Newspaper Page Text
'TqL. 101 NOT 29 PERRY, HOUSTON COUNTY, GA.,51069, THURSDAY, JULY 29,1971 TWENTY SIX PAGES
■ Call 987-1823 1
There are two bad “pot holes” in the street right
at the intersection of Morningside Drive and
Kings Chapel Road. These aren’t the only bad
holes on many of our streets, either. I would like to
know if and when the City intends to patch up
these tire busters.
8.A., Perry
Councilman John Barton told Action Line that
those holes will be patched before you read this in
the paper. A new compaction unit that does a
better job of patching, thatwill last longer, should
have arrived on the promised delivery date of
July 10 and when Action Line checked on your
question last Friday it had still not arrived.
However, Barton said, it should arrive any day,
and the City will start an intensive program of
patching those holes in our streets.
"WRITE ACTION LINE”
I’m told that I’m not allowed to place a trailer
on a lot I own here in Perry, that all trailers have
to be in trailer parks now, but there is a trailer
next to Ray Pest Control on Highway 41 in the city
limits. Why is it allowed there and yet I can’t put
one on my lot?
P.A., Perry
Carlos Merritt, Building Inspector for the City
of Perry, explained to Action Line that Section
SOI of the Comprehensive Land Development
Ordinance (or the city adopted July 13, 1970
states: “A single mobile home unit, or travel
railer, may be used for an office in a subdivision
iy the developer, or for other SPECIAL PUR
POSES, for a period not to exceed six (6) months
upon written approval from the council.”
The mobile home you mentioned was placed there
by Grant Heller, and the Perry City Council ap
proved a six months permit for it on Tuesday, July
20, with the assenting votes of all councilmen
except Dot Roughton, who voted against the
permit being issued.
"ACTION LINE GETS ACTION”
I have read in your paper in the past that the
Chamber of Commerce was trying to get some
more doctors in Perry. I have not seen any yet and
was wondering what the story is on this im
portant matter. Can Action Line give me an an
swer?
R.M. Perry
Marion Brown, chairman of the Chamber of
Commerce Committee that is working on the
medical situation in Perry, said that efforts are
?oing on constantly to persuade doctors to come to
erry. Prospects are interviewed and en
tertained, shown our town, and some have ex
pressed interest. However, some are still in
military service and some are still completing
heir internship or residency and are not available
p erry has several students in medical school,
wo at Duke and two at the University of Georgia,
and it is hoped they will come back home to
Practice. None of this helps the situation at
Present, though.
There are several major problems. One is that
ew doctors want to go into general practice,
Preferring to specialize. Perry just isn’t large
nou gh for specialists such as surgeons.
Another problem is the expense involved in
se ting up a new practice alone. After the years
_ent in medical school, finances are depleted.
en a clinic or group of doctors offers a new
L°. u " g doctor such an attraction guarantee as
ami h * S f * rst year » and he has do is walk in
start practicing, small towns just can’t
compete.
Brown said that he and Elwyn McKinney,
xecutive Vice President of the Chamber of
u ornmer ce, have been to the State Department of
calth for suggestions, and have about come to
that they must either attract two
ctors to start together, or the doctors already
. re mus t open up the opportunity for newcomers
f °me in with them to get started, or Perry may
year 3 Ser * ous cr * s A s medically in the next few
The Houston Home Journal
“The Perry Area’s Favorite Newspaper For The Past 100 Years”
Special Home Journal Report
Houston Prison Camp,
Does County Need It?
County Prison Camp Complex On Kings Chapel Road
Camp Meet Here Will Draw 2,800 |
By Bobby Branch
Members of Christ’s
Sanctified Holy Church,
about 2,800 strong, will begin
arriving in Perry Friday for
the annual camp meeting
that begins officially with a
welcome service Saturday at
7:30 p.m.
Church members will
Ochlahatchee Sets ’Fun Day’ Sat.
The second annual “Fun
Day” at Ochlahatchee Park
has been scheduled for
Saturday, July 31. The
purpose of “Fun Day” is to
raise interest in the park and
a little money. Profits from
the games and food enjoyed
by the hundreds of members
and their families will go for
improvements to the park.
Among the activities
sponsored by participating
clubs will be cake walks,
Perryans Will Pay $176,250
At Post Office This Year
How much more will Perry residents and local
business establishments have to pay for postal
services this year than last?
An estimate, based upon their expenditures in
prior years, is now available. It shows that they
will have to fork up an additional $30,590 in the
next 12 months.
The added cost, which comes to about 21 per
cent, will result from rate increases put into effect
recently by the newly constituted U.S. Postal
Service.
The service, created last year under the Postal
Reorganization Act, replaces the former Post
Office Department. It is now a semi-autonomous
body in the form of a government corporation,
removed from Congressional control.
The purpose is to improve mail service and to
put it on a self-sustaining basis, financially.
The increase in rates, which became effective
on May 16th, was intended to reduce the annual
operating deficit and to permit a start on an
ambitious modernization program.
Under the new rates, the Postal Service expects
arrive from all the
Southeastern states and
begin filling up many of the
motel rooms here and
several hundred will be
staying in cabins and homes
at the campground site
during the week long camp
meeting.
Many improvements have
sack races, pony rides, hay
rides, bingo, horseshoe
throwing, bicycle rodeos,
baseball targets, badminton
contest, tennis tournaments,
dunking machine, diving for
gold fish, greased water
melon contest, watermelon
eating contest, bubble gum
contest, cookies, pies, and
homemade ice cream for
sale, free watermelon cut
ting at 5:00 p.m. and many
more.
Barbecue Plates at $1.50
been made at the cam
pgrounds since last year’s
annual meeting, including
remodeling of the main
meeting hall, dining room
and several other buildings.
The buildings have also been
air-conditioned. The younger
members of the church have
also been busy all year in a
and barbecue sandwiches
and hot dogs will be sold at
the concession stand from
11 a.m. til 2 and again from 5
til 8 p.m. Tickets are on sale
now and will also be
available Sat. at the
clubhouse. Swimming fee for
the day will be only 50 cents
for adults and 25 cents for
children for members and
their guests. Remember
Sat, July 31st is Fun Day at
Ochlahatchee Park.
Come out and support your
park.
its total revenue will be $1.45 billion more than in
1970, with the great bulk of the rise coming from
first class letter mail, which has gone from 6 cents
to 8 cents.
What this amounts to, for the Perry resident
who mails an average of one letter a day, is $7.30
more per year.
For commercial mailers who use second class,
chiefly newspaper and magazine publishers, the
rate hike is also huge -about 20 percent.
Much of the additional $1.45 billion will be
needed, it is stated, for pay increases for the
750,000 postal workers.
The latest figures released by the government
show a total of $145,660 spent in Perry per year for
postal services.
During the current fiscal year, it is estimated, it
will rise to $176,250.
Despite the $1.45 billion hike that the Postal
Service will be getting this year, it will suffice
only for part of its needs, leaving little leeway for
modernization. More money will be needed in the
future for that purpose, it states.
massive project to build a
year-round recreation park
and lake at the church
grounds site.
Rev. Paul Merritt of
Augusta, told The Home
Journal today that this
year’s meeting will place a
special emphasis on inviting
people from the Perry area
to take part in the camp
meeting. Rev. Merritt said
local people are invited to
join them for services
There will be 4 services
daily during the week.
Prayer service at 7 a.m.
regular service at 10:30
a.m.; young people’s service
at 3 p.m. ; evening services
at 7:30 p.m.
The campground was
established 5 miles north of
Perry on highway 41 in 1938.
The complex includes a
church building, cafeteria,
dormitories, more than 100
cabins and homes, a chapel,
cemetery and medical care
home for the aged.
Now Has 51
Prisoners
By Bobby Branch
The Houston County public
works camp, or ‘county
stockade’, as it was called
when it first opened in 1941,
has been supplying the
majority of the county’s
labor force for a number of
different type jobs for more
than three decades.
The county work camp
located on Kings Chapel
Road, now has a total of 51
prisoners, who help pave and
re-surface roads, clear right
of-ways, do grading work on
county property, paint and
v help fix-up county
buildings, clean out ditches
£ on county roads ... And you
name it. The county work
* camp does it if it has
something to do with work
>•: getting done in the county.
County work camps,
Houston included, have
come under fire in recent
years because some officials
in counties that had work
camps figured they would be
better off without them. It
seems now that Houston
Teenagers
Rally Here
For Drive-In
300 Sign
Petitions
By Bobby Branch
A group of Perry
teenagers have come out in
strong support of the Perry
drive-in in the midst of a
controversy here between
drive-in owner J. H.
Thompson and the Perry
City Council.
The drive-in was granted a
30 day temporary license by
the City Council this month
(which expires Aug. 9) with
a stern warning from some
Council members that the
drive-in owner install a
screen or ‘blind’ that will
keep the movie screen from
being seen from highway
341. Council had a long and
heated discussion over the
drive-in license and Mayor
Malcolm Reese had to split a
3 to 3 vote by casting his
ballot in favor of granting
the license to the drive-in.
Councilmen Dot Roughton,
James McKinley and John
Barton voted at the time not
to issue a license to the drive
in while Councilmen Alton
Hardy, Frank Leonard and
Dan Britton favored gran
ting the 30 day license.
County officials don’t feel
that way ... At least not all of
them. The Houston work
camp “more than pays its’
way” County Clerk Roy H.
(Sonny Watson told the
Home Journal.)
The budget for the fiscal
year 1971-72 recently
adopted by the County
Commissioners shows
$56,378 allocated for the
operation of the public work
camp. That amount of
money goes for salaries, (the
camp employs 16 persons
including Warden Allen
Stone and Deputy Warden
Ray Wheelus), food and
housing for prisoners,
building and grounds
maintenance, and other
expenses directly connected
with the prisoners.
Elsewhere in the budget is
road additions and im
provements that totals
$172,972. That part of the
budget is also connected with
the work camp since the
money is used to improve
and pave new roads and
maintain county roads.
County Warden Allen
Stone said that if the County
didn’t have the work camp
CONT’ ON PAGE 6
The owner of the drive-in
has not yet installed a ‘blind’
but told The Home Journal
that he has bamboo planted
along the perimeter of his
theater that will form a
natural blind in the next few
months. Council will have to
make a decision on the
matter at their next
scheduled meeting Tuesday
night.
While all this has been
going on, a group of Perry
teenagers, who want the
drive-in to stay open, have
been carrying petitions
around Perry, Fort Valley
and other towns in the area,
getting them signed by
people who sympathize with
the drive-in owner. The local
teenagers’ petition, which
has about 300 names on it,
was brought to The Home
Journal this week and a
spokesman for the Perry
young People asked that it
be published. The letter,
which was attached to the
petition, is printed under the
letters to the editor column
in this week’s paper.
However, the names of all
those who signed the petition
(or letter) are not printed
because of the obvious space
problem. But anyone
wanting to see the letter and
names can do so by coming
by the Home Journal office.