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Serving Braselton, Hoschton, Chateau Elan, Traditions, Reunion, Deaton Creek and West Jackson $1.00 copy Wednesday, December 30, 2020 Vol. 14 No. 3 A publication of MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. www.BraseltonNewsTODAY.com 12 pages COVID cases top 310 at NGHS Northeast Georgia Health System reached another COVID-19 peak this week. NGHS is treating 312 positive COVID patients in its facilities, with 67 of those at Northeast Georgia Medical Center Bra selton. Fifty-four patients are awaiting test results. There are 700 occupied beds at NGHS with 39 available. At NGMC Braselton, 156 beds are occupied with 22 available (24 occupied in ICU with four available). Meanwhile, NGHS continues to work to get its staff members vaccinated. The hos pital system received approximately 5,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine and 1,500 doses of the Moderna vaccine with more ship ments expected in early January. As of Dec. 28, NGHS has administered 2,168 vaccines to its employees. ASK COMMUNITY TO BE CAREFUL DURING HOLIDAYS NGHS sent out a plea ahead of the Christmas and New Year's holidays, urging the community to use caution and warned that another post-holiday spike could force the system to ration care. “We’re struggling to find staff and space to care for people, and our frontline work ers are exhausted,’’ said Clifton Hastings, MD, Chief of Medical Staff for NGMC. “If COVID cases continue to increase, we may be forced to start making decisions about who we can treat effectively and who we have to send elsewhere or turn away. That’s See COVID, page 2A Two WJ residential projects cross hurdle Two proposed residen tial projects in the West Jackson area crossed the first hurdle last week. The Jackson County Board of Commissioners approved map amend ments for two separate residential projects in West Jackson at its Dec. 21 meeting. Both projects will still need to go through the rezoning process for final approval. Maddox Road project One of those projects, located on 95 acres at 1288 Maddox Rd., Hoschton, could include approxi mately 167 single-family residences. Chafin Communities re quested two map amend ments for the property, seeking a character area change from ag to subur ban and a future land use change from ag/forestry to residential. Hwy. 124 project The second project, lo cated on 23 acres on Hwy. 124 West, Hoschton, is proposed as a fee-simple townhouse subdivision with 103 residences. The board approved a request from LTR Investments for a character area change from suburban to urban for the project. That property, located directly across Old Wicke See Planners, page 2A Tickets on sale for Braselton’s Chocolate Walk Tickets are on sale for Braselton’s seventh annual Chocolate Walk. This year’s event will be held Saturday, Feb. 6, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in downtown Braselton. “(The Chocolate Walk) is a fun way to discover all the wonderful shops located in Downtown Braselton,” town leaders said. “At each stop along the Chocolate Walk, walkers collect a chocolate treat from that participating business. Chocolate will come in many forms so grab a group of friends or plan a date with your sweetheart and enjoy some sweet treats while you shop!” Tickets are $15 per person. For more information or tickets, visit DowntownBraselton.com or the Braselton Chocolate Walk Facebook page. Election Day is Jan. 5 for runoff The hotly-contested run off races for Georgia’s two U.S. Senators will be final next week with balloting on Jan. 5. There are three races on the ballot: Incumbent Republican Sen. David Perdue faces Democrat Jon Ossoff: incumbent GOP Sen. Kelly Loeffler faces Democrat Raphael Warnock; and incumbent Republican PSC member Lauren “Bubba” McDon ald faces Democrat Daniel Blackman. See a sample ballot and find your polling location at www.mvp.sos.ga.gov. A look back at 2020 The year 2020 is nearing its end, but it won’t be forgotten any time soon. Each year, The Braselton News reflects back on the head lines from the past 12 months. 2020 brought several major residential development projects in the Braselton and Hoschton areas. The year also showed continued controversy in Hoschton as the town looked to fill its mayoral and vacant council seat, following the resignation of the town’s mayor and mayor pro tern late last year. Shannon Sell became the town’s mayor and two new council members, James Law- son and Tracy Carswell, were elected. In recent months, the council has initiated discussions on major items that will impact the community for years to come — including a police department and new city hall. The council also faced a lawsuit from its biggest developer, Kolter, over its Sept. 21 decision to impose impact fees on new residential construction. But most of the headlines from 2020 surrounded the COVID-19 pandemic, which hit the Braselton area in mid- March. The area has reached an all-time peak in COVID-19 cases in recent weeks. But there is hope — with the arrival of the first vaccines — that the pandemic may soon reach its end. Read the headlines from 2020: JANUARY •First baby 2020 — Rashad Williams and Undria Clark, of Gainesville, welcomed a baby girl, Lyric Dashari Wil liams, into the world on New Year’s Day. Lyric was the first baby born at Northeast Georgia Medical Center in 2020. •Construction set to begin on senior living communi ty — Mansions Senior Living’s 130-unit senior indepen dent living community planned in Braselton was set to be gin construction in the first quarter of 2020 after receiving zoning approval in 2019. •Hoschton mayor, council races contested — Hope Weeks and Shannon Sell qualified for the Hoschton may or’s seat during qualifying following the resignation of Theresa Kenerly. Meanwhile. Raphael Mayberry and James Lawson qualified for the vacant Hoschton City Council seat following the resignation of Jim Cleveland. •Hoschton council ‘on vacation’ — With only two sit ting members left, the Hoschton City Council’s ability to hold votes and conduct business was put on ice. •Three failed votes lead to deferral on residential project — After three unsuccessful votes, Braselton lead ers voted Jan. 13 to defer a request for a large residential JANUARY Rashad Williams and Undria Clark look on at their new baby girl, Lyric, who was the first baby born at Northeast Georgia Medical Center Braselton in 2020. development near Chateau Elan. In a split vote, the Bra selton Town Council voted to defer a decision on annex ation, rezoning and a master plan change for the 141 acres off Duncan Creek Rd. Meritage Homes of Georgia planned to develop 321 detached single-family lots on the property. •Chateau Elan completes $25 million renovation — Chateau Elan celebrated the completion of its $25 mil- lion-dollar comprehensive renovation with a Grand Un veiling Celebration and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony at the Chateau Elan Inn on Tuesday, Jan. 14. FEBRUARY •Town hosts comp plan meeting — The Town of Bra selton hosted an open house presenting the 2020 Compre hensive Plan to the public. •Gwinnett sheriff won’t seek re-election — Long-time Gwinnett County sheriff Butch Conway announced he would not seek re-election. •Hotel/motel tax increase clears first hurdle — Bra selton took its first step towards raising the town’s hotel/ motel tax, a move that would generate additional funds for tourism in the city. •Hoschton planning director resigns — Hoschton’s planning and zoning director Justin Kilgore resigned. See Lookback, page 2A MAILING LABEL Hoschton to vote on council pay hikes The Hoschton City Council plans to vote on Jan. 11 to raise the council and mayor’s pay starting in 2022. The council vote calls for the mayor to be paid $1,000 per month and council members $500 per month. The mayor and council cur rently get $25 per meeting per month with a cap of $75 per month. Mayor Shannon Sell said Dec. 21 that the reason for the pay hike is to encourage people to run for office and that serving on the coun cil shouldn’t be a financial burden to people. “In the future when I’m no longer mayor, I want a qualified person on this council and mayor,” he said. “I want somebody that’s smart, that’s willing to work and that’s not up here wasting time. I want an educated person that’s got the best interest of the city at heart and also that knows what they’re doing.” Sell said he also wants to expand the coun cil to six members from the current four. He said the total cost to the city for a bet ter-paid council would only be a total of $48,000 per year, an amount he said was worth it. Hoschton Oks 2021 budget The Hoschton City Council ap proved its 2021 budget in a called meeting Dec. 28. Overall, the budget calls for a 13% increase in spending over the budget approved for 2020. The city anticipates $1.8 million in General Fund revenue and $1.6 million in spending next year. Hoschton also plans to start up a police department in the third quarter of 2021 and build a new multi-use facility/city hall. BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS Some highlights are: • The city is budgeting $89,250 for a police department, although the city council hasn’t formally voted to create a police depart ment. The idea has been discussed at several city council meetings, a public forum and at the coun cil’s retreat meeting. But creating a police department would likely lead to the town imposing a prop erty tax to help pay for it. “I am always open to options, but if the citizens want it, they will have to pay for it and that usually comes from property taxes,” Mayor Shannon Sell said in September. No property tax is included in the 2021 budget. • City officials have budget ed $350,000 for a new building called an “infill city square devel opment project.” That is a multi use facility and could contain a new city hall, an idea which was discussed briefly at a recent coun cil meeting. • The city expects to generate $868,800 in impact fees in 2021, an amount that is in addition to its general fund. Those dollars are slated to be used for building facilities, specifically for recre ation. fire and police. The impact fees would come from an assess ment placed on new homes and businesses in the town, mostly from the massive Twin Lakes See Budget, page 2A o