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Rebs whup Brookstone - Sports
™ Wiregrass Farmer
Serving Turner County Since 1902
Accident
kills one
by Ben Baker
Editor
An man died at Tift Regional Hospital
on Monday morning from injuries
received in an accident at the Golden
Peanut Plant in central Ashbum.
Keith Branch, 24, no address given,
died shortly after arriving at the hospital,
said County Coroner Edgar Perry.
“He was helping move some rail cars
and was pinned between a tractor and a
rail car,” Mr. Perry said.
The Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA) will be investi
gating the accident.
Body found
The badly decomposed body of a man
was found Monday in a Crisp County cot
ton field.
The body is thought to be Nathan
Holley, 34, of Ashburn. No identification
was found on the body. It has been sent to
the Crime Lab for examination.
Mr. Holley is a suspect in the Oct. 6
murder of Tommy Wayne Giles.
Tax bills not proving a taxing matter, yet
Bumper crop
EUNICE GRAVITT’S orange tree bore 115 oranges this year. The 40-year old tree had previously pro
duced one or two oranges in years past.
Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2008
ASHBURN, GA, 31714
VOL 106 - No. 48 • 500
/Around Town \
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Call 567-3655 for
information.
Pix with Santa
Treasure's Galore, Yard
Sale, Turner County
Elementary School Gym
Saturday, Dec. 6, 8am-12
pm. Pictures with Santa.
Game Tickets
The ticket prices at the
game Friday night will be
$10. All ticket prices for
State playoff games are set
by the GHSA and the
school system has no con
trol over them. Also, we
greatly appreciate our
boosters and all the sup
porters of Turner County
Athletics, but due to GHSA
rules only GHSA passes
can be accepted. Athletic
Booster passes cannot be
honored. Thank you every
one for your support on our
great year
Family holiday
traditions
by Ben Baker
Editor
Reaction to this year’s tax
bills, at least at government
offices here, has been mild so
far.
Taxes across the county
went up, some times doubled
or more from last year’s bills,
after the real property was re
evaluated here. The re-eval was
the first in several years and
was ordered by the state.
Tax Commissioner Shirley
Brock said she’s been pleasant
ly surprised, so far, with tax
payer reaction.
“I had some disappointed. It
hasn’t been too bad. Not what I
thought it might be,” she said.
“People are always pretty nice.
They don’t give me too hard of
a time.”
Which is not to say those
who’ve come by her office are
pleased.
“They are not happy with it
because taxes have gone up,”
she said.
At Ashburn City Hall,
there’s been no reaction worth
noting, said City Clerk Sheree
Hickman. Two people did
come in with questions, which
City Hall staff explained, she
said.
Sycamore’s tax bills are not
yet out. City Clerk Janice
Brown said a communications
error between City Hall and the
County offices delayed the
notices.
“I hope mine will go out
this week,” she said.
Rebecca rolled their millage
back to accept just new growth.
Tax bills for Rebecca should
not show the same kind of
jump seen elsewhere.
The tax season is also not
over, Mrs. Brock noted.
“I don’t know what the next
few weeks will bring when
they start actually paying,” she
said.
Sponsored by Turner
County Schools Parent
Involvement Council.
Presented by Connie Brown
and Javier Gonzalez
Tuesday, Dec. 9 at 5:45
pm. Turner County Pr-
K/Special Services
Cafeteria. Cookies and
punch will be provided.
Fruit sale
Again this year Turner
County 4-H is sponsoring a
Holiday Fruit Sale to raise
money for the County pro
gram. Orders are being
taken and will be delivered
in December. The fruit will
be sold in whole boxes (4/5
bushel) or half boxes (2/5
bushel). The fruit selection
consists of Navel Oranges,
Juice Oranges, Tangelos &
Red Grapefruit. Whole box
$25, half boxes $15. To
place your order, call
(229)567-3448.
Christmas
Parade
Saturday, Dec. 13, 6 pm
Parade, line up at 5 at Civic
Center Christmas Open
House to follow downtown
with merchants Theme -
Home for the Holidays.
Check on students
by going online
Every Thursday from
noon-1 p.m., parents are
invited to the High School
to meet with Mr. Augusta
and learn how to go on-line
to access their childs’
grades and attendance.
Please call ahead to make
an appt. with Mrs. Williford
at 567-4377.
Obituaries
Deborah Jean Sumner, 52,
Leesburg
Complete obituary
^information is on Page 5
Cafs eye view
A pair of bicyclers recently stopped in downtown Ashburn and their
cat had a good look around. The couple left Tennesse and are on their
way to Florida.
Pond cleanup under way
by Ben Baker
Editor
City crews are working by hand
cleaning the area around a retention
pond in west Ashbum.
It’s not the first time crews have
gone in there, said City Manager Ben
Taylor.
“We’re cutting
some trees and cleaning
up right now. It’s really
wet. That limits what
we can do. We are
doing as much as we
can,” he said. “All the
work is hand work. We
can’t get any big equip
ment down there.”
The pond is off
Jefferson and Son Story
Road behind the ceme
tery also in that neighborhood.
City crews ran into the same prob
lem last time they went to work on the
retention pond. It is in a low-lying area,
which means it gets boggy. The City’s
heavy equipment would get stuck if
they tried to move it down there.
The City has worked on the area
before, but City Councilman James
Burks said earlier this month more was
needed.
“Without both righteousness and
justice, we have an immoral society,”
he said in his opening remarks, “it’s
nothing but a haven for snakes, rodents
and mosquitos.... By Monday are we
going to have some activity over there?
We’ve not had any activity since
September. I’m asking
for some activity to be
done by Monday.”
Following the meet
ing, Mr. Burks, the City
Manager, Mayor Jim
Hedges and City crews
met at the pond to dis
cuss what could be
done.
During the Council
meeting, Mr. Burks
insisted little work had
been done there.
“They have gone as far as they can
go. Its so boggy down there,” Mr.
Taylor said during the meeting.
Mr. Burks noted the City has anoth
er retention pond on the east side,
which also had problems with boggy
soils.
That pond, not far from the old City
(See POND Page 2)
County Commission expected to vote on meeting agenda policy next week
by Ben Baker
Editor
County Commission
Chairman Daryl Hall still
wants an agenda policy for
County meetings.
Earlier this
year, the chair
man said he
wanted some
thing in writ
ing about who
can be on the
agenda and
when they
have to peti
tion to be on
the agenda.
The chair
man said he did not have the
full support of the board when
setting the agenda and allowing
members of the public to come
speak.
At the November meeting,
County Attorney John Holland
presented a draft ordinance out
lining agenda procedures. The
Commissioners took the draft
with them to study it. They are
expected to vote on it at the
Dec. 2 meeting.
The first question Chairman
Hall brought up was an item
that allowed a majority of the
Commissioners plus 1 to sus
pend the rules of order.
Mr. Holland said that came
straight from an agenda ordi
nance proposal from the
Association of County
Commissions of Georgia.
“I talked with the ACCG,
They said on something like
suspending the rules, you want
more than just a majority,” he
said. He also said the
Commissioners could change
that or any part of the draft
ordinance they wanted to.
“Except for things like open
meeting laws you have to com
ply with, you
can change it,”
he said. “This
is how to con
duct a meet
ing.”
A major
item of the
proposed poli
cy is public
participation
in the meeting.
In recent
years, the Commission has a
public comment item on the
agenda. No one is required to
sign up ahead of time to speak
during this part of the meeting.
Most of the time, no one
speaks.
“That’s in here also,” Mr.
Holland said of public com
ment at the Commission meet
ings. “It’s really not changing
anything, just setting forth the
way we do things. It doesn’t
change anything substantive ...
as far as basic voting and
things you can’t change.”
Chairman Hall said the
Commissioners needed to take
the policy home and study it.
He suggested some minor
changes are needed.
ROWDY FOLKS
One item allows the chair
man to remove anyone from
the meeting if they are being
disruptive.
Mr. Hudgins asked who
was going to do the removing.
“The law is never here,” he
said.
“You can call them,” the
chairman said.
Mr.
Burgess and
County
Manager
Charles
Kinney said
the
Commission
meetings do
need someone
in law
enforcement
present for the
meetings.
(See AGENDA Page 2)
Hall
Holland
WO}
UM
Kinney
People try to live within their income so they can afford to pay taxes to a government that can't live within its income.
Robert Half
