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VgL. 106 NO. 49 PERRY. HOUSTON COUNTY. GEORGIA, THURSDAY DECEMBER 2. 1976 ~2 PAGES 2 SECTIONS
2 Million Visitors Expected In Area
Perry Faces Major
Tourism Impact
More than two million
(2,000,000) tourists are
expected to pour into the
once-sleepy little hamlet of
Plains, 55 miles southwest
of Perry. A majority of
, those tourists can be
diverted through Perry
and down the An
dersonville Trail, ac
cording to Perry Area
Chamber of Commerce
projections.
Tuesday morning more
than fifty Perry area motel
operators, officials and
businessmen gathered at
the Holiday Hall con
vention center at the
Holiday Inn of Perry to
hear a firsthand report on
Plains from Atlanta
consultant Doug Schwartz.
Also on the agenda were
remarks by Middle Flint
APDC planner Mickey
Holloway.
Three weeks ago the
Perry Area Chamber of
Commerce formed a
* committee to seek the best
way to capitalize on the
route from Perry to Plains.
Os course, Plains has
become national ly
famous as the residence of
President-Elect Jimmy
Carter.
Tuesday Chamber
*■ President Jim Geiger
appointed Perryan
Wendell Whipple to chair
the standing committee on
"Perry-The Pathway to
Plains”. Whipple is an
active Chamber member
and is a past president of
the organization.
The focus of the commit
tee will be twofold. First, it
will determine how Perry
can best reap benefits of
the vastly increased
tourism in southwest
i 4 Via Parade At 3 P . M.
I Santa Arrives
In Perry Sat.
Santa Claus will arrive
in Perry this Saturday,
Dec. 4, at 3 p.m. in the
annual Perry Christmas
4 parade. This year's parade
is under the sponsorship of
the Perry Moose Lodge.
Parade chairman Toney
Raffield said last minute
float and unit entries can
be accepted by calling
immediately, Walter
Rembisz at 987-1908 or
Kenson Vance at 987-2479.
Raffield said cash awards
will be made to the best
locally built Christmas
floats.
The parade will begin at
( Grant Plaza Shopping
I SANTA SAYS: TRY PERRY FIRST
The Houston Home Journal
Published Every Thursday At Perry, Georgia- - - A Certified Georgia City
Georgia. Second, how can
a unified effort among the
Andersonville Trail
communities attract 1-75
travelers.
Schwarts said the city of
Perry has a "unique op
portunity” because it is the
most logical place to exit 1-
75, when going south, to
reach Plains. He added
that 95-99 percent of all
Plains tourists stay there
only about two hours, and
come away disappointed.
Schwartz told the Perry
group that it should
capitalize on the more than
2.000 motel rooms inside
the city limits, and serve
as an overnight stopping
place for visitors. From
Perry the tourists could
travel In any direction to
various attractions. Sch
wartz concentrated on the
tourist attractions along
the Andersonville Trail
and Plains and back.
He stated, "there are
many misconceptions
about Plains. There are
almost no parking
facilities, no emergency
medical facilities, no
restrooms, no substantial
restaurants, and the
thousands of visitors there
daily are quite a burden
on the townspeople.”
Schwartz continued,
"The population is from 60-
-800, and each day about
2.000 tourists stream in for
a few hours. Two years
ago, in 1974, when Jimmy
Carter was Governor of
Georgia, the tourism was
perhaps 200 per year. You
could drive as fast as you
wanted through the town."
"Plains will have the
impact of a small Six
Flags. Six Flags Over
Center and proceed down
Sam Nunn Blvd. to Carroll
St. and make a left down
town, then to the fountain
at Meeting St. and left on
Main St. to the Eastgate
Shopping Center.
Raffield said the parade
will feature local floats,
marching units, Shrine
units, bands, and, of
course, the annual arrival
of Santa Claus at the end of
the parade with his sleigh
and reindeer. He Invites
everyone In the Perry area
to come to the parade and
join in the community
spirit to officially kick off
the 1976 Christmas season
in Perry.
To Visit Plains During 1977
Georgia annually attracts
3.5 million people. When
Carter is in town, the
tourists flock for a glimpse
of him," the consultant
added.
Typical Tourist
The typical Plains
sightseer comes from
either the Midwest or
Northeast United States.
"They come away let
down, and I don't know
what they expected."
That feeling of disap
pointment is one area
Perry can reap benefits if
properly promoted, ac
cording to Schwartz, He
said "They can be induced
to stop in Perry for a day.
You need to make their
experience a good one.
They don't expect good
food, and you can give it to
them."
if a gas station attendant
rudely says he doesn't
know how to get to Plains,
Schwartz says that tourist
and his friends are lost for
the future.
What Perry Can Do
Schwartz encouraged
the audience to allow their
Parking
Lot Open
Downtown
Mayor James McKinley
announced this week that
T.R. (Buck) Tolleson has
given the city permission
to use the old Perry Court
site on the corner of Ball
and Main Streets (across
from the New Perry Hotel)
for downtown parking
between now and
Christmas.
McKinley said, "This
area will provide many
parking spaces for
downtown area shoppers
and for those who will be
attending the Old
Fashioned Christmas at
the Crossroads events that
will get underway this
weekend."
The mayor further
added, "We are most
grateful to Buck Tolleson
for providing this ad
ditional parking space at
no cost and it is certainly
going to mean a great deal
to the downtown area
merchants as well as all
those who will be attending
the many fine Christmas
programs that have been
planned by the Old
Fashioned committee this
year."
Persons planning to be in
the downtown area for the
parade this weekend and
other events planned
Saturday and Sunday, are
urged to use the Perry
Court site for parking.
employees to visit Plains.
"They can speak more
fluently of If in fheir own
words."
The city should also
draw up brochures and
provide information to
state welcome centers
illustrating the fact Perry
is the "Gateway To
Plains", Schwartz said. He
emphasized the brochures
should include other places
to visit in the area, such as
Pabst, Warner Robins
AFB, and the Camellia
Gardens.
He told the group to
emphasize hospitality to
the stranger, citing the
fact that strangers might
some day want to move
into Perry.
An unusual feature of
Schwartz' remarks was
when he told the group to
set up farming tours for
the "yankees". "They
need to learn peanuts do
not grow on trees but in the
ground," he said to
laughter. He then con
fessed, "I once thought
they grew on trees
myself."
Mickey Holloway spoke
up to say that a recent fair
held In Andersonville (40
miles southwest of Perry)
attracted 130,000 visitors In
just two days.
Perry Mayor James
McKinley and several
Council members attended
the meeting. Guests in
cluded general manager of
Georgia Decor, Roger T
Thompson; Vernon Sweet
the regional Howard
Johnson's manager; and
Kellwood executive
George Matheson.
Shop At Home
‘Try Perry
Off To Big Start
The "Try Perry First"
Christmas promotion that
kicked off last week has
gone into full swing this
week as many Perry
merchants joined in a
united effort to get more
Christmas shoppers here
to Try Perry First this
season before shopping
elsewhere.
The promotion was given
to the merchants by The
Bank of Perry last
Tuesday at a special
meeting held at The
Holiday Inn. The
promotion includes special
buttons, posters and In
store signs to aid mer
chants in promoting
shopping in Perry first.
Some 34 merchants joined
in a special double page
advertisement in this
week's Home Journal on
pages 8 and 9A, that
features many specials for
this week. Other Perry
merchants not on the
double page are supporting
the "Try Perry First"
project.
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Doug Schwartz, (second fror\ right a tourism
expert from Atlanta, was in Perry Tuesday to
speak to a group of more than 100 Perry Area
Chamber of Commerce members and city of
ficials, to bring them up to date on the expected
impact on the Middle Georgia area of Plains, Ga.
and Jimmy Carter’s election to the Presidency.
Merchants Set Open House
Downtown area mer
chants and banking in
stitutions are opening their
doors wide this Sunday—
not for business -but to
show their appreciation to
their customers, in the
third annual merchants
open house here.
Mrs. Gail Brown, "Try
Perry First" coordinator
( for The Bank of Perry,
stated this week, "We at
the bank are genuinely
pleased with the response
to the "Try Perry First"
program, both from the
merchants and the many
shoppers in Perry who
have caught onto the idea.
We at the bank are not
trying to tell Perryans not
to shop elsewhere, but we
are simply urging people
to just "Try Perry First"
before shopping
elsewhere. After all,
money spent in Perry,
stays in Perry to help
promote a better com
munity and new and ex
panded business and
shopping area. We at the
Bank of Perry believe
strongly in our community
and we want everyone to
try it first. We think it is
the best place in the
world."
The special promotion
will continue from now
until Christmas.
Perry Task Force Talks
Sunday Afternoon From 2 To 5
Some 22 merchants will
be open this Sunday af
ternoon from 2 to 5 p.m.
serving refreshments and
giving merchants and
Perry shoppers an op
portunity to get together
and become bet
ter acquainted on a "non
business" basis.
Billy Bledsoe, this year's
chairman of the open
house activities, said he
expects a record crowd of
visitors to the downtown
area this year because of
the extensive renovations
that have taken place
downtown and also
because of the increased
Lighting Os Community Tree
Old-Fashioned Christmas
Celebration Begins Saturday
Perry's second annual
"Old Fashioned Christmas
at the Crossroads"
celebration officially gets
underway this Saturday,
with the first event being
the decorating of the
community Christmas tree
on the courthouse square
beginning at 10 a.m. Clubs,
church groups and In
dividuals are invited to
bring homemade
Christmas ornaments to
place on the tree all
morning long. Ken
Aldridge and Pat Rentz
are serving as co
chairpersons for this
event.
The annual Christmas
parade will begin at 3 p.m.
Shown here with Schwartz, from left, are, Don
Parkinson, Perry chamber tourism committee
chairman; Perry Mayor James O. McKinley:
Malcolm Reese, president of Security Federal
Savings and a member of the Perry to Plains
Committee; Schwartz, and Perry Area Chamber
of Commerce president James N. Geiger.
merchandising of many
downtown area mer
chants.
The Bank of Perry will
open the doors to the main
office downtown for the an
nual "Dress A Doll Show"
in which 132 dolls were
dressed by local persons In
what has become a major
Christmas event in Perry.
The bank will donate the
dolls to the needy in the
Perry area for Christmas
after the show.
Security Federal
Savings will feature Santa
Claus for the children and
will beglvfngaway colored
Polaroid photos of Santa
this Saturday.
At 7 p.m. Saturday night,
a special "Old Fashioned
Christmas" celebration
will be held with music
provided by the Hand Bell
Choir of the First Baptist
Church of Macon, the 581st
Air Force Reserve Band
and the community church
youth choirs.
Presiding at the tree
lighting will be Mayor
James McKinley. At the
Mayor's command, the
tree will be lighted along
with the new city
decorations downtown. All
this takes place on the
courthouse square,
downtown, beginning at 7
p.m. Saturday night.
posing with local
youngsters who visit the
savings and loan in
stitution.
Those merchants who
will be participating in the
open house Sunday In
clude: On Carroll Street;
The Bank of Perry, Wells
Florist & Gifts, Harrison's
TV 8. Appliance, Edwards-
Harper Co., Inc., Overton
Jewelers, Antiques at the
Shed, Sinyard's Inc., Jones
Jewelers, Horace &
Mildred Shop, Tots 'N'
Teens, The Swank Shop,
CONTINUED
ON PACE 2-A
City Coundllman H.E.
(Gene) Smith, chairman of
this year's "Old Fashioned
Christmas", stated, "We
believe we have planned
something very special for
all the people in the Perry
area and we urge families
to attend the event this
Saturday night. The
committee has worked
very hard to put together a
family Christmas
celebration in the true, old
fashioned meaning of
Christmas."
On Sunday, Dec. 5, 21
merchants and banks In
the downtown area will
hold customer ap
preciation open house from
2 to 5 p.m.