CITY OF GRIFFIN HOLDING PUBLIC HEARINGS FRIDAY ON INCREASING TAXES

THE  CITY  OF  GRIFFIN  IS  HOLDING  TWO  PUBLIC  HEARINGS FRIDAY  AT  9AM  AND   6PM  FOR  PUBLIC  HEARINGS  ON  INCREASING 2020  PROPERTY  TAXES  BY  3.51%  OVER  THE  ROLLBACK  MILLAGE  RATE. 

FREE COVID-19 TESTING IN THOMASTON

 When: Saturday, October 3, 2020 from 9:00am to 12:00pm Where: Upson Regional Medical Center 801 W Gordon St, Thomaston, GA 30286 lower parking deck Drive-thru @UpsoncountyDPH4 & @District4Health @d4publichealth @D4publichealth Follow us on Social Media:: FREE COVID-19 TESTING PRE-REGISTRATION IS STRONGLY RECOMMENDED Please Visit covid19.dph.ga.gov/ to register

UPDATE FROM OFFICE OF VOTER REGISTRATION UPSON CO.

 UPSON COUNTY

OFFICE OF VOTER REGISTRATION

Election Supervisor Chief Registrar

Pam W. Releford Kelly L. King

NOTICE

The Upson County Board of Elections is NOT mailing out absentee ballot applications that are affiliated with any party. If a citizen completes, submits, & signs these absentee applications the Elections office will fulfill this request. Citizens may track their absentee ballot at https://georgia.ballottrax.net/voter/ .

Reminders: The last day to register to vote is Monday, Oct. 5th

Ballot Drop box is located in the City utility drive thru and outside the county Elections Office door.

Early Voting begins Oct. 12 – Oct. 30 at the Civic Center

Monday – Friday 8:30am – 5:00pm

Saturday, Oct. 24th 9am – 4pm

SEASON FLU VACCINE AVAILABLE AT UPSON CO HEALTH DEPART.

 LaGrange, Ga. - The Upson County Health Department is now providing seasonal flu vaccine on Monday’s and Wednesday’s  by appointment. To make an appointment call 1-800-847-4262.

Vaccine will be available for anyone over the age of 6 months. The cost of the vaccine is $25.00 but most major insurances are accepted and discounts may be available for uninsured.

 

While flu can make anyone sick, certain people are at greater risk for serious complications from the flu, causing hospitalization or even death, such as:

 

• Older people
• Young children
• People with chronic lung disease (such as asthma and COPD), diabetes (type 1 and 2), heart disease, neurologic conditions, and certain other long-term conditions, and
• Pregnant women

 

Much of the U.S. population is at high risk from serious flu complications either because of their age or because they have a medical condition like asthma, diabetes (type 1 and 2), heart conditions, or because they are pregnant. People with a health condition should receive a flu vaccine as soon as it becomes available.

 

Flu viruses are constantly changing. Each flu season, different flu viruses can spread, and they can affect people differently based on their body’s ability to fight infection. Even healthy children and adults can get very sick from the flu and spread it to family and friends.

 

For people who do not receive the flu vaccine, health officials encourage them to take the following steps to reduce their chances of getting the flu:

 

0. Wash your hands regularly
1. Cover coughs and sneezes
2. Keep household surfaces clean
3. Don’t attend work or school when ill
4. Don’t share glasses or eating utensils

 

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URMC OFFERS EXTENDED HOURS FOR 3D MAMMOGRAMS

 Upson Regional Medical Center Offers Extended Hours for 3D Mammograms in October

 

 

About 1 in 8 U.S. women (about 12%) will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime. In 2020, an estimated 276,480 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed in women in the U.S.

 

Upson Regional Medical Center is proud to offer 3D Mammography, which is 40% more accurate than a traditional mammogram. We are committed to the health of our community and will be hosting Ladies Night on October 6 and October 20. With appointments as late as 7pm, taking advantage of 3D mammography is more convenient than ever.

 

To schedule your 3D mammogram, please call 706-647-8111 ext. 1114. A physician order is required.

 

Also, for the month of October, MDSave is offering 3D mammograms for $149 in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. To receive the discount, patients should pay through the secure site at mdsave.com/urmc , or call 877-232-3826. Please be sure to follow the scheduling instructions that are provided and bring your voucher to your appointment.

 

 

 

UPSON CO. SHERIFF DAN KILGORE ANNOUNCES BURGLARY ARRESTS

 NEWS RELEASE

 

Deputies investigated a burglary that occurred between April and August at a hunting camp on New Harmony Rd. in Upson County. Numerous items were reported stolen including hunting gear, a Suzuki 4- wheeler and a Yamaha Rhino side by side utility vehicle. The total value of all the items taken is approximately $15,000 dollars.

Upon investigation, several subjects were arrested and charged with burglary.

Those arrested are :

Justin William Blankenship ,23, 6031 Indian Trail, Thomaston

Chelsea Elizabeth Walthall ,27, 75 McG ath Rd., Yatesville

Cynthia Ann Ard ,27, 2045 Rocky Bottom Rd., Thomaston

Rickey Keith Verhine ,33, address unknown (arrested in Alabama), 

James Vincent Harris ,30, 200 Avenue L, Thomaston

Chadwick Ryan Campbell Sr., 33, 65 East Peachtree St., Thomaston

Michael James Thompson Jr.,31, 75 McGrath Rd. , Yatesville

The majority of the property that was reported stolen has been recovered. The victims in this case all live in Florida.

This investigation is active and ongoing

Dan Kilgore, Sheriff

September 29, 2020

 

Upson County Georgia

GA. COACH KIRBY SMART ON THE UPCOMING AUBURN GAME

 University of Georgia head football coach Kirby Smart and several Bulldog student-athletes offered the following comments on Monday. 

 

Head Coach Kirby Smart

Opening statement … 

“I am excited to be here. We have a big game this week. This is one of the most traditional rivalries in all of college football. I think any time you talk about Georgia-Auburn, you talk about rivalry. They’ve got a lot of kids from our state. They recruit our state hard. There are a lot of ties between the two universities — always has been. It’s been a big game. I never remember it being game two, that’s for sure, so that is very unique in that we will be playing them pretty early. I have a lot of respect for their coordinators — Coach [Kevin] Steele, Chad [Morris] — both really good. I think what Chad has done for their offense really shows on tape. The ability to use their skill and get their skill players the ball from different locations. You can see it showing up already, and they’ve done a great job of that. 

 

“I’ve got a lot of respect for Gus [Malzahn] and the organization he has put together. They have recruited well, they have really good players, top-10 team in the country, so it should be a great ball game, great atmosphere. I certainly wish we could have 93,000 there, but we won’t be able to do that, so we will do the best we can with the crowd we’ve got, and we will need them to be loud. I thought that Arkansas’ group was good and loud last week, and the atmosphere will be really good for that this week as well. So, we are excited for that.

 

“I know you guys will want to ask the quarterback question, and you will want to ask it all week. All I can tell you is that we are going to continue to work with all the guys we’ve got to put the best guy in there to give us the best opportunity to win the football games. D’Wan [Mathis] did not play as bad as it seemed to some. I thought he did some good things watching the tape, and he had some unfortunate bad breaks that happened while he was in a quarterback. JT [Daniels] will be cleared, but I don’t know how much that changes the picture in terms of reps and development. We will be looking at everybody across the board. JT has got to be able to show us that he can function efficiently and do it with his knee being able to do it. We always thought he would be cleared by this time anyway, but those guys will all compete as well as Carson [Beck] will too and will continue to grow at the quarterback position. With that, I’ll open it up.”

 

On what hurdles JT Daniels had to overcome medically and the performance of Stetson Bennett … 

“Well, Ron [Courson] would have to explain that in depth. You are looking for percentage, strength index, biodex, testing, girth, his knee being closer to the same size as the other one. They do a single-leg hop test, they measure his ability to move around on that knee compared to his other knee, and they have been looking for certain barometers to be able to hit that number, and he was able to do that. That’s very fortunate for him, but he still has to be able to go out there and prove to us that he can do it in the game-like situations and the practice-like situations. That’s not easy to do during the week at times.

 

“I thought Stetson did a good job when he came in. He has played a lot of football. He had good composure, he handled the pocket well, he handled the protections well. Stetson has seen a lot of football in his time. The stuff he sees from our defense day-in and day-out, taking all the reps last year. He was very calm and poised. And D’Wan did a lot of good things, guys. It’s not his fault a play got called back for holding. It’s not his fault a guy missed a pick up on third down — and he almost turned that into a first down. He did a lot of good things early on there, and we just never could put good things back to back. Every drive he had came to a stop for some reason or another.”

 

On D’Wan Mathis taking a big hit and if that dinged him up a little … 

“No. Actually it was the opposite. He was fired up. He was pumped. He loves the game, he loves the competitive nature. He doesn’t believe in getting down. He likes contact. I thought that was one of the highlights that he took that hit and that he kept going. I think what got me a little bit was the awareness the next time. He missed the yard marker the next time on third down when he had an opportunity to scramble for it and get the third down. That happens with a young quarterback. I remember a big game where Jake Fromm took off running on a third down and he slid before the first down on third down, and I was so upset with him. But a lot of guys they don’t have the awareness to know exactly where that is on the sideline, and he just missed it. It had nothing to do with the hit he took earlier. As a matter of fact, he was pumped about the hit. He’s been waiting two years to get hit, so he felt relieved.”

 

On the evaluation of the running backs after game one…

“It’s a combination of both [the running backs and blocking]. I thought there were a couple things. The first thing, to have a great run you have to have good box counts, you have to get hat on a hat, you have to make people miss. I think all of our backs have the ability to make people miss, but they have to do it at a higher level. We have to block much better on the second level on terms of our receivers, cut off blocking and turning a couple 10/12 yard runs into bigger runs. There were some missed opportunities there and we have to move up front a little better. At the end of the day, that’s what it takes to be able to run the ball. When you look across our league, I think you’ll see- you show me a team that’s running the ball really, really well and efficiently and it’s hard to do in our league. You have to be able to throw and catch the ball and you have to be able to score points. Historically, we’ve been able to run the ball at a good rate, compared to a lot of people in our league and we didn’t do that Saturday.  There were some holes, some things there that backs didn’t necessarily miss. Sometimes the snap was bad. And if you have a bad snap and it gets you off direction, you can’t have that. It takes a cumulative effect of everybody doing their job, and if one guy is off — one receiver doesn’t cut off a safety and he turns what would be a 20-yard gain in to a five-yard gain.  If the snap is off, you go back and look, there were a couple times the snap was just off key and it brings the quarterback off line and then it brings the running back off line. We have to do a better job blocking and running the ball. I do think we have some people to do that with.”

 

On if any injuries occurred during the game and the status of senior outside linebacker Walter Grant…

“As far as the injuries go, nobody is substantially injured. There are some bumps and bruises, really the same ones we had going into the game. Jermaine [Johnson] dinged his shoulder, I think he had to go out of the game for little bit, but he came back in and played and we think he’ll be fine. Kearis [Jackson] got dinged up on the hit there when he got hit pretty good but he stayed in for a couple more plays and came back. We don’t have anybody that we think is out. In terms of Walter [Grant], when we feel like he can contribute and help us out, he’ll be able to. He has to be able to help us out in all of the phases of the game to be able to play.”

 

On changing the expectations at Georgia so that a 27-point win doesn’t feel like it sometimes…

“I don’t know. I don’t really get into that. I just look at the performance. The expectation of fan base, the expectation of you guys (media), is not what I’m trying to please. I am trying to please these young men and I want them to be at their best. I want to do the best job for them as a staff. I want to put them in the best chance to be successful. That’s, to me, what we’re measured on- do we get the most out of these kids that we can and do we grow them?  I’m really not into the perception or the outside world, what they think because it probably doesn’t matter at the end of the day. I’m worried about getting our team better. It’s never as good as it seems and it’s never as bad as it seems. And that was 100 percent evident watching that tape. The defense wasn’t as good as it seemed and the offense was not as bad as it seemed. We have to do a good job at doing better. That’s the only thing that matters.”

 

On the Auburn game being played earlier in the season, regardless of the pandemic…

“My support or disgruntle of it doesn’t matter. It is what it is. I don’t really care when we play who we play, it’s who we play that I care about. We have Auburn this week. I’m excited because I think they have a really good football team. Two months ago, three months ago, we didn’t even know if we were going to have this game, so I am certainly excited that we are and that our kids get the opportunity to play in an electric environment.“

 

On the importance of locking down the starting quarterback position…

“It’s a lot more important how we play around him and how we support him because whoever’s able to do that the best and get the most of the people around them is going to be the guy who moves the ball and produces. At the end of the day, that’s what we want to do. If that’s one guy, two guys, we’re not putting ourselves in a pigeonhole, saying, ‘We can only have one quarterback.’ We’ve got to develop all of our quarterbacks. I know you all are looking at it in terms of Auburn, right now, who’s going to play, who’s the quarterback. We’re trying to look at our entire roster and say, ‘How are we going to be the best we can be in week two, three, four, five, six, down the line.’ There are some guys on our team that are going to be better down the line than maybe the guy in front of them, but the only way they’re going to get there is through playing, so there’s a big part of making that decision that goes into that. I’m not going to sit here and say we can’t play multiple guys, or it’s got to be one guy. I certainly think it’s easier when it’s one guy, in terms of continuity with your team and things like that. We’ve got to do what gives us the best chance to win. That’s what we’ll continue to do as coaches.”

 

On the difficulty of evaluating quarterbacks during a game week…

“I didn’t say we would juggle the game reps. I’m not ready to say we’re going to do that. We’re going to get the guys prepared. It gives us the best chance to win. There’s a lot of reps out there when you have ones, twos, and threes, and you’re able to get a lot of work. We’re going to get work, but we’re not going to have juggling if you don’t have enough reps to get guys in there with the ones and get reps. The reps they get development-wise will come with the twos and threes.”

 

On Auburn quarterback Bo Nix…

“He’s got a vertical passing game. He’s got a great arm. He makes really good decisions. I think the dink-and-dunk is the decision making he has, and it gives him the opportunity to not throw picks. Quarterbacks avoid picks because they don’t throw into situations that are adverse. He’s got a really good set of receivers when you talk about experience in the SEC with the guys they got at wideout. Those guys seem like they’ve been playing there forever. Seth’s [Williams] one of the best there is, [Eli] Stove’s been there forever, and we know how fast [Anthony] Schwartz is. They’ve got a lot of good wideouts, in terms of their skill set on offense. He’s got guys to protect him around it. He’s a coach’s son, has been around the game his whole life. He knows good decisions, and he’s a really good athlete. People don’t understand how good of a runner he is.”

 

On the center position…

“Offensive line is not a limelight position, but everybody writes a story about D’Wan and Stetson and don’t talk about the line very often. That’s been going on all camp. That’s not something we haven’t done. We think Trey [Hill] gives us a lot of flexibility at guard. We think Warren [Ericson] gives us flexibility at center, and the ability to play guard which you saw in the bowl game. He provides Trey some conditioning relief when you’re in a COVID year and you’re not quite in as good of shape as you normally are. Trey plays a really good guard. In a lot of ways, Trey can play guard and create more power than Warren can, in terms of strength and body weight. So, he’s able to relieve Ben [Cleveland] and [Justin] Shaffer, and give them a blow and not have a drop off at center. We’ll continue to work that route and play the guys that give us the best chance to win.”

 

On Richard LeCounte encouraging him to get Stetson Bennett…

“First of all, we didn’t sign Stetson initially. He was a walk-on. I never heard that story. I don’t remember that coming up. We watched Stetson a lot and thought a lot of him, and he had scholarship offers. He was what we call a ‘recruited walk-on.’ We recruited him and brought him on an official visit, and we wanted Stetson to come here and develop. He did a really good job that freshman year. He didn’t get a lot of competitive reps. He got scout team reps and did a great job. Maybe Richard’s taking credit for that, I don’t know, but I never remember Richard telling me to go after Stetson. It was more of Stetson was a really good football player that we wanted to join our team. He was a great academic student, so we knew he’d be able to get into Georgia. He did an awesome job while he was here. He just didn’t think in the spring with Justin [Fields] and Jake [Fromm] that he was going to get the opportunity he needed. That’s when he decided to go to Mississippi.”

 

On his opinion on the special teams performance against Arkansas...

“I will be honest with you, I wasn’t exactly ecstatic about the special teams. I thought we missed some opportunities there. We left some things out there that were there. We didn’t handle a couple situations well. We had to burn a timeout. I was not pleased with that. Now statistically, you can look at it and say, ‘Well, you are crazy because you did this, this, this.’ We have an experienced punter who punted the ball well, and some really competitive gunners that we worked all offseason on being a better ‘pin the team inside the 10.’ Those reps showed. We were very fortunate to have those reps show. The return game, I thought we left some out there. If we block a little better or maybe we return a little better we [would] score a touchdown on that. With a young offense, you’ve got to ignite it through special teams. We work really hard on that. We take a lot of pride in that. We were probably a little ahead of Arkansas in terms of the level of skill players that have out there. They are still in the process of recruiting guys and getting guys out there. We were probably better than them. But, if you look at Auburn—which I have all morning and afternoon yesterday—they have all their starters, all of their best players on special teams. It’s going to be a competitive war on special teams because they have really good special teams players.”

 

On the takeaways from watching film of the defense and the ways they can improve...

“Good question. The biggest thing is we had some mental-busts that they didn’t expose us on. Things that if you are sitting there and watching you are going, ‘Okay we didn’t do that right. We didn’t handle that well.’ Someone with better players will be able to expose us—mistakes that were made, communication errors. One side is playing one thing and the other side is playing another—we [were] not on the same page. Typically, those are early in the season mistakes, and they are one play away from [it] being a big play, which we saw the explosive play that happened. There certainly could have been more of those if guys were on the same page. It’s easy to highlight that. The great thing about this defense is they will listen to you. We tell them. We tell them, honestly. We say, ‘Hey, this guy is really good player, this guy is not a good player.’ When you are honest with players and you go in and tell them, ‘Hey this is not right and this right. This is doing it wrong. This is doing it right.’ They listen to you. I know a lot of people think because of the pick-six and the safety that it was all great—a lot was missed there. A lot of opportunities where we ended up one-on-one and if that one guy breaks a tackle—it’s a touchdown. We need two people there. We need three people there.”

 

On George Pickens’ performance against Arkansas and his coaching strategy this week based on Pickens’ past performance versus Auburn...

“No, I think we went through that last year. George [Pickens] is competitive by nature. He is a fiery-spirit guy. He has to play with composure. We talk about that with all of our players, not just George. It’s got to be the same this week. It can’t just mean more because it’s Auburn—it has to mean more because it’s the next game. I thought he played well in the game. He knows what he’s got to work on and continue to get better at. We point that out to him each day.”

 

On his evaluation of the tight ends’ performance against Arkansas and Tre’ McKitty’s status...

“I thought Darnell [Washington] did a good job for having the first-game jitters. He handled his assignments well. He’s got to continue to condition and get in better shape—be more of a physical presence in the blocking game. But, he’s a kid that is coming along really well. As far as Tre’ [McKitty], I will be able to tell you a lot more after today’s practice. I can’t say a lot right now because we haven’t seen him yet.”

 

 

—GEORGIA PLAYER QUOTES —

 

#3 Tyson Campbell | Junior | DB

On the difference between last season and this season in terms of his recovery from a foot injury... 

“Last year is behind me. I am just focusing on this year. I am excited for what this team is going to do this year, and I am pumped up. I am more confident. I feel healthy. I feel faster, feel stronger. I just feel like a better player in general.” 

 

On the motivation and mood in the huddle after giving up a 91-yard drive by Arkansas...

“There are going to be ebbs and flows in a game. That was one of [Arkansas’] positive plays in the game. We had to go back to the sideline and see what we did wrong and move on to the next drive and make a stop in their [next] drive.”

 

On the long pass Campbell batted away and whether the coaches expressed to him whether he played that the right way…

“I was confident with how the ball was released and how I got on the receiver, and I knew I had Richard [LeCounte] inside and knew where my help was, so I felt like I was in good position to play the ball. I felt like I didn’t have to do too much to get inside because I was already on top of the receiver, so I just played the ball in the air and deflecting it was the best way."

 

#90 Jake Camarda | Junior | Punter

On if there is anything he can take from the game of golf and apply to punting…

“Absolutely. Golf takes a lot of patience sometimes. Golf and punting, they come together really well. When you hit a bad punt, you have to go back out there and hit a good punt the next time you’re out there. You have to let that bad shot get out of your head. Same as golf. If I hit a really bad shot off of a par-3, I’m thinking ‘I have to get up and down right here. That next shot has to be good.’ If I hit a really bad drive off the tee, I can’t let that carry on to the next par-5. I have to have a good drive on the par-5 to at least have a shot at getting to the green.”

 

On what he has seen from Jack Podlesny…

“Jack is a great kicker. He came through camp and kicked the ball really, really well. Jack deserves that spot and he deserves to be out there kicking right now. So I’m happy for Jack. He’s done a great job so far for our team and I think he’s going to continue to do a great job for our team.”

 

On what kind of emotions punters have after a punt…

“When we get our gunners down there and our gunners do a really great job for us. When they get down there and we’re able to down a kick. I guess punters emotions are just, for me, I’m like, good job. That’s a good team effort right there. Solid. That’s kind of what we needed and that’s going to be good for our defense. I guess that’s where my emotions would be.”

 

#86 John FitzPatrick | Redshirt Sophomore | TE

 On Darnell Washington and the touchdown…

“Darnell [Washington] played an awesome game. It has been a blast playing alongside him. As far as the touchdown, Coach [Todd] Monken dialed up a great play. We talked at halftime, and if we got a certain look, he was going to hit it on me, and he did. I just dove for the end zone, and it was an indescribable feeling. It was an awesome moment.”

 

On Stetson Bennett coming into the game…

“Before Stetson [Bennett] came in, there were mistakes made by other position groups, including the tight ends. That goes back to what we need to work on in practice. It began to click, and we did well, but it starts with other position groups needing to pick up missed assignments.”

 

On the offense in general and anything that made him believe it was going to be sloppy…

“You can’t always expect things to go 100 percent your way. You always want to achieve perfection in all that you do, but that’s not practical. Things are going to happen, things aren’t going to go your way. It’s how you respond to that, and that’s what we did. We responded with a great game.”

 

#16 Lewis Cine | Sophomore | DB

On what Coach Smart says to them behind the scenes about their performance in games…

“We watch film and look for ways we can improve, pick out places where we went wrong and correct them.”

 

On where the tradition of the Georgia-Auburn rivalry sits with him…

“From the older guys, I’m getting the sense that this is really important to them. I’m taking time for myself to appreciate the tradition behind these games. There is a lot of emotion behind the Georgia-Auburn game.”

 

On how Richard LeCounte helps him…

“I take a lot from Richard [LeCounte]. He plays with a lot of emotion and swagger. He has a lot of knowledge to him, he plays fast and I try to soak up as much as I can from him.”

 

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Tray Littlefield

Associate Sports Communications Director

University of Georgia Athletic Association

PO Box 1472 | Athens, GA 30603

Cell: 205-504-4566

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CAR BREAK-INS IN PIKE CO.

 Pike County deputies responded to Ashley Glenn subdivision last night at 2:51 a.m. in reference to two males trying to break into cars. The suspects had fled from the area on foot after realizing that the homeowners had spotted them. A search of the area did not locate the suspects , however a vehicle was found hidden in the rear of the subdivision believed to belong to the suspects. This vehicle has been impounded and forensic evidence will be collected. The car is registered out of Clayton County and Investigators are working to identify the two suspects. Video from home security systems has also been provided by residents.

Additional entering autos have been reported in the 362 Place subdivision. If anyone has any information on these suspects they can contact an investigator at 770-567-8431

A CHILD SHOT IN GRIFFIN

 SHOOTING On Wednesday, September 23, 2020 at approximately 5:55 pm, Officers with the Griffin Police Department responded to Spalding Wellstar Hospital in reference to a shooting victim. Investigators from the Criminal Investigations Division responded as well and learned that a child had sustained a gunshot wound to the leg and foot. It was determined that the incident occurred at North Hill Street and Kentucky Avenue while the child was left unattended in a parked vehicle (with the gun inside). The caregivers to the child were outside the vehicle when the child accessed the weapon and discharged it striking themselves in the leg and foot. Dequaveon L. Lewis, 21, of Stockbridge, Ga. and Kevon Roydrell Roberts, 22, of Griffin, Ga. (Father of the Child) were arrested and charged with Reckless Conduct and Cruelty to Children given their actions or inactions related to the incident. The investigation is ongoing and further information will be released when available. The child was transported to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and is expected to recover.

GRIFFIN BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS ANNOUNCE A PROPOSED TAX INCREASE

 City Commissioners Announce Proposed Property Tax Increase

 

Sep 24 – The City of Griffin Board of Commissioners today announces its intention to increase the 2020 property taxes it will levy this year by 3.51 percent over the rollback millage rate.

Each year, the board of tax assessors is required to review the assessed value for property tax purposes of taxable property in the city. When the trend of prices on properties that have recently sold in the city indicate there has been an increase in the fair market value of any specific property, the board of tax assessors is required by law to re-determine the value of such property and adjust the assessment. This is called a reassessment.

When the total digest of taxable property is prepared, Georgia law requires a rollback millage rate must be computed that will produce the same total revenue on the current year’s digest that last year’s millage rate would have produced had no reassessments occurred.

The budget tentatively adopted by the City of Griffin Board of Commissioners requires a millage rate higher than the rollback millage rate; therefore, before the City of Griffin Board of Commissioners may finalize the tentative budget and set a final millage rate, Georgia law requires three public hearings to be held to allow the public an opportunity to express their opinions on the increase.

All concerned citizens are invited to the public hearings at special called meetings on this tax increase to be held at the W. Elmer George Municipal Hall located at 100 South Hill Street, Griffin, Georgia, on October 2, 2020 at 9:00 AM and 6:01 PM and on October 9, 2020 at 9:00 AM. A special called meeting will be held on October 9, 2020 immediately following the public hearing to formally adopt the millage rate.

 

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For more information about the City of Griffin, visit www.cityofgriffin.com. Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cityofgriffin and on Twitter @CityofGriffin.

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Board Of Commissioners: Cynthia Ward ● Cora Flowers ● Holly Murray ●  David Brock ● Rodney McCord ● Truman Tinsley ●  Doug Hollberg, Mayor

 

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Griffin, GA 30223

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DR. ENRIQUE RALLS APPOINTED COWAN ROAD MIDDLE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL IN GRIFFIN

 Dr. Enrique Ralls Appointed Cowan Road Middle School Principal Griffin, GA - The Griffin-Spalding County Board of Education approved the appointment of Dr. Enrique Ralls as principal of Cowan Road Middle School during a virtual called board meeting held September 22, 2020. Dr. Ralls joins the Griffin-Spalding County School System (GSCS) from Gwinnett County Public Schools where he has served as the assistant principal of Minor Elementary School for the last four years. Prior to that role, he served as the assistant principal of Upson-Lee Middle School in Thomaston, Georgia for over four years. Ralls also has six years of middle school teaching experience with Clayton County School System. Dr. Ralls received his bachelor’s degree in Middle Grade Education and his master’s degree, specialist degree and doctorate in Education Leadership from the University of West Georgia. "I am very excited to have Dr. Ralls join GSCS to serve with the students and staff at Cowan Road Middle School,” said GSCS Superintendent James D. Smith. “He impressed me as an instructional leader, relationship builder and visionary which are all characteristics of an excellent administrator. We welcome Dr. Ralls to Griffin and look forward to a great school year." Ralls’s plans to begin his service with GSCS once he is released from Gwinnett County Schools. ### About GSCS The Griffin-Spalding County School System (GSCS) is an award-winning, AdvancED accredited district that serves 10,000 students in 11 elementary schools, four middle schools, two high schools, one alternative high school and the Griffin Regional College and Career Academy. GSCS offers everything a child needs to nurture and grow aca

FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR COACH TOMMY PARKS

 Coach Thomas "TP" Grant Parks,  age 48 passed away Tuesday September 22, 2020 at Brightmoor Hospice in Griffin.

Coach Parks was born on February 15, 1972 in Upson County, GA, to the late Donald Eugene Parks, and the late Sandra Grant Parks.  He was an educator and coached high school varsity football and baseball.  Coach Parks played college baseball at Lurleen B. Wallace Community College in Andalusia, AL, where he received and Associates of Arts degree.  He went on to play college baseball at Berry College in Rome, GA, where he received a BA in Social Science.  His first teaching job in 1995 was with Andalusia High School in Andalusia, AL, where he was also the Head Varsity Baseball Coach and Assistant Varsity Football Coach.  In 1997 he went to Manchester High School in Manchester, GA, to teach and was also an Assistant Head Varsity Football Coach, Defensive Coordinator and Golf Coach.  While at Manchester, he attended Troy State University in Phenix City, AL. and received a Master of Arts in Education/Administration degree.  In 2002 he went to Harris County High School in Hamilton, GA. to become the Defensive Coordinator for Varsity Football and was then named Head Varsity Football Coach in 2004.  Tommy was also the Head Varsity Baseball Coach from 2005-2009 while at Harris County High School.  He went back home in 2014 to Upson-Lee High School in Thomaston, GA to become the Head Varsity Coach.  He is preceded in death by his parents, maternal grandparents, Fred and Nelle Grant of Thomaston, and paternal grandparents, Tommy and Roxie Parks of Pulaski, TN.

Survivors include his wife, Carmen Parks of Harris County, daughter, Carson Parks of Thomaston, son, Hunter Paddock of Harris County, sister, Lisa (Jay) Dover of Thomaston, brother, Alan (Lynne) Parks of McDonough, three nephews, three nieces, and all of his brothers and sons that were teammates, fellow coaches, players and friends.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to the TPStrong Scholarships which include, Upson Lee Varsity Football, Upson Lee Varsity Baseball, Harris County Varsity Football and Harris County Varsity Baseball at F&M Bank and Trust 142 W. Main St. Manchester, GA 31816.

Memorial services will held on Saturday, September 26, 2020 at 11:00 a.m. from Mountain View Baptist Church.  Family will receive friends at the conclusion of the service in the sanctuary.   

For those who can not attend the service, it will be live streamed on the Mountain View Baptist Church Facebook page, website and YouTube channel.

Coggins Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Coggins Funeral Home