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Opal Aday
TUESDAY, January 29, 2019 / Vol. 5 Issue 5 / 75 cents
Transfer of water system progresses Shirley City Council members were sworn in at their meeting earlier this month by new Justice of the Peace Sarah Brown. The council members and their positions are: David Cook-Position 1, Randall Gardner-Position 2, Jo Carol Hamilton-Position 3, Deborah Kerrigan-Position 4, and Margaret Earnhart-Position 5. The first item under the council’s unfinished business was regarding the transfer of the Shirley Water System (together with the right to operate the system). Mayor Lisa Hackett stated that a letter was received from John Metrailer with PMI Engineers stating they believed the bid from Community Water System to acquire and maintain the Shirley Water System was the most responsive and recommended awarding it to them. The council voted unanimously to accept the recommendation. After the required public hearings are held in February, a resolution is adopted and signatures from owners of real property in the city are verified, transfer of Shirley’s Water System to Community Water should be completed by April 2019. Next under unfinished business was the second draft of the 2019 Budget. The council decided to pay the Van Buren County sheriff’s office $41.67 per month, capped at $500 per year, for the animal control officer to pick up unlicensed dogs not contained by fence or chain, and take them to the animal shelter in Clinton. The previous rate was $30 per pick-up. Hamilton made a motion to pass Resolution 201902 The City Budget with discussed amendments. Kerrigan seconded the motion. All members in attendance voted in favor. A copy of the city’s budget should be available at Shirley City Hall. Also at the meeting: Hackett stated that speeding and logging trucks cutting through are out of control on Sam Street and Cliff Avenue. Residents, she said, have had to pull over to avoid being hit. It was noted that having to pull over on the side of Cliff Avenue could cause somebody to go off the side of the mountain. The county has now begun sending an additional officer over to patrol in an effort to get this under control. Mayor Hackett presented an offer received for the installation of storm sirens in the city. The council stated that the sirens were great to start with, but the maintenance and service charges are ridiculously high. Hackett will not pursue the offer. Hackett reported that the concrete floor in the Centennial Museum was finished and new baseboards were installed. The cost of staining the concrete had gone over budget by $500. She stated a fundraiser could be held in the spring to cover that additional cost. The council’s next meeting is scheduled for Feb. 11, 2019. The meeting is open to the public.
Clinton’s little Bumblebees entertain during last week’s game between the Yellow Jackets and Rose Bud. More photos, Page 2. (Photo by Robert R. Gaut)\
Dispensary appears to be on way It appears that Van Buren County is about to be one of the state’s 34 sites for a medical marijuana dispensary. The Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission approved the selections earlier this month. Nearly 200 companies applied for a license to sell medical marijuana. After receiving letters of approval, those selected must pay a $15,000 licensing fee and post a $100,000 performance bond.
County Judge Dale James told the Voice in an e-mail he had not heard anything about a dispensary coming to the county. A well-placed source confirmed to the Voice that the facility would be coming and would be in the city limits of Clinton. He did not know when to expect the facility to open, and offered few other details. The companies approved for business in Zone 2 are
Fiddler’s Green, Big Fish of North Central Arkansas, Plant Family Therapeutics, and Arkansas Natural Products. Representatives from Arkansas Natural Products made a presentation to the Van Buren County Quorum Court in August 2017. They went away with a letter of endorsement from then-county Judge Roger Hooper. The commission established eight zones, each with four dispensaries. Van Bu-
ren County is in Zone 2 along with Baxter, Boone, Cleburne, Fulton, Izard, Marion, Newton, Searcy and Stone counties. The commission last year awarded five cultivation licenses to grow medical marijuana. Some of the growers say they will have products ready by April, others say it will be summer. Arkansas voters in 2016 approved a constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana, but the program
has faced several delays. The Department of Health has approved about 6,700 cards for patients eligible for medical marijuana use. It says it most likely will distribute the cards in February. To obtain a card, patients must receive certification from a doctor that they suffer from one of 18 qualifying conditions. The cards cost $50 and have to be renewed annually.
Wright
Sheets
A man who gave a fake name to a Van Buren County deputy was caught with illegal drugs in his jacket pocket by a second deputy, according to court records. Timothy Allen Wright, 41, of Conway told the first deputy his name was Tim Smith, the affidavit states. On Jan. 21, a second deputy received word that the man was back at the Bee Branch address where he encountered the first deputy. The deputy placed Wright under arrest for several warrants he had out of Faulkner County, the affidavit states. When searching Wright, the deputy discovered what appeared to be methamphetamine, the court record shows. Wright told a drug task force agent he paid $300 for it, the affidavit states.
He was charged with possession of a controlled substance, a Class B felony. Plea and arraignment is set for Feb. 28 in Van Buren County Circuit Court. In a separate incident, Christopher Sheets, 29, of Shirley has been charged with aggravated assault, a Class D felony, second-degree battery, a Class D felony, false imprisonment, a Class C felony, and three misdemeanor charges. According to court records, on Jan. 19, Sheets punched another man, breaking his jaw, and refused to let him leave the residence for several hours. On their arrival, deputies discovered what appeared to be marijuana and marijuana plants in the residence, the affidavit states.
Fake name leads to man’s arrest
Super moon on Banner Mountain Sunday, Jan. 20. (Photo by Kay Weaver)
State paper making changes The statewide newspaper is cutting back on its printed pages. The Arkansas Democrat-G a z e t t e has sent letters to many subscribers in Van Buren County offering them an iPad with their subscriptions to the paper. Readers can access the paper, as long as they have an Internet connection, on the
device and will still receive a print edition of the Sunday paper. The letter, signed by publisher Walter Hussman Jr., stated it was no longer “economically viable” to print the daily newspaper. Hussman spent a page in the letter touting the idea and reactions to going digital. Several people the Voice spoke with
were unhappy with the news and undecided if they would make the switch. The newspaper is setting up appointments with subscribers at the Petit Jean Community Room next month. Daily deliveries will continue in some parts of the county until March 10. Other parts of the county are not yet affected by the change.