GNB Update

Here's what going on mid-week in Georgia...

A Macon private school is set to take on a project worth $5 million.

Mount de Sales Academy has started a campaign to build a brand-new middle school. It's expected to open by the end of 2010. The Macon-Bibb County Planning and Zoning Commission recently the Catholic college prepatory school the OK to get the eventual new addition to the school built. Mount de Sales currently has more than 700 middle and high school students enrolled.

The $787 billion stimulus package passed by Congress last week finally has President Barack Obama's signature on it. Now multiple cities and counties throughout central Georgia hope to use that money wisely. Among the projects that could get funding include the demolition of blighted housing in Macon for $6 million, street resurfacing in Bibb County for $10 million, a hotel and conference center in Warner Robins for $32 million, and water and sewer upgrades in that same city for $69.7 million. Federal agencies will soon decide who will get those grants. That's according to recovery.gov.

Homeowners were another beneficiary of the recently signed stimulus package. Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue announced a deal that fund a homestead extension for this year. That prevents a statewide round of re-billings. The new bill hinges on hundreds of millions of dollars in new funding from the federal government. That money would include funding the state's Medicaid program. But it would also lead to cuts from state agencies. The deal all but assures that the Georgia won't fund the property tax breaks in the years to come.

Finally, check out the newest addition to GNB, our "Photo Extra". This week, we have an inside look at a University of Georgia professor's recent visit to Puerto Rico. There, he examined the link between unexploded munitions, and cancer-causing toxins. Just simply find the entry titled "GNB PHOTO EXTRA--Link between oceans and toxins".

That's the news for Wednesday. But visit GNB all day, all night for the freshest Georgia news. Enjoy your evening.