Tallulah Falls council advances water tank funding for Hickory Nut Mountain fire protection

The town council has been considering a fire protection and water supply project for Hickory Nut Mountain, budgeted at one point as a $500,000 public safety initiative. Residents raised the idea of adding a generator and propane tank to keep a 35,000-gallon water supply available during power outages.

During an April 2025 budget work session, the council set a $100,000 placeholder for the project, noting that acquiring land would likely be the largest expense. By May, officials said the town was working on a plan to increase fire protection on the mountain that would also help address power-outage issues there.

In December 2025, the council voted unanimously to move forward with a pre-application for the Helene Resilience Funding Program to help pay for a water tank on the mountain, with the application due December 31.

In January 2026, a resident, Clint Irvin, told the council he had concerns about potential condemnation, transparency, zoning implications, water infrastructure impacts and previously discussed easements tied to the project. By June 2026, another resident raised the need for backup power for the water tank, an issue estimated to cost roughly one million dollars.