The re-hiring of a former county planner coincides with Macon County pressing “pause” on any future changes to the Watershed Protection Ordinance or Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance.
At the Jan. 14 Macon County Board of Commissioners meeting, Interim County Manager Warren Cabe said discussions on all watershed issues would be “tabled indefinitely” pending information from FEMA mapping.
Additionally, Cabe announced the changes in the Planning and Code Enforcement office. With Bobby Bishop’s retirement, Cabe said they combined two positions into a Planning, Permitting and Development Director and hired former county Planner Joe Allen to fill it.
The Planning, Permitting and Development Director is at Macon County Salary Grade 38, which ranges from $70,545.28 to $105,817.92. Allen’s salary is $75,248.30, according to Macon County Human Resources Director Tammy Keezer.
Cabe said pausing the floodplain discussions would allow Allen time to get acclimated.
At its Jan. 2 meeting, the Macon County Planning Board rejected a recommendation to allow outside fill in a floodplain acre of up to 25%, and a Certification of No Adverse Impact from a qualified engineer required for more than that.
The commissioners previously changed the Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Ordinance, increasing the minimum tract size to mandate an erosion and sediment control plan from half an acre to a full acre.
The Planning Board voted 4-3 in October to recommend changing the Macon County Watershed Protection Ordinance to allow recreational vehicle parks or subdivision owners to receive Special Nonresidential Intensity Allocations in specific county watersheds. The commissioners have yet to vote on this proposed change.
The pause comes as the towns of Franklin and Highlands have asked to be included in discussions, as both have different floodplain and watershed ordinances.
Cabe also updated the commissioners on the Planning Board’s response for a study on the removal of the Lake Emory Dam as requested by former Commissioner Paul Higdon. By a unanimous vote on Jan. 2, the Planning Board said the study of the dam removal is beyond their purview and the commissioners would need to commission a study on the effects of removing the dam. The dam is privately owned by Northbrook Carolina Hydro II LLC, a subsidiary of Northbrook Energy.
Cabe said if they want to move forward, they might need to take it up during upcoming budget discussions as it would likely require paying for outside services to conduct a feasibility study.