Newspaper Page Text
; taribte Rain
High in the mkj-80s.
Low in the mid-60s.
THIS ISSUE
Copyright C 2000 Fonyth County Newt
Southern Cruisers to
ride for missing
children on Sept. 23.
PageSA
. J r Jf Mr -aal
North and South run
through the
Berry Invitational.
Page IB
LAKE LANIER LEVELS
Date - Level -
Sept. 8 1059.49 ft
Sept. 9 1059.44 ft
Sept. 10 ' 1059.39 ft ;
t Sept-H1059.35it
j Normal lonoo-ft r.
* S
United Way plans
barbecue on Sept. 15.
Page 3A
INDEX ,
Atty SB
Business GA
Classifieds 6B
Community —4A
Deaths • 2A
Events .4A
Horoscope 3B
ipgak - 4R
Opinion ,8A
Sports IB
COMING
THURSDAY
i—sa
Home & Health
Local health officials focus on
ovarian cancer
in Thursday's special section.
Missed paper policy:
For a replacement paper, call
8 aan. - 5:30 p.m. Wednesday,
Thursday and Friday, and 9 a.m. -1
p.m. on Sunday - (770) 887-3126.
wi
Forsyth Count ybfews
J Your "Hometown Paper" Since 19t
Vol. 91, No 144
Broken water pipe halts
service in south Forsyth
By Bill Johnson
Staff Writer
A three-inch glue joint water pipe blew
apart in the Sharon Springs subdivision in
south Forsyth County Monday morning,
leaving some homes in the area without
water for approximately four hours while a
crew from the Forsyth County Water and
Sewer Department worked to repair it.
According to Tim Perkins, head of the
water department, a resident of Sharon
Springs notified his office at about noon on
Sunday of the leak. An employee from the
water department was dispatched.
Perkins added, however, that under
ground utilities had to be located before the
crew could do any digging or make any
repairs.
The employee determined the original
leak, about the size of a pencil, was small
enough that the repair work could wait until
Volunteers
celebrate
opening
of new
patio at BMC
There were plenty of good
times to go around this
weekend at the celebration
of the opening of the new
patio area at Baptist
Medical Center in
Cumming. The project was
financed by funds raised
by volunteers through
operations of the hospital’s
gift shop and by staging
events such as bake sales.
Volunteers have donated
20,000 hours of their time
so far this year to make the
hospital a friendlier place
to be in times of a crisis.
Taking part in the fun this
weekend were, at right,
Tessa Wilkins (with hat)
and Dustin Wilkins.
■■ *** f
■p MMi n
Commission puts ‘Urban Village’
plan on hold for continued study
By Phillip Hermann
News Editor
Two proposed rezonings that have generated
waves of controversy in recent weeks are still a
long way from being resolved following Monday
night’s meeting of the Forsyth County
Commission.
A large crowd of both supporters and opponents
of the proposed rezoning to pave the way for cre
ation of an “urban village" on more than 214 acres
on Post Road will have to wait until District 3
Commissioner Michael Bennett has had more time
to study both sides of the issue.
Bennett on Monday night amended the commis-
Monday when the underground utilities had
been located and the water department’s
regular crew returned, Perkins said
Monday.
The employee checked on the leak again
later Sunday afternoon and determined the
problem had not worsened.
But early Monday morning, Perkins
said, the same pipe blew apart and created a
much bigger problem. Some homes in the
area were without water from approximate
ly 8 a.m. to noon, when the repair work was
completed.
“It was one of those old systems that the
county took over several years ago that
actually used to be a well system,” Perkins
said. “Sometimes you can put off repairing
a small leak like that. You just never know
with these old systems."
There was no estimate available for how
much water may have leaked from the pipe
because of the break.
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sion’s agenda to delay taking action for 30 days on
the request by The Vickery Land Co. and
Hedgewood Properties to rezone the land to
accommodate 649 single-family homes, 71 town
home units and 24 loft apartments, all built over a
12-year period. The development would also
include greenspace, recreational areas and facili
ties, office space, a community center, library and
commercial ventures.
Opponents said last week they’d be happy with
a delay in action on the rezoning and officials of
the Ivy Manor and Polo Golf & Country Club
neighborhoods are expected to meet with both
\ . See VILLAGE, Page 2A
WEDNESDAY SEPIEMBER 13, 2000
■
%'■ ■
Photo/Tom Brooks
A Forsyth County Water and Sewer Department crew works to repair a broken
pipe Monday in the Sharon Springs subdivision in south Forsyth County.
Photos/Tom Brooks
Left, Helena
Richardson
and Meghan
Wilkins enjoy
the festivities.
County will
hire impact
fee consultant
By Bill Johnson
Staff Writer
Forsyth County moved one
step closer to imposing contro
versial impact fees on developers
and businesses Monday night
during a meeting of the county
commission.
After a lengthy debate in
which commissioner Julian
Bowen spoke in favor of a “mod
est” impact fee and commission
er John Kieffer argued against it,
the commission voted 3-2 to hire
an engineering firm to study the
implementation of impact fees.
Voting in favor of the mea
sure were Bowen, chairman Bill
Jenkins and Andy Anderson.
Kieffer and Michael Bennett
were opposed.
Kieffer worried that the
money the county would gener
ate from imposing the fees might
Brother kills brother in
Dawson County dispute
By Colby Jones
Staff Writer
An argument between two
Dawson County brothers
stunned family members when
one of the men was shot and
killed at their mother’s house
over the weekend.
Joe Reece allegedly shot his
older brother, Douglas “Doug”
Reece of Dawsonville, with a
rifle shortly before 2 p.m. on
Saturday, according to the
Dawson County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies, responding to a
domestic disturbance call, found
the 44-year-old lying in his
mother’s front yard in the 100
Photo/Tom Brooks
Signs alert residents about county commission meetings that
will consider a proposal to create an “urban village" on more
than 214 acres on Post Road.
be offset by a loss of revenue
from the Planning and Zoning
Department.
Joni Booker, chairman of the
impact fee committee appointed
by the commissioners last
December, reported that after 18
months of deliberation her group
had reached an impasse. The
eight-member impact fee com
mittee deadlocked 4-4 last week.
In reporting the results of that
meeting to the commission,
Booker said, “The group worked
with all due diligence but was
unable to come back with a rec
ommendation.” She also thanked
the commission for giving her
and the committee members a
chance to serve Forsyth County.
Late last week, commission
ers received a written report from
See FEES, Page 2A
block of Regan Road in west
Dawson County, dressed in a T
shirt stained with blood.
Joe Reece, who lives with his
mother, is charged with murder
in connection with the shooting.
Sheriff Billy Carlisle said the
victim was already dead when
deputies arrived at the residence.
Carlisle would not comment
exactly where or how many
times the victim was shot, but
said he was not shot in the back.
As part of their investigation,
detectives interviewed witness
es, most of them family mem
bers, and recovered a rifle from
See SHOOTING, Page 2A