2003
SPLOST
April 1, 2003 - December 31, 2007
Total Proceeds Collected - $90,518,226.03
Proceeds Distribution based
on 2000 Census Figures
Adairsville
3.340%
Cartersville
20.730%
Emerson
1.970%
Euharlee
4.000%
Kingston
.955%
White
.955%
Bartow County
68.050%
Bartow County and the City of Cartersville agreed to jointly fund
improvements to the
Bartow County Library and the construction of a Public
Safety Training Center.
Construction has begun on the Public Safety Training Facility and is expected to be completed by December, 2009.
The County constructed a new
Road Department/Public Works Shop
and
three of four planned fire stations; 1) the new
Cassville Station,
2)
the Pine Log Station and 3) the
Sugar
Valley Station. The County
plans to move forward with construction of the Barnsley Fire Station in the near future. Expansion of the
Health Department facility, water and sewer infrastructure projects and
road improvement projects, such as correcting horizontal and vertical
alignment problems on Mission Road, adding turn lanes on Cass-White
Road at the Busch Drive intersection, and re-aligning Glade Road, Cedar
Creek Road, Fire Tower Road, Shinall-Gaines Road, Five Forks Road, Rudy
York Road and Sugar Valley Road were completed with 2003 SPLOST funds. Right of
Way is currently being acquired to make intersection improvements on
Euharlee Road at SR 113. Construction is expected to begin in 2009.
Funds have been set aside for improvements on Five Forks Road, Shinall-Gaines Road, and Glade Road. Right of Way acquisition has been
completed on the Five Forks Road project and the Shinall-Gaines Project and
construction is expected to begin in 2009. Environmental assessment is
complete on the Glade Road Project and right of way acquisition should begin
soon.
A number of greenspace properties has been purchased with 2003 SPLOST
funds, allowing the citizens of Bartow County to continue to enjoy its
natural landscapes and wildlife habitats for many years to come.
Walking trails have been constructed on some of these properties
allowing easy access for nature lovers and hiking enthusiasts.
The first SPLOST proceeds utilized by the County to purchase greenspace was
an approximately 300-acre tract in the Highlands area of northeast Bartow
County known locally as
Beasley Gap. Greenspace funds were used to match funds awarded to
Bartow County under the former Georgia Greenspace Act. The Beasley Gap
Greenspace Area includes a portion along the northwest bank of Pinelog
Creek, an important watershed in the County's Highlands region. A
grant helped the county establish the Pinelog Creek Trail System, which
includes two loop trails totaling approximately five miles of scenic hiking.
Greenspace funds were also used to purchase a 40 acre tract known as Hurricane Hollow, which helps protect the headwaters of Hurricane Creek. The area reminds visitors of areas of the Great Smokey Mountains National Park because of its mountainous terrain and abundance and variety of plants located in the forest, which lies only a few hundred yards east of Main Street and I-75 in Cartersville. The City of Cartersville's Pine Mountain Trail passes near the Hurricane Hollow Greenspace Area.
Matching greenspace funds to a Georgia Transportation Enhancement Grant were used to acquire 12 acres of threatened property in an important archeological site known as Leake Mounds, where it is believed mounds predating the famous Etowah Mounds by approximately 1000 years, once rose from the surrounding Etowah floodplain. The mounds were destroyed several decades ago. Although the mounds can no longer be seen, the area remains a rich archeological area that has been permanently protected by Bartow County
The latest
greenspace tract purchased by the County was a 100 acre farm and woodland
tract, which lies west of White, Georgia along Cass-Pinelog Road. This
tract, which includes a spring, pasture land and a beautiful hardwood forest
will serve as an important green buffer to the industrial/corporate park
being developed in the area.