Habersham County approves burn ordinance changes, approves broadband grant amendment and energy audit LOI; tables fire consolidation study

Habersham County commissioners on Monday adopted revisions to the county's open-burning rules, approved an amended public-private broadband build agreement with Windstream and authorized an investment-grade energy audit under a guaranteed energy-savings approach — while tabling a study on possible consolidation of municipal fire services.

The meeting opened with election of Commissioner Jimmy Tinch as chairman and Bruce Harkness as vice chairman; the board then heard staff presentations, a vendor request for support on a broadband grant, and a slate of public-safety and facilities proposals.

The board voted to adopt an amendment to Article 2 (Open Burning) of Chapter 30 (Fire Prevention and Protection) of the Habersham County Code of Ordinances. Jeff Adams of Fire & EMS said the revision corrects discrepancies the Georgia Forestry Commission identified and updates local rules to align with OCGA —12-6-90. "This is the amendment . . . for the purpose of updating the burning regulation in Habersham County to be consistent with OCGA section 12-6-90," Adams said. The change passed on the second reading.

Why it matters: County staff said the revision fixes technical inconsistencies raised by the forestry agency and keeps local rules consistent with state statute; one audience member had asked for clarity that start/stop times remain tied to daylight and darkness, and staff confirmed that the ordinance ties allowable burning to daylight/dark hours.

The board also heard from Josh Baker, operations manager for Windstream, who summarized the company's local broadband build and asked the board for a letter of support to pursue federal BEAD (Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment) funding. Baker told commissioners Windstream has invested $3,250,000 in the county alongside a state award of $5,670,000 (a combined figure the presenter described as roughly $8,920,000), and that Windstream has completed about 146 miles of fiber with roughly 117 miles remaining. Baker said the company's BEAD proposal would extend high-speed service to about 1,600 additional locations, and he used the county's current definitions that anyone with less than 100 megabits is "underserved" and less than 25 megabits is "unserved."

Later on the agenda the board approved a housekeeping amendment to the county's public-private partnership build agreement with Windstream to reflect a federal/state grant restructuring. Tim Simms, interim county manager, said the federal award structure was changed from a reimbursable-with-match model to a fixed-award model for auditing simplicity; Simms said the amended award amount increased "from 5.6 to 6.2" (as described in the presentation). The board approved the amended build agreement.

Why it matters: The amendment affects how the state/federal broadband grant will be administered and documented for audit; Simms said Windstream remains responsible for costs beyond the fixed award as part of its build plan.

On facilities and energy use, the board approved a letter-of-intent and contract authorization to proceed with an investment-grade audit from a vendor selected through the county's RFQ process. The vendor described a two-stage approach: (1) an investment-grade audit of county-owned buildings costing roughly $20,000'$30,000 (the vendor gave that range for the audit, which the county would owe if it declined to do renovations), and (2) an optional performance contract under which the vendor would guarantee energy savings if the county chose to implement recommended measures. "We utilize legislation that allows you to find those savings. We then guarantee those savings," the presenter said. Commissioners approved the letter of intent to proceed with the audit; staff said the audit typically takes four to six months and that, if the county chooses subsequent renovations through the contract, upfront costs can be financed through energy savings with no initial price to the county.

Why it matters: An approved audit will inventory equipment, estimate savings and identify funding paths (grants, leasing) for upgrades such as LED lighting or HVAC controls; a preliminary county-staff review cited potential multi-million-dollar savings across buildings, though commissioners were told that figure was preliminary.

The board gave first reading to a new Article 3 (Fire Alarms) in Chapter 30, proposed by the fire department, aimed at reducing excessive automatic-alarm responses from commercial and institutional alarm systems. Jeff Adams said the county has seen a large increase in alarm responses that are not emergent but nonetheless dispatch fire apparatus and tie up resources. The first reading covered definitions, administration, inspection and appeals; Adams and county staff said owners will receive written notice and the ordinance's fee schedule will be set before second reading.

Why it matters: County staff said the measure is meant to reduce unnecessary emergency responses and the safety risk of having apparatus tied up on non-emergent alarms. Adams said local models include similar ordinances in nearby counties.

The board considered a county-commissioned study on potential consolidation of municipal fire departments into the county fire service. Staff told commissioners the study would be performed by an outside consultant at an estimated cost of $55,000 and would not bind cities to consolidate; after discussion the board voted to table the item to obtain more information.

Other agenda votes and appointments: the board approved the consent agenda; confirmed several board and committee appointments including Richard Thornton to the Planning Commission and reappointments to the dangerous-dog committee and other bodies; and approved a resolution of intent to stay "opted in" to the state's new assessment-cap amendment (House Bill 581), a step staff said preserves the county's future ability to pursue a local-option sales-tax-based rollback should the county pursue that option. Staff noted March 1 as the state deadline to opt out and that local governments must hold three hearings if opting out.

Votes at a glance: the board - Adopted the amendment to Chapter 30 Article 2 (Open Burning) — second reading; outcome: approved. - Approved first reading of Chapter 30 Article 3 (Fire Alarms) — outcome: accepted for second reading. - Approved amended public-private broadband build agreement with Windstream to reflect grant restructuring — outcome: approved. - Authorized letter-of-intent / investment-grade audit for a guaranteed energy-savings performance contract (ABM) — outcome: approved. - Tabled the municipal fire consolidation study (requested $55,000 estimate) — outcome: tabled for more information. - Approved resolution of intent regarding House Bill 581 (opt-in to state assessment cap measure) — outcome: approved. - Approved the consent agenda and multiple board/committee appointments — outcome: approved.

What commissioners said: Chairman Jimmy Tinch presided over the meeting after being elected at the start of the session. Interim County Manager Tim Simms summarized administrative items and grant updates; Jeff Adams presented both the open-burning amendment and the proposed fire-alarm ordinance; Windstream operations manager Josh Baker presented the broadband build status and support request; and the energy vendor described the audit and the guaranteed-savings model.

Next steps and calendar notes: the fire-alarm ordinance returns for second and final reading at the next meeting; staff said the windstream grant paperwork and amended build agreement will be included in the minutes for audit purposes; the energy audit will move forward under the LOI and staff will return with a firm not-to-exceed audit price if the scope changes. The board said the county's winter retreat on Feb. 13 will include further discussion of the municipal fire-consolidation topic.

Ending: The meeting concluded after an executive session called for personnel, property and litigation matters. The board certified the closed-session topics before adjourning.