Public outcry over removing

the golf ball water tower near Canongate Golf Course may keep the giant

ball in the sky.

During Tuesday morning's

Coweta County Commission meeting, Commissioner Larry DeMoss said he had

already fielded several phone calls about the dismantling of the water

tower and said he didn't know about the proposal until he read about

it in a local paper.

The county has recently built

a one-million-gallon storage tank near the site, and is trying to determine

the feasibility of the upkeep of the familiar landmark along Interstate

85.

"If we still wanted to

use it, we'd have a lot of painting to do," said county administrator

Theron Gay, who caught some grief from the commissioners for not alerting

them about the issue.

Chairman Vernon "Mutt"

Hunter said he was in favor of keeping the structure intact. "We're

not going to plow that field for corn," he said.

The commission instructed the

staff to get with the owners of the golf course and see if a solution

could be worked out to keep the ball in place.