The cold weather has slammed in, hard. It’s 42 outside, and very windy. Tomorrow is supposed to start off at 37. Unfortunately, at least where we are, it has continued to refuse to rain. There’s still a lot of color in the woods, and it’s very pretty late afternoon, with the sun shining through the trees.
They’ve finally issued a total ban on outside burning until further notice. It’s a no brainer with the dry leaves and high winds, and I think they should have done it long since. I heard a presentation on the FireWise program a week or so ago, and they said that they’ve worked with Union and Towns and reduced wild fires from about 40 a year to six. Fannin? Still about 40. They hope to begin working with subdivisions here to implement the program. Email me if you want info.
The Hwy 5 meeting was very well attended. I wouldn’t be completely shocked if 500-600 people showed up. The official handout? Three pretty hazy topo maps and a lot of this sort of thing: “This is an Open House meeting and so we will not have a formal presentation … we are here to listen and take input. It is important that you leave us comments to help GDOT decide how to proceed with this project….You’ve seen our environmentalists in the field … state funded projects still have many layers of environmental protection …. we do not have a “locked down” alignment … we do not have defined ROW limits….”
If you believe all of that, I have a bridge I want to sell you in McCaysville. In fact, come to think of it, I do have a city block I want to sell you in McCaysville. It backs up to the river park off East Tennessee that was recently renovated, and it would be ideal for redevelopment as a elder care facility, apartment complex, or nursing homes. And you can walk to that bridge. That’s MLS #255501.
I did not have the heart to really work the room, but most of the comments I heard or overheard were on the order of, “I’m glad my place is far enough off Hwy 5” or “I’m glad they’re not taking my house.”