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Dodge County is once again making headlines in the state as Georgia Governor Nathan Deal used his executive powers and vetoed two pieces of local legislation (House Bill 635 and House Bill 636) that were introduced by our state representative Jimmy Pruett.

Governor Deal issued veto statements regarding these bills on Tuesday, May 7, 2013. [Full Story »] 

In an emergency called meeting on Tuesday, April 30 at 12 noon, the Dodge County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to request the Heart of Georgia Regional Airport Authority table the sale of the river property. [Full Story »] 

The Heart of Georgia Regional Airport Authority held a called meeting on Monday, April 30 at 2:00 p.m. and approved the sale of the 45 (plus or minus) acres of land on the Ocmulgee River for a second time. The authority had previously voted to sell the property, but before the bids could be opened, a judge signed a temporary restraining order keeping them from doing so. [Full Story »] 

After hearing testimony from both Dodge County and the Heart of Georgia Regional Airport on Thursday, April 18, Oconee Judicial Circuit Court Judge Sara Wall ruled in favor of the airport on Monday, April 29. [Full Story »] 

Jonah Barnett, a young boy from this small town in Georgia has become the inspiration for a runner headed to the 14th annual St. Jude Country Music Marathon & 1/2 Marathon presented by Nissan, which takes place on Saturday, April 27. Jonah, who was diagnosed with an incurable brain tumor as a toddler, has motivated Eastman resident Kelly Burch to train for and complete her first marathon, a 26.2-mile endurance race she compares to Jonah’s medical trials. [Full Story »] 

Alcoa calls the period between April 21st and June 21st as GreenWorks because this timeframe includes Earth Day, National Arbor Day and World Environment Day. The Alcoa Architectural Products facility in Eastman celebrated Earth Day on April 22, 2013 by picking up the trash along the one-mile Industrial Blvd. This was the first of what will become a quarterly schedule by Alcoa employees to keep Eastman litter free by adopting Industrial Blvd. City Manager, Bea Edge, City Council members and Judy Madden, Executive Director of the Chamber of Commerce attended the dedication along with several Alcoa employees. [Full Story »] 

On Saturday, April 27, 2013 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. the Oconee Drug Task Force, Dodge County Sheriff’s Office, Eastman Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will give the public its sixth opportunity in three years to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused and unwanted prescription drugs. Bring your medications for disposal to the Oconee Drug Task Force at 327 Pearl Bates Avenue in Eastman. The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked. [Full Story »] 

After numerous requests from citizens attending the bimonthly meetings of the Dodge County Board of Commissioners, a sound system has been installed.

Commissioner Terry Niblett reminded fellow board members at the February 18, 2013 meeting of an action taken to table the purchase of a sound system for the current meeting facility back in September 2012. At that meeting, he made a motion to rebid the purchase of the system.
At the April 1, 2013 meeting, bids for a sound system were opened from BFE Technologies and Trinity Technical Solutions, Inc., both from Eastman. The bid was awarded to BFE Technologies for $2,295.00. Billy Edenfield, owner of BFE Technologies, had the sound system installed and was present at the meeting. [Full Story »] 

The 2013 summer school schedules for Dodge County Middle School (DCMS) and Dodge County High School (DCHS) were approved by the Dodge County Board of Education this past Thursday at the school board’s regular scheduled meeting. [Full Story »] 

An Eastman man was injured when he was the victim of a home invasion robbery.

On Thursday, April 12 at approximately 9:45 p.m., Lewis Walter Roland (age 73), was in the living room of his home sitting in a chair at 826 Karen Drive. The door bell rang and he went to answer the door. When he opened the door, a dark skinned black male hit him in the mouth, knocking him across the room and onto the floor. The intruder then kicked Roland in the face and asked him for his wallet. Roland told the intruder where his wallet was located. The man retrieved the wallet, took Roland’s phone from a table and ran out the front door. [Full Story »] 

Traffic on U.S. 341 north below Chauncey was stopped for approximately an hour on Monday, April 8 after a car hit a bicyclist at approximately 4:00 p.m. Brandy Davenport, of Hawkinsville, was driving north on U.S. 341 in a Nissan car when she hit Jason Wagner, address unknown, riding a bicycle north on U.S. 341. A helicopter was called to transport Wagner to the Medical Center of Central Georgia in Macon. No more information on the accident was available at presstime. (Photo by Chuck Eckles)

A log truck, driven by Michael Joseph Carter (age 42), of Alamo overturned while trying to negotiate the sharp curve at the intersection of Lower River Road and Georgia 87 (Abbeville Highway). The driver was not injured. The accident happened at approximately 12:38 p.m. on Wednesday, April 3. (Photo by Chuck Eckles)

Hunters and others recently may have heard one of multiple news sources claim that the deer season length was to be reduced in the 2013-2014 hunting year. Not the case. The Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Resources Division wishes to address this concern and remind citizens to always check www.georgiawildlife.com/Hunting/regulations for correct information. [Full Story »] 

The grand marshal of a parade is not only the leader of the parade, but also a leader in the community and Mitchel Conley is just that, a leader in Rhine. Conley was selected as grand marshal for the 2013 Pondtown Parade. [Full Story »]