About The Banks County news. (Homer, Banks County, Ga.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (April 10, 2013)
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10, 201 3 THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS PACE 3A Gillsville council hears rezoning request Action was tabled until May meeting BY SHARON HOGAN At the monthly meeting on April 2, the Gillsville City Council held a zoning hearing on property located next to the Gillsville Post Office. Andy and Sharon Jackson have requested to have part of a 3.1 acre parcel rezoned from residential to commercial busi ness district (CBD) to conform with the rest of the property. After a lengthy discussion on the property the council tabled action on the request until the May 7 council meeting after a motion to approve the rezon ing died for lack of a second. Mayor Larry Poole said he wasn’t sure how part of the property got zoned residential while the rest was CBD. “I don’t know how this hap pened in the first place,” Poole said. According to the city’s zon ing map the property in ques tion is already zoned CBD and the Jackson’s have been pay ing CBD taxes in Hall County on the property since they acquired it in 2006. City council member Jim Butler reported he had researched the issue and since 1998 the property has been zoned CBD. “There is no record of the lot every being divided,” Butler said. City attorney David Syfan explained the zoning proce dure and demarcations used in zoning. Syfan said city streets, city boundaries, property lines, streams, lakes and rivers are often used as demarcations. “There is no clear demarca tion where the zoning clas sification ends,” Syfan said, in reference to the Jackson’s property. Syfan said he thought there was a physical mistake in the zoning classification map. Syfan advised the council that formal action would need to be taken to clear up the zon ing issue. “You, as the council, can put conditions on the zoning clas sification,” Syfan said. “The balance is trying to be fair to both sides,” Syfan added. One of the conditions that Syfan explained was a buffer along adjoining property lines. Syfan explained that the con ditions could be included in the rezoning now, but not be implemented until a building was built. Syfan said, “What bothers me is none of us know where that back line is.” Jackson said he just wanted to bring the zoning in line with the other property. “We don’s have any imme diate plans for the property,” Jackson said. Jackson said he wanted to stay in the setbacks - 35 feet on front, 15 feet on sides and 20 feet on back - with the buffer and wanted to stay with vegetation if that condition was put on the zoning. Council member Todd Dale asked Jackson if he had been approached about selling the property. Jackson said, “No, nothing at this time.” Adjoining property owners, James and Assumpta Norrell, who are against the rezoning addressed the council with their concerns. A. Norrell asked Jackson about the possibility of a Dollar General locating on the prop erty. Jackson said again there are no plans for the property at this time. “It’s our desire to get it con formed to the other piece,” Jackson said. A. Norrell said she and her husband bought 8-plus acres in 1991 that is zoned residen tial because that is where they wanted to raise their family. A. Norrell said she is con cerned since the re-zoning request didn’t include plans for the development on this lot. “We are very much opposed to this re-zoning with no idea of what is planned for this prop erty,” A. Norrell said. A. Norrell presented the council with a petition signed by 30-plus residents who are opposed to the re-zoning. “My suggestion is since the elected officials are not famil iar with this document you need to familiarize yourself with it before you make a deci sion on this request,” A Norrell said before the vote was taken. Dale asked Syfan if legal action could be taken against him if he voted on this request since he was an adjoining property owner. Syfan said, “No. Not unless you stand to gain financially from it.” Council member Butler made the motion to grant the rezoning with the condition that at the time of building codes would be followed. The motion died for a lack of a second. Butler then made a motion to table the request until the May council meeting. Dale second the motion and Poole voted in favor of the motion as well. Council members Roy Turpin, Keith Segars and Rudese Hooper were absent from the meeting. OTHER BUSINESS In other business at the meeting: • the plans for the city’s traf fic enhancement grants proj ects were available for public review as well as the plans for a traffic change on Old Gillsville Road at Henderson Road. The council unanimous ly approved the traffic change. The traffic on Old Gillsville Road will be required to stop when the signage goes up at the intersection. • the council approved a bid of $475 per cutting - no more than two cuttings per month - from Wilson’s Landscaping Service for grass cutting at the park and in the downtown area. •the council welcomed Myra Poole and Rebecca Dale to the city clerk’s position. • Poole reminded the council member to file their required campaign forms. •Poole advised the coun cil that he is still looking at banking institutions in order to move the city’s accounts. The next regularly sched uled council meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 7, at the city park building, County Line Road, Gillsville. EVENTS Cleon up days planned in Baldwin and Alto The Baldwin Clean-Up Day is set for April 20 from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.. The meeting area will be the Baldwin City Park. The rain date is April 27. T-shirts will be given out to those that partici pate. Lunch will be provided at noon. In order to have a correct count, all participants are asked to call city hall at 706-778-6341. In other news from the city, plans have already been made to hold the Christmas parade on Saturday, December 7, at 11 a.m. The theme is “Christmas Through The Eyes Of A Child.” The Town of Alto will hold a clean up day from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, April 27. Volunteers are asked to pick up trash on the streets inside the city limits. All supplies will be furnished. Free lunch and T-shirts will be given to the participants. For more information or to sign up, call city hall at 706-778-8035. Positive rabies reported in Lula A positive case of rabies has been reported in Lula. There was recent contact between a raccoon and five dogs in the Toombs Street area in Lula. The raccoon was shipped to the Georgia Public Health Lab- Virology Section in Decatur. Hall County Animal Control was advised that the rac coon was positive for rabies on Friday. Positive alert signs will be posted in the area where the rabid raccoon was located. Anyone who lives in this area who sees an animal act ing abnormally in the area, is asked to contact Hall County Animal Services at 770-531-6830 or during non-working hours call Hall County Dispatch at 770-536-8812. Animal owners are encouraged to vaccinate their domesticated pets for rabies. Vaccines are available at the Hall County Animal Shelter for $10 Tuesday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., at 1688 Barber Road in Gainesville. PUBLIC MEETINGS •The Homer Garden Club meets on the first Saturday of each month from 10-11 a.m. at Homer City Hall, located at 943 Historic Homer Hwy. • Maysville City Council, 7 p.m., first Monday of each month at the Maysville Public Library. • Maysville Planning and Zoning Commission, 7 p.m., last Monday of each month, Maysville library. • Banks County Planning Commission, 7 p.m., first Tuesday of each month at the courthouse. • Gillsville City Council, 7 p.m., first Tuesday of each month at city hall. A work ses sion is held at 7 p.m. on the third Thursday of the month. • Banks County Board of Education, 7 p.m., third Monday of each month at the BOE office. The work session is held on the Thursday prior to the regular meeting. LOOKING AT ZONING MAPS At the coun cil meeting on April 2, Gillsville residents James and Assumpta Norrell; council members Jim Butler and Todd Dale; Mayor Larry Poole; city attorney David Syfan; and prop erty owner Andy Jackson look over the city’s zoning maps. Photo by Sharon Hogan Banks County Water Quality Report —2012 Last year the Banks County Water Works conducted over 55,508 laboratory tests for more than 80 drinking water parameters. We are proud to inform you that the Banks County water system did not have any violations of water quality parameters during 2012. Included in this report is information about where your water comes from, what it contains, and how it compares to standards set by regulatory agencies. Your water department is committed to providing our community with clean, safe and reliable drinking water for all of us. For mote information about your water or this report please call Steve Reece at (706) 677-6889. Your water comes from a 55-acre reservoir located between Hwy. 441 and Apple Pie Ridge Road. This source provides ample volumes of water to our community. This reservoir is protected from activities, which could potentially cause contamination of this water source. The water gravity flows to the treatment plant where treatment chemicals are added to remove impurities from the water, then filtered and finally chlorinated to disinfect the water. Your Board of Commissioners meets on the second Tuesday of each month at 6:30 pan. at the courthouse boardroom. Your participation or comments are welcome at these meetings. Drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably be expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants. The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that water poses a health risk. More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the EPA*s Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800) 426-1791. Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immuno-compromiscd persons such as persons with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, persons who have undergone organ transplants, people with HIV/AIDS or other immune system disorders, some elderly, and infants can be particularly at risk from infections. These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers. EPA/CDC guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800) 426-4791. Be Water Wise! Everyone wants to help conserve our valuable resources. Water is one of our most valuable resources. We could not live without it! Our distribution system continues to grow. Over 311 miles of water lines have been installed since our inception. Banks County Water Works is currently researching several options to supplement our current water sources to ensure safe and reliable sources in the future. The sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivets, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs, and wells. As water travels over the surface of the land or through the ground, it dissolves naturally occurring minerals and, in some cases, radioactive material, and can pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity. Contaminants that may be present in source water before we treat it include: * Microbial contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria which may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems, agricultural livestock operations, and wildlife. * Inorganic contaminants, such as salts and metals which can be naturally occurring or result from urban storm runoff: industrial or domestic wastewater discharges, oil and gas production, mining or farming. • Pesticides and herbicides, which may come from a variety of sources such as agriculture, urban storm water runofT and residential uses. *Organic chemical contaminants, including synthetic and volatile organic chemicals, which ore by-products of industrial processes and petroleum production, and can also come from gas stations, urban storm water nmofT and septic systems. •Radioactive contaminants, which can he naturally occurring or be the result of oil and gas production mid mining activities. • Lead contaminants If present, elevated levels of lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead in drinking water is primarily from materials associated with service lines and home plumbing. Banks County Water is responsible for providing. High quality drinking water, but cannot control the variety of materials used in plumbing components. When your water has been sitting for several hours, you can minimize the potential for lead exposure by flushing your tap for 30 seconds to 2 minutes before using water for drinking or cooking. If you are concerned about lead in your water, you may wish to have your waater tested. Information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure is available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline or at http://www.epa/govstrfewater/Iead In order to ensure that tap water b safe to drink, EPA prescribes regulations that limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. Food and Drug Administration regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water, which must provide the same protection for public health. WATER QUALITY DATA The table below lists all the drinking water contaminants that we detected during the 2012 calendar year. The presence of these contaminants in the water does not necessarily indicate that the water poses a health risk. Unless otherwise noted, the data presented in this table is from testing done January 1 -December 31,2012. EPD requires us to monitor for certain contaminants less than once oer year because the concentrations of these contaminants are not expeevd to vary significantly from year to year. Some of the data, though representative of the water quality, is more than one year old. Terms & Abbreviations used below: . Maximum Contaminant Level Goal (MCLG): the level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MCLGs allow for a margin of safety. . Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL): the highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water. MCLs are set as close to the MCLGs as feasible using the best available treatment technology. , Action Level (At.): the concentration of a contaminant which, when exceeded, triggers treatment or other requirements which a water system must follow. . N/A - not applicable, ND - not detectable at testing limit, ppb - parts per billion or micrograms per liter, ppm - parts per million or milligrams per liter, NTVJ- Nephelometric Turbity Units - measure of clarity of water, TT •Treatment Technique - a required process intended to reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water. Inorganic Contaminant Table Parameter MCX MCLG Banks Co. Water SjrsL Range of Detection Sample Date Violation Yes/No Typical Source Nitrate 10.0 (ppm) 10.0 0.20 N/A 2012 <No RunofT from fertilizer use; leaching from septic tanks, erosion of natural deposits Nitrite 1.0 (ppm) 0.20 N/A 2012 No Runoff from fertilizer use; leaching from septic tanks, erosion of natural deposits Fluoride ^ q (ppm) 4.0 l.l 0.84-1.2 2012 Organic Contaminant Table No Erosion of natural deposits; water additive which promotes strong teeth Parameter MCL MCLG Banks Co. Water Svxt. • Raoge of Detection Sample Date Violation Typical Source Yes/No TTHMs (Total Trihalomethanes (ppb) 80 N/A 59.8 16.5 - 54 2012 No By-product of drinking water chlorination Haloacetic Acids (HAAJ) (ppb) 60 N/A 43.5 0-41 2012 No By-product of drinking water disinfection Disinfectants and Disinfection By-products Table Parameter MCL MCLG Result Range Sample Date Violation Typical Source Chlorine • (PPM) 4.0 4.0 2.9 2.0-2.5 2012 no Disinfectant Drinking water Parameter MCL MCLG Torbldltv Table Result Range Sample Date Violation Typical Source Turbidity nvSNTU 0 0.23 NTU N/A 2012 NO Soil runoff and corrosion TT - Percentage of samples < 0.3 NTU 100% N/A Aboot Nitrate: Nitrate in drinking water at levels above 10 ppm is a health risk for infants of less than six months of age. High nitrate levels in drinking water can cause blue baby syndrome. Nitrate levels may rise quickly for short periods of lime because of rainfall or agricultural activity. If you are caring for an infant you should ask for advice from your health can: provider. b oor water system meeting other roles that govern our operations? EPD and EPA require us to lest our water on a regular basis to ensure quality and safety. Wc here at the Banks County Water System are working hard to make sure that you will have an uninterrupted supply of clean safe drinking water for now and in the future. Our Average chlorine reading for 2012 was .2.17 Mg/L Our range for chlorine is 2.0Mg/L to2.5Mg/l Banks County Water Randy Whiten
