Oconee County officials have made a conscious decision not to enforce the county’s sign ordinance for a property in the busy intersection of SR 316 and the Oconee Connector.
Coce enforcement officials believe a double-sided sign the county approved for the property was installed in violation of the county requirement that such signs be five feet from the property line. The sign, the county contends, is outside the property itself and is in the state right of way, which is a violation of state law.
The sign belongs to Boswell Properties, owned by Jamie Boswell, Athens real estate broker and District 10 representative to the 14-member State Transportation Board. As a member of the Board, Boswell helps decide how state transportation funds are distributed within the 10th District, which includes Oconee County.
As recently as November, the county did enforce its sign ordinance for a property on SR 316 at the intersection with Jimmy Daniell Road, just one mile west of where the Boswell sign is posted. That property was being listed by Upchurch Realty.
The county now has to decide how to respond to signs on an adjacent property to determine if they are in violation of the county ordinance.
So far, the signs on that property remain under investigation, according to B.R. White, director of the county's Planning and Code Enforcement Office.
For more on the story, go to Oconee County Observations.
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