OLD TIFTON ICE HOUSE SITE ON 2nd STREET
AFTER TWO YEARS, COLONY BANK FINALLY TO BREAK GROUND
By FRANK SAYLES JR.
Tifton Grapevine
More than two years after it had hoped to begin constructing a new bank building at the corner of Second Street and Central Avenue in Tifton, Colony Bank will have its groundbreaking ceremony at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, July 16.
"We're very happy to finally get started," says Bill Marsh, Colony Bank president in Tifton. "It's been
a long process. It sounds like it's finally here."
Colony Bank's plans were delayed first by the state and then, after removing the old structure, by additional work that needed to be done to prepare the site for construction.
The bank's officials originally had hoped to begin construction during summer 2013. During May of that year, Colony Bank went before the city and proposed razing the old ice house/market building on the corner of Second and Central, replacing it with a new bank building that retained some of the elements of the old structure, such as the curved block glass window and the distinctive lamp tower.
It was cost prohibitive to retrofit the old building,
officials said.
After some discussion, t
he Tifton Historic Preservation Commission voted
unanimously for Colony
Bank's
plans, applauding them for striving to maintain the look of the old building.
Then state officials got involved. The Ga. Department of Natural Resources' Historic Preservation
Division told the bank that its proposed building must be "
compatible with the historic district."
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At the time, Marsh had said the
state was involved
because the bank is part of the FDIC -- Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. -- and because the old ice house/market building was downtown and on the National Register of Historic Places.
"It was just a long process," Marsh told the Tifton Grapevine this week.
FInally, after the old structure was removed, "we then had to remove a little more soil than we had thought for compaction" to ensure the site could be built upon, Marsh said The building's construction should take about eight to nine months, he added.
"We're excited," Marsh said. "We're ready to get in there."
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FOR PARTS OF TIFT, IRWIN, BEN HILL, TURNER, COFFEE COUNTIES
GA. HOUSE ELECTION IS TUESDAY
Election Day is
Tuesday, July 14, to
fill the
Georgia State House seat
vacated by Rep.
Jay Roberts
of
Ocilla
.
Running for the special election in House District 155 are Scott Downing, Horace Hudgins, Sherry Miley
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Candidates, from left, Clay Pickle, Sherry Miley, Horace Hudgins, Scott Downing
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and
Clay Pirkle.
District 155 encompasses northern Tift County and parts of Irwin, Ben Hill, Turner and Coffee counties.
Downing, 44, of Fitzgerald, is a meat processor and former Ben Hill county commissioner. Hudgins, 62, is a Georgia Power Co. manager and former Ocilla mayor. Miley, 58, is a Tifton Realtor and former Tift County commissioner. Pirkle, 47, of Sycamore, is a farmer and businessman.
Polls in the district will be open from 7 a.m.-7 p.m. on Tuesday.
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'TIFTAREA ARTISANS' EXHIBIT OPENS THURSDAY
More than 50 works created by local artisans will be showcased in a specially curated exhibit beginning Thursday, July 16, at the Georgia Museum of Agriculture and Historic Village at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.
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'The Critics' by Mary Ann Cox is among the works exhibited.
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The exhibit, "The Best of Tiftarea Artisans," will open to the public with a reception at 6 p.m. July 16 at the Museum Gallery. Dave's Bread and Coffee House will host the reception, which is free and open to the public.
Museum assistant director and curator Polly Huff said more than 70 entries vied for a spot. Entries were narrowed down by a panel of jurors. Featured works include paintings, drawings, photography, multi-media pieces, basketry, woodturning and artisanal handmade knives.
The exhibit is presented in tandem with the Tiftarea Artisans group. Cash prizes totaling $475, provided by Tiftarea Artisans, will be awarded to the top three entries during the opening reception. The exhibit will remain on display at the gallery until Nov. 3. Most of the pieces are available for purchase.
For information, contact Tiftarea Artisans at [email protected] or Huff at [email protected]
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Election Day is this Tuesday,
July 14,
in District 155.
I appreciate your support!
Sherry Miley
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SOME THINGS seems to slow down in mid summer, including the news, but there were still a few noteworthy happenings during the past week ... On Thursday, July 9, Ashburn City Manager Dan Bollinger submitted his resignation after less than a year on the job. He says he wants to spend more time with his family. His last day will be July 24 .... COUNTRY MUSIC STAR (and Leesburg native) Luke Bryan is once again doing his "Farm Tour," bringing his show to farms and fields across the country. The other day it was announced that Bryan will stop and perform in South Georgia at MJ Taylor Farms in Adel on Saturday, Oct. 10 ... CONSTRUCTION continues in earnest on the Wal-Mart neighborhood grocery on North Tift Avenue and on the Hobby Lobby store off U.S. Highway 82 in Tifton. Both businesses hope to be open and operating by the end of the year.
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AS THE DAYS DWINDLE DOWN TO A PRECIOUS FEW....
While local students are still enjoying the summer break, the beginning of the school year looms just a few weeks away.
The school year was obviously on the minds of Tift County School officials who recently released the video at left. The school year opens on Aug. 4.
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Kelly Burk and Kelly Helwig in Tifton
Enhancing the Lives of Aging Adults and Their Families
- Companionship
- Transitional Care
- Medication Reminders
- Meal Preparation
- Light Housekeeping
- Respite Care
- Escort to Shopping and Errands
Our services grow as CAREGivers
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find new and innovative ways to meet the needs of our clients.
229-396-5243
1810 U.S. Highway 41 N., Suite B
Tifton, GA 31794
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Graphic by MillaCreationsz Photography & Designs
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FAMILY PROMISE GROUP MEETS ON JULY 13
Family Promise, a religious, community-based approach to offering caring assistance to homeless families, meets at 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 13, at Day Spring Inspirational Church, 620 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in Tifton.
Sponsored by the Tift County Homeless Coalition, the local group is using the national Family Promise interfaith model to establish a local framework to aid homeless families. Interested residents may attend the meeting.
For information, call 229-472-1063.
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Wonder What's Going On
in the Tiftarea?
Then Subscribe
to
Tifton, Georgia
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YOUR WEEKEND
...at a Glance
- Watermelon Crawl 5k & Fun Run, 8 a.m, ABAC, Tifton
- Wiregrass Farmers Market, 9 a.m.-noon, Ga. Museum of Agriculture, Tifton
- Downtown Farmers Market, 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Old Train Platform, Tifton
- "Rock the Block" live music & street dance, 7 p.m., First Street, Downtown Tifton
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JULY 1
Mary Frances "Sissy" Bennett, 90, Tifton
Agnes Fender, 67, Nashville
Peggy Davis Prescott, 63, Fitzgerald
JULY 2
Mardine Pafford, 88, Nashville
Freddy Lee, 70, Waycross
JULY 3
Felton H. Blackstock, 87, Fitzgerald
Clara Mae Cain, 85, Sparks
Henry Bennett "Ben" Drexler, 82, Orlando, Fla.
JULY 4
Betty Laura Shiflett Ray, 83, Tifton
Mary Joan Stephens, 72, Tifton
Wycliffe Russell Griffin, 84, Ocilla
Airabella Hope Susan Hersey, infant, Hazlehurst
Lillon Odom Pearce, 88, Sycamore
JULY 5
Dr. James Wilbur Oglesby, 87, Tifton
Jose Luis Cuellar Sr., 64, Macon
Edith "Duck Duck" Henderson Giddens, 84, Ocilla
Phillip J. Croft, 89, Fitzgerald
Evelyn McLean Pridgen, 90, Brunswick
JULY 6
Carey O. Moretz, 84, Tifton
Minnie Mae Black Galarza, 31, Fitzgerald
Virginia Ruth Jones Lassiter, 87, Tifton
George Cauley McSwain, 72, Ashburn
Triston Tyler Hunt, 16, Adel
JULY 7
Patricia Kenworthy, 59, Nashville
JULY 8
Ronnie Ralph Thompson, 72, Fitzgerald
JULY 9
James Robert Spivey, 70, Enigma
Edward "Charles" Shivers, 28, Valdosta
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