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JEFFERSON COUNTY COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 11, 2016 7:00 P.M. This was the regular scheduled meeting for the month of January. It was held at the Jefferson County Commissioners Office. Those present were as follows: Mitchell McGraw, Chairman; Gonice C. Davis, Member: Tommy New, Member; Johnny Davis, Member; Wayne Davis, Member; Adam Mestres, County Administrator; Dalton Dowdy, County Attorney; and Bonnie Wells, County Clerk. Chairman McGraw called the meeting to order and Commissioner Johnny Davis gave the invocation. Commissioner Johnny Davis made a motion to amend the agenda by forgoing all reports except the chairman’s and administrator’s report. Commissioner Gonice Davis seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. Commissioner Johnny Davis made a motion to adopt the agenda. Commissioner Gonice Davis seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. Commissioner Wayne Davis made a motion to adopt the minutes. Commissioner New seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. Chairman McGraw presented the chairman’s report and County Administrator, Adam Mestres, presented the county administrator’s report. Consent Agenda There were no Consent Agenda items. OLD BUSINESS Land Use & Development Ordinance County Attorney, Dalton Dowdy, introduced the Land Use & Development Ordinance to the board for review. The tentative ordinance was discussed at length; with the issue of distance throughout the ordinance. Commissioner Wayne Davis made a motion to change all the distances in the Land Use Ordinance from what they presently are to two thousand feet; specifically, the distances in Section 20-489 (Land application of sewage sludge or septage). Commissioner Johnny Davis seconded the motion. Discussion: Commissioner New wanted to know if they pass the ordinance with the 2000 feet would that set precedence for everything else. Mr. Dalton said he didn’t think so and he felt it would be specific to that one particular item. He added he didn’t think chicken houses would be a valid comparison as far as footage requirements were concerned. He also referenced an ordinance provided by Commissioner Johnny Davis which put the range at 1,500 feet for chicken houses from residential areas and churches, adding, if it pleased the board he would be happy to get a poultry ordinance together. Commissioner Johnny Davis read the following section from the Land Use & Development Ordinance: Sec. 20-789. - Poultry houses and barns. No commercial poultry house or structure for the keeping of livestock for commercial purposes shall be constructed closer than 200 feet from side and rear property lines. In the R-A zones, the side or rear setback for such structures shall remain the same as for any other structure within the same district. (Ord. of 7-13-1999(02), art. XVIII, § 18-7) After reading the excerpt, Commissioner Davis asked if it should be replaced with something else now. Mr. Dowdy stated they could definitely expand on that down the road. Commissioner New stated according to the aforementioned excerpt, if he had a neighbor who wanted a hog pen, it only had to be 200 feet from his, Commissioner New’s, house. Mr. Dowdy agreed. Commissioner New stated once the ordinance was passed they, the board, would have to live with the good and the bad. Commissioner Gonice Davis stated he was traveling to Brunswick and passed a lot of chicken houses being built and they were not 1,000 feet from the highway; you could see them right there. Commissioner New said the way he understood the regulations with the chicken houses now, is if there were one at the courthouse, you couldn’t smell it or nothing else, you would only hear the noise. It’s not the same thing with a hog pen. He just wanted the board to know that once the ordinance is passed they would have to live with it. The chairman said they would live with it until they had hearings, etc. and changed it again if necessary. Mr. Dalton explained the final decision belonged to the board of commissioners. Commissioner Wayne Davis commented if the ordinance was passed it did not need to be thrown up on a shelf and forgotten about; planning and zoning needed to know what’s in it. Mr. Dalton added the ordinance was already in place, it was now being brought up to date. The vote was unanimous. ---PAGE BREAK--- NEW BUSINESS FY 15 Audit Report Presentation Walter Jones and Mark Davis of Jones, Jones, Davis presented the findings in the FY 15 Audit for the Jefferson Board of Commissioners and answered questions from the board. A summary of which is shown below. The board thanked Mr. Jones and Mr. Davis for an informative audit. Old Landfill Remediation Report Presentation Curt Gorman of Gorman Consulting, Inc. presented the old landfill remediation report. The information is as follows: SUMMARY OF 2015 REMEDIATION SYSTEM OPERATION AVERY ROAD LANDFILL, JEFFERSON COUNTY, GEORGIA 1. Air sparging system operation utilizing a 5-horsepower (hp) compressor began in mid-January 2004. The expanded and current air-sparge system, utilizing a 40-hp compressor, became fully operational on November 11, 2004. 2. Contaminants of concern (COC) concentrations of DCE, TCE and. VC have been reduced below EPA maximum contaminant levels (Ma) or to below detection levels (BDL) in downgradient system monitoring wells GWC-5, MW- 24, MW-26, and MW-29, since January 2004, coinciding with operation of the air-sparging system. Since expansion of the system in November 2004, COC concentrations in GWC-4 have also decreased to BOB. Therefore, it appears that the air-sparging system continues to reduce COC concentrations in the contaminant plume as the plume migrates downgradient from the landfill. ---PAGE BREAK--- 3. Similar reductions of COCs occurred in well GWC-6 between 2005 and 2010. However, during the March 2011 and 2015 sampling events, c-DCE and TCE concentrations in GWC-6 temporarily increased to levels above the Mas. The intermittent increase in COC concentrations at GWC-6 may be the result of greater precipitation in 2010 (following the drought of 2008/2009) and 2015, which likely increased the generation of leachate from the landfill. Greater leachate generation could result in a net increase in contaminant flux migrating from the landfill, thus potentially temporarily raising COC concentrations downgradient of the landfill. However, following increased operation time of the rernediation air compressor, the DCE concentrations in GWC-6 have decreased to below the MCL. 4. The overall mitigation of the downgradient COC plume is further demonstrated by the COC concentration decrease in all farther downgradient sentinel wells and springs since 2005 (see Fig. This decrease in DCE to below MCL concentrations in farther downgradient wells with time of system operation is shown on Figure 9 for wells TP-10S and. TP-11D. 5. Evaluation of the groundwater air-sparging system during its 11 years of system operation has indicated that the system has been effective at reducing COC concentrations. Moreover, there appears to be a notable reduction in COC concentrations in the sentinel monitoring wells farther, over 1,000 feet, downgradient of the air sparge system following eleven years of expanded system operation. The board thanked Mr. Gorman for an informative presentation. Appointment of Department Heads Chairman McGraw re appointed the following people in the positions listed below for the 2016 calendar year: Dalton Dowdy County Attorney Adam Mestres County Administrator Bonnie Wells County Clerk William Evans Warden Calvin Oliphant Deputy Warden Tammie Bennett Leisure Center Director Sylvia Cobb Transit Director Jim Anderson 911/EMA/Fire Director Eugene Cunningham Athletic Director Ken Thomas Public Works Director Commissioner Johnny Davis made a motion to accept the aforementioned appointments given by the chairman. Commissioner Gonice Davis seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. Retirement Plan Resolution and Documents Amendment Approval County Administrator, Adam Mestres, presented a resolution for the county’s retirement plan along with amendment documents which required approval. The documents are shown below: Mr. Mestres’ recommendation was for the board to adopt the resolution and approve the subsequent agreement. Commissioner New made a motion to adopt the resolution and approve the agreement. Commissioner Wayne Davis seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. ---PAGE BREAK--- Green Box Waste Sites Upgrade Chairman McGraw expressed concern for the signs being displayed at the county’s green box sites. He shared with the board signs he obtained from a neighboring county’s green box (dump) site; those signs are shown below. Chairman McGraw indicated the signs at Jefferson County’s dumpsites needed to be upgraded and he wanted signs similar to the ones presented above. He also indicated he would like for cameras to be installed at all the dumpsites with the funds for the signs and cameras coming from the landfill’s budget. Commissioner Johnny Davis made a motion to purchase ten cameras and the signs to go on the dumpsters. Commissioner Wayne Davis seconded the motion. Discussion: Commissioner New wanted to know if someone was caught on the camera were the county going to prosecute. The chairman stated they would be. Commissioner New stated not with a $10 fine. Jimmy Kitchens, Code Enforcement Officer, stated if it came before Judge Anita Thompson they will be charged. Commissioner Wayne Davis said he would like for the dumpsites to be converted to convenience centers so if the right dumpsters were placed out there for the citizens to place appliance, i.e. refrigerators, etc. The vote was unanimous. County Road Maintenance Commissioner Johnny Davis discussed the county maintained roads in district 2 and their need for repairs. Ken Thomas, Public Works Director, addressed the concerns of Commissioner Johnny Davis by explaining the inclement weather played a large role in their inability to maintain the roads. Scheduled Public Comments There were no scheduled public comments. Public Comments on Agenda Items No comments on agenda items. Adjournment Commissioner New made a motion to adjourn the regular meeting. Commissioner Johnny Davis seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. Attest: County Clerk Mitchell McGraw, Chairman Gonice C. Davis, Vice Chairman H. G. Thomas New, Member Johnny A. Davis, Member Charles Wayne Davis, Member