Commercial Truck Insurance in Fitzgerald, GA

Fitzgerald city leaders voted Monday night to clip plans to finish what would have been the world’s largest topiary.

But Mayor Jason Holt said the small south Georgia community will keep the metal frame that he says may be the biggest chicken statue.

The rusting roadside attraction sat unfinished for years, raising some local concerns but also garnering national media attention over dreams for the 62-foot-tall chicken topiary. The original plan, championed by a previous mayor, called for overnight rental accommodations inside the beast.

Holt said the project, paid for from a special tax fund, has cost the city nearly $300,000 and it was unclear how much higher the tab could go. The rebar structure and much of the rental unit was built, but adding plants on the exterior to make it a topiary would have added still more unbudgeted bird costs.

Holt said the city council voted 8-0 to follow the advice of an appointed citizen committee, which essentially recommended freezing the chicken: Secure the structure, paint it red, remove interior tanks that were part of a water system, encircle the fowl with a 6-foot fence to keep kids from climbing it, add LED accent lights as decorative flourish, and install landscaping.

Putting feathery-looking pampas grass near the base might eventually make it look as though the big chicken is sitting on a nest, the mayor said. Or so that is the hope.

“I guess we will still be the largest chicken but we won’t have the largest topiary,” Holt said.

Fitzgerald, a community of about 9,000 people about 20 minutes from I-75, has long embraced chickens as its sort of spirit animal. Long ago, wild chickens gravitated to the area. Some residents decorate their yards with small chicken figures. And a photo of chickens is the main image on the city’s website.

Nothing was as big as plans for the big chicken, though. After the project languished, some wanted to tear the whole thing down. But Holt said city leaders have been told that could cost another $40,000, which would have added to what he said was already “a colossal waste” in building the bird.

It was unclear what it would cost to complete the topiary, Holt said. Officials were told maintenance costs alone would have been $50,000 annually, not including staffing expenses. Even then, horticulturists who were consulted predicted that shade from two nearby trees would limit sunshine on part of the structure, limiting plant growth.

“We would have the world’s largest chicken with a case of mange,” Holt said.

City leaders also were told it would be costly to make additions to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act in order to rent out the interior living space.

Still, it’s conceivable that the idea of the Fitzgerald topiary chicken might fly again.

Holt said none of what the city council approved would preclude one day making changes, such as adding plants as originally planned or completing the rental unit.

But, he added, “I don’t see that happening.”

ExploreFowl or foul? Fitzgerald leaders to decide fate of town’s big chicken

About the Author

Matt Kempner is an award-winning journalist who seeks out intriguing twists about people and subjects beyond what the AJC might typically cover. A former columnist and editor, his past assignments have included business investigations, energy, the economy, entrepreneurs, big business, consumer spending, politics, government and the environment.

FITZGERALD, Ga. (WALB) - Could you imagine making such an impact on your community that they stepped up to run your business when you couldn’t? That’s exactly what happened to Bill Clark. For over 57 years, “Bill’s Place” has been a staple in Fitzgerald.

It’s the end of an era. Serving the community for over 57 years, Bill’s Place has been serving the community on two things: love and respect.

”I opened it up and the first man, he come through the door. He asked me if I if I would have credit and I said ‘maybe,’” Bill Clark, owner, said.

In 1966, Clark opened up Bill’s Place in Fitzgerald. Clark had no connection to South Georgia. Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Bill hitchhiked across the country. When he landed in South Georgia, he says the Southern hospitality made him stick around.

“What made you want to stay open for 57 years?”

“Because I have the most best people in town coming in here. They behave and take care of me, especially right now,” Clark said.

People like Buddy Ash and Pedoro Young, have stepped up for Bill in his biggest time of need. In May of 2023, Bill was watering his plants when he fell and broke his hip. Up until that point, Bill had been running his bar as a one-man show. Without any hesitation, Pedro, who is also Bill’s nephew, stepped up to keep the bar alive.

“Cause I owe him. He’s helped me when I needed help and so I figured it was my turn to pay him back,” Pedro Young, Bill’s nephew, said.

Pedro ran the bar for the first six weeks, however, due to other family obligations, he wasn’t able to run it anymore. That’s when Buddy Ash, a loyal customer for over five decades, took it upon himself to run the bar.

“Why did you want to take over?”

“Because I love Bill. I mean I’d do anything in the world to help him,” Ash said. “He’s helped me so much over the years. And Bill’s meant so much to him and it means so much to a lot of people.”

And to this day, at 93 years old, Bill rides his scooter every morning to check on his bar, making sure the rules and traditions he established are still being implemented.

“Whenever you walk in that door, I say ‘Good morning,’ no matter what time of the day it is, I say ‘Good morning.’ And when you leave, I say, ‘Be Careful!’” Clark said.

“He’d been an inspiration to thousands of people that have come through this door,” Asha said. “And like what he said, this place was run on love and respect.”

Clark is loved so much by his customers that the new owners of the bar are keeping the name.

Copyright 2023 WALB. All rights reserved.

After the project was stalled for going over budget, folks in Fitzgerald are seeing updates in what they call the world's largest chicken.

FITZGERALD, Ga. — In 2021, folks in Fitzgerald had a plan to build the world's largest chicken. The idea was to make a topiary and Airbnb, but the original chicken plans have been scratched.

The original idea was funded through $150,000 in SPLOST. Once that money ran out and Mayor Jason Holt was sworn in, Tony Tucker said the project stalled.

"The only way it's not going to cost any money was for it to sit still and it was an eye soar. Tearing it down would of cost quite a bit of money. Building it on up, putting a skin on it or whatever would have been even more," Tucker said.

Tucker is the city building inspector. He's been working on the chicken for years but uses it as his side project. Shortly after the big chick was postponed, Tucker was tasked with working with the original build.

"Finish the framing up, let's put some lights on it see if we can dress it up and make it look better and to me just in the framing finishing, it's starting to look better and come about," Tucker said.

In November, the framing was painted and a fence was added to help keep the rooster and its visiting chicks safe. Tucker started to install lights, so this big chick could hatch new life at night

"As far as the lighting, we're going to finish it up right now we just have half of the head lit up. We're going to completely outline the entire chicken. I have eight different channels to work with so I can do eight different sections of the chicken in different colors," Tucker said.

Tracy Bower grew up in Fitzgerald. He believes people should view the rooster as a booster of the economy.

"Try to be a little more progressive and understand what that chicken was there for. It was to help with the tourism. We have what's called every year a wild chicken festival and it draws people from all over the state, and all over the southeast, and all over the country really and they come from far and near to see the chicken in Fitzgerald, Georgia and that's a draw for it and it's good for the economy when they do," Bower said.

Tucker is working to get the big bird glowing soon.

"I just simply got to finish the metalwork. That's going to take some time but I see it being done here in the next few months," Tucker said.

For now, just the rooster's head will be lit every night from 5:30 p.m. until midnight. You can check in on him anytime through Fitzgerald's live chicken camera on YouTube.

AMBROSE, FITZGERALD Ga. (WALB) - Two South Georgia churches will have to rebuild after Sunday’s storms. Lightning strikes are the suspected cause of fires that destroyed a church in Ambrose and badly damaged another in Fitzgerald.

Fire officials said Saint James Missionary Baptist Church is a total loss.

“Approaching it and it was all up in flames, so I did begin to cry about it,” Rhonda Grady, a church member, said.

The church located in Ambrose has been standing for over a half-century.

Coffee County Fire Chief Steve Carver said they got the call around 8 p.m. and that It took seven fire departments working together for three hours to put out the flames.

“The preliminary investigations are kind of pin-pointing or centering (the fire started) in the area of the pulpit,” he said.

Robert Preston, a witness, was just 3 miles away from the church when he saw an eerie red glow flickering out of control.

“As long as the steeple stands, you feel like the church is still standing. The steeple is a symbol of any church building and when it goes, it’s a symbol of something much much greater, something much more destructive is happening. It was really a sad moment,” he said.

The state fire investigator is currently investigating the cause of the fire but church members tell WALB they believe it was caused by a lightning strike.

“We realize that this is earthly, and God does have the final say in our life and that we have not lost anything that cannot be repaired,” Grady said.

Just 24 miles away from Saint James, another fire caused damage at Fitzgerald Church of God.

“I opened the little door right here up into our broadcast room. As you can see that’s where the fire was. It was on top of the landing and running up the wall,” Dewain Joiner, pastor of Fitzgerald Church of God, said.

Joiner said some drivers told him they witnessed lightning strike the steeple. Fitzgerald fire officials said there is minimal fire damage but major water and smoke damage. The cause of the fire is also under investigation.

“It’s unreal, you know that was a terrible storm that came through. We’re just really glad it wasn’t worse. We’re glad no one was hurt and we just praise God for his goodness,” Joiner said.

While both churches did experience damage, church members say they’re not discouraged because they plan on repairing that damage and rebuilding.

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Quarterback’s mom beat breast cancer and is now healthy

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When the Eagles take the field Saturday against ULM, it will mark the program’s annual Tackling For A Cure game to help raise awareness for breast cancer. For redshirt sophomore quarterback Colton FitzGerald, the game has special meaning for him and his family as his mother beat the deadly disease.

Breast Cancer Awareness Month occurs each October, and the Georgia Southern Football Team helps raise awareness with a home game in October serving as the designated game. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), each year in the United States, about 240,000 breast cancer cases are diagnosed in women and about 2,100 in men. About 42,000 women and 500 men in the U.S. die each year from breast cancer.

“My mom was diagnosed in 2009 with breast cancer, and it was probably the most heartbreaking thing as a little kid trying to figure out what’s really going on,” FitzGerald said. “I was young, maybe 6. I remember she was not feeling well, going in and out of the doctors, and had some health stuff going on. She kept telling me they were trying to figure it out, but when she went in, they found the tumor. They took a biopsy, which came back as breast cancer, and that’s how we found it.

“As young as I was, I didn’t understand what cancer was, but the part that really got me was when I noticed that her hair started falling out,” FitzGerald continued. “I knew she had surgery. But when her hair started to fall out, I realized that this wasn’t normal and something wasn’t right. I remember we spent Christmas together, and she finally got back from the hospital but was unable to eat. Everything was a liquid diet. I was really confused at the time, but as I got older, I was able to understand that more.

FitzGerald said the year his mom was diagnosed with breast cancer is ingrained in his memory because that’s the first year he began playing football.

“It was my first year of football, and she’s fighting through cancer,” FitzGerald remembers. It was my first year, and that October month was extremely cool because I have a picture of my team with her, and we’re all wearing our pink socks and stuff, and she’s there with her pink on.”

For FitzGerald, while his mother Misty is part of that group, he’s excited that she got a clean bill of health in 2011, is healthy to the day, and will be in the stands Saturday.

“The Tackling For A Cure game is huge for my family,” FitzGerald said. “That game gets circled every year because my mom wants to come, and she loves watching us play. I know it means a lot to other people, too, just because of how dangerous breast cancer is, and it’s great to raise awareness. My mom lives in California, so she can’t make it out here for every game, but she tries her best, and she loves the Eagles. She’ll send me pictures of her watching us on television from back home, so I know she’s always keeping up with how we’re doing.

“She already told me she got a new jersey made up for Saturday, so I’m guessing it’s gonna be navy blue with a pink number 16,” he continued. “She always does something like that, so it’ll be perfect for this game.”

The Eagles and War Hawks kick off Saturday at 2 p.m. inside Allen E. Paulson Stadium. Tickets can be purchased at GSEagles.com/Tickets.