About Dawson County news. (Dawsonville, Georgia) 2015-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 9, 2022)
4A I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I dawsonnews.com Wednesday, February 9,2022 Variance option could entice more businesses to Dawson highway Julia Fechter Dawson County News The Dawson County Board of Commissioners began talking on Feb. 3 about the merits of a provision allowing for potential incoming businesses along Ga. 400 to submit alternative architectural designs. By Julia Fechter jfechter@dawsonnews.com There may soon be a way for companies to locate along Dawson County’s bustling Ga. 400 corridor and other future overlay districts while keeping their cus tom appearances. During the Board of Commissioners work ses sion on Feb. 3, Planning Director Sharon Farrell presented the board with a proposed amendment to the county’s ordinances that, if passed, would give potential incoming busi nesses a way to submit alternative architectural designs with permit appli cations. As an example, Farrell talked about how busi nesses with signature out door facades or signage, like restaurants, may want to use a recogniz able blend of exterior materials for their build ings in lieu of neutral- toned brick and stone only. The proposed amend ment would allow users wanting to vary their facade to come directly to the Board of Commissioners. Applicants would have to demonstrate how their alternate design still meets the intent of the code and how architectur al or structural reasons why the existing stan dards can’t be met. The company would also have to explain the historical or iconic value of their desired design. BOC Chairman Billy Thurmond reminisced about losing a potential Cracker Barrel about a decade ago because of the county’s unwillingness to grant a facade-related variance. “I think you can easily say that that was a $500,000-a-year mistake or more,” Thurmond said, “because the Cracker Barrel is a destination location, versus some other place that you might just go and eat.” If passed, the board would have the final say on allowing a variance option for incoming busi nesses. District 4 Commissioner Emory Dooley said that it can be “hard to anticipate” everything that might come their way with busi ness design specs. He voiced support for having a way to say “yes” to incoming businesses if there’s something unique about designs, like trade marks. Thurmond added how Chili’s ultimately decided to locate in front of the Dawson Crossroads Shopping Center after ini tially losing a fight to install its signature pep per sign on one side of its building. “Either you help them (businesses), or you don't get them,” he said. Redesign plans for Elliott Road The county government is now one step closer to addressing drivers’ and pedestrians’ concerns about unsafe conditions on Elliott Road in south eastern Dawson County. Davis Engineering & Surveying submitted their designs for the project after the board approved their $23,000 bid during the Sept. 16, 2021 voting session. Funds from SPLOST VI were used to pay for the design plans. Elliott Road is about a mile long, starting from its intersection with Ga. 53 East and sharply bend ing into a hairpin curve before ending at Sunset Drive. Its problems include lack of connec tion to key roads for resi dential properties, narrow travel lanes and rights of way. Public Works Director Denise Farr reiterated that the road’s poor alignment contributes to limited sight distance at several points, making it a safety hazard for pedestrians and vehicles. Commissioners Chris Gaines and Tim Satterfield both com mented on how the demand along the road way has increased, with more people living in ver sus visiting lakeside homes and delivery trucks frequenting the area. The current proposal would provide for a com plete overhaul of Elliot Road, she previously said. The engineering firm’s designs will account for proposed road realign ment and 20 more feet of asphalt on each side. If implemented, there would be a consistent 40-foot width of right-of-way and accommodation for 12-foot travel lanes. Farr didn’t mince words about the estimated cost, which could be at least $675,000 after March 1 for the base, binder and topping levels. “All of the asphalt will have to be removed because it’s very fine. It’s deteriorating and laid on red clay. There’s no base,” she said. The county would like ly have to lay eight to 12 inches of base, though perhaps the cost could be cut by reducing the base amount. The $675,000 doesn’t include the costs for equipment rental or employees, striping, tie- ins and pikes for every driveway, drainage by tilt ing the road and acquisi tion of land. When Gaines asked about the cost for a nor mal full-depth road recla mation, Farr quoted him at $650,000 a mile. “But we couldn’t do a full-depth reclamation here because there’s noth ing to dig up,” she said. “There’s no base, no binder...so you’re basi cally starting from scratch,” added County Manager David Headley. Gaines guessed that $1.5 to $2 million would be realistic for a mile in this case. “This isn’t uncommon with some of the roads that we have where, years ago, they just came in and asphalted over the top,” Headley said. “There was no engineering, design work or drainage systems put in place... so we’re kind of inheriting that type of system that needs to be brought up to a cur rent standard.” He reasoned that that’s why the county will have to bear more of the road’s costs now and empha sized that the road’s prob lems would “only get worse” rather than better. District 1 Commissioner Sharon Fausett added that the county “do it right” to avoid wasting money and the newly-acquired engi neering information. “We inherited what we did, but we’ve got to fix it at some point,” she said. Farr asked the commis sioners to move forward with sending out requests for the donations of properties. She also asked the board to host a public meeting at Fire Station 2 so Elliott Road- area residents could see the potential impacts of future road reconstruc tion. That way, any con fusion about roadwork or hesitancy to assist with donations could be mini mized, she said. Photos courtesy of James Davis Above, below: A local Dawsonville family has been painting rocks with scripture verses to place around the community with the goal of encouraging those who find them. FROM 1A Stones we’re at.” The family started a Facebook group, called “Stones of Faith”, where they post photos of the rocks and hints of where they’ve dropped each one off. They put their Facebook page on the back of the rocks so peo ple can visit it, and they’ve even received photos back from a cou ple of the people who have found the rocks. “I put some out in Blairsville and I found it on their page that they have, some lady said that through the rain and her migraine she hasn’t been out and she actually found one of ours and she was just saying how it made her day and every thing,” Groves said. The goal, Kellie Davis said, is that the people who find the rocks will be encouraged and will either place the rock somewhere else or take it home with them as a reminder of that encour agement. “We just think in this time and this world we need some encourage ment and help and just to help people out,” Kellie Davis said. “Somebody could be having a really bad day and they just find a simple little rock that says ‘God loves you’ and that could just turn their whole day around and make a difference in their outlook.” James Davis said that he places the rocks in the community throughout the week, and the family estimates that they’ve done more than 40 at this point. They sometimes even just hand the rocks out to people they see in the community that look like they could use a pick-me-up, and he said that they plan on having a basket of the rocks at their booth at the Amicalola Regional Farmers Market in Dawsonville. An ultimate goal, he added, would be to spread the idea of the painted rocks as far as possible. “I’d also like to see people share it all over on Facebook, so maybe peo ple all over the U.S. can start doing it themselves,” James Davis said. In the end, Groves said that the goal is to reach as many people as they can with the encouraging scripture messages and reminders that they aren’t alone. “We go to Harmony Baptist here in Dawsonville and we try to help out all we can; we’re trying to get involved with the church as much as we can,” Groves said. “That’s what started the idea was if we can’t reach everybody, maybe we can put these out and they can find them.” And an added benefit, James Davis added, is that the project has brought their family even closer together than they already were. “We do it a lot just to bring the family together and have a good time on the weekends,” James Davis said. “That’s one thing we stress a lot is to take time out to spend with your family; you’re always so busy busy busy but you need to take time out to spend it with your family.” To see more photos of the family’s painted rocks and hints to where in the community you can find one yourself, go to https ://www. facebook. com/groups/ 608395583602391. Dawson County Humane Society a no kill shelter 706-265-9160 Doggy Spotlight If you are looking for a dog to keep you on your toes, Crocus is your guy. This big guy is full of energy and loves to play. Crocus would do best with someone who is just as adventurous as he is. He loves to go on walks, and does ok on a leash although he will need some more leash training. Crocus needs to be in a home where there are NO other animals. 2 e. v .' *'' 3$ Al ■ 1 wit Crocus is six years old and weighs 70 pounds. Crocus For more information contact the 706-265-9160 | 633 Martin Rd, Dawsonville Dawson County Humane Society Adjacent to the Rock Creek Sports Complex Visit our RESALE SHOP & BOUTIQUE All proceeds benefits Wed. - Sat. 10 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. | 54 S. Lumpkin Campground Rd. the Humane bociety Bradley M. Maple CPA, PC 706-216-2362 2390 Thompson Rd • Ste 100 Dawsonville Dawsonville Veterinary Hospital 706-265-8381 ANH Collision Specialists 706-216-0992 103 Industrial Park Road, Dawsonville
