ACCGov Updates

• March 31 - Updated for Leisure Services (italics)
• March 29 - Updated for week of March 30 - April 3

All departments

• Closed workstations through Fri., April 3. Non-emergency staff will not report to work during this time, although many will telecommute during the closures. Please call offices and departments for further information, as many phone lines will be staffed remotely. ACCGov will continue to provide essential emergency services such as public safety, emergency response, certain judicial functions, trash collection, and water and sewer services. Most ACCGov services, programs, and offices will be closed during this time.
• Staff has increased cleaning and sanitizing of all ACCGov facilities, interior spaces at parks, Transit buses, and other vehicles.
• Hand sanitizer dispensers will be placed at government facilities and on Transit buses as supplies allow.
• Engaged in ongoing Continuity of Operations planning to ensure provision of vital services to the community.

Board of Elections

• The evening of Saturday, March 14, 2020, the Secretary of State’s Office made an announcement addressing a State of Emergency related to COVID-19. The March 24, 2020 (PPP) Presidential Preference Primary Election is postponed and moved to the May 19, 2020 General Primary. The PPP Election will take place with the General Primary. More details to follow. Please contact the Board of Elections Office, Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. at 706-613-3150. [Release from GA Secretary of State Office].

Central Services

• Central Services will not approve special events permits for use of public property during the remainder of March. The department will continue to accept and review new special events permit requests for the coming months, but will not accept fees or issue final approvals until officials determine it is prudent to do so.

Corrections

• Corrections has temporarily suspended non-essential programs and visitations to all of its buildings until dates ranging from April 1-10 and will re-evaluate plans at those times.

Courts & Courthouse

• On Saturday, March 14, Chief Justice Harold D. Melton of the Georgia Supreme Court declared a statewide judicial emergency for the next 30 days. The courts in Athens-Clarke County and the Western Judicial Circuit will scale back court-related operations through April 13. Effective Monday, March 16:
• Clerk of Court for State & Superior Courts
  • Offices are closed to the general public. The public can call 706-613-3190 from outside the door and staff will help them with their judicial emergency.  
  • Access to the deed room is available in one-hour intervals. A sign up sheet is posted on the deed room door. One person will be permitted per interval, and staff will wipe down the public terminal in between each interval.
  • Real estate deeds, liens or plats may be filed online through https://efile.gsccca.org.
  • Real estate records back to 1988 may be viewed and printed at www.gsccca.org.
  • Civil cases can be e-filed through PeachCourt at https://PeachCourt.com.
  • Civil and criminal dockets are available for viewing and printing at www.athensclarkeclerkofcourt.com. 
  • To contact the clerk of Court for State & Superior Court, call 706-613-3190.
• Juvenile Court
  • Some dependency hearings are cancelled, but not trials with specific time limits. Contact the court with questions about specific cases.  
  • Children will not be transported unless specifically ordered.
  • No children will be admitted to a Regional Youth Detention Center without judicial approval.
  • Delinquency matters may be continued with consent of all parties.
  • Appearances for dependency adjudications and dispositions will be waived if consented to by all parties.
  • Foster parents, Court Appointed Special Advocates and Guardians Ad Litem may file written reports and be excused from attendance.
  • To contact the Juvenile Court, call 706-613-3300. To contact the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), call 706-369-5610. To contact Department of Family & Children Services (DFCS), call 706-227-7021.
• Magistrate Court
  • Hearings involving incarcerated individuals at the Athens-Clarke County Jail will be held as scheduled or rescheduled within a short time.
  • All other criminal hearing and all civil hearing will be rescheduled to a hearing date on or after April 26, 2020. New hearing notices will go out in the mail this week for these pending cases.
  • Judges will continue to issue search warrants, arrest warrants, and hold hearings for release of inmates on bail as soon as possible.
  • Weddings that have already been scheduled on Mondays and Wednesdays may have some guest limitations. Please contact Magistrate Court.
  • To contact the Magistrate Court, call the Clerk at 706-613-3310 ext. 5.
• Municipal Court
  • Arraignments (Criminal, Traffic and Ordinance) from March 16 - April 13 will be cancelled.
  • Suspended sentence calendars set for 2:00 p.m. on March 16, March 23, March 30, April 6 and April 13 are cancelled.
  • The Traffic Violators Impact Program set for March 17 is cancelled.
  • Red light camera and school bus camera cases set for March 18 are cancelled.
  • The Animal Welfare Class set for March 19 is cancelled.
  • The Bike & Bus Class set for March 20 is cancelled.
  • Ordinance and parking trials set for March 24 are cancelled.
  • All weddings scheduled in Municipal Court on March 19 and April 2 are cancelled
  • Individuals who have a court date during the affected time period should contact Municipal Court to reschedule.
  • To contact the Municipal Court, please visit www.accgov.com/municipalcourt to reschedule through the online form or send an email to municipalcourt@accgov.com. Your email should include your full name, your complete mailing address, and a telephone number for receipt of text messages. You should receive an email response within a week or 10 days with information about your new court date. You may also call Municipal Court at 706-613-3690, but email communication is preferred.
• Probate Court
  • New or renewal Weapons Carry License applications will not be processed during the judicial emergency. If your license expires during the emergency period, it will remain valid during the judicial emergency, which expires April 13, 2020 under the Chief Justice’s current order. If the judicial emergency order is extended, we will post the new date the emergency period ends. Licensees will have 30 days after the date the judicial emergency ends to apply for a renewal license.
  • All hearings and trials except those involving liberty or safety concerns will be postponed for at least the next 30 days.
  • Mental health commitment hearings will continue as needed.If you are calling about a mental health crisis, contact the Georgia Crisis and Access Line at 1-800- 715-4225.
  • To contact the Probate Court, call 706-613-3320. For questions regarding filing emergency pleadings please dial extension 6325. If you have a pressing need to apply for a marriage license, dial extension 6321.
• State Court
  • Juries and jury trials are cancelled. 
  • All matters not involving incarcerated individuals will be rescheduled or continued.
  • Release hearings for incarcerated individuals will be expedited.
  • Parties may request that non-essential matters be conducted via video or teleconferencing.
  • Criminal court search warrants, arrest warrants, initial appearances, and bond reviews will continue as needed.
  • To contact the State Court, call 706-613-3200.
• Superior Court
  • Juries and jury trials are cancelled. 
  • Grand Jury is cancelled.
  • All matters not involving incarcerated individuals will be rescheduled or continued.
  • Release hearings for incarcerated individuals will be expedited.
  • Parties may request that non-essential matters be conducted via video or teleconferencing.
  • Criminal court search warrants, arrest warrants, initial appearances, and bond reviews will continue as needed.
  • Domestic abuse temporary protective orders and restraining orders will continue as needed.
  • To contact the Superior Court, call 706-613-3190.
• Weddings
  • For parties seeking to get married at the Courthouse by a judge, the parties must contact the appropriate court. The number of attendees may be limited or the location moved to accommodate appropriate distance.
    

Finance

• The Finance Department is closed to walk-in customers. There is a drop box located on the back of the building, to the left of the back door, for any residents who need to leave any paperwork.
• To contact the Finance Department, call 706-613-3040.
• The deadline for Business Occupation Tax Certificates has been extended from April 1 until June 1.

Fire & Emergency Services

• Fire and Emergency Services first responders are using personal protective equipment on emergency responses to minimize exposure and limiting non-emergency exposure to the public by cancelling birthday parties and meetings in fire station community rooms.

Housing & Community Development

• Housing & Community Development is closed to the general public at this time.
• Staff is available by phone at 706-613-3155 or by email at hcd@accgov.com.
• The department continues to receive agency reports digitally.

Leisure Services

• The Firefly and Greenway trails are open for public use as of March 31. All other facilities, parks, and trails are closed until further notice.
• All outdoor basketball, tennis, and pickleball courts will also be locked.
  
• Leisure Services-sponsored events, programs, and classes are cancelled through April 24. 
• Bear Hollow Zoo is closed.

Mayor & Commission

• A Work Session is scheduled for Tuesday, March 31 at 5:30 p.m. The meeting will be virtual. The agenda will be available on Monday at www.accgov.com/agendas. Work session meetings do not have public input taken at them.
• Interested members of the public can watch online via YouTube at www.youtube.com/accgov or the YouTube app, via www.accgov.com/videos, via Facebook at www.facebook.com/accgov, or on ACTV Cable Channel 180 or at www.accgov.com/actvlive.

Police

• Central Communications Center will continue to receive and triage all calls for service.
• In cases involving life safety or where other methods of reporting are either unavailable or not feasible, officers will continue to respond in-person. 
• Where appropriate, residents will be directed to utilize other forms of reporting as opposed to receiving in-person responses. Whenever possible, residents will be encouraged to utilize our online reporting portal to report an incident. In other instances, the resident will be directed to our Telephone Reporting Unit that will document the incident. 
• Residents should contact the Police by telephone before coming in to stations for routine police services. As much as possible, routine service requests will be handled online or by telephone.
• For a copy of a police report, call the Records Division at 706-613-3330, option 3.
• Open Records Requests can be made via police_orr@accgov.com or an online form at www.accgov.com/openrecords.
• For online reporting, visit www.accgov.com/accpdsubmitreport. 
• For non-emergency calls for service, Central Communications Center can be reached at 706-613-3330, option 2.
• Since the lobby will be closed, live scan fingerprinting for background checks will also be unavailable. If fingerprints are needed, visit https://www.aps.gemalto.com/ga/index.htm for locations that provide this service in the community. 

Public Utilities

• In order to provide access to clean water for sanitation and hand-washing, Public Utilities will not terminate water service for customers with past due bills for the next 60 days. Residents who have been disconnected for non-payment will have service restored today.

Sheriff’s Office (Jail)

• Video visitation will be suspended until further notice. The suspension includes contact visitation with inmate workers. 
• The Jail lobby will be closed 24/7 until further notice and only open to essential personnel. Essential personnel includes employees, medical providers, attorneys, police officers, probation officers, officers from other agencies, professional deliveries, U.S. Mail personnel, and bail bondsmen. One exception is for members of the public who are placing funds on inmate accounts. This does not include personal property deliveries for inmates. 
• Phone access to inmates will continue and permitted. Inmate phone time will not be interrupted unless affected by routine lockdown or a facility lockdown.

Solid Waste

• ACC Landfill will only be accepting cash at the scale. Credit cards will not be accepted until further notice.
• Downtown garbage and recycling collection will use collection dumpsters that have previously been used for large events and during the pilot project last May. The dumpsters will be emptied daily. All downtown residents and business owners should place all trash and recycling into the proper dumpsters (blue for trash and green for recycling). If customers run out of official ACCGov garbage and recycling bags, this requirement has been lifted during this time. Customers may use any garbage bag available until further notice. For recycling, please use clear bags or place materials loose in the dumpsters. The dumpsters will be located in the following locations:
  • In front of Lay-Z-Shopper (on the Clayton St. sidewalk) 
  • In front of Allgood Lounge (in no-parking zone)
  • In front of Urban Outfitters (near cross walk)
  • In front of Clocked (at curb)
  • Between Boars Head & Wonderbar (alley off of Washington St.)
  • Between Horton’s and Georgia Theatre (Lumpkin St. no-parking zone)
  • Potential additional locations to be added to this list, if needed.
    

Tax Assessor

• The Tax Assessors Office encourages all property owners to mail personal property forms and other specialized assessment/exempt applications by the April 1 deadline.
• The Tax Assessor requests that all conservation use applications be mailed to the Tax Assessor, 325 East Washington Street, Room 280, Athens, Georgia, 30601. Those who cannot mail an application can request an appointment to deliver an application in person. To make an appointment, call the Tax Assessor at 706-613-3140. To request a conservation use application:
  • Call the Tax Assessor at 706-613-3140
  • Email tax.assessor@accgov.com 
  • All applications must be notarized and postmarked by April 1, 2020. The Tax Assessor’s office is not able to accept applications electronically at this time.

Transit

• Transit services will be reduced beginning March 18 to Weekend Day service level of 9 routes, provided with 8 buses. This is the same fixed-route service level provided every Saturday or Sunday. This level of transit service will provide on-street public transit from approximately 7:30 a.m. until 9:45 p.m. daily.
• Lift Demand Response services will operate on an medically essential need only basis, no other demand response services will be offered.
• All Transit services will be offered “Fare Free”.
• A one round trip rule will be instituted to prohibit continual riding of the buses. Riders will be required to either debark at the Multimodal Transportation Center, the end of the line, or somewhere along the route, each hour or trip. Passengers will not be allowed to transfer from one bus to another and ride continuously throughout the day. 
• All fixed-route services will be operated “Rear door boarding and debarking” only.
• “Do Not Cross Barriers” will be placed approximately 10 feet behind the drivers compartment to promote social distancing between bus operators and passengers.
• A “No Unaccompanied Youth/Riders under 18 without a parent or guardian” policy will be instituted.
• The Multimodal Transportation Center and Transit Maintenance and Operations Facility will be closed to the public, only Transit employees will be allowed inside.
• ACCTD Maintence and Operations Facility at 325 Pound Street will be closed to the public.
• All Flixbus and Megabus Bus Service to/from Athens has been canceled until further notice.

Transportation & Public Works

• Transportation & Public Works Department will be open with limited operations March 30 - April 3. The buildings will not be open to the public; however, staff is available by phone or email from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m..
• Engineering:  Permit applications can be submitted by emailing engineering@accgov.com. Staff will contact applicants when permits are approved and to make arrangements for payment.  Please contact Erica Thomas for questions at Erica.thomas@accgov.com or 706-613-3440. Inspections will be conducted each day. There may be some delays due to reduced staff levels.
• Traffic: For lane closures, please contact Mike Dunbar at mike.dunbar@accgov.com or 762-400-7837.
• Streets & Drainage: To report potholes, drainage issues, or a dead animal in the roadway, call 706-613-3465.
• Stormwater: No in-person payments will be accepted March 30 - April 3. To make a credit card payment, please use the online service at www.accgov.com/stormwater. To pay by check or money order, please use the drop box locations at the Water Business Office, 124 E Hancock Ave. Please contact billing staff for questions at stormwater@accgov.com.