NAMES IN THE NEWS : Turner Blamed for No Power

Five families who live without electricity near Ted Turner’s 8,100-acre plantation say they want the broadcasting executive to allow power lines to cross his property to their homes.

Dressie Sloan of the Jefferson County National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People accused Turner of trying to get rid of his poor neighbors by refusing to extend the electric lines.

“One word from Mr. Turner, and they’d have their lights,” Sloan told the Tallahassee Democrat on Sunday. But Avalon Plantation Manager George Purvis said Turner was only complying with a former owner’s restrictions.

“Mr. Turner has never tried to get those people to move out,” Purvis told the newspaper. “But Mrs. (Alexandra) McKay thought an above-ground wire would destroy the national beauty of her land.”

But even if Turner did approve the extension, Purvis said he wondered who would foot the bill. A power line from the plantation’s terminal to the houses would cost at least $40,000, according to a manager for Tri-County Electric Cooperative.