Continuing our Coverage of the Feb. 27 SCBOC Meeting

Continuing our Coverage of the Feb. 27 SCBOC Meeting and post-meeting interview with County Administrator Christian Hamilton; following the public hearing regarding the cell tower as covered yesterday, County Commissioners held a public hearing regarding a rezoning request for two parcels of property on N. Broad River Road. The property owner requested the parcels be rezoned from the current zonings of agricultural intensive and residential, place both parcels under a residential multi zoning to allow for property combination and for use as a travel trailer park. 

Hamilton said the request drew comments from area citizens, both in favor and in opposition to the proposed rezoning. 

He said the commissioners have considered this request for a period of time, and have visited the property to get a first-hand understanding of the project, and the objections to the project. He added that the Commission’s vote only approves the zoning change; the project will still have to meet all local and state regulations and planning/permitting requirements.

Commissioners, following the public hearing and public comment, voted unanimously to approve the rezoning request.

Other rezoning requests heard at the Feb. 27 meeting included a request for an agricultural intensive parcel on leatherwood Road to be rezoned residential to allow for the creation for single-family homes onsite; a request for rezoning from commercial community to commercial general on Highway 17 Alt. to conform with current use, and a request to rezone a parcel on Highway 145 in Eastanollee from residential single to agricultural residential to allow for property combination.

Commissioners voted to approve these requests.

Following the land use agenda items, commissioners approved/denied a sign variance request and special encroachment permit from Circle East Subdivision, approved several housekeeping changes and updates to the Stephens County Employment Handbook as discussed during the Board’s annual planning session last month.

Commissioners also approved the implementation of a fee schedule for land use applications.

The fees approved are $100 for rezoning applications, and $50 each for variance, conditional use, Ordinance Text Amendment and De‐Annexation Consideration applications. The charges are applications fees, and are applicable regardless of whether the application is approved by the Commission. 

Hamilton said one agenda item of interest to citizens was the approval of a contract with Pyro Shows, Inc. for the July Fireworks show.

Hamilton said that, during the public comments section of the meeting, resident Julie Russell spoke with commissioners regarding a decision, made in a previous meeting, to use a part of the county’s portion of an opioid legal settlement to purchase a new work vehicle for the District Attorney’s Investigator.

WNEG spoke briefly with Russell in the following days, and she submitted the following comment regarding the discussion:

“Our DA’s office, statistically, is prosecuting more users than dealers. There are far more important things to use this opioid settlement money on. It is not to make up for improper or lack of budgeting, elsewhere. We have no educational system to bring awareness here. There is a lack of Narcan in the school system. This money was distributed, primarily, for education and resources for awareness, to help people in and in continuing recovery. Not to buy the DA a vehicle. 192k for the Humane Society? 6k for mental health in Stephens County. Our priorities, as a county, are definitely mislaid.”

WNEG News will cover the last few agenda items from the Feb. 27 meeting on Monday.

A reminder that the next meeting of the Stephens County Board of Commissioners, scheduled for March 12, will also be held at the Government Building, due to the fact that March 12 is Election Day for the Presidential Preference primary, and thus not available to be used as a meeting site.