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THURDSAY, MARCH 13, 2014 â–Ş VO L . 1 2 9 , N O. 3 5 â–Ş T H E VO I C E O F TIPTON COUNTY S I N C E 1 8 8 6 â–Ş
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Group wants property for museum Mayor, board vote to have historic home evaluated for code compliance By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com
The home of Dr. Thomas Price, Tipton County's first African-American doctor, is one step closer to becoming a museum after Tuesday's vote by Covington's Board of Mayor and Aldermen to have it evaluated. Last year, the Association for the Preservation of African-American History and Culture asked the board to purchase the property, which is located on High-
way 51 North, next to Sonic, for the purpose of a museum to preserve the county's African-American history. However, little has been done in nearly a year and the museum's fate has been unknown, so the group asked again. Speaking on behalf of the organization, on Tuesday night Hattye Yarbrough requested a favorable answer from the board.
"We are prepared and we are ready to establish a museum," she said. "If you give us this property, people will stop here." Gina Tynan, the program developer and historic preservation planner for the Memphis Area Association of Governments, told the board having the museum will bring tourists' tax dollars to the county. In 2012, tourism to Tipton County
accounted for $980,000 in local tax revenue and $1.8 million in state tax revenue. Before the city will purchase the property, which is currently valued at $99,200 according to property assessment data, it will need to determine the investment to bring the home up to code. Tuesday night's unanimous vote by the board enables the city to spend up to SEE MUSEUM, PAGE A3
COVINGTON
Mayor: Library won’t go anywhere By FRANCE GASQUET fagasquet@covingtonleader.com Although the new Tipton County library will open this fall, discussions are underway to keep the current location open. As the old library, at 300 W. Church Avenue, falls under Tipton County jurisdiction, it will have to be funded completely by the city in order to stay open. Although petitions have been out around Covington, keeping the old library open is on the radar of city leaders. According to Mayor David Gordon, the city may be able to use the $85,000 already earmarked by Covington for the library and would incorporate shorter operating hours. The current location would then become either an annex or the Covington library. “We are working with the Tipton County Library Board and are determined to have something available, keeping some sort of services here, for our Covington users,� said Gordon. The new library at Dyersburg State Community College is planned to be ready in June and move in will take place in August or September, according to Susan Cheairs, head librarian. The current location has a great deal of pedestrian traffic, which would be inhibited by the location of the new library, situated on the DSCC campus. “People are waiting for us when we get here in the morning and when we leave at night,� said Cheairs. Although the library normally averages a little below 2,000 visits a week, Cheairs said she was concerned last Saturday. “I saw a count of more than a thousand and thought to myself, ‘What happened? And then I realized we were closed Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday because of the snow. We still had that many people.� As part of the Hatchie River library system, the current Tipton County library had more than 32,000 check-
After fire destroyed her apartment Saturday, Dorothy Robinson feared her cat was dead. Firefighters found it in the closet – cold and soaking wet, but still living. Photo by Echo Day
Seven families displaced by fire By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com Dorothy Robinson is stressed out. "I don't know where to go or where to turn or what to do. I'm not getting any help whatsoever from the management at Covington Village," she said Tuesday, three days after losing her apartment to a fire. On Saturday, her building went up in flames after food was left unattended on a stove. Though she rarely leaves her apartment, the disabled grandmother said she and a friend had traveled to a nearby store and were on their way back when they saw the flames. "I said, 'Something's on fire,' then I realized it was my building." She wasn't able to retrieve any of her belongings and her beloved cat was still inside. "The only thing I was concerned about was my cat; anything that was in the apartment could be replaced, but she was my baby." Her baby – a nearly year-old tabby – was later found in the closet. She was soaking wet and cold, but alive. As for the rest of Robinson's belongings, everything she owns now amounts to a few dozen family photos. The American Red Cross paid for Robinson and several of her neighbors to stay in a motel Saturday and Sun-
Fire destroyed a Covington Village Apartments building Saturday afternoon, displacing several families. Officials say the fire started accidentally. Photo by Justin Hanson
day nights, and Monday she moved in with her son and daughter-in-law, Misty. Apartment managers say they're doing what they can to help displaced residents. They plan to distribute vouchers that will allow them to move into other apartments while their building is being rebuilt, but Robinson said that wasn't an option for her.
"They wanted to put me in an apartment for $385 per month, a two bedroom, and pay $385 which I can't afford on a fixed income." For now, she remains essentially homeless until she can figure out a next step. Her rent – as well as the rent paid by the seven other families displaced – is expected to be credited back to her.
SEE LIBRARY, PAGE A3
ONE WIN SHORT State bid slips away from Covingoton. A9
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