The Buzz of Northwest Georgia

Rome Braves' payment to county drops as season ticket sales decline:

-The Rome Braves' annual payment to Floyd County--part of the contract that brought the team from Macon to here in 2003--is in and the numbers continue to fall. -This year's combined payment was $87,498, down from $100,255 last July and a peak of $147,143 in 2008. The payment comes from season ticket sales, naming rights and the annual contribution from the team.

-Season ticket revenue sharing dipped to $55,114 this year vs. $67,871 a year ago and a peak of $119,857 in 2008.

-Naming rights, originally set for $8,286 a year for State Mutual Insurance, climbed to $12,384 and will continue to increase as per the contract. The Braves' contribution is now $20,000 a year; it started at $15,000 during seasons one-six. It will max out at $25,000 in years 14 to 18 of the contract. Source: Floyd County.

-Overall ticket sales up this season: Through Wednesday, the Braves sold 151,618 tickets this season or an average of 2,972 for each of 51 home games so far. The 2009 total season average: 2,826 tickets per game, 65 games, for a total of 183,750. The Braves have 17 home games left in 2010. Schedule / Ticket special

Repairs under way at DeSoto Theatre; delay for Peter Pan.

By Natalie Simms

nsimmshh@att.net

Electrical repairs are getting under way today on the DeSoto Theatre following the July 13 fire that damaged part of the backstage/dressing room areas.

Paul Griffin, president of the Historic DeSoto Theatre Foundation, says the repairs should take about 10 days. He hopes to have the power restored by Aug. 14.

“Our main power was damaged and we basically had to deconstruct our wiring because of the building’s age,” he says. “We’ve ordered all the parts, including a new electrical panel, so the repairs are going well.”

In the meantime, the Rome Little Theatre’s production of “Peter Pan” has had to move rehearsals over the Trinity United Methodist Church and St. Mary’s Catholic School. The performances were slated to begin Aug. 13 at the DeSoto but will be postponed because the electrical repairs are not expected to be completed, Griffin says.

The Seven Hills Fellowship Church, which meets at the DeSoto Theatre, also has had to find a temporary home. The church has been meeting at Berry College but Griffin expects the congregation to be able to move back on Aug. 15.

“We will still have some structural damage to repair but the power will be back up. I’m sure the church will want to get back over here as soon as they can,” Griffin says.

The Foundation also is starting a letter campaign seeking funds to help pay for the out-of-pocket expenses incurred from the fire repairs. Griffin would not disclose the total cost of those expenses, which include the deductible and other things not covered by insurance.

To help, send checks to: Historic DeSoto Theatre Foundation,  P O Box 904, Rome Ga. 30162 

Outlets take state's fumbled tax holiday idea and makes it better

-You've got to like the entrepreneural spirit with this one. Prime Outlets in Calhoun puts its own spin on the canceled sales tax holiday in Georgia by offering "Better Than Tax Free Sale" this Thursday through Sunday. Participating retailers are offering 10 percent --or more-- off on select products (for the list, click here).

-Why we like this idea:

1) It gives shoppers perhaps an even better take on back-to-school shopping. They'd save seven cents on the dollar with the tax holiday -- canceled this year because of the state's revenue problems -- and makes it larger by offering 10 percent off.

2) It helps keep Georgia shoppers -- and Georgia revenue-- in the state, especially those of us near the Alabama and Tennessee borders. Both of those states are offering tax-free shopping events.

3) The private sector steps up to fix a government blunder. Why state leaders never considered the loss of revenue to bordering states is beyond us. Or is it?

-The link to the sale items has been fixed, 9 a.m.  Thanks, Connie.

Georgia Highlands: After 40 years and thousands of students, the college has campuses in five cities with dreams to grow larger

By Natalie Simms

nsimmshh@att.net

After four decades of educating thousands of local college students, Georgia Highlands College has made an imprint that continues to grow and expand in Northwest Georgia.

Since opening its doors in the fall of 1970 as Floyd Junior College, more than 8,000 students have graduated with thousands more gracing its halls before transferring to four-year institutions.

And, as college officials look to the future, strategic plans expect to have 10,000 students enrolled by 2015.

“And if we get funding to build additional buildings, it could be more. We’re not planning any new locations but will work on building at current locations and getting students there,” says Dr. Randy Pierce, Georgia Highlands president

Highlands has five locations including Rome, Cartersville, Marietta, Douglasville and Paulding County. The Cartersville and Marietta campuses are at full-capacity while growth is being targeted in Floyd, Paulding and Douglasville.

“We took a lot of hits at Paulding and Douglasville when we said we would have to close those campuses if the state forced more budget cuts last year,” says Pierce, right. “But that didn’t happen. We’re doing OK and holding our own. We’re continuing to move forward from an enrollment standpoint and increased revenue, so we are strategically positioning ourselves to grow.”

Grow is exactly what Highlands has done over the last four decades. The college opened in 1970 with 545 students and, in 2009, served more than 5,200 students.

“In the mid '70s, the Baby Boomers were moving through the system. They were building junior colleges to accommodate the number of students coming through the schools…they wanted to have a two-year college within a 50-mile radius of everyone,” says Pierce. “Depending on the population shift, some colleges have continued to grow and become four-year colleges while others continue to grow as commuter institutions where students go to get grades up before transferring to a larger university.”

In 40 years, there have been a number of accomplishments including the start of the nursing program in 1976 that has graduated 2,419 students to date, along with the dental hygiene program that started in 1996.

“From my perspective, the decision by the original president (Dr. David McCorkle) to establish satellite campuses in Cartersville and Acworth is one accomplishment,” Pierce says. “As well as the quality of our faculty and staff, I hear students all the time say we have the best teachers here. I think that is because we have smaller class sizes here compared to a lot of larger institutions.

“We also have quality programs. In fact, we’ve had a number of judges, dentists, veterinarians, lawyers and even a local bank president get their start at Georgia Highlands. We can all be proud of what that means to our community because a lot of students stay here to work and raise their families.”

Highlands opened the Cartersville campus in 1989 and Acworth in 1990 (at North Metro Technical College, now Chattahoochee Tech). A state-of-the-art campus was built off Ga. 20 in Cartersville in 2005 (pictured above).

“Toward the end of Dr. Lynn Cundiff’s (former president) tenure, they were serious about building a Cartersville campus that would take the place of the original Cartersville and Acworth sites,” Pierce says. “When I got here, a third of our students were from Cobb County so it didn’t make sense to pull out of Cobb. We still have a site there but we moved it to the Southern Polytechnic campus in Marietta.”

Highlands has continued to grow and in 2009, opened campuses in Paulding County and Douglasville. A ribbon-cutting is scheduled for Aug. 5 at the newly renovated Douglasville campus at 5901 Steward Parkway, inside a former Cub Foods store.

“The University System of Georgia did a study to look at capacity of how many students there would be by 2018 and where they would be located. The study was complete in 2007 and it showed Paulding and Douglas were underserved,” says Pierce. “Georgia Highlands was tapped to try and meet the need in these areas, so that is what we’re doing.”

As Highlands looks to the future, plans already are under way to build a new student center on the Cartersville campus next summer that would open in 2012. Highlands also is looking into adding intercollegiate athletics.

“We have been looking at ways to create more synergy as an institution, so we hope to add intercollegiate athletics. Our hope is that by 2012, assuming the Board of Regents approves it, we can join the National Junior College Athletic Association as part of the Georgia Conference,” he says.

Highlands most likely would start with men’s and women’s basketball and tennis, and add more sports each year until it has six to eight teams. Other sports would include soccer, baseball and softball.

“The other thing we hope to do at the Floyd Campus and in Bartow is to bring in some four-year programs to Northwest Georgia. We have a lot of non-traditional students who can’t travel to Kennesaw and Carrollton, so we are looking to start a limited number of four-year programs. We don’t know when; that all depends on the budget,” he says.

-Many of the images for this story come from the GHC website.

Three-Dot Buzz . . . :

Rumor control -- original Bella Roma site for sale; restaurant open:

-Eddie Hasko has the original Bella Roma restaurant listed for sale but says it remains in full service. Based in front of Armuchee Village, the restaurant is as popular as ever even after Bella Roma Grill's December opening in front of State Mutual Stadium. Hasko has five months left on the Armuchee store's lease. It will remain open, he says, unless it sells first.

-Sunday hours: Honeybaked Ham at 900 Martha Berry Blvd. is now open Sundays from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. Tip: try the potato salad... Opening Sundays for the after-church crowd in Cartersville in mid-August is Slope's BBQ.

Dubious distinction for Crescent Bank: U.S. failed bank total tops 100.

-Bloomberg and other national media outlets picked up on Friday's seizure of Crescent Bank & Trust of Jasper, which has three offices and more than $150 million in deposits in Bartow County. Bloomberg notes that "U.S. bank failures this year have surpassed a bleak milestone of 100 as regulators shut down banks in Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, Kansas and Minnesota. The five bank seizures announced Friday bring to 101 the failures so far in 2010." Last year's total: 140.

-The Crescent Bank offices were open for business first thing Saturday only now with a new name: Renasant Bank, based in Tupelo, Miss

-This is the second time this year a bank with major assets in Bartow County has failed. Unity National Bank is now part of Bank of the Ozarks.

Brick by brick, Cedartown's streetscape getting closer

Work on the streetscape effect in downtown Cedartown is continuing longer than first thought. The project was to be done last month but workers are still removing old sidewalks and adding the brick effect. The top photo, in front of Bussey's Florist at 302 Main St., shows some of what's being done as does the image to the right from Sterling Holloway Place looking toward Holmes for Him. Below is a sample of how Main Street will look when completed. For more, click City of Cedartown

Commission on Children, Youth sets late summer fund-raisers: Two key fund-raisers for the Rome-Floyd County Commission on Children and Youth are set:

-Aug. 24/The Third Annual Too Hot to Cook celebration is Tuesday, Aug. 24. Look for a list of participating restaurants soon. The restaurants pledge to give part of their proceeds to the commission.

-Sept. 10/The 16th Annual Swing for Kids Golf Classic, presented by ServiceMaster by Twins, is Friday, Sept. 10, at Stonebridge Golf Club in Rome. Prizes include hole in one, closest to the pin and longest drive. To register or for sponsorship information, click Swing.

PEAKS & VALLEYS: The highs and lows of Northwest Georgia

Peak to Floyd School Board member Teresa Lumsden:

-For more than a decade, Lumsden has helped enhance the largest public school system in our community, serving more than 10,000 students. Working with--and not micro-managing--able professionals such as Kelly Henson and now Lynn Plunkett and their staffs, Lumsden has helped craft a school system that is training all levels of students. As the vote count favored her opponent in Tuesday's primary, Lumsden quickly thanked the staff, faculty, parents and students of the Floyd County school system and congratulated Terry Williamson on his victory. That's another class act by someone who's focus has always been on the classroom. Her term expires in December.

Peak to the children's department of the Sara Hightower Regional Library System: Once again, our regional library system has dazzled thousands of area children with a solid summer of reading and entertainment. The "Make a Splash--Read!" touched kids in Floyd and Polk counties. It kept their minds active in a fun, even rewarding way while they enjoyed the summer as well. The summer reading program is an investment not only in our children's futures but our own as well. Congratulations on another job well done by our library system.  Library.

Valley to the possible public access issues at Barron Stadium:

-A story earlier this month in the Rome News examined possible limited use of the Barron Stadium track once it reopens to the community in December. At issue is protecting the new turf and other additional amenities there. We agree that vandalism is a problem you solve on a proactive basis. But we also urge the parks and rec department to develop a plan that lets the predawn walkers and joggers in. You would be surprise by the number of people pounding the pavement around sunrise. A 6 a.m. until 9 p.m. schedule might serve all interests best: the community and the agency. Believe us, had the public known limited hours were brewing, the SPLOST paying for it all likely would have passed by a much narrower margin--if at all.

Previously buzzed:

Stained glass a tribute to St. Mary's late pastor, Father Jim Miceli

A stained glass window just added to the front of St. Mary's Catholic Church tells the passionate story of Christ's death but also has a story of its own. The window is a loving tribute to the longtime pastor, the late Father Jim Miceli. Adding to it all: Miceli helped design the window during an earlier remodeling project that ended before the window was added. Seven months after his death, Miceli has added a final touch to his beloved church.

-For additional photographs, please click Gallery

By Michelle Picon

For Hometown Headlines

The community has a new addition to its treasures: a dazzling stained glass window at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, designed as a tribute to and in memory of its beloved longtime pastor, Father James Miceli.

Forming a composition almost 20 feet high, the panels that make up the stained glass window surround a cross with a wooden crucifix. Like pieces in a puzzle, the stained glass tells the story of Christ’s death on the cross.

But the window has a story of its own as well.

“This particular window was actually designed by Father Jim a few years ago but was never commissioned nor completed. It has been paid for by the donations made for his retirement fund and gifts given in his memory. I know Father Jim would be pleased,” wrote St. Mary’s new pastor, Father Patrick Kingery, in a letter to parishioners last week.

Kingery included the very detailed notes Miceli left for the stained glass artist. “We found these among his belongings after his passing and thought it would be a wonderful tribute to him for the church he loved so much.”

Miceli had entrusted drawings to longtime friend James Black, now facilities manager at the church. Black says that several years ago, after talking to Miceli about a “vision” he had for a stained glass window above the choir loft, Miceli pulled out detailed drawings an artist had made a decade earlier during the remodeling of the now 80-year-old church.

“Keep these. One day you’ll know what to do with them,” Black recalls Miceli telling him.

Black’s wife, Carol, is the business manager at St. Mary’s where Miceli was pastor for 19 years. She says that when Miceli retired a year ago, a committee was formed to develop a retirement fund project to benefit him. Miceli passed away suddenly in December, before the committee could present the funds.

When trying to decide what to do with the money, the group heard from James Black about the window drawings “and decided to complete the project as a memorial,” says Carol Black.

Stained glass windows were added to the church during remodeling more than a decade ago. The company that made them is no longer in business. But research led to Foothill Sand to Glass, a Union Grove, S.C., company. Avery Wooten, the owner of the company, was the artist who made the windows.

Black noted that Wooten paid special attention to the types and colors of glass used in the church’s other windows as well as to the notes left by Miceli.

Miceli was known for his extreme, exquisite attention to detail. “The way he described (the stained glass scene) was exactly what he felt was going on at the moment of death on the cross. He wanted that to come across,” says James Black.

Wrote Miceli:  "This is the largest, and will be the best. The signature! Our legacy and artistic triumph! Beautiful sky going from darkest blues… Then we come to the city of Jerusalem….Remember, as a composition, Jerusalem is a different plane. Receding, but occupying important place behind the main figures, as it does in the Bible…. These faces and figures must tell the story of every life, every death, every mother, father, son, friend….This also makes Mary Mother of all disciples and Christians and Mother of the Church. VERY IMPORTANT SCENE! Show this in the faces.”

The window, in a way, comes full circle. They complete Miceli's dream and leave a beautiful legacy to remember him.

But there's one more twist. Parishioners who have been around since the 1990s remember when Kingery, 46, served as a seminarian -- a priest in training -- during Miceli’s first year in Rome. The two priests continued a friendship, and Kingery's return to St. Mary’s completes a circle seemingly determined by fate and by faith.

“Father Patrick is a lot like Father Jim in so many ways,” says Black. “He was ‘handpicked’ by Father Jim to come to St. Mary’s. He is very easy to work with.”

Kingery presented the stained glass windows during Masses several weeks ago with great pride but little fanfare.

“I’m very happy that we can pay tribute to Father Miceli and his love for St. Mary’s with these stained glass windows,” says Kingrey.

Adds Carol Black: “All of us involved in this project truly believe that this window is the true memorial to the man who loved St. Mary’s so much.”

Tillman Clocktower Road Race crosses twin milestones in 2010:

25 years of helping Rome; 5 years of honoring a beloved friend.

This photo from the 2009 Gary Tillman Memorial Clocktower 5K Road Race helps show just how popular the race has become throughout North Georgia. For more images from the 2009 edition, click Rome Runners Club.

By Natalie Simms

nsimmshh@att.net

There's a bit of nostalgia with the Aug. 21 running of what has become North Georgia's premiere five-kilometer race and health walk.

This year marks the 25th Anniversary of the Clocktower 5K Road Race, an event that has become vital to our community. It also is the fifth anniversary since it was renamed the Gary Tillman Memorial Clocktower 5K Road Race in memory of the Rome businessman and avid runner who was killed in a small plane crash in December 2005.

“It is the longest, continuing race in our area,” says Gail Johnson, race director. “And through the years, it has benefitted several great organizations including the Children’s Miracle Network, Three Rivers Swim Club, American Red Cross and now the Exchange Club’s Family Resource Center.”

The race was started in 1986 by the Rome Jaycees as a fund-raiser for the Clocktower restoration project, hence the name Clocktower Road Race. Jamie Doss was the race director for the first three years.

Running for a cause

“I was an active Rome Jaycee and we were raising money for the first Clocktower restoration,” says the veteran city commissioner. “The Rome Jaycees have since faded out here but it was my first exposure to community service. We were a lot of young guys who were not only having fun, but helping a good cause at the same time.

“There was a lot of excitement during the Clocktower renovation and this was one of the key projects for the club,” he says. “I believe we raised about $85,000 from selling prints of the Clocktower and other projects we did along with the race to raise money…there was a lot of support for the restoration.”

In 1995, the Jaycees approached the Rome Runners Club to assume responsibility of the race. Under its management, the race has blossomed into a premiere race event in North Georgia.

“I give a lot of credit to the Rome Jaycees because the entire club participated and we had lots of help from volunteers,” says Doss, right. “The Rome Runners Club has really made it into a great event and puts on a professionally-organized race. It is now the best 5K in North Georgia. Gail and her volunteers do everything first-class. When you do a good job with a race, people will come back and they do…just like the Peachtree Road Race.”

Doss says the race course is virtually the same now as it was then with the exception of the starting point.

“We now start on Second Avenue at Barron Stadium but in the first years, we started on the other side of the levee,” he says. “And the only reason we don’t now is because of the number of participants. We grew so we needed another place because we kept having a bottleneck on the footbridge.”

The course starts at Barron Stadium and winds through downtown Rome, passing through the historic Between the Rivers district, down Broad Street, around Myrtle Hill and across the footbridge at Bridgepoint Plaza. The event also includes a two-mile Health Walk that follows a similar route around Clocktower Hill, crossing Broad Street and returning to Barron Stadium via Fifth Avenue.

The Gary Tillman legacy

Doss, an avid runner, has participated in all but two of the events. “Over 25 years, I have never won but I’ve been runner-up a few times.”

The race now has a very emotional tie for Doss since the death of Tillman.

“Gary was a close friend and a former roommate; we shared an apartment before we each got married,” he says. “He was one of the first people to mentor me when I first started running in college. He was kind enough to let me tag along with him.

“The race really took a turn for the best when it became a memorial to Gary. He left us at a high point in his life and that first year (when it was renamed), so many came to celebrate Gary’s life, including me. It really helped bring a lot of closure.”

Aside from the running, the event raises a lot of money for a great cause. For the past five years, the event has benefitted the Family Resource Center for the prevention of child abuse. The center is a non-profit agency providing support and education to families by strengthening parenting and life skills and preventing child abuse and neglect. The center has been serving families in Floyd County since 1991, all at no cost to families.

“We have made over $88,700 over the past five years and we expect to go over $100,000 this year for the Family Resource Center,” says Johnson. “Last year, we raised $20,100 and we’re on track to exceed that number. I’d like to raise $25,000.”

Last year, the resource center helped 557 families, which included 858 adults and 1,240 children. “The center works to provide a safe environment for these families…teaches them to be families,” Johnson says.

About the 2010 race

-Organizers expect between 700-750 runners and walkers for this year’s event.

-Participants can pre-register by Aug. 14 for $15 for runners and $12 for walkers.

-After Aug. 14, fees go up to $20 for runners and walkers. All pre-registered runners will receive a T-shirt. To register online go to www.active.com.
-For more information about the race, contact Johnson at gailj1@bellsouth.net or call 706-346-9348.

-Also: www.romerunnersclub.org or www.exchangeclubfrc.org.

-On Facebook: Click Tillman Clocktower

Top tennis town title, $100,000 could be coming Rome's way

(Media release) The United States Tennis Association has named Rome as a Top 10 Finalist for the second annual “Best Tennis Town” contest, a nationwide initiative to find the community that best exemplifies the passion, excitement, spirit and impact that tennis brings to the community.

Rome was selected as a top 10 finalist from among 82 cities and towns across the country that submitted entries in hopes of claiming the title of “Best Tennis Town.” Rome now takes part in an online voting process between Friday, July 16 through Monday, July 26 at www.besttennistown.com. Voting begins at 12:01 p.m.

“As a finalist in the USTA’s Best Tennis Town search, we’re excited to be able to show fans around the state and around the country just how passionate we are about tennis in Rome and how much it is a part of our community,” Coosa Valley Tennis Association President Jim O’Hara said after Rome being named as a Top 10 tennis town.

“We encourage everyone in Rome, the entire state of Georgia and the country to vote for us,” O’Hara said, “and to help us spread the word. Supporters can view our community video submission and participate in the nationwide online vote by visiting www.besttennistown.com.”

Also in the race are Clearwater, Fla.; Snow Hill, N.C.; Delray Beach, Fla.; Beaverton, Ore.; Atlanta; Charleston, S.C.; Richmond, Va.; Rosemount, Minn.;
and Manchester Center, Vt.

Rome’s nomination to the contest, which was spearheaded by Mike Burnes, a member of the CVTA Board of Directors, included completing an online official nomination form outlining local community and tennis demographics; a video showing the community’s spirit and passion for tennis and the impact of tennis on an individual, an organization and/or the community as a whole; and five letters of support from government leadership, park directors, business representatives and other members of the community.

The top three finalists, as determined by nationwide voting, will be announced by July 28, and the 2010 Best Tennis Town winner will be announced during the 2010 U.S. Open in New York City, with the winner being awarded the grand prize of $100,000 to be used for community wide programming or facility enhancements that the winning entrant endorses and is approved by USTA.

The second place prize is $50,000 to be used for community wide programming or facility enhancements, while the third place prize is $25,000 for the community’s use for tennis. Additionally, the remaining seven towns will be giving Honorable Mention status and a $2,000 tennis equipment packaged.

“Being selected as a finalist means that our efforts to grow the sport among people of all ages and abilities have been recognized as one of the best in the country,” said O’Hara, “and it also gives us the opportunity to receive up to $100,000 from the United States Tennis Association for even more community-wide tennis programming.

“Tennis is an important part of our community,” he added. “Being recognized as the 2010 Best Tennis Town in America would not only reward our community for our commitment to the sport, but would also enable us to provide additional tennis programming and enhancements to our facilities to be enjoyed by current and future tennis players.”

Best Tennis Town Fact Sheet
In its second year, Best Tennis Town is the USTA’s nationwide initiative to find the community that best exemplifies the passion, excitement, spirit and impact that tennis brings to the community

From April 7 to June 28, 2010, entrants from across the country and from each of the 17 USTA Sections logged onto www.besttennistown.com to submit their community for consideration

Entrants were judged based on the following criteria:
o An online official nomination form outlining local community and tennis demographics
o One video showing the community’s spirit and passion for tennis and the impact of tennis on an individual, an organization and/or the community as a whole
o Five letters of support from government leadership, park directors, business representatives and other members of the community
Nationwide public voting from July 16 through July 26, 2010 at www.besttennistown.com will determine the winning community
o One vote per email address will be accepted