Newspaper Page Text
THE ISLANDER, DECEMBER 22, 2008, PAGE 7
ROW permit
Continued from Page 1
driveway in the thoroughfare includ
ed a key pad to open Burton’s gate
and a border of bricks standing on
end up in the air making the beach
access impassable.
Burton’s issue was that the county
had given him a right-of-way (ROW)
permit for the driveway.
Burton said the driveway was fin
ished around July 25, about a week
after he got the permit.
The removal of the driveway was
instigated in early November when
local fisherman Tommy Sanders con
tacted several Glynn County commis
sioners and The Islander to complain
that the driveway was on the 16th St.
public beach access.
The newspaper followed up on
Sanders’s complaint with a phone call
to Assistant County Administrator
Paul Christian, who, upon investiga
tion, determined the driveway to be
in violation of county law and had it
removed.
After an initial article about the
incident in the Nov. 17 edition, The
Islander met with Burton for an
interview and his side of the story,
which was the Dec. 8 article to which
Carter was responding last week.
Reviewing the time frame on Bur
ton’s case, Carter said Burton met
with Public Works ROW Coordina
tor Johnny Owens and filled out an
application on July 1, 2007.
By mid-July the application had
been processed and signed by all
pertinent parties and a document
acknowledging that Burton had paid
the ROW fee of $100 had been signed
by the Building Inspector.
At that point Burton’s landscape
architect Candice Long Brewer sub
mitted the landscape design plan for
the whole house, which included the
16th St. driveway, to the county’s
Community Development Dept.
Carter said, “I’m not sure who she
actually gave the plans to, but they
were at Community Development.
They were not in our file here at pub
lic works.”
Continuing, Carter said, “I got an
e-mail from one of my supervisors,
Robert Harrell on August 15.”
According to the e-mail, Harrell
met with one of Burton’s 16th St.
neighbors, David Blackshear, on
August 15 in response to Blacks-
hear’s concern about water standing
in the street near his residence.
Harrell states in the e-mail, “We
(Harrell and Blackshear) are in agree
ment that the landscaping (shown in
a photograph of the area taken by
Harrell) needs to be removed and
the unpaved area needs to be graded
so water will drain to the Johnson
Rocks. He also agrees that the beach
access should be clearly defined for
safe, easy access to the beach by fish
ermen and the public.”
During last week’s interview, Cart
er said that the day after he received
Harrell’s e-mail, he responded with
his own e-mail that said, “Thanks,
Robert. Keep me posted. If you see
the property owner (Burton) or the
contractor inform them that they are
encroaching on our beach access and
the encroachment must be removed.
Tell them to call me if they have any
questions.”
Carter said, “Harrell met with a
contracting foreman (who was work
ing on Burton’s house) and told him
to remove the driveway.”
Also sitting in on last week’s inter
view was Assistant County Admin
istrator Paul Christian who said the
driveway, the encroachment, was still
there when he went over to 16th St.
in early November.
“The driveway was out into the
public beach access in violation of our
ordinance,” said Christian, “So, I had
it removed. He had already been told
by public works that it was a viola
tion.”
“I can’t imagine that the landscape
architect who was working with Mr.
Burton, or Mr. Burton himself, who
must have experience with right-of-
way issues in his business, not being
well versed in the right-of-way limi
tations on St. Simons Island,” said
Christian.
Carter said, “Yes, he did have a
ROW permit, but it did not give him
carte blanche to do anything he want
ed. And he never called our office for
a final inspection like the procedure
calls for. There was an inspection,
in August, but that was due to a call
from a neighbor.”
Carter explained that there is an
inspection procedure that is part of
the ROW permit process to make
sure any work done in the right-of-
way is done correctly.
For example, if someone installs
a section of drainage pipe in county
right-of-way under their driveway,
the county inspects it to make sure
the pipe is on the correct grade so it
will drain properly.
Christian said the county will
continue to investigate beach access
easements to clear them of obstruc
tions.
“Engineering is currently survey
ing beach accesses on St. Simons,”
said Christian, “We will work with
homeowners associations and try to
take the best approach for everyone
because we are not out to cause prob
lems, but we are out there to open
up the beach accesses for everyone to
use. They are public property.” □
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