Toccoa Named Ga. Main Street “GEM”

The Toccoa Main Street program received special recognition from the state of Georgia. Last week, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs announced that Toccoa is one of five Main Street programs to be named in the first class of the Georgia Exceptional Main Streets, or GEMS, program. Toccoa was selected along with Bainbridge, Greensboro, Rome, and Valdosta. These five cities received the recognition out of 14 that applied statewide. Toccoa Main Street Director Connie Tabor said it is quite an honor to be selected in the first year of this statewide initiative.
By Charlie Bauder
Full Article

Movies Returning to Schaefer Center This Summer

Toccoa’s Main Street program has plans for a busy summer at the Schaefer Center in downtown Toccoa.

A number of activities are planned for the facility at the corner of Broad and Doyle streets over the coming weeks.

First, Toccoa Main Street has announced the return of movies to the Schaefer Center for four dates this summer.

The first movie is scheduled for this Saturday at 3 p.m.

Toccoa Main Street Events Coordinator Sharon Crosby said the city is excited to bring the big screen back to the Schaefer Center this summer.

“One of the ways the Schaefer Center was used in the past, of course, was as a movie theater,” said Crosby. “In fact, some people in town, some of their earliest memories of going to movies was the Schaefer Center for their matinees. So this summer, we are having three matinees, one in June and two in July, and then we have an evening (movie) in August.

This Saturday, the movie will be “The Lorax.”

Other movies are the 2009 “Star Trek” on July 13 at 3 p.m.; 1939’s “The Wizard of Oz” on July 27 at 3 p.m.; and the 1960 version of “Ocean’s 11” on August 17 at 7 p.m.

Admission to all of the movies is $3 for those over the age of 12 and free for those under 12. Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult.

Crosby said people heading to the movies, especially the matinees, are encouraged to make a night of it downtown Toccoa.

“Those three (matinees), there will be Ida Cox afterwards,” said Crosby. “People can come down, see a moive, go to one of our downtown restaurants, and then go to enjoy Ida Cox in the evening.”

In addition to the movies, Main Street Toccoa is partnering with the Toccoa-Stephens County Community Theatre to sponsor a Children’s Drama Camp at the Schaefer Center the week of July 27 through August 2.

There will be two classes offered; one from 9 a.m. to noon for children going into first grade and can read through third grade and the second will be from 1 to 5 p.m. for children in 4th through 9th grade.

Each class will be limited to 30 students. The registration fee is $65 per child with a $10 discount per additional sibling.

Charlie Bauder

Preparations Underway for “Taste of Toccoa”

The city of Toccoa is preparing for an annual Spring downtown tradition.

The 23rd annual “A Taste of Toccoa” will take place on Thursday, April 25 from 5 to 8 p.m. in downtown Toccoa.

Toccoa Main Street Events Coordinator Sharon Crosby said that preparations are going well for the event.

“Taste of Toccoa is one of Toccoa’s favorite festivals I think,” said Crosby. “This year, we are preparing and hoping to get all of our county and city restaurants involved. Things are going well and we are excited about another good year.”

During “Taste,” local restaurants and caterers show off their specialty menu items in smaller portions.

Crosby said that applications for restaurants and caterers are still being accepted.

Meanwhile, she went on to say that plans are in the works for the entertainment and other activities that are also part of “Taste” each year.

“We have got some really good entertainment this year,” said Crosby, including the Rhythm Academy, Chattahoochee Chain Gang, and some local artists.

For more information on “A Taste of Toccoa,” call the Main Street Toccoa office at 706-282-3309.

Downtown Facade Grant Program

Toccoa officials are encouraging downtown businesses to use the city's facade grant program. Main Street Director Connie Tabor said the newly updated facade grant program is now available to any Man street Tax District property or business owner. According to Tabor, grants will be based on 50% of the total facade renovation costs with the maximum grant amount of $2,500. For more info, call 706-282-3269.

Main Street Toccoa Earns National Main Street Program Recognition

Main Street Toccoa has been designated as an accredited National Main Street Program for 2011 by the National Trust Main Street Center! Accreditation means that Main Street Toccoa met the performance standards set by the National Trust in areas like fostering strong public-private partnerships, developing a mission, tracking economic progress, securing an operating budget, and preserving historic buildings.

Toccoa Receives DOT Grant

The City of Toccoa will receive $325,000 from the Georgia Department of Transportation for the streetscape work in the downtown area. The DOT announced Toccoa's grant as part of its 2011 Transportation Enhancement Awards Thursday. Toccoa Planning and Downtown Development Director Connie Tabor said this will continue the work already done in other areas of downtown. The city will have to provide a $65,000 local match for the grant.
WNEG

GDOT grants money for Downtown streetscape

The city of Toccoa will receive $325,000 from the Georgia Department of Transportation for streetscape work in the downtown area. The DOT announced Toccoa's grant as part of its 2011 Transportation Enhancement Awards Thursday. Toccoa Planning and Downtown Development Director Connie Tabor said this will continue the work already done in other areas of downtown. The city will have to provide a $65,000 local match for the grant.

Stephens County Hospital

Stephens County Hospital is purchasing a new microscope. The Hospital Authority approved the purchase during Monday's meeting. Stephens County Hospital Administrator Ed Gambrell says the microscope is for Dr. Jack Harris. Gambrell said Dr. Harris needs a new microscope for his cataract surgeries. The Hospital Authority approved the purchase unanimously.

WNEG

Toccoa is GA's Best of Living History

Toccoa was selected as the Official Best Living History of Georgia. The Official Best Of is a travel website that selects the best tourist sites states have to offer.

Toccoa will be in the Official Best Of Georgia's television special, airing on WSBTV Channel 2/ABC on December 11 and on the Travel Channel on November 17 at 8 am.

The special highlights Toccoa's cultural and tourist attractions and is sponsored by Main Street Toccoa and Stephens county Historical Society.

Main Street Toccoa

Downtown Scarecrow Contest Results

Main Street Toccoa would like to thank all of the businesses that participated in the First Annual Downtown Scarecrow Contest. We were impressed by the effort and creativity that all businesses put into the creation of their scarecrow(s). This was a wonderful way to show seasonal fun in Toccoa and to show off our great downtown.

Following judging this weekend, our judges have selected Jack Green, CPA as the winner of the Downtown Scarecrow Contest. Congratulations to Jay and the staff! Their scarecrow was decorated as Mr. Jack O’Lantern, a distressed CPA, complete with glasses and suspenders. The judges were impressed with the scarecrow’s representation of the CPA business, its emotion and use of hay and pumpkin head. The combination of originality, traditional scarecrow-making technique, and creativity in expressing the financial business created the first Downtown Scarecrow Contest’s winner.

In addition to the top prize, the judges also chose two honorable mentions for this year’s Downtown Scarecrow Contest: Stephens County Development Authority (SCDA) and Ionosphere Travel Agency. Both scarecrow displays were judged highly for their creativity in reflecting their business’ purpose. Stephens County Development Authority’s display included five scarecrows, all representatives of members of the SCDA, and a pumpkin carved to include their logo. This honorable mention was awarded due to the display’s attention to detail and creativity. Additionally, Ionosphere’s scarecrow "Trip" was lounging in a beach chair, sunbathing in a Hawaiian print shirt and flip-flops. All the necessities of a beach trip were included in the display, as Trip had suntan lotion, a boom box, sunglasses and a camera. The judges awarded Ionosphere an honorable mention for its coordination with their business mission and its ability to transport you to another place.

Thank you to everyone for your commitment and support of this downtown contest. We look forward to making this an annual event and are very pleased with the participation this year! As this was our first year, if you have any feedback we would love to hear your comments. We will be revamping the competition process over the next few weeks, so be on the lookout for next year's contest rules and dates in the coming weeks.

Weekend of August 6-7!

Join us for a busy weekend in Toccoa!
The final "Cinema on Sage" event for the summer will take place this evening. Tonight's movie is "The Blind Side". The movie will start at 9PM on Sage Street, with activities starting at 7PM. Meanwhile, the "Back to School Bash" will take place from 10AM to 4PM on Saturday on Doyle Street from Sage to Alexander Streets in Downtown Toccoa.

'The Record' wins 7 GPA Awards

The Toccoa Record won seven awards in the Georgia Press Association (GPA) Better Newspaper Contest including one of three given for general excellence. The Toccoa Record won first place for best sports section and third place in general excellence. The winner in the general excellence category is determined by the number of points totaled in first through third places in the 25 individual categories that make up the contest. The prestigious J.W. Williams Trophy for first place in best editorial page was given to The Record. They won second place in the Page One category which judges the newsworthiness of the publication's front page; along with second place in the layout and design category which deals with the overall design and attractiveness of the newspaper.

Two Record staffers were honored for individual work. Jessica Water's photograph of a Stephens County High School tennis player won third place for best sports photo and publisher Tom Law's column about being marooned on the roof of his house took second place honors for best humorous column.

Happy 20th Birthday, Toccoa Main Street Program!

Toccoa's Main Street Program turns 20 in 2010. In 1990, Toccoa applied to become a Georgia Main Street City with the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. Since then, 16 grants totaling $2.3 million have been invested in Main Street infrastructure and more than $25 million has been invested from the private sector.

Highlighted achievements of the program are:

• Removal of the concrete canopies
• Belk building donation, renovation, and sale to WhistleStop
• Train Depot acquisition and renovation
• Recruitment of the Chamber of Commerce, Historical Society, and Military Museum
• Designation as a local historic district

To learn more about Toccoa's Main Street Program, visit their website: http://www.mainstreettoccoa.com/

Developer Day Highlights Downtown Toccoa Revitalization Project

Developing Stephens County was the topic of the day as the Stephens County Development Authority held their first fall 2009 “Developer Day” event, which followed three successful spring events. Seven statewide economic development project managers from the Georgia Department of Labor, Georgia EMC, Quick Start, Georgia Mountains Regional Commission, Georgia Department of Economic Development, AGL Resources, and Georgia Department of Community Affairs toured the community. The goal of the trip was to gain a more in-depth understanding of Toccoa-Stephens County’s assets and economic needs so as to better foster development in the area.

The statewide guests also were able to present to a local leadership team about their role in the development of Northeast Georgia. David Shellhorse of the Georgia Department of Community affairs spoke about his work on the Canopies Project in historic downtown Toccoa:

"Removing the canopies which covered Toccoa’s historic downtown district and providing additional streetscape improvements was among the most rewarding, collaborative and innovative projects I have encountered during my time at DCA. An astounding four different grant funding sources contributed to this project which represented a 100% aesthetic makeover and revitalization of a charming and now vibrant downtown area. Of the four grants, DCA helped to administer three of them: OneGeorgia, the Redevelopment Fund, and the Appalachian Regional Commission (USDA was the other funding source).

"The downtown area had been compromised visually a few decades ago with the construction of large canopies which were installed in an innovative attempt to compete with and create the feeling of an indoor shopping mall. Malls were becoming increasingly popular and downtown areas were becoming increasingly affected and marginalized by their presence. While the canopies did not end up providing a direct competitor with the wave of malls and large shopping centers that emerged throughout the region, the canopies did help the community realize that there are things intrinsic about downtown areas that could never be offered by a mall: history, charm, and character. Through strong local leadership and vision in this project, those qualities have been restored. It is also necessary to mention that the administrative coordination between four different government funding sources and all of their various programmatic requirements was masterfully executed."

Read the entire Developer Day press release here: Developer Day showcases Toccoa's assets