Board of Commissioners - Regular Meeting

Please rise and remove any head cover. I'm going to call on Commissioner Smith for the invocation and the pledge.

Everybody will bow your head. Heavenly Father, we come to you asking for wisdom and grace as we host this meeting. Lord, be with us and state and federal leaders. Help us make the best decisions for the people and citizens we represent. We ask you to be with our soldiers serving overseas. Protect them. give them comfort and peace. Be with our first responders as they keep our community safe. And as we celebrate agricultural week, please be with our farmers and this in this complicated environment and bring rain to our community in South Georgia. We ask for your guidance, your grace, and your forgiveness in all that we do. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

Amen. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Thank you. Thank you, Commissioner Smith. Commissioners, inside your packet, you'll find your minutes of the work session of March the 9th, as well as your regular session minutes from March the 10th. If there are no additions, deletions, or corrections to those minutes, I'll entertain a motion to approve the minutes. Motion to approve. Okay, we have a motion to approve by Miss Evans. Do I have a second? We have a second. Any discussion? Hearing none, I'll call the vote. All in favor signify by I. I

any oppose like sign hearing? None. The motion carries. Agenda item 5A is our first appointment. This is uh for the Baldasta Lounge County Zoning Board of Appeals. Miss Dukes. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Good evening, commissioners. The terms of Mr. John McCall and Mr. John Hogan have expired. Both gentlemen have expressed interest in being reappointed. Also, Mr. Travis Cox is interested in being appointed to the Vast Lounge County Zoning Board of Appeals. Any questions for Miss Dukes? No. All right. Hearing none, I'll open the floor up for nominations. I would like to recommend Travis Cox.

Okay. We have a motion for Mr. Travis Cox. It's John Hogan. We have Mr. John Hogan. John McCall. And Mr. John McCall.

All right. We'll take them into order. If Are there any other nominations? All right, hearing none. All in favor of Mr. Travis Cox, please raise your hand. Okay, that's three to two. All in favor of Mr. John Hogan. Two and Mr. John McCall. Miss Evans. Are you voting for Mr. McCall? No, you are. Okay. So, we have three votes.

What's that? Correct. Did I get that right? John. Okay. Help me understand it because we had two votes for Mr. Hogan. Okay. All right. So, now we have votes for Mr. McCall and we have three votes for Mr. McCall. Right. Okay. Make sure I'm straight. All right. Then the two appointments would be Mr. Travis Cox and Mr. John McCall. All okay. Counselor. Yes, sir. Thank you, sir. All right. We'll move on now to agenda item 5B and this is for appointment for the Lounge County Development Authority. Miss Dukes.

Mr. Robert Green was appointed in July of 2025 to fill an unexpired term. The term expired January the 9th of 2026. Mr. Green is interested in being reappointed. Also, Dr. Beverly Richardson Blake is interested in being appointed. Okay. Any questions for Miss Dukes. Okay. I'll open the floor up for nominations. I nominate Miss Blake. Okay. We have Miss Blake. Are there any other nominations? Hearing none, then we'll close the nominations and Miss Beverly Blake will be appointed by acclamation.

Call each one up so we can meet. So, you want him to stand up so they can we can meet him. Um, all right. Is Mr. Travis will back up. Is Mr. Travis Cox here? Yes, sir. Congratulations, sir. Thank you very much. I really appreciate Thank you for putting your application in. Thank you. Mr. Hogan with us or Mr. McCall with us.

Okay. Miss Blake with us. Okay. Thank you all. All right. We'll move on now to uh agenda item 5C and this is the Basta Lounge County Land Bank Authority. Miss Dukes.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Uh Mr. James Miller's term expired January the 31st of 2025. Mr. Miller is interested in being reappointed. Also, Mr. Jack Oliver's term in the atlarge position also expired January the 31st, 2025. The land bank authority recommends the appointment of Mr. Kim Ken Overman to fill this atlarge position. Um, also this atlarge position would have to be approved by Loun County as well as the city of Aldasta. Okay. Any questions for Miss Dukes? Yes, I recommend Jane Miller.

Okay, we I've opened up I will open up the floor for nominations. And Miss Evans has nominated Mr. James Miller. Are there any other nominations? Nominate Ken. Mr. Overman. Okay. Are there any other nominations? Hearing none, we'll close the nominations and each one of those will be uh appointed by acclamation because you needed the two positions, correct? Yes, sir. And Mr. Overman's position will be the one that will need to be um also approved by the city of Aldos. Yes. He's the at large.

Okay. Chairman, I guess uh Mr. Oliver, Jack Oliver did not want to serve again. I don't have the answer to that question for you. No, but apparently not. He did not. Yeah. Okay. All right. We'll now move on to agenda item 5D and this is for the an appointment to the South Georgia Community Service Board. Miss Dukes. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Miss Cindy Vickery's term expired March the 10th of 2026. Miss Vickery is not interested in being re reappointed. Miss Casey Horn and Miss Chanel Randolph are both interested in being appointed to the board. I nominate Oh, sorry.

Give me a minute. Okay, I'll open the floor up for nominations. I nominate Casey Horn. All right, we have M. Is that a Mr. or Mrs. Mrs. Casey Horn? Casey Horn. Mr. Chairman, I uh nominate u Miss um One second, please. No rule. Okay. All right. I nominate Chanel Randolph.

Okay. And Miss Chanel Randolph. All right. We only have one position, so I'll call for the votes for uh Miss Casey Horn first. All in favor of Miss Casey Horn, please raise your hand. Okay, that's three to two. So, Miss Casey Horn will be appointed uh to fill that seat of Miss Cindy Vickies. All right, we'll now move on to agenda item 6A and this is the beer and wine license for Alexander Clay Tyson of J Boys LLC DBA J Boys number one. The address is 3661 Madison Highway. Miss Black.

Um yes sir. Thank you. Um as we discussed yesterday, this is for J Boys um on Madison Highway. It's for beer and wine for consumption off premise and this is a new location. Okay. Any questions for Miss Black? Hearing none. I'll entertain a motion. Motion to approve. Okay. I have a motion to approve. Do I have a second? Second. Have a second. Any discussion? Hearing none. We'll call the vote. All in favor signify by I. I.

Any oppose? Like sign? Hearing? None. The motion carries. Agenda item 6B is the J Boy's easement exchange. This is tax parcel 0134051. It is located at Whitewater Road in the Madison Highway. Mr. Stouty. Yes, sir. Cobra One LLC owns this property at this intersection and they're requesting an easement exchange here in order for some uh structures to be in an area that's unused. And the area that they're offering in exchange, it's the the current area is 2.11. The new area will be 49. that will include the where the pipes are now and the additional area needed. Staff recommends approval of the easement and authorize the chairman to sign the documents. Okay, any questions for Mr. Stout? Hearing none, I'll entertain a motion.

Motion to approve the easement exchange. Okay, we have a motion to approve the easement exchange. Do I have a second? I have a second by Mr. Weisenbaker. Any discussion? Hearing none, we'll call the vote. All in favor signify by I. I.

Any opposed? Like sign. Hearing? None. The motion carries. Agenda item 6 C is the advanced disposal services residential solid waste franchise renewal. Mr. Bills. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Good evening, commissioners. Uh, as we talked about yesterday, the current non-exclusive residential solid waste franchises are set to expire on March 31st of this month. Um, Advanced Disposal has submitted their renewal application. Um, it is complete. Um, and they have expressed their desire to continue providing services to the residents for the upcoming year. They currently serve 8,410 households and charge 2162 per month. I'm happy to answer any questions you may have.

Any questions for Mr. Bills? They they didn't have any increase, but you're saying they can have a little bit of increase yesterday. They still have margin. That's correct. In 2023, uh, the board adopted a not to exceed level of $25 per month. Right now, they're at 2162. So, there is some room there for them to increase if they desire to do so. Thank you. But you haven't had that request. That request does not exist at a certain time. Thank you. All right. Any other questions? And these are residential. They they have a good many commercial accounts.

They do have commercial accounts, but the ordinance itself is only in concerns to residential. That's correct. Okay. There's no other questions. I'll entertain a motion. I move that we approve the proposed uh renewed franchise for residential solid waste collection services for advanced disposal services uh solid waste southeast and authorize the chairman to sign the documents. Okay. So, we have a motion to approve the residential the advanced disposal services residential solid waste franchise renewal and authorize the chairman to sign the agreement. Second, I have a second. We have a second. Any discussion? Hearing none, I'll call the vote. All in favor signify by I. I. Any oppose? Like sign.

Hearing none. A motion carries. Agenda item 6D is the Deep South Sanitation LLC's residential solid waste franchise renewal. Mr. Bills. Yes sir. Uh Deep South has also uh submitted their application and then they have provided all elements of the application as requested. They've uh expressed their desire to renew their franchise. They're currently serving 8,637 households and they're charging $22 per month for that service. A question that came up yesterday was in regards to second cans. The additional fee for a second can is $5. uh talking with Deep South the other day, while they have 8,637 households, they have uh over 10,000 cans in the field from people requesting additional cans.

All right, any other questions? Hearing none, I'll entertain a motion. Thank you, Mr. Bill. Motion to approve renewing Deep South U franchise. Second. Okay, we have a motion and a second. Do we have any discussion hearing? None. We'll call the vote. All in favor signify by I. I. Any oppose? Like sign? Hearing? None. Motion carries. Agenda item seven, county manager report. Miss Dukes.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Good evening again, commissioners. Uh, as of March of 2026, the entire state of Georgia falls under the water stewardship act. Some of you may have remembered in in past years whenever we faced extreme drought conditions, uh we were required to implement some local watering restrictions, water management, um some of those things. So the water water stewardship act applies to the entire state. It prohibits landscape irrigation from watering from 10:00 a.m. to 4 p.m. This does not affect vegetable gardens. It doesn't affect hand watering if you, you know, got something you need to put a little water on. Um, but I want to invite Ashley Tai to come up and talk about uh what the National Weather Service is saying as far as our drought outlook. I think this leads into our residential burn restrictions. Also, uh we have seen times in the past when the state of Georgia put even stricter conditions on water management. Um that extended to local communities. They have not done that yet. I think that they're hoping that the Water Stewardship Act affiliation will get everyone's attention there. But if we don't get some rain and we move into the the warmer months, we could see some additional restrictions. So, I just want to make sure that we're following that where you all are concerned in case there's some something resolution wise or something else that comes down from the state. And then this also lends into leans into where we are with wildfire season. I'm going to ask Chief Young to talk about that after Ashley's finished. So, every week um while we're in the current drought conditions, the National Weather Service puts out a drought information statement um to provide us the latest information on where we stand with the drought, what outlook is. Um as of la and it comes out every Thursday. So, last Thursday um they they said the current drought conditions are the worst we've seen in this area since 2012. So, um been quite a while. um and they don't really see any any

short-term uh relief in the near future. Um one of the biggest changes in last week's um uh update. So we have this entire area has been in D3. So there's four categories of drought. So we were um in extreme drought and we have been for for quite a while now. Well, as of Thursday, um the an area from Grady County over to Louns and down into Madison, we are now in D4 exceptional drought, which is the highest category of drought that you that they um they issue. Um some of what's contributed to that is even though we've got some people think well we we've got had a couple of rain showers lately but even those rain showers um when when they look at what's normal for the time of year based off of historical averages um even those rainfall amounts have been lower than what we would normally see this time of year. Um so we're still seeing below normal rainfall. Um temperatures are actually a little higher than normal um by about four to five degrees. So that means when rain does fall on the already dry soil, it evaporates um a lot faster. Um so they're they're expecting the um drought conditions to persist. Um we are hopefully going to get into a have a a rainier spring. Um, but it will be uh mid to late May at the earliest um and more likely into June before we get enough rainfall to really make a difference in the um in the drought conditions. Um you to give you an example. So in the last 90 days we've had six inches of rain and we should in in any normal year

we'd have double that. Um so um and one of the one of the other things that they mentioned in their report is now we're getting into the planting season. Um you know agriculture is ironically it is agriculture week and we're talking about this. So the agriculture is very important for this area. One of the um things that that does for the drought though is since um you know ponds and above ground water stores are not as abundant as they normally would, farmers are going to rely heavily on irrigation um which again is going to um have an impact overall on the drought. So to the point uh Miss Dukes was making about the water stewardship um from an emergency management standpoint, we look at this is okay, we know that that we're in a drought, have been for a while. Um don't see any relief in sight. Um little things that we can do to mitigate those efforts now will reduce the impacts we see. So hopefully if everybody will be good stewards and um suffer is not a good word, but but everybody kind of kind of uh dials back a little bit, we can conserve the water and hopefully not get into the point where the state's having to impose further restrictions and we can minimize the impact it's going to have on us locally. Um, you know, it's inconvenient when your grass is crunchy and and you don't have a, you know, green green grass. Um, but what we don't want to get into is what we saw. Um, the last 20 the last major drought we had before 2012, I think it was 2011. Um, and we're not quite there yet is, you know, there were a lot of wells that had to be um drilled deeper, even some with our with municipal um water systems. So we don't

want to get to the point where the aquifer is dropping to the point um you know I think think Chad from engineering and say that the other thing we saw last time we had a significant drought is as the aquifer drops you know then that lends itself to the soil giving way and we um you know saw sink holes don't say the word just don't say the word

so so there are a lot of compounding um compounding factors that could happen you know it's not just you everybody thinks oh drought means it's high and that's true, but there's a lot of other consequences that go along with that. So, that's why we're trying to manage it so well, monitor it, and um and really be um proactive in our in our efforts to mitigate the impacts of the drought. So, if you got any any questions specifically about the weather service report or anything, I'd be any any question for Mr. Yes. um realizing we've been under the the no burn restriction for some time now and of course it's only going to get hotter and we got the sun and so forth

uh just baking that ground as well as uh everything else. Um do we have anything uh in place or entertaining possibly a drop off site for those who are have residential um uh debris that they like to discard? I know we're not allowing them to burn it, but perhaps a dump site or something like that or some kind of option. I will defer to Miss Dukes on that one. Yeah, it can be taken to the to the u to the drop off collection sites that you also drop your bulk waste off. They they will take um yard debris there. I I I realize some some residents may not have the service is is what I'm getting at. Sure. we can get Kevin to reach out to the haulers and see if they've got a

an extra accommodation that they can maybe they'll work with us on that through this season given the fact that we can't we can't really burn right now. I think to your point which is a good one, Commissioner Marshall, you're you'll hear from Chief Young here in a minute that that's where many of our grass fires are are coming from right now. And we had a big one yesterday off of Boring Pond Road that that forestry had to respond to and then we had to protect structures. So, Chief Young will talk about that here in a second. And I do want to remind you all, I know we're in the middle of budget and we're still working on our um our GEMA reimbursement as far as our hurricane stuff goes. But sink holes are not something that's covered by insurance. And so, if we we should have something like that open up, similar to Snake Nation Road that that fell in 20 plus years ago. Um 20 plus years ago, that was almost a $2 million repair that had to to come out of fund balance. So, we hope that we won't have those, but I just want to let you know that uh we don't we don't throw those two words around lightly because that that is required to come out of fund balance if we should have to reroute a road again or or work with someone on that.

When we do water restrictions, is there anybody I mean our agricultural community is exempt from correct? Correct. um golf courses.

Usually anything related to sustainability of an existing business is going to be exempt. What they really look at is residential water management and landscape irrigation even if it is commercial which you know we would from a code enforcement standpoint you know be be kind to folks if you know we had new new development go in and and they lost their landscaping and because they couldn't water that would be something that we could work with them on on long term. and we've not heard from the state that that's going to be, you know, something that that's handed down, but it it has several times in the past over the the last 20 years. So, we just want you all to be prepared. This bar will will usually get messaging from the state if if we should need to do that. Um, you know, maybe there's some rain around the corner and we won't get there. I just think that beyond hurricanes and and snow, this is probably the the next weather environment that can really sneak up on us from a management standpoint. I mean, if we don't if we don't have enough water, we've got we got bigger problems. So,

I think I remember years ago you watered on your day based on your house number odd or even or something. You could only do it like three days a week or something. So, and correct me if I'm wrong, but emergency management, I don't believe utilities We don't impose the restrictions. We just provide the messaging that's provided by the state DNR. So, correct. So, whatever regulations and exemptions and all is nothing that that we come up with. We just have to pass along whatever we're told to pass you. Any other I'm sorry, Mr. Chair. I say any other questions for Mr. T.

But wouldn't it wouldn't it be wise to be proactive now and to get those messages out as best we can to say we're not imposing anything at this point, but we're ser, you know, this could be a consideration in the near future. Like me, I mean, now that I know that, I mean, you know, I like my green grass, but I also don't want to contribute to and I believe Miss Miss Bar, she and I have communicated pretty much every time, every week when this comes out, we we communicate. And so, I think some of that messaging has been gone going out, but maybe to, you know, point taken, we'll work and that needs to be more aggressively

and the water stewardship act information just went into effect this month. So I wanted to share that with you all publicly and then we'll have some information that goes out on that. And really, you know, there's the question as far as green grass and making sure that you're still drought resistant, which you can water it too much. And then the other thing is it it's always been smarter to water it at night or early in the morning so that it has time to soak in before the sun hits it and it just dries off. It's also uh mindful to remind everybody that uh the wildlife itself is out and about a lot more too to do the trout. I saw another hit animal away coming. So that is true.

Yeah, Mr. Smith, I would also add about two meetings ago, uh Commissioner Weisenbaker's prayer asked for rain and he got an inch and a half, but the pressure is on you. Yes, sir. No, seriously. We uh we could sure use some rain and and um and as as um as we always say, the good Lord will provide the rain when he's ready to provide us the rain. We just have to manage through it until we get it. So that's right. Amen.

So Mr. Chairman, a more real time impact of that is what um fire departments across Georgia are facing right now. Chief Young, if you'd like to come up and talk about our recent response and and what you all are doing and also the importance of prioritizing the brush trucks as far as our replacement. There it goes.

Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman, commissioners. Uh, so just to echo kind of what Mr. Ty was saying, we we are in them drought conditions and we are still seeing an uptick in our wildfire response. Currently this month, we're at 54, which puts us at year to date 206 wildfire calls. Um um to what Miss Dukes was saying a while ago about Borum Pond Road, just to give you an example of the fire growth and the rapid uh fire growth that we're seeing, a lot of it is from yard debris pile still people are still burning and then it's escaping their means of trying to keep it um you know at bay. So um yesterday what we were seeing was on Borne Pond Road was the hurricane blowdown. Uh we We we we arrived on scene. We had a a pretty good working woods fire. Our guys set up on structural protection. Uh we we did lose um a recreational vehicle and we did have damage to one of the structures before we arrived on scene, but once we arrived on scene, we contained the yard debris fire that we could contain. Um and then it turned into a Georgia Forestry operation. And so we had multiple units on scene. Georgia Forestry had multiple units on scene and where they their struggle was was from the hurricane blowdown. Uh the tractor operators got into some situations. Uh they had to call in an airplane. Um if you if you've ever been around a wildfire, the airplane that's up around 5,000 ft, uh they're um circling and they're giving information back to the tractor operators. And so they had a pond that they were trying to deal with and the blow down. So, we're just seeing from all the debris that's on the ground in the wood, wooded areas, we're just seeing a real impact on fire behavior um to where it's really increasing. And um you know, we're what Miss Dukes was

saying, our uh EVT, our maintenance division, they're keeping our brush trucks uh up and going. Uh it's a struggle at times with the years of uh service, you know, they've already put in for us, but um they're keeping them they're keeping them running for us and they're um the brush trucks are we is a must. We have to have them to keep up with especially the current conditions that we're in this wildfire season. So our biggest problem is wildfires, not structure fires. Do you know how many structure fires we have had? That's just the structure not caused by a wildfire to this date.

To give you an exact number, no sir, I I did not pull that data before I came. Um I think at the retreat we were around 40 some odd structure fires. Um now we have you know we have received some damage to some structures from these wildfires escaping. Can I and you may not be able to answer this perfectly, but with Georgia forestry, does every county have a Georgia forestry like staffed operation or is it more a regional approach? So around our area, every county has a Georgia forestry. Um, now I was in conversation with the chief from the Tiff County. uh recently they combined their units and they're in Turner County now. So Tiff County uh I think is the closest county to us.

And how many would you say Georgia Forestry has when they like working of fire firefighters or people for our community? Like yesterday they had four on that scene. They had two tractor operators. Um they have a top six engine which is a brush truck. Um they had an operator on it because because they have a top six engine also and their chief ranger was there as a supervisor. When you say critical, you referring to a dozer. Bulldozer. Yes, sir. But it's critical we upgrade those brush trucks or get new brush trucks. Yes, sir. We're getting our ours is they they've been used pretty good bit, so we can take care of that.

Yes, sir. Okay. Any other questions? Thank you. Thank you for your efforts.

Thank you, Chief. Uh, last, Mr. Chairman, I just want to thank you all for being at the ribbon cutting yesterday at the sheriff's office for the new mental health wing at the jail. Um, I think that I speak on behalf of all of our staff that's involved in either budgeting or working with those families or working with our staff that serve those people every day. That we are grateful for your support. We are grateful for your vision, certainly for the sheriff and and letting us move that project forward. Um, Mr. Mloud and his team did a fantastic job managing the project. Um, and then knowing that there's so much that you all have talked about, specifically Commissioner Evans and Commissioner Marshall over the last few years in the community there that's going to be served. Um, you know, it is our our goal along with some help with uh from Miss Roundtree and Misdemeanor Probation to to divert as many of those folks into the care that they need prior to them even having to enter the jail. Um, that's not always going to be possible. So to now know that we've got a facility that's better able to serve those citizens, we are all very proud and and look look forward to the difference that it makes in our community. So thank you for that.

Okay. Thank you. Anything else? No, sir. All righty. Um before I move into citizens wishing to be heard, do we have any folks with leadership lounge with us tonight? If you would please stand, be recognized. Thank you. Thank you for going through that process. That's a great program. All right. Our first uh citizen wishing to be heard is Miss Mary Row. Miss Row, come forward and state your name again and uh your address, please, for the record. I am Mary Ro. I reside at 4515 Jones Lane, Lake Park, Georgia 31636. To the commissioners,

Miss Mary, would you please pull the microphone down? Thank you, ma'am. there. Okay. To the commissioners, we are concerned only about paving Green Road uh instead of fixing on it. We have endured a long wait period putting up with traveling the road when it rains several days. Commissioners, we want the road paid because more relatives are and want to bill on their parents' property, but the rainy condition of the road make them want to change their mind. Commissioners, please consider paving Green Road instead of fixing on it. Thank you. Thank you, ma'am.

All right. Our next speaker is uh Mr. Michael Null. Please come forward and state your name and address for the record, please. Good evening, uh, Chairman Slaughter, commissioners. It's good to see you again. Um, my name is Mike Null. I live at 2305 Glendale Drive. Uh, the historian Daniel Bourston once stated that the greatest of knowledge is not ignorance, it's the illusion of knowledge. One way or the other, we are all ignorant to a degree. The issue of data centers is no exception. The real question is what illusions do exist regarding data centers. I carefully read Gary Weisenbaker's column data centers done right can work for Georgia in February. Also look closely at a recent column by PCS chair Jason Shaw. Georgia does it right with data centers. While I must disagree with certain assertions made by these individuals, there's one statement I believe we can agree on. Data centers and AI are here to stay. just as computers are. Lon citizens against data are not anti-growth if some may believe. We are against a lack of smart growth, a lack of transparency and a lack of communication. Thus far, if we have not received a response from the Lones County Board of Commissioners regarding our request to impose a moratorum and to form a committee of citizens and government officials to work on the question of data centers together. Question is why? You know by now what our major concerns are, so I will not repeat them. However, allow me to focus on two issues today. What economic reality is Jason Shaw referring to in his recent column. He mentions an analysis by the University of Georgia without providing the actual source. He then speaks of the creation

of tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in econ economic output statewide without differentiating between temporary and permanent jobs and without acknowledging the fact that the Georgia Department of Artisan accounts revealed in January that numbers for the actual production and economic value coming from data centers are inflated. The handout you just received was created by the wellrespected Food and Water Watch Group, a Washington DCbased NGO. It is titled artificial jobs the illusion of big tech spectator cent's employment claims. To quote to quote from its conclusion while the data center industry would like to promote its development as a boon to local communities we show that the actual job record of data centers is remarkably dismable. added as a recent assessment by Good Jobs First, a national policy resource center that promotes corporate and government accountability and economic development. Based on their research, Georgia is expected to lose about $2.5 billion dollars of of uh sales tax exemptions because of the data centers in the fiscal year of 2026. So, what exactly is the economic reality Jason Shaw is talking about? My second point, particularly important in the context of a discussion we had earlier about water scarcity in our drought conditions. My second point for today is the issue of closed loop cooling systems, a system DC blocks may be using. While a closed loop cooling system use uses less water than an evaporate cooling system, it is not closed as one might believe. Think of it as a gigantic car radiate except the volume is hundreds of thousands of a gallons or more. or the system must be topped off occasionally and there are blowdowns where a portion of the cooling water is removed including contaminants like anti-corrosives, anti-scaling agents and bioides. This is a major problem for communities and ecosystems. Why? Because water

treatment facilities are often not able to handle this contaminants so that a blowdown may simply end up in the nearby river. Clearly, we must carefully reflect on what we may be getting ourselves into. On the comments made earlier, I was paying close attention to the drought index and we are indeed in an extreme drought condition now for some time. I've also paid close attention to the issue of global climate change as the carbon dioxide uh contents in the atmosphere have reached 429 parts per million and this is going to be one of the areas where we'll be focusing on at our next uh town hall. So please mark your calendar for our next public town hall meeting on April 17 with exports we're not just familiar with Georgia's public service commission. The town will also focus on the true cost of data center expansion on consumer protection, on the question of high utility bills despite any freezing rates we might see for a short amount of time and the potential impact of our decisions on a topic that's been largely neglected as of late. Climate change, drought conditions will not be an exception. Um, extreme weather events will not be an exception. When we have a competition for a scar source like water, we have to think about water restrictions, whether or not we can be watering our lawn, whether or not farmers have the water they need to do their job. We have to really carefully look at what we're doing. Thank you so much for listening.

Thank you. Thank you.

All right. Our next speaker is uh Teddiana Babcock. Please come forward and state your name and address for the record, please. Good evening, commissioners. My name is Tatiana Babcock and I live at 3561 Ski Range Road. I'm one of the homeowners whose property line directly touches the 719 acre site under discussion for the potential hypers scale data center development. I have several concerns regarding this potential project, many of which other residents have already stated at past meetings. One of my primary concerns has to do with one of the specific protective conditions that were outlined as part of the reasoning and occurred that had occurred last July, which could not be any clearer. Condition number four explicitly states that a 200 foot undisturbed buffer shall be required along the northern and southern property lines abuing current residential zoning district boundaries. That condition appears to already have been violated when in the interim the property owner conducted a thinning cut of the property during which they proceeded to clear trees up to and over my property line. in the process destroying a section of the fence running the property line and leaving the debris from the destroyed feds, damaged trees and track marks from the heavy machinery involved on my property which remain there today. In other words, before any development plans, DRRi applications or permits have even been submitted as the county itself confirmed just two weeks ago on March 9th, a violation has already occurred. It is also to important to point out that a 200 foot undisturbed buffer is clearly not sufficient when it comes to its ability to buffer the light and noise pollution that comes with the data centers. That's not even close to the buffer needed to maintain a quality of

life that we and our neighbors can still enjoy today. Then last week on March 17th, a company by the name of Teracon Consultants, Inc., a company that explicitly serves the digital infrastructure sector including data centers specializing in geotechnical borings and environmental assessments arrived on the site with heavy equipment and began work. This is perhaps also a good time to point out that part of our property and the property of the individual who intends to sell his land to DC blocks provides habitat for wildlife like deer and protected species like the gopher tortoise and the eastern indigo snake. So to come back to my primary concern if this project moves forward as that appears to be what is happening and if the landowner cannot or will not respect a simple clearly written 200 foot undisturbed buffer now at this very early pre-application stage when the entire community is watching how can any of us trust that this condition and any of the other conditions will be followed once heavy construction begins once 247 operations start or once the low frequency hum from cooling fans and generators begin affecting our property values, our health, our quality of life, and access to water. What I've seen so far raises serious doubts about whether the promised protections listing in the zoning approval, like noise, light buffers, and wildlife, will ever be meaningfully enforced. My family and I chose to live in this area directly south of the potential data center site for the quiet, rural character, surrounded by nature and wildlife. Our dreams of building a new home and running a farm on this property is put into jeopardy if this project moves forward because no one nobody wants to live near a data center. Thank you for your time and listening to my concerns and the concerns of my neighbors.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

All right. Next speaker is Miss Kelly Saxon. Please come forward and state your name and address for the record, please. Good evening, Kelly Saxs and a Baldwin Place. Um, the the Georgia Department of Transportation is currently accepting applications for the local road assistance administration funding. This will include funds that was set aside by uh Governor Kemp in the general assembly that was amended with the FY2025 budget. This is a strong opportunity for our county because the funding can be used for road repairs and improvements. We've heard citizens concerns and I think this would be a good way to address these concerns. And the good thing about it is that there is no local match required which reduces the financial burden on our taxpayers. Funds are distributed based on a formula. The application deadline is June 15th. So hopefully there is a way to act on this. um not sure if it's still current or not, but I've been seeing this. So, I think it's something that we could look into to see if this is something that we can really use for our county. And this is the opportunity to bring resources, improve infrastructure, and to do so without adding cost to citizens. So over the past two years, changing gears here, I've been working actively with the city of Vasta, including presenting before city council to take back local ownership of the Craig Center. I'm proud to share that the city has now

secured the property and is currently rehabbing the facility to serve as an inclement weather shelter for all of Louns County. Today, I'm requesting that Loun County contribute $50,000 to assist with the remaining renovations and necessary repairs to ensure the building is fully functional and ready to serve our community. Thank you. Thank you.

All right. Next speaker is Miss Amanda Hall. Please come forward and state your name and address for the record, please. Good evening, commission. Um, Amanda Hall, 21102 North Sherwood Drive. Current state law says that if you breed two or more litters of puppies per year, you must register with the Department of Agriculture. And here lies the problem. It is impossible to monitor or police. Animal control does not have the time to keep up if someone has bred one litter or 20 litters. Director Mike Brown and I have had multiple conversations and he has straight up said it's impossible to enforce that law. And until the county addresses the backyard breeding problem here, we're never going to get a handle on the dog overpopulation issue at the shelter. It is my understanding, and I may be wrong, but the commission doesn't want to pass an ordinance restricting breeding because you're afraid of upsetting people, telling them what they can and can't do with their dog. My trouble with that is we require people to vaccinate their dogs for rabies. It's mandated. We've done that since the 1940s. And we're not prohibiting people from breeding. We're just regulating it. That's it. Anybody can get a breeders. Well, not everybody, but if you meet the requirements, you can get a breeder's license. And I'm not anti-d dog breeder. I'm anti-b bad dog breeder. We need good breeders in our community that are breeding dogs that

make great family dogs that are not are unlikely to bite and are not a danger to our community. Bad dog breeders don't care about that. They're in for a cheap buck and every responsible breeder I know is proud that they are licensed. You see, some of these breeders are making 10 to$20,000 per litter. I know this firsthand because as a veterinarian, I had conversations with them in the in the clinic. They would brag about it. And I know they were not licensed with the state of Georgia, but I promise you, the county is not collecting a penny of the of the profits that that they're getting from selling their puppies. Not a single bit of sales tax. You see, it's the responsible pet owners or even people who don't have dogs. Maybe they don't even like dogs. They're paying the cost to manage, not solve because we're we're just managing here. The problem that these irresponsible breeders have created. I would love to know how many backyard breeders have approached Jaw to say, "Please don't regulate us. We don't want to be told what we can and cannot do, and we certainly don't want to pay taxes." Compare that to the number of people that have been begging and begging for years for the commission to do something to solve the problem. Furthermore, if I live in the county, I could literally have 10,000 dogs. I could produce hundreds or thousands of litters per year as long as I don't sell them.

And they meet the minimum standard of housing. I give them food and water and I vaccinate them for rabies by the time they're 12 weeks old. If I do that, I'm not breaking a single ordinance in our county. An ordinance needs to be passed expanding on state law by changing it from two or more litters to one single litter. Whether they're selling them, giving them away, or simply breeding, it would be super easy to implement. And I would expand it to cats because that's a huge problem in our community as well. If there are puppies or kittens and a female dog or cat that's nursing, it's obvious they're breeding animals. And I recognize the county does not want to pass an ordinance that another county has not already passed. You want proof that it's going to work and I appreciate that. I think that's wise. But why can't Loun County pass an ordinance, implement it, collect the data, and it be the ordinance that other people not only in Georgia follow, but throughout the country? The people that are creating the problem should be paying for the problem. So, cracking down on backyard breeders would save the county millions.

Thank you, Miss Hall. Thank you. Thank you. All right, our next speaker is Miss Kishna Cheek McBride. Did I get that right? Close enough. Close enough. Hello everyone. Thank you for having me. This is my very first time here. I apologize. Please state your name.

I'm Christina Cheek McBride. I'm at 104 East Mary Street, Belasta, Georgia. Um today I come here to give you a little bit of awareness of who is in your backyard and the great things that we are bringing to our county. Um I am the founding executive director of Sister Girl Birth Initiative and I am also the regional site coordinator of the Georgia Black Dueling Network and what we aim to do is to address the maternal and infant health disparities that plague our district here in South Georgia. Um, we offer resources and we help bridge the gap in um, some of the health disparities like I said with peer-to-peer support. We are also a training institute. We train women to become what's called birth and postpartum doulas and therefore um increasing increasing the maternal health ecosystem and taking some of the health uh the burden off of existing uh health organizations such as the health department and the hospital. We seek to go in the home and be within bedside during running of the most um sensitive and critical moments of their life. Um, just as a background, some of some statistics I feel that you should know and why we do the work that we do. According to the latest March of Dimes report, Georgia has one of the highest maternal and infant mortality rates. We rank 45th in the nation when it comes to maternal health. We also have one of the highest premature and low birth weight uh rates. 11.8% 8% of babies born in the state of Georgia um are born with uh premature birth conditions or low birth weight. Why am I talking about state rates? Because we should always assume that in South Georgia

they are always going to be higher. So um in addition, these statistics disproportionately um are affecting African-American women and babies. Some of the health disparities that we see are gestational diabetes, hypertension, preeacclampsia, and maternal mental health disorders and other socioeconomic disparities that drive these rates higher. Um, and again, these are worse in rural areas. Um, and of course, poor health does not discriminate, but we all know um that the rates are higher for us. So, that's where we come in as a nonprofit seeking to, like I said, fill the gap and do what we can. Um, we are going to be I'm looking at my notes. They're really unorganized. Um, some of the other things that we do is try to um influence a lot of the maternal health policy on the local, state, and federal level. I myself a maternal health lobbyist at the capital all the time advocating for what we need here specifically in South Georgia to bring awareness. Um the good news is we have people here on the ground who are addressing and trying to make birth motherhood um better for everybody. So to introduce ourselves to the community this Saturday we are going to be hosting a community baby shower for all moms and I did say Georgia Black Duela Network but this event is open to everybody. We will be giving out diapers, car seats, wipes, strollers. We're going to be having food and games for everybody and just a way to introduce everybody in the community to who we are and what we can do for them. Um, also, um, I plan to draft a joint proclamation hopefully between the state, the city, and the county to recognize black maternal health week to bring awareness to the disparities that plague us here. um but most importantly focus on the

solutions that we can do um on a joint and combined effort. Lastly, as a candidate for state representative for House District 177, I want to make it abundantly clear that maternal and infant health is one of my biggest passions and focus. And I want to do everything and anything that I can to make sure that we have healthy mothers, healthy babies in that order. and I hope that if elected to the seat that I have your support and cooperation to address this matter. I'm sorry I'm full of nerves, but um I'm just happy to share with you and be here this evening. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, ma'am.

Commissioners, any questions, comments you'd like to make? None. I'll entertain a motion to adjurnn. Motion.