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IMMEDIATE OPENINGS
on Dedicated 911 Ambulance Shifts
• UPSON COUNTY •
Paramedics $18.00/hour ($61,000 annually)
AEMTs $16.00/hour ($54,000 annually)
EMTs $14.00/hour ($47,000 annually)
Apply at ourcommunityambulance.org
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Vol. 14, No. 4
Thursday, January 28, 2021
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eacon
108 East Gordon Street, Thomaston, Ga. 30286 706-646-2382
Daniel Wanted in Connection to Gates’ Murder
The Thomaston Police
Department is requesting in
formation on the where
abouts of Jakari “Byrd”
Daniel, who is wanted in
connection with the Dec. 1,
2020 shooting death of Mi
chael Gates, according to
TPD Chief Mike Richardson.
Daniel’s last known ad
dress is 506 West Gordon
Street in Thomaston. The
26-year-old black male is be
tween 5’8” and 5’g” tall and
weighs approximately 160
pounds, and has facial tat
toos including a cross in the
middle of his forehead. He
should be considered armed
and dangerous, Richardson
warns.
During the Dec. 1 home
invasion at Wellington Place
Apartments, two men en
tered a residence to commit
a robbery, at which time the
suspects shot and killed the
victim, Gates, according to
TPD investigators.
Anyone with information
on Daniel (case number 20-
12-00056) is strongly urged
to immediately contact the
TPD Criminal Investigations
Division at 706-647-5455.
£ i
Jakari Daniel
Above, a display monitor shows crew members preparing
for a music video scene. Photo by Luke Haney.
Film Productions Begin
in Upson County
By Luke Haney
Lifestyles Editor
Dwight Dyer, a location man
ager and scout from Atlanta, has
begun using locations in Thom
aston and Upson County for up
coming productions including a
music video, student film, and a
Bitcoin commercial.
“Upson County is fantastic,
and I have to give a big shout out
to Lori Smith at the Chamber of
Commerce,” said Dyer. “With
lots of productions shut down ac
ross the country, companies are
looking for COVID-friendly, vi
able locations. I was able to bring
18 productions to Lamar County
last year and I was looking for a
theatre, so Kathy Oxford in
Lamar put me in contact with
Lori.”
Dyer serves as a liaison for
production companies and works
with anything from mainstream
to independent films, and
searches for locations between
60 and 75 miles outside of At
lanta.
Dyer says he has also met
with local government officials
who shared local history with
him. “I saw so many amazing lo-
Film Productions, 5A
‘Top Ten’ Taxpayers Reported
Upson County Tax Commis
sioner Andy Chastain has announced
the top 10 taxpayers in both Upson
County and the City of Thomaston
for the 2020 tax year.
Upson County:
•Southern Natural Gas
($22,612,128 assessment; $316,690
bill amount; 3.86 percent of total
levy for county)
•Quad Graphics ($17,309,793;
$236,179; 2.88 percent)
•West Georgia Generating
($25,512,209; $219,405; 2.67 per
cent)
•Solo Cup ($16,877,451;
$214,029; 2.61 percent)
•Georgia Power ($14,429,756;
$182,893; 2.23 percent)
•Southern Mills ($15,327,435;
$96,632; 1.18 percent)
•Interfor ($6,835,481; $86,625;
1.06 percent)
•Walmart ($5,582,317; $49,5155
0.60 percent)
•Upson EMC ($3,179,988;
$43,336; 0.53 percent)
•Home Depot ($4,046,545;
Top 10 Taxpayers, jA
Joint Planning Commission
Denies Equestrian Facility
By Bridge Turner
Managing Editor
Editor’s note: The Upson
Beacon received notification
from the city manager’s office
Monday afternoon that City of
Refuge had withdrawn its re
zoning application.
Members of the Thomaston-
Upson Planning Commission
voted 5-1 last week to rec
ommend denial of a rezoning
request which would allow the
development of an equestrian
recreational facility on 89 acres
located in the Goodrich Avenue
area.
The commission received
multiple phone calls opposing
the development, including
Cooter Waller and Donna and
John Auth, all residents of the
R Street community. Concerns
included the possibility of at
tracting “an undesirable ele
ment of people,” odor and
adverse effect on neighboring
Planning Comm., jA
City to Break Ground on New FD Next Week
Groundbreaking should
take place next week for the
new $2.38 million Thomaston
Fire Department, according to
City Manager Russell Thomp
son.
Thompson told council
members last week that he held
a pre-construction meeting
with contractor McWright,
LLC, who estimated completion
of the project will take approx
imately 290 days. The facility
will be located on North Church
Street, between West Central
Georgia Bank and Tidal Wave
Auto Spa.
After months of planning,
council voted unanimously dur
ing its first meeting of 2021 to
authorize Mayor J.D. Stallings
Rendering of the southeast view of the
proposed new fire department.
to execute contracts moving
forward with the project.
Council also unanimously
accepted the low bid of
$174,420 from Helix Group
construction company of Fair-
burn for headwall improve
ments for drainage at Davis
Street and West Walker Street.
The project will be funded by
proceeds from sales tax, accord
ing to Thompson.
In other business, council
approved $75,000 for the pur-
New TFD, 5A
8 10499
02461 2
Upson County COVID-19 Update
Upson Reports 7 New Deaths in 7 Days
Upson County reports
2,920 positive COVID-19 cases
with 95 deaths as of noon last
Tuesday, according to the
Johns Hopkins University &
Medicine Coronavirus Re
source Center.
Numbers reflect 124 new
cases (down from 184 last
week) and seven new deaths
(up from four) since Tuesday
one week prior. During that
time, Upson’s per capita infec
tion rate increased from 106.6
cases per 1,000 residents to
111.3 cases per 1,000 residents,
slightly more than 1.1 in 10.
A consensus of online
sources report Georgia with
842,798 (up 46,491 for the
week) positive cases and
12,838 (up 871 for the
week) deaths as of noon last
Tuesday.
Johns Hopkins lists the fol
lowing confirmed cases for
counties bordering Upson:
COVID-19, 5A
(0 Griffin Ob-Gyn
NOW SEEING PATIENTS IN THOMASTON
CALL TO MAKE AN
APPOINTMENT TODAY:
403 WEST MAIN STREET
TUESDAY-THURSDAY 8:30-4:30
(770)227.5505
(706)646.2888
Leigh Ann Story, CNM; Bryan Krepps. HO; Jim Dunaway, MD; Lou Hameli, MO; Holly Harrison, PA-C;
Nadine Nolting, CNH; Enid Lofters-Jones, MD; Hegan Potter. HD; Katya Brickman. CNM; Ashley Johnson, PA