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Chattahoochee plans for growth

By BRANDE POULNOT
(From the 1-11-06 issue)
   The Cusseta-Chattahoochee County Board of Commissioners held its first meeting of the year on Jan. 3. In addition to deciding that Larry Dillard and Ben Miller will continue their roles as chairman and vice-chairman, respectively, they approved the creation of a bid package to initiate the hiring process for a full-time building inspector. According to Chairman Larry Dillard, once the bid package is created it will be brought to the board for a vote.

  
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   Currently, the Unified Government employs a part-time building inspector. Dillard indicated the current part-time building inspector was not interested in a full-time position, necessitating the need for the hiring process. He indicated the need for a full-time inspector has arisen due to several large tracts of land in the county that have been or are in the process of being sold to developers.
   “We are getting ready for the future,” the chairman said, “Developers are buying 300, 400 and 500 acres at a time.”
   He said one development company based in Florida recently bought 400 acres and is currently preparing plans for its development, which they will soon present to the commission. Dillard noted another 300-acre tract is set to move into the hands of developers on Jan. 19. He pointed out that there are currently several large pieces of land for sale in the county as well.
   Interim Manager Elvin Hardy mentioned the 332-acre tract the county will auction on Jan. 29 and said several developers have expressed interest in it and have asked for information relative to its development.
   He said, “Virtually all are talking about a mix of single family and multi-family housing for that land.”
   Hardy also said that anywhere from 300-1,200 acres are now in the contract stage of being sold to developers by timber companies.
   The board also approved Copley Engineering to assess prospective water and sewage needs for the proposed National Security Associates (NSA) building site. NSA reportedly set its sights on a 692-acre tract of land in late November, which it would use to train police and military personnel. The land is located in the county but was at the time owned by the Columbus Economic Development Authority.
   Dillard indicated the Lower Chattahoochee RDC will apply for a grant to provide water and sewage to the site and this preliminary engineering work needs to be completed for the grant application. Dillard warned, “This is very preliminary.”
   In related news, the Columbus Economic Development Authority has petitioned the county’s Planning Commission to rezone that parcel of land from residential to commercial, according to the planning board’s notice of request to rezone. Two related public hearings are scheduled as required by law. The Planning Commission will hold the first hearing on Feb. 9, at which time they will determine to either recommend that commissioners accept or deny the rezoning request. Commissioners will hold the second public hearing and will vote to accept or deny the rezoning request on March 7.