blechinger was named the 2011 recipient of the Women in Municipal Government Leadership Award.
The award is given annually to a female municipal official who has displayed both “unique and outstanding leadership in local government” and “individual achievement in initiating creative and successful programs,” according to the organization's web site.
Blechinger was not available for comment but is expected back in the office on Monday.
At a National League of Cities conference in Arizona, Blechinger was named the 2011 recipient of the Women in Municipal Government Leadership Award.
The award is given annually to a female municipal official who has displayed both “unique and outstanding leadership in local government” and “individual achievement in initiating creative and successful programs,” according to the organization's web site.
Blechinger was not available for comment but is expected back in the office on Monday.
Winder voters turning out
As of 2 p.m. today, just over 400 Winder voters had cast ballots in person at the Winder Community Center. With about 500 others voting previously during the advanced voting period, the turnout for the 2011 mayoral and council elections stood at 900 with five more hours left to vote.
To break the 2007 record turnout of 1,286, another 400 Winder residents would have to cast ballots before the polls close at 7 p.m.
Most of the city's candidates have been standing on a corner in front of the community center property throughout the day and waving to passing motorists. Some of the motorists rolled down their windows and good-naturedly ribbed the candidates. City administrator Don Toms brought the candidates bottles of water just after 2 p.m.
There is no doubt that Winder is the focal point of the elections throughout the county today. Statham's council race at 4:35 p.m. had drawn 120 voters. And interim elections supervisor Monica Franklin reported this sampling of the turnout in county precincts as of 1 p.m.: 122 votes cast at the Winder Lions Club; 80 at County Line Elementary School; 77 at Winder-Barrow High School; and 76 at the Leisure Services Center.
The polls are open until 7 p.m.
To break the 2007 record turnout of 1,286, another 400 Winder residents would have to cast ballots before the polls close at 7 p.m.
Most of the city's candidates have been standing on a corner in front of the community center property throughout the day and waving to passing motorists. Some of the motorists rolled down their windows and good-naturedly ribbed the candidates. City administrator Don Toms brought the candidates bottles of water just after 2 p.m.
There is no doubt that Winder is the focal point of the elections throughout the county today. Statham's council race at 4:35 p.m. had drawn 120 voters. And interim elections supervisor Monica Franklin reported this sampling of the turnout in county precincts as of 1 p.m.: 122 votes cast at the Winder Lions Club; 80 at County Line Elementary School; 77 at Winder-Barrow High School; and 76 at the Leisure Services Center.
The polls are open until 7 p.m.
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