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County revises Radium purchase

• Dougherty County Commissioners OK a change in a recent greenspace purchase.

Carlton Fletcher

ALBANY — Dougherty County Commissioners agreed to a contract change in their plan to buy the old Radium Country Club land during a special called session Monday morning, a change that Citizens Greenspace Advisory Board Chairman Woody Hicks called a win-win for the county.

The new contract, worked out by Greenspace Committee member Bill Swann, an attorney, and land owner Darrel Ealum over the weekend, will cut out more than 8 acres of property that currently houses the former Radium clubhouse, a swimming pool, the club parking lot and other outbuildings.

“This is a win-win for us,” Hicks told commissioners. “We will still get the two lots that give us almost 7 miles of continuous protected land, and it will enhance our chances of getting a grant through the Georgia Public Trust Wetland Mitigation Fund.”

The reduction in land also cuts the price tag for the property from the originally agreed-upon price of $940,000 to $690,000, $50,000 of which will come from special-purpose local-option sales tax greenspace funds.

“The only modifications of the agreement have to do with an extension of time to complete the purchase (to July 1) and a reduction in the price of some $250,000,” County Attorney Spencer Lee said. “We’re cutting 8.4 acres of land out of our purchase, which Mr. Ealum will attempt to sell separately. That will lower our total cost for the land.”

Commissioners voted 5-0 (Commissioners John Hayes and Muarlean Edwards were at a training seminar) to accept the new agreement, which Hicks said could be ready for closing by March 1.

“This is special,” Commission Chair Jeff Sinyard said. “There aren’t many communities like ours where citizens work like these folks have to preserve greenspace for future generations. And look at the bargain we’re getting. For every dollar of SPLOST money we put in, we’re getting 11 additional dollars in grant funding.”

In the “bad” portion of Hicks’ “good-news, bad-news” report, the Greenspace chairman told commissioners an issue with an easement agreement had kept the committee from moving forward with the purchase of 65 acres of land in the northern end of the county.

“We told (property owner Deloyce Manley) we would try again,” Hicks said.

During a work session prior to the called meeting, commissioners heard a report from Dougherty Police Chief Don Cheek on his recommendation that they deny James Epler Jr.’s request for an alcohol license for his proposed Egg’s Billiards establishment on Sylvester Road.

“The city issued Mr. Epler a business license through Code Enforcement, and we deal with alcohol license applications after the fact,” Cheek said. “We’ve come up with issues from the past with Mr. Epler in two jurisdictions, so I am suggesting you deny this application.”

A report by Detective R.L. Curry, which noted that Epler had not been convicted of any crimes in Georgia, indicated Epler had been arrested in 1999 on burglary charges and probation violation in Lowndes County.

Curry’s report also noted that Epler’s “silent partner” in the venture, Larry Poole, had been referred to by investigator Jimmy Black of the Jones County Sheriff’s Office as “an old Dixie Mafia type guy.” The report indicated Poole had been indicted on five counts of RICO Act commercial gambling charges but the case was dropped.

County Administrator Richard Crowdis informed the commission that the State Department of Corrections had agreed to provide labor on construction of the county’s Public Works office facility, an act that will “save the county a tremendous amount of money.”

“State Corrections will use its inmates to do all the work at no cost,” Crowdis said. “They find the inmates who can do electrical work, carpentry, plumbing ... whatever’s needed, and they bring the inmates here. We supply the materials. It’s a great program, and we were fortunate enough to get on their schedule.”

Commissioners also discussed the purchase of police and EMS vehicles, an easement grant for property being developed by Vantage Development of Fyffe, Ala., and a request from Tifton/Tift County officials to bring liquid waste to the Dougherty County Landfill.

Assured by Solid Waste Director Mike McCoy that the request was only temporary, Commissioner Jack Stone said, “We should try to help our neighbors as long as it’s short- term. If it were long-term, I’d have to vote against it.”

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