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PAGE 6A PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS THURSDAY. JANUARY 14. 2016
Mold forces relocation of Talking Rock council meetings
By Ralph O. Dennis
Contributing writer
Mayor Randy Banks opened
his first council meeting with a
full agenda. The first thing that
happened was the moving of the
meeting from Town Hall to the
First Baptist Church. The meet
ing had to be moved because the
issue of mold in town hall once
again has become an issue.
The recent flooding was a
major topic of discussion, taking
up a good portion of the meeting.
See separate story on page 7 A.
One of the other major topics
was the changing of the town
charter and the makeup of the
council. It has been proposed that
the council size be reduced to
four members plus the mayor
down from five members and the
mayor. In recent years, there has
been a problem finding five res
idents that are willing to serve on
the council.
The change will also put the
elections on the same date as na
tional elections. It was cited that
it costs the town almost $6,000
to hold an election that is not tied
to a national or full state election.
Under the new proposal, all
elected officials will be elected to
a four year term. The council is
still working it out so that half
are elected every other election.
There will be a public hearing
on Thursday, January 14, 2016,
at 6:30 PM. This meeting will be
held at the First Baptist Church.
Mayor Banks told the council
that he would like to appoint a
committee composed of citizens,
business owners in the town.
business owners from the edge of
town plus a council member to
develop ideas and plans for spe
cial ongoing events that would
promote the town. This idea was
well received and several of the
residents present are going to
help find members for the com
mittee.
In other business
Ditches and drainage were on
the list of things to be covered.
There are still some culverts that
need to be replaced with larger
pipes. The council voted to pro
ceed to have one project com
pleted at a cost $3,500. The
company doing this work will be
asked to give a recommendations
on further repairs to the drainage
system.
The council decided to cancel
the credit card that the previous
mayor had. Not that she was
doing anything wrong but to
keep the cards consistent with
the current officers and employ
ees.
The maintenance on the areas
around town is staying caught up
except that which was affected
by the flood. The climate con
trolled storage unit for the sound
system and other sensitive equip
ment has been rented and the
equipment will be moved soon.
The council also voted to send
a letter to the state to protest the
construction of the “J” turn on
Highway 515 and to follow up
and fight it as much as possible.
The council has the full support
of the citizens on this issue.
Forest Glen Apartments
504 Indian Forest Rd.
Jasper, GA 30143
706-692-5355
TDD
1-800-255-0056
2 Bedroom Apartments
$300 Deposit
Please call for details
Office Hours
Mon - Fri
3:00 PM - 6:00 PM
FOREST GLEN IS AN EQUAL
OPPORTUNITY PROVIDER
Plants o f the Southeast
“Southern red oak”, “Spanish oak”- Quercus falcate
By John Nelson
University of South Carolina
Except during the nine
months before he draws his first
breath, no man manages his af
fairs as well as a tree does.
-George Bernard Shaw, 1903
This is the leaf of a very
strong oak, and there is one of
these growing in my front yard
here in Columbia. It’s a wonder
ful tree, must be 70 feet tall, with
a rounded, spreading crown. The
trunk has a circumference of 9.5
feet, and a diameter of about 3
feet, or so (d = c/D as I recall). It
sounds like it must be a huge
tree, but in fact, there are plenty
others around town that are
larger.
This species, Quercus falcate,
sometimes gets to be well over
100 feet tall: the national cham
pion is in Georgia, it turns out.
Old, mature trees have char
acteristic bark, which is very
dark, nearly black, and
blocky. The twigs and buds are
reddish.
A very hard, strong wood is
produced, which has been com
monly used in the past (and still
is) for flooring and general
woodwork. The wood of the
southern red oak is dense and
bums hot, so it makes good fuel.
Large trees develop a rounded,
spreading crown, especially if in
an open setting, and the species
makes an excellent street tree,
providing plenty of shade in the
Photo / Linda Lee
A leaf from a southern red oak. A good way to tell this oak
from others is the characteristic U or bell-shaped base of
their leaves.
summer.
This species occurs naturally
on upland soils from New Jersey
to central Florida, southwest to
Texas and Oklahoma, and spar
ingly into the Ohio River valley.
You won't find it at high eleva
tions, though.
My plant has been growing in
place since the early 1960s...
that's the neighborhood story.
Each summer it produces a mag
nificent crop of beautiful leaves,
dark and shiny green above, and
gray or tan, almost tawny, on the
lower surface, and with a soft, al
most velvety feel.
The difference in color be
tween the two surfaces is quite
striking. During summer storms,
the crown of the tree becomes
alive with the wind-driven dance
of many thousands of these
leaves, madly twisting and gyrat
ing, flashing green and tan. It's a
beautiful show.
These leaves have a character
istic U- or bell-shaped base,
which rather easily distinguishes
them from other oaks.
The leaf shape on a given tree
is somewhat variable: leaves
from young branches are often
pear-shaped, and three-lobed to
ward the tip, while leaves from
older branches tend to be nar
rower, with a strong central lobe,
commonly curving, or "falcate,"
Piedmont Physicians to hold open house
Speed Burger
562 E. Church St. Jasper, GA
Call Ins Welcome 706-692-5136
Foot Long
Reg Hot Dog
Speed - Big
Double - Mega
Chef Salad - Side
Grilled/Fried Chicken
Sandwiches
BBQ • BLT
Fish • Steak
Tenderlion
Grilled/Fried Chicken
Flam & Cheese
Vegetable Beef Soup
Cornbread
PB&J Sandwich
has
returned
Plates
Chicken Tenders
Grilled/Fried Chicken
Hamburger Steak
Fish • Shrimp
Country Fried Steak
Country Fried Chicken
SIDES
Fries • Mashed Potatoes • Green Beans • Gravy
Homemade Onion Rings • Slaw • Potato Salad
Pasta Salad • Mac & Cheese • Chili
Cold Fusion Ice Cream Treats
Cookies & Cream • Reeces Cup • Chocolate Chip • Vanilla Ice Cream Cone
Open 10am-8:30pm ... Mon.-Fri.
like an old timey sickle.
In the fall, the red oak leaves
turn a handsome, shiny red-
brown, a bit less ostentatious
than some other autumnal fo
liage, yet perfectly respectable.
The dead leaves tend to remain
on the tree for much of the win
ter, but eventually they all blow
out.
My tree occasionally has a
very heavy fruit year, and will
produce thousands of small,
striped acoms, which in natural
settings are much prized by
plenty of wildlife species. Now I
don't have too much wildlife in
my front yard, certainly no deer
or turkeys...but the squirrels
seem to be getting plenty to eat.
I've heard that a big oak tree
is an acom's way of making more
acoms. Perhaps that's true. (For
more information on champion
tree designation:
http ://www. americanforests.org/
our-programs/)
John Nelson is the curator of
the A. C. Moore Herbarium at
the University of South Carolina,
in the Department of Biological
Sciences, Columbia SC 29208.
As a public service, the Herbar
ium offers free plant identifica
tions. For more information, visit
www.herbarium.org or call 803-
777-8196, or email
nelson@sc.edu.
- JASPER, GA -
WOOD BRIDGE
,A
F1/rt,
SINCE I8SD
Winter Hours
Dinner
Tuesday - Saturday
4:00 - 9:00
Lunch
Wednesday
11:00-3:00
Brunch
Saturday & Sunday
10:00-3:00
Closed Mondays
Piedmont Healthcare will be hosting an open house for a new Piedmont Physicians location on
Wednesday, Jan. 20 from 4 -5p.m. at 309 Highland Parkway, Suite 201 in East Ellijay, Ga. This will
be the second location for Piedmont Physicians Obstetrics & Gynecology and Piedmont Physicians
Sleep Specialists. The community is invited to a ribbon cutting with the Gilmer Chamber and light re
freshments.
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