State law allows Gateway land tax exemption

GAINESVILLE - Hall County Commissioners offered no explanation Wednesday on why just over 500 acres held by the Gainesville Hall County Development Authority in the Gateway Corridor Industrial Park wound up tax exempt.

Chief Tax Appraiser Steve Watson said the County Board of Assessors exempted the property under state law.

"The General Assembly many years ago by statute made development authorities exempt in the State of Georgia," Watson said. "The Board of Assessors doesn't really have any authority to put them on the digest as taxable."

Watson said the Assessors did have to go through the process of approving all the exempt applications. The Development Authority applied for it and the assessors approved it.

President of the Hall County Tax Payers Association Doug Aiken said Monday the Assessors made the property tax exempt, excluding the new state poultry lab site. Officials including Governor Nathan Deal broke ground for the lab in the park on Highway 365 Monday morning.The rest of the property remains tax exempt until it is sold to a developer.

Aiken made it clear the location of the Poultry Lab in the park was not a problem; that facility would be state owned and tax exempt. He told commissioners the exemption was unfair to tax payers.

FINANCING LAND FILL UPGRADE ON HOLD

Commissioners decided to meet with their finance director before making a final move on financing a million dollar repair at the county landfill by using surplus county funding.

Chairman Dick Mecum said the Commission is looking at paying off an old million dollar loan at a higher interest rate; the new loan rate from the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority is much lower, and repairs are badly needed.

"The problem is the loan on the original system is longer than the life expectancy," Mecum said. "We're going to have to pay off the old loan and then take a new loan from GEFA."

Public Works Director Ken Reardon said because of recent heavy rains he needs to replace the leachate system, which prevents land fill water from escaping and polluting creeks and streams.