New Deputy Fire Chief Tyler Sudduth sworn in
by Janice Daniel
The Carroll County Board of Commissioners met for their Regular Monthly Meeting on Tuesday, September 2nd, 2025 at 6:00 p.m. at the Historic Court House, 323 Newnan Street, Carrollton, with all commissioners present.
The Invocation was offered by District 4 Commissioner Steve Fuller, who also led the Pledge of Allegiance. District 2 Commissioner Clint Chance read a Proclamation declaring September as Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, the fifth leading cause of cancer deaths of women in the United States. There is not currently an effective diagnostic tool for screening and early detection, but through education, research, and support initiatives, we can empower women to take charge of their health and improve outcomes for those diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
Carroll County Deputy Fire Chief, Tyler Sudduth, was sworn in by Fire Chief Dave Wade.
There were no Public Comments.
In the Zoning Session, Director of Community Development, Ben Skipper, presented Z-25-08-01, a rezoning request for 2.11 acres at 2130 Bremen Mt.Zion Road, to be split from 7.7 acres which the remaining 5.59 acres would still be zoned Agricultural. This is parcel #053-0006, Land Lot 294 of the 7th District, County Commission District 6. Applicant Jody Bennett is seeking rezoning of this property from Agricultural to Commercial for his utility contractor business for Carroll EMC. Bennett, has been using this property with a Bremen business license for the last four or five years to park his utility trucks, bucket trucks, and pick-up trucks used in his business only. The house on the property is used as his office. The property is not open for rental by other people. Bennett stated that he owns the residences nearby. There is no lighting on the property at night since Bennett uses stealth mode night cameras. P&Z recommended approval with the stipulation that, should the property ever be used for anything other than the stated purpose, the owner would have to come back before Council for consideration. Skipper stated that the codes department has received no complaints about this business. Bennett said his normal business hours are around 8:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. except in the case of storms. No one spoke in the public hearing, and the Board approved this request 7-0.
Skipper’s second presentation was C-25-08-01, a Conditional Use Request to operate a dog kennel at the applicant’s residence at 1460 Oak Grove Road, Parcel #080-0046, Commission District 4. Applicant Karmen Barber said she has a building for the kennel and has been operating it for two years under a State of Georgia license. This is a part-time job for Barber, who stated she does not allow drop-offs any earlier than 7:00 a.m. or pick-ups any later than 7:00 p.m. No violent dogs are allowed, there is a fenced area for play time, and the dogs are never out of the kennel without a leash. She said the kennel is inspected yearly by the State and City Fire Marshall.
Skipper explained that the situation with this request started when Animal Control gave Code Enforcement a list of people with State kennel licenses in the county. Code Enforcement found that some of them, including Ms. Barber’s, did not have a county license. The applicant was then instructed to come into the office to apply for the license and the conditional use permit. Skipper said the State used to notify the county when they issued a kennel license in the county, but at some point they got a new inspector who stopped doing this, and Animal Control is in the process of getting the State to restore this process so the county will know when a kennel license is issued and can make sure there is a conditional use permit and a county business license.
In the Public Hearing, Reah Kirk of 1588 Oak Grove Road said her property is adjacent to the property where the dog kennel is located, and that she has young children, ages 6,4, and 1. Kirk said she did not know this was a kennel, just thought Barber owned a lot of dogs, and that she had never made a noise complaint. When she found out it was a dog kennel and the permit would allow for more dogs, she expressed her opposition. She played a video of dogs barking that she made at her front door, and stated that they are barking constantly. She also expressed fear for her children should any of the dogs get out of the kennel and come onto her property.
Also in opposition, Gerald Putman of 1430 Oak Grove Road, adjacent to the dog kennel on the other side, said he gets no peace at all when he is home. He said he is almost 80 years old and his wife is in assisted living, but can make visits to their home, and they can’t sit on the swing in their back yard because of the noise from the dogs. He also cited an incident when a large dog started following him from his mailbox and he backed away from it, fell and hurt his shoulder and had to have physical therapy.
Barber stated that there are other dogs in the neighborhood that run free, and that she hears barking from her neighbors’ homes as well. She also stated that she doesn’t keep dogs full-time because of her health, and that there is over two acres between her home and the adjacent neighbors.
Commissioner Fuller asked Barber what she does with the waste products, and she said she covers the drain with kennel lime. She also said she only has one dog herself, but her daughter has several dogs there, so the barking would not stop even if the permit is denied. Fuller said he had received many phone calls in the last two weeks about this issue, and therefore made a motion to deny the request, and the Board voted 7-0 to deny the conditional use permit.
The Consent Agenda from the Work Session was approved 7-0.
Skipper then presented a Deannexation request from the City of Whitesburg for Tax Parcels W020040093 and 1620080 which had originally been intended for a sewage treatment plant, but it was never built. A farmer who owns the adjacent property wishes to buy the two tracts and rezone to agricultural as part of his farm. The City of Whitesburg was in agreement with the deannexation and the Board approved it 7-0.
The Board then went into Executive Session to discuss real estate and litigation, and when they returned to Regular Session, County Attorney Avery Jackson presented a resolution to authorize the county to apply for a GOSA grant for Phase III of the McIntosh Reserve to expand an additional 327 acres. He said the county’s matching portion for this grant would be $500,000. This item was approved 7-0.
Jackson also presented a resolution to purchase 3.68 acres at 970 Hays Mill Road for the use of an indoor firearms training facility for the Sheriff’s Office and other governmental purposes, at a price of $3,675,000 with terms to increase the Sheriff’s Office budget by $175,000, add one full-time range manager, and authorize the Chairman to execute all documents needed. This item was approved 7-0.
The meeting was then adjourned.