Newspaper Page Text
Page 8A
The Braselton News
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
STEP — continued from page 1A
BY KRISTI REED
The Barrow County Board of
Commissioners unanimous
ly approved the expenditure of
$196,000 to resurface portions of
eight county roads. Public Works
Director Terry Darragh requested
approval for the project in order to
prevent further roadway deteriora
tion.
At Tuesday night’s board meet
ing, Darragh told commissioners
the project would be paid for with
available SPLOST funds. The roads
slated for repair are: Ben Johnson
Road, Don McLocklin Road, Arnold
Road, Nunnally Road, Forest Hill
Drive, Castle Avenue, Bush Chapel
Drive and Oakdale Drive.
In other business, commission
ers approved an intergovernmen
tal agreement with the Town of
Bethlehem. The agreement speci
fies that the county will provide
planning and development servic
es for the municipality. The pri
mary difference from the previ
ous arrangement is that zoning and
variance cases will now be heard
directly by the town council.
Herring told commissioners that
Bethlehem has adopted the county’s
Unified Development Code and fee
structure. Herring said the agree
ment would provide Bethlehem
with the means to encourage qual
ity growth and economic develop
ment.
Four zoning cases were on
Tuesday’s agenda, most notably
the rezoning of 57.87 acres on
Loganville Highway from AG to R3
for the purpose of a master planned
development.
In its Developments of Regional
Impact (DRI) report, the Northeast
Georgia Regional Development
Center (RDC) found the develop
ment not to be in the best interest
of the region or state. The RDC
report stated the development was
not consistent with the County’s
future land use map. Additionally,
the report questioned the develop
ment’s impact on traffic, the Fort
Yargo watershed, local schools and
county infrastructure.
The report included several rec
ommendations which Director of
Planning Guy Herring said had
been addressed by his department
and incorporated into its recom
mendations. These requirements
include a traffic study, a stormwater
management plan, and modifica
tion of the Barrow County Future
Land Use maps. Commissioners
voted unanimously to approve the
requested rezoning with planning
department recommendations.
OTHER BUSINESS
In other business, commission
ers:
•approved a request by applicant
Eddie Butler to subdivide 5.1 acres
at 957 Old Thompson Mill Road
into four residential parcels.
•approved a request to rezone
113.76 acres at the intersection of
Hwy. 53 and Robertson Bridge
Road for a master planned develop
ment. The proposed development,
Kerala Gardens, will have 133 sin
gle family homes, 109 town homes,
42 assisted living units and 11 acres
of commercial development.
•approved a request by applicant
Lyn Clement to rezone .46 acres
from AG to R1 for the purpose of
combining it with a .6 acre tract.
•approved the appointment of Jen
Williams to the Leisure Services
Board.
Now in its second year, Mill
Creek’s step team has grown in
popularity. Fifty students tried
out for this year’s team, 40 were
selected.
Tryouts are a week-long event
in which step team hopefuls learn
how to march and perform differ
ent routines. The students form
into groups of four. Ten frater
nity and sorority members serve
as judges. The girls audition in
groups and demonstrate the steps
they were taught as well as an
original routine.
This year’s team is now down
to 31 members due to student
transfers and academic ineligibil
ity. Smith said it is very important
for step team members to maintain
good grades, follow school rules
and be respectful at all times.
“My primary goal is to give
them something positive at school;
something to relate to,” she said.
Before transferring to Mill Creek
High School, Smith coached the
step team at Berkmar High. Smith
said she had over 150 students try
out for the step team during her
last year at Berkmar. She expects
the level of participation to grow at
Mill Creek as the team gets more
Jackson County Probate Judge
Margaret Deadwyler, who also
serves as election superintendent,
has announced that several pre
cinct changes are planned.
The changes include the fol
lowing:
•Center precinct: Will move
from Center Fire Department to
Center Baptist Church, located
at 9368 Commerce Road (across
from the fire department).
•Hoschton precinct: Will move
from Hoschton City Hall to the
Hoschton Depot, located at 4272
Hwy. 53.
•Porter precinct: Will move
from the civic center building to
the police and municipal build
ing, located at 5040 Hwy. 53,
Braselton.
•Randolph precinct: Will move
from West Jackson Middle School
to Center United Methodist
Church, located at 7649 Jackson
Trail Road.
•Wilson precinct: Will
move from the Maysville Fire
Department to the Maysville
Public Library, located at 9247
exposure.
The MC Steppers next perfor
mance will be Tuesday, Leb. 5
when Mill Creek High School
plays Collins Hill at home.
After that performance, the step
team will get ready for its first
ever competition on March 22.
Smith said her goal is for the team
to place in the competition. The
team is practicing twice a week for
two and a half hours at a time to
prepare for its last basketball sea-
Gillsville Hwy., Maysville.
“In order to keep up with the
expanding population and for
the convenience of voters, it has
become necessary to move the
voting precincts,” Deadwyler
said. “We suggest you drive by
son performance and the upcom
ing competition.
“Hopefully after this year, we’ll
be brought in to perform at a
lot more in school events,” Smith
said.
“It’s a young program and [the
steppers] have really brought a lot
of attention to themselves when
they go to the games,” she said.
“People enjoy seeing them and
hearing them. My kids are very
good.”
these locations prior to election
day to familarize yourself with
the new locations.”
for more information on the
voting precinct changes, call the
Jackson County Probate Office at
706-387-6276.
ZONING — continued from page 1A
properties annexed and zoned commercial in Braselton
to assemble with other nearby properties, possibly for
a commercial development, he said.
The development of the property will depend
on market demand and the Georgia Department of
Transportation’s plan to widen Hwy. 53, Scott said.
Larry Beck, a realtor marketing several of the prop
erties in the area, said he hopes the DOT and Jackson
County agree to close access to Lagree Duck Road
directly from Hwy. 53 and make it a cul-de-sac with
access from New Cut Road. He said county officials
have said they don’t want the sharp intersection to
remain when the state highway is widened.
Beck represented a request for annexation and
zoning of 1.5 acres directly on Lagree Duck Road,
located behind the Desai property. Jean Hales Beck
and William L. Reynolds are the property owners and
applicants.
“Currently, these individual properties are on the
market for sale,” Larry Beck said.
Braselton planning director Kevin Keller said based
on the current conditions of the property located on
Lagree Duck Road, he recommended approval for the
less-intense Neighborhood-Commercial (N-C) zon
ing designation. Beck indicated he agreed with the
recommendation, which was approved by the plan
ning commission.
Beck said there is one residence located between
the insurance office and the 1.5-acre tract and he is
speaking to the homeowner about selling the land.
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Jan. 30, 2008
6:30 p.m.
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Barrow County
Zoning requests contine to decline
BY KRISTI REED
As an indicator of worsening economic conditions,
2008 got off to a slow start Thursday night for the
Barrow County Planning Commission. Commission
members had only one case on the agenda for the first
meeting of the year.
According to zoning coordinator Kathy Holloway,
January is traditionally a slow month. Last year, the
commission had only four cases on the January agen
da. However, a review of recent years’ activity shows
a marked decline in zoning requests.
In 2003, the commission heard 97 cases. The case
load increased 34 percent to 130 cases in 2005. In
2006, requests dropped to 72 cases. Lor 2007, the
number plummeted 33 percent to 48 zoning requests.
Last year, zoning cases peaked in March with
nine requests. As the national economy began to
experience rumblings of the impending subprime
mortgage crisis, zoning cases fell to only one request
in April. Activity increased slightly in the fall, with
a total of twelve cases being heard in September in
October. That number fell 50 percent in November
and December.
Planning director Guy Herring said Barrow County
is experiencing a downturn in the housing market.
“As the market has declined, the need [for new zon
ing] is just not there,” he said.
Herring said building permits are down to 2002 lev
els which has resulted in lost revenue for the county.
“We’re off our peak, but we’re still in pretty good
shape as far as budgeting goes,” he said.
In the sole action item, board members recom
mended approval for a special use permit for property
located at 1104 Mitchell Drive. Applicant Timothy
Johnson requested permission to use the property as
a mulch storage facility for his company, Mulch Werx
located in Buford.
Johnson told board members the property will be
used for storage only and that no sales will be con
ducted on the property.
Planning department recommendations require the
storage facility to be surrounded by either a three-
foot earthen berm or a six foot high opaque fence
constructed of solid wood or masonry. The 6.03
acre property is currently zoned for agricultural use.
Johnson said approximately one acre of the parcel will
be used for mulch storage.
Board members questioned Johnson regarding
expected truck traffic in and out of the facility.
Johnson said he did not expect tractor trailer deliveries
to exceed three trips a week during the peak season,
but said the small mulch delivery trucks would be on
the property several times each day.
In addition to planning department buffer require
ments, board members also imposed a condition limit
ing hours of operation from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The request will be heard by the Barrow County
Board of Commissioners at the Leb. 26 meeting.
Eight Barrow County roads to be resurfaced
STEPPING TOGETHER
The MC Steppers rehearse for a half-time performance at Mill
Creek High School. Photo by Kristi Reed
TEN — continued from page 1A
instrumental in getting House Bill 941 passed several
years ago.
“We worked long and hard to get House Bill 941
passed,” Benton said. “It was a hard fight, but, in
the end when the vote came, it was not that close. I
appreciate being able to be part of this.”
In July of 2006, Gov. Sonny Perdue signed legis
lation authorizing the historical document display.
In addition to the Ten Commandments, by law the
exhibit must include the 1620 Mayflower Compact,
the Declaration of Independence, the Magna Carta,
‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ by Lrancis Scott Key,
the National Motto: “In God We Trust,” the Preamble
to the Georgia Constitution, the Bill of Rights of the
United States Constitution and the description on the
image of Lady Justice. The legislation further speci
fies that the documents must not be purchased with
any state funding.
Barrow County’s display was purchased with $895
in privately donated funds.
The Ten Commandments were originally displayed
in the Barrow County courthouse from 2002 until
2005 when county officials were forced to remove
the document as part of a legal settlement with the
ACLU. Barrow County paid $1 in damages and
$150,000 in legal fees to the ACLU to end the two-
year court battle. In filing the lawsuit, the ACLU
stated the organization had received a complaint from
a resident who felt uncomfortable seeing the Ten
Commandments on display in the courthouse.
Precinct changes announced for Jackson County
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