Friday, June 21, 2002
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Friday, June 21, 2002 |
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Coweta gives go-ahead for children's shelter By MONROE
ROARK
Angel's House is one step closer to having a brand-new loction after Coweta County commissioners voted Tuesday night to grant a conditional use request for a five-acre site on Holbrook Road in Newnan. The vast majority of the audience at the commissioners' meeting was present to hear the outcome of this issue, and scores of people wore name tags reading, "I support Angel's House," referring to a proposed children's emergency shelter. Some controversy arose before the matter was officially heard, as Commissioner Robert Wood announced that he would not hear the discussion or participate in the vote due to his ties to both sides of the issue. Wood formerly served as a board member for Angel's House, and a longtime business associate of his was present to speak on behalf of the opposition, he said. As Wood was leaving, Commissioner Lawrence Nelms stated for the record his objection to Wood's recusal, which sparked a lenghty debate on that issue. At Wood's urging, County Attorney Mitch Powell expressed his opinion, based on earlier conversations with Wood, that the commissioner's business and financial interests were a sufficient reason for his recusal. After a bit more verbal sparring, Chairman Jim McGuffey declared the matter closed and Wood left the room. Nan Newman, speaking on behalf of Angel's House, said that the surrounding neighborhood was an appropriate one for the shelter, which would have no more than 10 children at any time and would be run by a husband-wife team of house parents. An extensive security system would operate both inside and outside the house, partially because of state and federal regulations that require monitoring such situations where boys and girls are living in the same house. Approximately $1 million has been raised for the construction of the house and initial operation, Newman said, and the land is being donated. The attorney speaking on behalf of the opposition said that there were some concerns about safety of the children as well as the neighbors, since the surrounding land was secluded and consisted of some hunting land. McGuffey stated at the outset that the commissioners' ruling would have nothing to do with whether anyone opposed the idea of a children's shelter. "There's not anyone in this room who opposes a children's shelter," he said. "This is about the location." He went on to say that some misinformation and mishandling of the issue had led to widespread confusion about who was in favor of or against this request and why. He urged the people involved to do a better job of getting the facts out correctly in the future. Since the site in question is in his district, McGuffey made a motion to approve the request with several conditions stipulated by the Planning Department and a few new ones of his own. Those conditions included a 50-foot vegetated buffer and a fence around three sides of the property, along with no future expansion of the house and a maximum of 10 children at a time residing there. His motion passed 4-0.
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