The Henry County Board ofCommissioners held a called meetingMonday during which they elected to makeseveral changes in personnel and theorganizational structure of the County.

Effective immediately, CountyManager Fred Auletta will shift into theposition of Finance Director and will nowreport directly to the Board ofCommissioners.

“Fred will do an excellent job asFinance Director,” said Henry CountyCommission Chairman Tommy Smith, andreferred to Fred’s extensivefinance/accounting background.

Planning & Zoning Services DivisionDirector Michael Harris will step into the roleof Interim County Manager until a CountyManager is appointed. Harris has been withthe County since 1998, at which time heserved as an Engineer in the BuildingDepartment, and was promoted to theDirector of Development Plan Review in2000. He has since provided leadershipover several different divisions during histenure.

The Commissioners are looking toretain the services of the Carl VinsonInstitute of Government to help in what willbe a national search and selection process.The Institute is currently back-logged and isnot expected to begin the process untilSeptember. Under this time frame, it isanticipated that a new County Manager

could be named by the beginning of 2014.Angie Sorrow, who has been filling

in as Interim Finance Director sinceFebruary, was named Assistant FinanceDirector/Budget Analyst. She will reportdirectly to the Board of Commissioners asBudget Analyst to help keep Commissionersapprised of how the budget is trackingexpenditure-wise, and to the FinanceDirector as the Assistant Finance Directorfor all other finance issues, such as payroll,accounting, accounts receivables, etc.

The Purchasing Department, whichhad reported directly to the Finance Director,will now report to the County Manager.

the henry county update 1

BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

Called MeetingsAugust 19th at 6:00 p.m.August 29th at 6:00 p.m.

Regular MeetingsAugust 20th at 6:30 p.m.

September 3rd at 9:00 a.m.September 17th at 6:30 p.m.

Meetings held at: Administration Building

Community Room140 Henry Parkway

McDonough, GA 30253

Regular Commission meetings will air Fridays,Saturdays, Mondays and

Wednesdays on Henry TV Channel 14 and

AT&T U-Verse Channel 99, at 9 a.m. & 7 p.m.

August 15, 2013

Henry County Names Finance Director, Interim County Manager

Michael Harris is now Henry County’s Interim County Manager

www.hen r ycoun t y -ga .o rg

Later this month, theHenry County Board ofCommissioners will host aribbon cutting ceremonycelebrating the completionof Phase I of the HenryCounty Airport RunwayExtension Project,improving both the safetyand accessibility at theairport.

The total cost of theexpansion project was$3,044,664.78, with HenryCounty paying just a littlemore than five percent ofthat cost, or $163,105.78. Thebalance of $2,881,559 was fundedentirely by the Federal AviationAdministration (FAA) and GeorgiaDepartment of Transportation (GDOT).

The airport was acquired fromClayton County in 2011 at a cost to theCounty of $2.7 million, and even with its

portion of the cost of the runwayextension project, Henry County hasstill invested well under $3 million totalfor infrastructure that is expected to bea major impetus for economicdevelopment in the community throughthe creation of high-paying jobs inairframe, mechanical system and

avionics repair. The improved airport

will also better equip HenryCounty to attract thegrowing number ofcorporations which requirenearby airfields for theiroperations or executivetravel. The county is alsoexpected to benefit directlyfrom increased ad valoremtaxes for aircraft housed atthe airport, as well as fuelsales and other aviationinvestments that will add tothe local tax base.

The public is invited toattend the celebration, which will beheld at the Henry County Airport locatedat 474 Speedway Blvd. inHampton, onAugust 29, 2013 at 10 a.m. Lightrefreshments will be served.

Ribbon-cutting Ceremony Scheduled for Henry County Airport Runway Extension Project

Focus will be on Small Business & EntrepreneursToni Davis, Organizational Leadership Consultant, will discuss Implementing a

Business League Servicing Areas South of Atlanta. Marc Parham and Dan Barnes,Partec Consulting Group, will discuss developing a business plan, gaining access to

capital, and development for small business owners.August 24, 2013 • 9am

Cross Road Christian Church • 5365 North Henry Blvd. in StockbridgeAcross from the QT

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Sign up for the HenryCounty EmergencyNotification System

http://tinyurl.com/lnqzh5q

The Henry County Board of Commissionersapproved an amendment to the County Code to allow forshort-term leases for renting property when it’s deemedbeneficial to the County. The Board approved arecommendation that a provision be added to theordinance, giving the Board of Commissioners theoption to approve short-term leases with theduration not to exceed twelve months. The actioncame at the regular Commission meeting heldon August 6, 2013.

A request by a television productioncompany, currently filming a television showfor ABC called Resurrection, to rent theformer bank building located at 530 W.Highway 20/81 in McDonough brought tolight the need for a provision in the ordinance that wouldallow for short term leases of Henry County properties. Thebuilding is vacant and will eventually be removed ormodified as it lays in the right-of-way of an upcoming roadproject.Before the amendment, the code required that propertiesavailable for lease be put out to bid, and for the Board ofCommissioners to approve the offer. The provision isintended to make it more attractive for the film andtelevision industry to consider locations in Henry Countyfor their production needs.

“Bringing the movie and television industry toHenry County helps to boost our local economy, becausethe cast, crew and other staff dine in our restaurants, stayin local hotels and shop locally, not only for professionalneeds such as set and costume design, but for personal

needs as well,” said Julie Hoover-Ernst, HenryCounty’s Communications Director and board

member of the Henry County Convention &Visitors Bureau.

In a related item, Commissioners approvedthe short-term lease of the former bank

building at 530 W. Highway 20/81 on a month-to month basis, to FTP Productions LLC, toconduct filming, storage, casting, writing ,rehearsing and related activities, for a rental

fee of $5,000 per month.It’s been reported that the Georgia Film/TV

production industry spending generated nearly $700million in the state of Georgia in 2011, and Henry Countywants to be considered a viable option when productioncompanies are scouting sites. County officials are workingto create policies and procedures that make filming in thecommunity easier and more appealing, which includesamending the code to allow for the short-term use ofproperties to be used as filming locations.

Commissioners Approve Short Term Lease for Filming

District I Commissioner Bo Moss willhold a Town Hall Meeting on Saturday,September 14 at 9 a.m. at the LocustGrove Recreation Center. Scheduled guestspeakers will be Trea Pipkin, Henry CountySolicitor General, and Bert Brantley,Executive Director with the Georgia Roadand Tollway Authority (GRTA).

Pipkin will give citizens an overview of Henry County’scriminal justice system and Brantley will discuss the plans forthe I-75 Express Lanes. Light refreshments will also be served.

The Town Hall Meeting is open to the public and all areencouraged to attend. The Locust Grove Recreation Center islocated at 10 Cleveland St. in Locust Grove.

Commissioner Bo Moss to Hold Town Hall Meeting

www.hen r ycoun t y -ga .o rg

The staff of Henry TV, Henry County's governmentaccess television station, was honored by the GeorgiaExtension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences(GEAFCS) at its 2013 State Professional DevelopmentConference held last week in Henry County.

Henry TV was presented the Friend of ExtensionAward for its work helping to promote the programs andservices of the Extension Office. The award highlighted inparticular Garden Delights, the original gardening andcooking show Henry TV produces each month in partnershipwith the Henry County Extension Office.

Henry County Communications Director JulieHoover-Ernst was on hand to accept the award on behalf ofthe TV14 production team, including Broadcast Producer,Kevin Williams, and Broadcast Production Specialists,Nathan Monroe and Ed Gore.

Garden Delights airs daily at 12 noon and 4 p.m. on Henry TV, channel 14 on Charter cable and Channel 99 onAT&T U-Verse.

Henry TV Receives Honor for Television Program Garden Delights

Henry TV’s production team stands with the Friend of the Extension Award in theirstudio. They are, from left to right Broadcast Producer Kevin Williams, BroadcastProduction Specialists Nathan Monroe and Ed Gore, and Communications DirectorJulie Hoover-Ernst.