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LEGAL ORGAN FOR HOUSTON COUNTY,
city of Perry, city of Warner Robins and city of Centerville
VOLUME 136, NUMBER 242
BELOW THE FOLD: $1 million fire department grant hinges on unincorporated service ■ Perry goes against county, approves rezoning
Thursday
December 21, 2006
The Home Journal’s
FRONT
PORCH
IN BRIEF
Perry Longhorn
opening February
The new Longhorn Steakhouse
on Hampton Court in Perry will
open Feb. 5, 2007, according to
restaurant manager Jason Shawn
Bivins, who attended the Perry
City Council meeting Tuesday.
Bivins was there for the vote on
the restaurant’s application for a
beer, wine and mixed drink alco
hol license.
This will be the second
Longhorn in Houston County, the
other being on Watson Blvd. in
Warner Robins. Bivins is also the
manager of that restaurant.
- Charlotte Perkins
Georgia DOT to scale
back over holidays
The Georgia Department of
Transportation, according to a
release, will scale back its con
struction projects across the state
- suspending related lane clo
sures on all interstate and major
state system highways - through
Monday to ease Christmas holi
day traffic congestion.
Beginning at noon Friday, and
continuing until 5 a.m., Tuesday
there essentially will be no sched
uled lane closures on any Georgia
interstate highway or primary state
route. (Similar work restrictions
will be in place next weekend for
the New Year's Day holiday.)
The Department noted that
some work may continue on less
er-traveled state and local system
roads and that incident- or emer
gency maintenance-related lane
closures could become necessary
on any route.
Georgia DOT encourages the
public to access NaviGAtor ser
vices at its website (www.geor
gia-navigator.com) for detailed
construction and traffic incident
information.
The public may also call the
Department's traffic and construc
tion hotline toll free, 24 hours,
seven days a week, at 404-635-
6800.
BIRTHDAYS
Today
■ Robert Minter
■ Bobby Tuggle
E-mail your birthdays to:
hhj@evansnewspapers. com
or donm@evansnewspapers.
com or send them to: 1210
Washington St.. Perry 31069
attn: Don Moncrief. You can
also call him at 987-1823,
Ext. 231.
DEARLY DEPARTED
■ Harris “Rooster" Harmon, 83
PERIODICAL 500
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December 21, 2006
Serving Mmston Cocnty Since 1870
Perry Police to add gang investigator
By CHARLOTTE PERKINS
Journal Staff Writer
Speaking to the Perry City Council
on Tuesday night, Public Safety
Director George Potter made the
case for having a full time gang
investigator on the police force. The
city council subsequently voted to
approve the position.
During the work session prior to
the regular meeting. Potter, who once
headed the gang investigation effort
for the police force in Columbus,
lit , ' I- -'t . .
V'/V'” 4
Danny Evans President Evans Newspapers. Inc.
This building at 110 Kellwood St was set ablaze Tuesday, suspectedly when roofers left hot torches on top of the facility.
Kellwood plant set ablaze
By RAYLIGHTNER
Journal Staff Writer
Roofer’s torches may have
started a Tuesday night fire
at the old Kellwood plant in
Perry.
Perry Deputy Fire Chief
Joel Gray said the build
ing at 110 Kellwood St. in
Perry, was undergoing reno
1L - ’’lp?? §•■■■ ’ ■ *
Grant hinges on unincorporated fire service
By RAY LIGHTNER
Journal Staff Writer
Warner Robins is still pondering the
acceptance of the $1 million grant for
the fire department.
“The grant hinges on if we do fire
service in the unincorporated areas of
the county,” explained Mayor Donald
Walker.
The intergovernmental policy
group, Vision 2020 has commissioned
a report from the Middle Georgia
Regional Development Center in
Macon to study the matter and deter
www.hhjnews.com
gave the mayor and council a short
course on gangs, using a Powerpoint
presentation.
He explained that under Georgia
law, a gang is defined as any organi
zation, association or group of three
or more persons engaged in crimi
nal gang activity, which includes
crimes of violence, graffiti, sexual
and stalking offenses and crimes
involving weapons.
He noted that gangs are organized
with specific leaders, that they iden
vation. “They were putting
a new roof down and using
torches to seal the seams,”
Gray said.
“The workers left about
5:20 to 5:25 p.m. and we got
the call about 5:30 p.m.,”
Gray said. “It was pretty
well involved when we got
there.”
mine the estimated costs to the cities
and taxpayers in the unincorporated
areas for increased fire service. “The
RDC should have that study done by
January,” Walker said.
The question the city has had to
deal with is how the city will be paid
for increased expenses involved with
additional fire protection. The city
can cover some areas now with the
exiting coverage - and does if the
county fire department asks.
Another issue is if the residents of
the unincorporated areas are willing
tify with specific areas or territories
and that they are engaged in crimi
nal activity, and also recruit new
members who are in need of social
acceptance and lack positive role
models.
He noted that in some gangs a
requirement of membership is to
commit a felony, and that there have
been several instances of cars being
stolen in Perry by those seeking
acceptance in Macon gangs.
Potter was joined in his presenta
Gray said Perry responded
with an engine and a lad
der truck. An engine from
the Warner Robins Fire
Department also responded.
“We have an automatic
aid with Warner Robins,”
Gray said. “They send an
engine for any structure fire
See FIRE, 6A
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to pay more for increased fire protec
tion and if that increased amount
is offset by a reduction in their fire
insurance premiums.
Residents in the unincorporated
areas pay an extra 1.7 mills for fire
service. The county, Warner Robins
Fire Chief Robert Singletary noted,
cannot afford for citizens north of Ga.
96 to stop paying and still provide fire
service.
The increased city costs include
personnel as well as equipment for
See GRANT, page 6A
"They were putting a new roof down
and using torches to seal the seams...
It was pretty well involved when we got
there."
- Perry Deputy Fire Chief Joel Gray
_ - \
an Evans Family Newspari y ;
Two sections • 20 pages
tion by Perry Middle School Principal
Thomas Moore, who described an
incident at the middle school where
students were apparently imitat
ing gang behavior with a “beating
in”, an initiation that, in this case,
involved hitting a fellow student six
times in the chest. The incident was
completely investigated, and the stu
dents involved were sent to the sys
tem’s alternative school, Moore said,
noting that Perry Middle School is
See GANG, page 6A
Perry goes against
county on rezoning
By CHARLOTTE
PERKINS
Journal Staff Writer
The City of Perry and the
Houston County Commisson
are at odds over the future of
a large parcel of mid-coun
ty land, and the appoint
ment of a mediator will be
the next step in resolving
See REZONING, page 6A
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