South Metro's News Leader
According to Thomaston Fire Chief Shane Foster, At approximately at 6:55 pm, Saturday June 28, 2024, Thomaston Fire Department responded to 109 W. Gordon Street for the report of a ceiling collapse. Upon arrival, it was determined that the location was the Gins Beauty Supply building which had been vacant for some time. Initial scene size up reveals the front part of the room had collapsed with debris on the floor, water, and the front glass of the building broken out.
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THE THOMASTON CITY COUNCIL IS GIVING 10 PROPERTY OWNERS 30 MORE DAYS TO COMPLY WITH A CDBG GRANT THAT OFFERS CUSTOMERS IN NORTH SILVERTOWN NEW WATER AND SEWER LINES FREE OF CHARGE. AT THURSDAY'S MEETING COUNCIL EXPRESSED CONCERNS THAT THOSE WHO HAVE NOT SIGNED-UP FOR NEW SERVICE COULD BE WITHOUT WATER IF THEY HAVE NOT RETURNED A RIGHT-OF-ENTRY FORM BY JULY IST.
HOMES NORTH OF 12TH AVE. ALONG B. ST.NE, E. ST. AND F. STREET WILL GET A NO-COST NEW 6 INCH WATER MAIN AND A NEW WATER AND SEWER LINE FOR EACH HOME, WITH A ONE YEAR WARRANTY FROM THE CONTRACTOR. THE NEW 6 INCH WATER MAIN WILL REPLACE THE EXISTING 2 AND 2.5 INCH WATER MAINS.
SIMILAR IMPROVEMENTS IN EAST SILVERTOWN VILLAGE ARE PLANNED FOR FUTURE CDBG PROJECTS.
The Upson County Board of Elections Certified the June 18, 2024 Election Results on June 24, 2024 at 2:00PM. The Official & Complete Results are as follows.
For Chief Magistrate Judge:
Hannah Ellington Arnette received 1,506 votes
Cecil Hutchins, Jr. received 1,486 Votes
This was a close race with only 20 votes separating the two candidates.
Georgia Code 21-2-495 (c)1 states the number of votes have to be one-half of 1 percent or less for the total votes cast in order for a recount to be performed, at the written request of a candidate. The turnout for this race was more than the required amount therefore, a recount was not conducted.
GRIFFIN ALUMNI , FRIENDS OF THE GA. BULLDOGS AND FUN 101 FM INVITING FANS TO FOOD AND FOOTBALL, TUESDAY, JULY 16TH WITH EX-GA. GREAT MATT STINCHCOMB. SOCIAL HOUR AT 6 PROGRAM AT 7 FEATURING THE UGA REDCOAT ALUMNI BAND, CATERING BY THE VARSITY, AT THE UGA GRIFFN STUCKEY AUDITORIUM, $40 PER PERSON. FOR MORE INFORMATION PHONE 770-265-6467.
THOMASTON POLICE DEPARTMENT HAS OBTAINED A WARRANT FOR ANOTHER PPP LOAN VIOLATION RELATED TO COVID-19 FEDERAL FUNDS. 28 YEAR OLD ALONZEONIA RASHAY ELLISON OF 109 WEST COUNTY ROAD APARTMENTS IS THE LATEST SUSPECT OF SEVERAL AND HAS BEEN CHARGED WITH THEFT BY DECEPTION, A FELONY. THE VICTIM LISTED AS FOUNTAINHEAD S.B.F. LLC OF LAKE MARY, FLORIDA. INVESTIGATOR TRAYLOR BEGAN INVESTIGATION OF FRAUDULENT PPP LOANS IN APRIL OF 2023. THE PD BEGAN MEETING WITH THE FBI ABOUT THE CASES IN JULY OF 2022.
Upson-Lee High School NJROTC program will be hosting its annual Freshman Orientation Camp on July 15th – July 18th, 2024. The camp will be held at the Upson-Lee High School NJROTC spaces and will run from 8:00 a.m. until noon. Breakfast and lunch will be provided. Although not mandatory, the camp will introduce students to the NJROTC program, good citizenship practices, and the importance of physical fitness. Participants should have expressed interest in the NJROTC program while in 8th grade and requested the class with their guidance counselor. If there’s any questions, please contact Upson-Lee High School NJROTC at (706) 647-6795. Instructors also can be reached by email at ankendall@upson.k12.ga.us or mbert@upson.k12.ga.us.
UPSON COUNTY SHERIFF DAN KILGORE REPORTS A PEDESTRIAN KILLED SATURDAY NIGHT ON U.S. 19 NORTH OF CIRCLE K. THE VICTIM, CECIL KIRK PATRICK, AGE 55 OF BARNESVILLE, WAS CROSSING THE ROAD APPARENTLY TO GET TO THE COLONIAL MOTEL AND WAS STRUCK AND KILLED BY A MOTORIST FROM GAY,GA.
SHERIFF KILGORE SAID THE INVESTIGATION HAS BEEN TURNED OVER TO POST 26 GA. STATE PATROL .
After more than nine months of requests and letters to both Spalding County Tax Commissioner Sylvia Hollums and Gov. Brian Kemp, county auditors finally have the documentation they need to complete the Fiscal Year 2023 audit.
Board of Commissioners Chair Clay Davis said at a called BOC meeting Thursday evening that Mauldin & Jenkins, the accounting firm hired by Spalding to complete the audit, has received the information needed from the Hollums’ office.
The auditors have just 10 days to complete the audit and get it to the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. If they don’t, or if the DCA doesn’t accept the audit, the county could lose up to $24 million in grants.
The situation began back in September of last year when the county’s director of finance first requested the annual finance report from the Tax Commissioner’s Office in order to begin the annual audit.
Davis said at Monday’s BOC meeting that repeated requests for the information went unanswered.
“Correspondence indicates that between September of 2023 and January 2024, our staff routinely requested financial documents,” he said, “but were unable to obtain the requested information.”
County Manager Steve Ledbetter reported the delays to commissioners in January. In February, county commissioners directed Ledbetter to send a letter to Hollums requesting that she “rectify deficiencies identified in the financial management process of the Tax Commissioner’s Office, and to ensure that all future financial activities are conducted with the utmost transparency and adherence to Georgia law and established protocols.”
The letter requested Hollums work with the auditor to complete the audit no later than March 29, 2024.
When that deadline passed unresolved, the BOC made the Georgia Association of Tax Officials (GATO) aware of the situation. Davis said GATO offered their own assistance to the tax commissioner, and Hollums declined.
IN PIKE COUNTY KEN PULLIN DEFEATED INCUMBENT COUNTY COMMISSIONER JASON PROCTOR 66% TO 38% AND BRIAN JACK 3RD DISTRICT CONGRESS 75% OVER MIKE DUGAN 25%. TURNOUT 15%.
IN SPALDING COUNTY INCUMBENT SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER BARBARA JO COOK LOST TO CHERRI WELDON 262 TO 119. BRIAN JACK CARRIED SPALDING 961 TO 466.
Gordon State College Foundation board of trustees have named Dr. Waine Kong as chair of the foundation for the ’24-’25 academic year effective July
1. As chair, Kong will be responsible for presiding over meetings, fundraising and working closely with the foundation’s executive director and GSC’s executive director of advancement, Natalie Rischbieter.
“We are very happy to have Dr. Kong lead us into the upcoming academic year,” Rischbieter said. “Over the last five years, Dr. Kong has provided excellent leadership for our Events and Recognition Committee and has always gone above and beyond in his role with the GSC Foundation Board.”
Kong has served on the foundation’s board since 2019 and is chair of the Events and Recognition Committee. The GSC Foundation is a nonprofit organization that supports the mission and strategic plan of the institution. The foundation's board is primarily dedicated to raising scholarship funds to help GSC’s diverse student body with tuition costs and to promote higher education.
Kong and his wife, Dr. Stephanie Kong, own Zoe Pediatrics and its affiliated entities, as well as Kong Real Estate Holdings. He is a member of the Georgia Bar and has served as the CEO of the Association of Black Cardiologists for 21 years. Additionally, he has been a professor of human development at the University of the District of Columbia and vice president of Providence Hospital in Baltimore.
Author of several food-for-thought books, Kong currently writes a weekly column for the Upson Beacon. He serves on the Board of Deacons at Greater Mount Zion Baptist Church in Thomaston, Georgia. Kong and his wife have four children and six grandchildren.
Founded in 1852, GSC is a member of the University System of Georgia. The college has a distinctive legacy of excellent scholarship and service. GSC offers nearly 30 degrees, which
includes multiple associate and baccalaureate pathways for students. With an enrollment of over 3,100 students, GSC offers an intimate academic setting with state-of-the-art classrooms and laboratories. In this setting, students receive individualized attention that only a small college with dedicated faculty and staff can provide.
AT TUESDAY'S MEETING, THE UPSON COUNTY COMMISSIONERS VOTED TO PASS ON A CONTRACT INCREASE TO CUSTOMERS OF 6% FROM GARBAGE COLLECTION VENDOR--GFL.
THE COMMISSIONERS ALSO APPROVED A BOND GUARANTEE REQUEST FROM UPSON REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER TO EXPAND OBSTETRICS AND CRITICAL CARE. A $35 MILLION BOND THAT WILL INVOLVE SOME TYPE OF SINKING FUND COMMITTMENT FROM URMC WHILE NEGOTIATIONS BEGIN WITH THE COUNTY FOR AN INTER-GOVERNMENT AGREEMENT.
THE AGREEMENT WILL ALLOW THE HOSPITAL TO MOVE FOWARD WITH FINANCING FOR THE PROJECT TO BE LOCATED ON THE WEST SIDE OF URMC.
CHAIRMAN NORMAN ALLEN HAD ASKED FOR SOME TYPE OF FINANCIAL ASSURANCE THAT URMC COULD PAY OFF THE BOND IN CASE OF A CATASTROPHIC EVENT THAT WOULD PREVENT BOND REPAYMENT.
We will be providing some fun water activities starting this Thursday, June 13th, and running every Tu/Th for the rest of the month of June. (All dates: 6/13, 6/18, 6/20, 6/25, 6/27)
The water fun will be located at the T-ball Complex at the Civic Center (101 Civic Center Drive, Thomaston, GA, 30286)
We will have a large, Dual lane, inflatable water slide, a smaller water slide for the young children, and a fun slip n slide. We will also have concessions open to all guests for snacks and refreshments.
Entry fee will be $3 a person. All children Ages 4 and under are free. All children 10 & under must have an adult present at all times.
UPSON COUNTY SHERIFF DAN KILGORE WARNS THE PUBLIC ABOUT A SCAM ON PISTOL CARRY PERMITS--THAT ARE NO LONGER REQUIRED IN GA. VICTIMS ARE CONTACTED BY EMAIL IN A RUSE TO PAY TO RENEW THE PERMIT CONTENDING IT WAS SENT BY THE PROBATE COURT--BUT NO SUCH MESSAGES ARE EVER ISSUED BY TEXT OR EMAIL BY THE PROBATE JUDGE.
On Wednesday, June 5 th shortly after 10:30pm, officers of the Uniform Patrol Division of the Griffin Police Department received a call regarding a person having been shot at 1110 W. Poplar Street. Upon responding to the scene, officers located a 15 year old juvenile male suffering from a gunshot wound. He was transported to Wellstar Spalding Regional Hospital and then transferred to Grady Memorial Hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries. During the course of the investigation, a suspect was identified. An arrest has been made of a 16 year old juvenile male, who is being charged as an adult with Felony Murder, Aggravated Assault, Possession of a Firearm by a Person Under 18, and Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Crime. The investigation is ongoing at this time. If you have any information, please call Investigator J. Spears at (678) 603-3331.
A PARTNER IN FLETCHER-DAY FUNERAL HOME IN THOMASTON, DARREN DAY WAS INSTALLED AS PRESIDENT OF THE GA. FUNERAL HOME DIRECTOR'S ASSOCIATION AT CHATEAU ELAN IN BRASELTON, GA, TUESDAY.