Gordon County commissioners adopt a leash law amendment
The board also heard about the completion of the new health department building and the Sonoraville splash pad.
DBell@CalhounTimes.com
Gordon County residents who repeatedly let their animals wander free could face a fine of as much as $1,000 and/or up to 60 days in jail after the Board of Commissioners approved an amendment to the county’s leash laws this week.
County Administrator Jim Ledbetter told commissioners that those punishments would most likely only ever be used to punish repeat offenders and that the actual penalty would be determined by a judge on an individual basis.
Ledbetter explained that while the county has had a leash law on the books for quite some time, it did not include a provision for punishing offenders. He cited an example where one such person hired a lawyer who pointed that fact out in court.
“So there was nothing the court could do,” he said.
Ledbetter said dogs and cats running loose in neighborhoods around the county is a problem that he gets calls about regularly.
“I’ve gotten as many complaints about dogs running at large as I have just about anything else, I think,” he said during the meeting.
In other action, the board:
Heard from Ledbetter that the county has been awarded a little more than $2 million from the CARES Act, but that he is still researching to ensure the money is used as prescribed.
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Xuan Hoang had applied for variance that would have allowed him to build a stack house on his chicken farm closer to an adjacent property than normally allowed. It was discovered during the meeting, however, that Hoang doesn’t actually intend to build a stack house, which is a structure that houses chicken waste or dead animals, but instead a pole barn to cover sawdust or other dry materials for lined the floor of the chicken houses. Such a structure would not require a variance.
Approved a renewal agreement with North Georgia Community Action, Inc. for the Section 5311 Transportation Service.
Approved the hiring of five new firefighters to fill vacant spots created by three retirements and two departures. Additionally, the board OK’d a paid-per-call class to help train volunteer firefighters.
Approved service agreements with several outside agencies – city school nurse, county school nurse, the Arts Council, VAC, Prevent Child Abuse and the Winners Club.
In 2019, the food pantry provided 2,926 families with food bags, feeding 6,980 individuals. The community kitchen served 30,421 hot meals in the same year. The shower and laundry facilities were utilized 352 and 485 times respectively.
“We’re so excited about this. We’ve been talking about it for almost three years,” Long said. “It has taken a lot of planning and saving and coordinating to get to this point, but we are thrilled to offer what we do and to add to that when we can.”
The Voluntary Action Center thrift store is open for business Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.
The VAC is located at 343 S. Wall St. in Calhoun.