Day 1 – Lula City Council

Thank you to all who showed up last night for the Lula City Council Meeting and the ceremony as Chip Horst and I both were sworn in to serve on the Lula City Council.  In many other communities, people are all so busy with their activities they rarely get an opportunity to take part in local government.  Lula is different.  We are a close-knit community and it shows.  The outpouring of love and support from so many during our monthly council meetings is a testimony to the unique charm that is so prevalent in Lula.  It is my honor to be able to serve the citizens of Lula.  There are so many topics and concerns that need to be addressed, and I am confident that Chip Horst and I will be acclimated and brought up to speed in short order to tackle these concerns head-on.

In keeping with that spirit of service, on Day 1, I began drafting an amendment to current building code.  As part of my research, I stopped by City Hall to obtain all zoning designations currently available within the City of Lula.  In doing so, my inquiry resulted in being forwarded a copy of the proposed building code changes that I motioned to table the intended vote until new council had an opportunity to review.  I have now reviewed the proposed changes for adoption and I do have concerns that must be addressed.  Note, these are the same proposed changes that were made available for Public Comment on Monday October 17, 2022.  Unfortunately, all that was included in the October 10, 2022 Work Session, and the October 17, 2022 agenda, were abbreviated annotations referencing the ICC Building Code section numbers that were to be adopted, exempted or changed such as “(IBC)(ICC) Part-1, Part 2, Section R101 R102, R103, R104, R105, R105.2 1&10, R106, R107, R108, R109, R110, R111, R113”.  If that verbiage doesn’t provide you with a clear definition of what was intended to be changed and how, then you are not alone, it wasn’t clear to me either.  Now that I have received a copy of those proposed changes, be very aware those changes consist of 20 pages of text and 8 photographs.

I will be working diligently, this week and next to gain full understanding of why certain changes were recommended and will gain consensus of council members to determine our next course of action.  While I do believe it is important to make these proposed changes public, the draft I was provided may cause more confusion rather than clarity.  With that said, I hope the committee can produce a draft that would be made available to the public so citizens can view and provide meaningful comment, which is what was intended to occur at that forementioned meeting held October 17, 2022.  You can always check the City of Lula website for official communication.  Additionally, be sure to check back here at tonyorlula.com for my own personal updates regarding this and other great topics for all of us here in Lula, GA.

– Tony Cornett