A familiar scene from 2023 and even 2022 – the Bulloch County commissioners boardroom packed with citizens concerned about zoning and development requests – repeated itself Tuesday night during the first meeting of 2024.
The commissioners approved zoning changes allowing two major residential subdivisions – totaling 404 housing units – to be built. But by a mix of 4-2 and 6-0 votes they denied zoning changes for two subdivisions and a conditional use request for a “surface mine,” or borrow pit.
About 120 or more people attended, filling the audience and county staff chairs, standing along the back wall, and some, out in the hallway of the North Main Annex. The meeting that began at 5:30 p.m. lasted until about 9:05 p.m., and that was after one rezoning request was deferred to the Feb. 6 Board of Commissioners meeting at the request of the applicant’s attorney.
The first request on the agenda – and the first denied – was from property owner Warren Brothers Investments LLC to rezone 6.12 acres on Pat’s Lane from R-25 single-family residential to R-3 multifamily residential for seven duplexes.
This request came to the commissioners in November, but a decision was tabled while the developers and county staff discussed conditions the staff suggested placing on the project. The request returned Tuesday with the original 4-0 Planning and Zoning Board recommendation for denial, but with a staff recommendation for approval with the conditions removed, as county Planning and Development Director James Pope reported.
Dennis Nelson, a 30-year resident of Sweetheart Lane, which leads to Pat’s Lane and similar side streets, told the commissioners he was not opposed to the development but that he and other neighbors wanted to see improvements for the good of residents. So far there are three duplexes on Pat’s Lane, and Sweetheart Lane is a crumbling tar-and-gravel road paved by the county more than 20 years ago. It connects to unpaved Billy Mikell Road, which often washes out, and residents want to see improvements to both roads. They had also asked that the county consider requirements for streetlights and sidewalks.
“When I purchased my house many years ago, I never imagined I would live in a community with so many duplexes. …,” Nelson told the commissioners. “We would like for you to consider – if you’re going to consider it – to allow single dwelling units instead of duplexes.”
The roads are already county roads, and County Engineer Brad Deal said the paved roads in the neighborhood are on the resurfacing list proposed for the next 12 months. County staff members had decided that the other improvements neighbors wanted to see were not things the county could require of the developers.
But developer Lindsay Martin had noted that the duplexes – or two-family houses – he could build on the tract if the R-3 zoning were approved would be the same size and have the same number of bedrooms as the single-family houses he could already build there with the current R-25 zoning.
Commissioner Curt Deal made a motion to deny the zoning change.
“It seems like this has just brought a real bad situation to light as far as the county, some things the county needs to address as far as the (roads) and just overall improvements, with the standards we’re moving toward as a county,” Deal said. “So I’m going to make a motion, and this may give Mr. Martin – and the county – some time.”
Commissioner Ray Mosley seconded the motion to deny, which passed 4-2, with Commissioners Timmy Rushing and Jappy Stringer voting “no,” meaning they wanted to approve or table the request.
Mac’s Landing approval
The related second and third zoning items were requests from Mac’s Landing LLC to rezone 155.47 acres from Ag-5 agricultural to R-25 residential and 12.3 acres from HC highway commercial to R-25 on adjoining parcels on Georgia Highway 67 at Emit Grove Road and Alford Road. These changes will allow the development of a subdivision with 138 single-family home lots.
Speaking for the project, Haydon Rollins, engineer with the Hussey Gay Bell firm, reminded the commissioners that the developers purchased this property just before the county’s fall 2022-winter 2023 partial moratorium on higher-density subdivisions in the Southeast Bulloch area. The county staff then wrote new zoning rules and, with input from a citizen committee, revised the county’s Future Land Use Map. These were approved by the commissioners during 2023.
“We all know that during that moratorium a lot of things changed for development in the county. …,” Rollins said. “Also, some development standards changed that have really big cost implications for developers. For a development like this, you’re talking seven figures that are additional costs developers will have to pay.”
The tract is in the new “suburban neighborhood” area added to the Future Land Use Map for the southeastern part of the county. Rollins and developer Jack Conner said the developers had cooperated fully with the county staff and that sidewalks, curb and gutter and tree buffers will be installed in the subdivision.
The developers have also agreed to cover the cost of installing right-turn lanes from the public roads onto the subdivision at its two entrances and to pave Alford Road to its entrance. But county staff had also proposed, as conditions, that the developers pave Alford Road along the length of the subdivision and install left-turn lanes, and Rollins said this posed an undue burden.
In his motion to approving the request concerning the 155-acre tract, Commissioner Anthony Simmons specified that the left-turn lanes and full-length paving of Alford Road be dropped from the conditions. Commissioner Rushing seconded the motion, and it was approved 6-0.
Several citizens spoke in opposition to the Mac’s Landing requests. One of them, Tim Powell, voiced his opposition to all four major subdivisions on the Jan. 2 agenda.
“I’m opposed to this development, and to save time, I’m also opposed to Burkhalter-GSL LLC, 70.37 acres; KB Rentals, 75.77 acres; and Simcoe Investment Group, 99.3 acres,” he said.
Powell noted that software called the Environ Tomorrow Regional Fiscal Impact Tool 3.4, used by the county development office to evaluate projects, shows that the cost to county taxpayers for public services to these residential developments will exceed the tax revenues they generate. After a seven-year buildout, the excess public expenditures for those four projects, plus the Shuman Road project approved in September, will add up to about $5 million, he noted.
The figures are included in the county staff’s project reports.
“My solution is to reject all of these rezones tonight, place another moratorium on rezoning until you can come up with an impact fee structure that will cause the developers of these subdivisions to bear the costs to county services and quit throwing it onto the backs of the property taxpayers of this county who already are carrying more than their fair share,” Powell said.
Simcoe request denied
The commissioners did deny the rezoning requested for one of the four major projects.
Simcoe Investment Group LLC requested a change from Ag-5 to R-25 to develop at 79-lot subdivision for single-family homes on 99.3 acres at 6181 Mud Road. The location is in the southeastern part of the county, but outside the suburban neighborhood and suburban corridor areas.
The Planning and Zoning Board had voted 3-0 to recommend denial, and the county staff review recommended denial. Commissioner Conner’s motion to deny, seconded by Commissioner Deal, passed 6-0.
Burkhalter-GSL approved
However, the Board of Commissioners approved rezoning from R-80 to PUD-1 (planned unit development-mixed residential) for the proposed subdivision with the largest number of homes on Tuesday’s list. Burkhalter-GSL LLC requested the change to build up to 105 townhomes, 54 duplexes and 142 single family lots on 70.37 acres on Burkhalter Road just north of Highway 80.
Those add up to 266 home units.
This site is in the established suburban neighborhood character east of Statesboro. Developers plan to request connection to Statesboro’s water and system but not annexation, Pope said. The county P and Z Board had recommended approval 3-0, and staff recommended approval, also with conditions.
Steve Rushing, local attorney, spoke for this project, noting that its planned amenities include a pool, a clubhouse, a pond and walking trails. Several citizens spoke against the request, citing the added load on roads and schools.
Commissioner Timmy Rushing made the motion to approve with conditions, seconded by Simmons, and the vote was 4-2, with Stringer and Conner opposed.
KB Rentals LLC’s request to rezone 75.77 acres on Brooklet-Denmark Road from Ag-5 to R-25 for a 79-house subdivision was unanimously deferred to Feb. 6 at the request of Steve Rushing.