Oconee County has been working on specific plans for construction of a sewer pipeline down Calls Creek since at least March of 2015, or nearly a year before it revealed those plans to citizens living along the creek.
The county began making specific plans for the 24-inch pipeline after it appraised at least two key pieces of property, one on the Middle Oconee River and the other adjoining the county’s existing wastewater treatment plant on Calls Creek.
Oconee County Commissioners approved a rezone request last night for a complex of auto dealerships on SR 316 at Virgil Langford Road after a public hearing lasting 115 minutes.
The vote was 2-1, with Commissioners Jim Luke and William “Bubber” Wilkes in favor of the rezone of the nearly 30 acres, and Commissioner Mark Saxon opposed.
Oconee County Commissioners, in a called meeting tomorrow night, will be asked to give final approval to a Fiscal Year 2017 budget that is nearly 22 percent larger than for the current fiscal year and that includes an average property tax increase of approximately 5 percent.
The county’s millage rate will remain unchanged from this year, but the balanced budget is predicated on an expected 5 percent increase in the county’s tax digest. That increase translates into increased individual property taxes.
Bruce Anderson Jr., Georgia Department of Transportation project manager for the widening of U.S. 441 and Bishop Bypass, has called a meeting for Tuesday to provide an update of work on the highway project.
The meeting is scheduled for from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Community Center in Oconee Veterans Park, 3500A Hog Mountain Road.
Oconee County has been considering at least four alternatives to the proposed sewer pipeline down Calls Creek since at least April 1.
The alternates include a route that largely follows U.S. 441, one that largely follows Simonton Bridge Road, and one that would follow the existing easement of Georgia Power Company.
Because of the way Georgia tax laws are written, Oconee County will gain only modest amounts of revenue from the auto dealerships proposed for SR 316 at Virgil Langford Road that will be the subject of a rezone hearing before the Board of Commissioners on Tuesday night.
The three key pieces or property that are at the center of the rezone are currently assessed at $648,682, and their value will certainly go up if the rezone for commercial use is approved.
Water and sewer issues will dominate the agenda of the Oconee County Board of Commissioners Tuesday night.
Oconee County Utility Department Director Wayne Haynie will ask the commissioners to spend $218,691 for three different projects, including a new water tower and continued work on a sewer line along McNutt Creek.
