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About Jackson herald. (Jefferson, Jackson County, Ga.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (May 10, 2023)
THE ACKSON H Wednesday, May 10, 2023 ERALD VOL. 148 NO. 48 24 PACES 2 SECTIONS PLUS INSERTS Merged in 2017 with The Commerce News A PUBLICATION OF MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. JEFFERSON, JACKSON COUNTY GEORGIA S0549 $1.00 COPY Tax assessments Angry crowd packs town hall meeting By Mike Buffington mike@mainstreetnews. com A large and angry crowd packed into the Jackson County Agricultural Cen ter May 8 for a town hall meeting about why there are significantly higher property assessments in the county this year. When it was over, many in attendance didn't seem mollified by what they heard from county offi cials. Organized by commis sioner Marty Clark, the town hall session was scheduled following a public outcry over a large jump in property assess ments across the county. Notices of those reassess ments were mailed out two weeks ago. A second town hall meet ing is slated for Thursday, May 11 at the Braselton Civic Center starting at 6 p.m. Around 1,000 people at tended Monday's meeting with many carrying their white assessment notices in their hands as they en tered the building. Inside, See Meeting, page 2A Like most of those who attended Monday night’s town hall meeting about higher property assess ments, this woman had brought her assessment paperwork with her. How assessments and the tax system work The property tax system in Georgia is complex and Jackson County has some unique issues that make the system even more complex locally. Essentially, property taxes are the function of three main components: Property value (assessment), ex emptions and millage rates. Here's a basic primer on how that system works and the unique issues in Jackson County: ASSESSMENTS • Property assessments are essentially a function of what a piece of property is worth at a given time. Broadly, assessments are broken down into four cat egories: Residential, commercial, industrial and ag ricultural. • Counties arrive at assessment values by comparing See Taxes, page 2A Plane crash Photo from Meadows Surgical Arts website DR. LIONEL MEADOWS Commerce doctor killed in Tennessee plane crash A well-known local doc tor was killed in a small air plane crash in Tennessee on Sunday evening. A spokesperson with the Federal Aviation Adminis tration reports a single-en gine Cessna 182 crashed near Reliance, Tenn.. on Sunday, May 7, around 7:30 p.m. Dr. Lionel D. Meadows, who runs Meadows Surgi cal Arts in Commerce and Buford, was killed in the crash, which reportedly occurred during a storm. Meadows was the only per son aboard the aircraft. The flight took off from South Bend, Ind.. around See Meadows, page 2A MAILING LABEL Daisy Festival Photos by Wesleigh Sagon The City of Nichol son hosted its 44th annual Daisy Festival on Friday, May 5, through Saturday, May 6. The event brought a crowd of 2,000 throughout the two days. The festival featured a parade, live music, skits from local dance schools, a cake walk, raffles, handcraft ed items, bounce houses, food and fun. (ABOVE) Sky- lar Lee, 5, is shown at Nicholson’s 44th annual Daisy Festival on Saturday, May 6. Pictured (RIGHT) Juanita Broom picked out some flowers at Leticia Diaz’s flower sale booth. See more on page 9A. Index News 1A-3A, 5A, 8A Opinion 4A rumic saieiy. School news 0A-/A 3B-4B Social news 10B-12B Sports 1B-2B Classifieds 5B Obituaries I0A Legals 6B-9B Inside A large crowd was on hand Sunday, May 7, for a reunion of Jefferson Troop 158 Boy Scouts and current and past leaders. See photos on page 10B. Hoschton Annexations, rezonings sought for major developments Hoschton leaders will hear annexation and zoning requests for a pair of proposed large-scale develop ments that would add a combined 1,400 residences to the city and a shopping center if approved. Both annexation requests received formal objections from Jackson County’s commissioners. Public hearings for the two developments are scheduled for Thursday, May 11, at 6 p.m., at Hoschton City Hall, located at 79 City Square. Rocklyn Homes and the Providence Group of Georgia seek the annexation and zoning changes for their respective projects. Rocklyn Homes requests annexation and rezon ing of 287.14 acres owned by Mary Ann Kenerly and New Hope AME Church along Hwy. 53 from agricultural-rural farm district to a planned unit de velopment (PUD) for a major mixed-use develop ment of 651 single-family lots, 404 townhome units and 200,000 square feet of commercial space with 6.6 acres of outparcels. See Developments, page 5A County BOE County BOE approves new school price at $36.6 million By Mike Buffington mike@mainstreetnews. com A price tag of $36.6 million was approved by the Jackson County Board of Education on May 8 for the system's newest elementary school facility being constructed in West Jackson. The BOE approved the guaranteed maximum price bid for Heroes Elementary School at its meet ing Monday night. Carroll Daniel Construction is the construction manager at risk for the project. The school is slated to be open in the fall of 2024. OTHER BUSINESS The board also approved its 2024 salary and See BOE, page 5A piggly wiggly Bota Box (3 Liter) $ 18.99 Sutter Home (1.5 Liter) $ 10.99 Yellow Tail (1.5 Liter) $ 10.99 Beringer (1.5 Liter) $ 10.99 o o
