By ALAN SMITH
T-H Staff Writer
The woes continue at the Forrest City Civic Center as three civic clubs have decided to move their meetings to other locations.
The presidents of the Forrest City Rotary Club, Lions Club and Kiwanis Club said their organizations have decided to stop holding their regular weekly meetings at the center due to the uncertainty of the catering situation.
According to the Forrest City Mayor's office, both the Rotary and Kiwanis clubs are charged $50 per month for their weekly meetings in the Henley Room. The Lions Club is charged $30 per month for its weekly use of the Conference Room. These three civic clubs are charged at a reduced rate, according to officials at the mayor's office.
A fourth organization, Forrest City Musical Coterie, is charged the regular monthly fee of $60 per month for the use of the Henley Room. They meet at the center on every third Thursday during the months of September through May, but have not decided to relocate their meetings.
Rotary president Arliss Cummings commented on why the members will meet at the Forrest City Country Club. "Rotary has voted to move our meetings until the catering situation is worked out," said Cummings. "We really had no option or choice, but we really hate to leave. The reason for our move is the catering issue. We don't know what we need to do for catering.
"We feel that we should be meeting at the civic center," added Cummings. "We are moving because it doesn't look like the caterer situation will be resolved by June 1 (the date that the contact for current caterer Jim Hitchcock expires) so we had to move our meetings. We plan to move back to the center if and when the situation is settled. We have attended meetings (on the caterer situation). I don't know when it will be resolved, but I wish someone would tell the civic clubs what is going on. It is a sad situation not only for us but other groups that meet there as well."
Kiwanis Club president Todd Gregory gave a short statement about his club's decision to relocate its meetings. "We had representatives at both the Forrest City City Council and the Forrest City Civic Center Commission," said Gregory. "After attending both meetings, we decided it was best to relocate our meetings." Kiwanis will also meet at the Forrest City Country Club.
Gregory said the club would be open to moving back to the center after the caterer problem is resolved. "We would look again at the situation (of our meeting location) and reevaluate it after it is resolved. I'm not saying that we would come back, but we are open to it."
Dean Morrison, club manager at Forrest City Country Club, stated that the club will not be overwhelmed by the increase in business each week from the two civic clubs. "We will have no problem accommodating the organizations," said Morrison. "It means an increase in revenue for the club. It is a good situation for us."
Glenn Shepherd, who serves as the president of the Lions Club, said the club will meet at Bonanza. "Our first meeting there will be on June 7, and we will meet there until the civic center commission and the city council can get their stuff together on the catering at the center," commented Shepherd. "We did have a caterer lined up to provide meals for our meetings, but the expense was going to be too much. Plus the issue of (the Forrest City Civic Center Commission and Forrest City City Council) waiting until the last minute to resolve the issue."
Shepherd offered his opinion of the situation. "There is lack of leadership in this," said Shepherd. "No one on the commission or the council is taking a leadership role to resolve the issue. If they can get a caterer lined up on site, and if they will provide reasonably priced meals, we would consider returning to the center."
The Kiwanis and Rotary clubs paid $1,200 in fees to the city at their current rental rates per year. The city does not make any money on the meals provided to the clubs and meals are not included in the monthly fees, according to club presidents and the mayor's office. Revenue from the Lions Club per year equals $360.
But the civic center won't lose the revenue from the Lions Club, just their meeting. According to Shepherd, the club will continue to pay the $30 per month rental fee for the use of the center. "We are continuing to pay the rent to maintain leverage when this situation (the lack of a caterer at the center) is resolved," said Shepherd. "It keeps us in the loop and holds our spot for meetings when this is over. Also, we have storage areas there and that will help us maintain that."
Musical Coterie president Jane Laws stated that a petition was signed by the members of her organization at their last meeting. It was presented at this week's Forrest City Council meeting.
"We have signed a petition to let the mayor and city council know how we feel," said Laws. "We are asking them to act expediently and to make a decision as soon as possible in a businesslike manner."
The Musical Coterie meets at the center for nine months out of the year. At their rental rate and amount of meetings, they pay $540 for the nine meetings they hold there a year. Laws spoke about the future relationship of the Coterie and the civic center.
"As far as leaving the center, we have not decided that," added Laws. "But that will be left up to our board to make that decision."
By DAVID NICHOL
T-H Staff Writer
The Forrest City Area Chamber of Commerce will ask the St. Francis County Quorum Court to delay a special election which had been called for June 8.
The election will let voters decide whether to allow Forrest City to transfer $125,000 a year, for four years, from its share of a county-wide sales tax for solid waste, to the Chamber for industrial development.
Chamber President Randy Pearson explained this morning that the ballot title needs to be reworked to make it easier to understand.
The Chamber had requested, and the Quorum Court had agreed on April 20, to hold the election.
The vote, when it is held, will not be on a new tax, only on redirecting some tax money that is already being collected. Pearson said it is vital that people understand that.
Pearson had visited with the Forrest City City Council on May 16, requesting the transfer. At the time, most of the council seemed to be generally in favor of the transfer, provided it was understood that it would be for four years only.
However, because the sales tax is county-wide, it was determined that a county-wide election was necessary.
"The solid waste tax is a county-wide tax that is to be used for the disposition of solid waste," said Pearson.
Forrest City gets a prorated share of that money.
"The city has had extra money in its fund the past several years, and they wanted to be able to do something for economic development. And since it is a county-wide passed tax, then it has to be a county wide election" even though it is Forrest City's share of the money.
Pearson said the wording on the ballot as it was written was confusing. "It wasn't clear to the average person."
He said the ballot would be rewritten to make it easier to understand.
"It's for four years, and it has a sunset on it," said Pearson. "We will ask that the election be put off a month to get the wording on the ballot right."
Pearson reiterated that the election, while county-wide, will only affect Forrest City funds.
"It doesn't affect the county's solid waste. We want people to know that this is not a new tax. They are letting some of their tax dollars that they are already paying to go into industrial development."
He said the extra money would help in attracting a new executive director for the Chamber, and more.
"We can get more options on industrial property, send folks to trade shows. The squeaky wheel gets the grease," said Pearson. "And we've had a lot of folks in the automotive industry looking at us."
The Quorum Court's next meeting is Tuesday, May 25 at 5:30 p.m.
By TAMARA JOHNSON
Managing Editor
A man with a history of driving while intoxicated is headed to the state penitentiary to serve a three-year sentence.
Bennie Adams, 49, 1204 S. Rosser, Forrest City, pled guilty in St. Francis County Circuit Court Wednesday to his fifth DWI charge within the past five years. According to his driving history, Adams has been charged with DWI a total of 11 times.
Adams was arrested by a trooper with Arkansas State Police Troop D headquarters in Forrest City on his fifth DWI charge on April 24. He was also arrested on charges of driving on a suspended driver's license and no proof of insurance.
The trooper stopped Adams' vehicle on Lake Street, and the driver registered .21 percent on a preliminary breathalyzer test to determine his alcohol content. On a separate test conducted at the Forrest City Police Department, Adams registered .18 percent. A passenger in his vehicle was also arrested and charged with public intoxication.
The April arrest came just a few months after Adams' fourth DWI arrest, by the same ASPtrooper, that occurred on Dec. 5, 2003, near the Lee County line on Highway 1 South. At that time, in addition to the DWI charge, Adams was charged with suspended driver's license, speeding and failure to comply with community service. Two passengers in his truck were arrested for public intoxication.
On the preliminary breathalyzer test in December, Adams registered .27 percent, but on a breathalyzer test conducted at the St. Francis County Jail, his BAC was reported at .31 percent.
A computer check on Adams showed that his driver's license had not been valid since 1985.
Adams was sentenced to three years in the ADC on the fourth and fifth DWI charges, but those sentences are scheduled to run concurrently.
By TAMARA JOHNSON
Managing Editor
The arrest of a Forrest City man on drug charges Wednesday in West Memphis led police to the discovery of more drugs inside his home and the subsequent arrest of three convicted felons.
Officials with the First and Third Judicial District Drug Task forces began searching the home of Billy Gill Taylor at 697 SFC 340, Forrest City, after Taylor was arrested for possession of methamphetamine by the West Memphis Police Department's Narcotics Division.
According to a report on file at the St. Francis County Sheriff's Department, following his arrest for about one ounce of methamphetamine, Taylor told WMPD officials that he had more of the drug inside his home in Forrest City and that he would allow officers to search his residence.
Taylor was taken to his home in the Telico area where he was met by DTF officials and agreed to allow them to search his home. He reportedly led police to the washroom of his residence where they found about five ounces of methamphetamine inside a plastic baggie stuck in the control panel of the washing machine. Police also found several scales used to weigh the drugs and firearms inside the home.
According to court records, Taylor, who is a former employee of the Arkansas Department of Corrections, was celebrating his 54th birthday Wednesday.
While officers were searching the home, three subjects drove up to Taylor's residence, and Kenneth Irvin, 41, of Little Rock, walked up to the door and was met by a DTF agent who explained to him that the house was being searched and asked him why he was there.
Irvin told the officer he was there to "sell newspaper subscriptions," but after the officer noticed a bulge in Irvin's front pants pocket, he searched the subject and found a pipe used for smoking methamphetamine and about nine grams of the drug inside a plastic bag.
Two other subjects remained inside Irvin's vehicle, and when police began questioning them, they noticed a .38 caliber pistol and large knife inside the car. Inside the car's trunk, police found scales and "smoking devices commonly used to smoke methamphetamine with." Police also discovered a bank bag containing "several thousand dollars" and syringes in the vehicle's glove compartment.
During questioning of the two passengers, Joseph Clingan, 33, of Humnoke, and Amber Orrick, 22, of Carlisle, police discovered both have previous drug convictions. Clingan is on parole from the ADC for drug convictions, and Orrick is on probation for drug convictions. Irvin has served time in the ADC for second-degree murder.
Because the three subjects are convicted felons, state law prohibits them from possessing a firearm. According to the police report, the three denied ownership of the gun.
Taylor is charged with simultaneous possession of drugs and firearms, possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Irvin is charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of a firearm by a certain person and simultaneous possession of drugs and firearms.
Clingan and Orrick are charged with possession of a firearm by certain persons.
The subjects were scheduled to be arraigned in St. Francis County District Court this afternoon.
The Board of Trustees of East Arkansas Community College will meet Tuesday, May 25, at 7 p.m. in the EACC Board Room.
Included on the agenda are a status report on construction projects, a special report on the "I Can Learn Lab," and a report on new hires.