Newspaper Page Text
Houston Times -Journol
Perry, Ga.
this week
Volume 125—N0. 66—18 Pages
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 31,1994
50 CENTS
Get tickets now for
annual Masons BBQ
The Masons will hold their third
annual chicken barbecue on
Sept. 2, from 11:30 a.m. until
6:30 p.m. at the Shriner's BBQ
pit on Courtney Hodges Blvd.
Plates will contain 1/2 large
chicken, cooked on an open pit
and brushed with the Shriner's
famous barbeque sauce. The
group will have several big pots
of beans cooked up, also.
Tickets are $4 and may be
obtained from any Mason and
from some businesses in the
downtown area. Funds made
from the annual barbecue go to
the Children's Home in Macon.
For further information or to
purchase tickets, call James
McKinley, (912) 987-2253.
■m
Arresting a criminal
A detective from the Perry Po
lice Department is earning
praise this week after nabbing
an escaped Bleckley County
inmate Aug. 23. Page SA.
Smooth flow in traffic
The drive to Warner Robins on
Houston Lake Rd. should get a
little easier in the next few
months following improve
ments at a busy intersection.
Page 6A.
Hornets debut with win
The Westfield Hornets pass
their first test of the year Friday -
night by powering past Mt. de
Sales. Page 7A.
Panthers post region win
The Perry High School Pan
thers outslug Houston County
Bears 10-7 in a softball match
up on Wednesday. Page 7A.
Couples announce
Tina Marie Calhoun and Ja
son Lanier Howell, and Sandra
P. Webb and Rodney Bogue
are united. Page 28.
Invalid needs help
An invalid Hayneville woman
is in need of assistance from
community members to help
her rebuild her crumbling home.
Page 18.
The community's sympathy
is extended to the families of
those who recently died. They
include: Don Braswell, Morris
L. Bridges, Betty Walker
Dennard, Roger Clayton
Sullivan, Talmadge E.
Tomlinson and George Thomp
son Sr. See page 2A.
Church news 3B
Classified 7B
Family News 1B
Legal notices 4B
Letters to the editor 4A
Pauline Lewis 1B
Obituaries 2A
Police report 3A
Veto Roley 4A
Jimmy Simpson 4A
Sports 7A
win!
Official Legal Organ for Houston County, City of Perry and the State of Georgia
% 'WSF
US' 4 aygfr gag ,
Perry Police Chief Frank Simons displays drugs and cash his department recovered
after making a vehicle stop last week. (HTJ photo by Jimmy Simpson)
Drug dealers dealt a major blow
By JIMMY SIMPSON
Staff Writer
An estimated $40,000 in crack cocaine and $9,000
in cash has been recovered by law enforcement officials
here, uncovering one of the biggest local drug rings in
years.
Police say 44-year-old Willie Robinson and 38-year
old Gloria Gaston, both of Perry, and 32-year-Old
Kenny Lester, of Unadilla, were all apprehended
following a vehicle stop Aug. 25 at about 12' noon.
The arrests were made without incident, according to
Perry Police Chief Frank Simons. The three are being
held without bond in the Houston County Jail.
Simons said police stopped a car the three were
traveling in, a white 1991 Chevrolet Corsica, after
learning of "significant" drug activity.
A search of the vehicle found 19 "cookies” of crack
cocaine. After obtaining a search warrant to Robinson
and Gaston's 505-A Coventry Circle apartment, three
and a half additional crack "cookies", four firearms ml
cash were also discovered.
A second search warrant was also obtained to a 505-
B Coventry Circle apartment. There, police say they
recovered a "small amount" of additional cocaine and
drug paraphernalia used specifically for crack cocaine.
County to vote on slightly lower tax rate at Sept. 6 meeting
By VETO F. ROLEY
Staff Writer
The Houston County
Commission will set the 1995 fis
cal year millage rate at 9.55, said
commission chairman Sherrill
Stafford Monday.
The new rate, which is slightly
lower than the 1994 fiscal year rate
iP'^rrttr
DAR Observance
Dedication of a DAR Marker for the late Martha Ansley Cooper was held August 30, 1994, in
Evergreen Cemetery in Perry. Mrs. Leon Green, Introduced the Daughters and Mayor of Perry,
who gave the official welcome. Shown speaking, is Mrs. Peter Hanf, State Regent, Geeorgia
NSDAR, who was introduced by Mrs. Robert English, Regent of the General Daniel Stewart
Chapter, NSDAR, in Perry. Mrs. E. B. Claxton, Jr. of the John Laurens Chapter NSDAR gave the
dedication remarks concerning the DAR Marker. Mrs. Hanf and Mrs. Claxton, expressed
appreciation for Miss Cooper’s services contributed to DAR. Mrs. William Richardson of the local
chapter, gave the benedicatlon which was followed by TAPS played by Tom Carruth, a senior at
Dublin High School. Mrs. Leon Green issued the Invitation for all to attend a reception at her
mother’s home, the Cooper Home on Main Street. (HTJ photo by Eric Zellers)
Cop nabs escapee
Please see Page 5A
The three have been charged with trafficking in
cocaine. Robinson and Gaston have also been charged
as convicted felons in possession of a firearm.
Simons said the investigation was the result of
"extensive work" by his department and the GBl’s
Macon Regional Drug Office.
"This was truly a joint investigation,” he said. "I
think we're very fortunate to have the assistance of the
GBI because they give us support and resources that
otherwise we wouldn't have. They were a major part of
this case."
Paul Musick, assistant special agent in charge at the
Macon office, said some persons may not realize the
importance of the latest arrest.
"These are major dealers, not your street corner
dealers," said Musick. "The amount they were caught
with certainly doesn't reflect the true activity (of
involvement). They had the ability to deal multiple
kilos of cocaine at a time," he said.
The latest incident brings to four the number of
people arrested in the last 45 days considered to be
"mid-to-upper level drug dealers," according to Simons.
"I certainly expect this (arrest) to disrupt the flow
(of drug distribution) in several counties," he said.
of 9.63 mills, will be approved at
the commission's Sept. 6 meeting.
Although the 1995 rate is .08 mills
lower than the 1994 rate, the
county will receive just under
$400,000 more in property taxes in
1995, with just over sll million of
the county's budget coming from
property taxes.
In addition to the 9.55 millage
rate, county residents will also pay
an additional .82 mills for mandated
programs. Stafford said that man
dated programs were programs that
were established by the Georgia
Legislature or the court system after
the tax cap went into effect.
Residents living in unincorpo
Guarding the kids
Please see Page 1B
Three-hour blaze
heavily damages
Tolleson Lumber
By JIMMY SIMPSON
Staff Writer
Perry firefighters battled a three
hour blaze Saturday evening that
resulted in what may be an
estimated $1 million loss to a local
lumber plant.
Tolleson Lumber Company
suffered extensive damage to a third
story saw sharpening shop after a
fire broke out there at 6:02 p.m.
The blaze was started after a
welder for an outside contracting
firm was performing maintenance
work on the inside of the building.
When the man failed to properly
wet the area down where he was
working, said Tolleson President
Rusty Wood, the blaze ignited.
Firefighters were able to contain the
fire to the third floor of the 903
Jemigan St. building.
"In the 20 years I've been here,
that's the first time we've ever laid
hose for three (fire) trucks," said
Fire Chief Gary Hamlin. "It wasn't
the largest fire we've ever had, but
it was certainly one of the most
difficult.''
Hamlin said the only strategy
the department could employ was
shooting streams of water up to the
third story dwelling. But even that
method didn't make things any
easier, Hamlin said.
"The fact that the fire was about
25 feet off the ground made it much
harder to get to," he continued. "We
tried to get inside of the building,
but the catwalk we were on started
to collapse and we had to get out of
there... in a hurry."
Two trucks were initially called
to the scene. A third was dispatched
just 30 minutes later after Hamlin
noticed a wall on a far side of the
building had become engulfed in
flames.
"After that happened, then we
asked for assistance from Lakes
Volunteer Fire Department,"
Hamlin said. "We were about worn
out."
Hamlin said not only were his
men exposed to torrid heat, but
extreme temperatures that continued
to linger most of the evening.
At full force, the two
rated areas of the county will also
have to pay a 2 mills tax : for
protection. So, city residents will
have to pay a county rate of 10.37
mills, while rural residents will be
faced with a rate of 12.37 mills.
A mill is one-tenth of a cent.
The 1995 tax rate means that city
residents will pay $10.37 for each
City will hold line on tax
rate for '95, mayor says
By JIMMY SIMPSON
Staff Writer
Local residents expecting to see
an increase in city taxes may get an
unexpected break when city council
sets the millage rate at its Sept. 6
meeting.
"I feel sure that (taxes) are not
going to go up," says Mayor Jim
Worrall. "That's all up to (city)
council, but they are committed to
trying to keep within the budget"
The millage rate last year, just
as in 1992, was set at 14.54.
The tax rate is figured by taking
the home’s value, figuring 40
percent of that figure, and
multiplying that price by 14.54. A
$50,000 home, for example, would
be taxed on $20,000, and taxed
$290.80.
The value of property in the city
totals $174,661,661 this year,
departments battled the fire for three
hours, sending the last truck home
at about 9:03 p.m.
One fireman was also sent to the
Perry Hospital for heat exhaustion
and some carbon monoxide
poisoning. He was treated and
released, according to the chief.
"We don't operate on Saturdays,
so only maintenance crews were out
there. We were fortunate that no
more people were out there when it
happened," said Wood.
Hamlin said a number of people
deserve recognition for their part in
working with fire officials.
"The Perry Police Department
had three officers (John Hardage,
Eric Adkison and David Wilson)
that went beyond their call of duty,"
Hamlin said. "Two security guards
at Tolleson were also very helpful.”
Wood also had nothing but
praise for city workers, whom he
said were "excellent."
"Instead of $1 million in
damage, we could have lost $6-7
million if that mill had gone (up in
flames)," Wood said. "The Perry
Fire Department and die Perry
Police Department deserve a lot of
credit."
Damage has not yet been fully
assessed but is expected to range
from $500,000 to $1 million,
Wood said. "Probably closer to the
one million (dollar) mark," he said.
Despite the setback, the
president said workers may not be
as severely affected by the fire as
earlier thought.
"We're completely shut down
now at the mill, but have crews
working around the clock with
cranes," Wood said.
The work to clear debris was
initially expected to be completed
in three to four weeks, according to
Wood, but now is estimated at just
a few days.
"By Monday, we expect to have
both shifts out there working,"
Wood said. "By that time, the mill
should be about 90 percent in
woiking order."
SI,OOO of property. For taxing pur
poses, the assessed value is 40 per
cent of the actual value of a piece of
property. Stafford said the amount
paid in taxes could also be affected
by various tax exemptions on prop
erty.
compared to $172,935,758 just one
year ago.
Not since 1991 has the millage
rate seen a change in numbers,
when the rate was 13.97.
And despite that figure being
increased to the current proposed
rate, Worrall said residents shouldn't
feel shortchanged by any means.
"It's getting tougher and tougher
to provide the kind of services that
(the city) offers for the money,"
Worrall said.
One example the mayor pointed
out is garbage pick-up.
"There are not too many towns
who pick up garbage twice a week,"
he said. "I think residents are very
fortunate in that respect, alone."
The public is invited to attend
the council meeting at which time
the rate is formally adopted. That
session starts at 7:30 p.m. at City
Hall.