Newspaper Page Text
PCHS boys and girls cross country
teams place first and second in the
region, head to state championship.
See page 1B
Daylight Saving Time will end this
Sunday. Set your clocks back and
check batteries in safety devices.
PIKE COUNTY
JOURNAL REPORTER
ONE DOLLAR
www.pikecountygeorgia.com
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2021
PIKE'S PEEK
Peach State
to host fly-in
event Nov. 6
The Ron Alexander
Youth Aviation Pro
gram at Peach State
Aerodrome will host
the 15th annual Vet
eran’s Day Celebration
and fly-in Saturday,
Nov. 6 from 9 a.m. to 4
p.m. A special program
to honor veterans
will start at 12:55 p.m.
and include a veteran
recognition ceremony,
patriotic music and a
flyover.
“Make sure to bring
the entire family, as we
will have plenty for the
kids to do and helicop
ter rides,” said Han
nah Wilson. “The Jim
Hoak hangar will be
open for tours and to
learn more about our
unique youth aviation
program. All proceeds
benefit our Ron Alex
ander Youth Aviation
Program.”
Post 197 plans
program at
11 a.m. Nov. 11
American Legion
Post 197 will host the
annual Pike Veterans
Day Observance pro
gram at 11 a.m. Thurs
day, Nov. 11 on the
south side of the Pike
County courthouse
square in Zebulon.
See POST 197 page 2A
Molena officer shot in neck identified
The GB1 is investigat
ing an officer-involved
shooting that happened
on 320 Luckie Street, in
Atlanta on Monday, Oct.
25 at 9:52 p.m. One man
died in the incident, and
a Molena Police Depart
ment reserve police of
ficer was injured after he
was shot in the neck. The
Molena Police Depart
ment has 17 reserve
officers.
The preliminary in
formation indicates that
off-duty Molena Police
Department reserve
police officer Dan Wilcox
was working with ATL
Plus, a parking enforce
ment company. The
officer was sitting in his
patrol vehicle when he
was approached by a
man who shot a firearm
at the officer, hitting Wil
cox in the neck. During
the incident, the officer
shot his firearm, hitting
Jamon Darryl McCall, 25,
of Lithonia, who died at
the scene.
Agents on scene found
McCall in possession of a
firearm. The officer was
being treated at a local
area hospital for non-life-
threatening injuries.
The GB1 wifi conduct
an independent investiga
tion and once complete,
it will be provided to the
Fulton County District At
torney’s Office for review.
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE GEORGIA BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
A car is covered in Atlanta after off-duty Molena Police Depart
ment reserve officer Dan Wilcox was shot in the neck Oct. 25.
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PHOTOS BY RACHEL McDANIEL / PIKE COUNTY JOURNAL REPORTER
Pike County citizen Walker Chandler looks out over the Flint River at Flat Shoals bridge where a driveway
was built across the public access road and a large wall of rocks placed right at the river’s edge.
Public access to Flint River blocked
*
Fisherman John Hogberg looks down a former access road to the Flint.
The access area next to
the Flat Shoals Road bridge
was blocked off last week
as a driveway was built
directly across it with a five-
foot wall of rocks right at
the water’s edge. The area
was the only public access
to the Flint River in Pike and
has been a gathering area
for citizens for hundreds of
years. In the 1800s, families
in the area would travel
to Flat Shoals for picnics
almost every weekend.
“This is one of my favor
ite places in the world. The
geography of the river is so
unique here. It’s rare, it’s
special and it’s just beauti
ful. There’s nothing like the
sound of water rushing over
the rocks,” said John Hogberg
who visits the area often.
According to county man
ager Brandon Rogers, the
county commission did not
approve an attempt to block
the public access road,
however a driveway permit
was granted to The Shoals
subdivision HOA president
Thomas Morgan.
“The county is looking
into what our options are.
The county has been in
formed that the area is part
state right of way, county
right of way and private
ownership. We are looking
into who owns what and
how we can move forward,”
said Rogers.
A notice was posted Oct.
29 at the site by Pike County
Building and Zoning, order
ing work to cease and desist
as soon as possible.
County attorney Rob
Morton noted this has been
an issue many times over
the years and the property
lines were last identified and
title searches done around
2009 when riprap rocks
were placed at the water to
keep people from getting
out beside the bridge.
“I’m not aware of another
public access other than that
one in the county. All the ac
cess to the Flint River in Pike
County is on private land,”
he said. “This is in the right
away and from past experi
ence, the county’s right of
way went to the fence line.”
Former commissioner
Roosevelt Willis said when
he was in office in 2009, he
and other commissioners
voted not to allow the ac
cess to be blocked.
“1 think citizens should
have a right to get to the
river, that’s why 1 voted for
them not to block it when
1 was a commissioner,” he
said. “Now it’s blocked. The
driveway won’t allow any
one to get to the river.”
Tom Morgan is an attor
ney who has lived in The
Shoals subdivision for more
than 10 years and he owns
the property adjacent to the
former access road by the
Flat Shoals Road bridge. He
said the Flint River through
Pike is not a navigable river
in the legal sense because
it does not support freight
traffic as the law states.
“1 have owned substantial
river front property in the
past, and am still privileged
to own river property today.
1 was a member of the River
Keepers organization in its
inception. 1 fully support
kayakers and floating down
the river and have done
miles of it,” Morgan said.
See ACCESS DENIED page 3A
Get election
results online
Local Nov. 2 election results will be
available after the Journal Reporter’s
press deadline so check out pikecounty
georgia.com for election results.
Pike County and
city voters will
elect several coun
cil members and
decide whether
or not to have an
Education Special
Purpose Local Option Sales Tax.
In Zebulon, District 2 Post 2 can
didates Emily Morris and incumbent
Anthony Mark Nalls faced off for the
council seat. Incumbent council member
William Thomas was unopposed for the
District 1, Post 1 seat.
In Williamson, incumbent Miranda
‘Randy’ Martin faced Angela Martin for the
Post 2 seat and incumbent John T. Brown
was unopposed for the Post 3 seat.
SPECIAL PHOTO
Callista Clark will travel from Pike to 16 major
U.S. cities, as well as three stops in New York
before she heads overseas for three perfor
mances in the C2C: Country to Country tour.
Callista set for
16-city U.S. tour,
overseas shows
Callista Clark wifi head out on her first
major, 16-city tour in January as she joins
Maddie and Tae on the CMT Next Women
of Country Tour Presents: All Song No
Static Tour. She wifi
perform with Scotty
McCreery Jan. 27 in
Huntington, NY, Jan.
28 in Middletown, NY
and Jan. 29 in Bensa-
lem, PA. She wifi per
form internationally
for the first time at the
C2C: Country to Coun
try Festival in March
in London, Glasgow and Dublin. Her
single - It’s ‘Cause 1 Am - is currently in the
top 25 on the Country Radio charts.
“1 can’t wait to hit the road with some
amazing country artists! I love getting to
meet new people and being able to share
my music with a different audience each
night,” she said.
See CALLISTA page 2A
Callista Clark sings
the National Anthem.
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ASLEY
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