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WEDNESDAY, JULY 16, 2008 THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS PACE 9A Banks County BOC, planner meet to discuss UDC BY SHARON HOGAN The age of mobile homes allowed in the county was one of the topics addressed at a day-long meeting last week to discuss the unified develop ment code (UDC). The Banks County Board of Commissioners met Thursday, July 10, with Bill Ross, a planner with Ross and Associates, Atlanta, and Banks County Code Enforcement Officer Keith Covington, to discuss the county’s UDC. “I have some issues with the 10 year age limit on mobile homes,” commissioner Rickey Cain said. Ross suggested that the commis sioners give the homeowners an option of getting an inspection let ter from a HUD approved inspector for homes to be located in Banks County. Ross said he would come up with a detailed list that the HUD inspec tor would need to go by for Banks County. “If the mobile home is outside the county, have a HUD inspector do the inspection,” Ross said. Ross said a mobile home is a home manufactured prior to 1975 and does not meet HUD standards. Manufactured homes have a HUD sticker and meet HUD standards. Ross said the county could allow manufactured homes with a HUD sticker without an age restriction or the county could inspect every home before it is brought into Banks County or re-located inside the coun ty- Ross also addressed the use of rec reational vehicles (RV) as permanent residences with the commissioners. Ross said the only RVs that should be allowed as a permanent residence should be park models. Ross said his recommendation to the county is not to allow any RV as a permanent residence. Other sections of the code dis cussed on Thursday were: •Home Occupations - The com missioners and Ross discussed the home occupations section of the code. Ross said he was suggesting that a home office be allowed by right. ‘‘A home office doesn't affect anyone,” Ross said. There is no sign out front. Ross’ recommendation for a home business was to restrict retail sales versus services and to disallow a home business in R-l zoning dis tricts. Ross said a home business would actually have customers and/ or employees coming to the loca tion and therefore it should not be allowed in R-l zoning. A family day care home would be allowed in R-l zoning, Ross said. •Kennels - Ross said, upon approv al by the commissioners, he would use the state regulations to differenti ate between a personal kennel and a commercial kennel. •Outdoor Sales - BOC chairman Gene Hart asked Ross to address the issue of businesses leaving junk tables sitting around outside after the merchandise has been moved inside a storage facility. Covington asked Ross to address weekend yard sales that people have every week end. Ross said the first issue is to clarify the difference between a yard sale and a flea market. Ross said, “Yard sales are for items that are not purchased for re-sale. Flea markets are for items that are purchased for re-sale.” •Accessory Buildings - One ques tion for Ross was whether to allow an accessory building in the front yard of a principal residence as long as it is not in the minimum front yard setback requirements. Ross said the location of the principal residence determines the front, side and rear yards. Everything between the prin cipal structure and the street rights- of-way line is the front yard. Ross recommended changing the code to an accessory building is not allowed in the front yard setback. The com- \\ | -- i_ 'i 1 * i II i • •* DISCUSSESUDC Bill Ross (at drawing board), planner, Ross and Associates, Atlanta, discussed Banks County's Unified Development Code with the Banks County Board of Commissioners and county staff at a meeting on Thursday. Photo by Sharon Hogan missioners agreed to allow a prin cipal residence and an accessory residence to be built in ARR zoning as long as the property owner has a minimum of two acres for each residence. All agricultural buildings will be exempt from the code that says the accessory structure can’t be larger than the principal residence. The commissioners agreed that most barns are larger than the residences. •Nonconforming Uses - Ross said, “The goal with nonconforming use is you eventually want them to go away.” Ross recommended changing the current code to read that after 12 months of inactivity the grandfather ing will be lost. The current code says after three years of inactivity the grandfather will be lost. Ross said it was his opinion this was too long. Hart said, “We need a check list from the planning commission showing that the property meets all the criteria, not just the planning commission saying they approve it.” The county’s code currently says a nonconforming use cannot be changed to another nonconforming use. One recent issue of a noncon forming use is a piece of property on Moccasin Gap Road in Lula that was previously used for a truck repair facility. The new owners were seek ing to locate a truck dispatch facility on the site and park dump trucks on the property overnight. This would be a case of changing one non- conforming use to a different non- conforming use. The commissioners voted against this request at a recent meeting. •Land Use Matrix - Ross said he would create a table listing all uses by all zoning districts - allowed, conditional and prohibited - to be included in the UDC. •Parking - Ross said he would compare standards and propose parking requirements that are real istic. Ross said, “Do you want to establish a maximum?” Hart replied, “Yes.” Ross said, “I normally say the maximum is 20 percent over the minimum.” Cain asked if putting a maximum on parking hurt the pos sibility of a big box store locating in the county. Ross said it shouldn’t. •Building Heights - Ross said he would establish maximum heights by zoning districts to include in the UDC. •Signs - Ross said he would be completely rewriting the sign ordi nance to remove content-based pro visions. Ross recommended that the code be clarified on the regulations for neon signs in windows. Ross also said the code needs to regulate bill boards. Ross recommended placing limitations on billboards in overlay districts. Ross said, “Within Banks Crossing and the Martin Bridge Road area, you could allow billboards with certain size restrictions spaced 500 feet apart. On other state highways, the spacing could be 2,000 feet apart, unless you have a C-2 zoning.” •Buffers -Ross recommended that the code establish buffer require ments between all incompatible uses - like commercial or industrial next to residential. •Environmental Protection - Ross We’re holding a choir competition! One talented area choir will win $5000 and perform Dec. 5 & 6 with four American Idol favorites on our stage! Constantine Marotilis said he would work on a noise ordi nance that is easily enforceable. “The key to a noise ordinance is you have to establish how loud is too loud,” Ross said. Ross recommended that primary conservation areas - such as flood plains, stream buffers and wetlands - be included in easements on the final subdivision plats. Ross said he would also be review ing the stormwater requirements per NPDES and NRCS requirements. •Subdivisions - Ross said the code should divide subdivisions into two types - minor subdivision and major subdivision. Minor would require no new roads and major would require new roads to be built, Ross said. Ross said he would work on the definitions for these two and report back to the commissioners on this in the first draft of the code. The code needs to address at what point a road is not adequate to serve emergency vehicles. With an agree ment between the county and a developer the developer can pave a county road to the county’s speci fications, Ross said. Conservations subdivisions were also discussed. Ross said a conservation subdivi sion doesn’t have as much density and has less streets to maintain. They also have more open space. Ross said conservations easements could include parks, wetlands, ten nis courts, environmentally-sensi- tive areas, picnic areas, trails and/ or pools. A homeowner’s associa tion has to be established and every homeowner buying a home has to join this homeowner's association to help maintain the conservation areas. Commissioner Joe Barefoot said, “I am opposed to reducing lot sizes.” Hart said, “You need to write this up and bring it back for us to see.” •Reversion - Ross recommended that if a conditional use property is not established within two years of approval the property would auto matically become eligible for rezon ing. The same would apply to a rezoning if no preliminary plat or building permit has been obtained within two years of approval. If con struction has not begun within one year of approval of a preliminary plat the property would be eligible for rezoning. •Rezoning - Ross said the wording that states the planning commis sion can initiate a rezoning should be removed from the code. Ross said the code needed to simplify the difference between zoning and con ditional uses and call them special uses. •Subdivisions - Ross said if a preliminary plat and construction plans meet all the requirements a permit should be issued. The code should establish that the final plats need to be approved by the BOC only, Ross said. Ross said the code should establish an annual contract for engineering review of all con struction drawings to be paid by the developer. •Appeals - All appeals should go to the planning commission and then to the BOC, Ross said. Ross said in a hardship case there should be something unique about the property that makes it qualify for a hardship case. Ross said, “You need to make a specific list of things that can fall under the special exceptions.” Ross said he would write some adminis trative guidelines saying a person wants to reduce setbacks by two feet and it would be approved or denied by administrative staff or it could go before the BOC. Ross recommended that the inactive board of appeals be disbanded. Ross said he would draw up the first draft or review draft of the UDC for the commissioners to look at and then public hearings. Commissioners set budget hearings BY SHARON HOGAN The Banks County Board of Commissioners will hold public hearings at 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Thursday, July 31, in the confer ence room at the Banks County Courthouse to hear public input on the Fiscal Year 2009 budget. The Banks County Board of Commissioners will adopt the FY 2009 budget at the commissioner's meeting to be held at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 12, in the courtroom of the courthouse. Annual Sunday School celebration set The Town of Homer and Banks County are gearing up for the 131st annual Banks County Sunday School Celebration to be held beginning at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, July 26, at Veterans Park in downtown Homer. Groups from area churches will perform throughout the day, and lunch will be served at 12:15 p.m. Fried chicken and corn on the cob will be pro vided and everyone is asked to bring a covered dish. “Everyone is invited to come, bring a covered dish and a lawn chair and spend the day and fellowship in downtown Homer,” planners stated. Baldwin resident questions council BY SHARON HOGAN Baldwin resident Theron Ayers, Wilbanks Street, questioned B aldwin' s interim Mayor Ray Holcomb and other council members on several recent issues Monday. Ayers said he had several questions and he didn't expect all of them to be answered Monday night. “Maybe at the next council meet ing,” Ayers said. One of the issues dealt with Holcomb voting at a recent meeting. “The paper said he had a 3-1 vote on the audit that came up,” Ayers said. “Is the mayor allowed to vote if the vote is 3-1?” He also asked if four people make up a quorum. Mayor Holcomb said, “Three coun cil members and a mayor or mayor pro-tem make up a quorum. According to the charter, I am allowed to vote. You’re welcomed to get a copy of the charter.” Ayers also questioned the council about his mother-in-law's water bill increasing $4 this month over last month. “She was in a Gainesville hospital and not at home,” Ayers said. He said he had checked for leaks and none were found. Ayers also spoke on the budget. “You’ve already voted on raising the millage rate one mill,” he said. “When it comes to the wastewater budget, will you be raising the mill- age rate some more?” Holcomb said the council approved the budget based on a one mill increase in the millage rate. “We will have to vote on this after the tax digest comes in,” Holcomb said. The city will hold three public hear ings on this issue before the vote is taken. Ayers, reading from a prepared list of questions, also questioned the council on the city's contract with Woodard and Curran, the company hired to operate the city's water and wastewater plants. Ayers questioned whether the city has done any better since the company has taken over the operation of the plants at a cost of $87,000 per month. “That's over a million dollars a year,” Ayers said. Holcomb said the city will be hav ing a public hearing about the water and wastewater plants at a later date. “We haven’t set a date yet,” Holcomb said. Ayers said, “I think some of the people that work for the city are overpaid.” He said he thought since the budget should be balanced the whole year the city should have qualified people handling the money. Ayers said, “If I remember right, the auditor said ‘quit spending.' But the city has gone ahead and spent, spent, spent. We’re in the hole $120-some- thing thousand dollars. 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