Oconee County, GA Politics

Future Land Use Plan Developed Through Citizen Feedback Plan to be Presented at Dec. 1 Meeting WATKINSVILLE, GA., Nov. 22, 2005 - The City of Watkinsville will hold the third and final public meeting in the "Your Watkinsville" city visioning process on Thursday, Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. at City Hall. A future land use draft will be presented based on the community vision, goals and objectives derived from previous meetings and stakeholder feedback. The plan is the result of a nine-month process in which Watkinsville citizens, land owners and business owners have voiced their opinions on the current strengths and weaknesses of Watkinsville, as well as their thoughts on the future of the city. The presentation is anticipated to show a land use plan that significantly differs from the plan currently in use. Computer models will be utilized to highlight the scale of new developments allowed under the revised plan, as well as forecasted population statistics and development trends. Vital ...

Hey everyone. We have an exciting new concert for the holidays here at Ashford Manor. It will be part of a day-long celebration in Downtown Watkinsville, starting with the annual Watkinsville Christmas Parade and followed by the concert, details below. Also there will be holiday shopping opportunities in town all day. See below. And let me know if you have any questions. SEE YOU THERE! WHAT: The First Annual Holiday Concert on the Lawn at Ashford Manor. A traditional holiday concert set on the beautiful lawn of Ashford Manor; a perfect event for families, couples, friends and old alike. Food & hot beverages will be made available by: Jittery Joes, Maison Bleu and the Big Easy. WHO: 1:30pm The Lighthouse Gospelettes featuring a Traditional Christmas 2:30pm The Athens A-Train featuring Katie Ford a Jazz Christmas WHEN: Saturday, December 3rd ...

We've heard much talk of the states serving as "progressive laboratories" in recent years. But conservatives have been working to shape state laws for the past 30 years. The center of gravity for that effort is the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), the nation's largest network of state legislators. Founded in 1973, ALEC was the brainchild of paleocon Paul Weyrich , a leading "Movement conservative" and the head of the Free Congress Foundation (in 1973 Weyrich also co-founded the Heritage Foundation). It is the connective tissue that links state legislators with right-wing think tanks, leading anti-tax activists and corporate money. ALEC is a public-policy mill that churns out "model legislation" for the states that are unfailingly pro-business. The organization fights against civil rights laws, as well as consumer, labor and environmental initiatives. According to the National Resources Defense Council , corporations "funnel cash t...

Developer suing over zoning vote Oconee County By Merritt Melancon juliana.melancon@onlineathens.com Story updated at 12:14 AM on Friday, November 18, 2005 WATKINSVILLE - An Oconee County development company is suing the Oconee County Commission over its Oct. 4 denial of a rezoning application that would have allowed 66 acres of commercial businesses on Mars Hill Road land that's currently zoned for agriculture. Oconee County developer Mark Jennings' company, Plant-a-Seed Inc., sued commissioners in Oconee County Superior Court to overturn their decision and to force them to reconsider the rezoning. Plant-a-Seed originally asked commissioners to rezone two separate parcels for a pair of developments known as The Promenade at Parkside and The Commons at Parkside. The applications asked that one 48-acre tract be rezoned so that offices could be built there and that one 6-acre tract be rezoned so that retail shops and offices could be built there. The two developments wer...