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August 3, 2022
iReporter
Ga. Farm Bureau advocates for local farmers
Monroe County Farm Bureau hosted a legislative breakfast on July 27 at Old Mill
Market with representatives of government bodies and the state Farm Bureau providing
updates on laws and policies related to agriculture.
By Diane Glidewell
news@mymcr.net
Monroe County Farm
Bureau held its annual
legislative breakfast on
Wednesday, July 27 at
the Old Mill Market in
Forsyth. Those attending
included Georgia Farm
Bureau President Tom
McCall and his wife, Jane;
Sen. John
F. Kennedy,
Elizabeth Ru-
ark, represen
tative of Sen.
Austin Scott;
Jake Mat
thews, Georgia
Farm Bureau
governmental
affairs spe
cialist; Mon
roe County
commissioner
Eddie Rowland
and members of the Mon
roe County Farm Bureau
board. Rep. Robert Dickey,
chair of the Georgia House
agriculture committee, had
to cancel plans to attend.
Monroe County Farm
Bureau president Clete
Sanders extended a
welcome and noted it’s
a significant year for the
Georgia Farm Bureau, its
85th anniversary. GFB
started in Bartow County
on June 2,1937. It is now
based on Bass Road in
Macon, where McCall has
his office.
Matthews gave an update
on the 2022 Georgia
legislative session, noting
that the Farm Bureau was
particularly pleased with
the passage of the Freedom
to Farm Act. He thanked
Kennedy and Dickey for
their efforts on this bill,
which protects farms
from nuisance lawsuits
by adjacent landowners
protesting smells, dust or
noise that are normal parts
of farming operation. The
bill passed the Georgia
House on the last day of
the session, April 4, and
was signed into legislation
by Gov. Brian Kemp on
April 13.
Matthews said another
important piece of legis
lation for farms was the
Georgia Raw Dairy Act,
which allows the produc
tion of raw milk for human
consumption. This law
will go into effect on July
1,2023. Production of raw
milk was previously al
lowed for pet consumption
and was being consumed
by people round about.
Matthews said the new leg
islation will help farmers
produce raw mild as safely
as possible and will create a
new niche market.
Coming on the No
vember ballot will be a
question related to future
legislation to keep farms
from losing ad valorem tax
exemptions now granted to
family farms if two family
farms merge. Matthews
said Georgia Farm Bu
reau is working to get out
information on the ballot
question and to encourage
a ‘yes’ vote. Another ballot
question will deal with
forestry equipment. He
said farm legislation starts
at the local level and he
commended the Monroe
County Farm Bureau for
having members who are
aware and active in pro
moting legislation perti
nent to agriculture.
McCall said Monroe
County is lucky to have
Dickey, Kennedy, Scott and
Sanders, who recognize
the importance of agri
culture to Georgia. The
2021 Georgia Farm Bureau
convention unanimously
approved having a political
action committee (PAC)
with hopes for $150,000 to
promote candidates and
legislation. McCall said
GFB appreciates legislators
who work hard to support
agriculture and want to see
them elected and reelected.
“Our policies and ev
erything we work on in
Washington starts here,”
said McCall. “It all started
at the county level, prob
ably at the Waffle House.”
Ruark said Scott’s agricul
ture legislative assistant in
Washington, D.C. says the
priority now is the Farm
Bill that is being updated
from 2018. They are fight
ing to lower impact costs
and to reverse some of the
regulations in the bill.
Kennedy said he appre
ciates both the Monroe
County Farm Bureau
agent Jeff Blizzard, who is
his insurance agent, and
the GFB lobbyists who
help him understand bills
before the legislature.
“We’re expected to be
experts on a whole lot of
things,” said Kennedy.
“Your lobbyists are head
and shoulders above the
others; they can be trust
ed.”
He said the legislature
worked on the Freedom to
Farm Act for three years,
and he is proud that it
passed this year. He urged
the Farm Bureau members
to vote in the November
elections.
“In my life I don’t know if
I’ve ever seen as clear a dif
ference in what’s offered—
in the Governor’s race and
in national races,” he said.
Rowland said he has
replaced Jim Ham on the
Monroe County Board
of Commissioners as the
advocate for agriculture
even though he didn’t grow
up a farmer like Ham did.
He said something positive
in Monroe County is that it
just got its own new exten
sion agent after the possi
bility of having to share an
agent with another county
emerged.
Rowland said he often
gets calls from farmers ask
ing for help with problems
in the county, and he finds
his ties with agriculture
growing stronger. His
brother-in-law works on
tractors around the county
and since Rowland’s family
opened Old Mill Market,
he works with over 50 ven
dors for the store that make
their products in Georgia.
He said working with the
Georgia Grown program,
including its representative
Happy Wyatt, who lives in
Monroe County, is a good
experience for him.
Dr. Priscilla Doster,
Monroe County Board of
Education chair, thanked
the Farm Bureau for
supporting agricultural
education and education in
general, and Willow Wal-
drep, president of Mary
Persons FFA, spoke about
how important agriculture
and FFA are in her life.
Planning & Zoning approves Juliette Commons Phase 2
By Diane Glidewell
news@mymcr.net
Forsyth Planning & Zoning Commis
sion approved the final plat for Phase 2 of
Juliette Commons subdivision on July 25.
The approval was unanimous, with Steve
Coleman, Martin Presley, Hal Clarke and
Kathy Rowland present. Commission
member Phillip English was not at the
meeting, and there are two vacant seats.
The approval of the final plat was in the
Design & Review capacity of the Planning
& Zoning Commission, which makes it a
decision which doesn’t have to go to city
council for approval.
Permits for the first seven houses
in Phase 1 of Juliette Commons (also
known as Juliette Crossing) were issued
to Hughston Builders in December 2019.
Hughston bought the 96-lot subdivision
earlier that year and got approval from
Forsyth to re-start a subdivision that had
ceased development in 2006 without
constructing any homes. However, lots
were surveyed, streets were paved, and
water and sewer pipes and underground
electric lines were in place. The original
subdivision, approved in 2005, was called
Juliette Village.
The subdivision is off of North Front
age Road, entered by Victoria Boulevard/
Grant Street beside
Hampton Inn along the
side of KOA property.
Hughston Builders
website for Juliette
Commons indicates
the median price for
homes is $262,900
but shows no houses
currently available.
The houses are about
2,378-3,600 square feet.
When developer Edgar
Hughston presented
his plans to Forsyth in
2019 he said he had
room for about another
109 lots on land behind
the original subdivi
sion if he decided to
expand.
Surveyor Mark Strozier of Colum
bus, where Hughston Builders is based,
presented the final plat to the Planning &
Zoning Commission on July 25. Forsyth
economic development director Cody
Ellis said that Hughston Builders had
submitted everything required for ap
proval. The land is zoned Residential 3,
with a minimum of 15,000 sq. ft. (about
.34 acre) lots.
Coleman said that Forsyth zoning for
subdivisions requires sidewalks
on both sides of the street.
Hughston Builders asked for
a variance in Phase 1 to have
sidewalks on only one side of
the street at one point, but it was
denied. Coleman asked Stro
zier to remind Hughston and
the engineer for Phase 2 that
sidewalks must be built on both sides of
the street.
“We are trying to be consistent in what
we require in zoning,” said Coleman.
Juliette Commons gets water and sewer
from the city of Forsyth and electricity
from Central Georgia EMC.
The
winning
bookmark-
design in
the spring
love Your
library
contest will
be the logo
for Monroe
County
library's
centennail
celebra
tion.
Monroe County Library
celebrating 100th birthday
By Diane Glidewell
news@mymcr.net
Monroe County Library will celebrate
its 100th birthday in August. Plans are
being made for a party with cake and
cupcakes, and library personnel and pa
trons are brainstorming some additional
ways to mark the library’s centennial.
Monroe County Library branch
manager Kimberly Clayton said she
noted the milestone recently while
gathering information for a grant ap
plication. She said Monroe County’s first
library was established by the Forsyth
Woman’s Club in August 1922 as the
Forsyth Library. It became the Monroe
County Library on Sept. 7,1937 when
it moved to its current location, which
was formerly the site of the county jail. It
has undergone several renovations and
expansions since then.
Clayton said that the library will create
a bulletin board about the history of the
library and will hang a centennial ban
ner outside of the library. She will order
some centennial library swag, such as,
pens, book bags and t-shirts, to share
and celebrate the occasion.
Other special activities that Clayton
is planning are a time capsule, a plaque
showing appreciation for the past librar
ians who have served the community,
and a costume party to mark the 100th
birthday. She will use the “Love My
Library” bookmark design chosen from
those submitted by children this spring
as the logo for the celebration.
Another event she is planning for
the library’s centennial is a “genealogy
lock-in.” She will invite those interested
in researching genealogy to learn about
and use the many resources available at
Monroe County Library. She will leave
the computers on and lock the doors
after hours for an evening devoted to
genealogy research and discovery.