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WEDNESDAY, MAY 10,2023
• Homer, Banks County, GA 30547 • A Publication of MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. • 12 Pages, 1 Section Plus Supplements • Vol. 57 No. 23
Legion
plans ride,
bake sale on
May 13
The American Legion
Post 215 will have a ride,
lunch and bake sale on May
13.
Registration will be at
10 a.m. and the event will
begin at 11 a.m. The fee for
bikes/vehicles will be $20
each.
Lunch will be BBQ
plates. There will also be a
raffle.
The rain date is May 20.
The event begins at the
Legion Hall, located at
1350 Historic Homer High
way. Homer.
BCHS
graduation
set May 26
Banks County High
School graduation will be
held at 8 p.m. on Friday,
May 26, at Leopard Stadi
um.
Alto’s 17 th
annual Spring
Fling planned
Alto's 17th annual Spring
Fling will be held from
10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Satur
day, June 2.
The parade will start at
10 a.m.
The event will include
live entertainment with
Steve Bryson, antique trac
tors, float contest, car show,
food and craft vendors and
children’s activities.
To sign up to be a vendor
or parade participant, con
tact Alto City Hall at 706-
778-8035 or email altocity-
hall @ windstream.net.
BOG, planners
to meet Mon.
A joint meeting of the
Banks County Board of
Commissioners and Plan
ning Commission will be
held at 5 p.m. on Monday,
May 8, at the Annex Build
ing in Homer. This will be a
training session.
MAILING LABEL
Growth, sewer, water service topics
in joint BOC, Homer council meeting
By HANNAH CAUDELL
The Banks County Board
of Commissioners and the
Homer City Council met for
a work session on Monday
to talk about future plans for
community development.
During the meeting, the
commissioners and the
council focused on com
munity growth, a potential
sewer system and the water
supply.
The population of Homer
has grown by 22.5 percent
with about 286 residents
moving to the area in the
past two years.
Banks County Planning
Commission member Jody
Parks and Comprehensive
Planning Committee mem
ber Barbara Lindorme intro
duced these statistics to the
board and council, as well
as the concerns that this
growth warrants, including
strategic development, wa
ter supply, sewer system,
school capacity, and taxes.
The commissioners and
the council spent time dis
cussing the potential for a
sewage system in Homer.
Mayor Doug Cheek ex
plained that in order for
Homer to see any commer
cial or industrial growth, the
addition of a sewer system
would be crucial for further
development.
Much debate was cen
tered around a proper sew
age system being imple
mented at Banks County
High School.
The high school is situat
ed on the city-county line,
making the process of del
egating responsibility for
parts of a sewage line more
difficult.
Determining the poten
tial cost of implementing a
system that includes a lift
station was also an area of
discussion.
Currently, the county is
considering using their re
covery fund monies and
asking the school to contrib
ute funds for a project in the
future.
BOC Chairman Charles
Turk also explained that the
county would have to prior
itize the Waste Management
landfill in the sewage proj
ect because its wastewater
pump is reversible down
Georgia Highway 59, which
will allow easier access to
the wastewater plant.
City Council member
James Dumas also suggest
ed that the city could con
sider using the septic tank
drain line from the old jail
adjacent to the Voter Reg
istration Center to provide
sewage for a few properties
in downtown Homer.
The sewage line is already
in use, and has the potential
for domestic and commer
cial uses for the existing
buildings in downtown.
Cheek then began the dis
cussion on water for the city.
Currently, the city of Homer
is still awaiting approval
from the Environmental
Protection Division Mu
nicipal Permitting Unit to
backwash water into an un
populated property owned
by the city that would reach
into a tributary of the Hud
son River.
Cheek also said that even
with the new well devel
opment, the city cannot be
self-sufficient with its water
supply.
Commissioner Chris
Ausburn also said that the
county is not completely
self-sufficient, either.
Right now, the county is
buying water from Frank
lin and Stephens (Toccoa)
counties, as well as a dou
ble-valve with Alto and po
tential sources from Bald
win and Commerce.
Class of 2035 take ‘walk 5 at BCHS
Banks County High School seniors greeted kindergar
ten students who took a walk to celebrate the end of
the school year. These students will be the class of2035.
Kindergarten student Mason Lanier is shown.
■■H Revolution II — ! Ha ™ 'w n i sasnrari
Graduation Counselor Jenny Cote celebrates with kindergartner Waylon Hedden.
See more photos on Page 2.
The Class of 2035 is shown on a visit to Banks County High School.
Commerce doctor killed in Tennessee plane crash
A well-known local doc
tor was killed in a small air
plane crash in Tennessee on
Sunday evening.
A spokesperson with the
Federal Aviation Adminis
tration reports a single-en
gine Cessna 182 crashed
near Reliance. Tenn., on
Sunday. May 7. around
7:30 p.m.
Dr. Lionel D. Meadows,
who runs Meadows Surgical
Arts in Commerce and Bu
ford, was killed in the crash,
which reportedly occurred
during a storm. Meadows
was the only person aboard
the aircraft.
The flight took off from
Photo from Meadows Surgical
Arts website
Dr. Lionel D. Meadows
South Bend, Ind., around
4 p.m. and was headed to
the Jackson County Airport
in Jefferson. According to a
post on the Meadows Sur
gical Arts Facebook page,
Dr. Meadows was returning
home after visiting family.
“Dr. Meadows was a be
loved friend, mentor and
inspiration to many of us.
He was a brilliant surgeon
and doctor who touched
the lives of so many with
his kindness and passion
for delivering exceptional
patient care,” the Facebook
post reads. “Dr. Meadows
was known for praying with
each of his patients before
surgery, and we ask for your
prayers now as we mourn
his death. Our thoughts and
prayers are with his family
and friends during this diffi
cult time.”
FAA and the Nation
al Transportation Safety
Board are investigating the
crash.
According to the Mead
ows Surgical Arts website,
Dr. Meadows was dou
ble board-certified by the
American Board of Obstet
rics and Gynecology and the
American Board of Cosmet
ic Surgery. He spent over a
decade practicing obstetrics
and gynecology before be
coming more specialized in
cosmetic surgery.
Dr. Meadows, originally
from Macon, leaves behind
his wife, Kathryn, and two
children. In addition to fly
ing, Dr. Meadows also en
joyed golfing and playing
guitar.
Dr. Meadows and his wife
have also been involved
in community work. They
founded a non-profit organi
zation, Surgical Hope Foun
dation, to help people with
medical needs who lacked
coverage.
They've also offered
scholarships to area stu
dents. Dr. Meadows had
also traveled abroad to help
provide medical care.
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