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Serving the communities of Braselton, Hoschton, Chateau Elan, Mill Creek, West Jackson and South Hall Wednesday, January 9,2008 Vol. 3 No. 38 A publication of MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. BraseltonNews.com 22 pages, 3 sections Inside •Mill Creek teacher qualifies for Olympic trials page 4B JACKSON COUNTY •Bicknell announces run for BOC chairmanship page 2A HOSCHTON •Water conservation efforts working page 3A Sports: •Lady Hawks No. 1 in state page 1B Opinion: •‘Rec board vote will be important to West Jackson’s future’ page 4A Public safety: •Teenager arrested for stealing manhole covers page 6A •Church events page 7A •Obituaries pages 9-1OA w (5 £ z o q o z £ cc t “■ iu 2 Li. CC LL IJJ LLI O. Big mixed-use project slated near Braselton BY KERRI TESTEMENT A major mixed-use project is in the works next to The Village at Deaton Creek, near Braselton. Vintage Communities, Lawrenceville, plans to develop 657 condos and town- houses, 424,218 square feet of retail space and 359,249 square feet of office space near Ga. Hwy. 211. A 200-room hotel is also included in the plans. The project — dubbed Thompson Mills Village — will be located along the realigned Thompson Mill Road (Ga. Hwy. 347), next to The Village at Deaton Creek, Northeast Georgia Medical Center’s planned Braselton medical campus, Chateau Elan and Mulberry Baptist Church. The 67-acre site is largely located in unin corporated Hall County, with the balance in unincorporated Gwinnett County. Hall County planning director Randy Knighton said the project must complete a Development of Regional Impact (DRI) review before a planning commission meet ing is scheduled. However, the Hall County Planning Commission is expected to hear the rezon ing request around March, before the board of commissioners take a vote on the pro posal, Knighton added. The Gwinnett County Planning Commission and board of commissioners will also have to grant rezoning approval for the project. See PROJECT on page 8A By the Numbers • 200: Number of rooms in hotel • 1,957: Total housing units planned* •926,467: Total square footage of retail and office space planned* includes both The Village at Deaton Creek and the proposed Thompson Mills Village, according to planning documents Economic opportunity SPOUT SPRINGS REUSE FACILITY Hall County officials say the county’s purchase of the Spout Springs Reuse Facility — formerly known as the John Wieland Wastewater Plant —may open the door for new commercial projects in South Hall. Hall County buys private sewer plant BY KERRI TESTEMENT Hall County’s purchase of a private sewer treatment plant could provide a major economic boast to South Hall, officials said Monday. Hall County took ownership of the new Spout Springs Reuse Facility — formerly known as the John Wieland Wastewater Plant — on Jan. 1. The private facility provides sewer services for three major residential developments in South Hall — Sterling on the Lake, Reunion and The Village at Deaton Creek. Hall County paid $13.8 million for the 307-acre property located off Spout Springs Road. The cost will be repaid by customers through sewer tap and service fees for new residences and businesses. “This is a step forward for Hall County today,” said Bobby Banks, commissioner for District 1, which largely serves South Hall. Banks said the Spout Springs Reuse Facility will complement the county’s Mulberry Creek Wastewater Treatment project. That project — with an estimated $30 million price tag — will bring sewer service to South Hall from Gainesville’s Flat Creek treatment plant along Ga. Hwy. 53 to Ga. Hwy. 211. Officials say the projects will keep more water in Hall County’s basin by returning water to Lake Lanier. And with sewer service available, Hall County offi cials expect the local economy to benefit. Phil Sutton, assistant county administrator, said the availability of sewer service will guide the kind of projects that will be developed in the area. Hall County officials prefer commercial development that See SEWER on page 8A Barrow BOC approves funds for runway project BY KRISTI REED he Barrow County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday night to approve the expenditure of $144,000 in matching funds for the rehabilitation of the secondary runway at the Northeast Georgia Regional Airport. Glen Boyd, Director of the Northeast Georgia Regional Airport, told commissioners the Barrow County Airport Authority requested aid from the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) several years ago. Since the runway is used as a secondary runway, the project is not eligible for Federal Aviation Administration funds. GDOT has awarded the authority a $575,000 grant for pavement maintenance. The terms of the grant require that Barrow County contribute 25 per cent of the project costs. Boyd said the Airport Authority has agreed to pay non-reimburs- able engineering costs of $46,000. Barrow County’s portion of the grant will be paid from SPLOST funds. Commissioners also voted to accept a contract for mitigation services for county open space property located near Hwy. 81 and Hwy. 316. The adjacent property is scheduled to be developed as a retail center. In order to build on the property, developer FDC Inc. must remove a wetlands area from the targeted construction site. The Corps of Engineers (COE) requires that the wetlands be reestablished and an existing stream be restored. As part of the project, FDC Inc. will construct a one-mile walking trail, five foot bridges and create areas for use as outdoor classrooms on 25 acres currently owned by the county. Due to COE requirements, the county must be listed as a co permittee with the developer. The county must also adopt conser vation covenants and restrictions along with a stream enhancement and mitigation agreement. Commissioners voted unani mously to accept the contract which will facilitate the construc tion of a Target, Publix and Belk in the new retail center. The develop er is also pursuing additional ten ants including Staples, Best Buy and PetSmart. Planners estimate the new retail center will generate $150 million in annual sales, $4.5 million of which could go the county and See BARROW on page 8A Police (ine amounts may be increased in Hoschton BY KERRI TESTEMENT Don’t get caught being a litter bug in Hoschton — tossing away trash unlawfully in the city could cost you $214. And driving over a fire hose? That offense will set you back $415, compared to the previ ous $156. The Hoschton City Council is consider ing changes to a list of fine amounts charged by the city’s munici pal court. The proposal was put on “first read” on Monday and the council is expected to vote on the request during February’s council meeting (see related story on page 3A). The offenses include those for traffic violations, city ordinance violations and other misdemeanor criminal charges. Hoschton police chief Dave Hill said the new fines are based on the amounts charged by other area cities for the same offenses. His department looked at the fine amounts charged by Pendergrass, Arcade, Maysville and Gainesville. “What we like to do is keep the standards of the area,” Hill said, while adding that Hoschton was charging too little for some offenses. Speeding violations are one of the top offenses cited by the police department, according to a review of municipal court activity. See FINES on page 5A HILL DOT planning to install cable barriers along 1-85 Project may be awarded next month BY KERRI TESTEMENT It was a gruesome accident on Interstate 85 that state transporta tion officials admit could have been avoided. Four children from two separate vehicles were killed in an accident on 1-85 in Jackson County in July 2007, when a southbound vehicle crossed the median and stuck a northbound car. The drivers and other passengers of both cars sur vived the wreck. “That accident could have been prevented, if a cable barrier was installed,” said Georgia Department of Transportation spokesperson David Spear on Thursday. Jackson County is now one of several area counties slated to see cable barriers installed by the end of the year, according to Spear. Cable barrier systems use woven, tension cables attached to steel posts and are installed in the open median of major highways. The cable barriers have prevent ed cross-over accidents in which vehicles traveling in one direc tion become out of control, cross the median and strike vehicles traveling in the opposite direction — often causing head-on colli sions resulting in fatalities and Road Work The Georgia Department of Transportation says to expect delays this week on 1-85 from 1-985 to S.R. 20 in Buford. See page 5A serious injuries, according to the DOT The DOT will seek bids this month for a cable barrier system stretching from S.R. 20 in Buford in Gwinnett County, through Barrow, Jackson and Banks coun ties. That cable barrier project will be 41 miles and will end at the Franklin County line. The DOT anticipates award ing a contract for the project in February, with construction start ing in the spring and ending in the fall of 2008, Spear said. Last week, the DOT announced plans to install 22.3 miles of cable barrier on 1-985 between 1-85 and U.S. Hwy. 129 (Jesse Jewel Parkway) at a cost of $3.8 mil lion. That project spans Hall and Gwinnett counties. See CABLE on page 5A