THE LATEST The Rome City Commission has scheduled meetings on Monday, Feb. 18 at 5:30 p.m. and Tuesday, Feb. 19 at 2 p.m. to give a first reading, and most likely a second reading on Tuesday, to an amendment its business license ordinance dealing with “sexually oriented business”. The Commission had a called meeting Friday… Read more
Friday morning, Gov. Brian Kemp signed Senate Bill 25 – his first as Georgia’s 83rd governor – into immediate effect to improve school bus safety for families and children across the Peach State. Says state Schools Superintendent Richard Woods: “I have been concerned about our students’ safety since House Bill 978, which addressed passing a stopped school… Read more
An addition to the 31-month-old Rome Tennis Center at Berry College to house six indoor, temperature controlled courts already is being called “one of the largest in the nation.” But with a price tag now set at $5 million — nearly half the $11.4 million voters agreed to tax themselves to fund the original 60-court… Read more
Thursday morning, Gov. Brian Kemp, First Lady Marty Kemp and state officials announced a new mobile application to support the Georgia Crisis and Access Line, a 24/7 hotline offering free and confidential access to services for mental illness, substance use disorders, and intellectual and developmental disabilities. “Traveling across the state, Marty and I have heard firsthand from parents,… Read more
On radio: Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan will join us at 7:40 a.m. Friday on the Hometown Headlines Radio Edition on WRGA 98.7 FM. Our first question will be about the healthcare package. Media release: On Wednesday, the Patients First Act (SB 106) was introduced in the Georgia State Senate by Gov. Brian Kemp’s Floor Leader,… Read more
Media release: U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., was awarded the inaugural ‘John S. McCain Service to Country Award’ from Voices for National Service on Tuesday in recognition of his life-long devotion to citizen and public service and for his exceptional leadership in advancing national service to solve community problems. Video footage of Isakson’s acceptance… Read more
The Rome Ducks Unlimited Dinner Event is coming up on March 8 at the Forum beginning at 6 p.m. This year’s membership dinner includes an all-you-can-eat buffet with American, Italian and Cajun food stations; raffles as well as live and silent auctions; plus networking opportunities. Various levels of ticket packages and sponsorships remain. For more:… Read more
Special election for state House District 5: Latest results Republicans Matt Barton and Jesse Vaughn are on the ballot today in parts of Gordon and Murray counties; the winner will join the 2019 General Assembly, filling the seat left open by the death of longtime Rep. John Meadows, R-Calhoun, who died Nov. 13. Barton and Vaughn were the top two voter-getters… Read more
Behold the soon-to-be headquarters of industrial recruitment in Rome and Floyd County. If the current “concept” holds, this one-time service bay for a car dealership that most recently was used for fire department storage — call it the “out house” — could become the base of recruitment efforts for the community. You’ll pay for… Read more
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (pictured with his wife, Marty) joined us for a few minutes on the Hometown Headlines Radio Edition on WRGA 98.7 FM Friday morning. Among the topics: A busy first few weeks for the new governor, especially with the severe weather threat earlier this week as well as more than 1 million… Read more
Rome native Vic Reynolds, currently the district attorney of Cobb County, has been named the director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation by Gov. Brian Kemp. A former police officer, chief magistrate judge, prosecutor, and criminal defense attorney, Reynolds was elected District Attorney for Cobb County in 2012. He and his wife of 30 years, Holly (also… Read more
Early voting for the Feb. 5 Special Election Runoff ended Friday with 995 voters casting ballots early. Election day is Tuesday with polls open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The candidates for House District 5 are Matt Barton and Jesse Vaughn, both Republicans. If you are registered to vote in the following precincts you will… Read more
The story lines on The Big Switch: The initial budget for the first year of operating the industrial recruitment office has jumped by 26.5 percent to $450,188 in just two months (they left out marketing in the original draft). Those extra pennies you pay in SPLOST taxes set aside for economic development would provide the… Read more
Upcoming blood drive has something extra for Floyd County employees: Sure, the incentive is there — free refreshments (snacks) for all donors courtesy of The Sweet Bar. But for county employees, there’s another perk — a free police escort to the Law Enforcement Center if they donate blood on Monday, Feb. 11, between 7 a.m.… Read more
The Floyd County Commission has scheduled a called meeting for noon Thursday to, as the agenda states, “approve the revised unified economic development plan for Rome and Floyd County.” The meeting will be in the Community Room, Suite 206, at the County Administration building at 12 E. Fourth Ave. Prior to the vote, there is… Read more
ON VIDEO: You can watch the economic development tug-of-way by clicking here for the webcast video; it starts around the 50-minute mark The expected next turn in economic development in Rome and Floyd County turned ugly Monday night. And yet by the end of a prolonged exchange of pros and cons, a concept to work… Read more