BALDWIN, Ga. — The Baldwin City Council will move forward with a scheduled public hearing on the proposed Cook Construction annexation despite a formal objection from the Habersham County Board of Commissioners.
Rows of empty seats filled much of the Baldwin Municipal Courtroom on Tuesday night, a sharp departure from recent meetings that have drawn large crowds over the proposed GA 365 annexation. With the Cook Construction item not listed on the agenda, attendance was sparse.
The county voted Monday to formally object to Baldwin’s annexation request for property along the GA 365 corridor, triggering a state review process through the Georgia Department of Community Affairs.
Following Tuesday night’s city council meeting, Mayor Doug Faust told Now Georgia that the objection does not cancel the upcoming public hearing.
“At this point, the public hearing is still scheduled,” Faust said.
Faust said the county must now notify the Department of Community Affairs of its decision, after which the city will be required to respond as part of the state’s dispute resolution process.
“The steps that the county has to go through next are to provide a notice to DCA about their decision,” Faust said. “We will then have to respond to that.”
“Since they have completed the action that they have, we can’t take any further action,” he added. “We have to continue to work with DCA on the solutions.”
The public hearing on the proposed annexation remains scheduled for 6 p.m. March 3.
Property owner voices support for growth
Although the annexation was not on Tuesday’s agenda, the issue surfaced during public comment.
Habersham County property owner Terry Williams, who owns land within and near the proposed annexation area, spoke in favor of managed commercial growth along the corridor.
Williams said his family has owned property between Duncan Bridge Road and Level Grove Road since 1935, describing himself as a third-generation landowner born and raised in the area.
“You can’t get more Habersham than me,” Williams said. “And nobody’s more pro-Habersham than me.”
Williams said he respects friends who oppose the project but disagrees with what he described as blanket opposition to growth.
“When we’ve got a four-lane coming right through the heart of our county, we’re going to get growth,” he said. “The question is, is it good growth or bad growth.”
He argued that planned commercial development could help retain sales tax revenue that currently flows to Gainesville.
“My traffic’s bad on 365 because everybody in Habersham is going down to Gainesville to spend their money,” Williams said. “Why do we want to give Gainesville all of our money?”
Williams said attracting grocery stores and restaurants locally could strengthen the county’s tax base and create jobs.
“I submit to you that not everybody is opposed,” he said.
What happens next
The annexation request from Cook Construction involves property along the GA 365 corridor that the developer has proposed for commercial development.
The city approved the first reading of the annexation ordinance earlier this month. A second reading and potential vote would follow the public hearing, pending the outcome of the state review process.
While the county’s objection initiates a formal dispute process, city officials indicated Tuesday that the March 3 public hearing will proceed as planned.
