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THE HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
Sites plans near Bonaire and
Henderson get planners' OK
By RAY UGHTNER
HHJ Staff Writer
Sewerage was a considera
tion in the approval of two
site plans by the Houston
County Planning and
Zoning Commission.
The plans for Flat Creek
Plantation were back before
the board again, and con
cerns over the creation of a
lake in wetlands were again
raised. Engineer Tom
Daniels said lots would be
from 1.5 to 4 or 5 acres with
at least 0.9 of an acre of
usable land.
The development will be
in the Henderson Village
area along U.S. 41 north of
Felton Road. A secondary
emergency access road will
be provided on the site from
SIMMS
From page 1A
disagreed, Walker said, it
wasn’t often. The mayor
said Simms always stood for
what he believed was good
for Warner Robins.
“He was a friend of mine
and my family, and he will
be missed,” Walker said.
Councilman Matt Stone
said Simms had “a great
vision for his community
and Warner Robins.”
Stone said Simms served
on the Senior Citizens
Advisory Board and was
working to get a park built
for seniors.
“Maybe we can get that
done,” Stone said.
He said he helped on
Simms’ campaign and was
impressed by him.
“He had the energy to go
out and knock on 700 doors,
when he was running as an
80-year-old candidate,”
Stone said. “I know it meant
a lot to him to be able to
serve in his twilight.”
Fellow councilman Steve
Smith remembers cam
paigning with Simms.
“I felt a special friendship
with him from that,” Smith
said Thursday. “My wife and
I will keep his family in our
prayers. I know he’s already
happy with his wife in
VESTS
From page 1A
“They would have prob
lems with the federal gov
ernment, not just Perry,” if
there were out-of-pocket
costs.
Houston County Sheriff
Cullen Talton said he con
firmed through his distribu
tor that the vests purchased
in the past two years from
vendor Paca did not contain
any Zylon. The department
had already planned to
replace the older vests that
contain a small amount of
Zylon.
“They were scheduled to
be replaced on the first of
July anyway,” Talton said.
Warner Robins and
Centerville police depart
ments were not affected by
the May 17 announcement
from the manufacturer rec
ommending replacement of
the vests.
AUTHORITY
From page 1A
Houston Medical Center
and 12 percent at Perry
Hospital.
“Recent surveys indicate
that the emergency room is
becoming the primary
healthcare provider for our
elderly citizens,” said
Houston Healthcare Chief
Executive Officer Frank
Aaron.
Director of Marketing
Mary Jane Kinnas reported
that Houston Healthcare
Subscribe today • Call 987-1823
Orchard Road through pro
posed phase II of the project.
The plan, with the dam
and lake was approved with
conditions including U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers
approval for the dam, lake
and wetlands impact, as well
as staff conditions.
The Harley Estates devel
opment off Davis Road in
Bonaire was also given con
ditional approval.
Conditions included a letter
from the city of Warner
Robins that it will provide
sewer service to the 224-lot
site with an average lot size
of 14,000 square feet. There
were also concerned raised
about the lack of a detention
pond on site and making
Heaven.”
Visitation will be from 7 to
9 p.m. today at Heritage
Memorial Funeral Home,
with the funeral scheduled
for 11 a.m. Saturday at
Green Acres Baptist
Church. Simms will be
buried beside his late wife,
Dorothy.
Tom Simms was born Oct.
29, 1923, in Faulk, Miss. He
served in the South Pacific
in World War II with the
Engineering Aviation
Battalion. He worked as a
civil servant for 30 years in
Cataloging and Tech
Services before retiring in
1975. He and Dorothy and
their three children - Terry,
Tom Jr. and Jane - came to
call Warner Robins home
after 1966, when he was
transferred to Robins Air
Force Base.
Simms was active in the
city’s recreation department
as an assistant cS&eft and
enjoyed spending time with
his children as they grew up
in the community. Simms
also established the local
chapter of the Cystic
Fibrosis Foundation and
worked with Toastmasters,
Little League, high school
booster clubs and PTAs, CB
clubs and charities.
According to Warner
Robins Police Department
Training Commander Capt.
John Clay “they tried to
make the vests lighter, not
so bulky, not so sweaty, but
made them too light.”
Clay said the city “did not
purchase any body armor
from Second Chance.”
Centerville Police Chief
Ernie Pardo said his depart
ment “was not dealing with
that company.”
According to press releas
es, Second Chance Body
Armor is recommending the
immediate replacement and
removal from service of any
of its bullet-resistant vests
containing Zylon fiber and
issued two safety notices
after new research released
May 17 showed that protec
tive vests constructed only
partially from Zylon may fail
to perform and result in
had conducted health
screenings for several major
businesses in the first quar
ter of the year. Health
screenings were conducted
at Robins Air Force Base,
Flint Energies, Frito-Lay
and Blue Bird.
Kinnas reported that a
health fair will be held at
the Galleria Mall in
Centerville on July 30. A
health screening for Georgia
Power will be held the first
week of August at the
certain the cemetery on site
was clearly marked as such
and had an easement for
access.
The board also recom
mend approval of Josh
Bloodworth’s rezoning
request for 4.7 and 14.8
acres in the Davison Estates
subdivision from R-AG (res
idential agricultural) to C-l
(neighborhood commercial)
to relocate his landscaping
business from the industrial
park. The lots front on Ga.
247 and a buffer was
required along the boundary
with Hickory Estates subdi
vision. The Houston County
Board of Commissioners will
have final say on the rezon
ing at its July 5 meeting.
Simms was elected to City
Council Post 6 in 2003 and
was about a year and a half
into his four-year term,
Stone said. He’d previously
run - unsuccessfully - for
council in 1968.
Warner Robins City
Attorney Jim Elliott said
Simms’ seat on the council
would be filled in accordance
with state law, which dic
tates that cities and counties
set special elections on four
specific dates during the
year.
Special elections in
Georgia are called on specif
ic dates during March, June,
September and November,
depending on whether the
year is odd- or even-num
bered.
“The state code dictates
that this election will be
held the third Tuesday in
September,” he said. “The
thinking was that there was
some confusion over when
elections were being held, so
they set specific dates for
special elections.”
This policy has been in
place for over a decade,
according to Elliot.
HHJ Managing Editor
Rex Gambill and HHJ Staff
Writer Mike George con
tributed to this report.
serious injury or death.
The safety notices will
affect approximately 58,000
Tri-Flex vests and an addi
tional 40,000 Ultima and
Ultimax vests with
Performance Pacs.
According to the press
releases, Second Chance is
currently going through
reorganization in the bank
ruptcy court, and plans to
petition the bankruptcy
court for a procedure for
police departments and safe
ty officers to present claims
that may result from this
new information.
Additionally, Second Chance
has contacted the
Bulletproof Vest
Partnership Program to
request that this federally
funded program take imme
diate action to help with
financing replacement vests.
Georgia Expo Center.
Kinnas also said that,
through a partnership with
Cox Communications, a
patient channel will be pro
vided on all TVs at Houston
Medical Center and Perry
Hospital. She said the chan
nel will provide self-help and
educational shows during
the day and starting at 9
p.m. will broadcast nature
sounds and calming music
to help patients sleep better.
LOCAL
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HHJ Ray Lightner
Houston County Planning and Zoning Commissioners from right, Steve Holcombe,
Fred Graham, Rick Pogue, Chairman Bill Schwanebeck, Randy Moore and Nancy
Newell, review the preliminary site plan for Flat Creek Plantation with Planning and
Zoning Director Tim Andrews, plan engineer Tom Daniel and the developer.
'Unwanted person'
Tasered in Bonaire
ByRAYUGHTNER
HHJ Staff Writer
Richard Lyle Elsasser Jr.,
20, was arrested Sunday on
numerous charges after
allegedly panhandling at
the Bonaire Flash Foods.
The homeless man was
reportedly begging for
money in the store and
someone called 911.
Deputies made contact
with him walking down the
sidewalk.
When asked for ID, he
reportedly said, “I don’t
have one,” and asked why
he was being stopped.
The deputy began to pat
Elsasser down for weapons
and reportedly felt two
small objects in his right
side pocket, which the sus
pect said were “rocks from
the railroad.”
Elsasser then asked why
he was being patted down,
to which the deputy
explained, “I did not know
you.”
When asked what he was
doing at the gas station,
Elsasser reportedly said he
took his girlfriend home
and his car ran out of gas,
but had no response when
deputy asked where the car
was.
The pat-down continued,
reportedly turning up a
short tube-like object with
a jagged edge. When asked
what it was, the offender
reportedly said, “my pin,”
and tried to put his hand
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back in his pocket.
He was advised not to
take his hand off the car
again, and the deputy
reported removed the glass
pipe-like object from the
pocket. The tube reported
ly contained a white
residue and a wire-like fil
ter, like those commonly
used to smoke crack
cocaine.
The pipe was placed on
the bumper of the car and
Elsasser reportedly
grabbed it and threw it in
the grass. Two deputies
attempted to place him in
custody, and he reportedly
became combative.
A deputy had one arm
while another tried to hold
him against the car, but
Elsasser reportedly threat
ened to bite the finger of a
third deputy who reached
for the other arm. Two
deputies then placed the
offender on the ground,
during which he reportedly
kicked one several times.
Elsasser was given sever
al verbal commands to stop
fighting, and after a knee
strike to the right side,
deputies managed to get
both arms behind the sus
pect but were unable to get
him handcuffed.
He reportedly continued
kicking and cursing,
turned and spat on one of
the deputies. As one deputy
continued the struggle, the
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two others went for leg
shackles and an M-26
advanced air Taser. The
deputy then delivered a
“drive stun” to Elsasser’s
right side near the hip.
The suspect was asked if
he was done fighting and
reportedly answered, “yes,
yes, I’m done.” He was
then cuffed, but while
being escorted to the patrol
car, Elsasser reportedly
called the deputy a name
and threatened him. He
was checked and cleared by
EMS before being taken to
jail. En route, Elsasser
reportedly began to strike
the glass cage with his
head. When was ordered to
stop, Elsasser reportedly
threatened the deputy.
At the jail, Elsasser
reportedly refused to walk
and was carried by the
deputy - then he began to
kick the deputy and tried
to spit on him, before being
placed in a holding cell.
Elsasser was checked
again and cleared by a
nurse at the jail, and was
turned over on the follow
ing charges: felony
obstruction (three counts),
criminal trespass entry,
terroristic threats (two
counts), disorderly con
duct, possession of a drug
related object, simple bat
tery, battery (two counts)
and public intoxication.
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