Welcome, welcome, welcome, everyone.

It's good to have you here.

The date is Tuesday, October seventh, twenty twenty-five, and we're gathered for the monthly voting meeting of the Athens Clark County Mayor and Commission.

We're going to go ahead and begin with a roll call.

All in favor, please say aye.

Are there any opposed?

All right, hearing none motion carries, and those are now in the record.

We'll have an opportunity on the consent agenda.

We'll have an opportunity on old and new business.

We'll have an opportunity on each of the planning and zoning items separately, and then an opportunity at the conclusion of the meeting.

That opportunity at the conclusion of the meeting is for any item that's not on tonight's agenda.

So that's our open mic night here for you in City Hall.

Um, public input is limited to three minutes, and there is a clock in front of the clerk.

You are gonna see it turn green when you begin speaking, yellow when you have 30 seconds remaining, and red when your three minutes has concluded, and we will thank you for your time with us tonight because we got to move on to somebody else.

The only exception to the three-minute opportunity is that there is a 10-minute opportunity that individuals could sign up for in advance on each of the planning and zoning items, and we do have one individual regarding old Alberton Road who signed up for that 10-minute slot.

Before we move to any public input on the consent agenda, I do need to turn to the commission.

Would any commissioner like to remove an item from consent to discussion?

Did a great job building out the consent agenda when Commissioner Fisher was here in my stead.

I appreciate that work.

All right.

Um I do need to ask the attorney are there any ordinances that we need to read as part of the consent agenda.

There are ordinances for items one, two, and three.

Item one, an ordinance to amend the FY 2026 operating capital budget for Athens Clark County, Georgia, so as to provide grant funding if awarded from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, recreational trails program for expenses related to recreational trails at Southeast Clark Park and for other purposes.

Item number two in ordinance to amend the FY 2026 operating capital budget for Athens Park County, Georgia, so as to provide funding for operating expenses related to a leaf and limb frequency increase and for other purposes.

Item number three, in order to amend the FY 2026 operating capital budget for Athens Clark County, Georgia, so as to provide grant funding if awarded from the George Department of Natural Resources, Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Program Grant for expenses related to the implementation of the Memorial Park Master Plan and for other purposes.

Would anybody like to speak to any of the consent agenda items?

Those are items one through 17.

Is anybody moved by any of those items one through 17?

Gonna give you a couple of seconds for the spirit to rise up.

If you would like to speak to any of those items one through 17, step on up to the mic, provide to us your name, place of residence, and the item to which you're speaking.

Good evening.

I'm doing the right thing here.

Hey, Linda and Sean Wood with SNJ Roadside Service.

We were talking on item number eight.

Okay.

Am I doing the right thing now?

Okay.

We are um we're actually appealing the heavy the heavy wrecker part of it.

Um we have applied for the contract.

We've we were approved with everything, and they put us as second in line.

And um we're asking that we could be put on a true rotation.

Um we have heavy equipment, we have rescue trucks, we have everything we need to actually to do the job and get it done.

We have a lot that's seven acres.

We have enough room to do to put the tractor trailers.

We don't have to use outside sources to do so.

Um, and we're just asking, and all of our guys are recmaster certified.

We've done all the training, we've got everything we need to to get it.

We're just asking if if you guys would approve it.

For us to be on a true rotation.

Thank you, Miss Wood.

Thank you.

Is there anyone else who would like to speak to any of those consent agenda items again?

One through 17 on your agenda.

Would any commissioner like to make a motion to for approval of the slate of consent agenda items?

So moved.

All right, I've got a motion from Commissioner Hamby.

Is there a second?

Second.

All right, I've got a second from Commissioner Fisher.

All right, we have attorney Drake read the ordinances.

All in favor of the motion for approval of the consent agenda, please say aye.

Aye.

Are there any opposed?

Opposed.

All right.

Uh please note opposition from Commissioner Johnson.

All right.

We are uh moving on now to the planning and zoning items.

Those are items 17, excuse me, 18, 19, 20, and 21.

Uh first order of business regards old Alberton Road.

And we do have uh Karen Griffin signed up to speak regarding Old Alberton Road.

It's Miss Griffin in the House tonight.

She said a few minutes ago, she was on the way.

So would anybody else like to speak to this item?

If you would line up if you're here to speak to this item, and we'll go ahead and do the three-minute inputs, and then when Miss Griffin arrives, uh we will get her 10 minute input.

All right, good evening.

And again, uh gives your name for the record.

My name is Sally Stanville Allen.

I hope everyone is doing well tonight.

My husband and I own a cattle farm and goat farm in Clark County on the Smoky Road.

My folks moved to Athens in 1968 when my father opened a local business, Stainfield Air Systems, which is still in operation today.

Athens Clark County, which I'm sure you know has a density of population of a thousand and ninety-five people per square mile, due mostly to the University of Georgia.

That makes Athens Clark County the fifth most densely populated county in the state.

This heavy density makes the importance of protecting and keeping what land is currently AR even more important.

The request for change in zoning on Old Alberton Road goes against the current Athens Clark County future land use map.

And the Athens Clark County Green Space Plan states its core goal is to protect natural habitats and agricultural land, which this proposed change in zoning would violate.

Preserving rural AR zoned property has been a glow a goal of local government since the 1990s before Athens Clark County was unified.

If it has been a goal for more than 30 years, then it's an important one and must be and must not be ignored.

Those of us who continue to live in rural wide open spaces deserve a voice too.

And we are depending upon the mayor and commission to listen and represent us and not succumb to the agreements presented by attorneys to go against policy already established by your government.

I'm urging the mayor and commission to follow the advice of your planning commission and deny the request for zoning this AR property to EI.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, ma'am.

Is there anyone else here to speak to item 18 regarding Old Alberton Road?

And you line up at the podium.

Good evening.

Good evening.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak.

My name is Angela Green, and I live at 269 Taylor Lane in the Thomas Farm subdivision off of Spring Valley Road.

And I'm here to oppose this change to zoning and to oppose the change to the future land use map.

I believe that the process of developing a future land use map is meaningful, and that there has to be a process to determine in advance of things like this what land should be for open space, what should be commercial, what should be residential.

And so I I think if this land has been designated as such, there's a reason for it.

And it's our belief, the people who live in Thomas Farm and live in this area, that there has to be a dividing line.

It just you can't continue to have industrial encroachment just continue into the rural areas and um open space and residential areas indefinitely.

And there is sufficient industrial land available already.

There, in my view, there's no need for this.

And I think there are other uses for this land that might involve some amount of residential.

I'm not an expert in these matters, but I think the planning commission knows way more about that and probably could advise on that.

Um so I am just here to say that this land should remain not in it should not be industrial, but how it should be used.

I think there are there are people who could find um uses for that.

And if you know where this is located, it's right next to the Coyle Middle School.

So putting uh it's 230 acres of land that would be designated as industrial, which would have a great impact on that part of of the county.

Um and if you know old Elberton Road or Spring Valley Road, this is not a road that's suitable for a lot of traffic or particularly heavy, heavy um tractor-trailer type driving.

So it just seems like the wrong idea for the wrong place, and it's just plain not needed.

Um I think that's pretty much the end of my presentation.

But thank you for listening.

And uh I'll let's make room for the next person.

Thank you, Ms.

Green.

Any others to here to speak to Old Alberton Road.

Good evening.

Hi, Commissioners.

Uh, I'm Isabel Scott.

I'm an Eastside resident.

Um good to see you all tonight.

Um, I don't have very anything very long to say on this, but I just want to say uh quickly and briefly.

Um Athens is um how great our greenbelt is, both in how much um green area we have in the county and also how um drivable and livable it makes the city.

Uh where I grew up in the suburbs of Atlanta, you'd have to drive 25, 30 minutes, and you'd be stuck in suburban sprawl the entire time to get anywhere.

Here in Athens, it's a 10-minute drive max anywhere you want to go in the city, basically.

Um, and I'm really thankful for that.

And developments like this would encroach on Athens Greenbelt, making Athens a less livable place, a less uh desirable place to live, um, and just bring that uh Atlanta suburban sprawl that that uh at least I grew up hating so much to this beautiful town that we live in.

So um I hope that this agenda item is not approved.

So thank you.

Thank you, Isabel.

Is there anyone else here to speak to item 18, Old Alberton Road?

Hi, sir.

Good evening.

All right, I'll speak and can you hear me?

Okay.

Hi, um, my name's Carrie Valentine.

I live at 288 South Main Street in Winterville, Georgia.

Um just uh I I wanted to say um sorry, I'm gonna catch my breath for a second.

Um I also work at WR Coyle Middle School, so I'm a teacher here, and um I want to I want to talk tonight as an educator but also as a resident of this area.

Um I'm someone who cares deeply about the safety, health, and future of our children and the character of the community they're growing up in.

The request to rezone the land from agriculture residential to employment industrial would permanently change the landscape around our school.

What is now a peaceful green buffer would become an industrial zone, bringing noise, traffic, and runoff right to the edge of a learning environment.

I'm sorry, I'm shaky.

The planning commission voted unanimously to deny this rezoning, reflecting both the future land use map and the community's expressed vision for this area.

That map draws a clear boundary at Old Alberton Road, a boundary meant to keep industrial expansion from spreading into residential and educational spaces.

If this change is approved, that boundary would be broken, and the president it sets would be difficult to undo.

To quote the ACC website regarding updating the future land use map, our community is not the same place it was 20 years ago, nor will it be the same place 20 years from now.

Athens Clark County is an exciting and vibrant community.

One of the fundamental responsibilities of local government is planning and the preparation of plans.

Like other communities all over the country, Athens Clark County must take active, thoughtful steps to preserve a high quality of life.

The path to accomplishing this goal involves planning for how the land is to be used, protecting the natural environment, designing visually appealing places, and developing a transportation system that integrates a variety of options for our school community.

This land is more than open space.

It provides a buffer of space of safety and quiet.

It's for children can step outside and still feel connected to nature, not surrounded by warehouses and our heavy machinery.

Once that's gone, it's gone forever.

But growth must align with the plans we've made together and protect the people and places most vulnerable to its impacts.

Approving this rezoning would disregard the community-driven future use plan, compromising the safety of our children, and erode the greenbelt that defines this part of Clark County.

Protecting this land protects our children, our environment, and a thoughtful planning our community has worked so hard to establish.

Thank you, Ms.

Valentine.

I appreciate it.

Is there anyone else here to speak to this item?

Good evening.

Good evening, Mayor and Commissioner.

My name is William Deal.

I am the uh applicant's representative for this particular zoning, Tucson Court, Peace Tree Corners, Georgia.

I wanted to frame uh the discussion for uh my presentation here with this aerial.

This is a drone photography, and I'll turn this around for the benefit of the public so they don't see the back end of my recycled sign.

Uh but this is a this is uh a drone photograph that was taken fairly recently.

This is old Elberton Road.

You can see I think one thing that does stand out the most is that these uh on either side is old Elberton Road.

The two parcels look very similar.

Uh, but in fact, if if this map showed signing zoning lines, you would see that these parcels are treated very differently.

Now they they share the same infrastructure, they say the same roads, they share the same access to sewer, uh they share the same ability to for transportation, they share the same water services, they share the same tax burden, but uh the parcels that are to the left of that photo, so to the east of Old Alberton Road, are zoned with the highest intensity uh industrial zoning designation, and my client's property to the other side is zoned with the absolute lowest zoning designation.

Uh in fact, it's a zoning designation that by right only allows for 10-acre lots.

And so we have some of the highest intensity of uses, some of the some of the uses that we've heard and uh as the public has come up, uh some concerns about adjacent to some of the lowest intensity, and and that low intensity use uh is what my client is looking to find some viable use of of their property there.

Uh the the existing zoning district, in fact, uh 10-acre lots is all that would be required by right, um, is so intensive that that really most of the properties around it would be non-conforming, that they they don't meet those requirements.

They would either need some kind of conservation treatment under the existing zoning or would need need a rezoning to exist as they do today.

And so this is this entire uh project and and looking through development uh pieces for this particular property.

We've been trying to find a feasible use, and the existing agricultural use doesn't use doesn't work.

It doesn't work because there's a highly intensive use of next to it that's sharing the same uh sharing the same transportation, sharing the same utilities, and and increasing the tax uh basis on this particular parcel, but this parcel is really being restricted by the existing zoning.

And so that's what we're here tonight to ask uh so that this property could be treated in the way that the property across the street is being treated, looking for the exact same treatment as our neighbors.

Uh, and so we'd ask that you approve the application.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Deal.

Is there anyone else here to speak to this item?

Uh and if there are others, you can line up at the podium.

Good evening.

Marilyn Vickers, I reside at 197 with the Supreme Court.

Um I want to reiterate what the teacher there said.

I was in the Planning Commission meeting.

Uh I didn't speak there when this came up, but the uh denial by the planning commission was very recent after so many people came forward and said uh keep this a green space.

I as I heard several teachers speak that evening, I thought back 50 years, and I've been here that long, when Lyons Middle School in that same general area was encroached upon by the airport, and people said uh, well, why did they build middle school so close to an airport?

Well, that's not how it happened.

The middle school was there, and then the airport begins to encroach.

I asked that you not make the same mistake with Coil Middle School and put an industrial park next to it, but rather leave it as a green space that it is.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms.

Vakers.

Great.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name's Thomas Evans, and I reside at 1143 Charlie Bolton Road in Winterville.

Uh I came to Athens over 50 years ago to attend the University of Georgia and stayed.

I raised my family, created a business here in Athens.

And at this point, my family and I reside on 116 acres.

Well, the property line is 2800 feet long that borders this proposed 233-acre development.

We consider it to be our home place and a bit of a sanctuary on top of that.

So I purchased this 118 acres over the years in three different tracks.

And every time I purchase one, I was directed by our government officials to reference the official land use map of Athens Clark County, and I was assured by them and the planning commission that the property was considered green space, which I know is not a real thing.

And in recent years, we have seen much of that surrounding so-called green space consumed by industry and business after rezoning was allowed.

However, during multiple denied attempts to rezone that area that includes this 233 acres, our government and zoning board have unanimously voted to keep the existing AR zone.

So I don't disagree with the gentleman's aerial photo.

It is a very stark contrast between what's gone on with what used to be portions of the so-called green space and uh what we've got now.

It's very heavily industrialized, and that's part of my point.

So I think now is a time to create a definitive boundary that will ensure that at least a portion of the area that was previously referred to as green space remains intact.

And I think that line must be drawn somewhere, and and this is it.

As well as the recent time and consideration given by our planning commission.

Please uphold their unanimous recommendation that this rezone request be denied and pursue some of the other options that are available, which are much more uh community friendly.

Thanks for your time.

Thank you, Mr.

Evans.

There are any others here to speak to Old Elberton Road.

Did Miss Griffin arrive?

Yeah.

That's you.

She's the team.

She's okay.

Good evening.

Good evening.

I'm Adam Evans.

Uh I live at 1143 Charlie Bolton Road.

Um, changing the land use designation and zoning for a speculative project like this sets a dangerous precedent.

Um the line's got to be somewhere.

In terms of traffic, 2,000 trips is an enormous addition to the infrastructure.

Most recent census numbers count just over 2,200 people in all of Winterville.

This project puts families and children at risk with the school and the church property right next door.

Building at the upper reaches of the creek that is shown on the plan maps will have a negative ecological impact on wildlife and the environment for many many miles downstream.

Surface runoff from a project like this directly threatens many species living directly downstream in what is currently a pristine spring-fed creek.

A beaver created wetland exists immediately downstream that supports dozens of important resident species and migratory bird species.

This is an incredibly important type of diverse ecosystem that is threatened nationwide by commercial development of this type.

Habitat loss means species loss.

Besides water pollution, air pollution, light pollution, and noise pollution are also a concern.

We chose to live in a designated agricultural residential green space because the stars are visible, because the water is clean, because the air is clean, because it's quiet, because wildlife is abundant, and because city traffic is not here.

We invested our money and our lives in this place with the promise that it would remain green and beautiful.

A place for us to live in harmonious balance with nature and other people that want to raise families in such a setting.

Please do the right thing and uphold the planning commission's unanimous votes against land use change and rezone.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Evans.

Ms.

Griffith, if you're ready, I'll go ahead and call you up for your designated 10 minute slide.

Evening.

Hey, I'm uh Karen Griffin.

I live at 290 Old Elberton Road.

Um, I want to draw attention to some things that were in your packet that came from the planning department.

I I think they were there online.

There was uh a petition that was signed by 416 people.

You have to laugh a little bit in that the fifth one down is from Minneapolis, that's my son, and he just wanted to be able to support his mom.

So we went through and deleted the ones that were just Winterville in Athens.

So we have 252 signatures on here that are local to where we're to where to what we're talking about.

And I'll speak to some of these uh points later.

Uh there's also a letter here from uh Mayor Dodd from Winterville, and he had originally sent it to the planning department.

I just want to reread it if that's okay, uh, just to be sure he's represented.

He wanted to be here, but he couldn't, and he just wanted to re reread this if that's okay.

Um dear commissioners, I hope this letter finds each of you well tonight.

I'm writing to you today to state my opposition to the proposed rezone from agricultural to EI employment industrial on Old Alberton Road.

The timing is just not right for this rezone.

The county currently has available in industrial land in inventory, so there is no need to add more, especially in this area.

We already have challenges with public safety due to our position at the outer edge of the county.

The traffic near the school is already an issue doing pickup and drop-off, and we have not even seen the build out of the Meissner property or the ramp up of the Athena studios in the already existing industrial corridor where there is land available.

Industrial development of this size and at this time would be over with overload our already overburdened public safety departments, both in the city of Winterville and throughout Athens Clark County.

With regard to timing and city planning, we are making improvements and preparing for the growth that we will be seeing in the coming years through aforementioned projects like the Meister facility and the Athena Studios, and but the rezone for the development like the one proposed tonight would throw all of that out of balance.

I do believe that development of properties in this area will occur in the not too distant future, but there are much better ways to develop, and there are too many issues that need to be addressed before the city and the county can possibly uh support any kind of rezone to support a development of this kind of size.

Therefore, I urge you to vote against the rezone tonight for the reasons I describe.

Quite simply, it is not out of the play, out of place and unnecessary.

Thank you for all the work that you do and for all of your considerations of my remarks.

Sincerely, Doug.

Um, I mean sorry, Dodd Farrell, Mayor, City of Winterville.

Um I'm a builder.

I have been for 44 years in the Athens area.

Uh I have I own the land that was 50 acres that was landlocked behind this 230 acres.

We own a 60-foot strip all the way back, and then we have five houses back there with a sixth one under consideration now.

Um this really impacts my little neighborhood that we constructed in 2002.

Um we are the dividing line between Cole Middle School and between the 230 acres.

So every day we will go past the four buildings that are being proposed, or whatever they decide to put there in that area.

Going back to some of the points of the petition, the land is totally incredible, as Adam said.

The species of animals there are just beautiful.

My favorite is the blue heron that plays on the pond and come to the creek back behind my house.

And it's just incredible what we have.

To add these four buildings, the largest of which is 11 football fields large.

The largest building, if you can imagine that, is 11 football fields large.

The smallest one is six football fields large.

So I just want you to keep that in mind as we're going through.

My 95-year-old mother's house backs up, and we'll see the back of two of those buildings.

The two uh the traffic study of the 2,000 cars has been brought about with the Coal Middle School with the church on the corner that does food uh district distributions and everything.

Uh Meissers not up to speed with their 1400 to 1700 employees that they have coming on board, so that's all a part of the growing concern of traffic.

EI is not always bad.

The Georgia Power on the corner of Voyles Road and uh Old Elberton has two exits and entrances.

So that helps them out and eases the burden off of old Alberton.

The Meissner property on Spring Valley also has two entrances.

So and they are pushed back into the areas to where they don't affect what's going on on the old Elberton Road area.

So those were done very well.

Whoever constructed those have done very well, but these four buildings are gonna be out in the open.

There's no trees or anything to help us out with that.

There was a at one point there was a tax um, a thing of taxes that were brought up about uh the owner didn't want to pay or was bemoaning the fact of paying 25,000 a year for taxes.

When this land is rezoned to EI, it automatically goes to 1,800,000 dollars a year in taxes.

Now you can get a grant, you can push that grant back, you can uh have it uh deferred for 20 years, and then you can pay it just like Meister's gonna do.

Meister's doing the same thing.

But what happens in 10 years when we figure out that if this is gonna be a data center and it's gonna have things like that in it, what happens when the data center becomes obsolete, just like computers used to be in a whole room and we're down to phones and watches and little laptops, and then we have all of these buildings that are standing there with nothing to do.

I don't understand.

And then you and then you push the taxes out for 20 years.

That's not my problem, but I'm just bringing that up.

Solutions, I'm a builder, so this property is incredible.

I have people every day asking me, I'm I uh I'm I'm a I lost my husband four years ago.

So I'm every day they ask me for when are you gonna buy do a retirement area?

When can you put little pod houses?

We don't want these large houses anymore.

We want 1500, 1800 square feet houses.

And I'm thinking those two little ponds, they're actually large ponds on that property, and everything that goes with that area would be so beautiful to do that.

And but what's legal right now for him in the AR zone is 10 acre tracks.

He could do 12 acre tracks and higher, but in 12 acre tracks, you could and anything higher than 10, you can pull an acre off per year for two years.

So if you have a 12-acre lot, you could pull a lot off for of an acre for two years, and you could put your parents there or your children to come home.

So much things, uh, so many things.

There's a also though, we need to remember that they were concerned about the property across the street.

You've got um in Vista, who is like 278 acres, and then you've got um the Bullock property, the Bullock sisters have like 189 acres over there.

They're directly across the street from my driveway.

Pittered lines up with my driveway, those are right there.

We need to be accountable to everybody of how those properties are built out.

If this guy decides not to do the data centers and he wants to do the 10-acre tracks, those is those are important.

Georgia Power did a great job of laying out their property, and it looks beautiful from our side, and we need to be accountable for that.

Um I want us to just remember if that comes back up that we need to be accountable for those areas.

Uh finally, just in closing, I want to say that year in in building years ago, everybody there was an O'Coni flight.

Everybody was living, leaving Clark County, and they were going just straight to Connie.

And they told me that I since I was the last builder left in Clark County to turn out the light when I left.

Well, Winterville is such a wonderful community.

It's still thriving.

I just rebuilt a house that burned in 88 and had the best time being back around in Winterville, and it's just thriving over there.

I just want us to remember to just keep the light on.

Okay.

Thanks.

Thank you, Ms.

Griffin.

There, anyone else here to speak to the old Alberton Road proposal before we come to commission discussion.

Hello, Mayor Gertz.

Um, my name is Jacob Campbell.

I live at 250 Old Alberton Road.

Thank you for taking the time to hear concerns about this tonight.

Um in short, um myself, my family, and speaking for all the neighbors that live in that area, uh, we all oppose this rezoning.

Probably for the same reasons that you've heard a dozen times, spoken more eloquently than I can.

Um I'm sorry to repeat if if you've heard them already, but we all set our roots down.

We chose this place to raise our families to to build our homes because of the way it is.

And we when we made that decision, one of the things we considered was looking around in the area and seeing what type of growth was permitted in that area.

And with the current zoning district considering the current zoning restrictions, we decided that this is the type of place that we want to raise our family.

And this is the type of place that people are fleeing cities from to move to.

And it would be unfair to my to my family and to all the other families that have made that same decision to change these rules after we've done that to benefit really just one person.

This is a the I think the majority of the community would be agree.

And and unfortunately, I know several of the people who have been to previous meetings couldn't be here tonight for very various reasons.

So I just ask that you don't consider their absence as a um indication that they're this is not an important issue for them.

But we we made this decision considering this growth and to to change these restrictions now would be unfair to us, and it would really only benefit one person.

The community doesn't want it.

There is uh plenty of potential there with the current zoning restrictions that everybody had agreed to when they decided to live to the in this area.

And it's my understanding that the I don't know if this is the case or not.

It's my understanding that the the current owner is not even uh a member of the community anymore.

So I would ask that you would please consider what the community wants who lives here now, who's decided to agree to these rules when they moved here and to um not consider changing the rules at this point.

And that's all.

Thank you, sir.

Thank you, sir.

Is there anyone else here to speak to Old Alberton Road before we move to commission discussion?

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is L.

Lewis.

I'm a concerned Athens resident.

Um I'm here to just speak in support of the community who has spoken out about how much they do not want this uh property to be rezoned.

Um I initially came to speak about another property and an issue affecting my community.

But after hearing comments, um, it also makes it quite clear that a lot of these issues are interconnected.

So I would also like to ask that when we are doing rezoning and planning procedures, that this committee consider looking at creating ordinances where instead of just considering each property individually, each request individually, that we also start looking at how each of these requests will impact the health of the community, that there is a requirement that the community gets its say in what happens to especially large tract properties like this.

Um the issue that I actually came to speak for, we did not get that opportunity, and we are as upset as this community.

And so I'm beginning to see that Clark County residents want the opportunity to impact how our town really grows.

And we should have that say.

We should have the opportunity to sound off as this community is getting the opportunity to about drastic changes that are happening.

We shouldn't just consider each and every property individually, but how it will impact the community, also how it will impact our climate resiliency.

We are in a stage where you know you would have to be really delusional to deny climate change.

And so we do have to consider how you know changing uh what was a green space, cutting down these large amounts of trees, how that will impact our children's future, how that will impact our clean air, how that will impact our water sources going forward.

And so I ask that this is taken up by this commission, especially as you consider how many people came to talk about this property at the planning commission meeting, and then tonight, given that it is 6 p.m.

There's a lot of traffic, and people still rush to come to talk to you about this.

Thank you.

Thank you, Al.

Is there anyone else here to speak to old Alberton Road tonight?

All right, we're gonna move to commission discussion.

Um this is in uh district three, and so I'm gonna turn to Commissioner Taylor.

Um we need a motion first on the future land use.

So I make the motion to deny the request for the future.

I'll second.

Oh dang.

All right, I've got a motion to deny from Commissioner Taylor, and a second from Commissioner Link.

Commissioner Taylor, go ahead and continue if you have any remarks.

I don't, I appreciate the community for coming out and speaking out.

Like this that's how it's done, and so yeah.

I hear you.

I'm which anything further, Commissioner Link.

Um, yeah, I mean I have no interest to see this property uh rezoned to EI for many of the reasons the folks who came to speak tonight um brought up.

I mean, I believe there is some potential for some kind of residential use beyond AR.

Um and this kind of speculative uh proposal and and the potential for a data center.

I'm I'm thoroughly opposed to.

I really would like to see this community put a moratorium on data centers so we can really study this issue and its impact on our community and come up with some clear zoning as to whether or not we want that kind of facility in our community at all.

Uh Commissioner Davenport.

Yes, um, so green space is real to me because we um that is in within the green belt, and people bought into it um thinking that that will be preserved.

The property owner um can actually use a property now as if it is zoned.

Um and there are environmental concerns, but the reason why I'm I'm denying is there is available EI zone, like literally 20 feet across the street that is not used now.

So just keep that in mind.

Any other input from members of the body?

All right, I'm gonna have attorney Drake read the ordinance for us for the future land use component.

Ordinance to amend the code of Athens Clark County, Georgia with respect to meaning the future land use map from Athens Clark County by changing the designation of approximately 233.09 acres of land located at zero old Airbleton Elberton Road from rural to employment center and for other purposes.

All right, there's a motion from Commissioner Taylor and a second from Commissioner Link to deny.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed to the motion.

All right, hearing none, motion carries.

We're gonna move on to the rezoning.

Would somebody make a motion?

Commissioner Taylor, would you like to make a motion regarding the rezoning piece?

Yes, I also make a motion to deny second.

Oh, all right.

Motion from Commissioner Taylor, second from Commissioner Link.

Have attorney Drake read this piece.

Located at zero old Arwerton Road from AR agricultural residential to Eye Employment Industrial and for other purposes.

All right, uh motion from Commissioner Taylor and a second from Commissioner Link to deny the rezoning as well.

All in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed to the motion.

All right, hearing none, motion carries.

All right.

Uh we have uh three more zoning items before we move to old and new business.

Uh item 19 is regarding uh 600 Oglethorpe Avenue.

Is there anyone here to speak to 600 Oglethorpe Avenue at this time?

Oaklethorpe Avenue.

All right, seeing none, uh this is in Commission District 5.

So I'll turn to Commissioner Fisher for a motion.

Yeah, thank you.

Um I'll make a motion to approve um the um the um sorry make a motion to approve the six on the Overton Avenue special use with conditions with conditions.

All right, there's a motion from Commissioner Fisher, second from Commissioner Link.

Commissioner Fisher, any more remarks on this?

No, uh we talked about it at the agenda.

Um good um use of that particular property for um Alma on cleaning, so um I think it's a good thing for that particular community.

Commissioner Lincoln followed.

I mean, this this makes perfect sense.

It's an existing building, existing facility.

Um orders to mend the code of Athens, Clark County, Georgia, with respect to special use approval in the CO commercial office district for one parcel of land located at 600 Avenue and for other purposes.

Thanks, Attorney Drake.

All right.

Uh motion to approve a special use with conditions from Commissioner Fisher.

Second from Commissioner Link.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed to the motion.

All right.

Hearing none, motion carries.

All right.

Uh item 20 is uh re-entering request from RS5 to RM1 at 780 Macon Highway.

Is there anyone in the room tonight to speak to Macon Highway?

All right.

It's in District 7, Commissioner Culpepper's district.

I'll turn to you for motion, Commissioner.

Yes, I'll make a motion to approve second.

All right.

Got a motion from Commissioner Cole Pepper.

And second from Commissioner Davenport.

Commissioner Culpepper, any further remarks?

Uh yeah, I mean, this is the way the property lies, um, the topography, it doesn't allow for you cannot you can't get me ready to use on there.

And they're only asking to um it's actually more restrictive what they're asking to switch it to.

They just want to be able to do attached homes, and it'll be eight units.

It's actually more tree canopy cover um than what the RS allows for.

Um I think it's a good project.

Okay.

Uh Commissioner Davenport, any follow-up?

Just make sure no balls are in the ground.

All right.

Uh anyone else?

We have a speaker that's follow up, Commissioner.

We have a um do the research find out that thing about that uh mayor.

I haven't broken around yet.

Uh is anyone aware uh uh think uh planning director of Bruce Lani is here.

Uh Mr.

Lonnie, do you have any information about this?

So I don't have any kind of report on the property itself, but I can tell you that state of Georgia does keep tabs on archaeological resources, and that'll be a part of the assessment of the project once it goes to permit.

We'll make sure that that's absolutely taken care of on the front end before any kind of land disturbance would begin.

Thank you.

Uh have attorney Drake read the ordinance for us.

In ordinance to amend the code of Athens, Clark County, Georgia, with respect to rezoning a parcel of land comprising approximately 2.7 acres located at 780 Macon Highway from RS 5 single family residential to RM 1 mixed density residential and for other purposes.

All right.

Uh all in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

All right, hearing none motion carries.

All right, uh, item 21 uh is regarding 135 and 150 McClung Road over near Athens Tech in a space Kroger.

Uh, is there anyone here to speak to McClung Road?

Evening.

Good evening, Bryce X WA Engineering.

Uh jog your memory on this one, it's just about a third of an acre.

We're asking to rezone from RM2 to uh commercial general, and it was basically all necessitated because there's a small piece of the code that says uh you cannot traverse any residentially zoned property with commercial traffic, and as we were designing the retail establishment on the property, we it was determined that there was gonna be another uh heavy truck traffic drive that was gonna be needed, and in the interest of uh the design design of the site and to eliminate uh curb cut.

We're uh requesting this rezone.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Higgs.

Anyone else here to speak to this action?

All right, seeing none, we'll move to item 21, correct?

Uh item 21.

Yes.

Uh I'm here to ask the commission to deny this request.

Um recently, this commission approves a tract of 85 acres of wetland to be cut down because we were told Athens Clark County desperately needs housing.

So here we have a property that has already been clear-cut.

That ecosystem has already been disrupted, and it is sitting there waiting for housing.

This uh developer would now like to change what could be a walkable neighborhood.

This property is right across the street from a Kroger, it's up the street from a coffee shop, it's down the street from a couple restaurants with the right developer.

This could become a walkable working class neighborhood.

And they are asking us to remove residential mixed-use property from Clark County at a time we are being told it's okay to cut down our wetlands because we need housing.

It's actually the same WA engineering who argued that it was really important that we get mixed use housing, who is now arguing that we need to take mixed use housing out of rotation.

If their client cannot figure out what to do with a property that is so close to Athens Technical College that is across the street from multiple places where people would love the opportunity to be able to walk to, then they should sell it.

But we should not be giving up property that has already been turned into a brown site, the perfect kind of residential property we need to be building on and turning what could be a walkable neighborhood into a segmented completely business district.

So I do ask you guys to once again consider the opportunity that is here to create a walkable neighborhood to provide mixed-use housing to create walkable working class neighborhoods, and instead of considering the request of one person who's already got more money than they can use to consider the health of Clark County.

Thank you.

Thank you, Al.

Is there anyone else here to speak to McClung Road?

Seeing none, I'll move to the commission for a motion.

Uh Commissioner Hamby.

I make a motion to approve.

Second.

All right.

And this is regarding the future land use.

So I've got a motion from Commissioner Hamby, second from Commissioner Davenport.

Commissioner Hamby, any further remarks?

No, sir.

Commissioner Davenport.

Just uh for edification of the public.

We approved last year like 120 housing next door to this.

Um they're doing a rezone is because the road Clark County prohibits a road that's used for commercial use that is designed for residential use.

So what they're doing is asking for essentially on a variance just to build commercial use that will be next door to a mixed use density residential where people are actually able to walk, you know, bike ride and all that stuff.

Um right next door to it.

So thank you, Commissioner.

Any further input?

Commissioner Meyer.

I just want a clarification of this.

We're we're voting on the future land use here, right?

But the zoning, but you know, you can use you can you can answer the question though.

What we're really talking about.

What is the size of the area we're talking about?

Is it this point three five three acres of that 25 acres?

That's is that correct?

That's correct.

Is it yes?

Okay, I just wanted to clarify that you know, for our audience as well, because we're not rezoning the whole 24 acres.

Thank you.

Commissioner Lincoln.

Yeah, I just wanted to make sure that the public is clear that this is not a rezoning for that entire area, it's just for this little sliver that would allow that commercial driveway to access the pre-approved project, commercial project.

So the rest of it will still be open for residential development.

All right, there's a motion and a second regarding the future land use component.

I'm gonna have the uh attorney read to the uh ordinance.

In order to amend the code of Athens, Clark County George with respect to meaning the future land use map of Athens Clark County by changing the designation designation of approximately 25.04 acres of land located at 135 and 150 McClung Road from mixed agency residential to general business and for other purposes.

All right, uh motion and a second uh to approve the future land use change.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

All right, hearing none, motion carries.

All right, uh, I need a motion for the rezoning.

So move second.

All right, I've got a motion from Commissioner Hamby and second from Commissioner Davenport.

I'll have the attorney read the ordinance on that.

Vote of Athens Clark Canada respect to rezoning two parcels of land prizing approximately 25.04 acres located at 135 and 150 McClung Road from RM-2 mixed agency residential to C-G commercial general and for other purposes.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

All right, hearing none motion carries.

All right, we're uh moving on now to public input on old and new business.

And so those are items 22 to 32.

All right.

If uh anyone would like to speak to any of those items 22 to 32, you can line up at the podium now.

We would be glad to hear from you.

And again, uh, you have the three-minute opportunity to just make sure you state your name and the item to which you're speaking.

Good evening.

Are you ready?

Is ready?

Okay.

My name is Wendy Craby, I'm an attorney.

I represent uh Kathy Rodriguez FIO.

She is the owner of 18 acres at 4710 Old Lexington Road, which is 18 acres.

It is adjacent to land that the county is looking to purchase for fire station number five.

Um my client is very concerned about this uh potential sale.

It's our understanding the county has an option purchase agreement.

This property, which is on Old Lexington, is under potentially under contract for 487,000 dollars for 7.52 acres, which is about 64,000 per acre.

The property tax assessment value is about 112,000.

Property in that area, which is an agricultural area, in the past year has sold between 9,000 and 30,000 per acre.

Like I said, this property is 64,000 an acre.

At this point in time, we haven't seen anything that the county has done a formal appraisal of this property.

We have seen speculation, for instance, saying that it's the same price as property that was acquired for a fire station over by Georgia's Georgia Square Mall.

Which of course is completely different property.

It's commercial property on sewer.

To point out, two primary issues are really going to the heart of landownership.

These are constitutional issues that we have going here.

There is something in Georgia law called through the Constitution, what we call a gratuities clause.

That's basically saying that the government, and this includes a county or a city, can't give something to somebody as a gift.

Something that's over a value, something that didn't have the adequate consideration for that.

The second issue is basically under the constitution what you call constitutional trust.

This is the idea.

In this case, these are SPLOS funds that are looking that the county is looking to purchase this property.

Those are taxes.

SPLOSS is not a small issue.

That is an extra tax the county has agreed to pay.

And to buy property that is far above priced far above the actual value of the property is simply a waste of those taxes.

Thank you for joining us tonight.

I appreciate it.

Is there anyone else here to speak to any item of old or new business?

Evening.

Good evening, Mayor and Commission.

My name is Aaron Thompson Podman.

I'm the executive director of Family Connection Communities and Schools of Athens.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight.

I'm speaking to item 27.

I'm here on behalf of our neighborhood leaders program to ask for your support in approving our proposed FY26 performance metrics.

These updates reflect both our program's growth and the realities on the ground in Athens currently.

In some areas, like food access and community events, we're raising our goals because we know we can reach more households and deepen our impact.

In housing, we've recalibrated our targets to ensure they remain meaningful and achievable given current conditions, including ongoing housing shortages, long wait lists for public housing, and other challenges that residents face.

In health, our metrics have been adjusted to more accurately reflect community needs in a post-COVID era.

While more residents now have coverage through the marketplace, which is a positive development, that does make it harder for our neighborhood leaders to identify and assist individuals who still need help with health insurance.

Gone are the days of mass COVID screening sites, vaccination outreach, and large-scale PPE distribution.

So our focus is now on meaningful screenings, assistance with benefits enrollment for those who request it, and increased participation in community health events.

These adjustments will allow us to track progress more accurately and focus our efforts where they matter most for Athens Clark County residents.

You've already received the detailed metrics for your review, and I'm happy to answer any questions tonight or in follow-up.

Thank you again for this consideration of this request and for your continued partnership and support of this important work.

Thanks for joining us tonight.

Is there anyone else here who'd like to speak to any item of old or new business?

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Jody Weber and I live at 245 Blue Heron Drive.

Thank you for allowing me to share my concerns regarding your vote to place the fire station on Old Lexington Road.

As you know, I've been here before to speak to you on this issue, and I have emailed each of you your concerns.

And I have emailed each of you your concerns.

And I appreciate you, Commissioner Myers, responding to my email.

I also appreciate Commissioner Davenport, who unfortunately has stepped out because he has continued to voice support and protection of our corner of East Side of Athens.

He's emphasized the importance of carefully considering the International Association of Firefighters, the IAFF report, as well as an updated version of that report.

His concern regarding the amount of money that this body is committing to spend for that property.

And his request that the fire development department develop a master plan rather than doing this kind of piecemeal.

I appreciate that at the last meeting, Commissioner Myers requested that this body have more information before making a final decision.

And it's my hope that all of this has been provided to each of you to help you make that decision.

She requested that the new manager present the commission with background material and analysis for the assessment process for determining the offer price of 487,000 dollars.

The effect that this government property assessed at this kind of price will have on property tax with the surrounding property, which includes mine, the recent International Association of Firefighters report, and their analysis concerning the firehouse placement, and any new analysis that comes forth, which it is my hope that that was requested, and if it has not been provided, that you will wait for that before you make your decision.

An updated statement from the fire chief concerning the location of the firehouse on Old Lexington Road and the reasons behind it.

Commissioner Myers made the point that this location will better hold take fold in 800 Athenians, which includes me and my family, to provide us with a better response time in the case of an emergency, and that the fire chief has consistently stated that in his opinion, Old Lexington is the best location.

But I'm confused as to why the site selection committee was not provided with an IAFF report from the outset to determine which sites would allow us to maintain the highest insurance rating rather than resting on opinion that other sites might result in our losing it.

And I'm confused as to why we don't find out if the commercial sites that are for sale on Lexington Road, which would significantly lift the response time for the highest density area of Southeast Clark County isn't being considered.

The question is not: would the site on Old Lexington Row allow us on Old Lexington Road allow us to maintain our insurance rating?

The question is would the commercially available sites on Lexington Road also allow us to maintain our rating?

Thank you, Ms.

Weber.

I appreciate you coming tonight.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Is there anyone else here to speak to any item of old or new business tonight?

Evening.

Hi, good evening.

Um my name is Sean Ribel, and I live at 200 Shannon Road.

And I'm speaking on item 22.

My wife and I have a house uh that's on the south uh eastern edge of the Athens Clark County, and we are in favor of moving the fire station that's at Whitt Davis Road to the proposed location near Morton and Old Lexington.

Here are some reasons why I support this.

Many of the residents around where we live on the southeast side of the county would receive a quicker response from fire, and that could save lives and property out where we are, which is kind of far from Whit Davis at the moment.

We had difficulty getting house insurance because of the long distance that we are from the location uh of the current fire station.

And um I do understand that some residents uh are concerned about moving the fire station to Morton and Old Lexington.

Um however, this is much more sparsely populated than the current location at uh Whit Davis, and if it's moved elsewhere, um who will have the residents there voicing the same concerns.

Uh but uh the site selection committee uh they suggested that area twice, and uh that would be very important for people in our uh neighborhood.

That's all.

Thank you, Mr.

Raoul.

Is there anyone else here to speak to any item of older new business tonight?

Evening.

Good evening, guys.

My name is Perry Bug.

I live at 4350 Old Lexington Road, Athens, Georgia.

And I want to say first thank you to the commissioners who returned my calls today.

Uh I appreciate your conversations and I appreciate you letting me give you my input on this.

Um I guess one of my biggest concerns is I can echo what a lot of people said here tonight.

Twenty years ago, people said where every one of you are sitting, or 25 years ago, and they made an agreement with this community.

They said that's gonna be green space.

Yeah, you implemented, not you, but the use before you implemented our land use plan.

Um I purchased my dream land based on what you said, and now you going back against what you said.

Um I think the county has to have some responsibility.

I think the county, when you make a promise, you ought to have to keep that promise.

Um you told us it was going to be green space, we built houses, we built ponds, we purchased land, and now you're going back on that.

Um that land zoned AR, it's not zoned for a fire station.

Now, I I want everybody's life to be safe.

I don't want anybody to be at risk.

And again, nobody in this room wants people to be at risk.

But I want you to hold up to the obligations that you made to people like me.

You know, I've been here 64 years.

What's happening is a lot of people come to Athens, and you don't like where you came from to come here, but you get here and you want to change here to be like where you came from.

And you can't have it both ways.

If you come here because you don't like there, then don't try to change here to be like there.

So my request is as you find another piece of property.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Bug.

There.

Good evening.

My name is Carlos Rodriguez Fayo.

I live at 181 P Ridge Road, and I came to Athens as a 17-year-old wet behind the ears college freshman in 1969.

I'm still here 56 years later.

As the previous owner of one of the adjacent properties of the proposed site for the replacement of fire station number five.

I'd like to briefly address the board on this proposal.

Most of what you'll hear tonight is probably going to be very redundant.

Uh, you've heard it before, you might hear it again.

Um, but I want to reiterate that I don't believe this is the best site or even a suitable site for the replacement of fire station number five.

There are several more suitable sites available, two of which were at the corner of Morton Road and Lexington Road.

These sites were identified within the site radius of both of the initial studies by the Athens Clark County Fire Department.

It's my understanding that Athens Clark County might also own some property on these locations near these this area, which would be more beneficial.

More importantly, these provide considerably better and faster access to the area of greater growth and higher density as desired target area.

This area is particularly on Lexington Road, directly across from tractor supply, where a huge number of housing units are being built as we speak.

The Intern Associations stated in their report that a major consideration for new fire stations should be high density and high growth population areas.

The proposed site does not meet any of the recommended criteria.

It's a very low density rural area with no easy ingress and I egress that is located on a narrow two-lane road on a hillside.

Adjacent properties have been used for recreation, such as hunting, fishing, beekeeping, farming, 4-H and FFA projects, horseback riding, to name just a few.

Mr.

Glenn Hill of Said Hill Farm said that he would not again in good conscience stable any horses on a farm that would be that close to a fire station.

Paige Murphy of Murphy Cattle Company stated that sudden loud noises could actually create a flight response in cattle that could make one of them panic and create a stampede.

An agent from the UGA Agricultural Extension Office has provided research papers stating that detrimental probably very dangerous sudden loud noises can have on horses and cattle.

The concrete impavement that would be established in order to create this would make a lot of undesirable runoff on the adjacent properties.

One of these has a pond that's an elevation that is at an elevation of 640 feet above sea level.

Another adjacent property is at approximately 630 feet above sea level and has a well and a home, nearly several hundred feet from the proposed site.

These being said, the proposed site is at 675 feet above sea level, which is about four stories higher than the elevation of the two adjacent properties.

Shoal Creek is merely a few hundred yards away.

Thank you, Mr.

Rigid's Fayo.

Appreciate your time tonight.

Thank you.

Anyone else here to speak to older new business this evening?

Hello.

My name is Sabrina Ward.

I live at 4740 Old Lexington Road.

Good evening, Commissioners.

Mayor.

There's been a narrative going around lately through the media and various sites that neighbors just don't want this fire station in their backyard.

Aside from this forever changing our agricultural land, that's not the only issue at hand.

This is about making sure public safety isn't sacrificed for lower insurance rates or convenience.

The Inner National Association of Firefighters conducted a study focused on one thing safety.

It looked at response times, coverage gaps, and how to best protect both the public and our firefighters.

The county study, which identified the old Lexington Road site as the best option, focused mainly on ISO ratings.

Data that affects homeowners insurance.

That information matters, but it's not, it's only part of the picture.

A fire station location shouldn't be chosen based only on call volume.

That ignores property protection.

And it shouldn't be chosen based only on ISO or insurance data because that hurts response times and risks public safety.

Both reports have value, but they need to be used together to find a location that truly protects everyone.

Right now, the old Lexington Road site might improve insurance numbers for a small portion of the county, but it does so at increasing response times to the area where most emergencies actually happen.

That means longer waits for help when seconds matter.

One community should not have to lose resources so another can gain them.

This decision should be about balance.

Make sure both areas are served equally, not shifting protection from one group of citizens to another.

Public safety should never be a trade-off.

The IAFF report also looked at projected growth, and we already know Lexington Road has a great need for resources.

Just last week, a 600 home development was announced in the same area identified as the high need area along Lexington Road and Barnett Shoals.

That alone will add even more demand for the fire and the MS services.

And when the county plans to spend 487,000 almost four times the land's value, it's fair for taxpayers to ask: is this really the smartest location?

Will it serve the most people safely and efficiently for decades to come?

Everyone agrees our firefighters deserve this new station, but this decision will impact public safety for generations.

We can't let fatigue or pressure to just pick a site lead to a short-sided choice.

Putting fire station 5 on a narrow country road with poor access and nowhere for cars to pull over safely to let a fire truck go by doesn't make sense for safety and it moves critical resources farther from where they're needed most.

We have the data, we have the reports.

Now we just need to use them wisely.

A vote no tonight isn't a vote against progress.

It's a vote for public safety for responsible spending and for a smarter plan that protects both communities equally now and in the future.

Thank you, Mr.

Wood.

Is there anyone else here to speak to older business tonight?

Hi, I am Isabel Scott again.

Uh my address is 1030 College Station Road.

I'm a proud East Side resident, and um I uh well I don't haven't taken notes on this.

Uh haven't been um not reading off the notes here, but I just want to speak perhaps against the grain, but firmly uh in support of uh the fire station location and of Carroll Myers plan in this um fire uh station.

Um there's two important components to consider here, and the first is safety, as has been addressed previously, um, but there is a lot of misinformation going around in regards to safety with this location.

Um right now, over 800 Athenians are left un or underserved by the current fire station location.

It is um significantly like too close to uh the other existing fire station locations.

If you just look at a map and look at the buffers, you can see that how much of Athens is left um completely served by this.

According to the Athens Court County Fire Chief, um, every minute that uh every minute of delay for a fire truck getting somewhere, um, it could be an extra 10% of uh 10% chance of fatalities in this case.

This is a decision that directly impacts people's lives.

And I understand that there are a lot of people here focused on the second component, which is aesthetics.

And while that is valid in many cases, um, when lives are at stake, um aesthetics should not be the greatest priority.

Um even if it were um looking at this area.

This is not a major data center.

This is not a you know a huge thing that will disrupt the green belt that will disrupt this area's urban development.

Um, this is about um this this one parcel that is being used for citizen safety.

This is not a new shopping center, this is not a data center.

This is uh one important piece of safety that is being utilized to support Athenians uh overall.

You'll see a lot of people come out here tonight who are all from the area who have, I'm sure been talking about it in groups and and been discussing how um this being built near them may upset them.

Um but I've spoken to many other Athenians um and and discussed this with them, and uh the consensus is very clear that this is a good idea for the safety of Athenians, and it is only uh a lot of times you will see lopsided community feedback by the people who are immediately around that area, but not by the people who in and around the further extremities will be directly impacted by this and whose lives could be at stake.

I used to live near a police station.

I didn't love the fire the the sirens um at night, but um I believe that it's worth it in order to protect the lives of Athenians.

Um thank you for letting sure thank you, Isabel.

Is there anyone else here to speak to older new business tonight?

Evening.

Hi there, my name is James Ward.

I live at 4740 old Lexington Road.

Um I'm gonna come up here and talk to you just to talk to you.

We've spoke to you, we've emailed you, we've gone around and we've spoken to our community, and we live in this area, and we want to make sure that it's abundantly clear that we are not against this fire station being built.

We are all about our first responders, we're all for new equipment, new resources, better resources to help with the health and safety of our firefighters and our first responders.

With that being said, too, we also need to consider where we're placing this because yes, while every minute counts, if a if an apparatus is outside of its district because it's responding to a call, something else has someone else has to come in and pick that up.

That delays care.

So placing these stations in the best locations where there's the highest call volume places them where they can adequately and rapidly respond and then turn around and go to the next call.

That is why the IFF had created that study and they had suggested that this needs to be placed in a high traffic area where all the call volume is going to be, because that's what they have noticed throughout the entire country.

This isn't a local, this is the International Association of Firefighters making this recommendation.

Yes, we understand that after this that there was a lot of I guess feedback saying that we misunderstood this uh report.

I would uh I would like to uh counter that with I think we know this report a lot better than a lot of these people sitting in the room and maybe the people that even released it because we had took the time to do that, and we urge you to take the time too.

We're not saying don't put it here.

We want to make sure it's in the correct place so it provides the best care, the proper care, the proper response time for everyone, not 800 people, but the other 90% of the residents too.

You have to remember if it's 10% or 800 people that is supposedly gonna benefit, you have to remember that that's 10% of the population of which they'll be responding.

So the 90% also has to be considered as well.

So again, I want to make sure that it's clear.

We want this fire station.

We want it for our first responders.

We want to make sure that it's done properly with the correct information given.

I hope everyone took the time when they delayed this vote to go back and actually consider where it's going and to think about the long term aspect of where it needs to be placed.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, Mr.

Ward.

Is there anyone else here to speak to older new business tonight?

Evening.

My name is William Wanamaker.

I live at 220 Lexington Circle, and I'm speaking in opposition of item 22, the fire station.

I think everybody in this room is well aware that it's property tax time and property taxes.

Hi here.

I'm all for relocating a fire station.

If it needs to be moved, I think there are plenty of available parcels that could be purchased for far less money and offer similar, if not better, response times.

But I believe the county owns a good bit of land very close to this location to the tune of 450 plus acres.

I would ask that maybe we consider looking at land that we already have and appropriating some of these tax dollars to improve.

If we're gonna use them, let's let's let's put bike lanes on some of these roads that are extremely treacherous for our cyclists.

I see them every day.

And it's it's it's it's extremely dangerous for them.

So you know, I think we could probably make better use of our taxpayer dollars by simply finding a better place to put this fire station.

The only other thing that I'll say is this I don't know how many of you have actually seen the site that this uh is proposed to be put, it sits at the very bottom of two very steep hills.

I also don't know how many people in here know how much a fire engine weighs between 40 and 80,000 pounds.

When you roll lights and sirens, you need to get where you're going as quickly as possible, and when you roll a 40,000 pound vehicle out of a driveway up an extremely steep incline, that's going to take quite a while to reach the top, and when seconds matter, lives are at stake.

So I would just encourage all of you to think about that.

I haven't heard anybody else mention it, but that's a real thing.

So thank you for your time.

Thank you, Mr.

Wanamaker.

Is there anyone else here to speak tonight?

Terry Taylor 185 Homestead Drive, approximately about a half a mile from the designated side, as I say, there's a crow flies.

Something I'd like for y'all to consider is that when fire station number one was moved from where the classic center is located now, when station number two was moved, when station number three was rebuilt, basically when four, we're gonna skip five.

Six was put in a place where there was nothing at the time, very close to certainty, it's getting highly developed now.

Seven was put in a place that'll fall in with like one and all, eight and nine, and what I'm getting at is is this right here.

All those with the exception of fire station number five and its existence now, were highly located in commercialized locations.

Five, when it was originally built back in 74, there was nothing there.

I know I worked there.

Number nine, basically was out there and uh commercialized close to a school.

If you think about it, people move toward a fire station, but fire stations usually don't aren't appreciated moving in on people.

On number five, when it was originally built, there was nothing on Clear Shoals Drive right there hardly except for the school and everything started to develop.

So the area that, as it's been brought up right now, if you start moving fire trucks up and down the existing road that they're wanting to put it on, it's gonna be a challenge.

It's a two-lane road.

Coming in and out, you either got to go left or right.

You don't have a choice of a third way of doing, plus you're on that two-lane road, and if you meet in traffic, that's gonna be a hold up too.

There's been a lot of time, a lot of effort put in by people on the fire department and other people on where to locate this.

The fire station is needed.

The fire station in existence right now doesn't have the facilities to meet things like for women firefighters and things like that.

And I can go on and on with that.

What I'm saying is the fire station is needed.

It's just the location is not the best location to be putting where they're wanting to put it.

There are other locations that you could locate this at.

And I would like the commissioner and people and the mayor to consider this.

Thank you, Mr.

Tiller.

Terry was a fireman in 40 years.

Hi, I'm Kathy Rodriguez Fayo.

Live at 4710 Old Lexington Road.

Once again, I really want to thank you for listening to all of us, but especially those of you who who did return our our emails and our calls.

Um I had a lot to say, plan to say a lot, but luckily I have supporters, everybody that's got their pen on, plus some have just about touched on every single point that we're trying to make.

Um I do want to say that um, you know, as a as a school teacher for 20 for 30 years and retired school teacher for 20 years, um, I had to make lots of decisions that concerned a lot of people, the children and their parents.

And you know, one thing I taught them is if you have a problem, and this was to the parents too.

If you have a problem, come to me.

And it would be great if you came to me with a solution.

You know, that if you got a problem, let's try.

But unfortunately, um sometimes those solutions came without all the information, with lots of misinformation and information that was fact actually not true.

So we had to say, look, we got a problem.

Let's look at everything that goes with this.

Everything that concerns all the people, all the people it's got, you know, our whole classroom, not just you know, this view and that view.

Um you've heard all the the things that we're saying about this as far as what it's gonna do to that area, and like Perry said, we bought into that, you know, 50 years ago because that's what we thought we were getting.

I did not dream my children wouldn't be able to take over my land and use it as farmland.

Um that being said, um I just want you to really consider um the facts, and I'm not sure that we have all the facts to um to make sure that this is the right property to put a new fire station on.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Rodriguez Fan.

Someone has left their phone.

Thank you.

Good evening again.

Uh Lewis District One.

I'm actually here presenting new business.

Um, I wanted to talk about the Deccle Lake project, also known as the Shoal Athens.

My neighbors and I just found out about this project through an RC.

Miss Lewis, I I don't believe that's on our agenda for older new business tonight.

Okay.

So no public comment allowed.

This is just for items 22 through 32, and then at the conclusion of the meeting, there's input on any item that's not among those 11.

Perfect.

Thank you.

Any more input on older new business tonight before we move to commission action.

Good evening.

Good evening, Mayor and Commission.

I guess I'll pillory myself real fast.

My name is Tim Moore.

I live at 210 Shadow Moss Drive over on the east side, District 1.

I don't really have a lot of prepared comments, just some concerns.

I'm speaking in support of the real relocation of the fire station to Meyer's proposal.

You've heard a lot about safety concerns, you've heard a lot about monetary concerns, you've heard a lot about aesthetic concerns, all these things.

I won't repeat them.

But I will just say this that there is a paradox when it comes to advocacy.

It's very easy to act on the concerns of people that are directly and imminently impacted by things close to them.

But it's very hard to advocate for people who can't speak for a cause because they're not present in the question.

Now I'm currently a homeowner.

Just moved in there earlier this year, but at the start of the year I was a renter.

And we all know that Athens is facing a housing crisis.

And I guarantee you that there are people in this town that are living under the exact same situations as I am.

Now, or as I was.

Now there will be, I guarantee you, in the next 20 years, more developments that are put out in the old Lexington Road area.

Maybe it's not this commission that approves those projects.

Maybe it happens five years from now or maybe ten years from now.

But there will be more projects floated for that area.

And when they are considered, the City of Athens is going to really kick itself for how much money we could have saved by purchasing land to build a new fire station that could serve the people going into those areas.

This is all hypothetical.

I grant you.

I think probably for the third time or no, it wouldn't be the third time.

We have to make a decision tonight.

Everyone's impacted by this decision that we make tonight.

So that's all.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Moore.

Any other public input tonight on older new business?

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is John Maddox with Blue Ridge Atlantic.

Not sure if this is the right time to speak, but here for number 28, Classic City Heights.

Uh Blue Ridge Atlantic is the developer along with Athens Housing Authority.

We received approval from the Department of Community Affairs to move forward.

Just wanted to share that news with you all.

Let you know that I'm here and say thank you again to this body for continued support, particularly Andrew Saunders, Commissioner Culpepper, and Gio Crisp.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Maddox.

Appreciate it.

Any other input on older new business tonight before we come to Commissioner?

All right.

We're going to begin with item number 22.

This is SPOS 2020 Project 6.

Uh entertain a motion from a member of the body and then any discussion that might follow.

If I might, I mean we do have the Chief here if it would be appropriate.

Have him come up and give some just quick comments and then be available for questions before you all debate this topic.

I appreciate that, Assistant Manager Sanders.

Uh Chief Moss, thanks for being here tonight.

Appreciate it.

Thank you all.

Um I did actually wanted to start with a letter from Emily Alger, who was not able to be here tonight.

She's got another commitment, but she is the president of the IFF local 2795 Professional Firefighters of Athens Clark County.

Uh this was a sentenced email last minute for you guys if you didn't have a chance to read it.

I completely understand and apologize.

Uh dear mayor and commissioners, on behalf of the professional firefighters of Athens Clark County, I want to clarify several points regarding the IAFF risk assessment GIS study and fire station 5.

No cost to ACC Gov.

The IAFF covered the full cost of the risk assessment study.

The county did not incur any expense with this study.

This is not a relocation study.

The study was designed as a risk assessment and future planning tool for personnel placement.

This was not tied to moving fire station five.

Standards used.

Main focus.

The risk assessment study main focus was the risk assessment.

There will be no updated report.

The IAFF has a long wait list.

We waited two years to receive this report, and no newer versions exist.

Timing.

When the study was first requested by the local 2795, the SPLOST relocation requirement was not known.

So basically, they did not know that there was a requirement to remove to move the current fire station five to a different location.

So the bottom line, fire station five is outdated, inadequate, and no longer meets the needs of our firefighters or the community.

Athens Clark County strongly, excuse me, urgently needs a new fire station five within the identified service area to maintain strong fire protection and emergency response for Southeast Athens.

Since sincerely, Emily Alger.

So some of the points made about population density.

I do want to kind of address that when it came to the methodology of the study.

So it was asked how come there wasn't an IFF study at the onset of this?

Because there was no collective bargaining.

There was no union that was recognized by the government at the time.

So the study was based on NFPA 1710 conducted by the previous fire department administration, Chief Scarborough and his staff, including myself, as well as carried over and continued by me and my staff using the same standards that the NFPA of the NFPA 17 stands standards that the IF consider.

Now again, their study was a risk assessment.

They were not clear clearly looking to do a replacement for Fire Station 5 and find the best optimal location.

That was what we were doing.

We know the growth patterns of Athens.

We know the densely populated areas of Athens.

How do we meet the needs of the densely populated area of Athens?

More trucks and more people.

Station location is independent of that based on the fact that we need to continue to provide services to those less populated areas, and we need to reduce the overlap of coverage and increase coverage to areas that are underserved or not covered.

So what we're doing is stacking the deck at those busy areas with the resources we have and the risk resources we plan to acquire through budget requests, through grants, through other means financially, we're going to try to continue to follow along with NFPA 1710 and increase staffing to meet the growing needs of our community.

However, we're looking to put one station with one truck that averages about three calls a day, most of which are probably medical calls.

About a 60% average, the last statistic that I've had were medical calls.

So that is an independent discussion of densely populated areas.

I'm not blind, nor is anybody in the in the administration of this fire department blind to the needs of the community when it comes to how we should respond.

It is one of those things in which we are the subject matter experts and we have standards that we know we need to adhere to, but we need to couple those standards with the unique needs of our community.

And with all respect to the folks that led the way before me, including uh Terry Tiller, 40-year veteran of the fire department.

I've been on the department 23 years, he was my captain.

I I love and respect the man greatly.

But my job as the fire chief has evolved beyond that.

My job as the fire chief is to take care of the needs of this community.

This is a 50-year investment.

And what we know is we need a fire station, and we know that we need to improve coverage in areas that are not covered.

But what we don't know is the development that could happen within the community, but we can prognosticate to some degree how we should allocate our resources in the most effective manner.

Um I'm here to answer any questions at that point, if if I if I could.

Thank you for indulging me.

Thank you for being here for that.

Yes, appreciate Chief Moss.

Commissioner likes to place a motion on the floor for action.

Motion to approve Davenport CDO.

All right, we've got a motion from Commissioner Davenport.

Is there a second?

Second.

Got a motion from Commissioner Davenport, second from Commissioner Taylor.

All right, uh, Commissioner Davenport, any remarks?

Yes.

Um I'm gonna if my colleagues were allow me more than three minutes.

I'll greatly appreciate it.

Okay.

All righty.

So my um if the public and the viewing audience will turn to page 29 on the ACC Gov agenda item page, or if they got the full package, it would be page 6635.

Okay.

So first of all, I would like to tell my colleagues and staff.

We have to change the way we do the SPLOSS projects.

This is exhausting.

I've been beat up.

I've been yelled at, just other counties and have done their spot projects differently, and it just we do it backwards.

So you know, future mayors, future commissioners, please change the way we do our sponsor projects because this is this is too much.

But anyway, okay.

So if you look at the radius of this fire session, it does cover a lot of people.

And I'm not denying Chief Moss the expertise, nor I'm not denying staff their expertise.

I swear I'm gonna buy your state when this is all done, all everybody.

But my question is the radius.

So if you look at the radius, um, and I agree, I'm not denying this that it does add 800 new people to um to the service area.

But if you know district one, the majority of the people that are being covered at this current radius are pretty much farmers.

They're gonna be like 20 landowners 20 acre landowners, they're gonna be 15, 10 landowners.

The largest neighborhood, well, one of the largest neighborhoods that's in the immediate red circle would be Show Creek Farm.

The question that I have, and I want my colleagues to understand if you know that district, at the south end of Barney Shows Road, we have neighborhoods like Bar H, we have neighborhoods like um Old Heritage Farm, and we have old um neighborhoods like Idlewood, which are a large neighborhood that are not served.

So I'm not denying that 800 people are going to be served with this relocation, which is disadvantaged of a thousand um residents that are not been served.

Secondly, at this location at 4730 Morton Road, great location.

You're really gonna serve those farmers on the far east side, you're gonna serve those um residents on Double Bridge Road and Dunlap Road, which is the far east side of Athens.

I'm not denying that.

However, you're increasing the spot response time for those residents in Cedar Creek, you're increasing those response times for those individuals with that with the IFAA, regardless if you believe it or trust it or not, the I if I how far I said the right.

Okay, well, the IFAA said literally regardless of the fact that section number five needs to be relocated, that they even acknowledge that it literally stated that you need to put a fire station where the density matters, right?

So the density of the areas like B theaters, Indiana Drive, where we see where the the um the phone calls are coming from, you're increasing those response files to those individuals.

So the house burns down, you know, or whatnot, you are actually increasing the response time to those individuals.

It's great that you're coming to my district and we're increasing my response time.

You know, my mom would love to have better response time when it comes to a medical emergencies, and a lot of people on Belmont Road will benefit that.

But even those people on Belmont Road are not in this circle.

They're not gonna be benefited from the the move.

So also when you think about drive time, you're looking at an area that's on a hill, it's really wonky and all this stuff.

So if you if you're trying to get to Double Ridges Road, hopefully I did a research on these roads, but if you're trying to get to the landfill from this location, it's actually the response time is increased.

Because you're taking a left out of Barnish um old Lexington Road, possibly going straight down Barnes Shrows Road and taking the left on old Lex, I mean on Lexington Highway, or you're taking a left or right, excuse me, out of um old Lexington Road and taking a left on Morton Road, then going up and then taking another left or right, excuse me, going towards the landfill.

That's a lot more turns that you're making just to do response.

I'm not denying Nate Moss.

I'm not denying any of the IFA FA response time.

I'm just saying, considering the fact that even during these town halls that we had, it was discussed by the previous chief of um fire and the fire chief and this current chief fire chief that other locations and future iterations or referendums will be moved.

So if you look at a page at 29 and whatever page 635, 635, you will understand that station two in Winterville is wonky.

It is literally covering half of Ogathorpe County.

So if we're going to look at moving these fire sessions, my uh my my stance is let's do it as a master plan or holistically.

Even with this current um fire session relocation now on 4730 proposed 4730 morning road, you are leaving a thousand people at Ottawa at Barnett Um Old Heritage Forum, that area, Belmont out of that circle.

You yes, you're increasing that response time, but at the same time, you're denying your decreasing the response time for those people where the uh the the incidents are mostly occurring.

If we're doing a master plan, let's look at it holistically.

So we say, hey, let's tell the community, we want to move all these fire stations, and let's plan this out holistically.

Commissioner, we need to move on to other members of the body.

Go ahead.

Uh Commissioner Taylor, you were the second or any remarks.

Um Commissioner Myers.

Yeah, I'd like to make a substitute motion.

Um I'd like to make a substitute motion to accept the Myers Commission defined option to authorize the the mayor to accept the purchase price, but at amount of 437,000.

That's a price of 50,000 less than on the original gen report um for the land in old Lexington, and also to direct the ACC manager's office to do five things, one additional thing.

Minimize the footprint of the facility, fully pursue Athens Clark County's lighting ordinances, including full cutoff and fully shield fixtures, use planted buffers, berms, and other tactics to minimize the visual impact of the project from the neighboring properties, ensure that fuel and uh material storage on site is managed to eliminate impacts to neighboring residents, agricultural wildlife, and adding on this evening waves of sidewalk installation requirement along Old Lexington Road.

That's a long motion, but hopefully I'll have a second.

I'll second.

Okay, a motion from Commissioner Myers, second for me.

One thing, Commissioner Myers.

When I prepared the CDO, I prepared I filled include subsection C, authorize the mayor and appropriate staff to execute all related documents.

That was in your original CDO.

So if you would include that.

Authorize the mayor appropriate staff to execute all related documents.

That included in most agenda items.

Yeah, I just want to cover a couple of points here.

Um, the $50,000 reduction of price offered was done after recent consultation and information from the manager's office and attorney Drake.

So I want to thank them for that.

Um but just as importantly, this CDO addresses some of residents' concerns, but also locates a firehouse in the area identified by the chief as the best place for providing emergency services to the southeastern corner of the county.

The firehouse is not in my district, but as chair of the site selection committee has studied this firehouse uh firehouse area and the criteria for several years, as questions and have heard repeatedly from the fire chief about the reasons why he is adamant that the selection area should be in the circle around the intersection of Old Lexington and Morton Road.

The site selection committee was unanimous in its approval of the circled area after multiple detailed presentation presentations by the fire chief, including why it shouldn't be at all the alternate sites suggested tonight.

Those were questions that have been brought up again and again to the fire chief, and that there was a response.

The most important reason, as we've heard tonight, is that locating this in this area will not only serve about 12,000 residents, including some who are already located, but we'll add 800 residents who presently live in a dangerous distance from the firehouse, the two and a half uh mile radius needed to save lives in heart attacks, strokes, and fires.

That's people, addresses on Bob Godfrey, Nellie Mays, Lexington Road, Robert Hardeman, Blue Heron, uh, where their response times will be reduced three to almost six minutes, which can make all the difference.

And like the chief said, about 60 percent of the fire responses are from medical emergencies.

I'm gonna link a lot.

We've had a lot of things here, and I do want to ask the the chief to respond to a couple more things, but I'm gonna ask my colleagues to please listen to the recommendation that our fire chief has made to respect his position and expertise.

He is our chief.

If we're not listening to him, we should be talking to our manager about our chief.

And I am I have listened to him very carefully over this different time and asked him tough questions.

So anyway, I asked you all to listen to our chief and support the CDO I presented tonight.

I'd also like to ask the manager if he will ask the chief to respond to a couple of things about the uh that that Commissioner Davin brought up.

I think one of the comments, and I am very familiar with the area was about the the site being at the bottom of the hill.

I'd like to respond to that.

I d um also if the manager's office could talk about the effect on property tax or non-effect on property tax.

Um I appreciate that.

And I am very appreciative of that update, which I for the everyone here, we only received this afternoon.

Um up until now, I mean, I was it was new to me that the um the union had put this in quite a long time ago.

Um I didn't know it was there when it came out.

It was brand new to me, and the fact that uh the amount of money involved with that or anything else, but if the if the chief, if the manager and the mayor and the right protocol is followed to address some of those issues.

Probably your best situated to talk about is the topography of that area, and then I think we can turn to the manager uh about the property value question.

Sure, sure.

Uh so I guess the question about the property itself that the station could sit on.

Obviously, there will have to be some level of development to try to level the terrain to some degree, but our fire trucks have to go up and down hills all the time.

And it's something one of those things that if if if we're having to encumber extra time to get down our driveway, so to speak, we still have to think about the time we're saving by having it located in their proper place.

And it could still take a minute or two if it's located in either direction, you know, versus where we're going to.

I I think one of the the commenters remarked that it was the location was at the bottom of the hill.

Is that correct?

It is at the bottom of the hill on the Lexington.

I uh my understanding was that it was at the top of the far the hill.

So I just wanted to clarify.

I'm not as familiar with the uh I looked at the topos in our discussion, and as you had west, there is an uphill section now.

There is a bit of a gentler run.

So you can build up speed, and this this idea of hills is not foreign to me.

I once was tasked at looking at a piece of land for fire station acquisition.

It was mid-hill on North Avenue, and the prior chief said absolutely not, that would tear up our apparatus, but uh a very different uh terrain.

On the other hand, as you had east, it is a gentler and I believe somewhat downhill run.

Um chief, I don't know if you based on your visits to the site.

If you've seen anything that would cause you concern about the performance of apparatus, not with anything that's been presented to me by the architects and engineers as far as the potential placement on on the on the plat.

Um nothing that's gonna cause me any concern.

I share the same concerns that the previous chief had about the North Avenue situation.

In fact, I've spoken up very vocally about some situations regarding our travel on North Avenue, but this is not something that I would be concerned about and speaking to the uh valuation, very much understand residents' concerns about impacts of sales on on property tax since that's generally how those fair market assessments are determined.

In this case, a government purchase is not viewed by the tax assessor as a uh comparable sale.

So it's classified as a government transaction, and therefore the price that's paid by the unified government does is not relevant to how neighboring properties are assessed on value.

Thanks for that.

I appreciate it, Mr.

Saunders.

Uh anything else, Dr.

Myers before I move on to Commissioner Hambey.

No, unless the unless the chief has any there were a lot of response times that were mentioned by my esteemed colleague.

And I didn't know if you had any comments on those because I was having a it was a little challenging.

Yes, ma'am.

As you as you alluded to, a lot of the the scenarios that were I talked about previous locations, you know, the one in Barneshol's Road, County owned properties and stuff.

We had in previous presentations, which should be in the agenda packet, uh diagrammed the the pros and cons of each location to try to be as objective as possible.

There were pros to every potential location, but there were also cons and drawbacks to some of those, many of which increased the overlap, or it would cause us if we move south further down, it would cause us to remove coverage away from the southeastern portion of the county and put some of our our radius into Oconee County or Oglethorpe County, um, you know, things of that nature.

So those those actually are pictured and illustrated if you needed to thumb through that.

That visual probably could present it better than I could.

Apologize, Commissioner Hamy.

Commissioner Link was second, and then I'll return to you and then Commissioner Cole Pepper.

Um yeah, I I have to trust the chief on this.

Um he is the expert in our community, and um, and I trust the site selection committee, which looked at this over and over again.

We sent it back to them.

Um I believe that those 800 people who would be this covered deserve that coverage.

Um just because you live in a rural community doesn't mean that you should be left out of coverage from the most basic safety services.

Um I understand the the folks that live in the nearby community and their concerns primarily about noise.

Um this is not a volunteer fire station which would project a siren out into the community to have people come from far and wide.

That this is the the alarms would be primarily located within the facility.

Um I also see in this property, and this is a wide open piece of property.

There's only about a dozen or so mature trees on the property.

There is great potential for environmental restoration for improving the environment in that property, um, improving the habitat um, you know, for the neighboring properties for the wildlife, the pollinators, etc.

Um, you know, and and this is just we're tonight we're just voting on the purchase of this particular piece of property.

There will be further considerations for the ex actual design of the facility.

Right now, in that AR zone, somebody could buy that piece of property and build a five-story home and a six-story agricultural structures on it.

Um this is you know, quite frankly, a fairly low impact use.

Fire stations are not huge structures.

Um, you know, I I really am looking forward to this process moving forward as designs are considered and community input is taken on those designs to build something that really fits in in that community and is really successful in mitigating any impacts that the surrounding neighborhoods might be concerned about.

Commissioner Hammond.

Sure, sure.

Thank you, Mayor.

I appreciate it.

And I just want to say uh respond to something that was said, and I I want the folks here also uh to hear this that um you know Chief Moss is our chief.

But the fact that he is our chief doesn't mean we always have to agree.

You know, I want the folks here tonight to know that we're listening to them as well.

Uh and we're also listening to the chief, but uh but uh it was said he's our chief, we need to listen to him, he's our expert.

It's our job to raise questions.

It's the citizens' jobs to bring us those questions to raise.

So I just want to make that clear.

I don't want to make anybody feel uncomfortable for having raised the questions that have been raised tonight about the location and about the the site of this thing.

As a matter of fact, the previous chief uh argued against uh us unionizing the the fire the fire department, but we went against that advice and did that.

So there are there are precedents that uh we do as a body to to uh to accept the advice, except and listen to what the folks are saying.

And uh and you know, my point tonight is I am looking at the 800 people that aren't being serviced.

I am listening to the advice, and I'm also listening to the concerns.

Uh you know, the ISO rating affects all of the community, not just not just not just uh old Lexington Road and Morton and the 800 people, it impacts the total community.

So uh so all that said, I think our job is to raise questions and factor that into our our decision making and factor in uh the concerns of of the residents that other other commissioners and we all support.

Commissioner Culpepper.

Um yes, so Matt, um Commissioner Davenport's uh comment about a holistic um like a master plan.

Have we ever looked at doing anything like that based on the projected growth in these areas?

I mean, how that would affect these response times.

Um, you know, if we're talking about the intersection of Morton Road and Lexington Road with projected growth, how would that look?

And that's these maps aren't showing that.

Is that correct?

Okay, those those maps are are strictly concurrent, yes, sir.

Yes, sir.

They're they're not projected uh uh of growth basically to answer your question.

So with the risk assessment, such as the IFF cut conducted, and we've conducted our own risk assessments within the past two or three years.

We do try to factor that in as well as you know the population um reports as they update.

Um we also are looking through the fire marshal's office of where people are building.

Uh we you know have plans that we have to approve.

We have uh you know um uh facilities that are being erected every day.

We have to make sure that we are keeping up with that information as far as how we operationally will uh respond.

Um so that is something that we're factoring in along with planning department, along with um GIS uh information that we can get from our own internal resources as well.

Uh so those are discussions that we that we have as far as a master plan.

Um there to my knowledge, there's not one that exists that would holistically say, okay, 25 years from now, these are where fire stations have to be.

Um, but we try to at least be a little more uh uh short term with the the vision and then long term with the planning.

So we do we do uh try to stay reactive to what what the the growth uh patterns are in the community, yes, sir.

Some additional information on that point, Commissioner Speaker.

Yeah, and if I may, um about 10 years ago, this body was having a similar amount of soul searching on whether or not to move fire station two outside the loop from Mitchell Bridge.

And for those of you that were on it, it was a tense and at times unpopular decision.

And while the growth in on both areas has changed substantially, one thing that I'll point out that isn't really easy to factor into a master plan is the amount of uh road work that's happening now with Georgia DOT that actually creates a bit of a severance there uh at the 10 loop and therefore impacts response time.

And is that a perpetual condition?

No, but it is something that matters to people that are having an emergency now out off Cleveland Road or further west.

Specific to your question, I think there's probably some opportunities before us.

So if we look in the agenda packet, you'll see the age of fire stations.

We have two additional fire stations by age alone that are approaching uh late 40s and age, um, fire station one, which is downtown, fire station six.

Those need to be in the next floss referendum, just plain and simple.

Um, and so one thing that we can maybe engage with our staff and the IAFF in is knowing what we know today, taking a 50-year horizon, if we were to move those stations, what would be some target areas?

And to uh Commissioner Davenpoint's point, there's a world where communities buy land plus years ahead of where they're gonna build their fire stations because they've been strategic about what they need.

And and so I I think we can we can start on uh that kind of planning.

If you were looking for kind of a comprehensive plan, we would need to start with parameters, and one of those would be what appetite is there to grow the number of stations, apparatus, or staff, because that's gonna be a key factor in how those assessments are done.

So in areas where there's we have existing um fire stations and we have more growth there, do we have capacity to add on or increase the size of those fire stations?

We may not necessarily need to increase the size of those existing stations as long as we're able to accommodate the apparatus and the extra personnel.

So the apparatus and personnel are really what the key of those situations are as far as the densely populated areas.

So is our stations that are more centrally located, obviously within the the 10 loop and closer to the downtown area, those are the ones that run multiple companies out of each station.

As long as we're able to accommodate that sort of growth, which we're trying to add staffing to existing trucks now, as well as you know, existing stations without having to create a need for new development, so to speak.

Yes, sir.

Commissioner Cole Pepper, anything else?

Thank you.

All right, Commissioner John uh Fisher rather.

Thank you, Mayor.

A couple of questions.

So do we own any land?

I'm I keep hearing this.

Do we own any land in proximity to what we can put a um fire station?

The government own any land that will be suitable for the fire station.

That's been sort of put out there.

I believe our closest ownership would be the Cedar Creek wastewater facility near Dobbs Road.

Um I can't speak directly to how site selection viewed that, but I know it was considered yes, sir.

It was not considered because it actually increases our overlap between stations five and seven, and it removes coverage from the southeastern portion of the county, which we're actually trying to move in the direction of.

It actually worked in reverse.

So that's by the intersection of Whit Davis and Barnett Shoals.

Okay.

And my second question in the elephant in the room.

How do we negotiate the um initially 487,000 dollars, you know, for you know, I mean, we're paying well, way of more amount of money than what that property is worth.

So how do we get to that?

You know, what was the do we use a real estate agent to help us or did staff do the negotiation?

So those were staff-led negotiations based on some prior discussions with the commission.

We had made an offer to a resident down the road at around 50,000 an acre.

Uh that offer was to eventually declined.

And that resident had started with some interest, so it was uh kind of an arm's length mutual negotiation.

We looked at some of the commercial properties that have been discussed uh near Lexington Road that were trading for as high as 80,000 an acre.

That kind of set our upper limit.

We looked at what the total land acquisition budget was, and then under um interim leadership, including my own, we made kind of our best shot at those properties, knowing that if it was not those three, after doing site selection multiple times, if it was not those three, we were either going to have to completely revisit site selection under new assumptions or consider whether or not this body had an appetite for something like condemnation, which is not easy to do when you're talking about full parcels and multiple parcels can meet those same needs.

You then have to justify why you took Andrew's and not Sarah's.

And so we we just came out of the gate with our kind of our best offer and one of three that were all offered similar amounts per acre accepted.

Thank you.

Commissioner Johnson.

Thank you, Mayor.

I have several thoughts and some questions, maybe maybe not a question, but several thoughts.

So I hear there are um just general rhetoric about the right thing and the obvious um best thing to do, and I don't think some of these decisions are as obvious.

So there was a comment about you know, trusting our chief.

Chief Moss, I know you don't take this personally.

This is not about trusting our chief, and I can give you examples.

You we didn't trust our chief, our police chief in 2016, um Scott Freeman, when he said we needed take home vehicles, it would increase and reduce the vacancy rate, but increase the people and this and the morale.

We did not trust our sheriff for the last five years when they when he asked, and he pretty much begged for an increase with um the salaries so the vacancy wouldn't continue to plummet.

We just of course corrected maybe this year.

We'll see.

We didn't trust central services.

Um they are they are um focused on HVAC and and also they are focused primarily on roofs, but we have we still have challenges.

We didn't trust internet technology until recently.

It took them forever to get a sufficient budget for security measures when every other county has security breaches.

We did not trust our judges.

When it was the number to actually establish a new courthouse, build a new courthouse.

It was the number one project on the SPLAS 2020 pro 2020 program.

We do not trust our judges when there was early conversations about general parcels that they would accept.

So to say we should trust, I I I think is I think we want to, but sometimes it doesn't work out that way.

This is politics, and I don't like it, but I just wanted just be clear that some of that politics is happening tonight.

I do agree with Commissioner Davenport and others about the spliced process.

It is backwards.

I compare our government to other counties, and I and and it is backwards, it is laborious, it's long, it's unexplainable, and it projects go over budget.

And there are a lot of things we can't explain to our own constituents because the process is complicated, and I'm not sure if that's baked into the backwards process.

And when it comes to the site selection committee, I recall a commissioner getting fired up about the planning commission last year, taking a stance on their recommendations.

Everybody find with more time for Commissioner Johnson.

I just need about 30 seconds.

So we sometimes don't trust our volunteer-led residents who serve in their own free time on these committees, and they take the time to understand, learn, and make the recommendations to us.

So this is not about trust.

This is about I am people over politics every single day.

It is about for me, it is about quality of life.

And I would like to ask this, I guess I do have one question, and I can receive the answer later.

If this, if Commissioner Davenport's recommendation motion is approved, what is the alternative for the fire department?

Thank you, Mayor.

Well, I mean that's a tangible question, so I want to turn to assistant manager Andrew Sanders just to ask should this opportunity not be accepted, what would the alternative be from a staff perspective?

I think our next step would be to engage with this body and the site selection committee to understand exactly what revised criteria you are looking for, and specifically if there's a geographic zone that's a no, we need to be very clear about that.

Um because we've already tried one set of facts-based criteria, it's been tweaked upon reassignment of this body, and each time it's yielded the same outcomes.

And so we can keep asking different versions of those questions and getting the same answer, or um we can ask different questions to get to a different set of answers.

Thank you.

Mayor, can I ask one more question?

Well, I've got uh we certainly have time for a second round.

Um I do have uh Commissioner Davenport and Myers on top now return to you.

So we were asked where can we put the Athens Clark County East Library at?

We were told over and over and over and over again from staff, professional from I grew up here, I beg for what I asked that question a thousand different times.

But we're told no, we can't put it on gangs go wrong.

Developer comes in, I want to build this intrusive to me, housing, development, it's approved.

I'm not denying staff.

I'm just questioning.

Secondly, um, like when it comes to I'm surprised.

I get it.

You know, we need this fire station, even in the radius.

This is what's been killing me.

It is hard to find residents, even on Morton Road.

There are people all the way up to Timmer Ridge and Carriton and Bar H who are like complaining about this.

And you know, I could be a leader and be like, yeah, you know what, just put it at 4730.

But so many residents are though, just like I keep telling y'all this, they buy into it.

They buy into this quality of life that they want to preserve.

My mom is 85 years old, and I try to take care of her.

One of the first things I ran on was the fact that we need faster response time.

So this station at 4730 will benefit me, but I have to listen to these people.

They are my neighbors.

They live right next door to me.

Even the prominent people who live within the circle are like, I'm like, why don't y'all speak out?

Why don't you tell the commission?

They're like, no, we don't want to buy heads with nobody.

But at the same time, all I'm just saying is if you look at a map, there's still some areas that are deserved.

And if you look at station six, not station two, if station six, uh, hopefully I got it right.

Um, the Winter Virgin Fire Station is going to be moved.

We just heard it.

Let's do a holistic plan.

But if anything, if we're gonna pay three times more for a piece of property, let's just be consistent.

That's all I gotta say.

Uh Commissioner Myers.

Yeah.

Um, I obviously this this is a political process, and we're all gonna vote, and whatever the result of the vote is moving forward, we will move with that.

That's that's understood.

Um I do want to address the the trusting of staff in the sense that uh, you know, this whole government runs on relationships between people who are working together all the time.

I obviously am not talking about blind trust, and I would expect that my colleagues know me enough to know that I am not blindly trusting.

I ask questions month after month, week after week, and I asked many, many questions of the fire chief and pushed him.

I also would like to say that I was hoping that this communic com uh commission defined option incorporated some of the concerns of the residents.

So I would also like to respond that I I hopefully you realize that I have been listening by incorporating those and by answering emails, perhaps not all of them.

It's been a busy time, but responding to also phone calls as well.

Um so I do do try to listen to the to the residents, but also weigh the way the needs of the larger community and it's a larger community.

People don't show up because they don't think they're gonna have a heart attack, they don't think they're gonna have a fire.

I don't think I am, but when it's that when that something happens, I want that fire response time there.

And and that's that's really all I have to say on that.

Um I very much appreciate people coming in, and I hope that we can address this in this commission to find option.

Um and and ultimately I would I would say that trust in our staff is important and that if we all have problems with our staff, that we need to address those.

You know, that that was not something that came up again and again at the two-day retreat we had um last week.

So we need to, if these are major concerns, I ask my colleagues to bring them up in public situations where we can discuss trust of our staff.

Um right now I I have listened to the chief, and hopefully a lot of the community has listened to him, asked him questions and looked at responses.

Ultimately the decision is something that's going to be made by my colleagues here, and so I'll I'll leave it to them with the $50,000 in reduction from the price.

Any additional input from the body?

I do appreciate everybody in the community coming out tonight, appreciate the uh lengthy, lengthy uh series of conversations that this body has had, both an executive session and an open session.

Um I understand that decisions of this magnitude can take a great gravity.

Um but I do I think understand that one of the things that's most important to us is that we project ahead years and decades in the life of the community.

That's part of what we're entrusted to do as policymakers and elected officials.

Um while this is a certainly rural part of the community, I think somebody said earlier that i it's important that every member of the community has protection.

Uh it's among the most baseline things we do in local government.

Uh and uh sadly, uh I had an uncle who um just three weeks ago uh had a very significant accident on his farm uh in Madison County, uh just to the north of here.

Um fire station uh is on highway 172 in very rural Madison County, and and I was grateful that there was very rapid response just a mile away uh in much the same way that I I hope for rapid response for everybody who lives on Morton Road and Robert Hardeman Road and Double Bridges Road.

Um and so I certainly advocate to this body um to accept the good work that Commissioner Myers has done in understanding that there are some design concerns, some aesthetic concerns um uh that that can be built into any project that the public does.

Um and I think we can do that here.

Uh we'll remind everybody that under any circumstances there will be another cut at this when it comes to design, and we will have the opportunity to integrate those things that we see as necessary uh in a future vote.

So uh I'd ask the clerk to call roll on the substitute motion uh from Commissioner Myers and move around the room.

Myers, yes, Handy?

Yes.

That important?

No.

Link, yes, Taylor.

Yes.

Right?

Yes.

Fisher?

No.

Johnson.

No.

Yes.

Six yes and three no.

All right.

Motion carries uh six to three.

Um we'll go ahead and take a 10-minute break and then we'll continue with the rest of our agenda.

Thank you, everybody.

Welcome back, welcome back.

We are here for the monthly voting meeting of the Athens Clark County Mayor Commission after a little break.

We're going to return to all the new business with item number twenty-three, which is Peace Plus twenty twenty-three project twenty-six, the West Broad and Hancock neighborhood pedestrian improvement program.

So in the interest of public transparency, I want to go ahead and hold it so we can make sure it gets in the packet next month so the public has a chance to to read it and fully digest it.

So uh motion to hold 23.

Is there a second?

Second.

All right, got a motion from Commissioner Link to hold, second from Commissioner Davenport.

Uh Commissioner Davenport, any remarks?

Yes, so I did give a chance to read the um CDR.

I did not understand it.

Can you explain Commissioner Lee, the PV, the can we do this next month?

Yeah, let's do this at agenda setting.

Yeah, we'll talk about it.

Oh, let's do it when we have it in front of us.

Okay, yeah.

All right.

So motion and a second to hold.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

Sorry.

All right, hearing non motion cares.

That's all right.

I appreciate the enthusiasm.

All right.

Uh item 24 is the Hawthorne Avenue and Oglethorpe Avenue intersection improvement project.

This is right away acquisition and uh resolution regarding eminent domain uh to uh improve the safety at that intersection.

Do I hear a motion regarding this?

I want can I hold that too, Mayor?

And the reason being, well, two things and I'm not sure, and that that's on me staff, so I apologize.

Um I still been trying to get in touch with the owner.

I'm having difficulty trying to um I've been by that several times, can't get any response, have called, left messages.

So I want to give it one more shot.

I do want to know with the CDS property.

Are we anywhere close with them?

Have we had any response from CBS?

Uh believe we've got uh Ronnie Kentre from Transportation Public Works.

Good to see you, sir.

Sure, good to see you too.

Good evening.

Yes, uh, we had some correspond some correspondence with them.

However, the issue we had is that their attorney team or the person representing their attorney was sick for an extended period of time.

So it wasn't it wasn't clear to us when that's gonna be closed.

And uh having new attorney, this may take sometimes a longer time.

So we want to show them that we are serious, and if you know you don't get your team up uh on their A game, you know, we need to move forward because we do have a timeline on the project.

The take from CVS is very minor, it doesn't impact their parking or their business.

It's literally in the uh sidewalk area in front of their business.

That piece I get, but because they're a corporate entity, um I don't want to have this fight.

You know, and again, it is minor what they're looking at.

We're looking at what we're trying to get, but I don't want us to get into this corporate fight with them.

So that's why I asked a question about CBS.

I'm gonna do my darnest though to try to get into what the owner of the convenience store.

And again, I I just need to engage him and let him uh have y'all had contact with him.

We had contact, and I'll be more than happy to facilitate some contact information for you.

Okay, thank you.

Okay.

So can we hold uh the motion good good good news?

Next items uh next month's agenda is uh fairly brief.

So add a couple items.

Not so painful.

Pull the motion on the floor.

Motion on the floor to hold.

Is there a second?

Second.

All right, I've got a second from Commissioner Taylor.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

All right, hearing none, motion carries.

Thank you.

All right, uh 25 is the GOC report um recommending updates to the board authority and commission procedures.

I know there was earlier discussion of this.

Commissioner Davenport, do you want to add anything to the prior conversation?

We've made some scriptures errors and and we need direction from the body.

And we can do a CDO because it was literally saying what direction we wanted to go in when it comes to recommendation, some of the recommendations is small, and my will it will only take like two minutes for us and the GLC to fix.

So motion to move, uh put on a whole would you like to return this to GOC for another cycle?

All right.

So uh uh motion to return to GOC and then uh return to the body following.

That's correct from Commissioner Davenport.

Is there a second?

Second.

All right, I got a second from Commissioner Wright.

All right, all in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

Hearing none, motion carries.

All right.

Uh following up, we've got an LRC report regarding the noise ordinance recommendation in the AR zone, a long-desired movement.

Commissioner Myers, any further remarks on this one?

Just said I want to support Commissioner Davenport's CDO on this, which re reduces the uh audible, no automal noise distance to 0.25 miles, a quarter of a mile after 11 rather than a half a mile was in the original one.

So um is that can I make a motion to approve that?

Please do.

Yeah, let me make a motion to approve Commissioner Davenport CDO.

All right, so uh motion to approve the agenda item with the reduction in distance from Commissioner Myers, second from Commissioner Davenport.

Uh Commissioner Myers, any further remarks?

No further remarks.

I think we've we've addressed what we needed to, and uh we are busy addressing the next part of our noise ordinance um for downtown areas.

So um, you know, thanks to the LRC and the staff who are working on that.

We'll be moving forward in another moving from the actual cattle to the downtown cattle call.

Yeah.

All right.

Uh Commissioner Davenport, any further remarks?

Thank LRC.

Please, police department enforce.

It's now in the AR zone.

If AR zone residents um have any nuisance.

Any further remarks?

All uh there's an ordinance.

We're gonna go ahead and have that read.

It's to amend the code of Athens, Clark County, George with respect to general noise control and for other purposes.

All right.

Um appreciate the work on this.

I know it's been a long time coming.

It's gonna be really impactful for residents uh of the AR zone.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

Hearing none, motion carries.

All right.

Uh 27 is an update to the neighborhood leaders' performance metrics.

Uh can I hear a motion regarding this?

So move.

Second.

All right.

I've got a motion from Commissioner Wright and a second from Commissioner Fisher.

Commissioner Wright, any further remarks?

Uh no, I just appreciate the details that are coming forward and I look forward to the February update when the improved dashboard is in full swing.

Commissioner Fisher.

Um Commissioner Wright's comments, yes.

Anyone else?

All right, appreciate the work of the neighborhood leaders, appreciate their leadership being here tonight.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

All right, hearing none, motion carries.

All right.

Uh item 28 is the Classic City Heights Affordable Housing Cooperative Agreement.

Very glad to hear that uh DCA has given us the green light.

Do I hear a motion on this?

So moved.

Second.

All right, here a motion for approval from Commissioner Myers, and a second from Commissioner Taylor.

Commissioner Myers, anything else?

Yeah, I I just want to say I read this and I said this is just what our affordable housing investment strategy and our affordable housing fund are supposed to do.

We're establishing a local, we we established the local housing fund.

We're using some of those sourced uh dollars from that to build and preserve quality affordable rental how homes through the the GAAP financy for the Lyka project.

So I'm really pleased to see this.

There's 688, no, 688, sorry, 68 affordable housing units, and this is for seniors here, so I am I'm really glad we can uh be doing what we need to do here.

There's also some other uh parts to it, the uh payment in lieu of taxes, um, and some I think there's also something with the water, right?

The water connection.

So uh a reduction there that they can apply for um or are getting, or we're giving them in this.

So I'm I'm really happy to be supporting this.

Anything else, Commissioner Taylor?

Um I I feel the same way.

Um Commissioner Myers did it.

It was good to be a part of the committee who um went through all the things, some learning things, and I'm glad to see it on the agenda and getting approved.

Any further remarks?

Commissioner Culpepper.

Yes, I'm glad to see this get uh getting through.

This provides a good roadmap for us to do future um affordable housing projects.

Like Commissioner Myers said, utilizing the money that we've put aside uh for for affordable housing that we have not been able to use.

Absolutely.

Walk it like a talk it.

All right.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

All right, hearing none.

Uh any post?

Apologize.

Hear none, motion carries.

All right, uh, item twenty-nine, uh, more affordable units in the North Downtown Athens project.

This is the intergovernmental agreement for phase two.

Long underway.

Really appreciate all the hard work from staff from the Athens Housing Authority, from our uh other development partners.

Uh do I hear a motion?

So moved.

Second.

All right, I've got a motion from Commissioner Myers.

Second from Commissioner Link.

Commissioner Myers, any other remarks?

Likewise, this is another project, and I believe all of this is for um you know, for people at either 30 percent, 60 percent, or 70 percent AMI when it's done.

Um I I did have some questions just for clarification here.

Um maybe I was reading off the wrong one on that one.

So I it's just for for low-income folks.

I was reading the wrong the wrong item in terms of those numbers.

But in terms of this one, uh the we're doing a little um you know, financing here where we are borrowing money from our single family affordable housing fund 700,000 and 400 from the for the from the acquisition strike fund, and then we plan on paying it back with our future inclusionary zoning payments.

And if I'm understanding that correctly, and I was wondering uh what the um time frame, what the expected time frame on that repayment is previously this body voted on an IGA with the Athens Downtown Development Authority focusing on the redevelopment of the graduate project.

That uh IgA stipulates the if further approved by the commission that that developer will participate in inclusionary zoning, including payment and lie compliance.

Uh the manager's office and staff in partnership with the attorney's office continue to work on that development agreement.

We anticipate that it'll return to you all in December for consideration.

Uh at this point we uh are anticipating that if that is continues to be approved by this body and move forward that you would see more than seven million dollars of payment and loo fees generated from that project.

So that is a known project on the horizon.

If that is not approved by this body or otherwise does not move forward.

At this point, there are no other known projects, but that doesn't mean that they they won't emerge over the coming months or year.

And at what point in the process do you get that money?

Does it is it like when it's all done or so we we execute a written agreement prior to permit issuance that that that solidifies the payment and lower the compliance approach and that payment must be paid prior to certificate of occupancy.

So you would be looking on that particular project that I spoke to, certificates of occupancy being available around 28.

2028 three years from now.

Yes, ma'am.

Commissioner Hambi.

Sure.

And I'm trying to remember the motion when we made that uh motion that that you refer to with that particular project.

And I know we uh voted to put 100 percent of the TAC uh the TAD allocations to uh inner East and within the entry statins area part of the TAD.

Did we not do that with also the inclusionary zoning part?

You're almost there.

The commission defined option stipulated that a minimum of half of any payment and leave fees would land in two census tracts, but notably those census tracts are not inside the loop.

They are the further furthest most east census tracts within Clark County, and so there is the ability to serve both that CDO and this recommendation by staff within that same project certainly again.

If that project is not advanced by the commission, then the CDO is a moot point, but this would remain a bit of an accounting placeholder for our staff.

Now I'm remembering the the two census tracts cover cover a majority of enter East Athens.

And I guess I guess it covers part of this as well.

I I want to caution, I'll be happy to have a conversation with you and anybody else outside of this.

The census tracts that are named are Winterville along the easternmost county bounty boundary south to the Barnett Shoals area.

I think you're gonna have to check that because I know we talked to uh with an attorney Drake about being specific about the we'll be happy to double check our records.

It certainly could always be subject of a future motion.

Sure.

Right, yeah.

Okay.

Because that that that wasn't the intent if that's okay.

Any other questions about uh North Downtown?

Uh I I do want to confirm something I believe about this project, and and I know uh Ms.

Chris from the housing authority is in the room.

Uh I believe that upon completion of this phase two, all of the former Bethel residents will be housed in new units.

Is that am I stating that correctly?

Uh the phase two will have 70 units for the PBRE and then 70 for the tax credit.

Um with moving everyone over the expectation is to house all residents.

Okay, good.

I appreciate that very much.

Thank you.

Uh all right.

Any further comments or questions about that?

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

All right, hearing none, motion carries.

All right.

Uh item 30 is the uh water and wastewater connection fee exemption for substantial economic development and employment growth project in the in the miserable project.

Do I hear a motion?

So move.

So move.

All right, here a motion from Commissioner Fisher.

I'll give Commissioner Culpepper the second.

No, I um that sees this happening, so we would so they can get mines going and help them with the um water and wastewater connection fees and move that project for you.

Commissioner Culpepper.

Likewise.

We've got an orders from attorney Drake.

Or it's to waive water and wastewater connection fees for that certain project located at 1315 Spring Valley Road and further lawful purposes.

All right.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Are there any opposed?

Hearing none, motion carries.

All right.

Um we have two items of new business, 31 and 32.

I need a motion for suspension of rules to consider those.

So move second.

All right, I've got a motion from Commissioner Taylor.

Second from Commissioner Hambey.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

All right.

Hearing none, motion carries.

Uh item 31 is a first amendment to the 2025-2026 School Resource Officer Agreement, just so that the agreement language comes into concert with state law.

So move.

I've got a motion from Commissioner Wright.

Is there a second?

Second.

All right.

Second from Commissioner Hambey.

Commissioner Wright, any remarks?

Commissioner Hamby.

Anyone else?

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed.

All right.

Item 32 is wait for it.

Appointment of a new clerk of commission.

I'd uh uh ask Mayor Pro Tem uh Commissioner Fisher to um speak to this and place the motion on the floor.

Thank you, Mayor.

I make a motion to appoint and approve Miss Christine Howe as the clerical commission for the unified government in Athens Clark County, Georgia, effective November 3rd, 2025.

Ms.

How it will perform the duties sit forth in section 4-10 of the charter.

As part of this motion, I request that the mayor be authorized to sign an employment contract between Ms.

Howard and Unified Government sending the terms of Ms.

Howard employment as clerk of commission.

Second.

All right, I've got a motion from Commissioner Fisher.

Second from Commissioner Link.

Commissioner Fisher, any further remarks?

I just want to um thank my colleagues for going through this process and um being able to um select um Ms.

Howe for the position.

Um glad to know she's uh um being with the um county for over 30 years, she's got institutional knowledge.

We think she's gonna be a great access to the office, and uh we're really looking forward to working with her.

Commissioner Link.

Yeah, we um we had a great process.

Commissioner Fisher and Wright and I um went through applications and um Christine is an obvious choice in in that she has the experience and institutional knowledge, and um we apologize to the mayor for stealing her away from you.

Anyone else want to offer apology?

I will accept that at this point.

No, I I I I will say um I I will miss having one of the best work partners I've I've ever had in my life.

Um being directly uh next door to my desk in uh in Christine Howard, but but I know that she's gonna be an enormous asset uh to the entire county and this entire organization in that role as clerk of commission.

And so uh for the greater good, I accept what is before us now.

So uh we do have a motion, a second on the floor.

Attorney Drake, is there an ordinance associated with this or no?

No, all in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed.

All right, hearing none, motion carries.

Uh all right.

Uh now is that time as promised earlier when we do hear public input on any item not on tonight's agenda.

Those rules of public input are the same as previously discussed.

A three-minute opportunity.

We do have that lovely light in front of you that will begin uh will turn green when you begin speaking, yellow when you have 30 seconds remaining, and red when your three minutes is up.

And I do know we have a member of the commission who's uh under the weather and going to take care of herself.

So I hope you have a good night, uh, Commissioner Wright.

Um again, please state your name and uh the three minutes is yours.

Thank you.

Hi, Mayor Gertz and Clark County Commissioners.

My name is Catherine Schinholzer.

My address is 510 Sandstone Drive.

I've lived in Athens for 20 years.

I moved here to attend UGA in 2005, and I never left.

I taught elementary school in Clark County for 13 years, and my children clerk currently attend Clark County schools.

I tell you this because I want you to know that this is my home, and being part of this community is immensely important to me.

I love this town, I love my neighbors, and that's why I'm here today.

I take a lot of things for granted in my daily life.

I fill up my kids' water bottles in the morning before school.

I turn on the water to run their baths or to help them brush their teeth at night.

I can do a clip, a quick load of laundry when my daughter wants her favorite dress ready for school the next day, or my son needs his soccer jersey clean for soccer.

I can turn on the water for that last sip of water before bed.

And I tell you all this because not everyone in our community has access to clean water all of the time.

I want to speak to all of you about the water crisis happening in the Pinewoods community right now.

There are 385 families on the land, including 291 students who attend Clark County schools.

It is a privately owned property, but the land is within Athens Clark County.

The families there do not have reliable access to clean water.

They don't know if they will lose clean water for hours at a time or on what days.

Whether that is mixing formula in a bottle for a baby, running bath water, washing school uniforms, uh boiling water to make dinner, washing dishes, taking medicine, or simply to drink.

I don't think that access to clean water should be a privilege.

Um but that's where we are right now, and I'm not here to yell or get angry.

I'm only here to ask for help from our mayor, from our commissioners, um, and everyone who resides in Athens Clark County.

And I want us to work together to figure out a solution to this.

I want to figure out a way to connect the residents in Pinewoods to the city water supply.

And I'm not here to say that this is rainbows and sunshine and it's an easy process.

I know that.

I'm not discounting that I know that this is an expensive process and that what I'm asking for is not easy.

I know that.

But I firmly believe that if we can all work together, we can figure it out.

Um I also have a petition signed by over 700 of our neighbors in Clark County asking you to prioritize helping Pinewoods get connected to city water.

Um, and this just so shows that the wider community is invested in our neighbors.

Um it's 2025, and everyone deserves access to clean water every day.

Um, and I hope that we can all work together to make that happen.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you, Ms.

Shindhal, sir.

Yeah.

Good evening.

Good evening.

Um my name is Angela Lynn.

I'm a student at UGA.

And I live at 355 River Bend Parkway.

Um I am here today to also request Pinewoods estates to be connected to the city water supply.

As a student studying public health, I've learned about the histories of towns like Pinewoods and how not having access to water can lead to detrimental effects such as increased risk of disease and poor health outcomes.

It's shocking to hear that these things are still happening today and so locally.

With me, I have a few quotes from current Pinewoods residents.

I have my daughters, and it's always more difficult with girls at home and not having water.

Water is vital, it is important and necessary.

All families should have water every day.

Pinewood North should always have water available.

It is difficult to have to store water in advance.

Sometimes we don't want to be at home when there is no water.

This other quote explains another resident's difficulties with daily activities.

Sometimes water is cut off once a week, and other times three times a week.

It's not fair.

It is neither a lot, it is part of life.

I cannot cook or bathe comfortably.

The bathrooms go unused due to lack of water.

With conditions like these, residents are not properly able to live their lives.

Athens is home to numerous individuals, and we all deserve an equal chance at living, starting with adequate access to water.

Thank you.

Thank you, Miss Land.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Daria Kalantari, and I live at 120 Winter Circle.

Um, and I'm just here in support too tonight of Pinewoods community.

Um, my first time being up here to speak, and uh I want to ask for the mayor and commission's help um to come up with a creative solution.

Uh a lot of us are just kind of regular everyday people, um, and we're not entirely sure what steps can be done, what can be taken, so if we could get that help if some kind of meetings, um we really appreciate guidance and help on this situation.

I really appreciate your time.

Thank you.

Thank you, Dora.

Good evening.

Good evening, everyone.

Uh, my name's Hudson Barthes.

I'm a PhD student and UGA psychology department, uh, which means I'm usually up at this hour and every other hour.

Um my wife and I have been over here for just a year now, and we've owned nothing but love and acceptance from those around us.

In our short time here, we've begun setting our roots and meeting our community.

And tonight I also want to highlight um some of the voices of the community members in need, uh desperate need for your assistance.

As you have heard so far, there is a water crisis happening in the Pinewoods community.

And I'm using my time to present a first-hand experience of one of our neighbors living through the absence of what we take for granted.

Water.

For eight hours at a time.

That's a third of the day, a full shift of work, a good night's sleep, one full drive to visit my family in Biloxi, uh, round trip from here to Chattanooga, even if you stop at Bucky's.

Um as you hear your this quote, I want you to please imagine you and your neighbor's shoes.

A few months ago, water was cut off daily from 7 a.m.

to 3 p.m.

We don't get any notice.

The office says it sends us emails, but we don't have an email.

Now it happens at least one day a week from 7 a.m.

to 3 p.m.

It's difficult for cooking and for bathrooms.

Hygiene is very important to us.

We have asked for help, but since it doesn't affect people directly, since they don't live here, we only get apologies, and that's it.

There are more than 300 families living in this area.

We just hope we can get help soon.

Now please amplify that across the over 300 families living there.

Young parents with newborns, single mothers getting our kids ready through high school, elderly couples living on their own.

As Catherine said, we're here to find a way to work together to figure out how to connect these residents in Pinewoods to a city water supply.

It may not be easy, but we have the community at the doorstep ready to work with you.

Thank you all for your time and please don't hesitate to reach out.

Thank you, Hudson.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Elizabeth Bettingfield.

I live on Macon Avenue.

I'm here tonight with Catherine and the other folks to ask you to please find a way to get the residents of Pinewoods connected to the ACC public water system.

Each of us making this request has a different perspective on the situation.

You've heard from some of the residents as well.

My perspective is that of a registered professional civil engineer.

I've worked in Athens for almost 20 years, and in that time I've been a part of dozens of waterline extensions and improvement projects, including two spee loss projects with ACC public utilities.

I'll resist the urge to axe poetic about the importance of water in the development of human civilization.

Instead, I'll add a few technical facts to what you've already heard.

The Pinewoods water system is fed by well.

It's privately owned and privately maintained.

The distribution system is aging and it requires frequent repairs that cause hours-long outages.

And there is a 10-inch ACC main on Highway 29, less than 500 feet away from the Pinewoods development.

It is very easy to see why this problem has slipped through the cracks for so long.

The problem appears to be small.

The residents lose water for a few hours and then they get it back.

But the next month, the next week, sometimes the next day, the water is out again and again and again.

And this has been going on for 20 years.

This is not a small problem.

To get reliable service to the residents, the existing system will have to be replaced entirely, or a new system will have to be installed alongside the existing one.

There's concerns about space because a new sanitary sewer system was just installed a few years ago.

There's concerns about cross-contamination with the well-fed system.

Unfortunately, we are not coming with solutions.

We are begging for help.

It's not a small problem, but with your help, I know that we can solve it.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms.

Bennett Field.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Evan Russian, and I stand before you today, not just as a member of this community, but as a voice for the families in the Pinewoods community.

Whose kids attend our local schools.

So the issue we are discussing is not a new challenge that we just appear in our doorstep.

The truth is that families of Pinewood have been wrestling with a fellow water system for nearly two decades, as everybody mentioned.

Since 2004.

So for 20 years, these residents have been lived with the anxiety of obsolete infrastructure that frequently breaks down, leaving them without water, sometimes for hours, like I was mentioned before, sometimes it takes two or three days.

Meanwhile, all the surrounding neighbors, neighborhoods are connected to the municipality to the water system and the city water, and don't have to deal with uh with this nightmare.

It's an acceptable reality that due to the rapid growth and focus on other areas of our population, this critical issue has not been addressed with the urgency it deserves.

And I understand and respect that Pinewood is a private area, that current owners are aware of the problem and are actively trying to make improvements.

But share scope and cost of connecting to the city system far exceed their private capacity to fix a systematic failure of the of this magnitude.

Sorry.

This is where we as a unified governing body must step into the into provide support and partnership needed to finalize transition, these families to a secure water city system.

If we truly believe in providing safe low-cost housing to our community, then we must ensure that low cost doesn't mean low quality of life.

We must consider that immediate human impact.

When we talk about water, we are talking about the health of our kids and our elders, who are must uh vulnerable to the public health laymer that result from inadequate sanitation and uncertain water supplies.

In the meantime, when so many of our neighbors are already struggling, facing job losses, rubbing food insecurity and trying to navigate life without health insurance, the absence of something as fundamental as water makes everything a worse.

So we have an opportunity to remove this one enormous barrier and demonstrate our commitment to equity and public well-being.

So this is not a matter of jurisdiction.

It is a matter of community commitment.

So Pinewood sit under the jurisdiction of Athens Glad County, and connecting them to the city's water infrastructure will guarantee a consistent, safe supply for all its residents.

So let's commit today to work together on a solution that connects Pinewood to our city water system.

Thank you, Ms.

Rashid.

I don't know how that works, but let's make it happen.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Good evening.

Hello, I'm Chim Willie.

I live in Winterville.

And I wanted to bring up my comment because my item is not on the agenda, and uh I'm not able to be here for the next session.

So this is regarding the proposed uh delay and rerouting of the firefly trail.

So uh in 2020, during the pandemic, my daughter and I sold our house in Forest Heights, and we spent our days doing a historically correct renovation on my Winterville North Main Street property.

In March 2021, we opened our Airbnb using the front two rooms of our home.

My plan has always been to be a landing spot for cyclists and trail enthusiasts.

I love bike trails, and I'm not going to go over all the ones that I've ridden, but I've written quite a few.

So I've been waiting five years for the Winterville to Athens link to open.

The citizens of Athens, Clark County, and ACC Commission voted and had their say four years ago, and I've been waiting.

I was overjoyed to see trees cleared along Spring Valley Road, and now we're facing some kind of a last-dish effort to reroute this after all the engineering work has been done.

After trees are being cleared.

All of my plans being put on hold.

I can't understand why that would happen.

Now I do understand the reluctance to use imminent debane.

It is our last resort.

But I think it's important to look at the relative sacrifice of three or four property owners in comparison to the benefits the trail will bring to our community in Winterville, to Athens, and to all the old railroad towns along the Georgia Railroad bed.

The Firefly Trail is not the bottoms.

It's not the waterfront, it's not Linintown.

We're talking about a narrow strip of property that was a railroad when the houses along there were built.

We're not discussing using imminent domain to wipe out entire neighborhoods or communities, as was done during urban renewal in the 1960s.

A relatively small number of people are affected in a way that's not overly invasive for the benefit of an entire region.

Thank you for hearing me.

Thank you, Mr.

Willie.

Good evening.

Honorable Mayor and Commissioners, tonight I urge you to recognize the grave danger posed to Athens Clark County residents by Georgia State Senate Bill 375.

This insidious bill is an attack on the First Amendment and free academic debate, which strikes at the very heart of this university town.

Athens depends on open discussion from UGA classrooms to local journalism.

SP 375 threatens to undermine this foundation by stigmatizing or even criminalizing criticism of Hindutva, a form of Hindu nationalism, and silencing opposition to that hateful ideology.

If passed, SB 375 will chill speech campus wide and statewide.

Athens thrives on free inquiry, questioning power and seeking truth and justice through debate and protest, and SB 375 would silence professors, students, and journalists who challenge Hindutva wrongly branding their criticism as Hindophobic.

Political scientist, Dr.

Jyotir Maya Sharma calls Hindutva a political appropriation of Hinduism that transforms faith into an instrument of power.

Dr.

Christoph Jafferlot, also a political scientist calls it a majoritarian ideology founded on cultural supremacy and exclusion.

These are political, not religious critiques.

SB 375 could punish such honest scholarship.

The Indian American Muslim Council's transnational repression report details how India's ruling party extends intimidation overseas to silence U.S.

critics, often using Hindophobia accusations against them.

This mirrors warnings from the US Department of Justice, which is right now prosecuting an Indian spy in New York who was accused of plotting to assassinate an American critic of Hindutva.

Advocacy group Hindus for Human Rights notes that Hindophobia claims often stifle legitimate criticism of injustice, distracting from the struggle to combat communal violence.

Hindu voices say stopping critique is the problem, not the solution.

By stifling dissent and academic freedom, SB 375 directly serves the interests of Hindutva ideology and its deadly ambitions.

Athens, with one of Georgia's largest student bodies, depends on free inquiry.

As students come to ask questions, they need freedom to debate and research without fear.

SB 375 threatens that right as well as Georgia's strong tradition of academic freedom.

Tonight I urge the commission to issue a public statement opposing SB 375 and to contact state legislature legislators urging them to reject this bill.

Make it clear, Athens Clark County rejects any law which muzzles inquiry or criminalizes scholarship.

Censorship threatens the essence of what makes this city and our country a beacon of free thought, especially when that censorship is imposed to give cover to regressive hateful ideologies like Hindutva.

And I have for every member of the commission a report on this issue.

The attorney take that from me.

Thank you, Mr.

Friedrich.

Good evening.

Good evening.

A Lewis District 1.

Actually, here to talk about the Decole League project, also known as the Shoals, which was approved without community input and without sufficient community notice.

I live right by one of the areas that would be impacted, and there was no signage, there was no warning that we'd be facing over a year of construction, that our neighborhood would be radically changed, and that this fragile state wetland would be razed for yet another unaffordable suburban sprawl project.

And just yesterday, I launched a petition to stop this project.

I want to make it clear that if our neighbors had known about this, there would have been pushback and this room would have been full.

Yesterday I launched this petition.

I knocked on my neighbors' doors and told them in an afternoon of knocking on doors, I have over 170 signatures.

I haven't even hit the other side of this proposed project.

I also want to point out the fact that when we had that 450 and 460 Gain School Road project, that required community notice because of a change.

And that project was one-third the sprawl that this new proposed project was.

And the community came out and completely shut it down.

Because of community feedback, you all voted against the rezoning of 450 and 460 Gaines School Road.

But a project that is more than three times that, that is 85 acres of what used to be conserved land that is a green space that several neighbors, several neighborhoods currently used.

We had no say, no awareness that this was going to be done.

I found out, well, my neighbor found out through a newspaper article and sent it to me, and that is how everyone else is finding out.

We have people who bought homes.

We have people who renewed their lease.

We have people who moved to this area specifically because it was quiet.

It is a safe place.

And it is way on the other side of town where you can decompress.

If it was an affordable walkable neighborhood that was proposed, it would be one thing.

But the developers on this only do gentrified projects.

The developers on this have proposed this talking about how it would impact people who may no longer be coming, given the new jobs report, which is negative 3,200 that were added.

And the big beautiful bill, which actually limits how much student loans a single person can come and take.

So that limits how many people are coming in.

Thank you, Al.

I appreciate you coming tonight.

Good evening.

Good evening, Mayor and Commission.

Hello.

My name is Lizette Guevara.

I live on 4th Street.

I wish Commissioner Thornton was here.

I'd love to continue our discussions on this issue with the Pinewoods Water.

For the past three years, I have served as the neighborhood leader for the JJ Harris zone.

And I am here to give voice to my residents of the Pinewoods Mobile Home Park.

You'll notice that there are no residents actually here tonight, mostly because they are some of the most vulnerable in our community.

I have the privilege to visit the Pinewoods Mobile Home Park on a weekly basis to help residents with things like defax benefits enrollment or food distributions.

Pinewoods is a community of hardworking, taxpaying families, but they are facing a severe public health crisis.

My neighbors lack clean water.

And for the most basic human needs, things like cooking, bathing their children, washing their clothes.

This is not merely an inconvenience.

This is a public safety hazard.

I stand before you today urgently requesting that this commission take responsibility and act immediately to guarantee the right to clean water for every resident of Athens Clark County.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Ms.

Rivera.

Good evening.

Good evening.

I'm Isabel Scott again.

I live at 1030 College Station Road.

I know you all are probably tired after a long night, and I appreciate y'all listening.

I uh came to speak on the uh Firefly Trail thing.

I don't think I'll be able to make uh it to the meeting in any uh future soon meetings, but um in terms of uh Firefly Trail, um I used to live out in that area um near the airport um in a uh duplex or quadplex, I guess, and um I would bike every day on the firefly trail.

I'd bike about a mile from my house on Winterville Road to get to the Firefly Trail, and then from there, uh perhaps like a little less than a mile, but um from there um take the firefly trail intown.

Um I really relied on that route, and um that extension of the Firefly Trail I think is crucial to a lot of Athenians.

I know in Winterville, because of the Firefly Trail being built out there, a lot of people are using that, a lot of people are biking that for recreation and for transportation.

Um further delaying this project is uh not going to be good for um Athenians.

I completely understand uh any concern around um putting in uh imminent domain, but also at the end of the day, like um there are a lot of Athenians in that region who would use the trail.

Um there are not uh, and it's a few homes that would be affected near the front of their homes.

Um, just like we all throughout the county um and all throughout the state and all throughout the nation, we put in sidewalks, we put in um utilities in areas um in order to connect things and and to make the community stronger.

Um, this is much the same.

Um, it is an example of a greater good for the community.

Um, and I came to speak on that, but I also just want to say I fully support um the Pinewoods project, and I hope that um the community is able to get um support and justice um in that regard.

So thank you all and hope you have a great night.

Thank you, Spo.

Good evening.

Hello again, uh Aaron Thompson Podvin, 863 North Chase Street.

Um, as I mentioned, I have the honor uh to get to serve as the executive director of family connection communities and schools and get to work with amazing folks like some of the neighborhood leaders who are in this room, but I'm also standing here as a citizen and someone with a long relationship to Pinewoods.

But I'm also standing here as a citizen and someone with a long relationship to Pinewoods.

I've taken meals in Pinewoods.

I have been spent hours in tutoring in Pine Woods with Las Monjitas with Sister Margarita and other folks who are really embedded in that community, seeing the library come to life there and be such a an amazing center for community there.

It's a beautiful community.

I mean that and uh but it is also a community that doesn't complain a lot.

Um and they um we we definitely need to be their voice, you know.

When I think about the economic impact for the folks there, many most, the vast majority who are living in insignificant poverty.

You know, they average 800 to 1100 a month uh in rent on those in often ill-repaired mobile homes.

I've spent in homes with f holes in the floor, you know, just but um that is that you know the average mat, so simple math, it's you know, 240,000, 330,000 a month that is being taken in in rent.

They do not have any discounts when the water goes off.

There is no recourse there.

We on public water would have recourse if something like that were to happen.

Um so it's a situation where folks really are being taken advantage of.

It is a health issue, um, and we do need to we do need to consider that.

Um I appreciate the work of our neighborhood leaders.

They have engaged, as they've mentioned, the commissioner for District 8, they have engaged multiple times the management face-to-face phone calls, um, not for lack of of trying.

Um, but I hope we can do something about this.

I was a Peace Corps volunteer in rural Guatemala for almost three years.

My principal work was on clean water households that were and to think that my neighbors two miles up the road are living in that in 2025 in Athens, Georgia.

Um that's that's something that we shouldn't stand for.

Thank you all.

Thank you for coming to talk to us tonight.

I appreciate it.

Good evening.

Hey, good evening.

Broderick Flanagan, PO Box 295, Athens, Georgia.

Um, here to speak in support of the um Pinewoods community and their request to be connected to city services.

Um just want to reiterate what was said before about this being a quality of life issue.

Um, usually when you you know reach out to code enforcement and there's a quality of life circumstance like water, there's a sense of urgency that kicks in.

Um, and so um I'm not sure with the whole code enforcement process if you know anyone from Pinewoods has you know went to that degree.

Um, but this has been an ongoing problem for almost two decades or over two decades now.

And so the the urgency is of now, I feel like, and we do need to work collaboratively and find creative solutions, whether it be through a splash project or through some kind of public-private partnership with the current owner.

I know they just inherited the property.

Um, I believe the current owner is on the Git committee as well, or one of the subcommittees.

Um, so I mean he's he's involved in the community in some ways and aware of what's happening there.

And so we we do need to again find ways to make this community whole because a quality of life issue like water, um, it needs to be taken with the utmost uh urgency and and concern.

Uh we don't want you know people to get sick.

We don't want anybody to lose their lives over a situation like this or you know, anything to happen to these community members.

And so just want to urge you all to you know reach out to certain people, try to find some kind of way that we can like really get this done like sooner than later.

Um and support the community and the people who are working in Pinewoods.

I know the the library um gets president because it's like part of leisure services or that network of the library system.

Um but there are many residents who are being affected as well.

Um I spent adequate amount of time in Pinewoods recently over the years and even most recently doing a mural project there with some students at the library, and I saw like week in and week out of water being delivered by the Trocolo bottle water.

Um, but that's not a way to sustainably live a healthy lifestyle.

And so we want to make sure again that we are taking the proper steps and considerations uh to come up with some kind of lasting solution, you know, and get do run the numbers, you know, at least reach out to somebody to see how much it will cost so we can begin to look down the road for what we need to do in the budget to make it happen.

Thank you, Mr.

Flannery.

Anyone else here to speak to any item of old or excuse me, any item not on tonight's agenda.

Good evening.

Hi, good evening.

Uh, my name is Alan Jones, uh at 195 Xavier Drive.

And here to speak about the the upcoming T sploss.

I know you guys are gonna be going through a lot more on it, but I figure I'd get a head start.

Uh as you've seen, there's been public uh complaint that a lot of the the T Sploss is being focused just on one side of town.

Um the west side, the the Timothy Road Mitchell Bridge area submitted at least four projects, none of which um ended up in the final list.

But I I wanted to talk about those a little bit.

The Timothy Road, the last T Sploss, you guys invested quite a bit of money to start a multi-use shared path on Timothy.

And the T Splos before that, you invested over two million dollars for planning the multi-use path from the entire length of Timothy and Mitchell Bridge Road.

Two million dollars.

Um we're only gonna build about a mile of it or so with this with this current piece out of about seven miles.

So the current T SPLOSS, there were other pieces of this put forward, and they haven't really been considered.

So I'm just gonna say that um that is in um Dexter Fisher's district, that's in uh John Culpepper and Timothy Road's the backbone of your district.

Um Commissioner Johnson also the the Mitchell Bridge pieces is in yours.

And I would just encourage you two million dollars.

Two million dollars has been spent planning this, and if we just build this one little part on Timothy and this one little part on Mitchell Bridge, that don't they connect neighborhoods, great, but they don't connect the neighborhoods to other facilities, which you could get to on a multi-use shared bike path.

You could get to Eppsbridge, you could get to other roads so that people could get to shopping.

They could get to the Atlanta Highway once we get the multi-use path there, they could get to bike lanes all over the place.

So I would really ask that you you consider whether it's taking from other projects, whether it's taking from the budget that was pre-ordained um otherwise, that you consider at least doing a piece, just taking it and adding one piece, and then maybe the next T Splos can get the next piece, and the next T Sploss can get the next piece.

But keep going, don't just waste this 200 200 million.

If you're gonna not, what I would ask is take the binder that you have gathered because the 200 million was for planning and surveying.

Take that binder, at least put a sticker on it.

I like stickers.

Put a sticker on it that says two million dollars was spent on this, and then take that binder and put it next to the Ark of the Covenant down the stairs in the basement uh for somebody else to find in decades to come.

Thanks.

Thank you, Mr.

Jones.

Is there anyone else here to speak to any item that was not on tonight's agenda?

All right, uh seeing none.

Um have just a couple of quick things.

Um want to note that uh Dr.

Zernetta Thomas has agreed to a new term on the audit committee.

I uh very much appreciate her continued presence there.

Uh also want to note that two additions uh to the North Avenue TAD for the uh duration of individual TAD committees are Patrick Watkins and Theresa Williams, and uh also want to thank everybody who came out tonight, particularly those who spoke to concerns about uh Pinewoods community place where I've done a lot of work uh with many students ever over several decades.

Um do have a couple of adopt a highway proclamations.

Uh that is Rannoch Road uh from Star of Mount Zion Lodge 370 and Mitchell Bridge Road between Atlanta Highway and Woodhaven uh from William Skipps and Janie Bull.

Um want to go ahead and uh ask the manager if there's anything from management.

Only to note that there's a pretty long uh expenditure report this month, and that represents several months.

There was a gap in our report and future reports.

We'll be shorter.

Anything from the auditor tonight?

Anything from the attorney.

Glad to be back.

Appreciate y'all giving me the opportunity to go.

And uh thank you.

Glad you took some time.

We appreciate it, Chad.

Um, we'll go ahead and uh uh begin with Commissioner Davenport and end with Commissioner Campby.

All right, I'm gonna try to be brief.

Um, first of all, can we use T S PLOS 2026 to build or pave roads that includes uh mortar lines?

Just a question.

Question for um, and also congrats to Christine Howard, um, the new clerk of commission.

While Wampus will be October 25th, so please y'all come out.

And I've uh, you know, of course, always happy Halloween.

There's a lot of activities going on this this um this month.

So please go to ACCGov.com, check it out.

There's a lot of fun, free family activities that are cool that your tax dollars are paying for.

A question for staff.

It is getting chilly out, and a lot of people are using space eaters to warm their homes.

Um, does the fire department continue, or does the fire department give out free smoke detectors?

I'll just you can send me an email, but that'd be great.

If they do, it'd be great for the neighborhood leaders and for us as a community to let people know that you know, you know, the number two reason for house fires is face heaters.

Not to his house.

So um I'm gonna be quick because I do.

Not to your house, Patrick.

Uh huh.

Not to your house.

Not mine.

I'm joking.

I'm joking.

Um, we got enough.

I do want to address the the firefly trail situation, um, because this is very dear to me, and I know it's a hot button topic in this community right now.

Um, so how this all, and I'm Jeb, welcome back.

I meant to say that too.

I know you came back to some very interesting stuff.

Um, so how this all came about was so I have not reached out to any of the residents, or you know, I don't even represent them, but um a few weeks ago they contacted me, and it's non-families um who are non-elderly families um who reached out to me and said, Patrick, you know, we just got a notice in the the um the notice in the mail that um the county's going to commence eminent domain.

And I know it's a hot topic for this community.

I know people are very passionate about this thing, and I love everybody, but um that kind of disturbed me.

So I was I called Judd and I well, I called a county attorney and I said, Hey county attorney, what can I do?

Um, and he gave me the parameters of what I could do, even though I did it wrong, but you know, my main thing was to make sure that we at least have a public discussion on eminent domain.

Because um a lot of the residents was concerned by didn't staff talk to them, it just came out of the blue.

They thought everything was going good.

That's their perspective, but that was it was told to me.

Um so I hastenly uh try to uh have a discussion, which we'll we'll we we will discuss on November 21st at an executive session because it deals with real estate.

I am October.

Not over them, please.

Yeah, October 21st.

I'm gonna make sure I got it right.

But um, I'm very passionate about people in that properties, as y'all understand.

I mean, like people pay their taxes, people buy into it.

I get some of the comments, you know, that were made in the community.

I get some of the fear mongering, and I love everybody.

You know, the people who lied and said hateful things, and even the people who call me, um, only two residents, only a few residents actually contacted me, but only two residents actually said, Patrick, what's going on?

Actually, asked me, why am I doing this?

Just two.

Um, but everybody else was just, I'm gonna fight you.

This is wrong.

Patrick, you know, this is what we voted for.

Speaking of, this is what we voted for.

Um, there's another ideological group out there who also says this is what we voted for when they send kids to Guatemala for deportation.

Same group, a different group.

So I know I'm I'm just saying how it is because there were comments made online that I that disturbed me, but you know, I still love people.

At the end of the day, you know, you have your voice, and I I just wish that people in the community would have reached out to me and asked why I did this.

It was not because, you know, yes, I'm trying to sell something, but at the same time, I just felt that these individuals who staff have not talked to, um, or that's their perspective or my perspective with that.

Staff haven't talked to that.

We have a discussion as to why those communications broke down.

But the main thing I want to say, and I'm not trying to hake Jeffrey's anybody.

You can always call me.

You can always text or email or phone call, just let me know.

I always put that in my newsletter.

I always tell people just to contact me if you have any concern.

But don't just say it to me.

Tell it to the families.

Tell those elderly people who are retiring.

Tell it to them that you don't care, that this is what you voted for, that you there it's inevitable.

Well, it's not inevitable that you don't care that this is what you voted for, and this is the same thing as why black people in our community don't trust certain people.

Because we see the same thing in our community where people of certain persuasion always say, we want to build a better Athens, but you want your fight to nail for what you want to believe in, but disregard your neighbors.

These individuals call me crying, 80 years old, crying.

They're like, I just got this letter, I don't know what to do.

You know, like they're gonna come and take my property.

We got till the 26th of the act, and it's in my heart, because I look at my mom, I look at all these other elderly people in our communities, and I say, you know what, I'm gonna fight for you.

It was very disheartening to read, to hear the lies, the stuff that was said on the on the internet.

And I'm just saying, say it to those family members.

Say it to those family members.

You know, I get that people want to make money off the trail.

That's fine.

I get the fact that this is what people voted for.

But tell it to those elderly people who literally, you know how elderly people they build arts and crafts, they do stuff in their retirement.

We're literally taking that away from them.

Taking it away from them.

At least I am trying to be consistent and building an actions that's better for everybody.

I get the fact that people are upset that I'm delaying, and I'm not even delaying the project.

Not even delaying the project having got to that point yet.

I'm just asking the question as to why did we as a community, why did we, what happened with the communication of like not telling these people why are we reaching the agreement?

All those individuals supported the Firefly Trail.

They just felt this dismayed that no one communicated with them and they get a letter.

At the end of the day, y'all, we have to build a community for each other.

And like I'm not asking for your sympathy, I'm not asking for your your compassion.

I'm looking for your morality.

Why are we as a community literally telling our neighbors that we don't care?

This is what we voted for.

That's all I'm asking.

You can build a trail.

And we can't talk as a community about equity when option C is the most equitable plan that saves account of money.

Commissioner, well, we don't need these.

I guess you're not just saying trade off is some level of brevity.

At the end of the day, um, two of my commission, uh, two of my constituents called me, and they were like, they were the only two who was like, hey Patrick, what's going on?

One of the, and I this is important.

So one of the the my constituents or my boss were like, you know, it was a couple, and they're like, Patrick, I agree with you, you know, after talking, um, even though they still support the trail.

But one other person, she was kind of very aggressive, she's a very popular person in the community.

I love her today.

She told me not to say this to the public, but I said, I'm gonna say it anyway.

She's like, okay.

And I want y'all to pay attention to me.

I know Kelly, I know y'all, and I get it.

One of the things she's a very ultra-progressive.

A lot of people, y'all, a lot of people in this community know her.

But she told me not to give identifiers.

So we agreed to disagree.

But one of the things that she said that struck me, and I said, you know, I'm not, I'm going to repeat this.

He said, just as long as you don't tell my name, was the fact that she said she has great concerns.

I'm gonna say great concern because that's exaggerative.

She said she has concerns about approving future referendums because she said her father built her house and she spent a lot of money and reading some of the comments online, she's scared that she, I don't want to say she was scared, but she said she has concerns about, well, I don't want my property taken.

Two commissioners prior, independently stated that they have heard from their commissioner, I mean their constituent, that they are afraid of a um approving future referendums because of equity.

Put this into the pot.

Even now I'm concerned about approving these referendums.

A guy who literally supported the Prince Avenue, a guy who literally wrote uh a bike lane, pedestrian safety for um a district that's not even mine, a guy who helped approve Hancock.

I get it, folks, but show these people respect.

That's a lot of they have been here longer than most of y'all have been here.

That's all I'm asking.

Thank you.

Um I want to remind everybody that Port Trust is on October 19th.

Um so everybody mark your calendar and the rumpuses on the 25th.

Um, I wanna bring up something I brought up briefly um associated with one of our agenda items about moratoriums on data centers.

Um, Commissioner Myers and I came straight to this meeting from a forum on data centers.

Um starting to become a real problem in the state, and we would like more information on what we can do as a local community to learn more about this and and possibly like lay down a moratorium so we can understand how we can properly regulate these facilities.

So if if management can offer some and the attorney as well, if they can offer some information on how we can start to approach this in our community, Commissioner Taylor.

Um, yeah, congratulations, Miss Christine.

Welcome back, Judge.

Great job, commission and mayor.

Thank you, Mayor.

Um I guess to just piggyback, and I'm not gonna get on long discussion about this, but the pigback off um Commissioner Um Davenport, and again, the mayor and I talked about this earlier.

You know, that firefly trail full on back in 2018, you know, and then we here we are seven years out.

And is really laid at the feet of this present commission, and that's that's a shame, uh, unfortunately, and we're dealing with this.

And I know we're gonna have a uh exit session on the 21st, but uh you know, our processes, and I know Mayor working with um Bob, um, our county attorney to improve that process, and I'm I'm gonna say it again, I'm always gonna say y'all gonna keep hearing from me.

We built two elementary schools in the three years I was that's um Clark County School District on Splash and Splash probably reported to me.

So we can do the same thing here in Clark County.

We gotta do better, but this shouldn't be seven years in the making to get that five by trail done.

And again, Patrick, to your point, all the things that were voted on during that time to get to where we are now, and that's that's a shame to have fell at our feet to deal with, and we will deal with it, but um we're not gonna kick the can down the road, but that's a shame that we seven years out um with um with a project.

Um couple things that's happening this weekend, um, most of it on Saturday.

We have um Faith and Blue Tailgate at Elbanese Baptist Church West, starting at um 11 a.m.

I know some of the commissioners are supposed to be at Dell Event.

I'm doing a town hall and Sterling Woods community um the same day at 12:30.

Um then we're having the Faith and Blue Multiculture Festival that evening at Bishop Park, which is in District 5, um from 3 to 7, and then at night, some of the other commissioners, we're going to um healthcare heroes at the Young Country Club.

So um Sarah's busy day for a lot of us, and uh I'm looking forward to um participating in those events.

Um I think that Faith and Blue is a really um big deal with our uh faith-based community and our law enforcement come together, work with one another, enjoy each other's company, bounce ideas off one another to development of our community.

So just want to um share that uh with the community and uh with my colleagues.

Thank you, Mayor.

Commissioner Johnson.

Okay.

I'm gonna read mine because I don't want to ramble and I don't want to go over three minutes.

So I just want to start with the Stonehenge Pedestrian Improvement Project was approved tonight um on the consent agenda, and I have several clarifying and due diligence questions from the residents of Stonehenge.

Um the Stonehenge community that I've been asked to ask on the record, and I have um questions of my own, so there are three questions from them, and I have three questions.

So here goes.

With the three million dollars available for construction, are all must-haves.

Excuse me.

Are all must have elements fully covered, or is there a risk of scope reduction?

Number two, if bids come in high, how will it be decided which elements would be deferred first?

For example, amongst the traffic calming, crosswalks, additional sidewalks, etc.

And number three, I've mentioned many times in the past about the language in our SPLAS projects, specifically when we see sub-project one.

That is very confusing, and it is confusing to the residents.

It infers that there is more to come.

There's more to the project.

The question will additional funding be pursued for the highly wanted elements like sidewalks on Druid Hills and Marlboro Marlborough Downs Road.

My questions are have all necessary right of way with been verified, and will any elements or private property impacts be required once the design survey is complete.

Number two, how will the proposed infiltration planters perform in an area with known drainage issues?

Will there be a maintenance plans prepared as a part of this project?

And the last question is how is this project ranked among ranked against other pedestrian projects in underserved areas?

So that's the questions.

So I now have three comments, Mayor.

So I want to say congratulations to the students who graduated from the break in the cycle class, a series of courses at the Sparrows Nest.

I teach there and I thoroughly enjoy enjoy it.

I also want to thank Evan and John from Advantage and Pastor Scott Shepherd from Cornerstone Church who visited the students during the last week, offered them encouraging words, and specifically advantage offered some some comments about how to navigate their complicated process better.

Last one, two things and their request of staff.

Could we begin looking into ways to enhance the county website search and navigation features?

So users can more easily find information on a specific topic quickly and understand its historical background or related decisions.

The last thing I have is I've noticed that some of the our BACs do a that's boards, authorities, and commissions for those that are watching.

Our BACs do an excellent job keeping the public informed while others seem to struggle with timely posting or consistency.

Would staff be willing to explore options for standard standardizing the board's authorities and commissions, process and membership practices, particularly to ensure consistency and accountability in how public meetings are noticed, documented, and shared with the public.

For example, could we identify specific office or point of contact responsible for ensuring the meeting notices appear on the ACC master calendar, not buried on a department's website?

That the agendas and material, the corollary materials are posted several days in advance.

The minutes follow a consistent format aligned with Robert's rules of order, and meeting videos are uploaded promptly after each meeting.

That's all I have.

Thank you.

Congratulations, Christine.

Look forward to working with you.

I look forward to uh recommendations from uh manager um Bob and staff about how we can streamline our delivery process on our capital projects.

I think that's come up a couple of times tonight with the Firefly and also with the fire station.

These projects are taking entirely too long to deliver and uh opinions change and things happen, and you know, we should be looking at purchasing the property and doing all that before we design the trail.

Um I look forward to seeing how we can improve that process.

And that's it.

Mr.

Myers, if you like.

And with a motion to adjourn.

I don't know.

So joke.

Uh I'll make that motion.

Um I um thank Commissioner uh Davenport for his comments, um, you know, detailed comments on the Firefly.

And I, you know, just asked that on uh I guess we're having an executive session on October 2nd 21st, right?

Um, but that assuming assuming this moves forward after that with a uh similar special cult session from Commissioner Davenport, that we make sure that we have information on there more than just a couple of lines so that we give people plenty of time to look at the information that's there and the community as well, to know that we've looked at things thoroughly and what the options are for this, and maybe that can reduce some of the misinformation that's um out there as well.

I think there was a quick turnaround time here that one thought was going to happen, and that might have um inflamed uh people's reactions.

Uh also want to congratulate Christine uh on our becoming our new um clerk of commission, and I really look forward to that.

I also want to thank Shmeekit, uh, who's right here with us because she's done a like excellent job as interim clerk of commission, and I know that she and Christine have talked about how they're gonna work as a team going forward, and I'm really happy about that and all that they're gonna do to you know freshen up the their approach uh in the clerk's office.

Um I'm telling management this manager's office is mostly because I've had a couple of people in my district like urging me to have a town hall.

So I'm gonna be following up because I told them I would before I saw them tomorrow.

And um finally I'm looking forward to, isn't that that work session on the future land use plan coming up like next week?

I'm really looking forward to that.

And I hope my colleagues that I know staff has worked and the community, a lot of people have worked really hard on that.

So I hope that we all can be there and have a really fruitful uh discussion.

And on that, I make a motion to adjourn.

I got a motion and a second to adjourn.

All in favor, please say aye.

All opposed, same sign, hearing none, motion carries.

Thanks everybody.

Hope you have a beautiful night.