Compromise found on zoning

An Evans homeowner and the Columbia County Planning Commission found compromise Thursday on a rezoning of the man's house.

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John Stewart, of the 500 block of Old Evans Road, requested a Commercial-1 zoning for the home near the planned extension of River Watch Parkway, for a proposed dance clothing store. Facing opposition from county planners at the meeting, Stewart agreed with planning commissioners on a more restrictive Professional-1 zoning.

Senior planner Tom Tully said planning staffers opposed the request, saying it conflicted with the Growth Management Plan, and that the home should remain a residential property. If a C-1 zoning were approved, Tully said owners of parcels neighboring it would likely seek new zoning.

Stewart said the intended buyer of his home, which is for sale, owned a dance apparel company, and other potential buyers were not looking at the house as residential property. He said with the nearby Kennametal facility, railroad tracks and commercial development at Old Evans and Washington roads, even county planners told him they personally would not purchase the home as a residence.

"It exemplifies people do not see this as a residential area," said Stewart, adding he had lived in the home 31 years.

Stewart's real estate agent, Paul McCormick, of Blanchard and Calhoun, said of his five adjacent residential listings on Old Evans Road, none has been looked at by people searching for a new home.

Ultimately, Stewart and planning commissioners settled on the P-1 zoning, which would permit offices but not on-site sales, planning director Jeff Browning said.

In other business, Team Excavating Co. withdrew its request to rezone 131.56 acres at 405 Old Louisville Road, west of Grovetown. The company had sought to rezone the property Residential-1 from its current Residential-Agricultural zoning.

County planners objected to the rezoning because the R-1 zoning would allow too many homes per acre for the rural area and did not match the Growth Management Plan.