Fannin Chamber Monthly Newsletter
Chamber eNews August 2010
Water Going Under the Dam ...
Bad News and Good News
The summer months have been been busier than anticipated, and school is starting back much too soon. The record heat has record numbers of tourists tubing the Toccoa River in the brisk, fast moving waters created as TVA withdraws water from Lake Blue Ridge at record speed. It is expected that the water will continue to be drawn down 24-hours every day until about the middle of August, when withdrawals will be reduced from seven feet per week to three feet per week. In the interim, trout fishing is pretty much limited to areas above the dam in the higher elevations.
Although people are still swimming at Morganton Point, every day, as the water recedes, the hike to the water's edge gets longer and longer. As of August 1, Old Highway 76 over the Lake Blue Ridge dam has been closed and will remain so until the repair of the penstock and the dam is complete about two years from now. TVA hopes to complete work on the penstock and dam rehabilitation on the lake side by Spring 2011; the refill will depend on the rain. For current lake elevations and release times, see the TVA website.
When it comes to the Lake Blue Ridge dam rehabilitation, there's bad news and good news. Bad news is we lose our lake for about one year, and access over the dam for two years. Good news is the dam will be safer and once we get the lake back, we won't lose it every five years for deep drawdowns.
Georgia's Trout Capital...
August 11 Membership Lunch
Join us at the Fannin County Chamber of Commerce's Membership Lunch on August 11, from noon to 2 p.m. at Community and Southern Bank's community room. Featured is a blue ribbon panel of experts which will discuss the quality, value and importance of the watershed and fisheries in Fannin County from biological, commercial, recreational and social perspectives. Members of the panel include:
Ralph Artigliere, Blue Ridge Trout Unltd., Moderator
Terry Bramlett, Bramlett's Trout Farm, Suches
John Damer, Georgia Department of Natural Resources
Jimmy Harris, Unicoi Outfitters, Blue Ridge and Helen
Bill Oyster, Oyster Fine Bamboo Fly Rods, Blue Ridge
Jim Wentworth, Chattahoochee National Forest
Cost of the lunch is $12. For reservations, please call the Chamber at 706-632- 5680.
18th Annual Golf Tournament
Scheduled for October 11
The Chamber's 18th Annual Golf Tournment will take place on Monday, October 11th, at The Ridges in Hayesville, N.C. Title Sponsors for the tournament are North Georgia Ford and TDS Telecom, according to Paul Gribble, chairman. Cost for a Corporate Sponsor foursome will stay at $500; Hole sponsorships will be $100. For more information, contact Elaine Dilbeck at the Chamber.
Website Specials for Members
Because specials and packages have become so popular with visitors to the Chamber website, we are now offering members (in addition to lodging) the opportunity to promote their tourism oriented specials and packages on the website. If you have a special offer or package you would like us to feature, contact elainedilbeck@tds.net and give her the details, along with a logo or photo. The new specials program will generate a coupon that the visitor can actually print and bring with them. Please limit these to tourism oriented specials at this time. Later in the year, we will offer an opportunity for member discounts and specials.
NGTC Excel & Word Classes
"Excel Function Statements" is a one-night class on August 24 from 6 to 9 p.m. about the specialized function statements available in Microsoft Excel: logical funtions, statistical functions and financial functions. "Form Design Using Word" is also a one-night class on September 14 from 6 to 9 p.m. Participants will learn how to create forms that limit where date entry is allowed and establish parameters for the data. Cost of each class is $40; you can take one or both of them. To register, call the Chamber at 706-632-5680.
Short Subjects...
-- We are proud to have the art of Rick Lucas in the Chamber Conference Room. Rick specializes in large scale photographs and digital art. His studio is located at The Martyn House in Ellijay. Come by and see his beautiful photographs and find out more about Rick on his website.
-- The Blue Ridge Scenic Railway was recognized in Southern Living Magazine's August edition as one of the top five "cool" things to do in Georgia this summer. The Martyn House in Ellijay was also featured in the Travel Section.
--The Fannin County Chamber of Commerce now has a Facebook Page -- Become a fan today!
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