I would have reported this earlier in the day but I wanted to read some the media reactions around the County. The Douglas Neighbor had nothing in their paper, the Sentinel highlighted on the voter turnout for SPLOST and the district commissioners (though their online articles are uninformative). The Douglas County Taxpayers Coalition is exstatic over the news making their efforts to inform the Community on SPLOST worth while. 

The overall vote for SPLOST came out to be 52.38% No and 47.62% Yes after a late tabulation this morning. You can see the unofficial results on the County's website or on Losing Georgia - Acrobat Reader is needed to view the PDF file. Follow the link below to view a breakdown of the unofficial results by precinct in table form.

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Anneewakee Creek is probably the most treasured waterway in Douglas County besides Dog River. The history behind the creek is one of legend dating back to the days where Creek Indians ruled the land. Back then the waters were clear, cherished by man.

However present day neglect is endangering not only the waters of the creek, but wildlife and the surrounding areas. What may look acceptable at street level is not the entire truth. In recent years Anneewakee Creek has taken its toll of damage from natural flooding to man-made problems. There may be no end to the environmental damage unless steps are taken immediately to prevent further harm.

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Today is July 18^th and that means Douglas County residents should head out to the polls sometime today. I just recently voted  this morning and it was fairly easy. Here's what you can expect when going to one of the many polling places. First off you are going to need your driver's license or some other identification before you can vote. One of the volunteers will hand you a sheet to fill out including party, name, address, city, zip, birth date and signature. 

You have to pick a party (Democratic or Republican) before you vote. Being that this is Primary Election you have no choice to pick one or the other. Afterwords you take the sheet you filled out and hand it to another volunteer who is working behind a screen. That volunteer will check your voter status before handing out a yellow card to use in the touchscreen voting booth.

Once at a booth insert the yellow card into the slot, make sure it locks, then the touchscreen will change to the ballot. The ballot is three pages long, mostly politicians being from the Federal or State level. The last two choices on the ballot was for your local District Commissioner and SPLOST.

I went to Holly Springs Elementary to vote and I did not see any signage explaining the SPLOST ballot. The City of Douglasville was pushing for the County to display posters or signs explaining the details of SPLOST, yet this did not happen. An informal breakdown of SPLOST can be picked up at the County Courthouse, at the County's website, or on a past post. 

How did your voting experience go? 

I'm back from my week long vacation with a case of jet lag, but I will slowly be working on new stories and features on the website a couple of days from now. Its going to be slow for a few days as I get settled back into the swing of things. Remember to vote tomorrow on the Commissioners and SPLOST.

As of July 10^th residents of Douglas County have the opportunity to vote early on the new election ballot. Among the politicians on the ballot is the controversial new SPLOST referendum. I have reported on SPLOST before many times, but now is your time to decide whether SPLOST is good for the Community.

In looking over the current SPLOST there has been more negative out-lash than positive in recent years. What became a solution to combat traffic problems and repair ailing parks has become a government's dream to have a Pot of Gold at their disposal. A new jail, another city park, equestrian park, outdoor entertainment center, less road repairs - is the new SPLOST really worth it? Does it support the interest of the Community or the Politicians?

Over at Elizabeth's blog she talks about her early voting experience and the lack of direction at the County Courthouse. Simply go to the first floor, walk to the center and look for the Voter Registration office. Please take your time when reading the ballot whether you vote early or on the 18^th. I can not stress this enough, all funds from the new SPLOST referendum will go to the New Jail Project first without regard to any other project that has been listed. Thus many proposed projects many not even be built like in the past with Dog River Park and the rest of Boundary Waters Recreational Park.

Want to know more about SPLOST? Check out the Douglas County Taxpayers Coalition as they have a new article about the new referendum. The article talks about confusion within the Community as well as the local government. Clearly there are some issues that need to be cleared up immediately.

Go out and vote, it's your given right.

I'm taking a much needed vacation this week to get away from all the hoopla in Douglas County. Don't expect any updates to the site while I'm gone (being I'm the only one who updates), but I may drop in to see if anyone has left comments. If you don't know by now comments are moderated, only for the sake to prevent spam.

Where am I going? Well I like to call it my second home since I fit in over there than I do here. Its my sixth time being on this island paradise out in the middle of the Pacific.

Reminder: Tonight there is a public County meeting on SPLOST at the Deer Lick Park Gym, 5-8 p.m.

I ran across a packet of information dated December 31, 2004 titled as Five Year Capital Improvement Program 2005 - 2009. This packet was made by the Board of Commissioners as an outline to assess purchases in the future County wide. Funds would be collected from SPLOST, State and Federal Grants, General Funds and User Fees.

There are some interesting figures, especially for SPLOST, that are minute compared to today's spending. Over the course of five years SPLOST was to equal $49,107,678, yet the new SPLOST referendum shows a grand total of $145,437,000. 

What is more interesting is money allotted for a new jail, which is to be paid for by General Funds, but notes suggest in the Welcome Statement funding is to be by SPLOST. It looks as though Commissioners at the time were anticipating SPLOST to pass in 2006 to come into effect in 2007. The figure for the new jail is stated as $101,240,000, clearly more than the current figure of $87,262,000 from the new SPLOST referendum.

More information about this Five Year Capital Improvement Program will be coming soon. 

I reported on this earlier about Burger King and Citgo being demolished on Fairburn Road, though information at the time was vague. Talking to City Councilman Michael Carter gave a clearly view of what is ahead for Fairburn Road. My information request to the Georgia DOT has yet to be fulfilled; therefore I will do my best to present as much information as I have at this current time.

Councilman Carter explained to me that the construction along Fairburn Road is part of the I-20 HOV project from Highway 5 to H.E. Holmes Road. Georgia DOT has acquisitioned land on both sides of Interstate 20 to prepare for the construction of a much needed wider bridge. Signs on Fairburn Road placed by the City may look as if this is a City project, but it is a Georgia DOT project. The I-20 HOV Project is not affiliated with the Highway 92 Relocation Project.

Downloadable maps and documents are available at the end of the post. Get comfy, this is going to be a long one.

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Last night was the City's public meeting on SPLOST, both current and future referendum, highlighted on projects, spending, and the New Jail. Mayor Mickey Thompson started the meeting by speaking to about fifty residents about the City and some of his personal thoughts. The meeting was then passed over to City Manager Bill Osborne who talked over a PowerPoint presentation about the history of SPLOST and where its going into the future.

Beginning with the 2002 SPLOST, Georgia Law made it necessary for county governments to control SPLOST and may exclude a city from funding. The City of Douglasville presented the Board of Commissioners a list of projects that needed funding which was later put on the ballot of that year. The ballot was passed by voters on March 19, 2002 with the intention to provide various new facilities and road upgrades throughout the County.

EDIT: Downloadable copies of documents and PowerPoint available at the end of the post.

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The City of Douglasville is conducting a public meeting on the new SPLOST referendum at 7 p.m. in the Downtown Conference Center. An invitation was presented to the Board of Commissioners to attend the meeting, however they can not due to conflicting schedules. The Board has a Planning and Zoning meeting tonight at the same time.

The meeting will highlight on the New Jail Project, emergency equipment and communications, road enhancements, and a new City park. I posted a few days ago about the Mayor's inconsistency about the new SPLOST referendum regarding funding for roads and the newly proposed park. The new City park would be located south of Interstate 20 to cater the Chapel Hill area, although the City already has a park in Chapel Hill - Fowler Field Park / Soccer Complex.

In addition the City also has plans for a new park on Stewarts Mill Road which would be part of the Anneewakee Creek Greenway Project once approved. In reality, there could be a total of three new parks south of Interstate 20 than the suggested one the City is continually stating.