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Keep Macon-Bibb Beautiful Commission needs new plan or risks being defunded

Last night's Keep Macon Bibb Beautiful meeting didn't go quite according to plan. County officials wanted to know how the organization is using thousands of county funds, and Cherry Blossom Festival leaders said certain issues were disturbing their business. Nicole Butler met up with all of the parties to see how these issues are being resolved.

Thursday night's Keep Macon-Bibb Beautiful meeting didn't go quite according to plan.

County officials wanted to know how the organization is using thousands of county funds, and Cherry Blossom Festival leaders said certain issues were disturbing their business.

Nicole Butler met up with all of the parties to see how these issues are being resolved.

From tires to cans and bottles, trash is piling up along Bibb County roads.

Keep Macon-Bibb Beautiful Commission is funded by the county to help with litter prevention, recycling, and beautification.

But Bibb County spokesman Chris Floore says they haven't been seeing as much work as they'd like.

"I think our entire commission is upset with complaints about litter in the streets. We are all upset by it, there are some roads in this town that if we clean it up of all the litter, we have to go back six weeks later," Floore says.

He said Bibb has asked for a plan within 90 days on how they will help beautify Macon.

"What we let them know is if we don't see a good plan and we don't see it with measurable results and some action to it, the mayor will be going to commission and asking them to halt funding until we have a plan," Floore says.

Pam Carswell, President of Keep Macon Bibb Beautiful for the past five years, says she was blindsided.

"Our organization has not even had the chance to get together to even devise a plan of action at this point," Carswell says.

We asked how her group used the $110,000 they received from the county his year.

"After operational expenses then it goes back into the community," Carwell says.

Into projects like their litter hotline and litter prevention and recycling flyers for education.

Meanwhile, Cherry Blossom Festival has asked Carswell's group to move out of their headquarters by next week.

"We understand that it was a personnel issue. I'm the only person for Keeping Macon Bibb Beautiful so I don't know," Carswell says.

Cherry Blossom chairman Don Bailey said Keep Macon-Bibb Beautiful can move back into the pink house once they sort through their issues.

Carswell says right now they aren't focusing on what happened in the meeting.

Saturday they are working with their volunteers to clean up trash and make Macon a more beautiful place to live.

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