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The Houston Home Journal
Published Every Thursday At Perry, Georgia- - - A Certified Georgia City
VOL 105 NO. 43 PERRY, HOUSTON COUNTY, GEORGIA, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23, 1975
Construction Set For Jan. 24
McKinley Announces New
\
Downtown Area Funding
Perry AAayor James O.
AAcKinley announced this
\ldek that the city has been
granted an additional
$14,600 to assist in the
resurfacing of Carroll
Street through downtown
Perry and in the con
struction of new, brick
sidewalks. The project is
part of the joint effort by
the City of Perry and the
Perry Redevelopment
Authority to revitalize the
central business district of
Perry.
AAcKinley said the ad
ditional grants came as a
result of meetings in
Atlanta last Thursday with
De/jA. of Transportation
Director Tom AAoreland
and Governor George
Busbee. AAayor AAcKinley,
State Representative
Larry Walker,
Redevelopment Authority
Chairman Lewis AAeeks,
Vice Chairman Don
Parkinson, Treasurer Billy
Bledsoe and former
chairman W.G, AAullins
met with the + wo state
officials seeking additional
funds for the work
downtown.
initial grant
amounted to a little more
than $17,000 for the work
downtown but the new
grant brings the total to
more than $31,000. Half of
the new grant came from
Turn Your Clocks
Back This Saturday
If you have been wondering when we go off
Daylight Savings Time and begin observing
Eastern Standard Time, the date is this Sunday,
October 26.
what you do is this. Sunday, get up at 2:00
A.m. and turn your clocks and watches back one
hour. That’s the exact time the change takes
place, but your best bet will be to turn your clocks
back Saturday night when you go to bed. If you
don’t, you’ll be one hour early or late for church.
Sunday morning --- it’s early.
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Sun City Fashions
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This is the Mullins Construction Co. of Perry
rendering of how the Sun City Fashion Store in
downtown Perry will look after the extensive
renovation process on the front of the building is
complete. The building is owned by Perry
Redevelopment Authority vice chairman J. Don
Parkinson and is one of several buildings slated
the Dept, of Tran
sportation and half came
from Governor Busbee's
"emergency fund".
Mayor AAcKinley stated,
"We are indeed grateful
for these additional grants
to help fund our downtown
projects and for the efforts
of Rep. Larry Walker In
helping us receive these
additional funds for the
street and sidewalk work
Perry Grants Store To
Close Doors On Nov. 29
The 50,000 square foot
Grant City Store in Perry
will close earlier than had
been anticipated last week.
The Home Journal has
learned that the store will
close down at the end of the
day on Saturday,
November 29. In a news
story in The HHJ last
week, the date of
December 24 had been
published.
Don Simmons, local
Grants manager, said all
merchandise in the store is
now marked down 20
More Remodeling Downtown
in the downtown area."
WORK TO BEGIN
IN JANUARY
AAcKinley further an
nounced that the resur
facing of Carroll Street and
the sidewalk work will
begin in early January.
The mayor said new
contracts with the ad
ditonal funding will be let
in the next few days with a
beginning date of con
struction in January typed
percent over what much of
the stock had already been
marked down for pre-
Christmas sales
promotions. Grants closing
will leave some 20
Perryans jobless besides
an empty building in the
anchor store at the Grant
Plaza Shopping Center.
Perry AAayor James
AAcKinley and Chamber of
Commerce executive vice
president, E I wyn
McKinney, both said steps
have been taken to help
locate a new business in
the Grants building.
Capricorn Records of
AAacon, owners of the
shopping center, have
reportedly already begun
to interview prospective
businesses to locate in the
sprawling store building.
One chain operation that
has been mentioned is the
T.G. and Y Discount
Stores, a top notch
southern department store
now operating in a number
of South and AAiddle
Georgia communities, the
closest to Perry being in
Eastman, Ga.
AAayor James AAcKinley
said, "I am very con
cerned over the closing of
Perry's largest retail store
and the jobs that will be
h i >-4 c. u e <, -p
for extensive renovations over the next few
months as part of the total revitalization of the
central business district. This building is now
under renovation and will be complete in about
two weeks. Watch The Home Journal in coming
weeks for additional announcements about other
buildings to be renovated.
into the contracts.
AAcKinley said, "We did
not want to begin con
struction right away
because we were afraid the
process would disrupt
Christmas shopping
downtown and interfere
with our planned olde
fashioned Christmas
celebration."
The work to begin in
January will include the
resurfacing on Carroll
lost. I hope that efforts now
underway to locate
another store in the
shopping center wiil prove
fruitful. We are certainly
going to concentrate our
efforts on this to insure the
sound future of the Grant
Plaza Shopping Center."
PROBLEMS
BEGAN IN '73
According to Newsweek
magazine, the W.T, Grant
Co. is the retail mer
chandise industry's
foremost business failure
and the second largest
collapse, after the Penn
Central Railroad, in the
history of American
business.
What started out as a
five and dime store around
the turn of the century
eventually grew to become
a $l.B billion a year giant
and the ninth largest retail
merchandiser in America.
The straw that broke the
camel's back was ex
pansion. Grants expanded
faster than any other
major retail chain in
recent years, opening new
and larger stores in bat
ches and found itself
strapped financially when
rapidly-increasing interest
rates caused a tremendous
drain on the company's
Street from the Qwik Stop
at the railroad tracks to
Swift Street. Brick
sidewalks will be installed
and increased in width by
18 inches. Angle parking
wilt be installed on both
sides of the street at in
tervals. Trees and shrubs
will also be planted along
both sides of the street and
park benches will be
placed along the street for
shoppers.
working capital.
In an effort to right its
financial ship, the chain
losed 126 unprofitable
stores the bst year and
a half and concentrated its
efforts on mproving the
remaining stores, in
cluding Perry. During
that time the company
whacked some 12,000
people trom its payroll
leaving it with 60,000
employees in 1,069 stores
in 40 states. Rapid-fire
negotiations with banks
earlier this year staved off
further complications by
giving the chain its needed
cash flow. Grants,
however, as a result of
eroding confidence among
its suppliers, was caught
with too little merchandise
on its shelves when the
critical back to school
selling season began.
Continuing efforts by the
company's leaders failed
and a staggering $289
million in losses in the past
year and a half brought on
the first stage of
bankruptcy. The company
plans to stage its
comeback with the stores
still open after the first of
the year.
Trick
Or Treat
Set. Oct. 30
The Perry City
Council has set Thur
sday night, October .10,
as “Trick or Treat
night" in Perry. In
making the decision, the
hours of 7:00 P.M. until
ft: 30 P.M were set aside
for the trick-or-treaters.
City Councilman Gene
Smith urged parents to
tell their children of
times set aside, and at
the same time asked
that parents and
motorists use “extra
caution ” while the
children are crossing
city streets.
I
Getting Ready For Bazaar I
Ihree Pilot Club of Perry members crocheted last-minute afghans for this I
Saturday’s Pilot Club Arts and Crafts Bazaar at Ochlahatchee Clubhouse on I
Frank Satterfield Road. Left to right are Norma Wilson, Betty Richerson. and I
Jewell Mcßae. The Bazaar will open at 10:00 A.M. and be in operation until U
6:00 P.M. Articles of every description will be on sale at the Bazaar. I
Arts And Crafts
Bazaar This Saturday
The Pilot Club of Perry
is holding an Arts and
Crafts Bazaar this
Saturday at the
Ochlahatchee Clubhouse
on Frank Satterfield Road.
The Bazaar begins at 10:00
A AA. and will be open until
six P.AA.
On display for sale will
be items of all descrip
tions. There will be arts.
City Council Calls
For Special Election
The City of Perry will
hold a special election to
fill the unexpired term of
Councilman Gordon
Scarborough on December
2, the same time as the
general election for AAayor
and three other Council
posts. Voters desiring to
register to vote in the
December 2 election must
do so by October 28, the
date when the registration
books will be closed.
Tuesday night at the City
Council meeting, Scar
borough officially tendered
his resignation, effective
at midnight that night. He
resigned effective Tuesday
night so that the special
election to fill his post can
be held in conjunction with
the general election
already scheduled.
A special election or
dinance, which begins in
this week's Home Journal
for four weeks, carries the
specifics for the election
necessary to fill Scar
borough's Post Three. The
ordinance sets out
qualifying for the par
ticular post to begin on
November 3 to November
14.
The section which
caused the change in
registration for voting
deadline states, "The
registrar shall cease
taking applications from
persons desiring to
register to vote in this
election at the close of the
registrar's business (5
o'clock P.AA.) on October
28, 1975."
City Attorney Larry
Walker explained that
state law REQUIRES that
registration to vote in a
crafts, gifts, a bakery
shop, a pastry shelf, a
'White Elephant" room
and more. The Pilot Club
members have worked
many hours in preparing
the merchandise, the vast
majority of which is hand
made by Club members.
Just a sampling of the
types of items which will
be offered for sale will
include: milk strainers,
special election be closed
five days after the election
is called. He added that
today's (Thursday) paper
carrying the election or
dinance for Scarborough's
Post Three constitutes the
"call", so therefore the
registration must close on
October 28 (Section 34A 507
of the Georgia Code An
notated).
After explaining the
ordinance to the Council
members, Walker
suggested they ulso close
registration for the general
election on October 28. He
said this would eliminate
confusion and would
prevent persons from
being able to vote in the
general election (for
AAayor and Posts Four,
Five, and Six) but not in
the special election (Post
Three).
Walker also «aid if that
occurred, two ballots
would be necessary. The
Council agreed with
Walker's suggestion and
passed a motion setting his
idea into effect.
A few moments before,
Councilman Scarborough,
in the course of his com
mittee reports, officially
P.H.S. Sets Open House
Perry High School will have open house for
parents on Thursday at 7:30. The Perry High
Chorus will begin the program at 7:30 in the school
cafeteria. From eight to nine the teachers will be
in their rooms to meet parents. The program will
conclude with the Perry High Band performing a
mini concert in the gym. The chorus is under the
direction of Mrs. Janette Anderson and the band is
directed by Gil Acosta. All interested parents are
urged to attend.
tablecloths, towels, dried
arrangements, crocheted
afghans, potholders,
candles of all designs,
bakery treats, throw
cushions, and veritably
almost anything
Funds earned from the
Bazaar will go to help
support the ladles civic
club's many fine com
munity projects.
announced his resignation
from City Council. His
term expires December 31,
1977.
Perry AAayor James
AAcKinley introduced an
interesting note into the
discussion of Post Three,
He pointed out that
whoever wins the election
for that post, and that post
only, can be immediately
sworn into office and
assume a seat, thus ser
ving a month longer than
ail other persons elected on
December 2.
AAcKinley added, "This
Is a coincidence in that I
served on Council on Post
Three before becoming
AAayor and I too was
elected to fill an unexpired
term on that post. I served
an additional month
myself."
Attorney Walker chipped
in, "I have been serving as
City Attorney for about
three and a half years and
I have had a lifetime of
special elections in that
time." The Council has
seen numerous
resignations in the past
few years, for various
reasons.