Rezoning request without business parcels approved

Grovetown leaders denied a second request Monday to rezone a 34-acre parcel of residential property to include four commercial buildings, but approved a similar proposal minus the businesses.

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The property at the corner of Wrightsboro Road and Trudeau Trail is owned by developer Crowell & Co., and JHT Construction Inc. is under contract to purchase the land to build a subdivision.

Joe Todd, the potential JHT developer, initially asked for the property to be rezoned from residential to PUD (Planned Unit Development) to allow for a redesign of the proposed 70-home development to include several resident recreation areas, greenspace and walking trails, three entrances and four "community commercial" areas facing Wrightsboro Road.

Area residents, some inside and others outside the city limits across Wrightsboro Road from the property, attended a Sept. 28 meeting and expressed concerns about potential traffic increases caused by the commercial lots.

City leaders refused the rezoning and said they'd reconsider it with more stringent stipulations and examples of what "community commercial" establishments would be allowed.

Despite Todd saying his company would petition the state Department of Transportation for a traffic signal at the proposed subdivision entrance on Wrightsboro Road at Chamblin Road, residents still voiced concerns about traffic issues.

"I just think it is too serious an issue not to address the traffic situation first," Sonny McDowell, Grovetown resident and city council candidate, said at the meeting.

After city leaders voted to decline the request a second time at Monday's meeting, Todd presented an amended version of the subdivision redesign that would still need the PUD zoning, but left off any commercial areas. The commercial area was replaced with extra homes, totaling 82 in the proposed subdivision redesign.

"The commercial has been the main negative cry the whole time," Todd said.

Because the city's Planning Commission approved the initial rezoning request, city leaders approved the request with the amendment that the commercial parcels be left off of the plan.