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Serving Braselton, Hoschton, Chateau Elan, Traditions, Reunion, Deaton Creek and West Jackson $1.00 copy
Wednesday, February 16, 2022
Vol. 15 No. 10 A publication of MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. www.BraseltonNewsTODAY.com 16 pages
Hwy. 211 district
Braselton council passes Hwy. 211 Overlay District restrictions
Code amendment prohibits the addition of certain
businesses, including gas stations and drive-throughs
By Ben Munro
ben@mainstreetnews.com
New gas stations, drive-
through restaurants, car
washes and auto service sta
tions are now prohibited in
Braselton’s Hwy. 211 Over
lay District.
An amendment to the
town’s development codes
barring the addition of those
businesses along Hwy. 211
— a measure aimed at pro
tecting diversity of land use
along the highway — passed
Monday (Feb. 14) with a 4-0
vote of the council.
The Hwy. 211 Overlay
District is defined as any
land throughout Braselton
on either side of the high
way 750 feet from its center-
line. The amendment would
not affect existing gas sta
tions, drive-in/drive-through
restaurants, car washes and
auto service stations, all of
which would be grandfa
thered in.
Scott Snedecor represent
ed the only public opposi
tion to the measure during
a public hearing over the
amendment held on Thurs
day (Feb. 10). He's a mem
ber of a partnership that’s
been developing land on
the corner of Hwy. 211 and
Liberty Church Rd. for 15
years, but some land re
mains vacant. While he said
he supports maintaining the
area’s character, Snedecor
expressed concerns about
the amendment creating an
“economic deal buster” for
businesses that might appeal
to the community.
Snedecor pointed in par
ticular to prohibiting drive-
through restaurants, noting
that there are “viable chains
in the marketplace.”
“These are businesses that
are highly respected and that
people in our community
would like to have,” Snede
cor said.
The amendment was
passed after findings from
the town’s planning depart
ment concluded that allow
ing more gas stations, drive-
through restaurants, car
washes and auto service sta
tions could crowd out other
potential land uses along the
corridor. Concerns about po
tential traffic generated by
these businesses were also
cited in these findings.
Councilman Jim Joedecke
said the findings were part
of a larger conversation
See Hwy. 211, page 3A
Jackson Co. Schools
BOE plans to name
superintendent
finalist on Feb. 17
The Jackson County Board
of Education is close to nam
ing a new school superinten
dent to replace April Howard
who is retiring.
The BOE has set a called
meeting for Feb. 17 at 7 a.m.
to announce its finalist for the
position. The board will then
have to wait at least 14 days be
fore taking a final vote to give
the public time for feedback.
The BOE plans to take final
action at its March 14 meeting,
officials said.
SPEED CAMERA VOTE
POSTPONED
In other business at the Feb.
14 BOE meeting, the board ta
bled action on a plan to partner
with the towns of Maysville
and Hoschton for speed en
forcement cameras. The board
had been slated to vote on the
plan, but decided to table ac
tion following questions from
chairman Don Clerici who
said he wanted to move slower
on the plan.
“They have the ability to is
sue tickets now,” he said. “I’m
in favor of a partnership that al
lows the revenue to help us pay
for school resource officers.”
OTHER BUSINESS
In other business, the BOE:
• discussed allowing 12
Stone Church to use a school
facility for its Sunday services
until the church builds a facili
ty. No action was taken on the
idea.
See BOE, page 3A
Rental housing
Build-to-rent housing
coming to Traditions
Jackson County is about to
become the latest communi
ty to see a move toward the
booming trend of “build to
rent.”
A Nashville-based BTR
firm announced this week
that it plans to construct a
number of high-end BTR
homes in the massive Tradi
tions of Braselton develop
ment.
Kinloch Partners said it
would build what it calls Sin
gle-Family Rentals (SFR)
in Traditions, along with
projects in Nashville Tenn.
Traditions of Braselton
will release 121 home
sites to construction,
bringing the total num
ber of home sites in the
neighborhood to 1,400.
and Blythewood, S.C. Con
struction is slated to begin in
See Traditions, page 3A
Saturday night stand-up
Photo by Ben Munro
Comedian Hank Denson engages with the crowd on Saturday (Feb. 12) on the stage at the Fish
Bowl at Flourish Taproom, which is housed in Braselton’s 1904 building. Flourish hosted a lineup
of stand-up comedians on Saturday night. See more photos on 8A.
School board
Clack to run for Jackson BOE District 5 seat
Ty Clack has
announced his
intention to ran
for the Jackson
County Board
of Education
District 5 seat.
“I am a CLACK
Christian. conservative,
I stand for parents’
choice in their chil
dren education.”
Clack said in the an
nouncement.
Clack and his wife.
Heather, have been
married for 17 years
and have two children cur-
husband, father of two, and rently enrolled in the Jack-
son County School System.
Clack has been a volunteer
youth football coach for sev
en years and a youth basket
ball coach for six years.
Clack and his family have
been attending Free Chapel
Braselton since they started
in January 2021. As a pre
vious member of the United
Methodist Church of The
Way in Lawrenceville, Clack
served on the church exec
utive board for three years,
the building team commit
tee for two years, head of
the setup team for two years
and volunteered in children’s
See Clack, page 2A
MAILING LABEL
Photo by Amber Cloy
Jackson County High School’s Lilly Chavis grapples
her state finals opponent in the center of the mat. Cha
vis won the match by a 6-5 decision to claim the JCHS
girls’ program’s first state championship. See story on
Page 1B.
Downtown Braselton
Developer
anticipates April
construction start
for townhomes
Other downtown projects also in the works
By Ben Munro
ben@mainstreetnews. com
Dirt could be moving by springtime on a proj
ect that would bring townhomes to downtown
Braselton.
According to developer Matt Ruppel of At
lanta Development Company, construction on
the planned 30-unit Laurel Park development —
located on Davis St. and Hwy. 124 behind the
town’s library — could begin in April.
Ruppel, who discussed the project with the
Braselton Downtown Development Authority
See Developments, page 3A
