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Lightning from a thunderstorm that swept across Commerce early Thursday morning is the likely cause of a fire that heavily damaged an 8-unit apartment building at 1191 South Elm Street.

"One of the guys living upstairs said he heard a loud boom," said Commerce fire chief Keith Whitfield. Upon investigating, the tenant smelled smoke. [Full Story »] 

With a little more than a week before the Folk to Fine Art Festival and Expo at the Commerce Civic Center, organizers say momentum is building.

The expo starts Friday night, March 2, and runs through Sunday, March 4 — a first of its kind event for both Commerce and the civic center that hopes to introduce the general public to a surprisingly vibrant northeast Georgia art community.

“We’re getting close,” noted Denise McKay, executive director of the Downtown Development Authority who, along with Claudine Smith of Our Town Antiques and a host of volunteers, is organizing the event.
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The Commerce City Council made quick work of a long agenda Monday night and resolved a number of issues that have consumed much of its energy over past weeks.

The council approved the resolution of the conflict between Oconee Point subdivision residents and Northeast Georgia Bank over a rezoning/greenspace issue, approved three amendments to its alcohol ordinance to reduce the cost of one license and to allow for permits for special events, approved the agreement to retain an interim city manager who will also lead the city’s search for a replacement for Clarence Bryant, and put to rest a longstanding conflict over whether the city should charge a permit and provide inspections for the re-roofing of houses.
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With a lot on its plate for 2012, the Commerce City Council faces a long agenda for Monday night’s meeting at 6:30 in the Commerce Civic Center.

The council will hire an interim city manager (see separate story), resolve its debate over whether re-roofing a house should require a city permit, consider amending its distilled spirits pouring license to cut the rate by more than half (just in the central business district), make plans to provide for an interpreter and public defender for municipal court, and could approve a final resolution to the greenspace controversy at Oconee Pointe Subdivision.

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The Commerce City Council is starting the process of replacing soon-to-retire city manager Clarence Bryant.

The council is expected to vote next Monday night to hire Tom Berry, a veteran city manager, to both be the interim city manager and to serve as the city’s headhunter in replacing Bryant.

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The Jackson County and Commerce planning commissions will hold a public hearing Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Commerce Civic Center to show off a proposed “overlay” zoning district to cover the entrances into town.

The proposal would make development standards identical for parcels that are in Jackson County and in Commerce in those areas, where some tracts are in the city limits and others are not.

The district would cover Hwy. 98 east and west, U.S. 441 north and south, Homer Road and Hwy. 326.

The Commerce Downtown Development Authority is going to do something new this summer.

It will hold its Independence Day fireworks display on — Independence Day.

For the last 15 years at least, the city fireworks show was part of the City Lights Festival held at least a week before July 4. Last year it was on June 25. [Full Story »] 

Jackson County just landed its biggest economic development project in county history.

Gov. Nathan Deal announced Tuesday that Toyota Industries Corp. will establish Toyota Industries Compressor Parts America (TICA) in a 600,000-square foot building it will erect on the 152-acre tract in Valentine Farms Industrial Park next to its TD Automotive Compressor Georgia (TACG).

The new plant, which will provide an estimated 320 new manufacturing jobs and represents a $350 million investment, will manufacture parts for the compressors assembled at TACG. TACG currently imports those parts from Japan. Toyota Industries Corp. supplies automotive compressors for Toyota Motor Corporation, as well as Chrysler, Ford, General Motors and others. [Full Story »]