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FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS
Weekend Edition-November 11-12, 2022 FORSYTHNEWS.COM |Tjforsythcountynews Q@ForsythNews (@J@ForsythNews $2.00
ELECTION 2022
TSPLOST fails
Inside: Complete election
roundup, page 6A
Coming out on top
by close margin
ByAshlyn Yule
ayule@forsythnews.com
Almost 100,000 Forsyth County residents cast
their vote for or against a Transportation Special
Purpose Local Operation Sales Tax (TSPLOST)
during the General Election on Tuesday, Nov. 8, but
the result came down to about 600 votes.
The race was close, with less than 1 percent
between those in favor and those in opposition of
the county applying a one-cent sales tax, payable by
anyone spending money in Forsyth County.
According to election numbers, 50,066 voters,
about 50.2% of the total, voted against the
TSPLOST, and 49,681, about 49.8%, said yes. The
one-cent sales tax will not be applied.
According to county officials during this year’s
Transportation Summit in October, revenue generat
ed by the TSPLOST would have been put aside
solely for transportation improvements such as the
widening of Keith Bridge (SR 306) and Fowler
Road.
Sabrina Kerns Forsyth County News
Newcomer Mike Valdes won Tuesday against Democratic opponent Elaine Padgett for the
Forsyth County Board of Education District 5 seat.
How Forsyth
voted in races
on Election Day
By Kelly Whitmire
kwhitmire@forsythnews.com
Forsyth County voters made their voices heard on
Election Day and in the weeks before for the Nov. 8
General Election and Special Election.
With all precincts counted, more than 102,000 of
the county’s 162,143 active voters, about 63%, cast
advance, mail-in and Election Day in-person votes
for the election.
All Forsyth precincts had been reported as of
12:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 9.
Here’s how Forsyth voted
Who ran in the races?
Voters cast ballots during the race for federal, state
See Voted 14A
Valdes wins in Board of Education District 5 race
By Sabrina Kerns Board of Education District 5
skerns@forsythnews.com
Newcomer Mike Valdes won
against Democratic opponent
Elaine Padgett for the Forsyth
County Board of Education
District 5 seat
left vacant by
incumbent
Kristin
Morrissey, tak
ing 64% of the
17,813 ballots
cast in the 2022
General Election
on Tuesday, Nov.
8.
Who he is: Valdes lives in
south Forsyth alongside his wife
and three kids, working as a con
struction engineer with more than
20 years of experience in busi
ness.
How he reacted: “We re feel-
Mike Valdes
Elaine Padgett
ing great! It’s been a long pro
cess. We started back in February,
it’s been over nine months, and
what we’ve learned is we have an
amazing school system in
Forsyth County and our residents
are very proud of it. I think these
results .... just show that [a nega
tive campaign] doesn’t resonate
in Forsyth. We’ve got great
schools, great teachers and great
families, and we’ve got to focus
on policy-driven solutions to just
make it better. That’s really what
I’m all about.
“To all the voters of Forsyth
County, the ones that voted for
me and the ones that didn’t, I’m
signed up to represent all of you,
and that’s what I want to do. My
64%
36%
door is open and my phone num
ber is out there. I am ready to lis
ten to the community .... And I
look forward to working with our
educators and supporting them
and making our school system
the No. 1 school system in
Georgia.”
On the issues: Valdes wants to
continue to support programs that
will keep critical race theory,
divisive concepts and politics out
of the classroom in Forsyth
County Schools. He also prom
ised to fight to put a cap on the
local school property tax rate;
ensure parents know what their
kids are learning in school; and
try to continue the quality of
learning in the school system.
Valdes
Commissioners approve rezoning for Creekside Preserve
ByAshlyn Yule
ayule@forsythnews.com
The proposed Creekside
Preserve project will bring a new
apartment complex and class-A
office space to north Forsyth.
At a meeting on Tuesday, Nov.
8, commissioners approved
rezoning the approximately
58-acre tract of land to a master
planned district for 295 apart
ments, a 29,300-square-foot
office building and 148 parking
spaces.
Commissioners also included
language in the project’s condi
tions to allow for parking spaces
for electronic vehicles.
The vote for approval was not
unanimous, passing 3-2 with
commissioners Todd Fevent and
Cindy Jones Mills, who will rep
resent the area in 2023, opposed.
The mixed-use development
will be on Pilgrim Mill and
Holtzclaw roads with an
entrance and exit on Freedom
Parkway as well.
Nearby residents remained
opposed to the project after two
public hearings.
Following a public hearing
before planning commissioners
in September, the Board of
Commissioners held an addition
al hearing for the rezoning
request on Thursday, Nov. 3.
Residents were mostly con
cerned about traffic on Pilgrim
Mill Road, specifically the bum-
per-to-bumper issues during rush
hour from Ga. 400 north to
Freedom Parkway.
While traffic issues have been
brought up at both the public
participation meeting and public
hearing, concerned resident
Randy Maynard continued to
speak about them.
“We citizens would like to
know why you’re not listening to
our concerns,” Maynard said to
commissioners. “[We are] heard
but not listened to. Sometimes,
you need to listen to the people
that have put you into this posi
tion.”
During his presentation, zon
ing attorney Christopher Fight
who represents the developer
said the new proposed road,
Creekside Parkway, would divert
50 percent of traffic away from
Pilgrim Mill Road in the morn
ing rush and 25 percent of traffic
in the evening rush.
Audience members there to
See Preserve 14A
HLN show to
Forsyth County News app
available for download
66/51
Forecast 12A
feature hiker
murdered in
Dawson
County, 3A
Find the app at
forsythnews.com/apps
for local news at your
fingertips.
□
7
Volume 113, Number 86
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