Oconee County voters will confront a hodgepodge of 10 ballot items next May when they vote on efforts to revise the county’s homestead exemptions and freeze property tax assessments for homeowners who have turned 65.
Four of the 10 items repeal or change existing laws, and six enact new ones.
The Georgia House of Representatives passed 11 pieces of local legislation last week sponsored by Oconee County representatives Houston Gaines and Marcus Wiedower with votes in each case of 162 to 0.
The House sent the bills immediately to the Georgia Senate, where they have been reviewed favorably by that body’s State and Local Government Operations Committee.
Land Planner Ken Beall, appearing before the Oconee County Planning Commission on Monday evening, told that group something that those who drive along the Oconee Connector as it crosses SR Loop 10 toward Epps Bridge Centre know quite well.
Beall said that his clients' 22.7 acre property east of the Connector between Virgil Langford Road and the Loop had been clearcut and is sitting undeveloped. The wood piles and open space are hard to miss.
The Georgia Department of Public Health reported that the Northeast Health District added 135 new cases of COVID-19 in the week ending on March 22, based on the Department’s electronic tracking system.
That number of cases added a week earlier had been 105.
One could score the Town Hall Meeting that the Oconee County Board of Commissioners held on Tuesday evening at the Civic Center this way:
Horses: 10 speakers
Sports Fields: 7 speakers
Pool: 5 speakers
Rails to Trails: 3 speakers
Pickleball and Oconee Parks Foundation: 2 speakers each
The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) is considering changes to its plans for the McNutt Creek Road intersection with SR 316, switching from a flyover to a full access multi-grade intersection.
At the same time, GDOT is re-evaluating, in response to citizen input, its proposed intersection designs for Dials Mill Road and Dials Mill Extension with SR 316.
The planned flyover of Julian Drive of SR 316 also is being reassessed.
As the General Assembly heads into its final five days on Monday, decisions on legislation for which the Oconee County delegation has played prominent roles remain to be resolved.
Included are laws designed to create an oversight body for district attorneys and legislation to legalize some form of sports betting.
