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THE TRUTH SINCE 1886
FAYETTE COUNTY (1) NEWS
f ay ett e-news, net
Vol. 152, No. 14 Wednesday, April 3, 2024 $1.
Fayetteville PD Searching for Suspect
of Fatal Good Friday Walmart Shooting
Fayetteville police are
searching for Adrian Jelks,
19, who is wanted for mur
der and aggravated assault
in connection with the April
29 shooting inside Fay
etteville Walmart that took
the life of an adult male and
injured a nine-year-old fe
male.
Fayetteville Police De
partment stated the shoot
ing took place around to
p.m. on Good Friday at the
Walmart inside Fayette Pa
vilion shopping center. Ap
proximately one minute
later, the suspect fled the
scene in a vehicle.
On Saturday morning,
officials announced that 19-
year-old Sandra Romero-
Nunez of Fayetteville was
transported to Fayette
County Jail, pending related
warrants for party to a
crime, offenses of murder
and aggravated assault.
Victims were trans
ported to area hospitals.
While the juvenile female,
hit by a stray bullet, was re
ported to be in stable con
dition, the adult male
succumbed to injuries Sat
urday morning, according
to Fayetteville officials.
Officials are actively in
vestigating the incident,
which they say was not an
active-shooter situation, nor
believed to be random.
Anyone with information
concerning the incident or
Jelks’ whereabouts are
asked to contact FPD at
770-461-4357.
Fayetteville PD is searching for Adrian Jelks, 19, in connection
with the April 29 Fayetteville Walmart shooting. FVPD
General
Primary
Election
May 21
Early voting begins April
29 for the May 21 general pri
mary election, according to
Fayette County Elections offi
cials.
Early in-person voting will
be held Monday-Saturday,
from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, be
tween April 29 and May 17.
Early voting locations in
clude Fayette County Election
Office, 175 Johnson Avenue in
Fayetteville (drop box loca
tion); Fayette County Public
Library, 1821 Heritage Park
way in Fayetteville; Peachtree
City Public Library, 201 Willow
Bend Road in Peachtree City;
and Tyrone Recreation Office,
945 Senoia Road in Tyrone.
On May 21, all county vot
ing precincts will be open from
7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
For more information, in
cluding a list of all voting pre
cinct locations, Visit
fayettecountyga.gov/elections.
Dylan Shoemaker
Staff Writer
dshoemaker@fayette-news.net
On March 30, Tyrone
Recreation Department held
an Easter egg hunt at Sham
rock Park bringing the com
munity out for holiday
festivities.
Parks and Recreation Di
rector Lynda Owens, along
with other volunteers, laid
out a field of prize-filled eggs
for the children to hunt.
There were egg hunting
sections separated by age
group allowing participants
a fair chance in the candy
collection.
“It’s tradition, I mean,
we all grew up hunting eggs,
and we want that for our
children too,” said Owens.
“It’s just a fun family thing.”
From face painting sta
tions and a bouncy house to
an appearance from the
Easter bunny, attendees had
plenty of options to stay
busy and have fun.
This was the first egg
hunt in four years, and town
officials say they aim to con
tinue the event annually.
For more information on
future events, visit
https: //www.tyronerecrea-
tion.org.
Commission Approves Rezonlng
Request for Residential Subdivision, 3-2
Opposing Residents Cite Traffic, Safety Concerns
Luke Haney
Editor
lhaney@upsonbeacon.com
In a 3-2 vote on March
28, county commissioners
conditionally approved a
petition to rezone 41.10
acres from agricultural res
idential to single-family res
idential to develop a
subdivision fronting Ken
wood and Longview roads
in northern Fayette County.
Prior to approval, eight area
residents spoke in opposi
tion.
The county planning
commission unanimously
recommended conditional
approval during its March 7
meeting, based on staff rec
ommendations. During the
March 28 public hearing,
representative of petitioner
Willoughby Homes, LLC
told commissioners that
they are “okay” with con
ditions set forth by staff.
Conditions include pro
viding the county with 50-
foot right-of-way as needed
on the corner of the Ken
wood and Longview inter
section for roadwork, as
well as 40-foot ROW as
needed along Longview
Road; no more than eight
homes can have direct road
access to Kenwood or Long
view, any new road con
structed to access lots shall
be built with a deceleration
lane and acceleration taper;
developer shall provide a
30-foot access easement
from interior streets to the
ROW on Kenwood Road;
and submittal of all war
ranty deeds and legal de
scriptions of ROW
dedication shall be provided
within 60 days of approval
of the rezoning request or
prior to submittal of a devel
opment site plan, whichever
comes first.
Planning and Zoning Di
rector Deborah Bell stated
that the request complies
with the Fayette County Fu
ture Land Use Map and
Comprehensive Plan.
During the hearing, the
representative agreed that
no more than 29 homes can
be built in the area, but said
the client is expecting less
than 29. He added that the
luxury homes to be built are
expected to sell for around
$800,000, hopefully spur
ring economic growth in an
area that has not seen new
construction since the
1980s.
All residents speaking in
opposition focused on is
sues relating to safety and
traffic, some providing ex-
See Commission, A5
Strickland Appointed Interim PTC Manager
The City Council of
Peachtree City has ap
pointed Justin Strickland as
interim city manager during
a special called council
meeting on Thursday,
March 28.
Strickland, currently
serving as the assistant city
manager, emphasized conti
nuity in city operations after
the vote, while also express
ing gratitude to outgoing
City Manager Bob Curnow
for his leadership.
“We embraced uncom
promised excellence during
Bob’s tenure,” Strickland
said, “and that’s something
city staff aims for every
day.”
Curnow’s last day as city
manager will be April 21.
Curnow and Strickland are
working together for a
seamless transition that
maintains the city council’s
priorities, which include fa
cilities maintenance, infras
tructure investments, and
economic development, ac
cording to city officials.
“The progress we made
under Bob Curnow will con
tinue with Justin,” Mayor
Kim Learnard said. “The
city council and I look for
ward to working closely
Justin Strickland
with Justin to enhance
Peachtree City’s quality of
life for all its residents.”
Development Authority
Awards $1.2 Million to
all Local Governments
The following story
was published by Cal
Beverly of The Citizen on
March 28:
Once dependent on
grants from Fayette’s local
governments, the county’s
development authority has
its own money now, and it
is giving big bucks to all the
municipalities, the county
commission, and the
school system “to serve as
the catalyst for transfor
mative projects that con
tribute to the economic
vitality of Fayette County,”
the FCDA said in a news re
lease.
Here is who is getting
what:
•$300,000 matching
grant awarded to the Town
of Tyrone and the Tyrone
Downtown Development
Authority. Tyrone, in col
laboration with the Tyrone
DDA, is set to transform
the old fire station into a
restaurant, event venue,
and community focal point.
This matching grant will
breathe new life into the
heart of downtown Tyrone,
aligning with the town’s vi
sion and comprehensive
plan.
•$300,000 matching
grant awarded to the Town
of Woolsey for tourism and
the restoration of the His
toric Woolsey Church. This
See FCDA, A6
From left are Chloe Davis and Cianna Ricci at the Junk Kouture
Sustainable Fashion World Finals in London. Submitted
MHS Duo Wins American
Fashion Show, Place
Top Six Worldwide
Dylan Shoemaker
Staff Writer
dshoemaker@fayette-news.net
On March 25, the Fay
ette County Board of Edu
cation recognized McIntosh
High students Chloe Davis
and Cianna Ricci for plac
ing first in America and top
six in the world at the Junk
Kouture sustainable fash
ion world finals in Monaco.
“It feels very surreal to
finish so high in the compe
tition because I myself was
n't sure our design was
strong compared to the
others,” said Davis. “My
partner Cianna reassured
me that our design was
worthy of high praise and
support. I think this win is
going to stand with me for
the rest of my life as I was
able to showcase a design
that I made for the first
time in forever.”
The dress was made of
recovered material, includ
ing foam packing pieces,
soda cans, plastic bottles,
and an old bathing suit.
Broken glass was sanded
piece-by-piece to complete
the look. Davis donned the
dress, dubbed “Mother of
Poison,” for the competi
tion, inspired by Poison
Ivy, a character in Batman
comic books and the plant
of the same name.
The duo says getting to
wear the creation was ful-
See Worldwide, A5
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