The Tampa Tribune from Tampa, Florida • 49

The Tampa Tribune, Tuesday, April 24, 1990 3-F New residents bring a few new problems to quiet Monticello Cj Montlctllo FLORIDA (Sn? Apalachee km "I 1 vi LMiiiil lliStt Tribune photograph by COLIN HACKLEY Mayor Ike Anderson waves to passersby while standing at the entrance to the Opera House in Monticello. seeds were produced there. By 1960, the county's population had fallen to about 8,500. People started moving out of the area, says Bassett, for "opportunity. The boom took a lot.

The Depression drove a lot out. There was nothing to do." But Bassett still has vivid memories of the old days. "I can remember when we would have 150 wagons in Monticello on Saturday. Monticello was so busy on Saturday you couldn't move around." At one time, the community had seven livery stables, says Bassett. Population climbing again Now, the county doesn't even have a new-car dealership or stop lights and traffic jams, either.

But its population is again on the upswing. In 1980, Jefferson County had about 11,000 residents, with about 3,000 in Monticello. Officials now say the county has about 14,000 residents, and Monticello has 3,500 to 3,800. "You'll find a lot of 'refugees', around here," says Grant Houston, a Florida Power Corp. executive who is the volunteer president of the Jefferson County Community Development Corp.

Houston, who was transferred to Monticello from Florida Power's corporate headquarters in St. Petersburg two years ago, says the area is now attracting retirees and working people because of its ambiance and low cost of living. What newcomers to Jefferson County find is an area unsullied by "progress," but one also short of some accouterments to which many Usually, however, not much happens in Monticello, says Anderson. "We don't encourage too much." That "preserve the past and maintain the peace" attitude Is one of the things that drew Cheryl Pepper Lepanen to Monticello from Tallahassee last year. Originally from South Carolina, Lepanen still works in the capital for the Florida Department of Commerce in its sports promotion department.

Her husband, Richard, is director of sales and distribution for the Florida Lottery. The Lepanens moved their residence to Monticello to open the Peppermill Bed and Breakfast in the historic 102-year-old Simon-Rid-geway home and to get away from the hustle and bustle of urban life. "Here, we all have the same zip code. When you want to call someone, all you have to remember is four numbers," says Cheryl, because the first three digits are the same on every telephone in the county. History earns high priority The Lepanens' new home Is just one of many of the town's historic old houses some dating back to the 1840s that are being restored.

Like a number of the buildings in Monticello, it is listed individually on the National Register of Historic Places and also lies in the portion of the old town that is on the National Register as a historic district. Historic preservation is a high priority in Jefferson County, says Houston. Residents have embraced it, and so has the community development corporation, which also is looking hard at ways to restore the downtown Monticello business dis- When he isn't in his law office in what is said to be a converted slave cabin behind his home, or at the nearby courthouse, Anderson often can be found tooling around town on his bicycle his pants secured to his ample frame by bright suspenders, a wild tie flying over his shoulder. A sixth-generation Monticello resident, Anderson has been mayor for eight years and on the Town Council for 10 He has never had opposition in a mayoral election, he reports. "I'm one of the good ol' boys.

You know what I mean? I tell a lot of people I'm anointed if you're anointed, you don't have to run." There have been a few controversies during his terms as mayor, says Anderson, such as a battle or two over zoning and preservation in the town's historic district. urban dwellers are accustomed shopping malls, chain motels, movie theaters, hospitals and airports. Municipal services include local and county law enforcement and the Florida Highway Patrol. Jefferson County has a paid fire department; Monticello is served by a volunteer unit. The county also has just three public schools one elementary, a junior high and a high school.

But Monticello is home to one of the state's largest lottery outlets, a liquor store just south of the Georgia line. A few weeks ago, thousands of Georgians queued up there for a chance at $58 million. Mayor is 'anointed' But the real flavor of the area may be more colorfully portrayed by Monticello Mayor Isham "Ike" Anderson. From Page IF Monticello was already almost 100 years old when Bassett was born in 1915. Since then, the gracious Southern gentleman has watched his hometown change from a small but vigorous community to one more akin to a dozing dowager.

These days, however, Bassett sees Monticello awaking from her nap and finally, again, attracting some newcomers. "I think it's going to develop more and more as Tallahassee grows," says Bassett, the owner of Bassetfs Dairy, one of Jefferson County's largest businesses. "It's just full of people from Tallahassee. A lot of people from South Florida are also coming they're getting away from the crowds." Cotton brought area to life Those wide open spaces and fertile land were what attracted settlers to the area to begin with. The gently rolling oak and pine woods were settled in the 1820s by cotton planters.

In 1826, 600-square-mile Jefferson County was created. Its northern border was the Georgia line; the waters of the Gulf of Mexico formed its southern boundary. Named for Thomas Jefferson, it is the only county in Florida that touches both. In 1827, Monticello was named in honor of Jefferson's Virginia home. Monticello had several hundred residents when Florida seceded from the Union in 1861.

Although no major battles were fought nearby, the Civil War dealt the area, like much of the South, a devastating blow. Without slaves, plantations withered. Many were divided into small tracts that were rented to tenant farmers. Vegetables, watermelons, nursery plants, pecans, pears, timber and tobacco began replacing cotton as cash crops. Rail, service sparked dreams In 1888, the first regular passenger rail service began, prompting a dream that the area would attract tourists.

So several hotels and an opera house were built. But the hoped-for hordes of tourists stayed away in droves. South Florida's boom exploded those North Florida dreams. Monticello never became a popular tourist destination and the Depression cast a further pall. In 1920, Jefferson County's population was 14,502.

About 1,700 people lived in Monticello. During the next 40 years, the population dwindled. One of the few things that flourished in Jefferson County in those days was watermelon seeds in 1940, a reported 80 percent of the world's watermelon Tribune map by TED STARR trict. A comprehensive plan is under development that will frame Jefferson County's future with attention to the past. "We have an opportunity to grow, but we have an opportunity to grow in the right way," says Houston.

When growth does accelerate, no one is sure exactly what kind of changes will occur. "It's hard to imagine. We've been in a no-growth stage for so long. There haven't been many reasons to grow," says Houston. No matter what tomorrow brings, however, the influx of new residents has already created some hardships on Monticello.

The city has had to buy a second fire truck and hire additional police officers, bringing the force up to nine members. Expansion of sewer and water service also is needed. New residents also have appealed to the Town Council for things such as paved streets, says Mayor Anderson. Most paving requests have been turned down, says Anderson. Many Monticello streets have been dirt for 100 years, he argues.

"We don't want too many paved streets. We don't go for a lot of that." The costs of repairing streets or adding services are tough on a community that has an annual budget of just more than $1 million, says council member Johnann Murdaugh, who moved to Monticello from Fort Walton Beach about six years ago. Murdaugh says that increasing municipal income is difficult when property taxes remain low. Many residents who work in Tallahassee also shop there and in other metropolitan areas, such as Thomasville, leaving sales tax dollars outside Jefferson County, too. But Murdaugh is optimistic that the problems will be solved, and Monticello's piquancy will be preserved.

"We've got things that are really unique," says Murdaugh. One of the most precious, she says, is ample doses of small-town trust exemplified by a recent personal experience she had. A hardware store owner gave her a bag of assorted bolts without payment. "He told me to bring back what I didn't use and pay him then. You don't have that in the larger cities." Monticello Opera House is gussied up, ready to sing again the opera house, says restoration of the building began in 1971 but was not completed until about five years ago because money was in short supply.

The auditorium will currently seat 320, says Murdaugh. When the balcony is completed, it will seat 500. A little more than half the cost of restoration, about $500,000, came from the Florida Department of State's Division of Cultural Affairs. The remaining money had to be raised locally. Murdaugh says the Monticello Opera House Guild has been the major force behind the restoration and fund raising.

The building is operated as a community center and regional rural arts center by a non-profit corporation. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places and is within the Monticello historic district. The Monticello Opera House is across from the Jefferson County Courthouse at the intersection of U.S. 19 and U.S. 90 In Monticello.

For more information, call (904) 997-4242. Little is known, writes Fryman, about the impact of the opera house on the community, how often it was used, the names of touring companies that played there or exactly why and when it closed. Monticello had a newspaper during that period, but copies of the issues that may have answered those questions did not survive. Such facilities were not unusual in small communities such as Monticello. After the Civil War, as the country's railroad system expanded, the number of traveling theater companies grew.

By 1904, 400 to 500 companies were touring the United States, providing minstrel shows, plays, variety shows, burlesque and circuses. The emergence of the motion picture industry, the development of radio, the unionization of actors and World War I led to the decline in touring companies and, likely, the downfall of the Perkins Opera House. The last performance may have been in 1929, when the local woman's club sponsored "Here Comes Arabella," with future governor LeRoy Collins in the cast. Johnann Murdaugh, executive director of By JUDY HILL Tribune Staff Writer MONTICELLO Like a prize rose bush lovingly revived after a killing frost, the Monticello Opera House is flowering again. After years of neglect and a brush with destruction, the graceful theater recently has undergone a $900,000 restoration and is celebrating its new look and 100th birthday this year.

The opera house, on the second floor of a three-story brick retail building across from the Jefferson County Courthouse in downtown Monticello, was built by prominent town merchant John Henry Perkins. Its first recorded performance was "The Clipper," featuring the Amy Lee company, on Nov. 13, 1890. According to Mildred L. Fryman, a historian who did a study of the opera house during the restoration process, opera likely was never heard there.

The term "opera house" often was used by such establishments because it was more respectable than "theater" back in the Victorian days. Movie Times I lii ii The movie listings are submitted by Bay area theaters. They are subject to change without notice. These listings reflect only today's movie times. CHEEKS, PT.

3 PLUS WANDA DOES TfTSi COUPLES moo ALSO VIDEO RENTAL SALES ft PRIVATE BOOTHS TAMPA MIAMI BLUES SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION HILLSBORO 8 (813-872-7905): Joe Versus the Volcano (PG) 2:50, 4:50, 7:55, 9:55 The First Power (R) 2:40, 4:40, 7:45, 9:45 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (PG) 1:30, 3:25, 5:20, 7:15, 9:10 Pretty Woman (R) 2, 4:10, 7:05, 9:15 The Hunt for Red October (PG) 1:50, 4:25, 7, 9:35 Cry-Baby (PG-13) 2:10, 4, 7:40, 9:40 Miami Blues (R) 2:20, 4:20, 7:30, 9:30 Driving Miss Daisy (PG) 2:30, 4:30, 7:25, 9:25 HORIZON PARK 4 (813-872-2610): Crazy People (R) 6, 8 Ernest Goes to Jail (PG) 5:30, 7:45 I Love You to Death (R) 5:30, 7:45 Lord of the Flies (R) 6, 8 MAIN STREET 6 (813-961-0654): Cry-Baby (PG-13) 5:30, 7:40, 9:50 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (PG) 5, 7, 9 Driving Miss Daisy (PG) 5.20, 7:30, 9:20 The Hunt for Red October (PG) 7:10, 9:40 Pretty Woman (R) 5:10, 7:20, 9:30 MOVIES AT MISSION BELL (813-962-8637): Side Out (PG-13) 2:25, 4:25, 7, 9:30 Miami Blues (R) 2:30. 4:55, 7:15, 9:30 The First Power (R) 2:45, 4:45. 7:45, 9:40 Opportunity Knocks (PG-13) 2:40, 4:40, 7:30, 9:40 Lord of the Flies (R) 2:55, 5:35, 7:35, 9:35 The Fabulous Baker Boys (R) 2, 4:30, 7:10, 925 Glory (R)-2. 4:15. 7, 9:15 House Party (R) 2:15, 7:05 Spontaneous Combustion (R) 5, 9:05 NORTHDALE COURT (813-968-5059): I Love You to Death (R) 1:45.

5:15. 7:45. 9:45 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (PG) 1:30, 3:45, 6. 8. 9:55 The Hunt for Red October (PG) 1:45, 4:30, 7:15,9 55 Opportunity Knocks (PG-13) 1:30, 5:15, 7:45, 9'45 The First Povyer (R) 2.

5. 7:30, 9:30 BRANDON BRANDON TWIN (813-689-5688): The Little Mermaid (G) 7 Stella (PG-13) 7:15, 9:15 Lord ol the Flies (R) 9 PLin 4 (813-685-4100): Miami Blues (R) 7:15, 9:15 The First Power (R) 7:30. 9:30 Driving Miss Daisy (PG) 7, 9 Crazy People (R) 7:45. 9:45 REGENCY SQUARE 8 (813-684-4668): House Party (R) 1:45. 5:30, 8.

9:55 Cry-Baby (PG-13) 1:45. 5. 7:30, 9:30 The Hunt for Red October (PG) 1:30. 4:30, 7:15.9:55 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (PG) 1:30, 5:30. 7:45, 9'45 I love You to Death (R) 2, 5:15.

7:45. 9:45 Side Out (PG-13) 2. 5:15. 8. 9:45 Pretty Woman (R) 1 :45.

5, 7:30, 9:45 Ernest Goes to Jail (PG) 1 :30. 5:30, 7:30, 9:30 PLANT CITY STARLITE DRIVE-IN (813-752-3876): The Little Mermaid (G) 8:15 Turner Hooch (PG) 9:45 I Love You to Death (H) 2:35, 4:50, 7:35, 9:40 Ernest Goes to Jail (PG) 2:15, 4:10, 6, 7:45, 9:40 Joe Versus the Volcano (PG) 2:40, 5:15, 7:25 9'35 Crazy People (R) 2:30, 5, 7:30. 9:50 My Left Foot (R) 2:25, 4:45, 7:20. 9:30 The Little Mermaid (G) 2:20. 4, 5:45 Bad Influence (R) 7:40, 9:55 OLD HYDE PARK 7 (813-251-5566): Crazy People (R) 2, 5:15, 7:45, 9:30 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (PG) 2, 4, 6, 8, 9:45 I Love You to Death (R) 1:45, 5:30, 8, 9:55 The Hunt for Red October (PG) 1:30, 4:30, 7:15.9:45 Opportunity Knocks (PG-13) 2, 5:30.

8, 9:55 Pretty Woman (R) 1:45, 5, 7:45. 9:55 Cry-Baby (PG-13) 1:30. 5:15, 7:30, 9:30 TAMPA PITCHER SHOW (813-963-0578): Closed today TAMPA THEATRE (813-223-8981): Mystery Train (R) 7:15 TWIN BAYS 4 (813-837-2436): The Little Mermaid (G) 6 Look Who Talking (PG-13) 5.45, 8:30 Stella (PG-13) 8 Always (PG) 5:30. 8:15 Revenge (R) 8:30 UNIVERSITY COLLECTION (813-971-6223): Crazy People (R) 7:10, 9:20 Hard To Kill (R) 7:20, 9:30 Henry (PG) 8:15 Joe Versus the Volcano (PG) 7:40, 9:50 Ernest Goes to Jail (PG) 7:30, 9:40 House Party (R) 7, 9:10 UNIVERSITY SOUARE (813-977-1410): Cry-Baby (PG-13) 2:30. 4:15.

6, 7:50. 9:40 Driving Miss Daisy (PG) 2:40, 4:45, 7:15, 9:20 Pretty Woman (R) 2:30. 5. 7:30. 10 Nuns on the Run (PG-13) 2:45, 5.15, 7:40, 9:50 VARSITY (813-971-5566): Miami Blues (R) 2.

5, 8, 9:55 HOUSE PARTY FIRST POWER OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS PG-13 LORD OF THE FLIES FABULOUS BAKER BOYS I 5 fDL 1 BRITTON CINEMA (813-837-4536): The First Power (R) 2:40. 4:45, 7:30, 9:45 Pretty Woman (R) 2:30, 4:55, 7:20, 9:40 Ernest Goes to Jail (PG) 2:15, 4, 5:50, 7:40, 9:30 BUCCANEER PALACE CINEMA (813-884-8979): Always (PG) 7:10, 9:30 Tango Cash (R) 7, 9:20 CINEMA PUBS NORTHGATE (813-932-2535): Always (PG) 7:10, 9:30 Harlem Nights (R) 7, 9:20 EASTLAKE CINEMA (813-621-6963): The First Power (R) 2:30. 4:50, 7:25, 9:35 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (PG) 1, 3:10, 5:20, 7:30, 9:30 House Party (R) 2:30, 5, 7:20, 9:30 FUN-LAN DRIVE-IN (813-234-2311): The Hunt for Red October (PG) 8:15 The Fourth War (R) 10:40 Ernest Goes to Jail (PG) 8:15 An Innocent Man (R) 9:50 FROM LATE NIGHT WITH DAVID LETTERMAN, HBO JOHNATHAN KATZ WITH PAULY SHORE COMEDY QUEST CONTEST WL tf APRIL 24 Hf FINALIST MAY 1ST OPEN 8:30 PM mi. 1 SAT. SHOWING 8:30 1 10:45 PM MUST BE 21 TO ENTER S447 Will KmMdy Bl4.

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872-7906 HOUSE PARTY VARSITY 6 KWLEHtWnHASKA 871 -MM THE LITTLE MERMAID 2:20 4:00 9:45 (Q) BAD INFLUENCE 7:0 :56 (R 2:30 5:00 7:20 9:30 (R) JOE VS THE VOLCANO 2:40 5:15 7:25 9:35 (PG) HOLIDAY 942-4111 im U.S., Hy. 1 I YRONEMTH ST. 544-6688 47.6Slh Street N. CLEARWATER 442-4428 1345 S. Mmmirl Ait.

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