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Bringing pets and residents together Senior Life Section C
VOLUME LXXXIII —NUMBER 9
Farmers Board turns down funds; opts for wooden bridge
to see
taxation
changes
By Kristin Jeffries
Staff Writer
Remember voting for Amendment 3
on the November 1990 ballot? The
change in taxation approved by voters
then will affect farmers’ taxes begin
ning this year.
Called conservation use, the new
form of taxation will allow true farms
to be taxed according to the produc
tivity of the soil, said Chief Appraiser
James Payne.
Those who qualify and sign up for
conservation use taxation will be as
signed a ‘per acre’ assessment on
their land by the state. For each re
gion in Georgia, the state has set up
three categories: pastureland, crop
land, and woodland. Each of these
categories can have nine different as
sessment prices according to the soil
type.
While the county’s tax assessors
have set base prices for agricultural
land from $4,500 to $9,000, prelimi
nary prices set by the state range from
$220 to SSBO an acre.
If many local farmers take the state
up on its offer it may reduce the tax
able base in the county.
“It is going to lower the boom on the
digest,” said Payne.
The new tax break is set up to help
those who are being taxed off their
land because of rising land costs
caused by development and growth in
the county.
“People shouldn’t be penalized
with their values going up when they
don’t want to sell, don’t intend to sell,
and are using it as a true farm,” said
Rep. Bill Barnett, D-Cumming, who
was a supporter of the bill as it came
through the General Assembly.
Please see FARMERS, Page 2A
i
Weather:
Rainy
The Weather Bear and the
National Weather Service
forecast some gray weather.
Wednesday through Friday
is expected to be mostly
cloudy with a chance of rain.
Lows will be in the upper 30s.
Highs will be in the 50s.
s
INSIDE
Abby 4A
Church Briefs 9A
Classified 5B
lan Cowie 7A
Editorials 10A
Events 5A
Food & Nutrition 7A
Horoscope 4A
Grover Johnson 11A
Joyce Jordan 10A
Diane McCalla 8A
Sports 1B
o 111 ,
Forsyth Coun
J- athlNS ga sQb[je
By Kristin Jeffries
Staff Writer
In a 3-1 vote commissioners decid
ed to turn down Department of Trans
portation funds to build a new bridge
on Burruss Mill Road.
The two property owners on each
side of the bridge have refused to al
low the county to purchase right of
Council OK’s
giving back
Cupboard’s
bev. license
By Kara Sproles
Staff Writer
When representatives from Coun
try Cupboard Tuesday night faced the
Cumming City Council and presented
their side of the story surrounding a
1989 fatal car accident which involved
alcohol sold at one of their local
stores, the council listened.
As a result, the store located at the
intersection of Ga. Hwy. 9 and Ga.
Hwy. 306 conncector was granted per
mission once again to sell alcohol.
“What happened in the case
brought the matter to our attention,”
said Ed Buckley, who represented the
chain.
The council had previously revoked
their license to sell because of legal
action filed after two teenagers Ste
phen C. Sexton and Jeffrey Carnes
died in an alcohol-related vehicle
accident
Alcohol was allegedly purchased by
Carnes at Country Cupboard Store #4
the night of the fatal accident
Sexton’s family filed a wrongful
death suit after the wreck. This past
November, a $1.6 million out-of-court
agreement between the family and
Country Cupboard Foodstores, Inc.
was reached.
Tuesday night marked the first time
the defendants were able to tell their
side of the story.
“The evidence indicates in this situ
ation ... that young Mr. Carnes, age 18,
probably used a fake ID on the night
in question,” said Buckley.
He further stated that the clerk on
duty that night signed an affidavit say
ing that she did indeed ask for identi
fication from Carnes before selling
him alcohol.
“She said it was her normal course
to ask and she did,” Buckley said.
The council eventually voted two to
one to re-issue the license. Council
menh Gabe Dukas and Quincy Holton
voted in favor, while Rupert Sexton
voted against it Councilmen Lewis
Ledbetter and Ralph Perry abstained
from voting.
“Sometimes it’s difficult to try and
compete with these youngsters,” said
Dukas, a former City Police Chief.
Country Cupboard representatives
went into great detail explaining how
store employees are trained to avoid
See OK, Page 2A
Chamber raises $8,200 through silent auction
Record crowd
at banquet 9
new officers
are installed
The Cumming/Forsyth County
Chamber of Commerce officials host
ed the largest crowd ever in atten
dance at its annual meeting and din
ner held Friday night at the Holiday
Inn in Roswell.
More than 300 packed in to enjoy
the silent auction, cocktails and din
ner while listening to President and
Chief Executive Officer of the Atlanta
Committee for the Olympic Games
Bill Payne speak.
Last year, about 225 attended the
event
A drawing card for attendance was
this year’s silent auction and raffle
headed by Chairman Henry Lins.
The auction raised more money for
the Chamber than was expected.
“It was the year for sporting
events,” said Lins. “Those were the
big sale items.”
Six Atlanta Braves tickets with a
picnic lunch went for S2OO. Two sets of
Falcons tickets valued at $56 a piece
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 1992-CUMMING, GA 30130- 40 PAGES 3 SECTIONS
way if the metal bridge funded by the
DOT and the county was to be in
stalled.
The current bridge has been given a
very low rating by the state.
“It is not in the best interest of the
county to condemn the land,” said Mi
chael McGaughey during the board’s
regular Monday meeting.
Public Works Director Jim Red
"iKp- urn
Terry and Linda Solomon opened the anti-landfill meeting Saturday by pointing out the location of the proposed
dump. They own 109 acres on Old Federal Road.
Solomon: ‘lf it sounds like I’m mad, I am!’
Emotional fight begins
against proposed landfill
By Kristin Jeffries
Staff Writer
“You really have a problem here,”
Cherokee County resident J.C.
Gaza way told a group of about 40 resi
dents gathered to share concerns
about a proposed landfill in Forsyth
County.
Residents talked of ways they could
stop the FSL Corporation from plac
ing a private solid waste landfill on
640 acres on Old Federal Road, adja
cent to the county landfill. *
At press time, the issue whs to come
before the Planning and Zoning
Board fora recommendation Tuesday
evening. Planning Director Stevie
Mills reported community interest in
the landfill proposal has been high
and many residents were expected at
the meeting.
One of the biggest concerns seems
to be that, according to plans filed by
FSL, the majority of the garbage to
keep the landfill in business will
come from several metro Atlanta
counties just south of Forsyth.
went for “almost double,” Lins said.
All in all, the silent auction raised
$8,200 to go toward the Chamber’s
economic development program.
Lins only expected the auction to
bring $7,000. Last year $2,500 was
raised.
The trip to Aruba went to Jack
Heard who bid $1,200 on the trip. Esti
mated market value of the auction’s
biggest feature was $1,450.
A set of Ping® golf clubs were also
raffled off to Susan Echols of Forsyth
County.
After bidding on silent auction
items, members gathered in the ban
quet room to give a standing ovation to
guest speaker Payne.
Payne explained how the idea of
Atlanta as host of the Olympic Games
was an idea simply bom in a conver
sation between Payne and his wife
Martha.
He said he told his wife he needed a
new challenge and suddenly the pro
ject began taking shape.
The guest speaker explained how at
first when presented, the concept
seemed far-fetched but gradually it
took hold and grew into a magnificent
success story for Atlanta and the State
of Georgia.
Payne said not only the City of At
lanta would reap benefits but the en
tire State of Georgia would grow eco
nomically. The ripple effect will make
mond warned commissioners the two
property owners, Doug Smith and Bill
Dunn, had promised to fight condem
nation of the right of way in court
DOT offered to pick up part of the
cost of a metal bridge with a $12,000
portion paid by the county.
Commissioners voted to apply for
U.S. Forestry contract to build a new
wooden bridge on Burruss Mill, which
At the Saturday night meeting at
Coal Mountain Elementary, coordina
tor Linda Solomon opened with a
rousing speech against inflicting oth
er counties’ garbage on Forsyth
residents.
“If it sounds like I’m mad I am. I’m
really mad!” said Solomon.
She complained about potential
groundwater contamination as well
as contamination of the Etowah River
which flows beside the proposed site.
Guest speakers from “Don’t Trash
Cherokee” and the University of
Georgia spoke many times about the
importance that the issue be stopped
at a local level.
“If you can defeat it at the local lev
el you’ve got it made,” said Bud Free
man, PhD, of the University of
Georgia.
The FSL Corporation has applied
for a permissive use permit to place a
solid waste landfill on the agricultur
ally-zoned 640 acres on which it has
an option to buy. This issue must
come before the Planning and Zoning
board for a public hearing and be
, - Jj imm ■.
Tim Hamll, president-elect, Rock Hunter, secretary-treasurer; retiring president Frank Felker and far right, new
Chamber President Ken Sugart are sworn in by Judge Stan Gault during Friday night’s annual Chamber meeting.
Atlanta and Georgia household words
universally by the time the games
conclude.
Payne was introduced by The Hon.
Richard S. Gault, Forsyth County Su
perior Court Judge.
Judge Gault also presided over the
installation of new officers of the
Chamber: President and CEO Ken
Shugart, President-elect Tim Hamil
the landowners would support The
U. S. Forestry department will pick
up $38,000 of the cost leaving $27,000
in cash to be paid by the county plus
labor.
The board, with the exception of
James Harrington, voted to give up
the DOT contract because of potential
litigation costs.
“It comes down to personalities. We
passed on to the Board of Commis
sioners with a recommendation. The
commissioners can grant the permit
after a public hearing but not before
changing their landfill ordinance
which states no garbage can be
brought into the county from other ar
eas. Changing this ordinance would
require yet another public hearing.
“I don’t think people realize what
control we don’t have over private
landfills,” said Solomon. “Once they
are in, they are in.”
Private landfills can bring in gar
bage from anywhere in the world ac
cording to a 1976 Supreme Court rul
ing, said local resident Bill Brooks,
who has studied the issue.
There is also no guarantee against
those compounds classified as haz
ardous making their way into land
fills, said Brooks.
Small companies producing less
than 2,200 pounds of each hazardous
chemical are allowed to send that to a
solid waste landfill, he said.
Please see LANDFILL, Page 2A
and Secretary-Treasurer Rock Hunt
Serving as directors for ’92 are Rich
Brown, Charles Cole, Bill Falls,
Frank Felker, Jim French, Jim Gro
gan, Tim Hamil, Bill Hansford, Jerry
Hill, Bill Howell, Rock Hunt, Buddy
Lang, Henry Lins, Mary Helen
McGruder, Roy Mitchell, and Ken
Shugart.
Retirinsylirectors are Jack Curry,
(T
are not willing to condemn on some
people,” he said.
In other business:
• Denied a rezoning request by Bob
by J. Kemp to have 27.88 acres re
zoned from agricultural to
manufacturing
• After some heated debate during
See BOARD, Page 2A
Officials
help look
for body
By Kara Sproles
Staff Writer
Forsyth County Sheriff Wesley Wal
raven said Monday although no offi
cial search for the body of a Gwinnett
County man believed to be buried
somewhere along the Georgia High
way 400 corridor has been launched,
local lawmen have volunteered their
time to the cause.
On Sunday, friends, family and law
enforcement officials combed the
area for the body of Randy Beck, who
was reported missing last week.
Gwinnett police arrested a 27-year
old Duluth man, Charles Thomas
White 111, early Friday in connection
with Beck’s death.
He was charged with murder and
was being held in the Gwinnett Coun
ty Jail Sunday without bond.
White, who reported Beck missing
Thursday afternoon, eventually told
police he killed Beck in self-defense,
panicked and then removed his re
mains from Beck’s 6194 Summit Trail
home in Gwinnett.
According to Darryl Beck, Randy’s
brother, police have conducted a
thorough search of the Georgia 400
area.
“I understand they moved the
search from that area to Peachtree
Industrial Boulevard because this
White person supposedly was famil
iar with that area,” he said.
Darryl Beck said White was to have
gone to work for his brother, who op
erated Let Them Eat Cheesecake, a
business he started more than a year
ago in his home.
Several dozen people walked and
searched for almost 10 hours, hoping
to find Beck’s body, Darryl Beck said
Sunday afternoon.
Walraven said the sheriffs depart
ment was “assisting Gwinnett County
in investigating the case and search
ing the area” as well.
He added that volunteers with the
Forsyth County Fire Department had
also helped in the search.
“Our family - my brothers and
cousins - and so many people who
knew him all came out to help,” he
said. “You wouldn’t believe the out
pouring of support we’ve had.
“People who knew him and know
what kinda person he was have been
just coming by and asking to help.”
(Carla Murphy of the Daily News also
contributed to this article.)
Photo by Porfirio Solorzano
Stan Gault, Linda Lang and “Gus”
Plagianis.
Outgoing Chamber President
Frank Felker recapped 1991 for the
crowd.
“The recession had an adverse im
pact on economic development ef
forts during 1991,” he said. “While our
see CHAMBER, Pas*2A
25 CENTS