Oconee County Plans To More Than Quadruple The Miles Of Roads Resurfaced Next Year

***TSPLOST Providing Bulk Of Funding

Oconee County plans to resurface 30.27 miles of roadway in the county from March to September of next year, more than four times what it has been resurfacing in the typical calendar year.

The road work will be paid for with a $742,287 Local Maintenance Improvement Grant (LMIG) from the state, $2 million from the county’s Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, and $5.7 million from the Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax approved by voters last November.

Citizens At Oconee County Town Hall Meeting Talk About Libraries, Swimming Pools, Paper Ballots, School Board, Tax Receipts

***Request For Alcohol Sales Opposite Malcom Bridge School Noted***

Suzannah Heimel asked the Oconee County Board of Commissioners to find a way to provide oversight of the county’s libraries.

Julie Mauck said she wants the county to defund the two libraries until the problems she sees “gets worked out” and then the two libraries should “pull away from the Athens Regional Library System.”

COVID Case Count In Northeast Health District Drops Sharply, Georgia Department Of Public Health Reports

***Oconee, Clarke Report Decreases***

The Georgia Department of Public Health reported that the Northeast Health District added 231 new cases of COVID-19 in the week ending on Sept. 20, based on the Department’s electronic tracking system.

The Department of Public Health reported 411 new cases in the week ending on Sept.13, 345 new cases in the week ending on Sept. 6, 424 new cases in the week ending on Aug. 30, and 519 new cases in the week ending on Aug. 23.

Cost Of Oconee County Third High School Estimated At Up To $175 Million, Not Including Land Acquisition

***High School Enrollment Now Not Seen As Problem***

The estimated cost of building a third high school for Oconee County Schools is between $150 and $175 million, School Superintendent Jason Branch reported at the Community Engagement Session held at the Civic Center on Tuesday night.

That figure does not include land acquisition, which Branch estimated to be an additional “several million."

Oconee County Citizen Asked School Board Not To Move Forward On New School Construction

***Cites Evidence Of Slow Growth***

Pam Hendrix used the public comment section of the Oconee County Board of Education meeting on Monday to tell the Board she thinks it should put a “pause” on new school construction and possibly on construction more generally.

Hendrix reminded the Board that it was told last week that enrollment is down slightly–by six students–over the start of the last school year.

Oconee County Commissioners Approve Rezone And Variance Requests In Brief Meeting

***All Recognize Diaper Need Awareness Week***

The Oconee County Board of Commissioners last week gave quick approval to two rezones and two zoning variances in a meeting that lasted less than 30 minutes.

The Board approved a request by Anderson-Wells II LLC that the part of a 29.4 acre parcel on Aiken Road within the unincorporated part of the county be rezoned from agricultural use to Office Business Park use.

COVID Case Count In Northeast Health District Up Slightly, State Department Of Public Health Reports

***Oconee Shows Increase; Clarke Decrease***

The Georgia Department of Public Health reported that the Northeast Health District added 411 new cases of COVID-19 in the week ending on Sept. 13, based on the Department’s electronic tracking system.

The Department of Public Health reported 345 new cases in the week ending on Sept. 6, 424 new cases in the week ending on Aug. 30, and 519 new cases in the week ending on Aug. 23.