The Wiregrass Farmer

02/26/2025

County Commission meeting Fe. 25, 2025

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6tUrP-1QJ0

Articles in next week's newspaper will explain things not discussed during the meeting and on video.

02/26/2025

Booze ordinance comes back

MISSING ANT! REWARD OFFERED February 24, 2025 by Sami Mastrario Want to win $1500? Step right up and join the Greatest Show ANT by finding the elusive large plastic ant in our annual South Georgia Banking Company Find the Fire Ant Contest! The thrilling, county-wide scavenger hunt is back and bigger...

02/26/2025

County wants old gym.

County wants old gym By Editor | February 26, 2025 | 0 The County Commission is asking the Board of Education to donate the old gym, and only the old gym, at the old elementary school to the County.   Tuesday night, the Commissioners discussed updating a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the S...

02/24/2025

Your rundown of the news in this week's edition. No login, no credit card, no subscription needed to read these.

Sycamore’s new policy for public information requests By Editor | February 24, 2025 | 0 Sycamore has a new policy for public information requests. The federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Georgia’s Sunshine Laws spell out what records the public may receive government offices. These law...

02/24/2025

Georgia a step closer to helping people erase convictions from record.

Learn more.

https://www.thewiregrassfarmer.com/2025/02/24/georgia-closer-t…ions-from-record/

MISSING ANT! REWARD OFFERED February 24, 2025 by Sami Mastrario Want to win $1500? Step right up and join the Greatest Show ANT by finding the elusive large plastic ant in our annual South Georgia Banking Company Find the Fire Ant Contest! The thrilling, county-wide scavenger hunt is back and bigger...

02/24/2025

BREAKING NEWS!

ANT MISSING!

REWARD OFFERED!

MISSING ANT! REWARD OFFERED By Editor | February 24, 2025 | 0 by Sami Mastrario Want to win $1500? Step right up and join the Greatest Show ANT by finding the elusive large plastic ant in our annual South Georgia Banking Company Find the Fire Ant Contest! The thrilling, county-wide scavenger hunt is...

02/24/2025

County Commission Workshop meeting
Tuesday, February 25th, 2025 – 6:00 P.M.
Ag Building next to the airport

CALL TO ORDER – CHAIRMAN JAMES BURGESS
INVOCATION
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
ADOPTION OF AGENDA
FINANCIAL INFORMATION: Open for Questions.
PUBLIC COMMENTS: (Concerning agenda items)
SPEAKER(s):
Crisp Regional Representative(s)
GENERAL DISCUSSION:
Discuss authorizing Resolution for 5311 Transit Grant Application for Turner County.
Discuss bids for repairs at Old 911 Building.
Discuss Courthouse A/V system installation with ARPA Grant.
Discuss DRRP (Disaster Recovery and Redevelopment Plan) meeting scheduled for Tuesday, March 4, 2025.
Discuss agreement for technical assistance services between Turner County and the Southern Georgia Regional Commission for the Comprehensive Plan for Turner County.
Discuss getting bids for Phoebe Building Repairs.
Discuss tentative due date for Proposed Budgets -March 31st,2025.
CHAIRMAN COMMENTS:
PUBLIC COMMENTS:
EXECUTIVE SESSION:
Personnel.
ADJOURN

02/22/2025

Traffic on 75 Southbound was slowed to a crawl this afternoon near the Crisp County line.

A small vehicle being towed by an RV apparently caught fire. Judging from the scene, the RV driver disconnected the pull and moved a few yards away from it.

The small Tracker-type vehicle is a total loss. The Turner County Sherrif''s Department and Fire Department responded to the scene. Traffic at the accident was reduced to the leftmost lane.

02/21/2025

Consensus at the Ashburn City Council hearings tonight is that the Council will not opt out of the property value cap.

The Council will hold a 3rd and final hearing Thursday along with a Council meeting to officially vote on the idea.

Not opting out means homestead property in the City can only increase by the amount of inflation each year.

Opting out means homestead properties can jump in value by any amount. Mayor Sandra Lumpkin noted the sometimes huge property value increases seen in Turner County and Ashburn in last year's re-evaluation.

02/19/2025

02/15/2025

Spring of Life Church will have a special speaker Sunday. The speaker is walking across the US with a cross to spread the word of God.

Come hear his story, see the current cross and meet the man with a mission.

He gets people to sign the cross. When it is full of signatures, he gives it away and builds a new one to carry.

Spring of Life is located in Roger's Plaza. Services begin at 11 a.m. All are welcome.

02/14/2025

📚✨ **Give Your Little One a Strong Start!** ✨📚

Calling all parents! 📢 If you have a **4-year-old**, it's time to **register for Pre-K** and set them up for a bright future! Early learning builds the foundation for reading, math, and social skills—helping kids thrive in school and beyond.

🗓 **Pre-K Registration**
📍 **Elementary School Cafeteria**
📅 **February 18**
⏰ **9:00 AM – 1:00 PM**

Spots are limited, so don’t wait! 🎒🎨 Give your child the best start with a quality early education. **Tag a parent who needs to know!** 👇

02/11/2025

https://www.thewiregrassfarmer.com/2025/02/11/suspending-superintendent-gets-no-support/

Suspending superintendent gets no support By Editor | February 11, 2025 | 0 Turner County Board of Education member Cornelius Ball wanted to put School Superintendent Christy Wray on administrative leave. His effort got no support from the rest of the BOE. Mr. Ball’s attempt came after the Board h...

02/11/2025

Cornelius Ball, at tonight's Board of Education meeting, sought to put to put Superintendent Christy Wray on administrative leave.

His effort got no support from the rest of the Board.

Prior to that, the School Board took the highly unusual step of voting on individual contracts for administrators. Before that, the BOE met in closed session for a while to discuss personnel.

Coming out of the meeting, Chairman David Mathis called out individual names from a list of School System employees and the Board voted on each one.

Several of the votes were split with Ball, Mathis and Sam Brown voting in favor of contract renewals and Sandra Blue and Ann Kendrick voting against.

We'll have more details in next week's newspaper.

02/07/2025

Ashburn City Council
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6n_KWwQH5sw

School Board
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfafyHv6BJg

Uploading the most recent County Commission meeting now.

02/03/2025

In this week's edition:

Awards from the Ashburn - Turner County Chamber of Commerce banquet and pictures.

Turner County's suite of human resources policies needs to be updated said Commission Chairman James Burgess.

Black History Month - Dr. James McCune Smith

Dr. Smith is the first black American to receive a medical degree. He had to go to Scotland to get it from the Glasgow Medical School. Racist admission standards in the US at the time prevented him from getting his degree here.

He was born April 18, 1813, in Manhattan, NY and died Nov. 17, 1865, 8 months after the end of the Civil War.

Citizens across Georgia have sent a clear message: Georgians are ready to have a say on the future of gaming in their state.
With 81.4% of Republican primary voters in May 2024 backing a statewide referendum on gaming, it’s evident that citizens across Georgia are tired of politicians in Atlanta using this issue to fundraise for their campaigns without allowing the people to decide its outcome. This represents a clear mandate from Republican primary voters statewide to allow for a vote. Additional polling data also indicates that Democratic and Independent voters largely are in favor of giving citizens the right to make this decision.

As the School Board ponders opting out of House Bill 581, the County Commission is deciding to stay with in.
HB 581 puts a cap on how much homesteaded property values can increase from year to year. The Georgia Constitution Amendment passed in Turner County by more than 64%.

Read the whole story in this week's paper

Property tax questions and answers December 13, 2024 Wondering about your Turner County property tax bill? Here are some answers. These are short versions of the complete answers. You can read the complete answers in next week’s newspaper. Can you pay your taxes now? Possibly. “I don’t know th...

02/03/2025

The Ashburn City Council will meet Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Municipal Courthouse. The public is invited to attend.
The agenda below is subject to change.
1. Call to Order
2. Invocation/Moment of Silence
3. Pledge of Allegiance
4. Roll Call
5. Approval of the Agenda
6. Approval of January 2, 2025, regular meeting council minutes
7. Approval of Alcohol Beverage License for Steps Sports Bar- Joe Burgess/115 S.
Main St./ Beer/Wine/Distilled Spirits
8. Executive Session-Personnel 50-14-3-(b)(2)
9. Adjourn
The City of Ashburn will assist citizens with special needs given proper notice (seven working days). Any requests for reasonable accommodation required by individuals to fully participate in any open meeting, program, or activity of the City of Ashburn should be directed to Amanda Hill, City Clerk.