A group of local business representatives, administrators and members of the public spent their Tuesday touring the city learning more of how the community works behind the scenes each day.

Leadership Baldwin was created out of the Milledgeville-Baldwin County Chamber of Commerce in 1981 “as a way to cultivate the talents and knowledge of civic-minded citizens who aspire to participate in shaping the future of their community.”

Nearly 30 years later, the organization is sponsored by the Leadership Baldwin Alumni program and provides those within the group valuable training and learning experiences that may be used to help make the local community a better and brighter place.

Tuesday the group toured the Georgia Power Plant Branch facility, made a visit to Sinclair Dam and finally ended their day at Milledgeville City Hall, where the group listened to Milledgeville Mayor Richard Bentley and Milledgeville MainStreet/Downtown Development Authority Director Belinda Washlesky speak on subjects such as the downtown Milledgeville area and how the city is working closely with state entities such as the Georgia Department of Transportation to ensure a safe and productive city for 2010.

“We are still waiting on the DOT to give us the go-ahead on the Streetscape project,” Bentley said.

Participants for the 2009 Leadership Baldwin class include Trey Spivey, Annie Mae Christopher, Bill Kennedy, Bruno Jones, Jerry Bradley, J.T. Wall, LaTonya Sallad, LeeAnn Redd, Libby Baum, Linda Bailey, Mike Augustine, Pamela Grant, Terry Calhoun, Travis Strickland and Wendy Sellers.

“We visited the Georgia Power plant and Sinclair Dam,” Bailey said of Tuesday’s tour. “It [Leadership Baldwin] is an absolutely great program, and it is wonderful that we have had this program so people like myself can visit these places and see what is available for Milledgeville.”

“Those selected for Leadership Baldwin are given an opportunity to gain a greater understanding of how their county and state operates through a range of activities highlighting a variety of components of local and state government and institutions,” a proclamation passed in the Georgia Senate and introduced by state Sen. Johnny Grant states in part.

When contacted by phone Friday, Washlesky said her role in speaking to the Leadership Baldwin group had been brief, but also informative.

“I was pretty much talking about how MainStreet/DDA had come under the arm of the city and how a lot of MainStreet communities around the state are set up that way, and what projects we had been working on lately,” Washlesky said. “I also spoke to them about the four-point approach, which MainStreet programs take when established in a local community.”

The Leadership Baldwin Alumni program also provides a Youth Leadership Baldwin course for local youth.

That program celebrated its 10th anniversary this year and has included students from Baldwin High School, Georgia Military College, E.B.L.A. Academy and John Milledge Academy.

Grant also sponsored a resolution to recognize the Youth Leadership Baldwin class and program in front of the State Senate in January 2009.

“It’s seniors that have been selected from E.B.L.A., Baldwin High School, Georgia Military College and John Milledge Academy to learn more about the community so hopefully one day when they go off to college, they’ll come back and be leaders in our own community,” YLB Coordinator Terry Kennedy said.

When Bentley addressed the group inside the council chambers of Milledgeville City Hall, he left little back in reminding them of the reality faced by local representatives each day.

“The decisions we make affect everyone directly. Every decision we make affects the community,” Bentley said referring to the Milledgeville City Council. “Things can change in as little as 10 minutes in Milledgeville. Being better organized and less political, it lets the community feel that they can approach the city a little bit better.”