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November 12, 2014
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Officials cut the ribbon on the new Georgia State Patrol post in Forsyth on Friday. (Photo/Richard Dumas)
^Reporter
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State patrol opens
new post in Forsyth
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BY RICHARD DUMAS
forsyth@mymcr. net
Seven years after
Monroe County voters
approved funding a new
State Patrol post, the
GSP finally opened its
new facility on Patrol
Road Friday.
About 75 people from
the GSP, city and coun-
nty attended a ribbon
cutting ceremony for the
new building, which was
first opened for use in
late September. Kimbell
Duckworth, a Monroe
County native who was
the first trooper assigned
to the Forsyth post when
it was first built in 1970,
cut the ribbon.
After five years of nego
tiations, ground was
finally broken on the
$750,000 project in late
December 2012. Two-
thirds of the funding was
provided through special
purposed local option
sales tax funds while
commissioners con
tributed the other one-
third. As the GSP office
was temporarily moved
to the Georgia
Department of
Corrections at Tift
College, the project was
expected to be completed
within one year of the
groundbreaking. Instead,
it took 20 months, but
GSP Sgt. Lee Major, the
commander of the
Forsyth post, said the
new facility, built with
DOC inmate labor, was
worth the long process.
"Good things come to
those who wait, and it
worked out," Major said.
"Some things are slow.
It's almost like a train.
Once it gets started, it
moves on. But it was
well worth the effort and
well worth the wait.
Having multi-agencies,
multi-levels of govern
ment come together to
come up with this end
product, it speaks vol
umes."
Major said the new
building, at 7,500 square
feet, is slightly smaller
than the former location.
However, he said the
space has been put to
more effective use, and
said the building is safer
for its employees. Nine
persons are currently
housed in the building,
but Major said there
were 15 troopers working
out of the old facility
when he started working
in Forsyth. He hopes
funds increase so he can
hire more troopers in the
future.
"The more, the merri
er," Major said. "We built
this post with the mind
set for an increased
amount of personnel.
That's thinking ahead."
Col. Mark McDonough,
commissioner of the
Georgia Department of
Public Safety, served as
the event's keynote
speaker. McDonough,
who limited his speech to
less than five minutes as
temperatures hovered in
the 50s Friday morning,
said he was glad to be in
Forsyth.
"It’s Friday,"
McDonough said with a
smile. "The sun's shin
ing, and the election is
over with. Can I have an
amen? It's a good day.
It's a good day to be in
Monroe County. It's a
good day for a celebra
tion. And that's what
this is for us."
McDonough said the
GSP's job is to help local
law enforcement. He said
the spirit of help and
cooperative relationship
between the GSP and
the local community
made the new building
possible.
"We don't own this
building," McDonough
said. "Local folks built it,
and they turned the keys
over to us. If you go to
any other state, it's state
dollars that pay for the
facilities, and a lot of
times because of that,
that relationship with
the local community is
not there. This building
is a specific tie to the
people in this communi
ty. And because of that,
that forces us to work
together. That's not a
bad thing, y'all. That's a
good thing."
McDonough joked that
had lawyers not been
involved, the seven-year
project could have been
done in just four. But he
said it was worth it: “If
you walk through the
hallway here and you
knew what the building
was like before. . . it was
money well spent."
Monroe County com
mission chairman Mike
Bilderback credited com
missioners with making
the project possible. He
said District 1 commis
sioner Larry Evans
helped secure the DOC
labor for the project
while District 2 commis
sioner Jim Ham's family
sold the land on which
the building stands to
the county to make way
for the original post at
the same location in
1970. Bilderback also
thanked GSP for its serv
ice to the community
during the week of the
funeral of late Monroe
County deputy Michael
Norris in September.
"I cannot convey into
words what that meant
to me as a member of
this community and a
member of the com
mission here,"
Bilderback said.
"I've never been
more proud to be a
Georgian when I
saw those helicop
ters flying over and
the one helicopter
that peeled off to
represent the life
that we lost in pub
lic safety. I just
wanna thank every
member of the state
patrol. . . That
meant the world to
me. I cannot thank
you enough."
Mayor John
Howard said he and
Major developed a
friendship during
Howard's time
working for the
Forsyth Police
Department. He
said GSP patrolmen
"deserve" a shiny
new building
because of their
service to a wide
Kimbell Duckworth, the first
trooper assigned to the Forsyth
post in 1970, attended the ded
ication of the new post on Fri
day. (Photo/Richard Dumas)
area.
"I see you guys out on
the roads by yourself a
lot of times," Howard
said. "You're like the
Lone Ranger. You're out
there on your own, and
you have nobody but
yourself."
Prior to the ribbon cut
ting, GSP opened the
facility for the public to
tour for an hour while
also providing refresh
ments in a large confer
ence room.
Major said the move
would not have been pos
sible without the DOC
allowing GSP to use the
Hardin Library as its
temporary home for
about two years.
"Words cannot convey
the cordial hospitality
that was displayed by
(DOC) Commissioner
(Brian) Owens," Major
said. "He opened up a
facility When I talk
about a guy that can
move mountains, he's
one of those guys. He
opened up a building for
us to conduct our busi
ness and operations out
of. And anything we
needed while we were
there, he provided it for
us. The move out is bit
tersweet.”
FGGS-TRaOROiNftRV
(southern Grill)
n / r as , t /
Saturday, November 15 m
9 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Women’s Clothing • Jewelry • Door Decorations (All Seasons)
Scentsy Candles • Celebrating Home • Homemade Pickles • Ekka Bleu
Silhouette Artist • Thirty-One • Used Book Sale Ruby Ribbon
Handcrafted Ornaments • Yard Decorations • Advocare • Mary Kay
Yunique Eyelashes • Mallory Miller (Music CDs & T-Shirts)
AND SO MUCH MORE...
Homemade cakes, pies, cookies, breads and other sweet items
will be sold by the United Methodist Women of Mt. Zion UMC.
LUNCH WILL BE SOLD ON-SITE
PROCEEDS GO TO MISSIONS
Mt. Zion United Methodist Chwtch
40 Rumble Road • Smarr, GA 31086
Call 478-994-9282
for more information
Serving Lunch &
Dinner Specials
Monday-Friday:
11 a.m. - 7 p.m.
1024 Indian Springs Dr. • Forsyth • 478-994-0111
(Next door to Red Dog)
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