Criminal Defense Attorney in Pooler, GA.

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - Chelsea and Cory Henneman are dog people. They have always had their own dogs and have always taken care of friends’ dogs.

What they once did as a favor turned into a way of life when the couple started a Dog Adventure Camp where they spend all day running and playing with dozens of dogs in a job that is fun, fulfilling and soon could make them famous as the subjects of a TV series about them and their camp.

The intention was to change careers. Creating their perfect job was an accident.

”I was like, I’ll watch, I don’t know, four or five dogs and we’ll see how it goes,” said Chelsea Henneman.

That was two years and several dozen dogs ago for Chelsea and Cory Henneman, who operate a dog adventure camp at their home in Pooler every day - seeing every one of their 18 acres of trails and ponds and woods with as many as 50 dogs at a time.

”They run around and they have fun. everyone feeds off everyone’s energy.”

”They come out and they get muddy and swim and hike and kayak.”

”About a year into that process, she came to me and said ‘we need a dog bus. If you want to go get a dog bus, find one and start picking them up, we can make this work where I don’t have to work for somebody else.”

The dog bus quickly became the face of the Henneman’s business, increasing their camp’s capacity and changing their lives.

”As he drives by, it’s always a double take. Like, what just drove by? Those aren’t kids.”

Cory gets in the bus by 6:30 a.m. every morning and drives to Savannah where he picks up dogs who are waiting for him from River Street to Isle of Hope.

Back in Pooler, he and Chelsea, a former vet tech, spend all day at work playing with dogs before washing and blow drying each one and then dropping them off at home, which can take until after 9 at night.

They are long days and they love every minute of them.

”Oh, absolutely. Our whole goal was to one day start something that had to do with animals. We knew we were just too naturally good at being around dogs,” said Cory Henneman. ”You can wake up on a Monday and it’s rainy and gross out and they’re this. They’re splashing through the mud and having a blast. So, it puts you right back to a 10.”

”You know you’re in the right job if you’re enjoying the rainy days.”

A lot more people could soon be getting in on the secret they have figured out.

Candice Nelms, initially a dog adventure camp client, is now shooting a TV series about the Hennemans, their camp, and the real stars of the soon-to-be-shopped reality show “Running The Pack.’’

”We had an idea of the story, but when you get here and there’s dogs involved, the story unfolds in front of you and they’re the ones who tell you what the story is going to be,” said Candice Nelms.

So, the couple whose camp had a waiting list before it had an actual name - who don’t put their phone number on the side of their dog bus because they already get too many calls - could soon be even more popular than ever when the whole world can see how much fun they are having.

”That’s what we’re trying to capture. That’s exactly the magic that we’re trying to make tangible in the show, to show that and see that.”

”We’re still getting used to the idea.”

“Thinking about other people wanting to see what our day is like is still a little weird, but definitely exciting.”

”We have no clue about mics or cameras or any of the process of anything. We were just like we’ll just go for the journey and see where it goes.

Where it could go is to a lot of people envying the life the Hennemans have made for themselves and a lot of happy dogs.

“I don’t want to be cocky, but they wouldn’t be wrong. It’s a blast if you like outside and trails and doing everything outdoors and being surrounded by dirty and fun, it’s perfect. It’s perfect for us.”

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The City of Pooler is getting $8 million in federal funds that will go towards major infrastructure improvement projects at the top of the ever-growing suburban community's list.

Over the last decade, nearly 10,000 new residents flocked to Pooler. As the city continues to grow, so does the need to improve the city's roads, highways and water and sewer systems.

The $8 million infusion was passed in December by the U.S. Congress as a community funding request within the 2023 Omnibus Appropriations Bill. Rep. Buddy Carter (R-Pooler), who championed the request, said the funding marks an important win for Pooler.

"Pooler has been my home since 1980," said Carter, who previously served as the city's mayor for eight years, "We've had tremendous growth in that area and we're going to continue to have tremendous growth along that I-16 corridor. That's why these community funding request projects are so important."

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More:Pooler awards $49 million contract for wastewater treatment expansion project

Four different projects will receive a portion of the federal funds: improvements for Quacco Road, Pine Barren Road, South Rogers Street and the wastewater treatment plant, which is being expanded. Each project will receive about $2 million each, said Pooler Mayor Rebecca Benton.

"The city is most pleased to receive the $8 million," Benton wrote in an email, "particularly since the TSPLOST failed."

More:TSPLOST fails: Chatham voters reject new sales tax meant to fund transportation projects

More:If billion dollar sales tax is not renewed Chatham County would suffer 'colossal failure'

The Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax or TSPLOST was a referendum on the November 2022 ballot that lost narrowly by 1.3%. Had TSPLOST passed and increased the county's sales tax by 1%, the tariff would have generated approximately $500 million for infrastructure improvements throughout the county over a five-year period.

More coming to Pooler:Is the Savannah area finally getting a Topgolf? Well, kind of.

"These are good projects," said Carter, "Pooler is growing in leaps and bounds and is a city rich in heritage and tradition, but our greatest times lie ahead of us."

Road improvements include widening and pedestrian improvements such as sidewalks. The funds won't cover the total costs for all four projects but will accelerate preliminary engineering work and right-of-way acquisition.

Nancy Guan is the general assignment reporter covering Chatham County municipalities. Reach her at nguan@gannett.com or on Twitter @nancyguann.

April 3, 2023 - A joint venture of PCCP, LLC and NFI has acquired 95 Logistics at Pooler Parkway, consisting of two institutional-quality, fully leased, industrial distribution facilities totaling 565,000 square feet (sf), located at 1030 to 1240 S H Morgan Parkway in Pooler, GA. This infill location is within 12 miles of both the Garden City and Ocean terminals of the Port of Savannah and is next to the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport.

Built in 2019, the buildings are within an institutional park setting and feature 32’ clear heights. Building I totals 347,525-sf and is situated on 22 acres. The front-load building includes 54 dock doors, 108 car parking spaces, and 95 trailer parking spaces and is fully leased to the affiliated warehouse operating company of NFI. Building II totals 216,964 sf and is situated on 13 acres. The rear-load building features 50 dock doors, 187 car parking spaces, and 52 spaces for trailer parking and is occupied by Store Supply Warehouse and GCE International.

NFI is the largest privately held, third-party supply chain solutions provider in North America whose third-party logistics (3PL) business manages over 70 million sf of facilities nationwide. NFI’s affiliated real estate company also has a proven track record of success developing, acquiring, and operating more than 20 million sf of logistics real estate assets across the country. Building I was purpose-built for its 3PL business, and the company is continuing to occupy the space. NFI currently manages a total of over 3.5 million sf of 3PL business in the Savannah market.

“We believe this property provides PCCP with a fully occupied, high quality, cash-flowing asset in an expanding industrial market,” said Ryan Dodge, a Managing Director with PCCP. “Area growth has been driven by the Port of Savannah’s continued expansion which only appears to be ramping up further. The port is currently the fourth largest and fastest-growing container port by TEUs in the United States and this has led to Savannah being one of the nation’s tightest industrial markets even when accounting for the new construction that is underway.”

Due to employment challenges, shipping bottlenecks, and decreased reliance on Chinese production, many companies have opted to reduce their reliance on West Coast ports and instead spread their supply chains nationally, benefitting the Port of Savannah, which has grown by 31% over the past five years. In response, the Georgia Ports Authority continues to expand Savannah’s TEU capacity, adding 210,000 TEUs in 2021 alone, and ultimately planning to grow by an additional 3.5 million TEU by the end of 2025. Savannah is one of Georgia’s fastest growing cities regarding population and job growth due to its diverse economy centered around the Port and transportation, manufacturing, tourism, military, and healthcare sectors.

“We are thrilled to partner with PCCP on this acquisition to continue to expand our presence in the thriving Savannah industrial market,” said Michael Landsburg, Chief Development Officer for NFI. “The dynamic, efficient, and well-run Port of Savannah drives this market and we are pleased to be able to further our investment in this critical East Coast logistics hub.”

POOLER, Ga. (WSAV) — A half billion dollars is how much money the proposed penny sales tax would have provided to pay for what leaders say is much needed transportation improvements in Chatham County.

However, the failure of the Transportation Special Local Options Sales Tax (TSPLOST) referendum last week means that many of those projects won’t happen anytime soon.

Twenty-four million dollars of that money was slated for a major road widening project in the Pooler area. The aim was to ease traffic congestion on Benton Boulevard.

The TSPLOST referendum was narrowly rejected by voters, failing to pass by a little more than 1,380 votes. Thursday, many of the Chatham County residents WSAV spoke with said they were in support of the transportation tax and still want to see these issues addressed.

“They’re building up a lot and not expanding the roads,” Demeia said.

Benton Boulevard is a major road that runs through one of Pooler’s busiest shopping districts. Thousands of people travel it every day but right now many tell me they wish they could avoid it.

“The traffic is beastly. Everyday we go through it,” Vincent Best said.

“A three-minute, five-minute commute, it takes about 20 minutes to get home from here, from Walmart,” Demeia said.

But a possible solution to ease traffic has fallen through, after TSPLOST failed to pass in the midterm elections. Leaving many residents and supporters frustrated that some road expansion projects may not happen now.

“I was very disappointed, very disappointed,” Best said.

Best has lived in the Pooler area for eleven years and he voted in favor of the sales tax this November.

“It’s horrific, for people that live in the area, it takes forever to make a left turn on there, they need to widen it or do something,” Best said.

Had TSPLOST passed, Savannah would have received just over $24 million to pay for the widening of Benton Boulevard. This week Mayor Van Johnson talked about the failed referendum.

“TSPLOST, did not pass in the county although it passed in the city,” Johnson said. “They understood what we were trying to do for the Highlands, that the $24.5 million is our tier one project going to expand Benton Boulevard.”

The Highlands neighborhood isn’t the only area being impacted. Johnson said finding funding for improvement projects in Savannah will be difficult without TSPLOST.

“We are now tasked at trying to figure out a way to do these projects,” Johnson said. “It’s going to be difficult and it’s going to be expensive and the city is going to have limited means to secure those funds.”

WSAV spoke with Pooler Mayor Rebecca Benton. She said she’s disappointed that the referendum failed, adding that the city is going to continue to look for solutions to this issue. but without this funding, road widening projects like this one may not be possible.

POOLER, Ga. (WSAV) – Last Thursday, Audrey Jacobs, a 19-year-old Georgia Southern University student, visited a Costco Wholesale for the first time.

But it didn’t turn out quite like she expected.

“I had never been before and it was on my bucket list. I don’t know why, it was just something I always just kind of wanted to do because I thought it was cool.”

Costco Wholesale is a members-only warehouse that sells a huge variety of items, including bulk groceries, electronics and more. Needless to say, when Jacobs entered the store, she was amazed.

“I was so impressed, you know, I hadn’t seen a store that big.” she said.

There was also something else she had her eyes on — the Costco hotdog at the food court.

“I went with one of my friends, she’s got a membership, so I was just kind of looking around. It was so funny because the whole time all I could talk about was getting one of those hotdogs.”

After buying a hotdog and a drink, Jacobs and her friend sat down inside of the store’s food court to eat.

“Literally, my first bite, my friend had warned me that it was hot, and I did not listen,” said Jacobs. “I took a bite, and I couldn’t breathe and at first, I was like, ‘I’m not choking,’ and then I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I can’t breathe.'”

“That’s when I kind of started freaking out from there and I was trying to get her attention.”

Jacob’s’ friend attempted to perform abdominal thrusts on her but was unsuccessful.

“So, I was running to the other tables because I’ve also seen that if you throw yourself over a chair, it can unlodge it,” Jacobs explained. “But they don’t have chairs there, it’s only the picnic table things.”

She panicked, realizing nobody else was coming to help.

“I started to get a little dizzy and stuff,” she said, “I literally had that moment that went through my head like, ‘This is it. This is how I’m ending.'”

However, out of nowhere, a kind stranger stepped in, and Jacob’s rescue came in just in the nick of time.

“That’s when Taylor came, right before I was about to hit the floor, and gave me the Heimlich. I was really thankful because nobody else, it was like nobody else knew what to do and nobody was moving. I think that was what scared me the most too.”

Jacobs said it took a couple of tries for the hot dog to dislodge, but it finally worked. Taylor, a Costco Wholesale employee, had saved her life.

“Afterwards, I didn’t really process what happened. I turned around, I leaned over, and I was like, ‘I told you it was a big hotdog,'” she said, “and then I sat back down and I just sat there, and I was like crying.”

After saving her life, Taylor continued to leave an impact on Jacobs.

“What really impressed me, too, was he asked if I was OK, and then he just went straight back to work.” Jacobs recalled. “I am thankful for sure, you know, especially that he reacted so quick. And like I said, I’m very impressed that he didn’t stand around and wait for recognition either. He literally saved my life and then started working again.”

On abdominal thrusts, Jacobs said she thinks it’s something that everyone has learned at least once.

“So that’s why it kind of took me off guard when no one was really reacting, and I guess it’s just that fight or flight reaction too.” she said.

“I think it wasn’t that people didn’t know how to do the Heimlich, people were like ‘Oh my gosh, what do we do.’” Jacobs added.

According to Inquiry Facts, choking is the fourth leading cause of unintentional injury death.

Choking is when someone is having a very hard time breathing because food, a toy, or other object is blocking the throat or windpipe (airway).

The American Academy of CPR and First Aid, Inc says first aid procedures like abdominal thrusts can help save a life within seconds when someone is choking.

Organizations such as the American Red Cross of Georgia provides instruction to those looking to learn first aid or take a refresher course.

“For the last calendar year, in Chatham County alone, we provided ‘First Aid, CPR, and AED’ instruction to 2,687 people.” stated Evan Peterson, I Regional Communication Manager at the American Red Cross of Georgia.

Peterson said the best way to get involved and learn this life-saving skill, is by clicking here.

For Life Medical Education Service, Inc. is another organization that offers first aid classes.

Paramedic Carl Gregory, who is a Director of Education at For Life Medical Education Service, Inc., said, “Last year alone, we taught almost 7,000 people CPR, to include the Heimlich maneuver and various other lifesaving techniques.”

Gregory continued, “You don’t have to have anything. We do everything from community CPR, where we actually go out to like Daffin Park and we will teach groups of people at a time at no cost,” Gregory said. “We do fundraisers and things of that nature to support those initiatives. We also do certification classes that starts anywhere from $70 on up.”