Possible strategy in Waste water wars
Below I’m including some recent comments that Gary Noffke would like shared with the whole group. If you have a response you’d like to share with the group, send your comments to me. Otherwise provide feedback directly to Gary (garynoffke@bellsouth.net). His primary concern is with potential loopholes in the recently passed stormwater ordinance that may allow for MORE development in rural Oconee. Two sections of the stormwater ordinance that Gary references are:
D. Stormwater Management in the Non-Urbanized Area
Section 6 of this ordinance shall apply to areas not within the area of the County
regulated under the NPDES Stormwater Phase II Permit in the following circumstances:
any residential development containing lot sizes of three (3) acres or less and having five
(5) or more lots, all non-residential development, any development with size,
configuration, and/or density that would lend itself to be considered an urbanized area,
or if the site is designated a hotspot for stormwater pollution by the Oconee County
Public Works Department. Section 7 of this ordinance shall apply only to those areas not
governed by Section 6.
Section 12. Severability.
If the provisions of any section, subsection, paragraph, subdivision or clause of this
ordinance shall be adjudged invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, such judgment shall
not affect or invalidate the remainder of any section, subsection, paragraph, subdivision or
clause of this ordinance.
Approved this 1st day of August 2006 after a first reading on July 25, 2006.
You can find the entire ordinance at http://www.oconeecounty.com/Government/PublicWorks/StormDrainageStormwaterMgtOrdinanceAdopted.pdf
Thanks,
Tony
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From Gary:
We have not accomplished anything with the Oconee County BOC in regards to slowing growth or planning for the future with consideration for the ecology, infrastructure, tax burden or general quality of life. As I see it the BOC, for whatever reason, has sold our beautiful rural county under the guise of economic development with a pseudo cosmopolitan facade. Our new county reminds me of Snellville 30 years ago. My suggestion is that we take the commissioners to court and kill section 3, item D of their approved stormwater ordinance. The logic follows: 1. This section was added after the initial reading on July 25, 2006. 2. It has obscure language difficult to understand after multiple readings. 3. It was reported in local papers that the state EPD standards for stormwater control was applied to the entire county. 4. Careful reading of this last minute addition gives the Public Works Department the authority to classify and enforce however and whatever they please. They work for our BOC, not the state EPD. 5. Our county BOC ignored a scolding letter from the state EPD written Nov. 26, 2005 for watering down the proposed stormwater ordinance. 6. The section 12 severability clause infers legal action could be taken to invalidate a section of the ordinance. 7. Section D also sets a precedent for lowering lot acreage, in the green zone from 5 to 3, without EPD state standards for stormwater control. 8. Section D also allows clusters of smaller developments with 3 acres or less of fewer than 5 lots, which would be 4 lots or less with no specifics on how small the lots could be and still state standard would not apply. 9. The BOC and Haygood snowed us into believing the state EPD standards applied to the entire county and I think a reasonable court can help them do just that.
I believe we need to fight the BOC in ways other than making appearances at their monthly meetings in which they continually rezone large parcels of land regardless of how many citizens are there and what they say. This board does what it pleases, because we haven't figured out how to stop them. I personally would favor suing the BOC for damages to the county, including the jail issue, which is a few wasted million dollars and anything else any of you can think of. Regarding the wastewater issue on Barber Creek: This is another issue that deserves full attention from us all. If we can beat that, along with the stormwater issue we will have the developers paying the bill for the problems they cause. That will slow growth in the county and improve quality of development. None of us need to do the commissioner's job for them and it's obvious we can't.
D. Stormwater Management in the Non-Urbanized Area
Section 6 of this ordinance shall apply to areas not within the area of the County
regulated under the NPDES Stormwater Phase II Permit in the following circumstances:
any residential development containing lot sizes of three (3) acres or less and having five
(5) or more lots, all non-residential development, any development with size,
configuration, and/or density that would lend itself to be considered an urbanized area,
or if the site is designated a hotspot for stormwater pollution by the Oconee County
Public Works Department. Section 7 of this ordinance shall apply only to those areas not
governed by Section 6.
Section 12. Severability.
If the provisions of any section, subsection, paragraph, subdivision or clause of this
ordinance shall be adjudged invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, such judgment shall
not affect or invalidate the remainder of any section, subsection, paragraph, subdivision or
clause of this ordinance.
Approved this 1st day of August 2006 after a first reading on July 25, 2006.
You can find the entire ordinance at http://www.oconeecounty.com/Government/PublicWorks/StormDrainageStormwaterMgtOrdinanceAdopted.pdf
Thanks,
Tony
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
From Gary:
We have not accomplished anything with the Oconee County BOC in regards to slowing growth or planning for the future with consideration for the ecology, infrastructure, tax burden or general quality of life. As I see it the BOC, for whatever reason, has sold our beautiful rural county under the guise of economic development with a pseudo cosmopolitan facade. Our new county reminds me of Snellville 30 years ago. My suggestion is that we take the commissioners to court and kill section 3, item D of their approved stormwater ordinance. The logic follows: 1. This section was added after the initial reading on July 25, 2006. 2. It has obscure language difficult to understand after multiple readings. 3. It was reported in local papers that the state EPD standards for stormwater control was applied to the entire county. 4. Careful reading of this last minute addition gives the Public Works Department the authority to classify and enforce however and whatever they please. They work for our BOC, not the state EPD. 5. Our county BOC ignored a scolding letter from the state EPD written Nov. 26, 2005 for watering down the proposed stormwater ordinance. 6. The section 12 severability clause infers legal action could be taken to invalidate a section of the ordinance. 7. Section D also sets a precedent for lowering lot acreage, in the green zone from 5 to 3, without EPD state standards for stormwater control. 8. Section D also allows clusters of smaller developments with 3 acres or less of fewer than 5 lots, which would be 4 lots or less with no specifics on how small the lots could be and still state standard would not apply. 9. The BOC and Haygood snowed us into believing the state EPD standards applied to the entire county and I think a reasonable court can help them do just that.
I believe we need to fight the BOC in ways other than making appearances at their monthly meetings in which they continually rezone large parcels of land regardless of how many citizens are there and what they say. This board does what it pleases, because we haven't figured out how to stop them. I personally would favor suing the BOC for damages to the county, including the jail issue, which is a few wasted million dollars and anything else any of you can think of. Regarding the wastewater issue on Barber Creek: This is another issue that deserves full attention from us all. If we can beat that, along with the stormwater issue we will have the developers paying the bill for the problems they cause. That will slow growth in the county and improve quality of development. None of us need to do the commissioner's job for them and it's obvious we can't.
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