Digital Newspaper for Tifton, Ga., and the Greater Tiftarea

ARTS IN BLACK

FEST RETURNS IN TIFTON

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Tifton's Arts in Black Festival, a celebration of African-American culture, comes back to Fulwood Park on Saturday.

From 1 until 10 p.m., the park will be filled with music, food, various vendors, and children's activities.

A festival Kickoff Party is scheduled tonight (Friday) beginning at 6 p.m. downtown in Tifton Gardens. Garfield "G-Man" Rhaney will be turning up the tunes to get you dancing.

Saturday's festival features a Poetry Competition beginning at 1 p.m., and live entertainment all afternoon and into the evening.

Arts & crafts and food vendors will offer all kinds of treats and interesting fare, and a pet petting area and a Kids' Zone offer fun for the youngsters.

The Arts in Black Festival began in 1986 on the J.T. Reddick school campus to offer area residents of different cultural backgrounds the opportunity to experience African-American culture and traditions through performances, exhibits, workshops, and foods. Organizers say they plan a vibrant celebration of culture and community.

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

The Tift County Blue Devils baseball team outlasted Brunswick in 11 innings Thursday to win 7-6 and advance to the state's "Elite 8" in the playoffs.

On Wednesday, the two teams had split a doubleheader – Tift winning 4-3, and Brunswick shutting out the Blue Devils 4-0.

Tift County will compete in the quarterfinals next week.

Meanwhile, over at the Georgia Independent Athletic Association (GIAA), the Tiftarea Academy Panthers baseball team is also in its own Elite 8 playoff against the Heritage School Hawks of Newnan.

That GIAA Class AAA tournament game is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. today.

COUNTY MANAGER DETAILS PLANS FOR COURTHOUSE ANNEX

By BONNIE SAYLES

Tifton Grapevine

Tift County Manager Jim Carter on Wednesday told the Tifton Rotary Club about plans to build a new courthouse annex. 

Construction of the new building and renovation of the existing Courthouse on Second Street and of the former Tifton Gazette building will take about three years to complete, beginning in March 2025.

Tift County recently purchased the old Tifton Gazette building on the corner of Tift Avenue and Second Street, and it will be used to store records and furniture during the courthouse renovation.

The Gazette building will be remodeled to house the county election offices and polling place that are currently in the former high school gym behind the Charles A. Kent County Administration Building. The buildings behind the Admin Building will be taken down. 

A new three-story Courthouse Annex will be added behind the Courthouse. The annex is architecturally designed to mirror the Courthouse; the architectural firm is McCall and Associates of Valdosta, Carter said. 

The original Tift County Courthouse was built in 1912, and has a total of 19,475 square feet. The Courthouse building is historically significant, but the space it provides is extremely limited, he said. The first floor has 5,145 square feet of usable space; the second floor, which is mostly the courtroom, has 5,145 square feet. The third floor has 5,500 square feet that is largely inaccessible.

Space in the basement, 6,200 square feet, is not usable because of flooding. Pumps there are busy pumping water out, Carter said.

The County Administration Building was redone in 1976-77. It is also historically significant as the original Tifton High School. It needs significant renovation as well, he said. The majority of the building is judicial in nature, and is inadequate for how it is being used, Carter said. 

The General Assembly just approved an additional Superior Court judge for the Tifton Judicial Circuit, so that comes with needing more office space for another district attorney and public defender and all the support staff. Four counties are in the Tift Judicial Circuit, and 60% of its court cases are in Tift County, Carter said.

“We have immediate needs with the insertion of a brand-new court,” he said. 

Fortunately, Carter said, the total building project is completely funded without borrowing money.” The funding is coming from SPLOST 6 and 7, and using funds in reserve. SPLOST – Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax – is a one-cent sales tax in the county. 

Nine to 12 months of reserve funding is what the county should have, Carter said, but reserves are actually more than that because of some “very good budgeting, as we dealt with revenues and expenditures over the last 20 years,” he said. “We have somewhere between $38 and $40 million in reserves. That’s a lot of money.” 

Roughly, $24 million for the project will come out of reserves, he said. 

During the COVID pandemic, state economists predicted sales tax revenue would be down, and counties were told to “get ready to spend down,” he said. “We got ready for a downturn in revenue.” In reality, revenue went up by 15%. 

Revenues exceeded expenditures for four years, he said, so the county is ready to spend down its reserves.

TIFT HAS FARM GATE VALUE OF $183M, SAYS UGA REPORT

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

In a newly released farm-gate value report, food and fiber production in Tift County contributed $183 million to the state's economy during 2022.

Tift County's farm gate value in 2022 was $182.9 million, according to the latest Georgia Farm Gate Value Report issued by the University of Georgia Center for Agribusiness and Economic Development (CAED).

The Farm Gate Value Report analyzes county-level production values for Georgia commodities, which directly represent a value of $18.3 billion to the statewide economy, according to the report.

According to UGA officials, agriculture's production values also stimulate additional economic activity throughout the agricultural supply chain and the broader economy. With that, Tift County's agricultural commodities create an "economic contribution output” of nearly $562.5 million supporting 1,912 jobs, according to UGA data.

Statewide, the economic contribution output is $83.6 billion supporting 323,300 jobs.

“These figures showcase the diversity and vitality of Georgia’s agricultural economy,” said Sharon Kane, agribusiness and community development economist with CAED.

“No industry operates in a vacuum. When agriculture is in a community, it’s not just about the farms, but economic activity along the supply chain — processing, manufacturing, and beyond,” she said.

“These figures encompass the combined impact of industries along the agricultural supply chain,” Kane said. “This tool serves as a vital resource for understanding the importance of the agricultural economy for each Georgia county.”

T-SPLOST, NON-BINDING QUESTIONS ON PRIMARY BALLOT

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

In addition to local governmental races, Tift countians voting in the May 21 primary have several state court races to decide, and the renewal of the Transportation Special Local Option Sales Tax, or T-SPLOST.

The T-SPLOST is not a new tax but a continuation of the current one-cent sales tax for transportation projects in the local 18-county region. The proposed 10-year T-SPLOST is forecasted to bring in $820 million in revenue, with $615 million allocated to major transportation projects in the region and $205 million going to local jurisdictions.

T-SPLOST proponents say it lessens the burden on property owners who would otherwise have to fund needed improvements to roads, bridges, and intersections.

Voters will also find several non-binding questions on Republican and Democratic ballots to gauge support for various issues. GOP questions include those involving hand-marked paper ballots, allowing only registered Republicans to vote in a GOP primary, gaming in Georgia, and United Nations and World Health Organization authority during pandemics.

On the Democratic ballot, questions include those involving banning assault weapons, clean energy incentives, accessibility of secure ballot drop boxes, abortion, private school vouchers, and raising the minimum wage.

Early voting is already underway for the May 21 primary elections between 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays-Fridays through May 17. Saturday voting will be available 9 a.m.-5 p.m. this Saturday and again on May 11.

Early voting in Tift is at the county election offices on Chesnutt Avenue.

UGA TIFTON UNVEILS MURAL MARKING 20 YEARS OF ACADEMIC PROGRAMS

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

University of Georgia officials unveiled a special mural Tuesday commemorating the 20-year anniversary of academic programs on the UGA Tifton campus.

The mural painted by Jill Whitley of Valdosta celebrates the academic programs and research in Tifton and bridges it with the student experiences and UGA spirit in Athens, bringing the two campuses together – from the cotton and peanut fields of Tifton to Sanford Stadium in Athens.

Officials in attendance at the unveiling included Nick T. Place, dean of UGA's College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

“What we hope that this conveys is the strong connection of the UGA Tifton campus with the University of Georgia at large, and that this place is a very special place and it’s an opportunity for young people to come here to study and to learn about things that are really pertinent and important to South Georgia," Place said.

The mural is located in the lobby of the NESPAL-South building on Rainwater Road. Whitley, the artist, has also painted the "Dawgs in Tifton" statues around town.

TIFT COUNTY HIGH LADY DEVILS

GOLF TEAM WINS REGION TITLE

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

The Tift County High School Lady Devils golf team clinched the Region 1-6A title this week. The Lady Devils are now headed to state competition May 20-21 in Clarksville at Apple Mountain Golf Club.

Rusty Smith coaches the Lady Devils team, which includes Payne Lodge, Mattie Hendrix, Abbi Hendrix, Riley Williams, and Brianna Domagala. Both Payne Lodge and Mattie Hendrix were awarded All Tournament Team honors.

The Blue Devil boys golf team placed fourth in the region and will advance to the sectionals competition. Blue Devil Cooper Pate was awarded All Tournament Team honors.

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Statewide influenza data released from the 

Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) as of week ending April 20:

Since Seasonal Tracking Beginning Oct. 23, 2023:

TOTAL INFLUENZA OUTBREAKS: 196 ............................................... LATEST WEEK: 1

TOTAL METRO AREA HOSPITALIZATIONS: 4,310 ............................LATEST WEEK: 12

TOTAL INFLUENZA-ASSOCIATED DEATHS: 57 ................................. LATEST WEEK: 0

In Georgia, influenza is not a reportable condition, with the exception of influenza-associated deaths and outbreaks.

YOUR GUIDE

TO ACTIVITIES

THIS WEEKEND

IN THE GREATER TIFTAREA

This Sunday, May 5, is Cinco de Mayo. It is not Mexican Independence Day, as some think, but it is an important day in Mexican history. The day was declared a national holiday in Mexico in 1862 when a force of Mexicans, outnumbered 2-1, repelled the French army marching toward the capital. The Battle of Puebla victory rallied the resistance and aided Mexico’s alliance with the U.S., ultimately causing Napoleon III to withdraw his French forces. It was believed at the time that France was about to aid the Confederacy in the U.S. Civil War, but any such plans were scuttled after the U.S-Mexico alliance was strengthened.

FRIDAY, MAY 3

• Small Business Appreciation Breakfast Mix & Mingle, 7:30-10:30 a.m.., Sylvester-Worth County Chamber of Commerce, 122 N. Main St., Sylvester
• First Friday Concert, 6 p.m., Fulwood Park, Tifton
• Arts in Black Festival Kickoff Party, 6 p.m., Tifton Gardens, Downtown Tifton

SATURDAY, MAY 4

• Turner County Community Yard Sale Day, hosted by the Ashburn-Turner County Chamber of Commerce, 8 a.m.-Noon, 238 E. College Ave., Ashburn
• Berrien County Line 2 County Line Yard Sale, coordinated by the Berrien County Chamber of Commerce and Nashville Main Street, 8 a.m., Highway 129 from Alapaha to Ray City, Berrien County
• Miss Peach State Pageant, 8 a.m., The Grand Theatre, Fitzgerald
• Wiregrass Farmers Market, 9 a.m.-Noon, Ga. Museum of Agriculture, Tifton
• "The Wizard of Oz" movie, 2 p.m. & 7 p.m., Tift Theatre for the Performing Arts, Downtown Tifton
• Arts in Black Festival, 1-10 p.m., Fulwood Park, Tifton

YOUR YARD SALE

HERE!

TO ADVERTISE YOUR RESIDENTIAL

YARD SALE, CONTACT US at 

IHeardIt@tiftongrapevine.com 

or 478-227-7126

Fees are $1 per word, paid in advance

"Butterball" is a friendly fellow who would be a great addition to your family. Come visit him and other pets available for adoption at the Tift County Animal Shelter on Highway 125 South, open between 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. For additional information, call 229-382-PETS (7387).