City of Blackshear will now be responsible for permits and enforcement within city limits
It’s official. The City of Blackshear will assume full control and responsibility for planning, zoning, permitting and inspection services within its city limits Friday, August 3.
Formerly, Pierce County’s Planning and Codes Department handled the work for the City of Blackshear.
As for the fees associated with construction permits, Mayor Keith Brooks said the payment schedule would on a scale “similar to Baxley’s”.
During the transition period, while the city takes the reins on processes once handled for Blackshear by the county code inspector, any unfinished projects already issued permits by the county remain the responsibility of Pierce County. Any construction projects issued permits after August 3 fall to city officials to enforce zoning and codes.
While the matter had been previously discussed in an informal way, the city council’s March 3 work session was the first time the subject was officially listed as an item on the agenda. At that meeting, Brooks stopped just short of naming the inciting cause for the change.
“We’ve had some problems with—,” Brooks had said before pausing and then continuing, “I don’t think we’re getting a very good product from the county where it comes to inspecting and enforcing zoning and permitting.” At the time, Brooks also hastened to add Blackshear was not opposed to remaining part of the Joint Zoning, Planning and Code Enforcement Advisory Board, but felt the time had come time for Blackshear to do its own enforcement within the city limits.
A March 10 letter to the county government officially declared the city’s intent to handle its own code and zoning enforcement. Since then, it has been full steam ahead with no no looking back.
Interim County Manager Thomas Sauls publicly acknowledged receipt of the letter in his own letter to The Blackshear Times, printed in the March 24 edition. In that letter, Sauls informed “residents and contractors that, beginning July 1, 2026, they should contact Blackshear City Hall for information regarding permits, inspections and related services.”
What, if anything, occurred to cause the seeming disconnect between Saul’s projected July 1 start date and the city’s more recent announcement of August 3 is unknown, but as far back as March, Blackshear Police Department (BDPD) Chief Chris Wright had advised the officers doing enforcement for Blackshear would not be ready until the end of July.
Regarding those officers, the city will use, per Mayor Brooks, “one full-timer and a spare” to do the job. There will be no new department of code enforcement within the city and no new hires. Instead, enforcement will function as another division of the Blackshear Police Department with one full time employee dedicated to the task. A cross-trained alternate would be assigned to temporarily cover the assignment in cases of sickness or vacation time.
Clerical work involved with the new division will be handled by the office staff currently in place at BPD.
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