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G eor g |a Newspaper Project7/1/2008 12:00:00 AM
Univ. of Ga of local
Athens GA 30602 County’s source news, advertising and sports for over 100 years 50*
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By Faye Jones
and Arthur Sullivan
L-T Staff Writers
On a tour through the
north end of Peach County
last Monday, the scene was
not a pretty one on local
farms. Com that should be
“as hight as an elephant’s
eye” is now standing crisp
and brown in the fields; the
small “nubbins” that should
have been choice ears of corn
still intact, too small and
immature to harvest. It is a
scene that looks like fall.
Cotton in fields on Hwy 42
and 49 have bloomed only
inches from the ground fore¬
telling the crop loss that is
in store without immediate
and adequate rain - since
not all sizable farms are
equipped with a professional
irrigation system.
See DROUGHT, page 11
Healthcare to inFV
Doctors will
also stay put
By Victor Kulkosky
L-T Staff Writer
Some kind of healthcare
facility will stay in Fort
Valley after Peach Regional*
Medical Center moves to its
planned new building closer
to Byron.
This news came from
a press conference last
Thursday during which
members of board of the
Peach County Hospital
Authority addressed many
of the concerns Fort Valley
citizens have raised recently
about the proposed move.
“If the concern is, ‘what’s
Inside:
til
I
Business Alter
Hours at Lane's
See page 16
Classifieds ....... 15
Crossword. ________2
Inside & Out —2
Legals ......... 13-14
Obits..... 11
Opinion. 4
Op-ed.... 5
Religion. 10
Sports... 9
Inserts:
CVS
Food Depot
Harveys
Lowes
Vol. No. 118 Issue
h-T/Arthur Sullivan
The cotton field off Hwy. 341 shows the effect of the drought
going to happen to me when
I need help?’ there is a plan
to have services here,”
said Dr. Tamia Palmer, the
departing Chief of Staff at
the hospital.
PRMC Administrator
Nancy Peed said uses for
the half-century old hospi¬
tal building were part of the
three-year planning process
for the new hospital.
“There’s always been that
commitment on the part of
the board to have some¬
thing here,” Peed said.
She said plans have not
been finalized, but some
kind of urgent care center,
with diagnostic services,
could operate at the old
site.
In addition, doctors who
currently work in Fort
Valley will likely stay put.
“All of the doctors I’ve
spoken with plan on staying
in Fort Valley,” Dr. Palmer
said.
Doctors in Fort Valley will
admit their patients to the
Another mixed bag for AYP
BMS bounces back, Hunt Elementary slips
By Victor Kulkosky
L-T Staff Writer
Thp ppafh fVmntv Sphnnl
System again did not meet
standards for Adequate
but showed
Chamber Horse Show a success L-T/8tacey Shy
All ages and
By Faye Jones styles of riding
L-T The Staff long Writer anticipated First flf Jj and ticipated. horses par¬
Annual Peach County Chamber ■§
of Commerce Horse Show went 1
July off without 15, COC a hitch President on Saturday, and CEO ^ "
Gene Sheets said in an interview. l A V
Sheets had stated that he hoped the /
event wotild be on-going yearly and
is now more enthused than ever from
the response he received from contes¬ s*,
tants, visitors and sponsors. * ■
The event was held at Southern
Valley Ranch owned by Kruse and
Dana Smith on River Road, Dana
was announcer for the event and
Sheets said she did an outstanding 1
job. Pat Patridge of Windy Acres { .
See CHAMBER, page 12
29 One Section, 16 Pages
new hospital and continue
to see them, just as they do
now, she said.
“If you go to the hospi¬
tal, you want to see your
own doctor,” Dr. Palmer
said. “Our doctors are
comfortable with the move.
Physicians in Pbrt Valley
are committed to serving
their patients.”
Byron Mayor Larry Collins
said the property deeds for
the hospital require the site
be used for medical pur¬
poses.
Board members addressed
concerns about the viability
of the new site and whether
PRMC will be able to pay
the estimated $24 million
cost.
“This authority took a lot
of soul searching and seri¬
ous thought,” before decid
ing on the new site, said
Peach County Commission
Chairman James Khoury,
who noted he chaired the
selection committee that
chose the 20-acre site on
some bright spots along
with new and continuing
challenges Overall most
students in the county sue
ceeded, while only a few
small con-
John E. Sullivan Road near
247 Connector.
He said the committee
considered several sites
closer to Fort Valley, but
they either weren’t avail¬
able or weren’t suitable.
“We made our decision
based on where we thought
this hospital would survive,”
Khoury said.
Consultants told board
members PRMC would like¬
ly go bankrupt in a few
years if the hospital stayed
within a few miles of Fort
Valley, Khoury said. The
planned new site is about
seven miles from the cur¬
rent PRMC site. On the
other hand, consultants told
the board PRMC would like¬
ly prosper at the new site.
They said more Houston
County doctors might use
PRMC and refer patients,
and more specialists would
be attracted to the new site,
according to Khoury.
See HOSPITAL, page 12
tinued to challenge teachers
and administrators.
Adequate Yearly Progress
(AYP) is a measure of prog
ress in all schools required
by the federal No Child Left
Behind Act. To make AYR
schools and systems must
Director of Public Works says
trash lule pick-up this week should be on
sc.
j
By Arthur Sullivan
4» L. T f Stuff mfiW Writmr
Residents of Peach County are hoping that this
weeks trash pick: up is timelier than last weeks
was. When trash was finally picked up last week on
» the last sanitation truck was in the
■ ■ was piling
.vp>mm spreading . .... refuse _ along the roadside.
were
Three rtf the four trucks used by Fort Valley to
service the city and county were out of service
last week, resulting in the delay. Richard Powell,
the director of public works in Fort Valley, said
that two trucks were already up and running and
there should be three trucks back in operation by
Wednesday July 19 or Thursday July 20 at the lat¬
est. Many areas of the county had not had their
trash picked up since well before July 4.
Centerville Sanitation, which is a private company
responsible for waste Fort management in Centerville,
came in too assist Valley in catching up with
the m trash pickup last week. Powell said
■erville Sanitation volunteered and was
not paid for their services,” Powell said they simply
helped out of “the goodness of their hearts.”
* ' See TRASH, page 16
show year-to-year improve
ment in test scores, test par
ticipation and high school
graduation rates. For aca
demies, a minimum per
centage of students must
meet or exceed state expec
tations, which vary by sub-
ject and the level of school.
For attendance, a school
must fall below 15 percent
of each group missing 15 or
more days of school. Groups
smaller than 40 students do
not count toward AYE
See AYP, page 16