PAGE 2A PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS THURSDAY. OCTOBER 3. 2019
Continued From 1A
RVs
Both RVs are hooked to
power, water and septic. An
issue that has arisen in plan
ning commission meetings is
that non-traditional housing
should not be hooked to per
manent power. One of these
RVs has been at the current
site for six years and another
RV was there before. The
other has been there 10 years
and a trailer sat there before.
The residents said they sim
ply continued using the
power, water and septic tanks
that were already there.
Buckingham said he be
lieves that most of the RVs
and other non-traditional
housing arrives this way, by
pulling into a spot previously
used and then hooking up the
power themselves and con
tinuing the pay the bill so the
utility companies aren’t
aware the structure has
changed. He said he usually
is notified of the RVs as per
manent homes when the tax
office goes out.
Based on discussion at
their previous meeting, the
planning commission mem
bers were apprehensive to
take any action that would
force people out of these non-
traditional homes, but they
want to put some regulations
in place to stop any further
ones from being located here,
especially if it is on a larger
development scale.
In the smaller RV live two
men, Neal Montgomery and
Allen Peardon. Montgomery,
who does most of the talking,
says early in the conversation
that “two men who aren’t gay
living in this tight of a space
for a decade isn’t great, but
they can’t afford anything
else.” Both are on disability;
Peardon has cancer.
Montgomery had lived in
another place that burned and
moved to the site a decade
ago. “I bought this as a place
[RV] to live but I never in
tended it to be permanent,”
he said. “It was supposed to
be a stepping stone to some
thing better. But I have had a
run of bad luck since for
ever.” Peardon sleeps in the
bedroom and Montgomery
on a small couch right inside
the door. They say the
biggest drawback is the
kitchen and bathroom are so
close together and “if one of
us is cooking and the other
[defecating], it’s too close,”
says Montgomery.
In a convoluted sequence
going back most of a decade,
both men have owned the RV
at different times and rented
to the other. “It’s a financial
partnership,” they say.
Both men say that their
RV, which shows damage on
the outside where Mont
gomery ran into it with a
pickup truck, is dry and
warm and mostly comfort
able. The wiring is up-to-date
and they have a hot-water
tank attached outside.
“We have everything you
have at your house except for
a washer and dryer,” Mont
gomery said. “It’s just
smaller but it’s paid for. How
Continued From 1A
Festival
This year’s festival has
been expanded to the athletic
field just across Highway 53
from the main festival
grounds. Participants can
walk through a tunnel that
runs under Highway 53 to
reach the field, where there
will be activities for all ages.
Returning again this year
are the fine arts competition
and display at the Pickens
Chamber building, regular
tours of the Old Jail from 10
a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday
and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sun
day, as well as the popular
marble quarry tours and food,
craft, and arts vendors.
Some tickets are still
available for the quarry tours.
To purchase, call the Pickens
Chamber at 706-692-5600
until Friday, Oct. 4. After Fri
day, tickets must be pur
chased at the quarry tour
station at the festival entrance
- cost is $20 for adults; $18
for seniors and children 6-12.
Children 5 and under are
free.
Courtesy parking is avail
able at Chattahoochee Tech
nical College and Ingles
where shuttle busses will take
participants to festival
grounds. A trolley will also
run from the festival’s front
gate to Main Street, with
stops at the Old Jail, The Car
riage House, The Old Mule-
house, Lollidrops, 61 Main,
Designs on Main, One Sweet
World and Smokin’ Mo’s.
Admission is $5 for
adults; $3 for seniors and
children 6-12. Children five
and under are free.
See page 10B for enter
tainment schedule.
Continued From 1A
Film
implied violence,” said
Jethro Flicks’ Executive Pro
ducer and Director Tim
White, who is ecstatic about
presenting his first full-length
film to the public. “It’s got a
more Hitchcock feel.”
White, who daylights as
an attorney, has been filming
home movies and videos for
decades, and even appeared
as an extra in In the Heat of
the Night and other produc
tions - but since 2009 he has
wanted to take his love of the
film industry a step further.
The seed for Southern Spirits
was planted earlier this year
after White became a volun
teer with the Pickens Histor
ical Society and began giving
tours of the jail, which was
built in 1906 and has a
plethora of creepy features
that make it perfect for a
scary flick.
“I walked in and it was
just like a lightbulb went
off,” he said. “I knew I had to
film there, with the old,
closed-in space and the gal
lows. It screamed to me that
the idea I had from 2009
needed to be revived.”
White was on a mission to
prove that quality films could
be made on a low budget. He
began recruiting local actors
and got in high gear to film
and edit the movie in time for
the Halloween season. He’s
spent hundreds of hours in
the last few months in prepa
ration and secured the Old
Jail for the screening loca
tion.
“I wanted to show that
this can be done with just one
guy a didn’t have to cost $9
million,” said Smith, who in
addition to directing also ap
pears in Southern Spirits. “I
think we nailed it. I hand
picked local actors with little
to no experience and was
able to give direction and just
be relaxed about it. The last
few weeks of getting this
ready to show has been the
most fun I’ve ever had. I
wanted to prove I could do
this.”
The film features 13 lo
cals, including White, Pick
ens Progress Editor Dan
Pool, Bill and Bay Cagle,
Nancy and Steve Dennison,
Mark and Terry Forrest, Don
nie Low, Jim Trimby, Edee
Disharoon, Beth Johnson
Coberly, Lee Banks, and
Henry the dog.
Smith, a Pickens resident,
is also excited about show
casing the community he
loves.
“I love volunteering at the
jail and giving tours, and I
love this town - but people
need something to do and I
want to show people that am
ateur movies can be fun.
These are all local people,
local sites, and it highlights
Jasper and showcases the
town,” he said.
If the movie gamers any
attention outside the county
the director believes it could
attract people to Jasper to see
the filming location. He also
said there will be a sequel
next Halloween, and antici
pated Jethro Flicks will pro
duce two films per year.
Plans are to ran Southern
Spirits the last three week
ends in October on Friday
and Saturday nights at 7 and
9 p.m., with the possibility of
additional dates and times to
be added if demand requires.
Follow Jethro Flicks produc
tion company on Facebook
for more information about
where to purchase tickets,
which will be $10 per person
and include a tour of the old
jail before the show. The
movie runs 67 minutes.
White recommends the film
for adults and children above
13.
Continued From 1A
Bum Ban
was if we agreed to be on the
scene,” he said. “It’s going to
be iffy. The foliage has fallen
and fire can get away from
you real fast.”
Callahan offered the fol
lowing safety tips:
•Clean away debris from
the area where the bum will
occur.
•Be sure the fire is far
away from structures.
•Do not use flammable
liquids to start the fire.
•Do not start fires when it
is windy enough to blow
leaves or embers.
•If possible, have some
method of extinguishing
nearby.
The GFC also recom
mends those who burn keep
tools on hand such as water,
a shovel and a cell phone.
Sorrells noted that
statewide wildfire activity is
on the rise. Over the past
three months, Georgia
Forestry Commission wild
land firefighters have re
sponded to 41 percent more
fires than its previous five-
year average, according to a
press release. Callahan said
locally they have not had is
sues with brash or wild fire at
this point, but as drought
conditions persist he again
urged people to take extreme
caution.
The 54 counties whose
EPD summer bum bans have
been lifted are: Banks, Bar-
row, Bartow, Bibb, Butts,
Carroll, Catoosa, Chattooga,
Cherokee, Clarke, Clayton,
Cobb, Columbia, Coweta,
Crawford, Dawson, DeKalb,
Douglas, Fayette, Floyd,
Forsyth, Fulton, Gordon,
Gwinnett, Hall, Haralson,
Heard, Henry, Houston, Jack-
son, Jasper, Jones, Lamar,
Lumpkin, Madison, Meri
wether, Monroe, Morgan,
Newton, Oconee, Paulding,
Peach, Pickens, Pike, Polk,
Putnam, Richmond, Rock
dale, Spalding, Troup,
Twiggs, Upson, Walker and
Walton. Summer burn bans
are put in place to improve
air conditions during hot
months.
For specific information
about conducting open burn
ing, permitting requirements
and current fire conditions in
your area, contact the Pick
ens GFC office at 706-692-
4801 or visit GaTrees.org.
Apply for a burn permit
by calling 1-877-OK2-
BURN or visit Georgia
Forestry Commission online.
Amateur
Radio Club
The Jasper Amateur Radio
Club meets on the second
Thursday of each month at 7
p.m. at the Cornerstone
Church Auxiliary building,
145 Cornerstone Drive (off
Camp Road just east of the
Pickens County Community
Center).
All visitors are welcome
to attend. Each meeting has a
free presentation and discus
sion of Amateur Radio events
or operating modes, includ
ing Emergency Communica
tions. Come see how much
fun Amateur Radio can be!
Please visit our website at
www.jasperarc.com for more
details.
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• • -
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Dan Pool / Photo
Milan Mull, front, and his brother Rex, as well as Rex’s wife, share a comfortable RV,
which they much prefer to other housing in the same price range. They say they wouldn’t
have anywhere else to go if the county tightens up regulations on camper-homes.
many people can say that?”
Peardon still hopes to
move into a traditional home,
but with his cancer and lim
ited disability income, ac
knowledges that’s not likely
soon. He knew Montgomery
and when he found himself
temporarily without a place
to stay, moved in, also think
ing it would be temporary.
Montgomery, unlike the
other men, said he enjoyed
the homeless lifestyle fairly
well as “there is no responsi
bility. I was living under a
bridge in Kansas and thought
of the words my daddy told
me when I was a boy. ‘The
richest man in the world can
take everything he owns and
put it in his pockets. ’ It means
you can go where you want.”
But he has since settled
down to a residence to be re
sponsible, he said. He hopes
to begin playing as a street
musician and demonstrates a
very passable version of
“Friends in Low Places,” but
says that Jasper isn’t too wel
coming and he’s been ran off
as a panhandler.
Both men say they “would
be lost in the woods” if the
county suddenly disallowed
living in RVs.
At a larger RV on the
same street, two brothers,
Rex and Milan Mull, live
there. Rex is married and his
wife also lives there. They
keep the RV very clean and it
had a nice breeze blowing
with fans running and was
comfortable on a hot day in
late September. They cook
every day and get along well
with their neighbors. “We’re
happy here and this is some
thing we can afford,” Milan
said.
The brothers are both dis
abled, Rex with lung cancer
and Milan is deaf and facing
a back surgery. [This inter
view was conducted by
speaking loudly into his hand
cupped around his ear.]
These brothers say they
had been homeless before
and have no desire to ever re
turn to that condition. Al
though their RV is probably
moveable, they make it plain
- they don’t have anywhere
else to take it, nor the money
to set up another lot. They
say it’s affordable and con
sider it much better than any
mobile home they could find
in the same price range.
“We’re happy here and we
can afford this,” says Milan.
Both brothers say they
hope that the county will re
alize that the RV housing op
tion is important to people
with limited income with few
other options for housing lo
cally.
“If they make us move out
of here, we’ll probably be
sleeping on the courthouse
steps,” Rex said.
Work Session Agenda
THURSDAY - OCTOBER 3, 2019
CONFERENCE ROOM - STE. 168
The Pickens County Board of Commissioners will
have a Work Session Agenda for the purpose de
scribed below on Thursday, October 3, 2019 at
10:00 a.m. in Suite 168 of the Administrative Office
Building located at 1266 East Church Street.
Items for Discussion:
1. Department Updates
2. General Discussion
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