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Monday, October 26, 2009

To Sell Or Not To Sell - The Debate Of An Open Road Resident.


Cars Back Up Daily On Bethany Since Milton High School's Arrival.

By Tim Enloe;
Accessmilton.com

I remember when my parents purchased an old farm house on Bethany Road- the year was 1978. My father's colleagues made fun of him and actually said "What are you moving to Alpharetta for? There is nothing but rednecks there!"

Growing up here was great. With only 3000 people in all of what is now Alpharetta, Milton, and Johns Creek,it truly was a rural paradise. Cows, Horses, Goats, Pigs, Chickens...they were a plenty and everywhere. Ever had goat's milk? I have - we used to purchase it from an old farmer on Brittle Road.

I went fishing on many of the ponds that newer homes now surround. All my parents had to do was ring an old cow bell and that was my cue to head home. Easy enough. In some instances, I cannot even drive by those old special places today due to private gates being erected when development came calling with "No trespassing / no fishing signs" common place.

I would ride my bicycle up to Crabapple with my brothers and sister to get a coke and some candy at the old gas station. Mom didn't worry; she new we weren't far and the odds of our seeing a car was rare.

"Shotgun" stars were a plenty at night. We called them so because the night sky looked like it had been shot with a 100 bbs from a shotgun. Today, the lights of development have chased them away.

We only had seven acres back then; small compared to the numerous 1000 plus acre farms that surrounded us. I remember names such as Black Angus Cattle Ranch, Diamond B Ranch, and Green Farm. Gone they are, for a more progressive state.

How times have changed in a mere 32 years. How our now nine acres is so much bigger now than back in the day. Especially in consideration of all the cluster homes and AG 1 properties covering the countryside in recent years.

Today, Bethany Road experiences 4500 cars a day with speeds in excess of 70mph. Cutting our property along the road requires two orange cones, good timing, and quick action to avoid becoming a number. Of course, we normally take about 20 to 30 minutes to pick up all the trash being thrown out - from cigarettes, to beer bottles, to personal hygiene products - we get them all and then some. How about you?

Our wonderful Milton Officers, try as the might to get ahold on the speeding, are so severly short staffed and over worked, it is a wonder they get to enforce our laws on any given road, much less Bethany.

Since the arrival of the "new" Milton High in 2005, obnoxious noise, trash, and wreckless driving is a constant affair. As early as 7:30am to as late as 11pm on any given day, this ruckus is easily heard in either of the two homes we now own on Bethany. Come on over for a listen if you like. Oh, did I mention that highschool ate up some of Milton's "rural character" due the them kicking out seven families who lived on the open roads of Birmingham and Freemanville to make way for that FBOE behemoth? Forget the belief that a larger parcel brings you peace and quiet. On Bethany, such a rule holds little weight.

We have also received the dubious honor of residents pestering and tormenting our horse by shooting her with paintballs, screaming at her, and throwing fireworks in one of our front pastures to scare her. She is so terrified now, she refuses to graze in the larger of two pastures. Due to this fact, we are having to supplement her food with extra hay and grain. To see her enjoy the larger pasture before the days of cruelty came to our street, look in the right margin of this screen.

Needless to say, it is times like those above that bring me pause. I love our nine acres that we have; especially the original property where I was raised - after all, it has been a part of me since I was eight.

To sell out and develop would be like losing a cherished loved one, but life is short and my family has no desire to continue to live in an area that no longer welcomes our type of living.

With that hard choice, we would want to get the most possible for our properties. Obviously, going the commercial route with sewer is the quickest way to come to that end and move on.

Some have said "stop development here" and "sewer is a bad word!" However, the majority of those saying such things don't deal with Milton High School nor do they take their lives into their hands when simply checking the mail or cutting the grass. They also live now on what was most likely a property like ours a few years back. If their belief system of today was in place back then, they wouldn't be reading this editorial.

Then again, if our fellow residents and goverment will work with us and other open road residents on such concerns and fix them, then we would of course like to stay until our final days.

It would be wise for such issues to be addressed before the economy returns, however. If not, watch for the world of Milton to turn as upside down as it did from my childhood to present day. Just be sure to change that borrowed horse logo to a town home.

27 comments:

Anonymous said...

Cars backed up daily on Bethany Road before that stupid high school was built...it's just worse now

Anonymous said...

All this because of thoughtless, classless, rude, crude, and base
humans. Bad behavior happens everywhere, anytime and all the time.

Anonymous said...

We have lived on Bethany Rd for 38 years and cars did not back up on this road before the 3 schools. We cannot get out of our driveway before 8:30. Commuter traffic from Cherokee is one cause, the other are lots ofparents taking their children to school instead of letting them ride the bus. The buses that come down Bethany are basically empty for the high schoolers. I think they should just do away with those routes. So unless you live on our road near the intersection of Mayfield then don't tell us when it started backing up. We know for a fact. Also when some of you get fed up waiting at our 4 way stop you turn around in our yards (no not our driveways ) our yards. Can we do that in your yard. Most people have no respect for us at all. Im with Tim. There may be a change coming for ya'll in the future over here on Bethany Rd. and Mayfield Rd. unless the city and residents treat us with more respect!

Anonymous said...

Sewer!

Anonymous said...

Interesting at the Bethany High School meeting last night, it seems once this school is built, most of Milton students will go to the new HS and Roswell and Alpharetta students will be the majority in our city, in our school, with our alma mater. We pay the taxes, we pay for upkeep, our families have put our blood sweat and tears into raising money for that school, and the BOE is going to push us right on out of it? If everyone had gotten behind the groups that were pushing the BOE to rebuild the Old Milton HS on Main Street which is on more acreage then this new piece of property then we wouldn't have to move our Milton children out of Milton to the new school for the other cities to take it over. At what point does Milton reach saturation for schools for other cities in our jurisdiction?
They already own the property, so there is money saved by not purchasing two properties to try and make up their minds where to put it. What a savings that would have been, and then we wouldn't have to shorten the school year or furlong teachers. (You are telling me that 3 full days of instruction is the same as adding a few minutes a day to the school day? The minutes get lost, they are not used for instruction.) But they have convinced parents this is so.

The BOE wastes our money like there is no end to it. They spent $1.5 million dollars more on school supplies for FC this year by giving Office Depot, the highest bidder on school supplies, the bid. Staples was $1.5 million dollars less for the exact same bid. But once again the People of this city don't pay attention until it's all over and done, then they scream about it. Why do they keep building schools for other cities in our city? Alpharetta doesn't want to give up their precious land for a school, they can get retail or office out of it and get more tax money.

Now Alpharetta has abandoned the main street down town project completely, so why not tear down that school on Main, or redo it for Alpharetta and Roswell students? This would be too much common sense.

Anonymous said...

A more realistic motto for the City of Milton would be "Remaining rural 'til no rural remains." The romantic idea that we can somehow freeze time and our city will keep it's farms is misguided at best. Just like in every other part of the country, large tract owners (farms) will sell one-by-one over time due to property taxes, neighbors, traffic, city regulations for construction of barns, etc which are cost prohibitive for owners and serve only to protect surrounding neighbors who have moved in to complain about living next to a farm, etc, etc. Keeping sewer out is really insignificant to those of us who own farms because it only determines how our properties will eventually be developed, not whether we can keep them long-term. The reality is that "rural" means "rural residential" not farms. Unless a horse farm is owned by someone affluent enough to afford it and they (& their horses) don't mind the crowding, the large tract farms will be sold and developed. Horses are more of a luxury than a profitable business which is obvious to anyone with a horse and a pasture. There's a good reason Roswell doesn't have a horse as it's city logo and eventually it will seem outdated for Milton as well. There are a lot more votes and tax revenues in a developed community than a horse farm which creates a giant squeaky wheel which does not benefit the farms. While all the political noise and ranting is about "remaining rural," everyone should realize that in the near future no "rural will remain" because "farm" and "city" are mutually exclusive.

Anonymous said...

Tim just move your Mom over to the Orchards and then you and Ginger can buy the condo next door to Travis. Sell while you can before the BOE wants you!

Anonymous said...

The last poster has more insight and common sense and is in tune with reality. Thanks for putting it into written words.

Anonymous said...

The last post was meant for the 7:49 posting!

Anonymous said...

Neither of those is for sale right now, but 2 others in the neighborhood are.

-Travis

Anonymous said...

To 6:36am poster, just remember BOE has complete autonomy as to school locations and attendance districts for same.

Travis Allen said...

To the above...agreed...but it's pretty FN stupid that most of the students going to MILTON High School won't live in the City of MILTON.

Thanks Alpharetta! We appreciate your poor planning. We'd be happy to accomodate you and your children on our roads! We're so happy that the BOE has chosen our city to fix your problem.

Just like when y'all wanted to add all the fields to North Park! Sure, come on, enjoy your day in the middle of our area without paying for our infrastructure.

While you're at it, please be sure to charge our children (and adults) more to use North Park!

Fenway1 said...

Maybe once the crooked creek folks get their gate we can ask them to come over and gate the front and back of NorthPark and charge a toll for non-Milton residents to enter the park!!

Anonymous said...

Travis you make complete sense!!

Anonymous said...

We've already fought the battle on the corner of Bethany and Mayfield with the BOE and won. You are so ignorant!!!! We are tax paying citizens over here on Bethany just as others are in Milton.
To tell Tim to move his mom to the Orchards is awful..Pat still gets out there and mows her own grass. How many other people mow their own.. Most people have landscapers and people to mow their yards but most of us do it ourselves. We are proud of our roads over near Crabapple. And what condo are you talking about? You obviously know the Enloes and Travis quite well. Want to put your name on the email next time?????????

Anonymous said...

Once again people. The BOA puts the schools where they want to!! Not the individual cities. If you are going to fight the battle fight the right one. THE BOARD OF EDUCATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Good luck. It's a hard battle to win with the people they have on the board!

Anonymous said...

Travis, you're still my write in candidate!

Mark

Anonymous said...

Thanks Mark!

Just remember, it's District 5

That goes for everyone else too!

Anonymous said...

Milton's biggest problem is most residents don't understand the concept that the tail doesn't wag the dog.

Anonymous said...

I agree with the issues around the BOE and their power and lack of common sense. But don't make the argument about Milton High because of it's name. Before it moved from Alpharetta to its current location, it was called Milton.

Arguing you are right all because of a name makes you sound as stupid as the BOE.

Anonymous said...

Prior to 01-01-1932, it was Milton County High school. On that date Milton County merged with Fulton County, hence Milton High School. It was located in downtown Alpharetta until the new Milton was built in Crabapple.
Agree totally with last poster's final paragraph.

Anonymous said...

Get real,city councils have no influence in the selection of BOE sites. Municiple boundaries mean nothing to school attendance decisions.

Anonymous said...

The real traffic glut is the Cobb and Cherokee commutes.

Anonymous said...

Remove the stop signs and install a traffic signal would help this condition. People stopping when there is no other cars is a joke at a few of the four way stops.

Anonymous said...

If there isn't anyone at the stoplight, then it's not a traffic issue and you don't need a traffic light. How about getting a light on Birmingham highway at the new school. How about a light at the death intersection down the road. Because it "looks prettier" without lights. It's all about looking pretty here.

Anonymous said...

If nobody is there then the light would stay green and then there no need to stop as you would for a four way stop condition. This keeps traffic moving instead backing up.

Anonymous said...

If all we are worried about is pretty then dont complain about the traffic. I worry about saftey of the traveling public. They will not find another way around because it takes them out of there way and I am one of them.