Oconee County Commissioners Deny Special Use Permit Request for Recycling Facility on Dials Mill Road

In front of a crowd of over 160 packed into a courtroom Tuesday night, Oconee County commissioners voted unanimously to deny the Bernard Garrett family's request for a special use permit to convert a piece of their land on Dials Mill Road into a Recycling and Materials Recovery Facility, Lee Becker of Oconee County Observations reports.

Also denied unanimously was a request for a variance that would have allowed for increased truck traffic along the road, Becker told Patch.

The hearing lasted for more than an hour, followed by at least 20 minutes of deliberations by the Board, he said.

Oconee County Observations and Patch will follow up with more details by Wednesday night.

What do you think about the commissioners' decision?

Photos from the hearing were shared on the Oconee County, Ga. Politics blog, which is run by local Democratic Committee Chair Dan Matthews.

For more background on the issue, please read:

• Hearing Before Oconee County Board of Commissioners On Tuesday Only First Step For Recycling Facility
• Petition Against Proposed Dials Mill Road Recycling Facility Circulates
• Dials Mill Road Special Use Permit Decision Could Have Wider Effects
• Garretts Claim Their Special Use And Variance Requests Are Consistent With Their Oconee County Agricultural History
• Dials Mill Resident Asks Commissioners to Oppose Recycling Center
• Oconee County Planning Commission Recommends Materials Recovery Facility To Board of Commissioners
• Oconee County Planning Staff Does Not Recommend Approval Of Permit For Recycling Facility