Newspaper Page Text
o
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The
DECEMBER 26,2019
Madison County Journal
Merged with The Comer News and The Danielsville Monitor, 2006
MadisonJoumaITODAY.com
$1.00
Vol. 36 No. 45 • Publication No. 1074-987 • Danielsville, Madison County, Georgia 30633 • A Publication of MainStreet Newspapers Inc. • 16 Pages, 1 Section Plus Supplements
WATER
LAWSUIT
Meeting on
Seagraves Lake
set for Jan. 7
The Madison County
Industrial Development
and Building Authori
ty will hold a meeting
at 6 p.m., Tuesday, Jan.
7, in the historic county
courthouse in the center
of Danielsville to discuss
the dam at Seagraves
Lake. The public is invit
ed to attend the meeting
and offer input.
TAXES
GRP: tax
payment
on the way
Georgia Renewable Pow
er (GRP) missed the Dec.
20 deadline to pay its $1.65
million property tax bill to
Madison County, but the
company said the payment
is on the way.
A GRP spokesperson said
Friday that the payment
should be in the tax com
missioner’s hands early this
week.
“We cut checks every Fri
day,” the spokesperson said.
“The check will likely go
out today and should reach
the tax office by Monday/
Tuesday.”
(The Journal had an
11:30 a.m.. Monday dead
line this week due to the
Christmas holidays.)
The property tax revenue
from GRP will be divided
between the county school
system, government and
industrial development au
thority.
INSIDE:
Index:
News: 1-3A
Opinions: 4-5A
Crime: 6A
Socials: 7-8A
Schools: 8A
Sports: 9-1OA
Churches: 10A
Obituaries: 12-13A
Classifieds: 11A
Legals: 14-15A
Contact:
Phone: 800-795-2581
Mail: P.O. Box 658,
Danielsville, Ga. 30633
Web: MadisonJoumalTODAY.com
MAILING LABEL
GRP in federal court
RICO case alleges owners misrepresented power plants to investors
By Zach Mitcham
zach@mainstreetnews.com
A lawsuit in federal
court claims owners of
Greenfuels Energy mis
represented the capabili
ties of their power plants
while seeking foreign in
vestment, then terminated
those who pointed out the
factual problems in their
application for assistance
in a federal foreign invest
ment program.
The plaintiffs seek $9
million in compensation in
a pending civil Racketeer
Influenced and Corrupt Or
ganization (RICO) case in
the U.S. Northern District
of Georgia Court in Atlan
ta.
Three firms — Five on
Fifty, Gate Industries and
Southern Film Regional
Center-Atlanta — are su
ing F. Raymon Bean. Da
vid Shaffer, Jeffrey Kuehr,
Greenfuels Energy and its
subsidiary, Georgia Re
newable Power (GRP),
which has four power
plants, including facilities
in Madison and Franklin
counties.
The construction of the
power plants costs in the
hundreds of millions of
dollars. An April 2019 ar
ticle in Biomass Magazine
quotes a GRP official say
ing that the company need
ed $350 million to build
the plants in Madison and
Franklin counties.
SEEKING FOREIGN
INVESTMENT
GRP has sought funding
for the pricey projects from
various sources, including
the federal EB-5 program,
overseen by federal immi
gration services, that offers
foreigners the opportunity
to receive green cards in
exchange for investment
in American business. That
investment must lead to a
certain number of jobs in
the U.S.
The plaintiffs were hired
to assist in the complex
EB-5 application process.
Plaintiffs Dominic “Nic”
Applegate and Lowell El
liott said they were asked
by Shaffer and Bean to
work exclusively on the ap
plications for a year. They
agreed to do this. The big
payoff for the plaintiffs would
See Lawsuit, page 2A
Merry Christmas, Madison Co.
Photos by Wesleigh Sagon
Moons Grove Baptist Church hosted its live nativity Saturday, Dec. 21. Mi
chelle and Beau Kaye provided the camels.
Moon’s Grove Baptist Church provide free hot chocolate to guests visiting
the live nativity on Saturday, Dec. 21. Shown are Eli Smith, Owen Smith,
Ava Grace Smith and Kate Durocher.
Easton Brock, 3, Kiya Key, 12, and Joannie Treadwell set out luminaries
for visitors driving through Gilead Baptist Church on Saturday, Dec. 21.
Each year the church celebrates Christmas by giving out hot chocolate,
cookies and popcorn.
ENVIRONMENT
Clean Power Coalition
moves to set goals,
develop committees
By Margie Richards
margie@mainstreetnews.com
The citizens group that launched a few weeks ago
over concerns about the Georgia Renewable Power
(GRP) plant’s use of creosote-treated railroad ties at
its Colbert facility is continuing to grow.
The Madison County Clean Power Coalition (MC-
CPC) held its first regular monthly meeting last week
at the Madison County Library and about 50 people
attended. The meeting was held to talk about accom
plishments so far and to establish goals and commit
tees to organize ways to further those goals.
MCCPC chairman Drago Tesanovich opened the
meeting and he and board member Wendy Meehan
noted that nearly 600 people have signed petitions so
far to urge GRP to stop burning railroad ties. About
150 signs have been placed in yards around the coun
ty so far and most notably, Meehan said, dozens of
people have contacted the board of commissioners,
industrial authority members, the EPD and other
officials, as well as sent letters to the editor to The
Madison County Journal and other news outlets to
make sure their voices are heard. Meehan also not-
See CPC, page 3A
CHAMBER
New Chamber director Anna
Strickland speaks at coffee
By Margie Richards
margie@mainstreenews.com
Anna Strickland spoke
to the Madison County
Chamber of Commerce
members at their Decem
ber Chamber Coffee Dec.
19.
Strickland was select
ed as the Chamber’s new
executive director and
will begin her duties Jan.
2. She is a Comer resi
dent and has Chamber
and agriculture business
experience. Chamber
board vice-chairman Jill
Fortson told members
that she feels Strickland
is the “perfect person” for
the job who will work to
instill confidence in the
Chamber and give people
and businesses a reason to
support its efforts.
“She has a kindness and
an eagerness about her
that will enable her to do
an excellent job,” Fortson
said.
Fortson also thanked
Chamber board member
Cindy Jones for working
with the county commis
sioners, the board of ed-
ANNA
STRICKLAND
ucation and the industrial
authority to obtain fund
ing for the position and
she thanked those entities
for providing those funds.
Strickland told mem
bers she is “so humbled to
work with such a group of
outstanding leaders” and
is eager to begin her du
ties as Executive Director
in the new year.
“I want to learn as much
as possible and meet as
many of you as possible,”
Strickland said. “It is the
Chamber’s job to serve its
members first, but we will
also be looking to expand
that membership and to
pump up pride in living
and working in Madison
County. I can’t wait to get
started.”
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