Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 4A
, FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS Sunday, January 10,190 T
Cell tower ordinance proposal to
be discussed by commissioners
By Jlmßltey
Staff Writer
At the regular meeting Monday
night, the Forsyth County Board
of Commissioners will discuss
key issues such as a proposed cell
tower ordinance and a proposal by
the design firm of CH2MHILL to
do a watershed assessment.
The assessment is required by
the state Environmental
Protection Division before the
county can apply for a land appli
cation permit for sewage.
The commissioners will discuss
the following new business:
• Request by Thomas and James
Threatt for permission to continue
to occupy the Threatt property
through Dec. 31,1999.
• Request by Georgia Mountains
Regional Development Center for
Forsyth County to sponsor one of
the GMRDC Board of Directors
meetings in 1999.
• Request by Guy Holcomb &
Harold Oden for exception to the
zoning moratorium due to vested
rights on their property.
Several old business items also
will be discussed, including:
• Request for acceptance of a bid
for die design of a 76-acre recre
ational facility for Central Park.
• Request for approval of pro
posal for privatization of
Engineering Services.
The following rezoning requests
will be heard at the meeting:
Citizens’ panel assists in development
of new guidelines for cellular towers
By Jim Riley
Staff Writer
Anyone wishing to erect a cell tower in Forsyth
County will have to comply with new guidelines if a
proposed cell tower ordinance is approved at the
Forsyth County Board of Commissioner’s meeting
Monday night.
According to County Attorney Rachel Iverson, the
Federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 regulates
What the county can do as far as limiting cellular
towers.
• “The county is going to be required to have tow
ers,” she said. “The federal government won’t allow
us to say ‘not in my backyard.’”
Iverson said feedback from a citizens’ group was
used in drafting the ordinance.
•' In the proposed ordinance, cell tower districts are
created and guidelines are established. Also, the
ordinance gives preference to cellular towers that are
Lake Lanier group has concerns
<
By Jim Riley
Staff Writer
The Lake Lanier Association
had an eventful 1998, and is
expecting to become even more
involved in issues affecting the
Jake this year.
; President Jackie Joseph said that
.the group’s membership increased
•52 percent in 1998. The
Association now represents
around 3,600 people.
The issue that currently most
‘ concerns the group is the Tri-State
, Water Compact between
' Alabama, Georgia and Florida.
Originally, the governors of the
three states had set a deadline of
' Dec. 31, 1998, to reach an agree
ment on water allocations, but that
has been extended for 12 months.
Joseph is concerned that Lanier
will not be allocated enough water
to maintain the current recreation
dollars and property values. “We
are very, very concerned,” she
said.
EPD from 1A
Currently the board is going
forward with an application for a
land application permit. In order
to save the county time, the state
is allowing the required watershed
assessment study to be conducted
simultaneously with the applica
tion consideration process.
This study will address the
long-term effects of land applica
tion of waste on the watershed.
This is required for any govern
ment before they are permitted to
discharge wastes.
Overall, Mills said that the
meeting was quite productive.
“They thought we were on the
right track with our short-term
goals,” he said.
* m
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• The Atlanta Company, Zoning
Application (ZA) #2275, Al
(Agricultural) to CBD
(Commercial) District 2. The
Planning Commission recom
mended rezoning to NS
(Neighborhood Shopping).
• S.B.A. Georgia Towers, Inc.,
ZA#227l, Al to CT
(Communications Tower) District
2.
• B.P. Oil Company, ZA#2273,
R1 (Residential) to NS District 1.
• Emory Lipscomb, ZA#2277,
ZA#227B, Al to Ml (Industrial)
District 4.
• Gary Magee, ZA#229l, Al to
CBD, District 4.
• Ali Adabi, ZA#2293, Al/Rl to
CBD, District 2.
• Truman Mountain, LLC,
ZA#2294, Al to R2R, District 4.
• Jack Thompson, ZA#2295, Al
to R2R (Planning Commission
recommended rezoning to RIR),
District 5.
• John C. Tucker and W. Steve
Abernathy, ZA#2296, R1 to CBD,
District 1.
• JSB Triangle, Inc., ZA#2297,
R1 to R2R, District 2.
• Lynn Bottoms, ZA#2299,
request for a Home Use Permit
for the operation of a wood work
ing shop on property currently
zoned Al (District 3).
Also, Nett Three, Inc. and
Emory Lipscomb will request
amendment of zoning conditions
camouflaged to blend in with their environments,
such as towers that are constructed to resemble trees.
However, other types of towers are not prohibited
under the ordinance.
The proposal allows towers to be placed only in
commercial, mining and agricultural zoning districts
after proper application and approval has been made.
Buffer zones are required around towers, and they
are required to be painted certain colors, when
allowed by the FAA, to lessen their visual impact.
Also, there are rules as to how close the towers can
be placed to one another according to size and type.
Co-location also is encouraged by the ordinance,
especially in the non-camouflaged towers.
Signs and advertising would be prohibited from
being placed on cellular towers.
The Board is scheduled to discuss the ordinance
Monday night, and could possibly amend the ordi
nance from its present form.
Water quality also has been a big
concern of the group. The dis
charge of treated wastewater into
the lake has been a particularly
controversial item.
Last February, the Lanier Beach
South sewer plant was brought to
the association's attention, and it
remains an issue.
“It is an aging plant that needs a
tremendous amount of money to
update it to today’s standards,”
Joseph said. “It needs to be totally
overhauled and replaced.”
Joseph said that the overall
water quality is going down. “In
the ’7os it was not uncommon in
the evening time to see fishing
vessels near the dam fishing for
trout,” she said.
The DNR no longer stocks the
lake with trout due to low survival
rates.
She also remembers when the
lake was so clear that you could
see your toes if you were standing
in the water. “We have to do
Public forum with EPD
On Jan. 27, Forsyth and Hall
County residents will have a chance
to participate in a forum with
Harold Reheis, the director of the
Georgia Environmental Protection
Division, at the Gainesville Civic
Center. The subject of the forum
will be the ongoing water negotia
tions between Georgia, Alabama
and Florida concerning the
Chattahoochee and other rivers the
states share.
“We want to get the facts out,” said
Cumming/Fbrsyth County Chamber
of Commerce Pat Topping. “There
are a lot of rumors and half informa
tion floating around.”
Topping emphasized that the pub-
onZA#l9B6and 1311.
The Director of Finance will
request acceptance of several bids
including:
• 98-103-45, furnishing all mate
rials, equipment and labor for the
clearing of vegetation on public
utilities easement and facility
sites.
• 98-106-26, furnishing hot
asphaltic concrete B, E, F & G
meeting D.O.T. specifications for
1999 calendar year.
• 98-107-26, furnishing various
size aggregate for 1999 calendar
year.
• 98-111-01, providing coffee
and water cooler service to vari
ous departments for calendar year
1999.
The consent agenda includes the
following items:
• Request for the approval of the
purchase of a van for the Senior
Center.
• Request appointment of Jewell
Palmer to the Peak Services
Board as advocate representative
for Forsyth County.
• Request acceptance of the
operating assistance agreement
between D.O.T. and Forsyth
County for the 1999 Dial-A-Ride
Program.
• Adoption of a resolution of
appreciation to Pat Topping for
his service as president of the
Cumming/Forsyth County
Chamber of Commerce.
something to turn this around,”
she said.
Joseph said that the key to turn
ing the water quality around is for
the developers to realize the value
of clean water. “If they don’t have
a clean lake then they don’t have a
marketplace.”
The association attempts to help
the appearance and health of the
lake with an event that the Lake
Lanier Association sponsors each
year. This September there was a
20 to 30 percent increase in par
ticipation in the “Shore Sweep,”
with a great increase in the
amount of trash removed from the
Jake.
Also, the group has started the
first “Adopt-A-Lake” program in
Georgia, with volunteers going
out and testing lake water for
nutrients, oxygen content and
bacteria.
There will be additional training
programs in the spring to train
more volunteers.
lic is invited to the forum, with
Reheis taking questions from the
audience. Also, the Corps of
Engineers will be present to answer
questions.
Since the water that eastern
Alabama and the panhandle of
Florida uses originates in Georgia,
the two states want to ensure that
the quantity of water that they need
is present.
However, since Lake Lanier is so
vital to the economy of this area,
any significant water level drop
would be detrimental.
Topping said that Reheis will
encourage communities and citizens
to stay involved in the process.
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School Year
S Elementary ■ Middle ■ High ■ TOTAL
Graphic illustration/Audrey Harrison
The exponential growth of Forsyth County’s student population has challenged the school board
to develop short-term and long-term school construction plans. •
SCHOOL from 1A
regard to the Local Education Sales Tax and even
square footage requirements and projected expenses
of various educational facilities.
The student population in Forsyth County has
increased by almost 100 percent since the 1989-90
academic year. Schools opened with 7,482 kids that
year. Last August, 14,300 children were enrolled in
Forsyth County Schools. Over the holiday break, the
total grew by at least another 140 names - the
Central Office was still waiting on
a few schools to report their new
enrollee information when this
number was released.
The DOE officials are predict
ing a population of school children
reaching 18,891 by 2000. And
these enrollment figures do not
include those students in the
prekindergarten or alternative
school programs - they are not part of the capital out
lay program.
“Our figures are based on perfection - the average
number of students who will be housed in every
classroom every day,” Rochelle said.
Among the options offered the school board on
how best to handle the growth are three basic plans.
Learn new approach to positive parenting
By Laura Lavezzo
Lifestyle Editor
The Cumming/Forsyth County
Council on Youth is sponsoring a
12-week, positive parenting pro
gram focusing on new skills, fresh
ideas and shared concerns about
raising children. All parents, espe
cially those with children over 4
years old, are invited to join the
workshop. Elizabeth M. Cooke,
program coordinator for the
Council, said she believes any
parent can benefit from the
national, research-based program,
which was developed by Dr.
Stephen J. Bavolek.
“The program is designed for
the parents of elementary and
middle school-aged children, but
these are skills you can use with
your spouse, your co-workers and
other people in other relation
ships,” Cooke said. “It’s a lifelong
learning process.”
Alternative disciplinary tech-
Quality standards for Lake Lanier
By Jim Riley
Staff Writer
The Environmental Committee of the Lake Lanier
Association had a well-attended and informative
meeting Thursday night at Decker’s, with Kevin
Farrow of the Georgia Environmental Protection
Division (EPD) being the guest speaker.
Farrow said that the EPD currently is developing
water quality standards for Lanier, and will use mod
els created by the Upper Chattahoochee group and
the University of Georgia as guidelines.
“The key thing is nutrient limits on all tributaries
flowing into the lake,” Farrow said. Runoff is also a
big issue. “How people are using the land is what
will determine the fate of the lake.”
Farrow said that buffer zones around the lake and
its tributaries really have a lot to do with the amount
of sedimentation and nutrients that end up in the
water.
Currently, the EPD is requiring that before any
municipality receives a discharge permit into any
body of water a watershed assessment study be
done. This is to ensure that the proposed discharge
The first involves the construction of entirely new
facilities while maintaining all current schools as
they are; the second calls for a combination of new
school construction and classroom additions on exist~
ing facilities; and the third option allows for the addi
tion of classrooms onto current school facilities ant£
an increase in “core space” as each site permits. This
third option means that no new land would need to be - '
purchased, but core areas such as media centers and'
66
The student
population has
increased by
almost 10 percent
since 1989-90...
99
District Line Committee, scheduled to meet Monday,
night for the first time. The group of parents and
school administrators will plan the redistricting of
children in the south end of the county. A new ele
mentary school is now under construction on James
Burgess Road. The next meeting of the school board
will be Jan. 14 at 6 p.m.
niques are the main focus of the
program, all of which take a non
violent approach to establishing
the parent-child relationship.
Techniques such as the basic
“time out,” discussion of conse
quences - both natural and logi
cal, and encouragement of chil
dren are all part of the positive
parenting class.
As a teacher in the program,
Cooke has had parents of all lev
els of experience in the class.
“Once I had 18-year-old parents
in the class,” she said. “She had
just had the baby, and the father’s
mother - the baby’s grandmother
- also participated.”
It’s never too late to learn to be a
better parent, Cooke said. “Every
time I teach, I get something out
of it.”
The Winter Nurturing Program,
as it is being called by the
Council on Youth, will meet
Tuesday evenings, Jan. 19
through April 13, from 6:30-8:30
would not adversely affect the water quality of the
area. Also, before any increase of discharge amounts
are permitted, the watershed assessment also has to
be done.
With the tri-state water negotiations going on
between Georgia, Alabama and Florida, Farrow said
that water quantity as well as quality is going to be'a
big issue. He said that land application would con
tinue to be used in some areas, but that treated dis
charges would return water to communities down
stream.
When asked what the top threat to water quality
was, Farrow replied that impervious surfaces such is
parking lots, concrete and rooftops are a big cause Os
water pollution. !
When the question of septic tanks came up, Farrow
said that the EPD has no authority over septic tanks,
but that local governments need to do intensive mon
itoring to ensure that standards are being met.
He concluded by stating that it will cost a lot of
money to maintain the standards set by EPD, and
that there might be some difficult questions due to
the fact that the watershed is multi-jurisdictional.
cafeterias would need to be reeval -
uated for the space they occupy.
Beard explained the most reap
istic plan will involve all three
alternatives.
“It should be a
everything that’s in these options,*!?
Beard said. *
The DOE reports will be pso-'
vided to the recently formed"
p.m. at the Episcopal Church of
the Holy Spirit, 724 Pilgrim Mill
Road in Cumming.
The cost of the program is S6O
per family, which covers all 12
weeks of instruction, supplies,
children’s programs for those ages
4 and over and baby-sitting for
children under 4.
Parents may enroll in the course
up until the second week’s class,
Jan. 26.
Although she has taught the pro
gram several times, Cooke said
she has her hands full right now
and will not be leading the pro
gram this time around. She is the
mother of a 2-1/2-year-old son
and a 2-1/2-month old daughter.
At this time, the Council plans to
acquire Parenting Plus director
Linda Wright of Gwinnett County
to instruct the program.
For more information on the
Council on Youth’s Winter
Nurturing Program, call Cooke at
(770) 205-1701.