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TUESDAY June 14, 2005 Volume 135, Number 372 Award-Winning Better Newspaper Contest Inside TODAY JP f I " >■ Slip, slide The Smashers' Dane Friar sounds the whistle to let everyone know he has a hit. Sports, page 14A Happy BIRTHDAY! Karla Borosky Evelyn King Happy ANNIVERSARY! Linda and Malcolm Davis Scott and Anna Maria McCloy Bill and Emily Montgomery Area DEATHS Helen L. Hale MSgt. Herbert C. Jackson, Jr. USAF (Ret.) Henry Lee Ludwig Laura H.’’Frances” Shipes Obits, page 2A Correction In Thursday’s edition, the Houston County Board of Education budg et was erroneously reported. The correct amount for the board’s 2006 budget is $255,853,920. The amount for the board’s general fund portion of that budget is $176,436,282. The Houston Home Journal regrets the error. INDEX BUSINESS 7 A CLASSIFIED 11A CLUB NEWS 6A COMICS 10A CROSSWORD ...10A OBITUARIES 2A OPINION 4A SPORTS 12A TV LISTINGS ... .10A WEATHER 2A PERIODICAL 6 * Georgia Newspaper Project twain LiOrarv UNIV OF GEORGIA ATHENS GA 30602-0302 3-OfGIT 306 Serving Houston County Since 1870 Y JHameif (Lne .jjmtm&l ™ LEGAL ORGAN FOR HOUSTON COUNTY, city of Perry, city of Warner Robins and city of Centerville New fishing lake takes shape Governor, lawmakers break ground on Houston County public fishing area :\,SM % t , ■' M WMkL U I /- - I, iMM « fmJm ■V * ABOVE: Gov. Sonny Perdue smiles as he hands a notice to begin work to Claud Graham, owner of Specialized Services Inc. of Dublin, at the ground- the*Wat Creek Public Fishing Area south of Perry. Pictured are (from left) state Rep. Willie Talton, R-Wamer Robins; state Rep. Larry O’Neal, R- Warner Robins; former state Rep. Larry Walker, Graham, Perdue, and Georgia Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Noel Holcomb. RIGHT: Guests clap as Claud Graham, owner of Specialized Services Inc. of Dublin, breaks ground. HHJ/Mike George Police sweep video poker out of Perry By MIKE GEORGE HHJ Staff Writer Police seized five video poker machines during a raid at the OM Food Mart on Sunset Avenue in Perry Friday afternoon, and the store’s owner could face felony BRAG riders come to town By TERESA D. SOUTHERN HHJ Staff Writer Carol Green of Detroit, Mich., packed red nail polish, ant spray, and a journal before she start ed out on the Bike Ride Across Georgia - other wise known as BRAG. BRAG is not a compet itive event - Lance Armstrong won’t be seen pedaling among the 2,000 cyclists who arrived in Warner Robins on Monday. Green and hundreds of other cyclists wheeled into Warner Robins on Monday, as part of their route which began in —■ ■■■ 1 •JaHSc y nmsfc jHy aißn| ••%; iMf f « jg| *y§ ■jSaajros BBi *"v r charges for operating a casino gam bling establishment. Perry Police Chief George Potter said that Friday’s raid swept away the remnants of video poker in the city. “This was a serious problem, and Columbus, and will camp over night at Houston County High School. From Columbus, rid ers traveled 63 miles to Thomaston, 65 miles to Warner Robins and will continue 74 miles to Dublin, 53 miles to Vidalia, 65 miles to Jesup, then to the finish, which is 59 miles away in Jekyll Island. Green said this is her third time participating in the BRAG. She said she is having a good experience and enjoying the southern hospitality of the area. See BRAG, page 6A www.hhjnews.com 4 m r . ‘tfjSijßSite.. -t. aB S ■ 8 -Mi 4 / i ■ ** m Jr k .*&■■ ■} v'O?,.. , I ...... JwL— ij. ■ "'wm ...... HH.J Teresa D. Southern Not all 2,000 bikes in the BRAG are the same - there were many variations from the standard two-wheeler as shown here. it was only getting worse,” Potter said. “We had to intervene.” His department has been investi gating four different Perry conven ience stores where police believe cash was being handed out for video poker winnings - a violation of state ONE SECTION • 14 PAGES By MIKE GEORGE and DM HOSKINS HHJ Staff Writers Ground was broken Monday on a 108-acre fish ing lake between U.S. 41 and Interstate 75 south of Perry. Gov. Sonny Perdue, as well as Georgia Sen. Ross Tolleson, state Rep. Larry O’Neal, former state Rep. Larry Walker and Georgia Department of Natural Resources Commissioner. Noel Holcomb were on hand to initiate construction of the Flat Creek Public Fishing Area. Officials have been working to build a state park in Houston County since the 19905. “This is a great day for Middle Georgia,” Perdue said. “This fishing lake is in line with Georgia values of family recreation and con servation.” Perdue said he hopes the public fishing area leads to development of a state park there. In May, the Georgia DNR agreed to pay Specialized Services of Dublin $3 mil lion to build the fishing lake on the 858-acre site. Les Ager, who works for the DNR’s Wildlife Resources Division, said that it will take at least eight months to build the lake and fishing area, which will be stocked with a variety of fish. Digging the lake itself is only the first phase in a larger plan for the area. In 2001, the state set aside $3.8 million in general obligation bonds to buy the 858 acres. “What better way to com mune with a grandson or granddaughter or a child or someone you’re mentoring than to go fishing?” said Tolleson. Tolleson, an avid fisher man and chairman of the Georgia Senate’s Natural Resources and the Environment Committee, See LAKE, page 6A law. Only vouchers for merchandise are legal video poker winnings in Georgia. Shortly before 3 p.m. Friday, detectives with the Perry Police See POKER, page 3A an Evans Family Newspaper 50c 111*1 8 *5 5108*000 01"* 4