By KENDALL OWENS
T-H Staff Writer
Complaints from county residents are rolling into the offices of St. Francis County Judge Carl Cisco and NEARCO at an increasing pace since the county announced last week that the garbage contract with B&B Disposal was canceled.
As of this morning, NEARCO officials reported over 150 calls regarding late trash pick-up have been noted since Jan. 2. At a meeting last Wednesday to determine the county's new collector, J.D. Sharpe, NEARCO manager, told quorum court justices that his office had received 107 calls. According to Sharpe, phones at the recycling facility have been "ringing off the hook" with complaints from citizens about the service.
"It seems like the calls got worse once the announcement was made last week. I've got my men out there handling as many calls as they can, but we just don't have the equipment to take care of everyone that's been missed," Sharpe said.
According to Ken Beeson with B&B, several issues, including the recent holidays, have interfered with the company's ability to keep its schedule. According to Beeson, the company has had fuel problems that led to the inability to run on a normal schedule.
"We've had some problems over the last month with our fuel being doctored, which has forced us to replace five motors in that time. When someone messes with your fuel, it's difficult to get the job done. We've filed reports on that, and we attempted to let the county judge know, but we had a couple of calls go unanswered," Beeson said.
"We also had the holidays that we had to work around, and that has caused us a few delays because there's only so much that you can do. It would have been nice to have been able to speak with the Quorum Court and plead our case to them before they made their decision, but the first we heard of it was when our manager down there heard that King Disposal had gotten the contract," Beeson added.
Calls to the Lee County Sheriff's Department and the St. Francis County Sheriff's Department could not confirm any damage reports by B&B.
Beeson also argued that the county had placed them in an awkward position through late payments on both the residential pickups and the roll-off dumpsters. Beeson also commented on the county's recent selection of King Disposal as the new carrier.
"It just seems ironic to me that the county ends up taking the highest bid for service without even giving us a chance to explain what was happening. They're a month behind on their residential bill and two months behind on the roll-offs and that really can rub you the wrong way," Beeson said.
According to St. Francis County Judge Carl Cisco, B&B received payment last week for their services with the exception of the payment for this past month. Cisco said officials with NEARCO and his office will have to make adjustments to the bill before payment will be issued.
"The payments to B&B have been sent out for everything, except for this last month. That's because we've had to send crews out to handle some pick ups, and there have been so many people that have been missed throughout the county, including me. We've been paying for weekly pickup, but there are a number of people who have gone two and three weeks with their trash still out there. We also have to make adjustments for the trash we've had to haul to the landfill in Helena," Cisco said.
King Disposal of Palestine is expected to take over garbage services by March 1, when the contract with B&B is officially canceled. King will take over both residential and roll-off services.
GT students to showcase their talents at project fair
The Forrest City School District's Gifted and Talented Project Fair will be held today and Tuesday at the Forrest City Civic Center.
This annual event gives students in the gifted and talented (GT) program an opportunity to showcase their talents by researching a topic of their choice and present it for judging by a GT team. Each student will receive a certificate and ribbon to reward their efforts.
Students meeting all criteria will advance to a regional GT Project Fair to be held in March in Helena. While there, students may earn Awards of Excellence, Judges' Awards and the Project Fair Hall of Fame Award.
All who are interested may view the projects on display this evening from 4 to 6 p.m.
A nine-year-old Hughes girl was raped Saturday morning after being lured from her home by a family acquaintance.
The St. Francis County Sheriff's Department reported a 15-year-old boy, who was babysitting his nieces and nephews at a nearby residence, went to the girl's home about 11:30 a.m., and asked her mother if she could come to his sister's house and play with the children there. About 45 minutes later, the teenager reportedly walked the girl home.
Deputies reported the girl's mother noticed she was crying, and after some questioning, was told that the teenager had allegedly pulled a knife on her and raped her.
The girl was taken by ambulance to Baptist Memorial Hospital-Forrest City where she was treated and released.
The teen was arrested Saturday afternoon on charges of rape and aggravated assault. He was scheduled to appear in St. Francis County District Court this afternoon.
The Palestine-Wheatley School Board has scheduled its regular monthly meeting for 6:30 tonight in the high school cafetorium on the Palestine campus.
Board members are expected to hear from a concerned parent, in addition to discussing the group's regular business.
Three meetings are planned for Tuesday.
The Forrest City Planning Commission will meet at 4 p.m. at city hall to hear a variance request for a new business. Kevin Thomas with Jackson Used Cars will request commissioners allow him a variance from the 20-foot landscape buffer so that he can place a six-foot privacy chain link fence on the west side of his property at 204 Deaderick Road.
Also on Tuesday, the Forrest City Water Commission is scheduled to meet at 5:30 p.m. at the water department.
The St. Francis County Quorum court's personnel committee will meet at 6 p.m. at the courthouse to discuss the county's personnel policy manual.