“Official Power Source” Works With Community To Secure Team

Georgia Power Co.’s Lake Juliette has been selected by the U.S. Rowing Association as its summer training site leading up to the 1996 Olympic Games. The U.S. Rowing Association will bring 32 men’s team members and coaches to Forsyth, Ga. to train.

Georgia Power, the “Official Power Source” of the 1996 Olympic Games, owns and operates Lake Juliette. The site was selected after a partnership was forged between Georgia Power and Monroe County officials who were determined to bring a rowing team to the area and the lake.

“This was a ‘partnership’ in the truest sense of the word” said Dick Pollock, plant manager for Georgia Power’s Plant Scherer. “The Forsyth-Monroe County Chamber of Commerce deserves all of the credit for helping to bring the Olympic experience closer to home for us in Forsyth.”

Pollock said the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) conducted preliminary site tours for the rowers and answered questions about protected areas, endangered species, and waterfowl management areas. DNR manages Lake Juliette and the surrounding uplands known as The Rum Creek Wildlife Management Area.

Lake Juliette covers 3,600 acres, has 62 miles of shoreline and is about 85 feet deep near the dam. The earthen dam, 2,000 feet long and 100 feet high, was built across Rum Creek in 1980 to provide a dependable reservoir for Plant Scherer, a coal-fired electric-generating facility.

Because it primarily serves Plant Scherer, there are no private cabins, docks, marinas, beaches or other commercial uses of Lake Juliette.

Fishing and sailing is permitted on the lake, but water-skiing, jet-skiing and boat motors larger than 25 horsepower are prohibited. The size of the lake, its restrictions and its proximity to Atlanta make it an ideal selection for the rowers.

Temporary docks and boat storage facilities will be built to accommodate the men’s rowing team. In addition, four 2,000-meter lanes (1.25 miles) will be set in the lake in a location that will not interfere with fishing traffic or sailing. The course will require nine miles of cable and approximately 1,000 buoys.

The U.S. Rowing Team is expected to arrive July 7 and continue its workouts on Lake Juliette until the start of the Games.