County gives property owner more time to finish cleanup, repair of trailers

By Rupert Howell
Property on Henry Heafner Road near Sardis Lake currently in the process of adjudication by Panola County for cleanup got somewhat of a reprieve Monday when supervisors agreed to give the owner two more weeks to get the property in compliance.
But Sheriff Dennis Darby gave the attorney representing the property owner a stern warning to deliver, stating, “We are going to be keeping a close eye on that place. It’s a dope hole. . . a drug haven.”
Darby said his biggest concern was safety of children living in the area.
Attorney Wes Erhardt of Como represented property owner Elizabeth Berry at Monday’s meeting and board attorney Gaines Baker indicated a compromise had been reached on certain complaints by the county.
Chad Meek is enforcer for the county’s land use ordinances and stated after his latest visit to the property, “It looked like a completely different place.”
Meek would later state that a decision would be made within two weeks whether two of the three trailers were restorable and one of the trailers would be removed from the property. The county had originally demanded that all be removed.
Meek told supervisors the burned out apartments previously on the property had been completely removed. The agreement also stated that remaining trailer houses would need several items removed, replaced or added including underpinning, windows, hand rails, trees removed and lawns leveled.
Baker asked that a list of improvements to be made be put into the board’s minutes and that Meek report back to supervisors at the September 11 meeting.