Two Independents Submit Petitions To Be Placed On November Ballot For Oconee County School Board Posts

***Verification Of Signatures Expected To Take Week Or More***

Independent candidates Ryan Repetske and Melissa Eagling submitted petitions signed by registered voters in Oconee County on Tuesday asking to have their names appear on the ballot in November for the Board of Education.

If the signatures for each of the candidates are verified to be of properly registered voters, Repetske’s name will appear as an Independent in November with Republican Amy Parrish for Post 2 and Eagling will appear as an Independent with Republican Ryan Hammock for Post 3.

The Democrats did not put up any candidates for the two races.

Area Hospitals Report Highest Number Of COVID-19 Cases Since March; Case Count In NE Health District Nearly Unchanged

***No New Confirmed Deaths From Disease Reported***

The Georgia Hospital Association and the Georgia Emergency Management Agency reported on Friday that area hospitals had 35 COVID-19 patients, up from 24 on Friday of last week.

The number of ICU beds in use was 71, up from 67 a week earlier, and the number of adult ventilators in use was 30, up from 29 a week ago.

The number of COVID-19 patients at area hospitals has not been this high on a Friday since March 11, when it was 36.

Construction Underway On Two Commercial Projects On Hog Mountain Road West Of Butler’s Crossing

***Site Plans Approved***

Two construction projects, one visible to passing motorists and the other not, will have impact on the traffic and character of Hog Mountain Road between Butler’s Crossing and the Civic Center and Oconee County High School if they are built as planned.

The visible project, fronting on Hog Mountain Road, is to be built in phases, according to its preliminary site plan, and to consist of six buildings, including the relocated historic white house on the site.

Area Hospitals Report Decrease In Number of COVID-19 Cases; Case Counts In Health District Up Slightly For Eighth Week In Row

***Five Confirmed Deaths From Disease Reported***

The Georgia Hospital Association and the Georgia Emergency Management Agency reported on Friday that area hospitals had 24 COVID-19 patients, down from 29 on Friday of last week.

The number of ICU beds in use was 67, up from 61 a week earlier, and the number of adult ventilators in use was 29, up from 27 a week ago.

Last week, the number of COVID-19 patients had increased from 14 to 29, but the number of ICU beds had dropped by two from the week earlier, and the number of adult ventilators in use had increased by four.

Oconee County Delivered Large Number Of Votes For Collins In June 21 Republican Congressional District Runoff

***Oconee Democrats Played Lesser Role In Party’s Runoff

Oconee County played an outsized role in Mike Collins’ sweeping victory in last week’s runoff for the Republican nomination for the 10th Congressional District.

In the primary on May 24, only 15.0 percent of Oconee County voters using the Republican ballot selected Collins as their preferred candidate in the race for the open U.S. District 10 Congressional seat.

A slightly higher percentage of the county’s voters–17.6 percent–picked Vernon Jones.

Oconee County Commissioners Initiate Plans For Putting Transportation Sales Tax Referendum On November Ballot

***Would Result In Property Tax Reduction***

The Oconee County Board of Commissioners took the first step on Tuesday night to put a 1 percent Transportation Special Purpose Local Sales Tax referendum on the Nov. 8 ballot.

A portion of the tax would be used to cover transportation projects normally included in the county’s general fund budget, allowing the county to reduce its property tax by 1 mill. The current county millage rate is 6.686.

New Plans For Publix Shopping Center On Oconee Connector Under Review

***Main Access Off Connector***

Deferred Tax LLC has submitted preliminary paperwork for a second attempt to rezone property on the west side of the Oconee Connector between SR 316 and Mars Hill Road for a shopping center that is to include a Publix.

The rezone request includes only a little more than 34 acres of the total 47 acres owned by Deferred Tax and seeks a less intense business classification than sought in the first rezone. The Board of Commissioners rejected that request in May of 2021.