Nicholson leaders feuding over art on water tank

At its March 5 meeting, the city council agreed to pay $4,900 to have a logo that included daisies to represent the Nicholson Daisy Festival painted on the tank.

The council and members of the Nicholson Water Authority, excluding Tully Westmoreland, verbally agreed on the design at a joint discussion meeting prior to March 5. The design was presented to the groups by authority member Walter Barnett because the authority had disallowed the first design the city proposed, and Barnett got someone to draw up a second design for consideration.

NWA chairman Mike Stowers advised the authority members on Thursday that the Nicholson City Council is threatening to withhold special purpose local option sales tax (SPLOST) funds if the city isn’t allowed to use the daisy logo.

“I am not sure if they can legally do this or not,” Stowers said. “We need to check with the attorney to be sure.”

Stowers added, “It was not Ronnie (Maxwell, Nicholson Mayor) that has said anything to me. It is the four council members voting to withhold the funds.”

NWA member John Ring made the first motion at Thursday’s authority meeting. Ring made a motion to rescind the regular meet- meeting vote. Barnett second the motion. Westmoreland and Daniel Sailors voted against the motion. Stowers broke the tie vote by voting to re-vote. Westmoreland said, “I will not rescind my vote.”

Westmoreland then made a motion to disallow the daisies and paint a flag on the water tank. Sailors seconded the motion. Ring and Barnett voted against the motion.

Stowers said, “I am not sure the city will do anything now. The tank will probably just have the NWA name on it.”

Barnett said someone had asked him earlier on Thursday about going to the schools and asking the kids what they would like to see on the tank.

After some discussion, Sailors said, “I make a motion we put ‘Nicholson Water Authority’ on the tank as the contract says.” Ring seconded this motion and Barnett voted in favor as well. Westmoreland abstained.

Ring then made a motion to send a letter of apology to the city council to let it know that the NWA is going to abide by the contract. The motion passed unanimously.