This online news website is owned and operated by Becky Watts. The Editor can be reached at 770-468-7583 or at editor(at)PikeCountyTimes(dot)com. Pike County Times is a website for citizens to keep up with local events and stay informed about Pike County government. It began on November 13, 2006 as a watchdog on county government and has turned into an online newspaper.
If you enjoy reading Pike County Times, consider buying an advertisement for your business or sending a donation to support the only free online newspaper in Pike County. Donations can be sent to: The Pike County Times, PO Box 843, Zebulon, Georgia 30295. Click here to donate through PayPal. Thanks for supporting Pike County Times.com!
March 27, 2018 – 6:30 p.m.
Courthouse, Main Courtroom, 16001 Barnesville Street, Zebulon, Georgia
Courthouse Doors on East/South Sides open at 6:00 p.m. Town Hall Meeting at 6:15 p.m.
www.pikecoga.com/novusagenda has a download of the agenda and accompanying information for this meeting. This includes items listed on the agenda such as the Medical First Reponse License and the property being decided on Bottoms Road. Monthly information from Animal Control, Coroner, Fire Department, Grady, Library, Magistrate Court, McIntosh Trail CSB, Planning & Development, Registrar, Superior - Juvenile Court, Tax Assessor, and the Water Authority are included as well.
This meeting was attended by all five commissioners and Deputy County Clerk Ginny Blakeney to keep the minutes. Legal counsel was not able to attend this meeting.
Prior to the beginning of the meeting, a Town Hall meeting was held. Those who spoke did not have to get permission to speak to commissioners prior to the meeting; however, these comments are not a part of the official record.
Bennie Evans from the Planning Commission spoke to the Commissioners tonight. They recommended the rezoning of this rather than going through with it. The developer said that this is primarily a residential development and then said that it was an AR Subdivision, but according to our ordinances there is no AR Subdivision in our ordinances. This allowed a residence on a farm and not a subdivision. The residents there deserve protection of our ordinances. He said that this should be rezoned and keep in mind that it's a corridor road. If this is approved, there will be 13 driveways in 5,000 feet. That is not conducive to transportation in our county. He talked about rezoning and requirements including notification of surrounding residents, planning meetings, etc. that are required before it goes to the Board and said that rezoning of these residential developments is required. He said that restricted covenants are not enforceable by the county and can expire. The only protections that residents have is our ordinances. He asked that commissioners take a step back on this and that the county look at our ordinances.
There was a complaint from a gentleman about the Planning Meeting held on the 22nd and how the meeting was conducted. He said that the way people who live in this county were treated compared to those who wanted to move here was appalling. He also said that the Planning Board allowed some to come back and do rebuttal and didn’t allow others to speak and he thought something should be done about it.
A resident of 18 years spoke on the rezoning on Beeks Road. This used to belong to the University System and was sold because there wasn’t enough water, and now there is proposal for all this homes with wells, etc. He said that decisions made today will effect later. In other places, there are rules to make developers help pay for future needs like water, sewer, etc. He also mentioned the possible stress on the school system.
Cherry Thomas made an appeal about development in the county. We have been farmers for a long time and the farmer ended up in the wrong when there was development around the farmers. People expect a city subdivision when they move here, but the farmer is in the right place which is AR zoning. She then talked about the schools and their needs that go along with growth. She said that she was told that realtors are excited about what is going to take place in Pike County and that scares her. She urged commissioners to take care that we don’t become overdeveloped.
The meeting began promptly at 6:30 p.m.
1. CALL TO ORDER………………………………………………………..Chairman J. Briar Johnson
2. INVOCATION…………………………………………………………………………….....Bart Brock
3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE…………………………………………….Chairman J. Briar Johnson
4. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA - (O.C.G A. § 50-14-1 (e) (1))
Motion to approve the agenda. Approved 5-0.
5. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES - (O.C.G.A. § 50-14-1(e) (2))
a. Minutes of the March 14, 2018 Regular Monthly Meeting.
Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
6. INVITED GUESTS - None
7. REPORTS FROM COMMISSIONS, DEPARTMENTS, COMMITTEES, AUTHORITIES
a. Monthly Reports submitted from County Departments and County Authorities, including a Revenue/Expenditure Statement for all departments, and a summary check register. There are no Department reports as they will be provided during the first Board meeting of April. Revenue/Expenditure Statement and Detail Check Register is included.
b. County Manager Report
Update on County finances for the following funds/accounts:
General Fund ............................................................................................ $2,748,543.56
Fire Dept. Donations ........................................................................................ $4,662.66
BOC – Jury Account………………………………………………………………$0.00
Cash Reserve Account ........................................................................ ….....$506,537.34
Pike County CD Special Revenue funds………………………………………….$0.00
Jail Fund ........................................................................................................ $18,469.13
E-911 Fund .................................................................................................. $125,060.10
DATE Fund ................................................................................................... $44,742.56
Juvenile Court Fund ....................................................................................... $13,469.19
Residential Impact Fee ................................................................................ $475,102.76
Commercial Impact Fees ............................................................................... $43,291.74
C.A.I.P FUND ............................................................................................... $33,261.96
General Obligation SPLOST Tax Bond Sinking Fund, 2011 ...................... $654,150.97
L.M.I. Grant (DOT) ....................................................................................... $78,691.63
c. County Manager Comment
County Manager John Hanson thanked everyone for being there tonight. I applaud you for being here and regardless of the side you’re on, I’m glad for you being here and we’re listening. He commended the commissioners on listening as well and pointed out that decisions made at the meeting affect commissioners as well as those who are in attendance. He advised that 64 miles of our roads have been picked up this week by Lovin Contracting and it looks great. Please take pride in our county and let the Sheriff’s Office know if you see someone littering etc.
d. Commissioner Reports
Commissioner Daniel said that the trash pickup has brought many compliments.
Commissioner Powers said that he has brought some road concerns forward and that citizens understand about the rain.
Commissioner Jenkins commended CM Hanson on budget meetings this week and said that money is tight and it is not being wasted.
Chairman Johnson said that he wishes every meeting was full like this.
e. County Attorney Report to Commissioners.
None
8. UNFINISHED BUSINESS - None
9. NEW BUSINESS
a. Consider one appointment to the McIntosh Trail Community Service Board to fill an unexpired three- year term, set to expire December 31, 2019. Applicant has met criteria.
Motion to approve Robin Cochran. Approved 5-0.
b. Consider request from Montgomery Lodge #31 to have a BBQ on the Southeast corner of the Courthouse grounds on Saturday, May 19, 2018 from 9:00 a.m. until 12 noon.
Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
c. PUBLIC HEARING: To receive public input regarding SUB18-02 – James Bowen Jones, property owner and applicant, is requesting simultaneous preliminary and final plat approval for a new 20 tract subdivision on 146.38 acres, with lots fronting both New Hope Road and Buffington Road. The parent tracts are zoned A-R (Agricultural-Residential), with approximately 1955 feet of total frontage along the southern side of New Hope Road and approximately 3130 feet of total frontage along the northern side of Buffington Road and approximately 164 feet of frontage along the eastern side of Harden Road. The subject properties are located in Land Lots 159, 160, and 162 of the 2nd Land District of Pike County, Georgia. The parent tracts are further identified as Tax Map Parcel Numbers 089 057 and 089 055C.
Action: Discuss/Approve/Deny
Before the Public Hearings began, Chairman Johnson explained the process with 20 minutes on each side. The meeting will then be closed and the commissioners will discuss each item. You can leave after your hearing.
CM Hanson explained the process and said that your commissioner takes you serious. They take recommendations from you, from the Planning Commission, etc. and they have to look at what our zoning code says, and said that we have to abide by our code of ordinances. This doesn’t mean that your voice isn’t heard regardless of how this comes out for each of these hearings. He asked everyone to speak out and make your voices heard, but also keep these things in mind and work with commissioners if things need to be changed further down the road.
On March 22, this went before the Planning Commission. Motion to not accept plat approval. They said that it needs to be rezoned and they listed safety concerns as well. The staff had issues with some of the lots and some of that has been addressed and recommended approval with AR zoning (some are 7, 8, and larger acreage than the mandatory 3 acres in AR), minimum 2,000 square feet heated, no modular or manufactured homes, a flood study needs to be done, Lot 11 driveway access off of Buffington only, Lot 20 is deleted, maintain 80 foot right of way on Buffington. This is bare minimums that should be considered if this is approved. The applicant is out of the country on a mission trip and asked the engineer to speak on his behalf.
IN FAVOR:
Joey Scanlon and Mark Buckner spoke in favor. The engineer spoke and said that the conditions were acceptable. He said that they spent a lot of time working with the county on this development plan. He said that the intent is to create large lots in Pike County up to 20 acres and to create quality development in our county and be consistent with our Comprehensive Plan for the county.
OPPOSITION:
John Holmes said that this might start out bigger lots but it could be smaller lots later.
Ray Grizzard said that he is not against the growth of subdivision, but this same builder is looking at building 12 rental houses up the road. He asked that we take a break to look at some of the things on the books that need changes.
Vicky Allen owns property close there. She loves the rural setting, and she plans to move down her permanently one day. It looks like it will be nice, but it won’t be rural if we have a lot of growth.
Close the public hearing.
Commissioner Jenkins said that he is for the right growth in Pike County. Large lots are good and large square footage is good. But he said that there are procedures that need to be followed for a subdivision including a preliminary plat, then approval of construction plans, then issuance of land disturbance permit, and then final plat approval. What we have tonight is a request for simultaneous preliminary and final plat approval. How do we do that if we don’t follow procedure? This Board has worked hard and had numerous workshops with the Board of Education, etc. He said that he can’t go along with this. He said that he wants to make a motion to table this and send it back to the developer.
Commissioner Powers asked CM Hanson to address the room on how this was presented. CM Hanson said that the application asked for simultaneous, but it is specifically about the development. The property is being split up and there is no land disturbance by the developer. He said that we did this in October and November with other properties and the Board is following procedures on this.
Planning and Zoning Director David Allen was asked whether the lots meet the minimum code standard for AR and whether this was legal in what we did. We have precedent from two instances last year with the simultaneous preliminary and final plat approval. Commissioner Powers asked how we could say no to one when we’ve allowed other to proceed in the same way in the past year. CM Hanson said that there will be no major changes on this between preliminary and final plat approval because the lots will be sold and the person buying will be applying for whatever is needed after that.
Commissioner Jenkins said that major subdivisions are approved in multiple steps. If we get in a hurry and we don’t take our steps like we need to, we’re going to have problems down the road. There was a discussion on major subdivisions and rezonings, why this doesn’t need to be rezoned, land disturbance permits, etc. Planning and Zoning Director said that he was trying to limit curb cuts on New Hope. Question about whether this is an agricultural subdivision? David said that there were about 10 subdivisions that are AR zoned in Pike County just like this one. Commissioners kept coming back to following the letter of law and that would only be preliminary plat approval tonight.
Motion to postpone this. Jenkins, Guy. Opposed Powers, Daniel, Johnson. Motion failed 2/3.
Motion to approve both the preliminary and final plat with staff stipulations except that Lot 11 can place the driveway where they want. Commissioner Daniel asked for a friendly amendment to approve a preliminary plat only tonight. Commissioner Powers agreed to the change to his motion to approve the preliminary plat only. Approved 5-0.
[Note from the Editor: I talked with David Allen and CM Hanson after the meeting to find out more information on this because there was a lot of information being given from many people and I wanted to be sure that I understood what was going on. State zoning law and county zoning law do not require the same procedure for a subdivision that is not going through the rezoning process. Rezoning would be making smaller lots, etc. This is already zoned AR (agricultural-residential) and the lots are going to be larger than the 3 acres that is currently required for AR. My concern is 9 driveway lots off of New Hope Road and because New Hope Road is a major thoroughfare on that side of the county. My second concern with this application is that the developer asked for preliminary and final plat approval in one night. I applaud the commissioners for following the letter of the law and only approving the preliminary plat last night because anything that is done for one developer is setting precedent for another to ask for later, and they can challenge our decisions in court because we are not following our code. However, I went back and looked at some of our old meetings and this is not the first time that someone has asked for and received preliminary and final plat approval at the same time. I’ve been told it’s because nothing will change between the beginning and the final plat approvals, and that could be true. Perhaps the county should write something in our code to handle this for future similar cases. I’m a stickler about following the rules and being very careful with what is written because it can be enforced to the letter depending on who is doing the enforcing.]
d. PUBLIC HEARING: To receive public input regarding REZ-18-01 – Weyerhauser Company, property owner, and STS Development Group, LLC, applicant, are requesting a rezoning of a portion of the parent tract from A-R (Agricultural-Residential) to R-20 (Single Family Residential) in order to develop a 60 to 65 lot single-family, detached residential subdivision, with 2 acre lot minimums and 2000 square foot house minimums. The property portion subject to rezoning, located off of Beeks Road and Blackmon Road, has approximately 1195 feet of frontage along the eastern side of Beeks Road and approximately 1200 feet of total frontage along both sides of Blackmon Road. The subject property is located in Land Lots 198, 199, 218, and 219 of the 1st District of Pike County, Georgia. The total property consists of 497.95 acres. The property portion subject to rezoning consists of 175.10 acres and is further identified as a portion of Tax Map Parcel #039 046.
Action: Discuss/Approve/Deny
Planning and Zoning Director David Allen advised that this went before the Planning Commission on March 22. Staff recommended approval with conditions of following the separate approval for preliminary to final according to our code. The Planning Commission recommended denial based on lack of public water and lack of adequate fire protection. David looked at the future land use map and addressed the difference between AR with 3 acres and R20 with 2 acre lots. He said that density needs to be addressed later on in our code. The owner is now the developer.
IN FAVOR:
Steve Reeves said that they are asking for rezoning to residential. There was a constitutional objection presented to the commissioners for this. [Note from the Editor: This will basically force us to follow our code to the letter of the law.] Developers want to do a nice subdivision with a connector street that dumps on two major roads. He said that as they move forward after preliminary, they can move forward according to the soil and water studies and that there are larger lots in the back of this subdivision. He said that we have a lot of areas with no water and no fire and other areas have subdivisions regardless of this. He said that the developers live here in Pike County. He said that we can’t stop development.
OPPOSITION:
Cherry Thomas said that David Allen has always been professional and always tried to follow ordinances. She also said that she doesn’t have a problem with the developer but doesn’t agree with what he is doing. She said that this will set a precedent and that we need to follow our ordinances to the letter. If we are going to put this in an AR District where there is actual AR uses raising cows, etc, she suggested putting a buffer around it. She then asked Bennie Evans to come back and speak to what he said in the Town Hall and have it on the record. [Note from the Editor: Bennie was asked to allow citizens to voice their concerns first because he spoke in the Town Hall Meeting. His comments are not on the record because there wasn’t enough time for him to speak at the end, but I have many of his comments at the very top of this article. He is also on the Planning Commission so his comments should have been a part of the record from that meeting.]
Terri Patterson voiced her concerns about the infrastructure that is underdeveloped and that we need to think about this. We need a plan for recycling and she wonders how many wells we can dig before it starts tapping into other subdivisions and the voiced concerns about county maintained roads or poor roads in these subdivisions. She said that our schools are overcrowded and we will continue to see more strain on our schools and there isn’t enough business to support the growth that is coming in. Proper planning and infrastructure will keep us the great county that we know that we are.
Rachel Schuler does meter reading in Clayton County and said that according to one individual that works for UGA, he can’t use his property like he would like because of the lack of water. She said that they estimate about 2,000 gallons of water per month per person and stretched that out to about 8,000 gallons for a family of 4 for a month and possibly 520,000 gallons of water a month for 65 homes. She then said that leaks (in a public water system maybe?) will add to this even if they are minor. Major leaks can run up to 300,000 per month. These leaks are well over a million gallons and then add 6,240,000 gallons for a 4 person household and said that this is a lot of water on an already stretched thin water source.
John Tucker was told that the land was no longer fit for agricultural use. He currently has cattle and this will back up to his property as well. He said that there were some issues last week with potential zoning violations and mentioned Title 15 Chapter 156-163. Water runoff into wetlands and increased erosion. The cemeteries are a concern as well.
Charles Davis is a resident there and his concerns are that there are some cemeteries and graves on this property. He said that there are trees planted on top of remains already. He said that we are changing this to allow 2 acre plots. Just about every subdivision wants 2 acres. When he looks at Beeks Road, there is already traffic that needs red lights now. There have been 3 cars upside down in his yard already. He said that if we add 60 to 65 homes to that, he will need a red light to get out of his yard. Then he asked what about the other 323 acres that are behind it? This could be one of the largest subdivisions and the furthest away from the police department and fire department. Every household could bring 1-2 children and we are going to be a big city. He also has livestock and said we need to be concerned with contamination from septic tanks as well because this is on top of the hill and septic issues could cause problems for those down the hill.
Rachel Smith-Jenkins said that this will double the number of developments on Beeks Road. Even if it is raised to 3 acres and then they could have 45 houses and it is still a cut through road so safety is an issue as well as water and fire. Even if drilled wells are put in 45 to 60 new households are going to affect the water table. For a subdivision this dense, she said that we should ask for an impact study before voting in favor of this and asked to reconsider it later if water and sewer are there. She asked for 5 acres instead of 3 acres starting on Beeks Road.
Billy Smith lives on Beeks Road and has seen a lot of come and go. He said that Beeks Road is a unique group of people and people watch out for each other.
The timer went off, and Chairman Johnson ended the speaking portion of this meeting. Public Meeting was closed.
Discussion from the commissioners. Chairman Johnson said that if there is a subdivision that fronts a road, must it be paved? Planning and Development Director David Allen said that this could potentially be applied. He would have to review this and make a decision.
Commissioner Jenkins said that there are wells on all sides of this. Is there a way to test the water capacity out there? David said that things like this are usually addressed during the preliminary platting of a subdivision. David said that he would have to ask about this.
Commissioner Guy said that wells are different depending on where the vein of water runs through the rock. Some produce a lot and some a little depending on their location.
Commissioner Daniel said that our county water comes from two wells so even if county water was brought into the question, it would come from wells. David said that there aren’t really any lines that are available. The nearest lines are Griffin lines and they are not accessible to residents.
Chairman Johnson said that he is concerned about the cemetery. There could be unmarked graves beyond that and there may have to be an archeologist involved in this according to our code. This could be made a condition.
Commissioner Daniel said that the county has been presented with a constitutional objection on their ability to use the land. This along with issues about the property as well as legal questions that need to be asked and the county attorney can’t be here tonight. He makes a motion that this be postponed until the next night meeting. [Note from the Editor: That will be on Tuesday, April 24 at 6:30 p.m.] Second by Mr. Guy. Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
[Note from the Editor: Presenting a constitutional objection is playing hard ball and forcing the county to go by exactly what is written in our code book. This is part of the reason that I am such a stickler about following our code of ordinances. After last night’s meeting, I urged a couple of the commissioners to look at placing a moratorium on all new subdivisions for 60-90 days until we can get some things nailed down. (That will NOT apply to anyone who already has an application into the county.) That isn’t going to be popular with some, but when we have a developer wanting to build a major subdivision where there is not adequate fire protection, that presents a problem for the county and for our tax dollars. I don’t want to keep anyone from using their land, but the issue of a fire station needs to be addressed because we already know that it’s going to be a problem. Yes, there are dollars collected on each new house, business, etc. that comes in from Impact Fees, but that takes time to build up so it can be used and the complaints about fire protection are already in existence. Perhaps the developer could work with the county on this because building a subdivision with houses that could potentially have a 10 for an ISO rating is not good for the buyers OR the county.]
e. PUBLIC HEARING: To receive public input regarding REZ-18-02 – Phillip and Margaret Yancey, property owners, and Rod Wright, applicant, are requesting a rezoning of a portion of the parent tract from A-R (Agricultural-Residential) to R-15 (Single Family Residential) in order to develop a 4 lot single-family, detached residential subdivision, with 2 acre lot minimums. The property portion subject to rezoning, located off of Bottoms Road, has approximately 1715 feet of frontage along the southern side of Bottoms Road. The subject property is located in Land Lot 110 of the 9th District of Pike County, Georgia. The total property consists of 11.06 acres. The property portion subject to rezoning consists of 8 acres and is further identified as a portion of Tax Map Parcel #042 027B.
Action: Discuss/Approve/Deny
Planning and Development Director advised that staff recommended approval with conditions. The Planning Commission recommendation was to approve with conditions as well. Lot 5 recommended to be rezoned to R15. Lots 1 and 2 share driveway access and 3 and 4 as well. Staff recommendation was to approve with conditions that subdivision will have to go through preliminary plat and final plat before development and no manufactured or modular homes.
Same developer from before but divided up into 4 lots with the back lot remaining AR. He would like to build 1750 square heated feet homes. Also gave commissioners a constitutional objection on the use of the property.
[Note from the Editor: I wonder if it is wise to suggest shared driveways. I know that the county can legally do this, but is there a potential for problems down the road if two homeowners decide to split it later or can’t agree on the upkeep of their shared driveway?]
IN FAVOR:
Steve Reeves spoke on behalf of the developer. No problems with the conditions. This is basically building the same as those across the street. It’s on a paved road.
OPPOSITION:
John Holmes said that he bought a home out there and loves the community. He said that he moved here from Tampa and sees the same thing coming here. There was speaking out against Dollar General and then the other subdivision and they ended up with them anyway. He said that he sees nonstop building in the future. He asked the commissioners to remember that the county is of the people, by the people, and for the people.
Barry Fulton asked the county to take a step back on all building in the county. He described his parents’ property another county that has become dilapidated houses that used to be agricultural property. He talked about sewage and minimum acreage lots and some of the problems. He urged them to say hold and look into this with building in the county because we will never be able to go back to agricultural once it’s gone.
Ray Grizzard spoke again and said that since we continue to get these constitutional protests, maybe we should have a moratorium to look at water, etc. in the county. Growth is coming and we need to approve the right growth. He said that there is 500 acres there and that’s next.
Rachel Schuler spoke again and said that the original property owner wants to keep a 3 acre lot and thinks that these other lots should be 3 acres too.
It was noted by a resident that a lot of the people on Bottoms and Beeks Road didn’t get the notice about tonight because of the rescheduling from the Planning Commission meeting.
Sheena Harwell asked why we should revise the minimum acreage when 3 acres is the norm. The water table is a concern. More homes, more schools, and more law enforcement will be needed.
John Tucker said that we need to remember that we say that land is no longer agricultural, timber land is important too. He said that land is never not agricultural until it is built on, but it could be bulldozed to go back to the land. He also said that he thought that Mr. Jones had at least tried to follow the spirit of our zoning proposal for land in the county. [Note from the Editor: This was a comment about the New Hope Road development and the work that the developer did with the county as far as reading our Comprehensive Plan and trying to plan a development that adhered to it.]
Closed the public hearing. No discussion.
Commissioner Daniel said that this general area has been before commissioners for quite some time with Dollar General, then a commercial venture and we allowed homes to be built across the road from the current location. Motion to approve with conditions.
Chairman Johnson asked about 1750 square feet homes and asked to amend the motion to add a condition with the 1750 square footage. It was added. Approved 5-0.
f. PUBLIC HEARING: To receive public input regarding REZ-18-03 – Coy and Beverly Dillahunty, property owners, and Rod Wright, applicant, are requesting a rezoning of a portion of the parent tracts from A-R (Agricultural-Residential) to R-15 (Single Family Residential) in order to develop an 8 lot single-family, detached residential subdivision, with 2 acre lot minimums. The property portions subject to rezoning, located off of Ga. Hwy. 18 and Oxford Circle, have approximately 1255 feet of total frontage along the eastern side of Ga. Hwy. 18 and approximately 2390 feet of total frontage along the northern and southern sides of Oxford Circle. The subject properties are located in Land Lots 109 and 116 of the 9th District of Pike County, Georgia. The total property area consists of 21.96 acres and is further identified as a portion of Tax Map Parcel #042 051.
Action: Discuss/Approve/Deny
This was presented to the Planning Commission on March 22 with similar conditions. No manufactured or modular homes. Also the 1750 square footage needs to be added because this is the same as the previous application. The Planning Commission recommended approval if the road is paved up to lot 4. 8 R15 lots and 1 AR. There is an old plat with 10-12 different sized lots. There are some rental houses on smaller acreage on the other end of Oxford Circle. There is a potential for water from the city of Concord and that would alleviate concerns about wells in that area.
[Note from the Editor: This will be addressed later on and may not necessarily be the case because it is in the county and the City of Concord and the Pike County Water and Sewer Authority would have to work something out.]
IN FAVOR:
Steve Reeves said that the developer wants to go from 1 acre to larger lots. He said that the Dillahuntys have this as their retirement and now people are showing up to tell them what they can do with their land. Steve said that businesses won’t come here if they see a moratorium. The plat was recorded with 10 lots in the 1970’s and the law says that this is a buildable lot. He also has a problem with the entrance being paved because he said that the rules are being changed midstream. He said that if this is what we want, we need to have it in our ordinances.
Benny Evans is on the Planning Commission. He said that requiring a paved road is in our ordinances and that he objects to Mr. Reeves saying that this isn’t legal. He said that the Dillahunty’s have claimed this as CUVA property on a single piece of property rather than as a plat with 10 pieces of property for many years and that this is a legal issue that needs to be addressed.
OPPOSITION:
Delores Brown will be directly affected by this. She and her husband did their homework to be sure that no one would be able to build right on top of them. She felt that she was discriminated against when she asked that her daughter be allowed to speak for her in the past meeting and her daughter was interrupted and told to be quiet because she was not a taxpayer in this county. She also said that the grandfathered-in clause wasn’t on there when they researched this. She objects to homes on 1 acre lots. She said that growth is getting out of hand and our resources can’t handle this growth.
Bob Marriott is concerned about breaking up AR property all over the county. He presented the old plat on the property from the 1970’s for the record. He said that the developer threatened the Planning Board with building on these smaller lots if their application wasn’t approved. He also said that paving half of Oxford Circle concerned him with the rest of it left as gravel. He said that Oxford Circle recently received more gravel after the meeting that he had ever seen before. He said that it appeared that an effort was made to show that Oxford Circle was maintained when that really isn’t the case. He helps keep up the road and isn’t complaining about that or about living on a gravel road, but told commissioners that he took offense to the extra gravel because they could have used it over the past 28 years. [Note from the Editor: This is addressed by the County Manager in the commissioner discussion on this property.] Marriott said that Commissioners should take them up on their threat to develop these small lots and leave the outside lots as AR and that would alleviate the need for paving. He also said that he has a lot out there that has a City of Concord tap on it, and he was denied water out there from the City of Concord. He has had some state training (he has served on the Tax Assessor’s Board) and said that current use was mentioned and he doesn’t know if those old lots would hold up because they have had it taxed as a single tract for many years.
Bethany Randolph objected to paving half of Oxford Circle. She also said that if it’s been taxed as a whole, then that negates the old plat. She said that it won’t affect them if they build and then move away. She told commissioners that they were voted in to represent the people of Pike County and if the people don’t want it, they shouldn’t vote it in.
Patricia Beckham said that she is not opposed to growth but that our schools are being affected by growth. She attended a Board of Education meeting and was told that it takes $600,000 to educate a child. She said that changing from 3 acres to 2 acres has got to be affecting taxes for citizens in the county.
Beth Camp is a Board of Education member and said that we had to have the 9th Grade Academy because we didn’t have the money to build. Unless we are bringing in $300,000 houses, we don’t have the industry to support the school system.
CM Hanson clarified that the developer would have to pave this part of the road. He also said that this was the first complaint he’s ever had about gravel going on a road, but clarified that Todd Goolsby in Public Works keeps a close eye on our roads and that is probably why the gravel went out there when it did. He told Mr. Marriott to let him know when they need more.
Chairman Johnson asked about why they are not being required to pave all of the way to lot 5. There was a question and a discussion about the two different plats. There was one recorded in the late 1970’s. After examining the plats, he understood why going only to Lot 4 because it’s now the last lot on the current plat.
Commissioner Jenkins asked CM Hanson to check with the state on education and the number of students that we have. He said that we need some clarification on the number of students in the county. There was a communication to the Board of Commissioners that told commissioners that they need to approve homes worth $350,000 to educate one student and there are few homes with that market value in the county. Everyone can’t afford that. [Note from the Editor: There is a series of emails that have gone back and forth between the Board of Education and the Board of Commissioners that I am looking into because it was mentioned at a past meeting; but honestly, the county cannot force minimum $350,000 houses into the county. Think school teachers, police officers, workers at our industrial businesses along 341... (My house isn't worth that either!) It might sound good when you're talking theoretically about the Board of Education side of our taxes paying for the schools, but it simply isn't realistic. Requiring larger houses is a good start.]
Question if we would have to go with the old plat. Are there any stipulations that would have affect this? What about CUVA on the property? CM Hanson said that he would like some clarification on this. Mr. Marriott used to be on our Tax Assessor Board so they appreciated the question that was asked on this. Consensus that this needs to be addressed.
Chairman Johnson asked if this was paved according to our standards, what is the right of way? 80 feet. 1750 square foot heated homes would have to be added as a condition if they go ahead with this. They also discussed water from Concord and there would have to be a discussion with the County Water Authority so it isn’t a guarantee.
Motion to approve based on the changes with the 2 acre lots and 1750 square foot and the road being paved by the developer up to Lot 4 as specified by the Planning Commission said and add all other conditions as earlier specified.
Motion to allow Steve Reeves to speak. Guy, Daniel. Approve 5-0.
Steve Reeves told the Board that if they had to pave the road, they want to withdraw the application.
Chairman Johnson asked Commissioner Guy if he wanted to amend his motion based on the knowledge that they want to withdraw their application. He said that they needed to bring this through to the end for the record. Motion was approved. 5-0.
Someone tried to bring a point of order based on Roberts Rules of Order. Motion to allow someone else to speak. Guy. No second. Commissioner Daniel then clarified and said that the developer had advised that they would pull the application if the motion was passed as it had been presented. The motion was passed. Anything further was basically a moot point.
[Note from the Editor: Commissioners and the Planning and Development Director being advised of the withdrawal makes it legally withdrawn as of Tuesday night. It will need to be clarified by Attorney Rob or Tom Morton on whether a plat that was filed in the 1970’s is still legal regardless of the CUVA designation that is no longer on the property. If this plat is still legal, this may not be the win that some people thought that it was because they were talking building on one acre lots.]
10. PUBLIC COMMENT- (Limited to 5 minutes per person)
11. EXECUTIVE SESSION - None
12. ADJOURNMENT: 9:01 p.m.
Agenda subject to revision.
[Note from the Editor: If you appreciate being able to read information from county meetings for free on Pike County Times, please make a donation to Pike County Times through the PayPal link at the bottom of the page or by check to Pike County Times at PO Box 843, Zebulon so I can justify the amount of time that I am spending away from family. It may not seem like much but sitting in a meeting and then typing it up takes a lot more time than you might imagine! Thanks for reading Pike County's only FREE newspaper.]