About Pickens County progress. (Jasper, Ga.) 1899-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 26, 2019)
$1 Thursday, September 26, 2019 Volume 132 Number 23 Jasper, Georgia Local News Published Weekly City water supply holding up to drought By Angela Reinhardt Staff writer areinhardt@pickensprogress.com With weeks of dry condi tions already in the books and more dry weather fore casted, Jasper Water Super intendent David Hall said their supply is okay right now, with plenty of reserves, “but if things continue to be dry we may have to take some action,” he said. Hall elaborated that he foresees the city being fine well into 2020 with a linger ing drought. But what causes concern is if weather history repeats itself with conditions that were experienced in 2006- 2007. Hall explained where droughts really create fear among water managers is when you have a very dry fall and winter and then miss spring rains, that next sum mer will require more dras tic measures like watering bans. “It has been so wet for so long, it has got us set here at the beginning of this short term drought. But if it is still dry after the first of next year, you may see some type of restrictions,” he said. The city pulls its water from Long Swamp Creek, which is lower than usual. These low levels are caused naturally by the lack of re cent rain. However, the lack of flow now also comes from the completion of major work on Grandview Lake’s dam upstream. While dam work was underway, the lake was constantly being drained into the creek. With the drains removed, the lake is refilling, so less water is going on downstream. “Long Swamp Creek al ready has a tendency to not do well in droughts, and from what it looks like the lake lacks about 20 feet be fore it’s full,” Hall said. “They aren’t discharging into Long Swamp any more.” Demand for water is up 20 percent, which further ex acerbates the issue. Hall said the city will have to take from its emergency reserves in the mines off Cove Road when their pumps in Long Swamp Creek start to pull air. The city doesn’t have to pull from the mines every year, “like last year for ex ample it was so wet we were praying for it to stop rain ing.” Hall continued, “the good thing is the mines are full right now. That’s about 300 million gallons of water we can use if we need it - but this is a short-term drought. See Water on 11A Top education officials visit Hill City school Max Caylor / Photo U.S. Asst. Secretary of Elementary and Secondary Education Frank Brogan became a teacher again when he sat and talked with Hill City students. He was comfortable relating to the students and they had no problem talking with him about school, lessons and teachers. Sitting next to Brogan is State School Superintendent Richard Woods. By Max Caylor Progress contributor Hill City Elementary School, Pick ens County and the state of Georgia welcomed U.S. Assistant Secretary of Elementary and Secondary Education Frank Brogan to campus last week to see their innovative agriculture pro gram. Everyone experienced true Southern hospitality as lemonade, pecan pie and peach ice cream were served in a reception to welcome the 58 visitors. “It is good to get out of Washington and see what is taking place in educa tion around the country,” said Brogan. His trip is part of the Education De partment’s Back-to-School-Tour and the Atlanta leg brought him here as well as to the Atlanta Youth Academy, Hill City and Dawsonville’s Next Generation Clubhouse. Brogan, appointed by President Donald Trump, was the first of his family to earn a college degree and most recently served as the chancellor of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. He was previously chancellor of the State University Sys tem of Florida and president of Florida Atlantic University. He was elected to serve as the 15th lieutenant governor of Florida and served eight years in statewide office. Also, he has served as Florida’s Commissioner of Education. The assistant secretary came to Hill City because they are one of only 25 elementary schools in the state that offer agriculture courses for young students and have the only state certi fied elementary agriculture teacher. “Our new program is an opportu nity for students to have a path of agri culture to college and be career ready and become producers for the rest of their lives,” said Hill City Principal Jennifer Halko. The agriculture pro gram has its own bam, greenhouse, animal area and sizeable garden. Brogan commended the local pro gram. “Hill City is more special than you know and we had to come and see el ementary agriculture education in a hands on way. We need schools that are not afraid of change and will ex plore pathways to flower the possibil- See Visit on 11A The great marble strike of 1962 By Larry Cavender Progress contributor In just a few days, Pickens County will celebrate the long and storied his tory of its marble legacy with the 39th annual Marble Festival. To commem orate this year's festival, The Pickens County Progress will publish a two- part series documenting an event that occurred 57 years ago that is a sad and tragic chapter in our community's proud marble legacy. Part One - The Background Without a doubt, marble is the bedrock of Pickens County. A rich vein of crystalline marble runs like a spine through the center of the county just beneath the earth's surface, and ever since the Irish stone mason Henry Fitzsimmons first spied out croppings of the stone in 1830 marble has been the backbone of the Pickens economy. The foundation of the entire community was built upon marble. Either directly or indirectly, marble has tied the community and its citi zens together for nearly two centuries, and especially since Colonel Sam Tate founded Georgia Marble Company in 1884. However, like an earthquake shakes, shatters, and divides the bedrock, an event in the late summer and fall of 1962 left Pickens County shaken, friendships shattered, and the community divided. The Pickens County Progress re ported on the front page of its August 30th, 1962 issue that the Journeymen Stonecutters Union, representing nearly 700 Georgia Marble Company See Strike on 2A In this photo reprinted from the front page of the August 30th, 1962 Pickens County Progress, members of the local Journeymen Stonecutters Union are seen picketing outside the Calcium Products Division Plant in Marble Hill. Almost 700 marble workers went on strike at midnight on Au gust 23rd of that year. Keep Pickens Beautiful celebrates loth birthday Reducing, Reusing & Recycling for three decades 2019 Keep Pickens Beautiful Board of Directors: (Back L-R) Bart Connelly, Adopt-A-Road chair; Stan Barnett, director; Robert Kenyon; Robert Morgan, vice president; (Front L-R) Joan Britton, secretary/trea surer; Mary Ann Rentz, president; Vered Kleinberger, director; Joe Lev- erette. Not pictured Levi Rentz and Susan Anderson. By Angela Reinhardt Staff writer areinhardt@pickensprogress.com This weekend Keep Pickens Beautiful has invited the community out to celebrate their 30-year an niversary and three decades of re ducing solid waste, promoting recycling and conservation, and beautifying the community. The local non-profit, an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful and member of Keep Georgia Beautiful, has implemented and continues to manage a number of programs and initiatives that promote their mis sion, from Adopt-A-Road to Bring One for the Chipper and GREEN Thumb/GREEN Ribbon awards, to The Great American Cleanup & Tire Amnesty program, flag recycling, and shredder trucks. They also pro vide recycling bins for public events, have poster competitions and educa tional programs in schools, and en gage in beautification projects in the community, including murals, plant ings, and other installations. KPB was instrumental in starting the recycling center on Camp Road, and also instrumental in reducing solid waste in the community after the state mandated municipalities re duce their waste by 25 percent. “We have had a great bunch of people over the years,” said KPB Office Manager Carol Opdenhoff, who has been with the organization for 20 of the 30 years. She recalls when their meetings were held at the Pickens Chamber of Commerce, but for a long time the organization has called the little green building on South Main Street home. KPB was See KPB on 11A Inside: 'JjdOAOLCL MARBLE FESTIVAL October 5 & 6 j Jasper, < www.GeorgiaMarbleFestival.com Marble Festival special section in this paper PHS Court Page 12B Yard sales are in full swing this fall Page 11B Obituaries - 12A • Barbara Brown • Brian Pike • John Reece • Kathleen Love • Quinton Beasley • Patsy Jordan • Bill Dodson Index Obituaries 12A Editorial 4A Letters to the editor . ,5A Church 5-6B Kids 3B People 4B Classifieds 10-11B Legals 6-9B Follow Us Online ecu YouQH§ Contact Us 94 North Main Street Jasper, Ga. 30143 706-253-2457 www.pickensprogress.com Open for business during these hours: Mon-Thurs, 9-5, and Fri, 9-4:30
