http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/casey-springs/ Casey Springs, GA News http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/casey-springs/content/a72f1909bc6e9d07b43b03a15458e9c1.html An 18yearold Athens man was jailed on felony sex charges Tuesday stemming from a Saturday encounter at a 14yearold boy's Westside home according to Clarke County Jail and AthensClarke police records http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/casey-springs/content/3b4183e24c8e1b5fda7991d8e793842d.html Planning for growth can take yearsFort Oglethorpe was one of four regional host sites Nov 1617 at which officials with the Regional Planning Agency offered information and took suggestions for the ChattanoogaHamilton CountyNorth Georgia LongRange Transportation Plan for 2035 The meeting at Constitution Hall from 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm on Nov 17 was announced and publicized but sparsely attendedJ Olney Meadows a member of the Transportation Planning Organization executive staff and the project developer for Catoosa County said many planning meetings hersquo;s seen tend to draw more interest from those wanting more bicycle trails or who are involved in transportation planning because of their jobs The average person who travels the roads should also be involved he saidldquo;Population in the fourcounty area is expected to increase by almost32 percent over the 30year planning horizon and employment forecasts indicate nearly 37percent growth over the same time periodhellip;Catoosa County Georgia will experience thelargest percent increase in both population and employmenthellip;rdquo; ndash; ChattanoogaHamilton CountyNorth Georgia TransPlan 2030ldquo;It is their planrdquo; he said ldquo;They should be a part of this planrdquo;Kelly Martin a Catoosa County resident who works for the Regional Planning Agency said officials are under a federal mandate to update the plan every four years One issue they examine is areas with a high potential for growthwwwchcrpaorgldquo;This will help make the land use and transportation connectionrdquo; Martin said as he gestured toward a map that labeled areas believed to have high potential for growth Also he added ldquo;certain improvements will lead to growth which will lead to more improvementsrdquo;Itrsquo;s important to know where to plan for growth because large transportation projects can take years while growth can occur much more quicklyOne of the top 20 congested intersections in the area ndash; and the only one not in Hamilton County ndash; is in Fort Oglethorpe at Battlefield Parkway and LaFayette RoadPossible growth opportunity areas in North GeorgiaBattlefield Parkway at US 41Catoosa Training Center rifle rangeInterstate 75 at Exit 345 at US 41Rollins Industrial ParkMount Pisgah Church Road at Ga 151Battlefield Parkway at Dietz RoadCloud Springs Road at I75Battlefield Parkway at Three Notch RoadLaFayette Road at Chickamauga BypassUS 27 at Fieldstone FarmsGa 193 at Ga 2AInterstate 59 at Exit 169 in WildwoodSource: Regional Planning Agency mapMeadows said one key way to relieve traffic in Catoosa County is to build connector roads from Interstate 75 at Resaca to Interstate 59 in Wildwood or from north of Dalton to Cleveland Tenn More truck traffic is coming he said since officials announced plans to enhance channels to the port in Brunswick Ga Much of the cargo coming in there eventually travels by tractortrailer up Interstate 75 he saidBesides the meeting in Fort Oglethorpe other planning meetings were held in Tennessee in Soddy Daisy Collegedale and ChattanoogaAnother set of public meetings is scheduled for next year while more public meetings and an adoption of the final plan is set for 2010Martin said itrsquo;s not too late to send input to the planning organization Email comments to Melissa Taylor at taylormelissamailchattanoogagovCLICK ON THESE LINKSFEEDBACK: Send a letter to the editorSUBSCRIBE: Get The Catoosa County News each WednesdayGO BACK:Return to our homepage http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/casey-springs/content/025bcbaae9baff5b5ba2848c03fd390a.html Buford softball coach Tony Wolfe brings an interesting perspective to the field http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/casey-springs/content/abb7097ef06c65cacbf763dc56912a6a.html Judy Coggins remembers the day 38 years ago when her mother planted four white pine seedlings around her home off US 411 On Nov 13 Coggins watched as one of the three remaining trees was cut and hauled to Atlanta to become this year's Macy's Great Tree http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/casey-springs/content/7eb3f7c9e48d6a3f7b3fa6c9cfbdc1c0.html Hutcheson Medical Centerrsquo;s emergency medical services employees will receive assistance from the Georgia Department of LaborHospital spokeswoman Agnes Cloud said officials plan to meet with their 89 EMS employees in early December The labor department will be available then to help with job placement money and stress management and other issues she said Also employees are encouraged to apply for any openings at Hutcheson for which they are qualified she saidldquo;We certainly have great empathy for these EMS employeesrdquo; Cloud said ldquo;We are working with the Department of Labor and there are several services that the Department of Labor hasrdquo;She said the hospital has nine ambulances: two in Dade four in Walker and three in Catoosa ndash; all of which would need to be replaced over the next three years She said the cost would be between 18 million and 2 millionBackground:Catoosa Walker and Dade open bidding for ambulance service Ambulance service meeting called brainstorming session As Hutcheson prepares to get out of the ambulance business Catoosa County is already in the best situation of any county in its coverage areaThatrsquo;s according to David Loftin the Region 1 EMS coordinator for the state Department of Human Resources He said providers Angel EMS and Lifeguard EMS collectively have 13 ambulances available for use in Catoosa CountyNorthwest Georgia Emergency Medical Services division of the state Department of Human Resources nwgaemsorgHutcheson Medical Center wwwhutchesonorgGeorgia Hospital Association wwwghaorgSince the county government owns the emergency services license changing providers could be merely a matter of changing the name on the license he said Loftin said Catoosa County ran their own ambulance service in the early 1980s later contracted it to Hutcheson changed parties a few times then returned to Hutchesonldquo;Catoosa County actually is in the best shape of any one of the threerdquo; he said ldquo;Probably whoever gets that contract will be the only one operating in Catoosa Countyrdquo;The county currently has two providers Loftin said Angel is the first call for Fort Oglethorpe area emergencies unless the patient requests another service while Hutcheson serves the Ringgold areaHutcheson EMSEmployees: 89Ambulances: NineCoverage area: 800 square miles in Dade Walker and CatoosaHistory: About 30 years of serviceEnd of fiveyear contract: Dec 31President Charles Stewart said in a written statement on Oct 21 that ldquo;retaining of our current EMS employees in the new servicerdquo; has been a priority in discussions theyrsquo;ve had with other potential providersldquo;It would be to the advantage of whatever service was coming in to hire everyonerdquo; said Loftin citing a shortage of emergency medical services professionalsEMS directors from Dade Walker and Catoosa counties are meeting Friday Nov 21 at the civic center in Rock Spring at 2 pm The prebid meeting is open to the public and potential bidders will be allowed time to ask questions officials saidLoftin said the transportation committee and the executive committee of EMS council will meet in Dalton Ga on Dec 11 at the 911 center to ratify the countiesrsquo; decisionsldquo;We have some of the best and most dedicated caring and knowledgeable providers with EMSrdquo; Cloud said ldquo;and we feel confident that they will be an asset to the next providerrdquo;CLICK ON THESE LINKSFEEDBACK: Send a letter to the editorSUBSCRIBE: Get The Catoosa County News each WednesdayGO BACK:Return to our homepage http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/casey-springs/content/530507ba83714716d1b92cf49403ed7c.html As the old year goes out District 3 Catoosa County Commissioner Jim Emberson will step down He chose not to run for reelectionBeing sworn in to take over his seat will be Commissionerelect Jim Cutler 59 Citadel Broadcasting sports marketing director Cutler said the Board of Commissioners in 2009 which will be made up of incumbent Commissioners Dewayne Hill Bobby Winters and Ken Marks and Chairmanelect Keith Greene major focus is economic developmentMeet Jim Cutlerldquo;Catoosa County is a growing countyrdquo; he said ldquo;What is really exciting is the potential growth and development and being part of it We have a lot of new business development to look forward tordquo;He said it is anticipated that many businesses will move into the area to support the coming Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga Cutler said the county has some hard work ahead of itldquo;To try to get those businesses in the county but make sure the businesses are a good fitrdquo; he said ldquo;We want them to be a good neighbor We want to work to maintain the quality of life I think we have to work very hard to maintain services we already haverdquo;He said programs made available at the Catoosa County Learning Center Catoosa County Library Senior Center and the Colonnade are some of the programs that enhance the communityHe said that one of the issues facing the county will be declining revenues due to the economic slowdownldquo;What we need to do is encourage more development and go after more available tax dollars wherever they may berdquo; he said ldquo;We donrsquo;t want to sacrifice quality of lifeldquo;We will have to be careful how the county spends its moneyrdquo; he said ldquo;Everybody wants to grow but we canrsquo;t grow at a pace where it outpaces tax dollars coming inrdquo;He added that even getting businesses will not be an immediate fix Increases in tax revenues from a business could be a year to 18 months after the county knows it are coming he saidldquo;Also we have to go after every available federal and state dollar we canrdquo; he said ldquo;We have to look at all available resourcesrdquo;He said State Sen Jeff Mullis has helped the county receive a lot of fundingldquo;We need to continue to work closely with Sen Mullis on this as well as in his role in drawing economic development to the region through the joint development authorityrdquo; he said ldquo;A vital part of that economic team effort will be the support and participation of the Catoosa County Chamber of Commerce We need to work closely with them as wellrdquo;Should opportunities and funds arise during his term he would like to see the county take steps to make soccer programs available through the recreation department he saidHe also wants to work towards bringing Northwestern Technical and Dalton colleges to Benton Place in Catoosa County if that possibility is still a viable option for the state he saidldquo;There is so much we have to maintain and hopefully add tordquo; he said ldquo;This economic downtown is going to be interestingrdquo;He said he has many items on his wish list improved roads and intersections more greenspace and many other items that will have to wait for funding to be availableThe one thing he said will be his practice while in officeldquo;I will do everything in my power not to raise their taxesrdquo; he saidCLICK ON THESE LINKSFEEDBACK: Send a letter to the editorSUBSCRIBE: Get The Catoosa County News each WednesdayGO BACK:Return to our homepage http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/casey-springs/content/47771185c59e146982b769b4a15c3fe4.html A Delaware truck driver has died after crashing his tractortrailer into some trees alongside Interstate 95 about 11 miles inside the FloridaGeorgia state line State Trooper Powell Allen said 54yearold Robert Earl Webb may have fallen asleep but he also had a history of heart disease and there was evidence he may have suffered a heart attack just before Thursday's crash http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/casey-springs/content/8b4693b020bd68ba2968c21e1c3c1943.html Georgia job losses over the past year total 61300 or 15 percent