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The Houston Home Journal
VOL. 104 NO. 25
Civic, Elected Leaders Meet
Perry Is Scene Os
“Summit” Meeting
4
The Home Journal learned
this week a joint meeting was
held at the New Perry Hotel
last Saturday morning bet
| ‘City In Good Shape’ |
I Mayor McKinley Says I
Perry Mayor James McKinley told City Council
Tuesday night the City is ending the 73-74 budget
year this July in “good shape”. He said with
careful spending for the remainder of June, the
*City will go into the new budget year July 1, in the
“black”.
McKinley pointed out that for the 11 month
period between July 1,1973, and May 31, 1974, the
City has total expenditures of $1,499,160 and that
the income for the 11 months is $1,796,928. He said
for the total 12 month period $1,609,503 was
budgeted.
The Mayor said, “I just want everyone to know
we are operating this City in the black and it will
be our cooperative efforts to continue to do so in
the future. However, we are going to have to
spend wisely and keep a close watch on our in
come but we should not have any problems.”
Casey Gets Bombarded
Roughton Charges City
‘Policy’ Inconsistent
Perry City Councilman D.
K. (Dot) Roughton “Lashed"
out at one of his colleagues on
Ihe Council Tuesday night,
Councilman Henry Casey,
charging he was not doing his
job in the recreation depart
ment.
Houghton’s outburst was
prompted when Casey asked
lor the approval of Council to
pay a bill of $144 for the
painting and cleaning of the
pool at the Creekwood
Recreation Park, a mostly
black recreation park in the
subdivision here
IL ‘Cool Henry ’
"Cool Henry ”, Councilman Henry Casey listens
closely as Councilman D. K. (Dot) Houghton
S lowered the boom on him at the City Council
' meeting Tuesday night. Houghton charged Casey
M wasn’t doing his job at the recreation park at
" Creekwood. Casey said "calmly" he was.
Perry And Houston County's Independent Newspaper With An Independent Voice
ween business leaders and
officials from Warner Robins,
Perry, Centerville and
representatives from the
financed by local, state and
some federal funds.
Roughton fold Casey that he
(Casey) was not aware of the
employees at the park and
that he wasn't keeping up with
all that’s going on at Ihe park.
Casey told Roughton he was
doing all he had been assigned
to do. Roughton said the pool
was painted tree last year by
volunteers and that he could
not understand why the City
had to pay for it this year.
Casey explained to Roughton
that the money is budgeted
and that it could not be ex
PERRY, HOUSTON COUNTY, GEORGIA, THURS., JUNE 20. 1974
Houston County Commission.
The informal breakfast
meeting was held, according
to what The Home Journal
learned, “to discuss ways in
which a better line of com
munication can be established
between the municipalities in
(he County and the Houston
County Commission.
A source close to The Home
Journal said the meeting was
probably prompted by the
recent controversy over
moving the county seat from
Perry to Warner Robins and
the rumor that a legal suit will
be filed by a group of
Perryans against the County
Commissioners.
Those attending the meeting
from Perry included
businessmen Francis Nunn,
Malcolm Reese and Perry
Chamber of Commerce
president Harold Jennings
and Chamber executive vice
president Elwyn McKinney.
Perry Mayor James McKinley
(old The Home Journal he was
invited to the meeting but was
unable to attend.
Attending the meeting from
Warner Robins was Mayor
pected for anyone to do the job
free.
Roughton charged, “We
change our policy around here
from one week to the next and
that’s what I am upset about. I
think it is pure sorriness on the
part of some of our Coun
cilmen who are not willing to
devote Ihe time to the job and
who would rather just pay
somebody lo do it.”
Roughton then got off on
another point concerning the
city street dept., digging at
Casey all the lime. At this
point Mayor James McKinley
told Roughton he would have
to stick to the subject at hand
and keep his remarks on the
motion to pay the $144. The
Mayor then gave Roughton
the opportunity to return at
Ihe end of the official business
of the meeting to make his
point.
Freshman Councilman
Gordon Scarborough Jr. (who
sits next lo Roughton on the
Council) asked him what the
street dept, had to do with the
motion on the floor about the
recreation dept. Roughton
then told Scarborough he
could talk about what he
wanted 10. He told the new
Councilman that he was
aware one of his campaign
promises was lo stop the
“heated discussions" on
Council but that he
(Roughton) would make his
point without being stopped by
anyone.
Mayor James McKinley put
a halt on all the discussion and
called the question on paying
the $144 and all Councilmen
voted in favor of the motion
except Councilman Roughton.
Council then went on to
approve the hiring of Coach
Willie Street as park director
for the summer at a salary of
$1,500 for a 13 week period.
Councilman Henry Casey
reported the park and pool is
now open to the public.
Edward Bryant, attorney Roy
Cowart and businessmen Earl
Elliott and Gene Wall.
Houston County Commission
Chairman Frank Rozar and
vice chairman Charles Carter
represented the county at the
meeting.
Malcolm Reese, president of
Security Federal Savings,
upon being contacted by The
Home Journal, said, “It was a
very useful meeting in my
opinion and one in which a lot
of sound discussion evolved on
how we can work more in a
cooperative effort all over the
county for the future good of
all Houston Countians.”
Reese indicated there will
probably be future meetings
similar to Saturday’s get
together in an effort to open
the lines of communication all
over the county.
Sewage
Project Set
Councilman Alton Hardy
told Perry City Council
Tuesday night plans are
proceeding with a proposal to
construct an addition to the
City present 1-million gallon a
day capacity sewage treat
ment plant to 3-million gallons
a day at a cost of $700,000,
Hardy said he would meet this
Friday with representatives of
several bonding companies to
set up bonds to help finance
(he project. A portion of the
money will come in state and
federal grants and revenue
sharing monies and the rest
will be financed locally.
Councilman D.K. (Dot)
Rough ton questioned whether
or not the City needs to spend
the $700,000 at this time to
expand the sewage treatment
plant He said he had checked
the records recently and found
that (he present plant was
pumping some Vk million
gallons of sewage during
heavy rains. Roughton
suggested a $55,000 program
be undertaken to repair leaks
in old sewage lines around the
city to help “case” the
situation at the treatment
plant.
Hardy explained to
Roughton the expansion is
needed now and that if the city
puts off the expansion 2 or 3
more years the price will
probably rise by 50 percent.
Hardy said he would not be
in lavor of putting off the
expansion and also pointed out
Council has already
authorized the City’s con
sulting engineers, the firm of
Tribble and Richardson in
Macon, to draw plans for
approval of the En
vironmental Protection
Agency. Those plans are now
underway, according to
Hardy. Final approval of the
linancing will come up at a
later meeting.
Police Na City
One can never say that the Perry Police don’t
enforce the law. Last week they even gave city
garbage trucks tickets. On June 13, last Thursday,
the police log book shows three “expired motor
vehicle inspection sticker” tickets recorded as
given to a trio of the city’s garbage trucks.
Assistant police chief Roy Shellnut and officer
Talmadge Padgett were the “arresting” officers.
Drivers of the trucks were William H. Adams,
Arthur J. Leroy and William E. Bell.
qh »||Ml
Perryan Al Cook (second from right) was
selected Saturday as WPGA “Father of the Year”
in a contest sponsored by the radio station. Al’s
daughter, Shirley (third from left) wrote the
winning 25 words or less essay on why her father
should be named “FOTY”. Left to right are:
WPGA General Manager Jim Worrall, Albert Lee
County ‘Smells’ Out
New Garbage System
Houston County is about to
get into the garbage business.
Not selling it, but picking it up.
Tuesday morning the County
Commission heard Con
solidated Disposal Systems
official John Moore suggest an
approximate cost of 123
dumpsters and two trucks in
excess of SI2O,(MX), not in
cluding the costs of operating
a central landfill.
Moore brought a map with
him of a recent survey his
company conducted at the
request of the Commission.
The map showed 123 6-yard
capacity dumpsters located
all over the rural areas of
Houston County. No dumpster
was more than three miles
from another dumpster, and
the vast majority were placed
within a mile of any rural
resident.
Moore unveiled figures to
explain the use of, and
necessity for, 123 dumpsters.
He said that the average
person “uses” 1.25 pounds of
garbage per day. At an ap
proximate rural population of
21,000 in Houston County, this
amounts to an estimated
26,250 pounds of refuse per
day. In a week this totals
183,750 pounds.
Using twice a week pickup,
one hundred and twenty-three
dumpsters would be needed,
according to Moore's
calculations. He said that the
six-yard containers would
have side doors, thus limiting
"real” capacity to about five
and a half yards of refuse. The
Perry’s Dad of The Year
trucks would have a com
paction ratio of about four to
one, thus having a total gross
hauling capacity of about 124
uncompacted yards of refuse.
The massive metal dump
sters currently retail at about
$325 each. The trucks, of
which two would be needed,
cost upwards of $37,000. If the
county purchases 123 dump
sters and two trucks, over
SI2O,(MM) would be required.
County Commissioner Alton
Tucker made it clear that the
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Garbage Discussed
“A Bird’s Eye View” is what this picture shows, as County Commissioner
Alton Tucker (seated) views a Dempster solid waste management survey
map. At left is Consolidated Systems official John Moore, who is attempting to
sell the county about $120,000 in solid waste equipment. Houston County must
have a program underway by January of next year.
26 PAGES
Cook, Shirley Cook, Rose Cook (an HHJ
Columnist), Al Cook, and Annette Cook. The
entire family won tickets to the Atlanta Braves -
St. Louis Cardinals baseball game Sunday. Other
prizes included: steaks, a BBQ grill, use of a local
auto, a radio, gift certificates, and a billfold.
Commission was not enter
laining any thoughts of im
posing a garbage fee on rural
residents. He did say,
however, that fees might be
imposed on commercial use of
the dumpsters.
No funds are in the 1974-75
fiscal year budget for either
the dumpsters or the trucks.
But the Commission may go
ahead and buy trucks now if
they are available. This
possible action is con
templated because the gar
bage trucks are in scarce
supply.
Commission Clerk Sonny
Watson said that $66,990 was
in next year’s budget lor solid
waste management. But that
entire management is
budgeted for the landfill and
equipment. Watson said that
the Commission was still
seeking a slate grant to fund
purchase of the other needed
equipment. Last year Houston
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