New “blood” needed”, Honea and Heller believe

Fair Play’s Ryan Honea says, for him, two years as chairman of the Oconee Planning Commission is satisfactory—-and he will not offer for a new term next week when the commissioners elect new officers. The agenda for Monday’s 6 o’clock meeting at the County Administrative Complex in Walhalla calls for the election of a chairman and a vice-chairman. Honea shares fellow commissioner Andrea Heller’s view that the task of conducting meetings which includes entertaining motions and discussion should be shared with the others. With Honea standing down, four other commissioners become eligible to replace him: District One’s Heller, District Two’s Bradley Hancox, District Three’s William Gilster, District Four’s William Childress and at-large members David Lyle and Gwen McPhail. At present, the District Two and Four seats remain vacant. Honea, who represents District One, says in two years as chairman he’s proud of what he calls the “straightening out” of the zoning enabling law and the County Council decision to provide sewer service to the industrial park in his district, Golden Corner Commerce Park.