Newspaper Page Text
Sports
MP misses
playoffs
See Page 1B
Lady Dogs
honored
See Page 1B
Annual rec
football
parade
See Page 1B
Deaths
LaDora Rickerson Wilson
Thomas Lucian Roquemore
Patsy Griswold Seitz
See Page 6A
Candidates hustled for last-minute votes on Tuesday, with Mike Dodd (left), and Gwen King (right) waving to passing motorists. In rear, Rosemary Walker talks to
supporters.
Winners say pool top priority
Banks, Wilson and Dodd take top spots
BY WILL DAVIS
AND GINA HERRING
Newly elected Forsyth city
council members say they plan
to begin work immediately on a
new city pool and the city's
bleeding cable system.
"We made some pledges to get
started working on some things
and I want to start as soon as
possible," said Eric Wilson, who
was one of three winners last
Tuesday.
Wilson, owner of Go
Communications, garnered 509
votes, coming in second behind
former Better Hometown direc
tor Jo Anna Banks, who led
with 593 votes. Incumbent Mike
Dodd, owner of Dodd Builder
See WINNERS page 7A
Forsyth City Council
Election Results winners
Jo Anna Banks 593*
Eric Wilson 509*
Mike Dodd 396*
Gwen King 331
Rosemary Walker 322
County
buying new
dog pound
BY WILL DAVIS
Monroe County commissioners
have reached a tentative agree
ment to buy a 3-acre lot and build
ing on Collier Road to use as an
animal shelter.
Commissioners agreed on a price
of about $180,000 for the property
during a closed session last
Tuesday The tract is owned by
Robby Whitehead, whose family
business, American Specialty
Windows, had used the shop to
make windows until it moved to
the industrial park.
Commissioner Jim Ham said the county
also plans to put a recycling center at that
location because the area is under-served.
Commissioner Jim Peters said the site is per
fect.
"The building is already there, it's already
zoned commercial, so all we have to do is put
cages in it and move the dogs in there," said
Peters. "It's a damn good place for it."
Whitehead said the building is about 3,500
square feet.
At around $180,000, the property will cost
a little more than $130,557 commissioners
have in the bank for the dog pound from
sales tax (SPLOST) money. Peters said they
may ask local adoption agency Sav-a-Pet to
help raise the extra revenue or use contin
gency savings.
Commissioners have been looking for a new
The county plans to
convert this build
ing at the corner of
Smith and Collier
roads into an ani
mal shelter. The
dog on the map
shows the spot
where the new
shelter is located.
c ol/i
,,er Ro £
location for an animal shelter. The
current one is a make-shift series of pens
located in the woods at the Monroe County
Landfill. It's hidden at the end of a gravel
road five miles outside of Forsyth.
Commissioners have admitted its hardly an
ideal location for adoptions.
With the recycling center at the location,
Peters said the new spot will be much more
inviting. "People can drop off their trash and
pick up a dog," joked Peters. "It's a good deal
for the county"
Peters said the county will probably tear
down a rental home located next door to the
shop.
Last year commissioners had begun clear
ing land to build a new shelter at the recre
ation department. But commissioners
dropped their plans when recreation parents
objected en masse to that idea.
Choose
your
school?
Not for most. System rejects
17 of 20 transfer requests
made under new Ga. law
BY GINA HERRING
Jimmy Jones of Forsyth was delighted
when the Georgia Legislature passed a
school choice law last spring. The law
says, in part, that students may attend
any school in the district, regardless of
district lines, as long as there is room
available.
But Jones' delight turned to frustration
when he tried to take advantage of the
law. That's because Jones, whose kids
attended Hubbard Elementary School,
requested that they be transferred to
T.G. Scott under the new law. But he was
told there was no room at T.G. Scott for
his first and fourth graders.
"I can tell [school administrators] just
do not want the law,” said Jones. He met
with superintendent Anthony Pack in
See CHOICE page 6A
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Ham sues Mann
over 2007 firing
A Forsyth woman has filed
a federal lawsuit against her
former boss, the director of
the Georgia Public Safety
Training Center (GPSTC), for
firing her in 2007 in connec
tion with theft in her depart
ment.
Dana Ham was terminated
in October 2007. That after
GPSTC director Dale Mann
learned that an employee
under Ham's supervision had
stolen $241,000 from the cen
ter over a 5-year period. The
accused, Tracy Rutland of
Macon, pled guilty and is in
prison.
Mann fired Rutland in
August 2007. But after a GBI
investigation showed her
thefts had been going on for
at least five years, he fired
Rutland's immediate supervi
sor, Mary Watts, and Ham,
the director of fiscal services.
“This is an embarrassment
to the profession and every
one here,” Mann told the
Reporter in 2007. “The culpa
bility begins and ends with
Trudy Rutland. But, it’s evi
dent that we need some new
faces here. We should have
caught this a lot sooner.”
Ham had filed suit in
Momoe County last year but
moved it to U.S. District
Court in Macon on Nov. 7.
Ham claims her civil rights
were violated by wrongful ter
mination and by releasing her
name. Ham attorney Michael
T. McCulley of Atlanta con
tacted this newspaper on
Monday to confirm Mann’s
testimony that reporters
knew the names of those fired
before talking to him.
Rutland had been skimming
cash from money collected at
the center’s cafeteria and
from the sale of t-shirts and
other items on site.
Early November means... Christmas?!?
Bobby Gray installs a giant lighted snowflake onto a power pole on Lee Street in front of
Go Communications on Thursday. City workers on Wednesday and Thursday installed
the city's 60 some odd Christmas lights for the holidays. So is putting up Christmas dec
orations 50 days before the holiday was too early? City officials said they usually install
them two weeks before Thanksgiving, so it's about par for the course.
