State Of The County 2005

"Honorable Commissioners, Elected Officials, Chamber Members and Citizens of Barrow:

            It is my pleasure today to present the 2nd annual “State of Barrow” to you. First, I want to give special thanks to your Board of Commissioners for the efforts in supporting the vision of Barrow’s future. Thanks also to our Department Directors for the leadership they are each giving to the planning and implementation of our vision.
            You have before you a report from our Departments that I hope you will share with those who are interested in knowing more about Barrow County Government.
            Much has been accomplished during the past 12 months and much is yet to come. If you “Believe in Barrow” you will agree we are planning for your future as I will present our progress to you today on projects such as the Barber Creek Wastewater Facility .
            It is all about TEAMWORK. No Commission Chairman can be a catalyst for positive change without TEAMWORK. It must begin at the grassroots level. It must include leaders from County staff, Elected Officials from each Municipality , Chamber and Community Leaders. We appreciate the support for BALANCED AND QUALITY GROWTH.
            What is our Vision for Barrow County?
            “Barrow County, the place to live, work, play, and retire, a people involving themselves in their community, a people believing in balanced, quality growth and support for services and infrastructure, and a place where taxes are a shared cost of living and the burden of funding an efficient, functional, responsive government is diversified by the efforts of the people. Barrow County: where people believe in themselves.
            What I hope to do today is address basic questions regarding Barrow County’s system of operations, policies, demographics and taxation. I would like to express the complete and utter compassion and loyalty the county employees working for you, us, our community, exhibit in the duties for which they are both singularly and wholly responsible. I would like to provide a global view of the challenges we confront, the approach we take for solutions, and the successes we achieve as we prepare, plan and develop opportunities for our community. I believe and hope the information will be especially useful in understanding how we all address the County’s future.
            To understand how I believe the employees of Barrow County feel about their responsibilities I would like to quote our twenty-eighth President, Woodrow Wilson: “You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget the errand." This sentiment is the spirit the staff and Elected Officials of the Barrow County Government bear everyday as they face the challenges and issues of the services they provide to our community. Their actions, planning, and achievements do not result in instant success; however the reward for all citizens will be a lasting improvement to the quality of life for Barrow. Also, it is evident the leaders from our Municipalities, our Commission, our School System , our Chamber of Commerce, our Industrial Development Authority, our Airport Authority, our Water and Sewerage Authority, our Chamber Summit Leaders, our Local Legislators and community leaders, are working together for the betterment of Barrow.
            To take this spirit and grow our community of nearly 60,000 people we must understand the foundations, the common goals, the measurements of success, and the standards by which we measure ourselves. Measuring ourselves against other Georgia Counties gives us insight in to the boundless possibilities of our community as we are the seventh smallest and the 36th most populous. Our land area doesn’t change; however the population does. We have grown by 30 percent since 2000; we are the 5th fastest growing county in the State , and the 24th fastest growing in the Country. For many it is imposing to manage the task associated with growth of this magnitude. However, the team assembled by the Barrow County Government embraces the new frontiers that growth brings. I spoke last year about the teamwork and the staff’s dedication to servicing our community; however the achievements over the past year are too numerous to name, but I would like to reflect upon a few making a difference.

A new facility for the Roads and Bridges Department has gone through the bid process and construction should begin soon.
A new Adult Daycare Facility is being designed with involvement from the State of Georgia, Barrow County, and the City of Winder.
The Barber Creek Wastewater Facility is currently under construction to serve Statham, the Georgia Club and the growth areas of Barber Creek basin - this is another example of cooperative intergovernmental efforts (Barrow County and the City of Statham). Work has also begun on upgrading the Tanners Bridge LAS Plant to service the growth needs of 316 & 81, as well as the Auburn area.
The voters will have the opportunity to approve a Homestead Exemption for school taxes to provide tax relief for homeowners needing it most.
Courthouse security improvements provide a safer environment for the citizens and employees of Barrow.
Completed a Recreation Master Plan.
Completed and implemented a Comprehensive Salary Study for Barrow County Employees.
Code Enforcement and the pre-trial diversion programs are performing well, and making a difference for Barrow.
Work has begun on a new Comprehensive Land Use Plan and a Transportation Plan to address future growth issues…and we welcome your involvement.
Animal Control has improved procedures to address issues with overpopulated and unwanted animals.
County Department Directors have completed Management Development Training (MDP) to stress efficiency and teamwork for the County workforces, and the directors have accomplished a team project at the Senior Center….called “The Gathering Place.”
At the March 21st ESPLOST election, the new Express Poll voting machines were used for the first time in the State of Georgia.

            These and other accomplishments are moving our community forward and do not come without dedicated efforts from individuals such as Shannon Young, with Keep Barrow Beautiful. The upcoming Keep Barrow Beautiful Event that she and the Keep Barrow Beautiful Executive Board have planned for April is the largest clean-up program ever offered by the Barrow County Government. This event will improve the Quality of Life for our community, our community’s self value, clean our environment, and increase property values, simply by removing unwanted household items.
            Cecil Highfield , the Chief Appraiser, has the responsibility of developing the County Digest, or property value assessments, by which the Commission, School Board, and Municipalities sets millage rates for funding. The value of Barrow County’s Digest is 1.8 billion dollars, which grew by 157 million dollars last year - a 10.07 percent increase. Barrow County’s Millage is 26.666, which happens to be 3.11 mills (on average) lower than our neighboring Counties.
            During that same period of time the average square footage of a house in Barrow County increased from 1,825 to 1,960. The trend of upscale housing is continuing this year as the average square footage for January and February is 2,156. With the growth and demographics provided by our new housing market, new businesses such as the Home Depot will greatly benefit from our Community, and these large and entrepreneurial businesses will provide the citizens of our community with opportunities for employment, entertainment, and shopping. Business activity is growing in Barrow as our businesses in the unincorporated portions of the County have increased by 724 from 2002 to 2005 which is an 85 percent increase in businesses. The number of employees for businesses in unincorporated Barrow County has grown from 3,650 to 5,362 which represents a 47 percent increase in employment. The 2006 Tax Certificates are currently being renewed, and at present the renewed and newly created businesses are reporting a total of 5,771 employees which is already an increase of 409 jobs over 2005, and 75 employers in the County account for 4,058 of these jobs.
            I believe it is important to continue to attract new retail establishments. The University of Georgia Small Business Development Center provides some information regarding the impact business growth could have on our County. They released the Georgia Outshopping Annual Report in January of 2006, which is a retail sales data report. The report shows that Barrow County is capturing 83% of our retail buying power. As a result of this buying power we collected 7.87 million dollars in SPLOST for 2005. If we had captured 100 percent of our retail buying power we would have collected 9.48 million dollars for SPLOST. SPLOST is only one of the three pennies returning to Barrow County. All totaled we could have received an additional 4.8 million dollars to build roads, construct schools, repair drainage structures or simply buy copy paper. Instead we sent our dollars to Gwinnett, Athens, Oconee, and Jackson, and I am positive their citizens are thanking each of us for their new roads, improved school facilities, and repaired drainage structures. I commit to improve the availability of these funds over the course of my tenure as Chairman and as a citizen of Barrow County, and I hope you will do the same.
            As Chairman I will work to attract business, develop relationships with the IDA, JDA, Airport Authority, Water and Sewerage Authority and Bioscience Joint Development Authority to bring quality business to Barrow County through owned assets, developed assets and planned assets. David Smith and our IDA are actively working with industries, to diversify our tax base and increase our sales tax. The Airport Authority has developed plans for improved operations, longer runways, and greater regional impact. The Water Authority has created a Master Plan by which we will develop Sewer, assist in managing the Transmission Line from Bear Creek, and fund capital improvements for Sewer.
            The County’s commitment to provide sewer for development is essential to the Quality Growth we are experiencing. The sewer systems, such as the Barber Creek Plant, provides for diverse and unique developments such as the Georgia Club. Sewer aids in the development of Retail Projects such as the 81 and 316 area, which is experiencing a tremendous amount of business growth. It will also allow the County to protect the Natural Resources and reduce required infrastructure for our Community through smaller lots and larger greenspace or common areas. I am committed to working with Winder and Braselton to provide Quality Growth opportunities to Highway 11, the Airport area, the West Winder By-pass, and the Highway 211 corridor.
            The protection of our Natural Resources and greenspace requirements as outlined in our Unified Development Code will assist us as we begin to implement the Leisure Services (Recreation) Master Plan. The first steps we have taken for expansion of our Leisure Services are as follows:

Created a citizens advisory board, to plan and provide us with information regarding the needs of the County’s recreational programs;
Purchased the Pineshore pool and property. We are currently working with our Architects, Carter and Watkins to plan the site, improve the usability, and create a timeline for the improvements;
Designed, and approved improvements for the Victor Lord Park, as well as, applied and received grant funds to improve the Soccer Complex, and provide greater connectivity between our Parks;
For the first time we are offering Little League Baseball as a program in coordination with the Statham Little League; and
Working with the Town of Braselton on the Mulberry Trail and future soccer complex.

            As Leisure Services also provides services improving the Quality of Life for our citizens, a commitment to excellence, innovation, and expansion will expand the possibilities for citizens of this community. The Leisure Services Master Plan was a precursor to the Barrow County Comprehensive Plan and is a vital component of the Comprehensive Plan.
            As we develop our community, I ask for your involvement in the Comprehensive Planning process to guide us for the next ten years. We have contracted with MacTech to assist in the development of Barrow County’s Comprehensive Plan. This Plan is the model by which we will grow and develop as a community, the Comprehensive Plan will shape Industrial, Commercial and Residential Development, and outline our future growth areas, as well as provide an idea of the capital improvements necessary to continue our service to our community needs and goals. In coordination with this plan we are conducting a Transportation Study, very similar to our Sewer Master Plan. It will provide us with a road map for the future of Barrow County road usage and expansions. With the growing metro Atlanta Community and our participation in the Atlanta Regional Commission, it is necessary to provide an outline of activities associated with roadway usage, improvements, and expansion to leverage Federal, State and Local Funds in the most efficient manner.
            It is important that we get all of the above right as our community grows, and we manage the demands and expectations placed upon all of us. Our Elected Officials such as Gloria Wall are experiencing forces such as increased criminal cases going from 19.2 to 28.4 per 1000 citizens, which require additional or improved technology, additional space and more personnel. This is an example of the demands our County faces and is a key reason we have conducted an efficiency study. We are currently evaluating the information with the Elected Officials and Directors to determine the issues and greatest needs. The importance of servicing our community in an efficient manner and with service in mind is one of the priorities the Board of Commissioners set at our recent planning retreat .
            The priority issues identified and discussed by the Commission are as follows:

Sewer Expansion;
Economic Development;
Transportation and Traffic;
Quality Growth;
New Jail and Courthouse;
County – City relationships;
Public Safety;
Recreation; and
Staffing and Organizational structure.

            Several other issues were identified, for future discussions; however the Commission’s top priority as a result of the retreat is to begin the process of a countywide visioning and planning retreat for Barrow County. I will be contacting the Mayors, Board of Education, Development Authorities, Chamber of Commerce, representatives of the development community and representatives of the social service agencies for support and participation with the Board of Commissioners in a Barrow County visioning and planning retreat.
            As Barrow works to diversify the growth and development our Sales Tax receipts rose by 8.33 percent in 2005. With the opening of Home Depot and many new entrepreneurial businesses, along with the expected continued development, our goal of diversifying the revenue for Barrow County to reduce our dependence upon property taxes can be achieved.
            The growth of Barrow is here. Some may wish that growth had never come to Barrow — some wish none of this was happening. Is it for them to decide? As leaders, as catalysts, all we as Believers in Barrow have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. Other forces are at work besides discontent or apathy. Barrow County was meant to grow and flourish.   In the time given to us, let us each choose to participate and guide positively. Believe in Barrow — not just the year behind, but in the wonderful and limitless possibilities ahead."

Douglas H.Garrison
Barrow County Board Of Commissioners
Chairman