Local Business Spotlight: Five O'clock Sports Bar & Grill

Five O'Clock Bar & Grill, located at 7189 Turner Lake Rd, has become a veritable institution over the last several years. Opened back in the mid 2000s, this fantastic music venue - that also happens to have some of the best food in the home county - has continued to thrive as truly a "Cheers" type place, where everyone knows your name. 

That special & unique feeling that derives from Five O'Clock comes from "a sense of community & family" that owner Greg Rogers & I talked about the other day when I interviewed him for this piece. In addition to the aforementioned attributes of being a top-notch music spot; having a kitchen putting out high quality, not-your-typical bar food; and the fellowship & camaraderie this cool place provides - they also strive to help folks who need a helping hand & are always wanting to give back to the community.

As I've written about a few times in another publication, Five O'Clock is known for putting on benefits & all-day concerts to help folks dealing with injury, sickness or medical bills as well as supporting local charitable causes. Case in point: the very successful all-day benefit concert they did for Donovan Jervis a few months back, who, we are happy to report, is doing much better. 

So obviously this is a unique place that has a lot going for it. Let's delve into the particulars. As many of you probably know, I'm a major music enthusiast, so let's start there... 

The Covington (C-town) music scene has continued to thrive & grow the last several years. The wealth of talent we have in and around the home city is practically staggering, and there is not a better venue for live tunes that you'll find. For starters, this joint can boast the biggest stage in town as well as the biggest dance floor and number of seats of any music venue in Newton County, or for in this part of Georgia for the matter. And the variety of what Greg & them book is really what takes it over the top - Rock & Roll, Classic Country, Modern Country, Modern Rock, R&B & Soul. A little bit of everything. 

Some of the bands that will usually hit the bar at least a couple times a year include:

- Robby Parker, with his "true troubadour voice"
- the incomparable Robin Dixon, whom I've written of in another publication  
- Kiser 
- The Peeled Onions 

The Peeled Onions - one of the best bar bands in the Great State of Georgia

- Brother Pudge 
- PITBOSS
- and wunderkid Stratton Wilson who has a new project now - 84 - a Van Halen Tribute experience. And if you haven't seen this teenager play yet - he will absolutely blow your mind.
- Arch Angel, Half Step Down, and many, many more... 

Now that's a BLT! 

Nom nom nom

Right up there in level of importance with music, my friends, is FOOD! And I'm here to tell you this - this joint has some exquisite grub. I'd been hearing about their hamburgers for a long time, and when I finally tried one some time back, I was honestly blown away. It was actually kind of similar to my homemade recipe (but better), and it had the taste & texture like it'd been cooked on your backyard grill. Too good. But the kicker is this: they have a large & impressive menu that's as good as any place in town: Cuban sandwiches, seafood, Tex-Mex, killer chicken wings, great appetizers and much more. Check out their menu to see the plethora of food offerings they have. They also do daily specials where they offer up signature items like the Shepard's Pie. This place is as much "grill" as it is "bar," folks. 

Getting hungry...

Check out their online menu. 

And last but not least, let's talk about the real secret to the success of Five O'Clock Sports Bar & Grill - the people. 

And like almost all organizations, it starts at the top. Greg Rogers, the owner of this fine establishment, is just good, salt-of-the-earth people. A fellow multi-generational Newtonian & 1986 NCCHS grad, Greg first got involved with the place in 2007 & later ascended to an ownership role in 2010 when the "time was right." Tommy South, righteous dude & PITBOSS drummer, is Greg's business partner with this endeavor. As a personal aside, a different lifetime ago Greg managed The Depot & ran sound a time or two with a group I was in at the time, The Cool Swap. Also, like a lot of other multi-generationals around here, Greg & I are probably like 4th or 5th Cousins, but we haven't quite figured out the specifics yet... 

Something else that's really impressive about this place is that the core crew of employees who man the ship have all been together & remained employees for a pretty long time. That is truly a rarity in the bar business, and it's these great people that is truly the key to Five O'Clock's essence. Whether it's the lovely Phyllis who tends the bar during the day, Lisa the GM, Jacob the Kitchen Manager, Larry, Jake, Deanna, Whitney, Rhianna, Crystal or Lindsay or a couple of the others - these are the people that Greg says is the real reason for that "sense of family" & "the secret to their success."

It's truly a cool thing, gang. And to top it all off - you can shoot some pool or throw some darts there, too. It really is quite the place.

Well, hope y'all enjoyed that, and please be sure to swing by and grab you a drink, some good food & some fellowship sometime soon. Check their Facebook page to see who will be playing when, and the crew is always happy to fix up to-go orders as well. You can phone in to 770.385.3060. 

7189 Turner Lake Rd

30014 Covington, Georgia

Get Directions

(770) 385-3060

www.fiveoclocksportsbarandgrill.com

Thanks as always for reading, guys. Until next time.

Your Pal,

MB McCart 
TPC Editor-in-Chief

WTC, Version 2.0 - Caught in a Loop: Newton County Government's $1.3 Million Addiction to Legal Counsel

Based on the numbers, Newton Co. is paying for 142 billable hours per week in legal fees

As this publication, along with many others in the community, has been saying for the last two years, the Newton Co. government is sick. It has a hardcore addiction - it's addicted to lawyers. 

For the better part of four decades we saw that as the ultimate root cause for our former million dollar attorney - Wm Thomas Craig, Esq. Now we know that it wasn't all Tommy Craig. It was a culture of our Board of Commissioners (BOC) members, as well as some department heads, needing a metaphorical wet nurse (county atty) to do just about anything.

That culture continues unfortunately, dear readers, and it's a fact that we all have to face. 

Now, some BOC members and others will tell you that the expenses are as high or even higher than Craig's because the previous edition of the Newton Co. left so many raging fires & that additional legal consulting & advice was necessary to right the ship to be able to move forward. And perhaps that's a valid point; however, this is what the numbers tell us: 

• We know that the legal expenses for the most recent fiscal year available is approx $1.3 million
• We know that Jarrard & Davis, the legal firm that represents Newton Co., charges an hourly rate of $175 (I knew I should've gone to law school...).
• Ipso Facto that presumably means that Newton Co. had total billable hours of 7,429.
• That works out to 142 billable hours per week - that's 3 1/2 attorneys working a full-time 40-hour work-week. 

Man...good work if you can get it, I guess. And then my mind turns to a Shakespeare quote, and also to an old joke about something at the bottom of the sea.

I keed, I keed... 

But seriously, this is outrageous! But again - let's put the blame squarely where it lies - not necessarily on the county attorney, but on the folks in positions of authority who can't seem to function without it.

And that reminds me of something I saw in the plethora of documents vis-a-vis the NCRC fiasco where we saw our BOC Chair saying that a certain department head never did anything without talking to legal first. Even if Jarrard & Davis does the industry standard minimum of a 6-minute increment - that's still $17.50 for a 30 second phone call.

Newton County must do better, and the solution is an obvious one: 

- GO TO IN-HOUSE LEGAL COUNSEL NOW - 

Tuesday Morning Check-in: What's the Word Around Town? Potential Conflicts of Interests?

The Piedmont Chronicles

est 2010

Good morning, C-town & beyond, and we hope it's good out there for everybody. A few quick things to cover this morning:

• Three days prior to last week's Newton Co. BOC meeting, Covington Councilman Josh McKelvey was given notification that his presence was once again requested by the BOC for its regular meeting on February 20th. It became readily apparent that there was going to be a push to try to remove him again two weeks after the epic embarrassment of the "quasi-judicial proceeding." Well, once again, the People rose up with local Citizens groups Citizens for a Better Newton & also the Newton Conservative Liberty Alliance (NCLA) leading the charge &  a large crowd in attendance  to show their support for the Councilman & NCRC Board member. So the BOC basically did what they did last time - nothing. This is continuing to get more and more ridiculous. 
• Speaking of the Rec Commission, now that the facts are getting out there about the Rec Commission's internal investigation, as well as the Newton Co. HR's investigation & report, many are now wondering how there was ever a consensus to approve a 4-year settlement for the former Commission Director. And that leads to our next bullet point...
• TPC is currently investigating the relationship & a possible conflict of interest between at least one Newton Co. elected official and a local attorney that is representing the plaintiff in a pending lawsuit against the county. We plan to have a first report on this story published either tomorrow or Thursday. 
• As usual, lots of other moving parts as well...

Check back often & frequently, good friends, and thanks so much for reading. 

P.S. Thursday will start the new campaign of our first ever local advertiser. We're very excited about it. Keep an eye out for that as well. Thx again! - MBM

The much discussed & highly anticipated NEW LOGO of TPC

The Piedmont Chronicles 

COVERING THE GLORIOUS GEORGIA PIEDMONT

| Covington, GA | Newton Co. |

Butts, Hancock, Jasper, Morgan, Putnam, Rockdale & Walton counties

Politics. Current Events. Local History. Sports. Music. Arts & Culture. Odds & Ends. Miscellany + What-not.

- Marshall "M.B." McCart - 

Editor-in-Chief, Community Troubleshooter & Public Advocate

"Your Pleasure is our Pleasure & we aim to please"

Well...here it is! We're pretty excited. 

⧪⧪⧪⧪⧪⧪⧪

Big thanks to Chris Price whom I commissioned to create this new logo. For those of you in the market for any graphic work, web design, music production, consulting & about a dozen other things - I highly recommend him. Visit his webpage or give him a ring. 

Contact Chris Price at Audio Vault today for any of your graphics needs

Okay for now, friends. We'll see you next time.

Best,

MB McCart

It's Coming...

TPC 
2.22.18 

[State of GA] 
[Newton Co.] 

(Covington) - 

It's finally here, good people. Tomorrow morning at 8:30 AM will be the unveiling of the new logo of The Piedmont Chronicles.

And, Thursday March 1st will be the first day of the advertising campaign of our first ever local advertiser.

Very exciting... 

And BOLO for the following pieces in the near future: 

• A featured write-up of a local Poet, Carpenter, Professor, Gentleman & a Scholar 
• Hospital Authority 
• The Rec Commission 
• The Henderson political machine & the Ministers' Union
• The next installment of "The Porch," by Ellis Millsaps 
• What's up with the proposed Newton County Historical Museum? And where's the $$$? 
• JDA/Stanton Springs 
• IDA 
• Rockdale County government shenanigans 
• And what's up with those folks out in Madison & Morgan County? TPC is following a strange & unusual story out that way. 
• and much, much more... 

So, friends, keep it tuned in here at TPC. Your only REAL news source for what's really going on in the home city, county & the rest of the glorious Georgia Piedmont. 

Yours Very Truly,

MB McCart 

The Bitteroots Return to Covington this Saturday, February 24th

Highly regarded Atlanta Jam/Roots Band returns to their Covington home base - The Listening Room at  IBP - playing tracks off their upcoming album while celebrating 10 years as a group

The Piedmont Chronicles 

- est 2010 - 

TPC fave, The Bitteroots, are once again returning to The Listening Room at Irish Bred Pub in downtown Covington, GA this Saturday night, February 24th w/ opening act, Tin Roof Wranglers. 

As I've written about a few times in another publication, this is easily one of the tightest & most enjoyable groups you'll ever see in the COV. A unique and enjoyable blend of Jam & Roots Rock, Jazz Fusion & Pop, their originals are truly top shelf & are complemented by a musician's musician-approved assortment of choice covers. 

Here's a recap of the rub of The 'Roots : 

C-town native & bassist extraordinaire Bill Taylor 

"Covington native & bassist Bill Taylor and drummer Mike Davis originally formed the group in 2008. As a rhythm section, these two are one of the best I've ever seen. Both are quite proficient and can really impress with their chops, but they are always together - an interlocking bass & drum machine, as it should be, and they lay down the foundation for the band's excellent sound. 

Speaking of the band's sound, many have described it as Jam Rock or Roots Rock, and that's certainly an apt description; however, there are other elements in play as well, in this writer's estimation. For one thing, the group has decided Pop sensibilities, and there's nothing wrong with that. While they have the ability to explore and expand songs with their jamming and feeding off of each other, these songs themselves are well crafted with an emphasis placed on vocal melodies, smart chord progressions, and the aforementioned rhythmic elements. It's a marvelous sound! And just below the current there are some Jazz elements as well. As I mentioned in an article last year, I'm a big, big fan of this bunch. Ever since I first saw them a few years back in Milledgeville, GA, I count them as one of my favorite groups. And I'm not just talking Georgia bands, or unsigned bands, I'm talking all-time. Seriously, they're that good. 

But perhaps the key to this band's superb sound is the lead singer, Laura Dees. She is so good! Comparisons have been drawn to Melissa Etheridge and Janis Joplin, but Laura really has a sound all her own. Her range is very impressive, but the power of her voice is what really takes it over the top. A very strong voice, with depth and warmth, she is an absolute joy the hear. She's also very fun the watch. Her stage presence is incredible; she's always engaged with the crowd. And you can tell she's giving it 110% every time, always turned to 11, if you will. It's something else...

~ B'Roots Front Woman Laura Dees - truly a Supreme Talent ~

And quite possibly the Piece De Resistance of The Bitteroots is saxophonist Darron Nuhfer. You might not normally expect a sax in this type of group, but trust me - it works. It thickens and warms the sound just right, melodically, as well as rhythmically. It's just right."  

Sounds pretty damn good, doesn't it? 

Rounding out the group are newer members & dual tandem guitar team, Mark Evers & Greg Sims, who by all accounts are both excellent additions to the group. 

The present 6-piece incarnation of The Bitteroots

I recently had a chance to chat with Bill a bit to get the 411 on what the band has been up to & what they have in store for this local show. I'm excited to report that they'll be playing several songs off their highly anticipated, soon-to-be-released new album. And for you longtime fans, you'll be happy to hear that classic originals like "Defenseless"; "Desperate"; "Memo" & "Under the Big Sky" are on the set list as well. Also, it's sounding like they're going to outdo themselves with the covers lined up. A deep cut from REM's first record; a Zeppelin tune; an early Clapton number; along with one by The Boss and - most exciting - a Huey Lewis & the News track amongst some others are on tap for Saturday night. 

The band's upcoming tour dates including their 10th anniversary show coming up in May

Doors open at 8 w/ the opening act starting around 9. Again, that's Saturday, February 24th. Should be a helluva show. 

Thanks for reading, and we'll see you right back here next time. 

MBM
-33-

Monday Morning Quick Bites

TPC 

2/19/18 

Welcome back to The Chronicles. Grab a plate & dig in. 

• Per multiple sources, the Newton Co. Dysfunction DEFCON level (NCDDL) is being taken down to LEVEL 2 - "FAST PACE" this week. It all apparently starts with tomorrow evening's BOC meeting. You should totally attend. 7PM. Historic Courthouse. And what is Level 2 with the NCDDL, you may ask: high probability of hijinks & shenanigans; elected officials going full-on moron; lack of basic commons sense; think of the best decision the BOC could possibly make w/ something & then imagine the diametric opposite. 
• Hey, if anything, it's just good, cheap entertainment. 
• Word on the Street: City of Covington considering taking back City Pond & creating their own Recreation Department? Now that would be interesting! It would also probably be a good thing. Many have said for years that it would also probably be a good thing for the city to start to expand its municipal boundaries. And as this publication has been saying for years - the time has come for a new municipality in Newton Co. Basically every bit of HD 112 that isn't Covington, Oxford, Porterdale, Mansfield or Newborn. 
• Problem solved in re Newton Dysfunction. 
• The Chronicles has enjoyed following Drew Parker's tour w/ Luke Combs via Facebook & Twitter. Look for a Q & A w/ the hometown boy done good here in the space very soon. 
• And speaking of music, TPC fave The Bitteroots returning to the COV. Saturday night at The Listening Room @ IBP. 

Okay for now. Thx for reading & we'll see you soon. 

Share Your Feelings with the Group - TPC Commenting Enabled

The Piedmont Chronicles 

est 2010

Well, folks - I wasn't lying. For the first time in about five years (I had forgotten that I did allow them for a short time back in the day), you - the glorious readership of The Chronicles - can post your thoughts, questions, comments & concerns here at TPC. And we'd like to hear from you. We'd like to hear from you because we're truly interested in what you have to say. Your pleasure is our pleasure & we aim to please!

Next week! The unveiling of the NEW LOGO!!!

Good times...

As always, thanks so much for reading. Happy Trails. 

- MB McCart 

The History of Valentine's Day

TPC 
2/14/18

The origins of Valentine's, like almost all holidays, has its roots in old-world pagan celebrations.

Lupercalia, on the Ides of February (15th) was a fertility celebration of the Roman pagans in which they would sacrifice a goat to please the gods in order to continue to have bountiful crops and also virulent personal fertility. There was also a thing involving the goat's bloody hide & slapping women on the butt with it. Later, there would be a blind drawing where men & women were coupled up for the upcoming year. Sometimes this would lead to marriage; sometimes it would not. A lot of sex was involved. They would also sometimes kill dogs.

Those crazy Romans, though... 

So after Christianity became a thing - not unlike Saturnalia with Christmas, or the celebration of Eastra that would later become Easter - the ruling church power elite co-opted the hedonistic pagan celebration and turned into a celebration of Valentine, or Valentinus, or maybe another person, who was possibly a saint. Later, naturally, the church outlawed the previous, original pagan celebration. 

As the years went on, especially in the Middle Ages, the holiday became more of a romantic thing although - again, not unlike Christmas - it didn't really become the big & sometimes expensive celebration similar to what we see now until merchants, peddlers & various purveyors of various things started to hype it up for an opportunity to increase sales volume.

I'm starting to think that some of you reading this may think I'm sounding somewhat cynical in this piece. You're probably right, though I do rather enjoy the holiday. I always enjoy giving my bride a gift or two & doing my time-honored tradition of cooking up a big, fancy semi-gourmet meal on the night of Valentine's. And yes - my wife is a lucky woman! But certainly I'm  a lucky man. 

Happy Valentine's Day! 

Alright for now. Until next time. 

TPC - A Moment From Us

The Piedmont Chronicles 

- est 2010 - 

 ~ M.B. McCart ~

Editor-in-Chief, Troubleshooter & Public Advocate

ThePiedmontChronicles@gmail.com

678.712.8652

A Moment From Us 

Hello, Georgia Piedmont! And welcome back to The Chronicles, the Alcovy/Yellow/South River Basin's premier online newspaper.

A few notes & new developments to tell you about this fine Southern evening.

Changes Ahead for TPC 

If all goes as planned, you will see, for the first time ever, local advertising complementing the Google Ads you've always seen here in this space within the next week or two. 

I'd toyed with the idea of possibly setting up a GoFundMe or, more likely, a Patreon site, and I may still end up doing one of those as I have been incurring expenditures for ORRs, transportation & time utilized as a Citizen-Journalist vs. time spent with one of my multiple income-producing projects (my Google Ads revenue basically works out to maybe about 50 cents an hour in pay - so while it's certainly a labor of love, TPC won't be paying the bills anytime soon).

However, the more I analyzed it, the more I felt like I would just be putting out my palms for alms, rather than doing the good ole fashioned American thing & working for it.

So I've reached out to a few local businesses for advertising opportunities & I've honestly been pleasantly surprised with the feedback. Naturally there are many businesses that would want nothing to do with your humble semi-professional ant hill kicker, but there are some out there that do. 

This site does, as a few folks know, generate some pretty impressive web traffic, so that's one selling point, but I think the biggest thing going is this - the model I've come up with is unlike anything that anybody's doing with local advertising. I believe it will be the most effective & cost-conscious form of marketing available in our market.

Also in the works - a new logo for this publication, and...

I'm toying with the idea of enabling the comment function of this page. I've never allowed comments on TPC, because I didn't want asinine & ignorant banter mucking up the works but I may rethink that. The data clearly shows that enabling commenting drives up web traffic. And hell, since we're selling out & all, why not?

So...exciting, yes? Slide me an email or call HQ (see above) if you would like more information. 

What's the Buzz? 

What a week we've had, friends, and per the street word, it's only going to get better as we move forward. In fact, for the first time in a long time, that o'er boy that stay down the way has been in contact w/ your quasi-esteemed Editor with some choice, juicy tidbits. 

If you could maybe say that the Newton County Dysfunction Junction Defcon Level hit a 3 last week - we might see it taken down to "FAST PACE," AKA, level 2, here in the next week or so. Believe it or not, I think this current board has the opportunity to outstrip the previous edition in terms of foolishness & shenanigans, as Keith Ellis smiles somewhere out in eastern Newton Co.; however, unlike the last crew, I truly believe that this BOC, no matter how ludicrous things get, will still be able to tend to The People's business somewhat effectively. I sure hope so; failure is not an option...

Lots of moving parts, as always, just know that we're on it! 

Odds & Ends 

• Hoop Dawgs - McGarity & Co. have to let Fox go at the end of the year, right? But, what happens if we win the SEC Tourney? It is the 10-year anniversary of the "Tornado Dawgs." 
• The C-town Music Scene - It's not quite what it once was perhaps. I'm still profoundly sad that The Speakeasy is no longer in existence. And I know a few folks are a bit disappointed that City Pharmacy ended up scrapping their plans for live music. But we still have a good number of top-notch venues: The Pub, 5 O'Clock, Mystic, Lahrceny, Amici & a several more. And naturally the talent level around our neck of the woods is still superb. 
• So our old friends AB & SH3 played another round of Cowboys & Indians this past week. I think the ole Cherokee Scotsman was out of line on this one, and I'll just leave it at that. With that said, I've been texting and emailing back & forth with him some today on a couple of issues facing the home county. While we will always disagree on some issues - and I'm still not impressed one bit with him trying to throw some shade on the Councilman - it's always, for me, all about that Glorious Lady that is Newton County. Ego, feelings...none of that matters to me. If I can find common ground to facilitate positive change for our beloved home county, I will do it. Every time. 

Look for multiple posts in the next few days, good friends, and we hope that everyone has a great week.


Very Kindly Yours,

MBM

Justice Carries the Day; McKelvey & Rhodes Stay on NCRC

Three hour "Kangaroo Court" ends with no action taken against McKelvey & Rhodes amidst a "cop out" by Newton BOC 

TPC 
2/7/18 

[State of GA] 
[Newton Co.] 

(Covington, GA * 7 February 2018) -

A "quasi-judicial proceeding," as described by presiding officer Ronnie Cowan, 5th District Commissioner, was scheduled to occur yesterday at 3PM - it ended up starting a few minutes after 4PM - as an "appeal hearing" for the purported removal of Josh McKelvey & Steven Rhodes from the Newton County Recreation Commission (NCRC) by Newton Co. Board of Commissioners (BOC) Chairman Marcello Banes. 

Let me be clear: this thing came off as an absolute joke. Though it was considered to be basically a judicial process, hearsay was, multiple times, allowed as admissible  testimony. Originally this was described by the county, as previously mentioned, as a "quasi-judicial" process; later, when things started going south for the county, it was stated that this "was not a judicial proceeding." 

Got it?

It seemed, as described by many in attendance, as a "kangaroo court," and really more of a circus sideshow, and it was painfully obvious to most in attendance that the Newton Co. BOC was just making it all up as they went. It was kind of embarrassing to watch. To that point, several Newton Co. Citizens are now openly wondering if there is any decision moving forward other than doing away with our current million dollar attorney. It has become apparent to some (and possibly supported by reading the Covington News article from last night) that Megan Martin is in some ways basically running the county "Tommy Craig style, " at least as it relates to many issues including the spectacle we all witnessed yesterday. If so, then what are we paying the County Manager for? Why would we even need a full-time Board Chairman if that's the case?  

When originally planned, the county - who has seemingly been so paralyzed by fear of a lawsuit from the former Rec Department Director even though it is possible as if there is nothing to be worried about (over 600 pages received from ORRs  seems to support this)...and to think: the BOC voted to approve an appox. $400,000 settlement - perhaps thought that this would be rubber stamp for the Chairman's purported removal.

Things totally changed Monday night at the Covington City Council meeting. When the Council voted to provide support & legal counsel for its representative, Josh McKelvey, on the NCRC, things were completely different. While the regular Covington attorney is Frank Turner Jr., he was on injured reserve, so back-up attorney Bob Stansfield entered the fray on the city's behalf.

My quote on Facebook yesterday sums up the performance of Robert H. Stansfield, Esq.: 

"Watching Robert (Bob) H Stansfield today was like watching a lion mauling an antelope on the Discovery channel."

#BulldogBob readying his defense of Covington's interests

After 3 hours, including 40 minutes of executive session, the Newton BOC decided to...do nothing. They said they were taking no action on McKelvey or Rhodes, but they would be looking at ways to change things to ensure something like this didn't happen again. Namely, possibly eventually dissolving the NCRC.

While it's disappointing how the county decided to "cop out," ultimately the important thing was this - Justice carried the day; two good men, one black & one white, were able to continue to serve their community; and the County's egregious violations were not allowed to stand. This was a win for the home county, and anybody who isn't racist, misguided or misinformed, or engaged in playing politics - totally gets and understands this. 

Just another day in our lives as the world turns in home county, folks...

I will close with what Josh McKelvey posted on his political page last night: 

"I want to take a moment to thank everyone for the calls, texts, emails, and prayers that were sent in support of myself and Mr. Steve Rhodes in our fight to remain on the Newton County Recreation Commission.

"I also want to thank everyone, especially my Wife, that donated 4 hours of their time to attend my "appeal" and show their support. It reminded me of the old NCLA days, when good people of Newton County from diverse political backgrounds came together to make a statement. I believe that was the most beautiful part about tonight.

I think that show of support from the public, the Covington City Council (Thank you Mayor Johnston, Susie Keck, Mike Whatley, Hawnethia Williams, Kenneth Morgan, and Anthony Henderson), and of course, the defense put up by City Attorneys Frank Turner and Bob Stansfield helped our case tremendously. I look forward to continued service on the Newton County Recreation Commission as the City of Covington's appointee.

I want to close with this:
I never wanted to bring about any distractions to the City, County, or our Citizens, but I felt that I needed to make a stand on this issue. I would like all of my supporters to know that Josh and the City of Covington didn't go looking for a fight, but we stood our ground when the time came. The Newton BOC isn't our enemy. They are our partners in helping Covington and Newton County continue to attract economic development and improve the quality of life for everyone here. As is with any large organization or business partnership, internal squabbles happen. Successful organizations settle those squabbles and move forward for the good of everyone involved. Please keep this in mind, as the City of Covington and Newton County look to move beyond this situation and find success by working together to move our community forward." 

He's a good man...

Thanks for reading. We'll talk with you soon.

### 

Covington Council Meets: Hospitality Drinks & Brownbagging Passes; City to Provide Legal Support for NCRC Flap

The Piedmont Chronicles 

est 2010 

[State of GA]
[Newton Co.]

(Covington, GA * 2/6/18) -

The City of Covington held its regularly scheduled meeting last night - February 5th - at Covington City Hall. The meeting was presided over by the Hon. Mayor Ronnie Johnston with five council members present & approx. two dozen Citizens, City employees & City public safety members in attendance along with the City Manager and back-up City Attorney, Bob Stansfield. 

The two big stories with this meeting were the 1st readings of three different hospitality drinks & brownbagging ordinances, and then a late addition to the agenda - whether or not the city would provide legal support and counsel for its representative to the Newton Co. Rec. Commission, Josh McKelvey.

Two of the three ordinances passed 3 to 2 with members Keck, McKelvey & Whatley voting for & members Williams & Henderson voting against.

On the third ordinance, the one dealing with art shops, Councilman Henderson changed his vote so the final tally on that one was 4 to 1.

As to the motion to provide support and legal counsel for Josh McKelvey as he deals with, in our estimation, a witch hunt and now a kangaroo court, the Council actually voted 4 to 0 to pass this measure with Henderson, Keck, Whatley & Williams voting for, McKelvey absent after he recused himself & left the Council chambers. 

On a final note, the meeting was run swiftly & efficiently, lasting barely over an hour. To us - this is how the people's business should be tended to. This writer told the Mayor after the meeting - "maybe you can give the Newton BOC a tutorial on how to run a public meeting."

That's all for now. We'll see you down the road.

- MB McCart 

Hometown Country Artist Drew Parker Plays the Ryman in the Music City

The Piedmont Chronicles 

- est 2010 - 

Newton native and recording & touring Country artist Drew Parker played the Ryman Theater - the original Grand Ole Opry - this past weekend in Nashville, TN as an opening artist for Country Superstar Luke Combs. 

Parker, as TPC Editor MB McCart has written about in the past upon the release of his killer 2016 track - "Slow Down, Small Town," is a great guy who also happens to be a superb singer & songwriter whose career is really starting to blossom. 

This is what McCart, who's opened for or played the same bill with Parker a few times over the years with his group, Sweet Harmony , wrote on a Facebook post about Parker's show the other day: 

 I remember the first time I saw you sing was at Lovejoy UMC...maybe 2006 or 7? What a journey you’ve been on & here’s to the road ahead! Maybe we can get in a Piedmont Chronicles phone interview soon. Good on ya’ man & Congrats!

Keep an eye out for that interview soon.

Hometown boy does good! Well done, Mr. Parker. Well done. 

Thanks for reading. Until next time.