Monday, March 26, 2012

Oconee County Commissioners Get First View of SPLOST Spending for Recreational, Historic and Scenic Facilities

Pond in Herman C. Michael to be Drained

John Gentry, director of the Oconee County Parks and Recreation Department, last week gave members of the Board of Commissioners the first view of a proposed spending plan for funds being collected as part of the 2009 Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax.

The plan calls for improvements to all four of the county’s parks, but Oconee Veterans Park will be the big winner, with $590,000 of the $880,000 budgeted through June 30, 2016, going to that park.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Oconee County Utility Department Director Proposes Water and Sewer Rate Increases

Base Rate Up 3 Percent

Oconee County water and sewer rates, which have gone up each of the last three years, will go up again this year if the Board of Commissioners approves the budget request submitted tonight by Utility Department Director Chris Thomas.

The rate increases would be more modest than those proposed last year, and Thomas termed them an adjustment that simply reflected his increased costs of running the Utility Department.

Saturday, March 17, 2012

AmeriPride Seeking State Discharge Permit As Part of Cleanup of Toxics at Watkinsville Site

Need Access Agreement from Elders

As part of its efforts to clean up chemical contamination from a phased-out dry cleaning operation, AmeriPride Services Inc. is seeking a permit to begin discharging 72,000 gallons per day of treated water from four wells near its Watkinsville plant on Experiment State Road into the county wastewater treatment system.

Water in the wells contains tetrachloroethylene, also known as perchloroethylene or PCE, and its degraded products, and these also have been found in nearby Tanyard Branch, a tributary of Calls Creek.

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Many Oconee County Republicans and Democrats Bypassed March 6 Presidential Primaries

2008 Primary as Standard

Only 27.7 percent of the registered voters in Oconee County turned out for the March 6 Presidential primaries, down from 48.6 percent four years ago, the official Statement of Votes Cast filed by the county Board of Elections and Registration office late last week shows.

Almost all of the votes cast—97.7 percent—were in the Republican primary, but even Republicans showed limited interest in the race.

Wednesday, March 07, 2012

Oconee Farmers Market to Launch New Season in Front of Courthouse

Lexi Expands Product Line

Oconee Farmers Market will launch its ninth season on April 14 at a new venue–in the parking area in front of the courthouse in downtown Watkinsville.

The Board of Directors of the Market made the move to increase exposure for the market and its vendors.

Monday, March 05, 2012

Oconee County Commissioners Ask Again for More Communication from Chairman

Agenda Questioned

An issue that has presented problems for the Oconee County Board of Commissioners–communication between the chairman and the other four commission members–surfaced again last week.

At the Feb. 28 agenda-setting meeting, Commissioner Chuck Horton and Commissioner Jim Luke complained that they had not been given sufficient advance notice of plans by the Oconee County Industrial Development Authority to purchase additional land for the undeveloped Gateway Business Park on SR 316.

Sunday, March 04, 2012

Nearly All of Oconee County’s Early Voters in Presidential Primary Used Republican Ballot

Different from 2008

Just more than 5 percent of the active registered voters in Oconee County have already cast their ballots in the presidential primaries, for which final voting will take place on Tuesday.

Of the 1,076 votes cast by the end of early voting on Friday, 1,048 (97.4 percent) were cast in the highly contested Republican primary, with the remaining 28 being cast in the Democratic primary, where the only name on the ballot is that of President Barack Obama.