Newspaper Page Text
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2008
BARROW JOURNAL
PAGE 3A
Planners recommend denial of 264 apartments
BY SUSAN NORMAN
T he Barrow County Planning
Commission voted 3-2 last
week to recommend denial of
a developer’s request to replace 49 homes
in his project with 264 apartments. The
move came in spite of support by the
county planning staff for the change. The
proposal was opposed by Barrow school
officials.
The matter now moves to the Barrow
County Board of Commissioners for
final action. The BOC is slated to take up
the request at its Dec. 9 meeting.
Michael Carter plans to build
“Livingston Place” on 60 acres off
Haymon Morris Road and Tom Miller
Road. The property’s already approved
for a mix of commercial, 98 townhouses
and 49 single-family homes.
Now, however. Carter proposes to
ax the houses and add 264 apartments
instead. He said he believes the apart
ments will be easier to market in the
stagnant real estate market.
But the plan came under fire from
Barrow school officials who question
the apartments’ impact on schools and
school transportation.
Superintendent Ron Saunders wrote a
letter opposing the apartments due to the
impact the higher density would have on
schools and roads in the area. Saunders
pointed out that bus service would not
be provided to any children living in the
development since it is directly across
the street from Yargo Elementary School,
Haymon-Morris Middle School and
Apalachee High School.
“State funding for transportation does
not include students living within one and
one-half miles of a school,” he wrote.
District 2 Planning Commissioner
Wayne Alexander said he is concerned
about the number of children who would
be walking to school.
“What’s going to be done about kids
crossing this main road?” he asked.
“How are you going to get all the kids
across this highway?”
District 4 Planning Commissioner
Nancy Easterling said she is concerned
about the increased density.
“It’s a lot more families, that’s my con
cern,” she said.
COUNTY SUPPORTS PLAN
Despite concerns raised by school
leaders, the Barrow planning department
recommended approval of the plan, as
long as the developer provided a new
traffic study and built sidewalks along
Tom Miller and Haymon Morris roads.
Planning Director Guy Herring said
the county and school system are apply
ing for a grant to provide $500,000 for
sidewalks, crosswalks and traffic signals.
He pointed out that his department’s
approval is conditional on the construc
tion of sidewalks.
“Our intent is to increase walkability,”
Herring said. “We hope to do that with
more schools as they come on line. It will
save tax dollars and it will encourage a
healthier lifestyle for students, providing
an outlet for them and the freedom to
walk to school in a safe environment.”
But the planning board nixed the idea
with Alexander, Easterling and District
5 Planning Commissioner Howard
Hawthorne voting against the proposal.
OTHER ACTIONS
The planning commission recom
mended approval of all other applica
tions, including the following:
• a special use permit application by
Robert Heupel to allow night lighting
until 11:30 p.m. seven nights a week at
the new 51-acre Signature Park sports
complex to be built on Highway 211
NW.
• a special use permit applica
tion by T-Mobile to allow a 250-foot
T-mobile telecommunications tower on a
.2296-acre parcel at 601 Hancock Bridge
Road.
• a rezoning application by Kerry and
Anita Mashbum of 2.608 acres at 457
Pleasant Hill Church Road from AG to
R-l to allow the owner to build an addi
tional single-family home.
• a rezoning application by Carol W.
Edison of 13.23 acres at 334 Holsenbeck
School Road from AG to AR to subdi
vide the property into four tracts.
• a rezoning application by Jim and
Tonya Lynn of six acres at 177 Jefferson
Road from AG to AR to subdivide the
land into four lots.
• a correction of an error on the Barrow
County Zoning Map requested by Roy
Gilreath.
Auburn City Council seeks to do bonds without vote
Hoschton city property tax
proposal still up in the air
BY CHRIS BRIDGES
The City of Auburn is look
ing to update the town’s char
ter, but one proposal is already
proving to be controversial.
Among some other minor
changes, the updated charter
proposal calls for striking lan
guage in the current charter
that requires the town to hold
a referendum vote of citizens
before issuing bond debt.
Currently, the city is unable
to issue bonds due to an ordi
nance in its charter limiting
Auburn’s municipal debt. A
change passed by citizens in
1998 prevents the city from
issuing bonds without first
holding a referendum in the
town.
Two public hearings have
been scheduled for Dec. 4 and
Dec. 18 on the proposal to
change Auburn’s charter. The
council is slated to vote on
Dec. 18 on the matter.
Mayor Linda Blechinger said
the Downtown Development
Authority needs to have the
ability to issue bonds and
under the current charter it
cannot do so.
“One thing I would like to
stress is that in order to issue
such bonds, the city and DDA
will comply with all require
ments imposed by law for the
issuance of such instruments
including formal approval
by council and a majority of
the citizens of Auburn where
required,” the mayor said.
At last Thursday’s council
meeting, one citizen said the
council could not strike what
the citizens voted in by refer
endum. After several minutes
of back and forth discussion,
the citizen left obviously frus
trated with where he felt the
discussion was headed.
Later in the work session,
council member Sally Brown
said he felt uncomfortable
reversing what the citizens had
done.
“I understand we are trying
to get economic development,
but it doesn’t seem right to
simply do away with what so
many of our citizens wanted,”
Brown said. “I can see both
sides of this.”
Changes to the town’s char
ter would require state legisla
tive action, which is usually
a routine matter. Rep. Terry
England said he supported
Auburn’s right to make chang
es to its charter. “The Georgia
Code does allow the Council
to make changes to the Charter
under the home rule provi
sions of the Constitution,”
Rep. England said. “It requires
publication (of a public notice)
and two public hearings in
order to do that. So what they
are doing is legal.”
The state representative said
he has heard from one citizen
expressing concern over the
matter.
BY KERRI TESTEMENT
Will Hoschton have a city
property tax in its 2009 bud
get?
That’s a question that still
can’t be answered now after the
town’s council opted last week
to start over with its controver
sial budget.
During opening remarks for
a hearing on the proposed 3.25
millage rate, council member
Tom Walden admitted he was
having second thoughts about
projected revenue in the bud
get.
“I have come to the realiza
tion that these revenues are not
viable,” said Walden, who is
the chairman of the city’s fiscal
resources committee.
Walden said the projected
amount of revenue for the city
was given in April — when
economic conditions were bet
ter than today.
The council agreed to recon
sider 2009 revenue projections.
That agreement was fol
lowed by a three-hour meet
ing on Thursday morning and
a second, three-hour meeting
that night. City hall was packed
with citizens and business own
ers who wanted to voice then-
opinions on a proposed city
property tax. Hoschton hasn’t
imposed a city property tax in
about 30 years.
The council will again discuss
expenses in the city’s general
fund budget during a millage
hearing on Thursday, Dec. 4, at
9 a.m., at the Hoschton Depot.
The council is also expected
to discuss the budget during
its work session on Thursday,
Dec. 4, at 7 p.m., and during
its regular meeting on Monday,
Dec. 8, at 7 p.m. Both of those
meetings have been moved to
the depot.
PUBLIC REACTION
If the Hoschton City Council
wanted the public’s opinion
on a possible city property tax
— it got one last Thursday.
City hall proved too small for
the citizens and business own
ers who packed two meetings
on Thursday. Most of those in
attendance expressed opposi
tion to any city property tax.
Several citizens urged the
council to trim costs from any
proposed budget. Others tossed
out potential revenue sources
— such as selling city-owned
property, state grants, recycling
cans and a lottery.
Sandi Romer, a former city
council member, was one of
the citizens who favored sell
ing city property and trimming
other expenses.
“You can’t add a tax to us
because the economy is going
down and we don’t know what’s
going to happen,” she said.
But Council member John
Schulte said a city property
tax would ensure a constant
income source for Hoschton,
should it need to pay for emer
gency expenses.
“The city council recognizes
this is a terrible environment
to even talk about this sub
ject,” Schulte said. “It should
have been handled a number of
years ago to establish a constant
income for the city.”
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