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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2022
• Homer, Banks County, GA 30547 • A Publication of MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. • 16 Pages, 2 Sections Plus Supplements • Vol. 55 No. 46
In a tour from several
years ago, James Dumas,
a Homer City Council
member, played Connie B.
Watts, who ran for presi
dent.
Homer Haunted
Walking Tour
set Oct. 22,29
By ANGELA GARY
angela@mainstreetnews.com
The Banks County His
torical Society will present
the 2022 Homer Haunted
Walking Tour on Oct. 22
and Oct. 29 ab 6:30 p.m.
and 7 p.m.
Tickets will be $10 per
adults. Children ages 13 and
under will be free with an
accompanying adult.
Tickets will be sold
cash-only on the evening of
the tour.
Some “former residents”
from Banks County’s his
tory will share their always
strange, sometimes sad or
funny, but all too true sto
ries. You will travel one-half
mile through the Homer
Historic District on your
45-minute tour, beginning
from the front steps of the
Historic Courthouse and
ending at the Historic Jail.
Light refreshments and
snacks will be served out
side the Historic Courthouse
after each tour.
For more information,
visit www.facebook.com/
BanksCountyHistoricalSo-
ciety or email BanksCount-
yHistory @ gmail.com.
Early voting underway
for Nov. 8 election
By ANGELA GARY
angela@mainstreetnews.com
Early voting for the Nov.
8 General Election/Spe
cial Election began on Oct.
17 and will end on Nov. 4.
Voting will be held only on
Mondays through Fridays,
with the exception of Oct.
22 and Oct. 29 when Satur
day voting will be held.
The hours for voting will
be 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. All ear
ly voting will be held at the
Election Office, located at
226 Candler Street, Homer.
On Election Day, Nov. 8,
all voting will be handled
at the Banks County Recre
ation Department, located at
607 Thompson Street. Ho
mer.
MAIL-IN
Mail-in Absentee Voting
began Oct. 10 and will send
on Oct. 28.
ON THE BALLOT
Races on the ballot will
include the following:
•United States Senate:
Herschel Junior Walker (R),
Raphael Warnock (D) and
Chase Oliver (Libertarian).
•Governor: Brian Kemp,
incumbent (R). Stacey
Abrams (D) and Shane Ha
zel (L).
•Lieutenant Governor:
Burt Jones (R), Charlie Bai
ley (D) and Ryan Graham
(L).
•Secretary of State: Brad
Raffensperger, incumbent
(R), Bee Nguyen (D) and
Ted Metz (L).
•Attorney General: Chris
Carr, incumbent (R), Jen
nifer “Jen” Jordan (D) and
Martin Cowen (L).
•Commissioner of Agri
culture: Tyler Harper (R),
Nakita Hemingway (D) and
David Raudabaugh (L).
•Commissioner of Insur
ance: John King, incumbent
(R) and Janice Laws Robin
son (D).
•State School Superin
tendent: Richard Woods,
incumbent (R) and Alisha
Thomas Searcy (D).
•Commissioner of Labor:
Bruce Thompson (R). Wil
liam “Will” Boddie Jr. (D)
and Emily Anderson (L).
•U.S Rep: Andrew Clyde,
incumbent (R) and Michael
“Mike” Ford (D).
•State Senate District 50:
Bo Hatchett, incumbent (R)
and Paulette Williams (D).
SPECIAL ELECTION
A resolution concern
ing the road and bridge tax
continuation will be on the
ballot. Voters will be asked
to cast their vote for Yes or
No on the following ques
tion: Shall a one-cent sales
and use tax be imposed in
the special district of Banks
County for a period of time
not to exceed five years and
for the raising of an estimat
ed $20 million for transpor
tation purposed?
PROPOSED
AMENDMENTS
Proposed Constitutional
Amendments on the ballot
include:
•Shall the Constitution of
Georgia be amended so as
to suspend the compensa
tion of the Governor, Lieu
tenant Governor, Secretary
of State. Attorney General,
State School Superinten
dent, Commissioner of In
surance, Commissioner of
Agriculture, Commissioner
of Labor or any member of
the General Assembly while
such individual is suspend
ed from office following
indictment for a felony? Yes
or No
•Shall the Constitution of
Georgia be amended so as
to provide that the govern
ing authority of each coun
ty, municipality and consol
idated government and the
board of education of each
independent and county
school system in the state be
authorized to grant tempo
rary tax relief to properties
within its jurisdiction which
are severally damaged or
destroyed as a result of a
disaster and located within a
nationally-declared disaster
area. Yes or No
REFERENDUMS
•Shall the Act be ap
proved which grants a state
wide exemption from all ad
valorem taxes for certain
equipment used by timber
producers in the production
or harvest of timber? Yes or
No
•Shall the Act be approved
which expands a state-wide
exemption from ad valor
em taxes for agriculture
equipment and certain farm
products held by certain
entities to include entities
compromising two or more
family-owned farm entities
and which adds dairy prod
ucts and unfertilized eggs
of poultry as qualified farm
products with respect to
such exemption? Yes or No
READY FOR HALLOWEEN
Photo by Wesleigh Sagon
Kylie Mundy, 8, is shown at Lula’s fall festival on
Sunday, Oct. 16, with some festive decorations and
face-painting. The Lula-Belton Historical Society host
ed its fall festival on Saturday, Oct. 15, and on Sunday,
Oct. 16. The event featured 72 vendors selling their arts
and crafts and holiday themed decor. It was estimated
that 1,000 visitors attended the two-day festival. See
more photos on Page 8A.
Fall Festival
planned at
Banks Rec.
Department
A Fall Festival will be
held at the Banks Coun
ty Recreation Department
from 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on
Saturday. Oct. 29.
This event will have ven
dors, food, activities, music,
and a movie showing, a pie
tasting, and a Halloween
costume contest.
There are 20 vendor spots
available for $25 each.
For more information,
email avetter@co.banks.
ga.us.
The recreation department
is located at 607 Thompson
Street, Homer.
MAILING LABEL
Banks BOC lifts hiring freeze to bring on
code enforcement officer, zoning official
By ANGELA GARY
angela@mainstreetnews.com
The Banks County Board
of Commissioners agreed at
its October meeting to list
the hiring freeze that has
been in place for months
in order to hire a full-time
code enforcement officer
and a part-time zoning of
ficial.
The commissioners also
approved the job duties for
each position.
Applications will now be
taken and interviews will be
set up.
ZONING MATTER
APPROVED
In other business, the
BOC approved a request
from Hodie Meats for a
conditional use permit to
operate a food processing
facility at 2850 Gainesville
Highway. Alto.
The conditional use is not
for all of the property.
It is only for the back
building and closely sur
rounding area, which is ap
proximately 202,781 square
feet.
OTHER ACTION
In other action at the Oc
tober meeting, the Banks
County Board of Commis
sioners:
•approved a quit claim
deed to the Town of Alto
for the portion of Wynn
Shoals Road that is located
in Banks County. It was re
ported that the town plans to
pave that portion of the road
and maintain it.
•approved a request for
the annual youth hunt to
be held on Friday and Sat
urday, November 25-26. It
is a joint project of Nails
Creek Baptist Church and
the Georgia Department of
Natural Resources.
•approved the contract
with Digital Elevation Con
tour Mapping for GlS/map-
ping services.
CHAIRMAN
REPORTS
In his monthly report,
Chairman Charles Turk re
ported that there has been
359 fire calls in the past
month and 3,787 calls for
the sheriff’s office.
Turk also reported that
there has been 11 new
COVID-19 cases in the past
week.
BOC agrees with Griffith at appeal hearing
But Griffith files appeal
on new hotel request
By ANGELA GARY
angela@mainstreetnews.com
At a hearing held last
week, the Banks County
Board of Commissioners
agreed with Taylor Grif
fith’s appeal regarding pub
lic notices and public notice
procedures.
Griffith says that the in
tended use for the property
in a request for a hotel at
Banks Crossing was not not
consistent with what was
listed on the application as
the planned use. The com
missioners agreed that the
two don’t match and that
they should be the same.
Griffith filed the appeal
because he said the original
copy of the conditional use
application “plainly stated
‘Extended Stay Prototype’
in the line for the intended
use” and the intended use
was not this.
Griffith is a member of
the county planning com
mission. He voted against
the request in question;
stating at the time his con
cerns about the application
process.
Photo by Angela Gary
Taylor Griffith presented his appeal to the Banks County Board of Commissioners.
NEW REQUEST
Griffith said Monday he
is now concerned a new
application that will be on
the agenda of the planning
commission and BOC in
November has the same is
sue with the intended use
listed in the application not
being the actual intended
use. On Monday, Oct. 17,
he filed an appeal of this ap
plication.
“This is notice of my ap
peal of the decision of the
acting Banks County zon
ing official to a accept and
submit for the public hear
ing process an application
which does not accurately
represent the proposed de
velopment detailed in the
application packet,” Griffith
wrote in his appeal. “The
applicant requests a condi
tional use to build and oper
ate a Home2 Suite by Hilton
Hotels. This is an extended
state hotel as defined by
Banks County code; there
fore, the application should
be an extended stay hotel
and not a ‘new hotel.’”
Pumpkins at the Park planned at Rafe Banks Park in Lula
Pumpkins at the Park will Park in Lula at 1 p.m. on The event will include pumpkin hunt, pumpkin loon artist and treats on the
be held at the Rafe Banks Saturday, Oct. 22. free candy, cookie walk, painting, face painting, bal- trail.
