Walker County officials are beginning a review of potential regulations for data center development. The Walker County Data Center Development Standards Study Committee will hold its first meeting Thursday, August 27th, at 3 p.m. at the Walker County Civic Center in Rock Spring. The committee will examine where data centers could be allowed, along with possible requirements for setbacks, buffers, noise and lighting. Members will also consider environmental impacts and compatibility with surrounding land uses. The meetings will be open to the public and are scheduled to be held every other Thursday at 3 p.m.
Georgia’s labor force and employment reached record highs in July, while the state’s unemployment rate fell to three-point-three percent, according to the Georgia Department of Labor. The labor force grew by nearly three-thousand people, while employment increased by more than seven-thousand-five-hundred. Georgia’s unemployment rate remains eight-tenths of a percentage point below the national rate. Health care and social assistance led job gains last month, adding sixteen-hundred positions, while construction added eleven-hundred. However, total jobs declined for the second straight month, falling by ninety-two-hundred. The largest losses came in local government and administrative services. Local unemployment figures are expected to be available next week.
The annual Labor Day Car and Motorcycle Show is coming to Walker County on Monday, September 7th. The event will be held at Saddle Ridge Elementary and Middle School on U.S. Highway 27 in Rock Spring. Registration will be open from 7:30 until 11:30 that morning. Cars, trucks and motorcycles of all kinds are welcome, along with swap meet vendors and other exhibitors. Proceeds will benefit the Al Millard Memorial Stocking Full of Love of Walker County. Participants and vendors can register online at WalkerCountyStockingFullofLove.com. For more information, contact Adrian Edgeworth at 706-670-1921.
Several Walker County restaurants and schools recently received perfect scores of 100 on their health inspections. Papa John’s Pizza on North Main Street in LaFayette received a 100, along with Chattanooga Valley Middle School and Chattanooga Valley Elementary School in Flintstone. Rossville Middle School and Ridgeland High School in Rossville also earned perfect scores, as did Fairyland Elementary School on Lula Lake Road in Lookout Mountain.