SoWalSally

Walton Sun:

BY PASHA CARROLL SUN REPORTER

“I hope this is the last draft,” Greg Scoville, senior manager at the Walton County Planning Department, said.
The White Sand Protection Ordinance has been revised and continued four times since the Walton County Board of Commissioners originally requested revisions and clarifications to it on Jan. 4. The Board votes on the final draft at its June 28 meeting.
Scoville, who said, “I didn’t see any changes that needed to be made (from the original ordinance),” attended various meeting along the way to clarify definitions in the original White Sand Protection Ordinance.
At the April 26 Board of County Commissioners meeting, the Commissioners, Walton County Legal Services and citizens offered input to clarify the ordinance.
About a week later, another meeting was held, attendees included Tom Stein, Code Enforcement Board Chair, Richard Fowlkes, Blue Mountain Beach Community Association representative, Brad Pickel, Tourist Development Council representative, Kevin Hargett, Code Enforcement coordinator, Greg Graham, plans review engineer, Jim Harman, development order inspector, Billy McKee, environmental planner, and Ken Wilde, former Beach Activities Coordinator.
On May 24, the Board held a second public hearing. At that time, the Coastal Dune Lakes Advisory Board also contributed incite to the ordinance.
The ordinance was revised to include an “approved materials” defi- nition, to incorporate the Munsell Color Chart. The Munsell color chart is an industry standard, developed with the U.S. Soil Conservation Service, that provides classification type, grain size and color.
Definitions of a Walton County beach, “suppliers,” and prohibited materials were also clarified. The revised ordinance also included an exemption to beach restoration projects.
In accordance with the effort, an educational brochure will be developed and distributed. The brochure will outline the ordinance and its key points.
The final public hearing will be June 28 at the 8 a.m. Board of County Commissioners meeting at the South Walton Courthouse Annex.