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Thursday, December 24, 2020 Volume 133 Number 36 Jasper, Georgia 22 pages in two sections Published Weekly
Rob Jones runs final meeting as chair
By Angela Reinhardt
Staff Writer
areinhardt@pickensprogress.com
Pickens County Commission
Chair Rob Jones, who has served as
commissioner for 16 years - some
of those years as sole commissioner
and later as one of a three-person
board - held his final meeting on
Thursday, Dec. 17.
Jones was visibly emotional as
called the meeting to session, chok
ing back tears on several occasions.
The commissioner, who will serve
his last day in office on December
31, said ‘‘change is good” and told
the audience that his wife would
have to deal with him now. His wife
and daughter were in attendance.
Several people thanked Jones for
his years of service. See a candid
interview with the outgoing com
mission chair about his political ca-
Outgoing Pickens County Commission Chair Rob Jones, center, with reer - n next wee k’ s edition
commissioners Jerry Barnes and Becky Denney just after Jones ad- Republican Kris Stancil will take
journed his final meeting as commissioner. over as commission chair in Janu _
ary.
Other news from the meeting:
•The board passed the proposed
2021 budget of just over $29 mil
lion.
•The board approved a motion to
make an exemption to the bid
process regarding the ceramic filtra
tion system that will be used at the
Grandview water treatment facility.
The exemption only includes equip
ment related to the filtration system
because there is only one manufac
turer of that product.
The treatment facility will be in
stalled at Grandview Lake and
allow the county to withdraw up to
333,000 gallons a day. An engineer
with Tumipseed Engineers told the
board the county’s use of the ce
ramic system would make them a
“model” in the state and that would
attract other entities interested in
using that style of treatment.
The engineer said the project
would be complete by the summer
of 2022 at the latest.
Roman Adams is doing fine,
so are his dogs and horse
By Dan Pool
Editor
dpool@pickensprogress.com
Motorists through Tate last week
may have noticed a camp set up just
off the road at the four-way stop, all
the more noticeable because of the
horse tied up there along with a cou
ple of dogs. [Update: On Sunday,
the camp was relocated to a grassy
field behind the QuikTrip in Jasper.]
With a touch of irony, the man
living in the tent, Roman Adams,
noted that he was (before Sunday)
within sight of the entire block of
downtown Tate his family owned
for several years, running the
restaurant at the drug store and other
shops, before first trying to sell the
whole town on eBay and later sell
ing the properties.
Visiting Adams on a warm Fri
day afternoon, he said he was doing
fine out there with good sleeping
bags, tents and plenty of food, extra
hay for the horse. He chided the
public that now that he is in public
view, it’s amazing how many people
are concerned about his welfare, as
See Adams on 10A
The camp of Roman Adams, at the Tate four-way, caught the attention of many passing motorists. He relo
cated on Sunday to a spot behind the QuikTrip in Jasper.
Good turnout, so far, for early voting
Inside:
Local people
chime in on
Christmas
traditions
Page 6A
Police
Arrest made in
fatal 575 accident
Page 2A
Final installment
of Christmas
lights around the
COUnty Page 10B
Question
By Angela Reinhardt
Staff Writer
areinhardt@pickensprogress.com
The runoff election in Georgia
that will decide control of the U.S.
Senate has seen a “good turnout”
for early voting in Pickens County,
according to Pickens Elections Su
pervisor Julianne Roberts.
Early voting in the runoff, which
pits Republican incumbents David
Perdue and Kelly Loeffler against
Democratic candidates Jon Ossoff
and Raphael Wamock, will continue
through Wednesday this week and
then take a break for Christmas. It
will resume Monday, Dec. 28
through Wednesday, Dec. 30 of next
week.
In Pickens County all early
voting will be held from 8 a.m. to
5 p.m. at the Pickens County
Recreation Center. The is no early
voting at the Pickens Elections Of
fice.
Election Day is Tuesday, Jan. 5
See Voting on 10A
With uncertain times, more people
seeking skills to live off the land
Author, educator’s
wilderness classes
suddenly a hot
commodity
By Dan Pool
Editor
dpool@pickensprogress.com
To show the type of life Mark
Warren has had, consider that he is
hoping his forthcoming book on
Billy the Kid might reignite his
music career.
Warren is the founder and educa
tor at Medicine Bow, a wilderness
school east of Pickens County in the
Chattahoochee National Forest,
where he has taught hundreds of
people woodland skills ranging
from basic edible plants to how to
stalk animals.
See Warren on 10A
Author and wilderness skills educator Mark Warren during a hiking interview at his Medicine Bow school
east of Pickens County in the Chattahoochee National Forest.
How does Santa
get into our
homes? Kids give
us their thoughts
Page 5A
Obituaries - 9A
• Brenda Price
• Frances Carmichael
• Laura Baker
• Mickey Howard
• Vestel Davis
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