In April 2018, Trileaf Corporation (Trileaf) performed a cultural resource inventory survey for a proposed raw land self-support tower site located at 2914 Blue Ridge Drive, Blue Ridge, Fannin County, Georgia, at coordinates 34°57’0.79” N, 84°22’14.42” E. The proposed project area consists of grassed and gravel covered land, and a proposed access and utility easement consisting of an existing gravel drive.
Tillman Infrastructure, LLC proposes the construction of a new self-support cell tower with a total height of 275 feet (83.8 meters). The new tower and associated equipment will be located in a proposed approximate 7,281-square foot, irregular-shaped cell tower lease area. A proposed approximate 30-foot by 100-foot (9.1-meter by 30.5-meter) access and utility easement will connect the proposed lease area to Blue Ridge Road to the southeast. The new tower will occupy 0.31 acres (0.13 hectares) of land.
Under the direction of Trileaf, Project Archaeologist Zach Horne, MA, RPA performed this survey in response to the planned use of the above-described parcel and the potential impacts that such use might represent to archaeological and architectural cultural resources. The Phase I cultural resource survey was designed to discover all prehistoric and historical period cultural resources that might be present within the project area.
The field survey of the project area, which included a pedestrian survey, and visual inspection, found no evidence for the presence of archaeological or architectural properties in relation to the current project area or within a 30-foot (9.1-meter) boundary within the Direct APE. As the proposed project area was located within a grassed and heavily graveled area and an existing gravel drive, no subsurface testing was possible. Based on a map and survey form search using the resources of the Georgia State Historic Preservation Office including topographical maps and Georgia’s Natural, Archaeological, and Historic Resources Geographic Information System (GNAHRGIS 2018), inspections of the Georgia Archaeological Site Files (GASF 2018), as well as the resources of the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) conducted by Zach Horne, MA, RPA, Project Archaeologist, and Kevin McHugh, MS, Project Architectural Historian, there are 12 listed architectural resources (FN-162, 30481, 30553, 30556, 30557, 30558, 30479, 30559, 30562, 30563, 30564, and 30566), six previously identified archaeological sites (9FN33, 9FN39, 9FN551, 9FN552, 9FN553, and 9FN557), one previously recorded architectural assessment (Phase I Architectural Assessment for the Proposed Construction of a Proposed Construction of a Speculative Warehouse Building, Fannin County, Georgia), and one previously recorded archaeology survey (836) identified within the ¾-mile APE for visual effects. However, no eligibility determination by the Georgia Historic Preservation Department has been made for the 11 architectural resources (30481, 30553, 30556, 30557, 30558, 30479, 30559, 30562, 30563, 30564, and 305660). Resources 30556 and 30566 have been demolished. Architectural resource (FN-162) was surveyed in the above mentioned architectural survey and was determined Not Eligible for the NRHP. Additionally, due to modern additions to the existing historic properties, the proposed project will have No Effect on any character-defining attributes that would make these resources NRHP-eligible.
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