[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6118615,"mediaKeyId","2723063-a2d4d5ffe857911ad682dc78ce59474e","parentId",2723063,"title","Pickens County reviews 5-year hazard mitigation plan update; FEMA grant match and project queue highlighted","audioSeconds",280,"startMs",1870000,"endMs",2150000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2723063-a2d4d5ffe857911ad682dc78ce59474e&start=1870&end=2150","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2723063-a2d4d5ffe857911ad682dc78ce59474e/thumbnail_1870000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6118615/Pickens-County/Georgia/Pickens-County-reviews-5-year-hazard-mitigation-plan-update-FEMA-grant-match-and-project-queue-highlighted","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6118615-fae4eb224da391bb6d27a0cb5ba850b7/orig.mp4?Expires=1770953867&Signature=dXveKgAZE3-ZIcLf1tKu8M1X3KWgn7JzM0DOTmvO7kyF6fioRc-mxemJ-yhqxrk~fY0Kgguwc3dK~mxa60pzvIMSol4mWUxoAy4TKU9fx2-ekkn4VaQ1CF-Wv08cOGpXyS87cBQbyCUFiEQ658PVIrAMRzD1tagN~cTqxz81Hsip3h4gu6z2je36-ON7~OIaCxdho3lwdPsnlxyjRQh2o-qJcRo2aP2h9NV9yMWdgAt4cawenJPc-RuV43YonTWLCQ60e3LBMNkkRX3~19qXTiQZEJFYII2d46RclA~SXEZo9CQqGQvc5cTqsEcKw8rIPtZFssYQt04EAsqJraWs0w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","KnowPickens","date","2025-01-06T00:00:00Z","article","Robbie Westbrook, representing county emergency management, summarized Pickens County’s five-year hazard mitigation plan update at a work session, explaining how the plan affects the county’s eligibility for FEMA mitigation grants and describing practical limits on using those funds.

Westbrook said the federal Disaster Hazard Mitigation Act requires states and counties to develop and maintain mitigation plans; without an approved plan, local governments are ineligible for FEMA mitigation funding. He explained that once the county and its municipalities (the city of Jasper, Falcon Rock and Nelson) approve the updated plan, the jurisdiction again becomes eligible to apply for mitigation funding but must provide a local match for any awarded project.

“While the funding stream will be available to us, we still have to be careful about moving forward,” Westbrook said, noting that typical mitigation grants are structured with a 75 percent federal share and a 25 percent local match. He added that the county must weigh cost-benefit and its ability to provide the required local funds before applying. Westbrook also emphasized that FEMA’s grant process can be slow: projects applied for years earlier can take multiple years to secure approval, and some grants the county applied for previously were approved only after local funds had already been spent on the work.

The plan identifies potential mitigation projects — largely public-works projects such as elevating frequently damaged roads, replacing repeatedly failing culverts with more resilient crossings and other drainage improvements — and county staff said they have identified five additional projects to add to the plan once the commission approves it. Westbrook and Public Works staff member Kirk discussed the repetitive-loss logic FEMA uses to prioritize projects: if engineering shows elevating a road would stop repeated damage, that project may qualify as mitigation.

Commissioners asked about the availability of other local funds to meet grant-match requirements and whether previously awarded mitigation funds could be redirected; staff said matches can sometimes be covered by other local sources if the project fits the approved project list and that the state occasionally adds additional match funding but that these arrangements vary by program. Westbrook said mitigation grants are not an immediate fix, and urged the commission to keep an active project queue to be ready when grant windows open.

Westbrook also noted county emergency-preparedness work ahead of a forecasted storm, urged residents to sign up for the county’s CodeRED alert service and to follow Pickens County Emergency Management on Facebook for updates from the National Weather Service. He said the weather-service confidence for an approaching event will increase in the 48–72 hour window, and that county crews had pretreated critical routes in anticipation.

No formal action was taken on the plan at the work session; staff asked the commission to place the plan on an upcoming regular meeting agenda for approval so the county and its municipalities can regain full eligibility for FEMA mitigation funding and add prioritized projects to the plan.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Pickens County Board of Commissioners Work Session | January 6, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Emergency management staff presented a five-year update to Pickens County’s hazard mitigation plan, noting that plan approval is required for FEMA mitigation grant eligibility and that projects must be listed in the plan to qualify. Presenters emphasized the typical 75/25 federal/local match and lengthy FEMA approval timelines.","taxTitle","Pickens County, Georgia","taxId",55054,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6118620,"Pickens County staff present seven rezoning requests; planning commission recommended approval for each",1011,176000,1187000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2723063-a2d4d5ffe857911ad682dc78ce59474e&start=176&end=1187","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2723063-a2d4d5ffe857911ad682dc78ce59474e/thumbnail_176000.jpg","/articles/6118620/Pickens-County/Georgia/Pickens-County-staff-present-seven-rezoning-requests-planning-commission-recommended-approval-for-each","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6118620-b79c470b81d8c3bd03a1be4309108a16/orig.mp4?Expires=1770953867&Signature=QUFO0SobSbb7GEl1WASthpSsa9vxoXLhg3MCUV1CMknWIp8xJOjT3~Cf6jAidt8loItwL5Uz9paINog0x02d31-vpVFfY38IviFffJeZP~UGFSFUgmiKjA4jG-s1rId6~CXHGk-0bf4smd2NsFbtmpDIdpGyb5JG4E0CB9izKKnhA-GbeUMXvxcwcG7Tpfac9jJW9l4463PgAOfF9RgwPZzLj0OTkVrdnOH2om09i7Ptt5ypEEuv7MXwXDlH7ituj8-VJ9StatgVNWJdUleTUCA1YRqJYnY8tiEjLH5eM65TEBavx1bfbMGXFXhL19xSN5gw3PJ6TZBMN4fAojhsxw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","At a Pickens County commission work session, county planning staff presented seven rezoning applications and recommended approval for each. The planning commission had reviewed the cases and recommended approval in every instance; commissioners discussed land-use impacts, road improvements and maintenance responsibilities but did not take final votes at the work session.

County planner Charles (staff) led the presentation, listing each application and the parcel details. The requests included: a rezone of an 8.084-acre parcel (Parcel 012073) from Urban Residential to Estate Residential (RZ-190851; applicant Roy Donald Brady); a 3.88-acre portion of a 15.78-acre parcel (Parcel 020016) from Agriculture to Highway Business to allow a service/shop for trucks and tractors (RZ-190852; applicant Sean Elliott); a 27.2-acre parcel along Stone Crest Road from Agriculture to Small Agriculture to permit a five-lot subdivision (RZ-190853; applicant Southern Property Investments); a 15.12-acre portion of a 34.72-acre parcel from Agriculture to Rural Residential for an eight-lot single-family subdivision (RZ-190854; applicants Brandon Roman and Brett Nolan); a 1.5017-acre portion of a 31.86-acre parcel from Agriculture to Rural Residential to combine with an adjoining lot (RZ-1190856; applicant Kristen Braswell); a 0.23-acre adjustment and a 4.11-acre portion rezoning to separate a house from a larger tract and create a buildable lot (RZ-190857; Thompson Lane Dreams LLC); and a 10.82-acre portion of a 60.39-acre parcel from Agriculture to Small Agriculture for smaller lots (RZ-190858; Thompson Lane Dreams LLC).

Staff recommended approval of each request on the basis that the proposed uses align with the county’s comprehensive plan character-area designations (many described as rural residential or commercial corridor) and that applicants had addressed code conditions. Charles said staff had reviewed the requests against the comprehensive plan and zoning code and that the planning commission had moved to recommend approval in each case; planning-commission vote tallies were reported in the staff presentation (multiple cases recorded as carrying unanimously 4–0 or 5–0).

Discussion during the presentation focused on a handful of recurring issues. For the application to subdivide the Stone Crest Road parcel, staff and the applicant had agreed to a condition requiring a 15-foot extension of an existing Stallcrest Steam Mill Road right-of-way to create a 60-foot-wide easement (30 feet each side of center) to meet county road-width requirements; the applicant provided signed petitions from neighboring owners to dedicate the right-of-way. Commissioners asked who would maintain the upgraded road; county staff said the applicant intends to bring the portion up to standard but that county maintenance may not extend to the newly dedicated portion, and the county’s records show parts of the route in a gray area where formal abandonment had not been completed.

On a separate application fronting Highway 136 West (RZ-190852), staff described the rezoning as enabling construction of a shop for commercial equipment and noted that, if the business failed in the future and regulatory requirements were met, the property could later be used for retail. For the Thompson Lane minor subdivisions (RZ-190857 and RZ-190858), staff said driveways onto the state route would require Georgia Department of Transportation approval and that conversations with DOT indicated fewer access cuts would be required — the developer expects two lots to share a driveway so there would be only four driveway cuts instead of eight.

Commissioners and staff also discussed a parcel containing an existing cell tower where a small lot adjustment would separate the tower parcel from the larger agricultural tract; staff said cell towers are treated as conditional uses under the county code and that the conditional-use approval predated some of the rezoning. Several commissioners asked for clarity on surveys and on whether neighboring property owners had provided consent for dedications; staff confirmed petition signatures had been included in at least one application.

No final votes on any rezoning requests were recorded during the work session. Each case will return as an agenda item at a future regular meeting for formal action by the Pickens County Commission.

Votes at the planning-commission level were reported in the staff presentation and are summarized in the actions metadata for each application below. The commission discussion emphasized road access, maintenance responsibility and consistency with the comprehensive plan as the principal factors commissioners expect to review when each case returns for final action.","Planning staff presented seven rezoning applications at a Pickens County work session, recommending approval of requests that would reclassify parcels for residential, small-ag and highway business uses. Planning Commission recommended approval in each case; commissioners did not take final votes at the work session.","actionData","errors"]

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Pickens County reviews 5-year hazard mitigation plan update; FEMA grant match and project queue highlighted

Pickens County staff present seven rezoning requests; planning commission recommended approval for each