Is the American Dream Dead in Liberty County?
On Monday morning (9/14/2026), we received yet another visit from the Liberty County Building and Licensing Department.
A representative walked up to our door, unannounced and without an appointment, stating she was there to walk around our property and take pictures. I was standing there in my pajamas. There was no warning and no scheduling—just showing up at my door and making demands.
My husband was at work. I asked if she could return tomorrow when my husband could be home (and when I could at least be fully dressed). She said no, stating that her supervisor needed the photos today.
It felt like a blatant bullying tactic to force their way onto our land. So, I told her: "Since you can’t come back tomorrow, I guess you’ll need to take your pictures from the road."
Why is Liberty County pushing so hard against a working local farm? We are supposed to be free American People. Why are they stepping on the backs of its citizens?
The Death of Our Local Farm Stand
Georgia state law recognizes our right as a farm stand to sell locally produced goods from fellow residents. Yet Liberty County stepped in and said, "No, you aren't a farm stand. You are selling products you didn't produce yourself, so you need a commercial retail license." All they had to say is “yep! your a farm stand, carry on!” They dont have to go to the extreme every single time. They could choose to be helpful and find a way for a small business to thrive. State Law already supports what we are doing. They could have adopted the same policies and helped us to grow. Instead, they act like dictators and make things as hard as possible. Is this really the direction the county wants to go? Is this how building and licensing are going to treat all its citizens? No “How can we help?” mentality? Instead they are going to go the direction of “you do what we say, or else”?!?!
Even though we disagreed, we tried to play by their rules.
We went through the lengthy process of applying for a Conditional Use Permit. Both county boards voted unanimously to approve it. So we now have the conditional use permit to carry on our farm stand. But then building and ordinances says we need to have a retail license. So then we hit a massive financial roadblock. It is very expensive to complete all the requirements for a retail license. We never set out to be a retail store. We just want to be a local country farm stand serving the community. But Ok…. on to the next step.
The next step required submitting a full engineered site plan—including a professional water runoff study and an officially designed parking lot. (Mind you, this farm has been here for 10 years. Water has been draining naturally without their bureaucracy for a decade. I think the land can manage without their study.)
Engineered site plans cost thousands of dollars. We needed time to save up and wait for engineering quotes. We had the retail requirements packet for just two weeks when Building and Licensing called us on a Monday, informing us we had 48 hours—until Wednesday—to submit the completed engineered plan. We hadn’t even received call backs yet from some of these companies much less scheduled a time for them to come out and do the work, write up the site plan and pay the fees for the work.
For months, they claimed they wanted to "work with us and help us thrive." But the moment they felt we weren't moving fast enough, they dropped an impossible deadline. When Wednesday arrived, they told us we could no longer sell community vendor products until we submitted the finished site plan. But if they shut down the farm stand, we wouldn’t be able to come up with the money to pay for it. This whole time they said we could stay open as long as we were working towards this goal.
Our farm produces honey, fresh eggs, goat milk soap, and farm-grown herbal teas, and seasonally plants. As a small operation run mostly by myself, our yield is naturally limited. To support our community, we hosted products from other local growers, producers, artists, and cottage food bakers. All allowed under Georgia State law, which was written to drive traffic to local farms. That shared community synergy is what brought in foot traffic and supports the local economy.
Without those community offerings, keeping physical farm stand hours was no longer viable. We were forced to shut down the physical farm stand.
While we still sell our own handcrafted items on our website with free farm pickup, our income has been severely gutted. Since April, we have done nothing but jump through their hoops.
Red Tape & Retaliation: Compliance at All Costs
We have complied with—or are currently finishing—every single item on their laundry list of retail and property violations, even when the demands defied basic common sense for a 20-acre working farm:
The Wood Pallet Pile (COMPLETED): We had a stack of wooden pallets set aside to build mobile shelter structures for our goats as we rotate them through pastures. Building and Licensing declared this working farm material an "eyesore." Demand: Remove them. Fine, we removed them. Done.
The Semi-Truck (COMPLETED): We co-own a semi-truck with my brother-in-law. We live on 20 acres outside city limits, zoned Agricultural (AR-1). Yet the county claims we cannot park a working vehicle overnight on our own land—a truck that is registered to this exact address and gone during the day.
People need to make a living to pay Liberty County’s sky-high property taxes! They build massive warehouses across the county, but ban the drivers who haul the goods? Why are you making it difficutl for citizens of this county to earn a living? Why make ordinances so strict that its hard to provide for your faimily? This ordinance makes perfect sense for a neighborhood. It does not make sense for many residents outside city limits who own large tracts of land. This ordinance needs to be revised to say neighborhoods.
The Roll-Off Dumpsters (IN PROGRESS): For 7 years, we allowed a friend to store out-of-use business dumpsters on our acreage. Liberty county demanded that they needed to be removed. The business closed, and half of them have already been sold and removed. Despite 7 years of zero issues, the county demands the rest gone immediately. You cant even see them from the road! We have removed half and are working towards getting the rest moved asap.
This feels like overreach. We are not in a neighborhood, live outside city limits, own 20 acres of land the dumpsters are no longer being used for any business purposes, and we actually utilize many of them on our working farm. AND they cant be seen from the road. For 7 years there was never any issue. But they show up at our door and demand compliance? This feels like harassment.
The Greenhouse Permit Fine (COMPLETED): We were forced to buy county building permits for a high-tunnel greenhouse funded by a state grant and already inspected by the state. During the county appointment, an unlicensed employee from Building and Licensing stomped over to "inspect" it herself while my husband talked to the actual inspector who never actually got a chance to inspect it himself. Paying inspection fees for unlicensed personnel felt like targeted harassment. (This same individual even posted publicly about our case on our business Facebook page. which we have documented incase this progresses further) But we complied with Building and licensing department’s money grab. Permits and fees paid. Done.
Small Goat Sheds (RESOLVED): They initially tried to demand permits for small goat shelters and a metal side-yard shed, until higher management overrode the employee. Initially she (same lady as above) said that if we construct ANYTHING on our land, we have to pay them money, have it inspected, use hurricane strap tie downs and attain a building permit. We asked if a dog house has these same requirements, she says no a dog house does not need a building permit. SO then my husband says… but the moment a goat uses it, now we need a building permit? She got flustered and couldn’t give us an answer. Then we ask so what size building triggers the need for a building permit and inspections? Again she could not give us an answer so what shes trying to say is that their is no clear defined rules…. shes just making them up as she goes? She even tried to tell us we could only have a certain number of buildings on our land and made me go to zoning and have them fill out a form stating how many buildings we are allowd to have on our land. The zoning department has always been so amazing and helpful. I go up there and tell them and they say you are a farm! There is NO restrictions on how many buildings you can have on your farm. They fill out the form and even print out the ordinance for me to take back to this lady in the building and licensing office. The look on her face when I handed it back to her….. she looked angry that she couldn’t force compliance on something she seemed to want. See why this feels like harassment?
The "Overgrown" Garden (RESOLVED): They attempted to cite us for an overgrown garden. Our front area is designed as a regenerative food forest, and this year was a planned fallow year to let the soil rest—a standard organic agriculture practice. As a state-registered farm, we have farm preservation protections against municipal overreach, and they backed off once reminded.
Conex Shipping Containers (IN PROGRESS): They required building permits for our Conex storage containers. We paid the fees, welded the containers together as instructed, and have finished installing hurricane straps for this structure (even thought the manager admitted that a hurricane could come through and everything on a property could be gone but those Conex containers would still be standing there.) So why require hurricane straps and inspections for what’s considered a mobile container? They will require the extreme every single time. They seem to like forceful control. I digress….
The next step is getting it inspected. But dang…. we don’t want them here! We have paid their money and done what they asked but now we need to allow them back on our property again to inspect??!?!? Not something we look forward to. These people have wrecked us emotionally and the stress they have inflicted is massive. The idea of allowing them to come back makes me physically ill. Is that woman who is not an inspector going to come back with the inspector like last time?? Is she going to stomp around my land again? Is the inspector going to do the inspecting or is she going to take over again? I can tell you right now that she is not welcome here.
A Message to Liberty County
We have complied with every demand. We have paid the fees. We have altered our operations, sacrificed our income, and dismantled parts of our farm to satisfy your paperwork.
So why are you still showing up unannounced at my front door?
Has Liberty County forgotten that government exists to serve its citizens, not extract money and control from them? What happens when you push decent, hard-working people against a wall? When you strip away a family's property rights and take away their honest livelihood, you leave them with nothing left to lose.
This country was built on freedom, private property rights, and the pursuit of happiness. This farm stand was my American Dream—something I worked 20 years to build.
I mistakenly believed county government was here to help and support its citizens, to help small businesses grow. Instead, I’ve learned they see dollar signs and look for new ways to micromanage its citizens and what is supposed to be private land.
To the Liberty County Building and Licensing Department: You won. You shut down our physical farm stand and gutted our primary source of income. We have complied with your demands.
Now, leave us alone!
