About The Eatonton messenger. (Eatonton, Ga.) 18??-current | View Entire Issue (June 12, 2025)
» Your hometown newspaper since 1861 The Eatonton Alessenger THURSDAY, JUNE 12, 2025 | A5 Letters to the Editor Editor's note: Letters to the Editor from our readership are always encouraged; however, Smith Communications, Inc. (SCI) reserves the right to limit letters to no more than 500 words and adheres to a policy held by several newspapers nationwide to limit the number of letters on any particular subject, and to request that letter writers limit submitting comments on any one subject to once per month. Letters providing new information, ideas, commentaries, or opinions will always be welcome and considered. No time for tax abatement Dear Editor, I am writing about the proposed development and the 19-year (15 plus 4) tax abatement. If the commis sioners are not aware of how the taxpayers feel, I will give everyone some insight on why the taxpayers are so adamantly against the tax abatement. 1. This is prime real estate in the county, and it will be developed without the need of a tax abatement. 2. The impact on the services of this county will be immense.We already do not have adequate policing in the county. Two officers to cover the whole county at any given time is not enough coverage, especially during the summer months with all the short-term rentals and their parties disturbing the year-round residents. Our sheriff’s department is currently under funded and understaffed. The fire department is also currently underfunded and understaffed. The impact on the school system has been covered in detail by the school board, so I do not need to go there. I hope all of you have read the School Board anal ysis and the disastrous situation you will place on the Putnam County Educational System if you approve this abatement.Where will the funds come from to provide the necessary police, fire, and school services for this development if they are not required to pay taxes? A development of this size cannot be “absorbed” into the already stressed and overburdened services. 3. This development will add a minimum of 300 more cars to the Harmony/44 interchange. Our roads are in a deplorable state and already unable to handle the existing traffic volume in that area. Additionally, you are adding additional roads for us to maintain without any additional revenue. 4. Overdevelopingthe area is another source of concern.The developments that are currentlybeing built on Harmony Road by Farriers Lane, Scott Road, and the corner of Old Phoenix and 44 will all provide housing and are within a two-mile radius of each other. Can this area sustain all these new houses, or will the FATHERS CONTINUED FROM >: A4 inane stuff. What kind of role models are they? We have a fatherhood problem in this country and it’s nothing to laugh about. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, almost 18 million children in the U.S. - nearly one in four - live without a biolog ical father, stepfather, or adoptive father in the home. That’s enough chil dren to fill New York City twice or Los Angeles four times over. Statistics from the National Center For Fathering say that 85% of youths in prison come from fatherless homes. Sixty percent of youth suicides are from father less homes. Seventy-one percent of high school dropouts are from father less homes. Where have all the fathers gone? four developments, that consist of 1,000 homes, do nothing more than flood the market and decrease the values of everyone’s homes in the area? Additionally, these four developments will add an additional 2,000 to 3,000 more vehicles a day to roads that simply cannot handle the volume. This estimate is not even taking into account the hotel under construc tion on Collis Road, the new shopping center being cleared at Thunder Valley, or the other new home devel opments further up Old Phoenix Road. 5. The Putnam Development Authority should not have the authority to affect the tax base of the county. In this instance, the PDA has a conflict of interest. They will receive direct payments from the developer in the form of “Pilot Payments.” Why is the PDA allowed to provide tax abatements while they are profiting from the deal? The PDA believes “most of the community is in favor of this project.” That is incorrect. 6. Providing a 19-year tax abatement to a for-profit developer while at the same time asking your tax base (aka “voters”) to approve SPLOST 10, is nothing more than a slap in the face and demonstrates how completely out of touch you are with your constituents. These are just some of the reasons why people are against providing a tax abatement. Why should we be responsible for ensuring they make their profit margin? Ihave spoken with a ton of people about this develop ment and the only people who are for it have something to gain. Each and every one of you were voted in to protect the interest of Putnam County, the taxpayers, and property values. Allowing so much overdevelopment and giving away future tax revenue while overbur dening our critical services, you are not doing what you were elected to do, and you are putting SPLOST 10 at jeopardy. Respectfully, Tracy Hall Putnam County To this Neanderthal, I would say much of the reason is the lack of commitment on the part of either the momma or the daddy. Family stability is eroding. The number of marriages in the country has declined, leading to more children being born to unmarried parents. Divorce rates have risen, contributing to the increase in single- parent households. According to the Annie E. Casey Foundation, 39% of families in Georgia are single-parent households. Being a good father is hard work and I have not always done it well. But I am aware it is an awesome responsibility. It is also a privilege. Happy Father’s Day to each of you who have made the effort. You can reach Dick Yarbrough at dick@dick- yarbrough.com or at P.O. Box 725373, Atlanta, Ga. 31139. Putnam Past LAST YEAR, JUNE 13, 2024 Eatonton City Council held its first of two regularly scheduled monthly meetings June 4, which opened with a comprehensive report from Kevin Tomson-Hooper, president of The Artisans Village, on the sculpture trail project they've been spearheading the last few months. Thomson-Hooper told the council more than $40,000 has been raised locally from private donors to get the project going with eight metal sculptures of various subjects and styles already secured for installation throughout downtown Eatonton. FIVE YEARS AGO, JUNE 11, 2020 They had never been to Eatonton before, but it will from this point forward be forever etched in their hearts. Approximately 15 family members of the victims of the fatal aircraft crash in Putnam County on June 5 came to Putnam County Monday to learn what happened to their beloved family, to celebrate their lost loved ones' lives in a special candlelight service, to support each other in their grief, to embrace the love shown to them on social media by the community and to thank the many emergency responders who worked the crash. 10 YEARS AGO, JUNE 11, 2015 The Dairy Festival brought thousands to town Saturday for a parade, a road race, free ice cream and milk, crafts and other vendors, lots of fried food, games for the kids and visiting. The festival, held the first weekend in June, honors the county's heritage and its dairy families. 25 YEARS AGO, JUNE 15, 2000 As is often the case, much work and thought go into creating something wonderful for a community, and just as often, little is planned for the maintaining of such an addition. That is not the case, however, with the recently dedicated Plaza in downtown Eatonton. Before the lights came on and the water from the fountain began to flow, volunteers worked to make The Plaza a reality. 50 YEARS AGO, JUNE 12, 1975 Six trees were uprooted in the yard of the home of Mrs. Harris Beall last Saturday evening as high winds accompanied by severe rain and lightning hit the Putnam County community. 75 YEARS AGO, JUNE 15, 1950 The people of Putnam County will have a definite part in the 4-H Foundation plans at Rock Eagle, W.A. Sutton, state 4-H Club leader, told the Eatonton Exchange Club. Mr. Sutton gave the club a brief summary of the plans for developing the 4-H camp and thanked the Exchange Club and the people of the county for helping make it possible. 100 YEARS AGO, JUNE 12, 1925 Sheriff A.J. Walton, United States Officer "Fearless Sutton," Chief of Police Tom Walls and Officer Reuben Lawrence began this week with the capture of three stills and the destruction of 15,000 gallons of beer and practically 75 gallons of liquor. A story of one man going through the last po litical years where family and friends could not RANDALL HARMAN SAVING OUR 250-YEAR #... ■e * a % Y 5 : ►’ s. N talk. And how he found his way through that. Randall Harmans book serves as a gentle reminder that standing up for America’s ideals and freedom isn’t always easy or popular but must be done to save our 250-year brilliant experiment. - A E Messner Available at amazon -)
