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Tuesday, September 27,2022 barnesville.com Barnesville, Ga. 30204 HERE???S THE SCOOP Sunday voting for general election draws heated criticism Beloved educator Dr. Olivier succumbs Retired local educa tor Dr. George Olivier died Sunday after a battle with liver cancer. ???Doc??? was beloved by his students and fellow teachers. Survivors included his wife Linda Olivier. Funeral services are pending. Monitor barnes- ville.com for updates. WALTER GEIGER news@barnesville.com Former county commission chairman Kent Kingsley led a delegation of citizens who spoke out against opening the early voting polling place for Sunday voting ahead of the Nov. 8 general election. The remarks came at the Sept. 20 county com mission meeting. The current plan is to allow early voting from 1-5 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 22. Kingsley alleged local Democratic party chair Lynn Hadaway vowed to ???fill up buses??? with voters to bring to the polls that day. He noted there are already 17 days of early voting and that should be enough. Harold Jackson also opposed the plan as did Elaine Hallada. Jackson alleged weekend voting is a waste of taxpayer mon ey. ???The last Saturday voting we had, they had eight people working up there all day and only three people voted,??? he said. Kingsley also sug gested the county take a long hard look at how elections board mem bers are appointed. ???There is no account ability there now. Each commissioner should appoint one board member. Then we would have account ability,??? Kingsley said. He alleged the elec tions board has other issues as well, specifi cally citing 101 voters he said were coded in the wrong district in the recent District 1 com mission vote. ???Sixty- eight of them voted in the wrong district,??? Kingsley said. Elections board sec retary Monica Walters said she was originally against Sunday voting but changed her mind. ???We should welcome all voters. 1 would love to see a 98% turnout. Then we would know how people really feel,??? Walters said. The commission took no action on the matter. Homecoming game Thursday due to storm alcohol sales hearing Monday The City of Barnesville will hold a public hearing next month on what it terms ???additional??? alco hol sales. The hearing is set for Monday, Oct. 3 at 5 p.m. in the coun cil meeting room at the police headquarters. The city is holding the hearing to get input from citizens and businesses. Businesses in the city with alcohol pouring licenses have long sought Sunday drink sales in order to compete with purveyors in neighbor ing towns where Sunday sales are allowed. Additionally, beer and wine sales are allowed in the county on Sunday but not in the city. For more informa tion, call city hall at 770.358.0181. Political forum Mon. The three candidates in the race to fill the Dis trict 3 seat on the Lamar County commission will face off at a forum Oct. 3. The event begins at 7 p.m. in the commission meeting room at the courthouse. The candidates in race are Glenn Allen, Ashley Gilles and Michael Turner. Questions are sought from voters. E-mail your questions to lamarvoic- es@gmail.com. Subscribe. Your name goes on the label in this box 96852 78853 PHOTOS: THE HERALD GAZETTE/WALTER GEIGER It???s Homecoming Week at LC and the public festivities begin with Thursday???s parade which will form up at the Gordon College parking lots at 4:15 p.m. and roll through town at 5 p.m. Homecoming royalty will be crowned at halftime of the homecoming game against Pike County which has been moved to Thursday at 7:30 p.m. due to the approach of Hurricane Ian. The homecoming court (top photo) includes (front, l-r) Ky???mora Buckner, Adalyn Williams, Nikilah Al-Nas, Erireyonna Buckner, Makayla Padgett, Karmen Barkley; (middle, l-r) Rocio Sanchez, Haley Hebert, Jada Barronton; (back, l-r) Takey- dra Lyons, Emma Eubanks and Ally Bloxham. The homecoming king nominees are (bottom photo, l-r) Demari Carter, Ja???Darius Banks, AJ Haygood and Deontae Brown. Floyd re signs Milner council post WALTER GEIGER news@barnesville.com Michael Floyd abruptly resigned his post on the Milner city council at the end of the regu lar meet ing Sept. 19. Floyd indicated he was step ping down to avoid Milner being hit with blowback from something he is about to undertake. ???A few months ago, 1 started something and 1 have to see that something through for moral reasons. And, in order for me to do that, 1 can no longer serve on the city council... Because of what is going to result and the response out of what is going to occur, Milner will be tar geted if 1 remain as a city council member. Effective now, right now, tonight, 1 resign... 1 do not want to set Milner up for the gos sip circles to bash or the county to treat differently because of what I am doing or exposing,??? Floyd said. When asked what he was planning after the meeting, Floyd responded, ???As soon as the paperwork is filed, you will know all about it. Everyone will know all about it.??? Floyd was elected to the council in November, 2020, defeating Helen Palacios. Milner city administra tor Tausha Grose said a special election will likely be held to fill his post. She had plans to discuss the matter with elections su perintendent Anita Reid. County asks court to shut down horse track WALTER GEIGER news@barnesville.com The Lamar County commission has filed suit in superior court seeking to shut down the horse racing and event venue Rancho de Centenario on High Falls Park Road. The suit was filed Sept. 19. On August 15, the coun ty served ranch owner/op erator Brutz English with a cease and desist order. In his response English declared he would not comply. In the court filing, the county alleges English has violated restrictions placed on the event center regarding amplified noise multiple times. The county also claims it has the po lice power to shutter the facility in order to protect ???the health, safety and welfare??? of its citizens. The county is asking the court to issue an injunc tion to immediately halt events at the venue. It is also asking the court to declare the venue a public nuisance and to shut it down permanently. No initial court date for the pending legal battle has been set. FLOYD ??2022 THE HERALD GAZETTE, BARNESVILLE, LAMAR COUNTY, GA 30204, 770.358.NEWS