Town Hall Meeting Attracts Big Crowd

Nearly 100 people packed the community room at on a stormy Tuesday night for a town hall meeting hosted by .

Most of the 90-minute meeting was dominated by a discussion of a proposed equestrian center to be located at Lanierland, which was purchased with funding from the $100 million parks and greenspace bond.

One resident pointed out that every high school in the county has an equestrian team and that team ranked No. 3 in the nation while team ranked 12th but the teams had to travel as far away as Chicopee in Hall County to practice.

Bell pointed out that the facility could help generate badly needed non-tax revenue for the county and added that while he is open to the idea, he would not support it unless he was convinced it would at least be revenue neutral.

Richard Ward, said he and many others enjoyed the music park that once existed at Lanierland and attracted big-name entertainers, adding that he would like to see that brought back.

Bell said there has been some discussion about bringing the music park back.

When it was pointed out that there was a privately-owned equestrian facility within a short distance of the proposed center, Bell responded, "I don't ever want to put the government in a position where it can harm private business." He added that he would look into the potential impact the proposed facility might have.

Stuart McMinn, a member of the Forsyth County Tea Party, questioned where the funding would come from for the maintenance and upkeep.

"Before I would commit to it, it would have to be a self-funding property," Bell said, adding, "I would not vote to raise the millage rate to build the facility. I won't do anything to raise the millage rate."

The issue is expected to be discussed further at Thursday's Board of Commissioners meeting.