Newspaper Page Text
Continued From 1A
THURSDAY. FEBRUARY 10. 2022 PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS PAGE 11A
The basement floor on South East Street has been serving as a homeless shelter since
the end of last year, but a conflict has arisen between city hall and the shelter’s board over
permitting.
Shelter
shelter a month to find a new
and more appropriate loca
tion to transition their opera
tions to.”
The release goes on to
state that at the end of the
month the shelter had not
moved, and a code inspection
found “Life Safety Code vio
lations.” The city requested
the owner or tenant resolve
those violations and “have
the unlicensed shelter moved
to an appropriately zoned lo
cation that would allow li
censing,” and further that if
they did not comply the city
would have no choice but to
proceed with “an enforce
ment action for the safety of
all located within the struc
ture.”
Lovell said the building,
which had been vacant for
two years before they moved
in, “was in terrible shape”
when they arrived, with large
electrical cords cut and walls
ripped out. The board has
plans to bring everything up
to code and has requested a
temporary permit until re
pairs can be made, but they
say their requests have been
ignored.
The space is currently
under construction and has
16 beds, two-and-a-half
baths, a laundry area,
kitchen, and common area.
All items inside have been
donated, with the non-profit
being fully supported by do
nations.
The issue has since be
come a heated debate on so
cial media, with some
chiding the city for being un-
Godly and turning their
backs on the homeless popu
lation, with others arguing
that the central business dis
trict is not an appropriate lo
cation for a shelter. A petition
to support the shelter has cir
culated online and several
churches have stepped up to
offer support.
Lovell and Ghorley,
speaking at a live Q&A
hosted by John Phares of the
Jasper, GA News Facebook
page, said the central busi
ness district is ideal for a
homeless shelter, whose res
idents would have walking
access to places of employ
ment, places to get food, and
education opportunities at
Chattahoochee Technical
College. Ghorley said con
trary to the belief that a
homeless shelter would neg
atively impact businesses and
create additional crime, she
believes the opposite is true.
She said when homeless peo
ple have somewhere to stay it
keeps them from interfering
and hanging out at busi
nesses.
“We’re helping the com
munity not hurting the com
munity,” she said at the
February 7 Q&A. “They’re
not here to commit crimes.
They’re here to get their lives
back together.”
Ghorley said in the three
months the shelter has been
open there have been no
complaints about their resi
dents or additional crimes in
the area. It was noted that all
residents must take drug and
alcohol tests before they are
allowed to stay, and that they
have around four months to
be at the shelter. They are en
couraged to find jobs and
work out of their current sit
uation. She mentioned that
many homeless people end
up in local hotels, which cost
several hundred dollars a
week and make it impossible
for them to transition to their
own apartment or home.
“We are not looking for
permanent tenants,” she said.
“These are good people who
need a chance.”
According to Lovell, they
have had 25 individuals stay
at the facility since they
opened, with some staying
multiple nights. Of those,
since the last week of January
seven have gone to job inter
views, five have been hired
for jobs, and two found
Christ.
When asked if they feel
like they have broken any
laws, Lovell said he emphat
ically did not believe they
have, and added that, “If any
one has broken a law, the city
has broken God’s law.”
Ghorley told the 50 or so
viewers of the Facebook live
video that she did not under
stand why governments
would support facilities like
animal shelters before they
would support homeless
shelters.
“I love animals, but when
did we start putting our ani
mals above our humans?”
she asked.
Prior to the Q&A, board
member Lovell told the
Progress they do not believe
the city has any stipulations
in their ordinances regarding
homeless shelters and that
they cannot be classified as a
boarding or rooming house
(which are not allowed under
the property’s zoning) be
cause they are not a commer
cial entity.
Around a dozen people
who support the mission of
Refuge in Jesus, LLC, in
cluding their three-person
board, attended the Jasper
Council meeting Monday,
Feb. 7 following the Q&A,
but were not addressed be
cause they were not on the
agenda.
The following day, Jasper
Mayor Steve Lawrence told
the Progress the city’s posi
tion is still in line with what
was stated in the press re
lease, and that “We are work
ing with the owners of the
building and the city attorney
to see how to proceed,” he
said.
Continued From 1A
A source of contention has been the appearance of the proposed $2.2 million
airport terminal. The airport authority and their engineer say it is professional
and suitable for the location. But critics say it is too modern and doesn’t repre
sent the county well.
Terminal
The expectation from both airport
engineer Phil Eberly and the airport au
thority is that the terminal will serve the
community for at least 30 years and is
sized correctly for Pickens County’s
predicted growth.
Ultimately the funding breakdown
for the future terminal is about $1.1 mil
lion from the Federal Aviation Admin
istration, $750,000 from Georgia’s
Department of Transportation, and
$373,000 from local airport authority
bonds that are required to be paid back
with revenue generated at the airport it
self.
Eberly pointed out that Pickens
County residents will not pay anything
towards the airport and that revenue de
rived from the airport must remain in
the airport, which in the end makes the
system more self-sufficient and costs
are borne by the pilots and passengers
either passing through or based in Pick
ens.
When comparing the planned Pick
ens County Airport terminal costs to
other airports, Eberly said that the ter
minal “is not a pie-in-the-sky white ele
phant,” and compares favorably with
similarly-sized airports across the state.
In one example, Newnan-Coweta
County Airport has similar numbers of
based and transient aircraft while their
future terminal is projected to cost $5
million.
Part of the costs here are driven by
FAA criteria and ADA compliance re
quirements along with lower-mainte
nance materials that should require less
upkeep and make the building more en-
Magnolia Wash Holdings acquires
four Twins Car Wash locations
Charlotte, NC — Express
Wash Operations, LLC, d/b/a
Magnolia Wash Holdings
(“Magnolia”), a premium ex
press conveyor car wash op
erator headquartered in
Charlotte, NC successfully
completed the acquisition of
four Twins Car Wash loca-
THANKYOU
The Evans
Family
wants to
thank each
and every
one that
called, text,
came to
visit, sent
cards, flow
ers, came
to visit us following the death of
our Dad/Husband Troy L. Evans.
We would like to express our sin
cere thanks and appreciation.
Your acts of kindness and sympa
thy continue to be a great comfort
in our time of sorrow.
Thanks to Roper Funeral
Home and staff for your services
and professionalism. We are
humbled and grateful to you all.
Also thank you to Randy
Weaver, Grant Wade, Bill
Lawrence for taking part in funeral
services. You all meant a lot to
Troy. Michael Morris thank you
and the singers for your part as
well.
We want to send a very spe
cial thank you to the Cherokee
Masonic Memorial Club, for doing
a superb job with the Masonic Fu
neral. Thank you all that at
tended.
One other very special Thank
you goes to our escorts, Jasper
Police Department, Jasper Fire
Department, PCS office, and
Local State Patrol.
Sincerely,
The Evans Family
tions on Feb. 8, 2022.
The Twins Car Wash ac
quisitions include the follow
ing locations: 705 Noah
Drive, Jasper, GA 30143
32 McKinney Road, Blue
Ridge, GA 30513
4860 North Wickham
Road, Melbourne, FL 32940
251 King Street, Murphy, NC
28906
This acquisition brings
Magnolia to 57 operating lo
cations in Florida, Georgia,
North Carolina, Ohio, South
Carolina, Tennessee, and Vir
ginia. Magnolia continues to
execute against its strategy of
creating regional density, op
erating multiple brands
across its local markets.
Magnolia was founded by
Frank Bennett and Brooks
Moye in 2014 and remains
entrepreneurially oriented de
spite its experienced, profes
sional leadership team.
“We are grateful for the
opportunity to expand within
our current operating mar
kets, and we are excited
about our continued growth
in the Southeast” stated Kyle
Poyer, Chief Financial Offi
cer of Magnolia.
“The leadership of Twins
Car Wash created a premium
brand in a growing market
within our main focus area of
the Southeastern U.S.,”
added Andy Agostini, Mag
nolia’s VP of Operations.
“We are thankful to have the
opportunity to continue to
serve customers the premium
level we pride ourselves on
throughout our portfolio of
brands at Magnolia.”
This week's recipe brought to you by flnOSTERfN
Rooster's Markets
54 Roosters Way, Jasper, GA • 706-301-8176
Philly Cheesesteak
Pasta
INGREDIENTS:
2 tsp Rooster's Market Tunisian House Blend
Olive Oil
1 pound ground beef
8 ounces mushrooms sliced
1 green bell pepper diced ***
1 onion chopped ***
2 tsp garlic minced
Salt and pepper to taste
10 ounces rigatoni pasta
2 Tbsp butter ***
2 Tbsp flour
2 cups milk
1 cup provolone cheese diced or shredded
INSTRUCTIONS:
• Cook the pasta in salted water according to
package directions.
• Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium
high heat. Add the beef and season to taste
with salt and pepper.
• Cook for 4-5 minutes, breaking up the meat
with a spatula. Drain grease.
• Add the mushrooms, bell pepper and onion to
the pan. Cook until the beef is cooked through
and the vegetables are tender. Add the garlic
and cook for 30 seconds. Add more salt and
pepper if desired.
• Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium
heat.
• Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute.
• Slowly whisk in the milk. Whisk until the sauce
has thickened, 4-6 minutes.
• Remove the sauce from the heat and whisk
in the cheese; stir until melted and the sauce is
smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
• Drain the pasta and toss with the cheese
sauce. Add half of the beef mixture to the pasta
and stir to combine.
• Place the other half of the meat mixture on top
of the pasta.
ergy efficient in the long-run.
Airport authority treasurer
Wood was emphatic in his
belief in the project. “Is this
the right size, at the right
cost, and the right function?
Absolutely.”
In a previous interview
with the Progress editor, Don
Boggus, airport authority
chair, said the authority likes
the professional design and
believes the terminal will be
a real economic asset to the
county.
Other ongoing projects
listed at the Pickens County
airport are requirements that
must be met when certain in
stallations and systems reach
the end of their usable life
and are mostly covered with
out local funding.
• Project: Wind cone
replacement
Description: Installation
of a new lighted wind cone to
meet current FAA criteria.
Cost: $49,500 ($49,500
FAA/GDOT, $0 Local)
• Project: Repaint and re
locate beacon tower.
Description: Repaint and
relocate existing beacon
tower to meet current FAA
criteria.
Cost: $19,000 ($19,000
FAA/GDOT, $0 Local)
• Project: Runway and
taxiway crack seal and re
marking
Description: Crack seal
ing on the runway and taxi
way are performed
approximately every five
years based on FAA pave
ment life cycle. Remarking
of the runway and taxiway
occurs every 5-10 years-
based fading or changes to
the FAA criteria. The new
marking will include a mold
inhibitor to keep markings
brighter for a longer period of
time than previous FAA
marking specifications.
Cost: $110,015 ($110,015
FAA/GDOT, $0 Local)
• Project: Terminal area
site preparation and
paving
Description: Asphalt
overlay of the existing apron
in front of the terminal and a
widening of the narrowest
part of the apron by approxi
mately 70'. This project in
cludes a new airfield
electrical vault to meet FAA
criteria and the removal of
the old block electrical vault.
Cost: $736,697.36
($736,697.36 FAA/GDOT,
$46,988.01 Local)
• Project: AWOS Replace
ment (Automated Weather
Observing System)
Description: The current
AWOS is at the end of its
useful life and is being re
placed. This system broad
casts weather information to
the pilots including visibility,
ceiling, dew point, altimeter
setting, wind speed and di
rection.
Cost: $164,313.00
($123,234.75, FAA/GDOT,
$41,078.25 Local)
• Project: Replacement
Terminal Building
Description: New termi
nal building will be located
north of the existing terminal.
The new terminal will be
ADA compliant and meet
current public building safety
criteria. It will include a con
ference room and handi
capped accessible restrooms.
Cost: $2,231,786.00
($750,000 GDOT &
$250,000 Local on $1M,
FAA 90% reimbursement
over multiple years on the re
maining $1,231,786. Ulti
mate funding breakout is
$1,108,607.40 FAA,
$750,000 GDOT,
$373,178.60 Local. The local
share for the terminal is from
the Airport Authority bonds
to be repaid using funds gen
erated at the airport.
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