News
Recall petition rejected
Residents working to oust all
five members of the Fayette County Commission are
evaluating their options this week following
disqualification of their recall petition Monday
night.
Supt.: Gov.'s education
reform plan may cut Fayette funding
Proposals for changes in the
state's Quality Basic Education formulas for funding,
which seem to change daily, have Fayette County
school officials on edge.
Council to decide F'ville
manager's status tonight
Fayetteville City Council will
have a special called meeting Wednesday night to deal
with charges against city manager Michael Bryant.
F'ville's look to be
decided by vote on The Village?
How downtown Fayetteville will
look 20 years from now will be influenced by the city
Planning Commission's expected vote next Tuesday on
plans for The Village, a mixed use development at
Tiger Trail and Ga. Highway 54 west.
Council considers rezoning
reversal
Fayetteville City Council is
expected to act Monday on a proposal to reverse an
earlier rezoning on Ga. Highway 54 east.
Commission 'interested' in
Barnes' green space plan
If Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes is
successful in his proposal that the state provide
funding to set aside 20 percent of land in
metropolitan areas as parks and green space, Fayette
County should be first in line, says county
Commissioner Glen Gosa.
PINES program now offers
access to libraries statewide
The Fayette County Library, a
branch of the Flint River Regional Library System, is
one of the first libraries in Georgia to offer a new
statewide cataloging system using the Public
Information Network for Electronic Services, also
known as PINES.
School board eyes softer
chairs for future teachers
Fayette County teachers may be
sitting pretty if a proposal to purchase new
upholstered, adjustable chairs to replace the current
molded plastic teacher chairs is approved by the
Board of Education.
Gordon College to expand
local classes
A pending agreement between
Gordon College and Fayette Community Schools could
significantly expand the number of courses available
to Fayette County residents and their neighbors.
Social competence is one
key to learning, local teachers told
Preparing children to be
socially competent is the key purpose of preschool
education, according to Dawn Oparah, local education
specialist.
Rap star's appeal denied
An appeals court has upheld a
ruling by a Fayette County judge that could send a
local hip-hop star to jail for skipping jury duty.
School types often defined
by their funding
Public,
private, charter, vouchers — what do they mean?
Here are a few basic definitions.
Local reaction to voucher
idea varied
Local reaction
to voucher overtures varies according to the source.
Pleas filed
in Superior Court
A number of criminal cases were
concluded with pleas entered last Thursday during a
hearing in Fayette County Superior Court before Judge
Paschal English.
Wreck lands
driver in hospital
A Fayetteville man remains in
the hospital after a one-car accident during the wee
hours of Saturday morning.
Shoplifting suspect nabbed
at Belk
Four people are in custody after
an attempted shoplifting incident Saturday afternoon
in Fayetteville.
Census speakers available
How will Census 2000 benefit
Fayette County? How will it assist local governments,
local businesses and individuals?
Public comment moved to end
of commission action agenda
Public comment will be at the
end of the Fayette County Commission meetings rather
than at the beginning from now on.
CCSU offers info sessions
for enrollees
Anyone interested in enrolling
at Clayton College & State University for this
year's summer or fall class sessions can attend one
of the University's two information meetings open to
the public this winter.
Bedford school breaks
ground
Groundbreaking for The Bedford
School's new facility took place Saturday with
several hundred people in attendance.
School sets carnival
East Fayette Elementary School
will host its annual winter carnival Friday from 5-9
p.m. The event is one of the school's key
fund-raisers and is open to everyone in the
community.
New club forming to help
3rd graders gear up for life
A new girls group targeting
third graders has organized in Fayette County, under
the guidance of Peggy Davenport of Tyrone.
Students meet Braves' Home,
get lessons on winning in life
The Atlanta Braves mascot,
Homer, made a guest appearance at East Fayette
Elementary School recently, appealing to students to
be the best they can be.
Fayette now has a new
political party
The charter for Fayette's newest
political party was signed last week, and officers of
the local party are as follows: William Norris,
chairman; Danny Lucsko, vice chairman; Lee Hunt,
secretary; Greg Dorn, treasurer.
Public invited to discuss
school facilities planning
A community roundtable to
discuss school facilities is scheduled for tonight at
7 p.m. at the LaFayette Education Complex.
Dining
Guide
- Time
for tea in Senoia
-
- High tea is one of the most
civilized traditions to cross the big pond.
-
Tea-time
favorites easy to prepare
Having a tea party can be as
spontaneous as inviting a neighbor over for a cup of
Earl Grey and bakery-bought muffins, or as elaborate
as a wedding shower high tea.
Secrets of
Fayette
By F.C. FOODIE
Food Critic
- One of the great joys of
being “Foodie” is discovering that
undiscovered gem of an eating establishment that
nobody has heard of or has dreamed about trying.
-
- Business
Experts offer tax tips for
frustrated filers
Just 31 days
after surviving Y2K, it's time to turn your attention
to that other dreaded acronym, the W-2. Timed to
coincide with the unofficial beginning of tax-time,
when all forms must be in the mail, Kinko's has
announced a new service to provide tax relief for
online filers. Taxpayers looking for an easy,
convenient way to prepare and file their taxes online
can bring their W-2s to any Kinko's store in the U.S.
and receive 30 free minutes of computer time to
prepare and file returns, and up to four free laser
prints of their return. The service is available
February 1 through April 17.
Kids can be a help at tax
time
There's no getting around it.
Raising and educating kids today costs a bundle.
Financially strapped parents deserve some credit -
and now they can get it - thanks to several
child-related tax credits introduced in recent years.
Chamber
seminar set
“Taxes, regulations and
permits; how to stay on the right side of the
law” will be the topic of a seminar Friday, Feb.
18 at noon at the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce.
Businesses
announce changes
- Sports
Panthers take AAA state
wrestling title
The wrestling programs from the
four county schools competed in hotly contested state
tournaments over the weekend and one program came out
on top.
Tigers and Lady Chiefs will
see state tourney
It seems like only yesterday
that the high school basketball season began and now
the regular season and regional tournaments are past
us. Fear not. The state basketball tournaments will
begin this Friday and Fayette County is sending some
representatives.
McIntosh wins challenging
county swimming championship
McIntosh High School won its
sixth straight county swimming championship recently,
scoring 354 total points.
Sports Calendar
- Weekend
Newnan Community Theatre
opens 2000 season with "Streetcar"
- Stella ! Stella !
- Chock full
coffeehouse coming soon
- Always offering an eclectic
mix of local and regional performers, the next
Stars on the Southern Crescent coffeehouse,
scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 26, may be the
biggest and brightest one yet.
-
- Lots to do the
weekend after Valentine's Day
- Though Valentine's Day was
Monday, there are still many ways to show your
sweetie that he/she is special.
Winter birds – here to
stay?
By SALLIE SATTERTHWAITE
sallies@juno.com
We'll remember this as the
Winter of the Geese.
- The benefits of
good chocolate
- It's about time that the
secret be told. Chocolate is good for you!
-
- See the county by
bicycle
- Bicyclists are invited to
join the “Tour de Fayette” Feb. 26
-
- Civil War
historians to discuss signifigance of county
- Edward Jordan Lanham has
been a man with a mission for the past several
years. That mission has been locating all Civil
War Veterans, both Union and Confederate, who
were buried in Fayette County.
Movies
- Officer to address
bikers
- Officer Chris Broome,
Fayette County Sheriff's Department, will speak
to Fayette Biking For Life Inc. bicycle club Feb.
24.
-
- Spring is just
around the corner for gardners
- January was a busy month at
the Fayette County Extension Office.
Religion
Remember your roots... but
don't forget the One who is the 'root' of all things
By Rev. Dr. John Hatcher
Religion Columnist
February is Black History Month.
It's a way that African-Americans keep alive their
distinctive story in the America saga. It's a good
strategy for a culture. The monolithic American
culture rolls over little villages and hamlets all
over the world erecting McDonalds signs and
plastering the countryside with Coca-Cola signs.
Before long, a culture on the other side of the globe
speaks more the American economic system than of its
own traditions. The distinctive culture also forgets
the signs and symbols of its history. Do you know how
many young Black Americans are unfamiliar with
“I Have A Dream?”
The LDS church had a handle
on it long before Alex Haley...he just made us all go
crazy
By JUDY
KILGORE
jkilgore@thecitizennews.com
My mother made a comment to me
last weekend that sort of stung. We were returning
from a seminar on genealogy held at the LDS Church in
Peachtree City. Somehow, the subject got around to my
column and she said, “You don't ever write
anything yourself anymore. All you do is quote what
somebody else says.”
New ministry for Prime
Timers at Fayetteville UMC begins tomorrow
A new ministry program for Prime
Timers at Fayetteville First United Methodist Church
kicks off this Thursday, Feb. 17, with a
“breakfast” of fruit, pastries, coffee and
juice served in the Family Life Center beginning at 9
a.m. The cost is $1 per person. Prime Timers are
those over 55 or who have entered into full-time
retirement.
Selbo to speak at Feb.
Women's Aglow meeting
Joy Selbo from Minneapolis will
be the featured speaker at this month's meeting of
Women's Aglow Fellowship International, Peachtree
City Chapter, Monday evening, Feb. 21, and Tuesday
morning, Feb. 22. Both meetings will be held at the
Calvary Temple Assembly of God, 202 Robinson Rd. in
Peachtree City, next to Mowell Funeral Home.
Flat Creek Baptist begns
registration for preschoolers
Flat Creek Baptist Church will
begin its preschool program this August with weekday
classes for children ages three, four and five.
Holly Grove A.M.E. Church
offers tours, special speaker for Black History Month
Members of historic Holly Grove
A.M.E. Church in Peachtree City will offer guided
tours, linking the past with the present, and discuss
the church history this month in celebration of Black
History Month.
Religion Briefs
Dr. Williams to lead
revival at PTC First Baptist Church
First Baptist Church of
Peachtree City will have revival services beginning
Sunday, Feb. 27 and continuing through Wednesday,
March 1. Services start at 7 p.m. The revival will be
led by Dr. Gene Williams, with musical ministry led
by David Akin and the D.N.E. Band.
Habitat for Humanity taking
applications
Fayette County residents who
think they may qualify to purchase a Habitat for
Humanity home are invited to a workshop on Saturday,
March 4, at the First Baptist Church of Morrow. The
workshop will start at 9 a.m. and will end at noon.
Homeowner applications will be accepted at the
workshop. Applicants must meet certain requirements
to qualify. A spokesperson explains:
Gospel sing is Feb. 19
A Gospel singing at Noah's Ark
Holiness Church is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Saturday,
Feb. 19. Featured groups are Noah's Ark Holiness
Church's own "Heart Song,"
"Inheritance" from north Alabama, and
"Sacred Aires" from Dalton. For more
information and directions to the church call
770/474-6858.
Opinion
I can't be open-minded
about freedom
By DAVE HAMRICK
Editor-at-large
It seems as though every time I
find myself mellowing a bit in my feeling that
liberalism is a major threat to freedom, some liberal
curmudgeon says something so outlandish that my
former passion is rekindled.
School reform will cost
Fayette dearly
By AMY RILEY
One Citizen's Perspective
Now that the governor's A+
Education Reform Act, HB 1187, has met its first
challenge and sailed through the Georgia House of
Representatives this past week, it is imperative that
citizens take a long, hard look at what this bill
means both to the state and to Fayette county.
- Doncha
just love that country music?
BILLY
MURPHY
Laugh Lines
-
- Guess where the following
line comes from: “I would like to thank my
Mamma, my parole officer and the good Lord
above:” 1. Any Pro Football Player. 2. Jim
Bakker in the new one-man Las Vegas production of
his life story: “Free Jimmy: The Adventure
Home.” 3. Every single acceptance speech at
every single Country Music Awards Show.
Letters to
the Editor
OK, SPLOST, DOT, ARC:
Bypass this
I read with interest and great
concern about a Fayetteville Bypass (from here on
known as FB). There are all kind of letters and names
passed around in the story.
Gov. Barnes' reform should
include school vouchers
Gov. Barnes, today I spoke with
a nice lady in your office named Cindy Thomas. She
was kind enough to hear my public school horror
story. I will spare you the details of that and
simply state that something must be done about public
education.
'Pulling up ladder' to control PTC is
unconstitutional
I am disappointed with the low
caliber of response to my letter in last week's
Citizen from Steve Fodor. I neither intended it to be
funny or about annexation of the West Village (which
I have no association with and could not care less
about).
Ga. Power is trying to
elbow its high-voltage way through residential area
Recently several residents that
live on Crabapple Lane in Peachtree City and Tyrone
received notification from Georgia Power Co. of their
proposal to erect 90-foot concrete poles carrying
high voltage (115,000 volts) in the front yards of
their homes.
Get ready for millions in
taxes you didn't vote for
Sixty million dollars for a jail
complex. Over $36 million for a bypass road. Untold
millions for road widening projects, new fire
stations, and sewage treatment facilities. All told,
county taxpayers could be facing hundreds of millions
of dollars in new debt in the next few years,
according to information in The Citizen Feb. 9.
Whether this new debt means higher property taxes or
a higher sales tax, or more likely some of each,
county residents better be ready to open up their
wallets.
PTC Council moving in right
direction with no annexing
The recent Peachtree City
Council meeting made a rare thoughtful decision
concerning annexation of the property to the West of
Ga. Highway 74.
Now we know who are the
good, bad state politicians
Many of us often assume that
most of our elected officials do not have “doing
what is right” as their top priority, but are
primarily interested in protecting their power. We
would like to think that our representatives are
trying to do what is fair and just, but with all the
complexities involved in politics it is often hard to
tell.
Put census forms in the
mail
As I read how people in Georgia
were to receive their census forms this year, I
couldn't believe my eyes.
Maybe Rocker writer sees
the light
In response to Lucille Bradley,
Democratic, supporter of Clinton, advocate of gun
control (no offense):
Local doctor could use some
lession in patient relations and plain civility
On Feb. 1, I encountered one of
the worst forms of racism in my entire life. The
majority of my life, I have been treated fairly by
people of other cultures and ethnic backgrounds, at
least as far as I can tell. But this day, a certain
physician in Fayette really awakened me to the
reality of ignorance in the worst form... hate.
How can PTC attorney
represent city with such ties?
Yes, I have moved to Canada, but
I keep in touch through your paper being delivered to
me here and also I recently visited Peachtree City
and was brought up to date on many things involving
the city.
|
