About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (April 5, 2023)
LOCAL The Times, Gainesville, Georgia | gainesvilletimes.com Midweek Edition-April 5-6, 2023 5A Growth moratorium proposed in S. Hall Flowery Branch City Council What: Proposed 90-day moratorium on rezoning, annexation and conditional use requests When: 6 p.m. Thursday, April 6 Where: Flowery Branch City Hall, 5410 W. Pine St. Editor’s note: This pub lished in a previous E-Paper edition and is being provided here for print-only readers. Fast-growing Flowery Branch may press pause on growth. City Council is set Thurs day, April 6, to consider plac ing a 90-day moratorium on annexation, rezoning and conditional use requests. A resolution on the matter says the council finds “it is in the public interest” to halt applications to give staff time to review its comprehensive plan, future land use map, zoning ordinances, devel opment regulations “and other ordinances regard ing permitting, land use and development.” The pause would give city officials “the time to draft and enact and/or amend such regulations,” the resolu tion states. The moratorium wouldn’t affect applications already in the pipeline, including an annexation proposal on Jim Crow Road that’s resurfacing after denial last year by City Council and a Sterling on the Lake rezoning request, city planner Rich Atkinson said. “These have already been submitted,” he said. and a Sterling on the Lake rezoning request, city plan ner Rich Atkinson said. “These have already been submitted,” he said. Flowery Branch has been growing for years, with huge, vacant lots being filled with apartments, townhomes and warehouses. The population, which was under 2,000 in the 1990s, now sits above 10,000. As a result, the city has been under a pause of a dif ferent sort. It has held off grant ing sewer applicants since August 2022, as sewer capac ity was nearing the permitted 910,000 gallons per day. Earlier this year, the City Council approved a $2 mil lion line to Gainesville’s Flat Creek sewer treatment plant. The line is expected to boost Flowery Branch’s sewer capacity while a new plant is being built City officials are looking to build a new plant that would handle 1.5 million gallons per day and “do a little bit of rehab on the old plant, so together we can have that 2.2 million gallons per day,” City Manager Tonya Parrish has said. The city needs to make “sure we have all of our ducks in a row before we reopen everything,” she said Monday, April 3. Jeff Gill Proposed mud landfill in Hall gets first OK BY JEFF GILL jgill@gainesvilletimes.com Editor’s note: This pub lished in a previous E-Paper edition and is being pro vided here for print-only readers. A proposed 13-acre mud landfill in Hall County got an initial OK Monday, April 3. The Hall County Planning Commission recommended conditional approval of Southern Utility Group’s request for a conditional use permit to build the land fill at 1563 Calvary Church Road, south of Candler Road/Ga. 60 and east of Interstate 985. Southern Utility wants to perform a process that uses pressurized water and an industrial-strength vacuum to simultaneously excavate soil. “As the pressurized water breaks up the soil, the soil and (mud) is conveyed by a vacuum to a debris tank,” according to Hall County planning documents. It’s a process most fre quently used to uncover buried utilities. And so, Southern Utility needs “a place to store and dry out the slurry,” docu ments state. The process will involve three ponds, with the mud drying out to become fill dirt that will be used where the water/vacuum process, known as hydro-extrusion, is taking place. The mud “has to be placed somewhere safely,” Southern Utility says in a letter to the county. The company says it does installation work for local public utility providers and uses hydro-extrusion “in order to locate other utili ties in right-of-way areas.” The commission agreed with staff conditions, includ ing that the site accept “only waste consisting of soil and water.” Also, the company must give the county paperwork from the state Environ mental Protection Division regarding pond design and use, planning documents state. The planning board’s rec ommendation goes to the Hall County Board of Com missioners for final action at a public hearing on April 13. Man charged in Poplar Springs Road fatal crash BY NICK WATSON nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com Editor’s note: This published in a previous E-Paper edi tion and is being provided here for print-only readers. A Murrayville man has been charged with second- degree vehicular homicide after a Gainesville woman died in a crash Thursday, March 30, on Poplar Springs Road. Sherry Ann Hewell, 52, died at Northeast Georgia Medi cal Center in Gainesville. Timothy Wayne Holbrooks, 62, of Murrayville, was charged with second-degree vehicular homicide, a misde meanor, and following too closely. Georgia State Patrol said Holbrooks was heading north about 3 p.m. in a dump truck on Poplar Springs Road and rear-ended a Pontiac sedan driven by Hewell. Hewell had stopped to make a left turn onto Cane Crossing Drive. The collision caused the Pontiac to rotate across the roadway and hit a Dodge Charger. A Toyota Tundra heading south on Poplar Springs Road also hit the back of the Pontiac. The Toyota Tundra driver was also taken to a hospi tal with injuries. The other drivers were not transported, according to state patrol. A Gainesville woman was killed in a crash Thursday, March 30, at Poplar Springs Road and Cane Crossing Drive. Photo provided by Maria Lozano BRIAN WELLMEIER I The Times Lula Mayor Joe Thomas, wife Patti Thomas, and supporters watch as elections officials reject an application to remove Joe Thomas and Councilman Gene Bramlett from office on Tuesday, April 4. Home and two vehicles destroyed in Gainesville fire RECALL ■ Continued from 1A cordiality with the people of Lula as a whole. “By law, people have the right to do this — I think it was frivolous, anyway, to begin with,” Bramlettsaid. “I didn’t feel it’d go any further than this right here... I appre ciate all the people, even the ones that were against me. I’m still for the city of Lula. I don’t care where you are or where you come from.” For almost seven months, clashes and heated disagree ments between proponents of the recall and supporters of Thomas and Bramlett have become a frequent recurrence, often drowning out talk of regular city busi ness at almost every meeting since September. Residents behind the effort to recall Thomas and Bramlett first gained momentum in their move ment after the release of a 45-page investigation into the city’s code enforcement office and a final report that accused both elected offi cials of misconduct. Proponents of the recall became more vocal about removing the two men from office in December after the release of a second investi gation accusing Bramlett of sexual harassment against a city employee. Further criticism would later be directed at Thomas after a comment he made at a Georgia Municipal Association-hosted sexual harassment seminar. Dur ing the seminar, which city officials were required to attend as a result of the alle gations against Bramlett, Thomas appeared to trivial ize the subject of unwanted advances when posed with a hypothetical question from a GMA official. Both Thomas and Bram lett have three years left in office before their terms expire. Lula’s next meeting is a work session planned at 6 p.m. Monday, April 10, at City Hall. BY NICK WATSON nwatson@ gainesvilletimes.com Editor’s note: This published in a previous E-Paper edition and is being provided here for print-only readers. Two residents suffered minor injuries after a residential fire Saturday, April 1, that destroyed the house and the homeown er’s two vehicles, accord ing to authorities. Hall County firefight ers responded around 8:50 p.m. Saturday to the 3300 block of Forest Lane in Gainesville, where witnesses reported large flames coming from the residence and surround ing woods. Two vehicles and the two-story home were engulfed in flames, and the wind carried the fire to the surrounding woods. “The size of the struc ture produced a large fire, but the crews worked diligently to ensure that it was put out in a timely manner and did not extend to nearby houses,” Hall County Fire Rescue spokeswoman Kimber- lie Ledsinger wrote in an email. The house and two vehi cles were considered total losses. The two residents were not transported to the hospital, but the American Red Cross was notified to assist them. Crews were still on the scene after 10 p.m. Saturday checking that all hotspots were extinguished. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Hall County Fire Mar shal’s Office. MEN ■ Continued from 1A the area until around noon. Wetzel said the bodies were transported to the Georgia Bureau of Investi gation for autopsy. Deputy coroner James Bell said the men, who were described as middle- aged White men, did not work for the brewery. Gainesville Police investigators believe the two men broke into a fenced area and were try ing to steal from the power substation when they were killed. “I’m not sure what they were trying to steal,” Datta said. “One of the officers retrieved a back pack from that area, and I’m assuming it’s one of theirs. And, you know, how much could they have carried out, a couple hundred dollars worth of stuff? And just the loss of life for that? It’s sad. It’s heartbreaking.” Crews from Gainesville Fire and Georgia Power responded to make sure the area was safe. AARON ■ Continued from 1A And much of his incen tive was to represent his family well, along with bringing the win home to the copious fans from Gainesville: many in atten dance, but far more cheer ing vigorously in front of the television at home. “It means so much to have your name (on) that Masters trophy with all those great players,” Aaron said. “I’ll always be a Mas ters champion.” Back then, Aaron didn’t covet the Masters for the money. His cut was $30,000 for winning in 1973 (roughly equivalent to $200,000 in 2023, when factoring in inflation), compared to the $2.7 million Scottie Schef- fler got for winning in 2022 at Augusta. Aaron’s biggest prize came when he was adorned with the green jacket by the previous year’s win ner, Jack Nicklaus, who shot a final-round 6-under par in 1973, and holds the record with six Masters championships. When the time came to get his green jacket, Aaron was confident but also a bit relieved. After four days of bat tling the best field of play ers from all over the world, the intentionally chal lenging course conditions of Augusta National and fickle weather conditions that forced one of only five Masters tournaments to wrap up on Monday, Aaron was No. 1 that year at the Masters. Once Aaron was wearing the green jacket in Butler Cabin, smiling from ear to ear, he summed it up quite well with one off-the-cuff remark. “Green looks pretty good on me, doesn’t it?” Aaron said for all the fans on TV. jobfair Thursday, April 13 10am - 2pm I Gainesville Civic Center Northeast Georgia Health System Greater Hall CHAMBER OF COMMERCE 60+ Companies Hiring • Open to the Public ABB Motors & Mechanical Georgia DOC / Whitworth Women's Facility Northside Hospital Forsyth Ace Hardware Retail Support Center Georgia DOC / Lee Arrendale State Prison Panera Bread Acts Retirement Life Communities Georgia Department of Driver Services Performance Foodservice Affinis Hospice Georgia Department of Public Safety Pilgrim's All Ways Caring Home Care Georgia Department of Transportation PrideStaff ALBAform Goodwill of North Georgia QuikTrip Avita Community Partners Hall County E-911/Central Communications Resilux America Badger Daylighting Interactive College of Technology Salford BBI BTD Manufacturing King Green Societal CDM0 Bourbon Brothers King's Hawaiian Spherion Staffing & Recruiting Boys & Girls Club of Lanier Kloeckner Metals Star Choices Cantrell - Gainco Koch Foods Suntex Marinas - Holiday on Lake Lanier City of Gainesville Kubota Manufacturing of America SVFAN Logistics Coca-Cola Bottling Company UNITED Lanier Technical College TD Automotive Compressor GA (TACG) Department of Public Health Longstreet Clinic The Sherwin-Williams Company Express Employment Professionals Mansfield Oil Company of Gainesville The Times Fastenal Mars Wrigley Top Notch Personnel Fox Factory McDonald's NEGA Tribe Transportation Gainesville Mechanical McGarity's University of North Georgia Gainesville Parks & Recreation Milliken & Company - New Holland Voyant Beauty Gainesville School Nutrition Mincey Marble Manufacturing Wahoo Docks Gainesville Water Resources Northeast Georgia Health System ZF Gainesville o SOCIETAL 0 SPHERION % macg # v ^ u 1 r ^ l “ -mS STAFFING & RECRUITING 7* DpcMii Vdrica .&V A nCailUA^ ToyotaCompr9ssor.com The power of PET __ , ■ , . . 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