The Hall County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously Thursday night to approve a rezoning west of Lula that will allow an industrial complex to be built.
After several postponements, the board approved the industrial rezoning paired with 19 conditions that will need to be met by property owners. The 134.14-acre area in question sits at 4020 Cornelia Highway and 4761 Cagle Mill Road. The land was previously zoned as Agricultural Residential III and Agricultural Residential IV. Applicant Ridgeline Land Planning Inc. originally sought to rezone the area to Heavy Industrial. Prior to the meeting Thursday, they changed their request to Light Industrial.
At the Nov. 7 planning commission meeting, planning commissioners voted unanimously to recommend approval to the Board of Commissioners with nine conditions. The item was postponed three more times on Dec. 8, Jan. 12 and Jan. 26.
District 3 Commissioner Gregg Poole represents the area and put forward the motion to approve the rezoning. He offered up a list of conditions, many of which had to do with landscaping, architecture and the preservation of natural elements on the property.
“Me, along with Hall County staff and parks people, met with the friends of Healans Mill,” Poole said. “We met with them for their concerns about preserving the mill. And then our 19 conditions, we imposed things that the friends of Healans Mill asked that we do in phases — silt fence, extra buffers, and also that we could try and keep and preserve the wetlands on the bottom there and in that district. And they [the applicant] agreed to all the conditions, no complaints.”
The development plans to host a new public road that will intersect with Cornelia Highway. According to the applicant’s narrative, there will be 11 lots on the property, ranging in size from 2.5 acres to 14 acres. A majority of the lots will be used for office and warehouse space, with the potential for other uses in the future.
The anticipated completion of the entire build-out is between five to 10 years.
Other actions taken during Thursday’s commission meeting:
The board voted 2-3 in denial of an appeal submitted by Gary Copeland that would have reversed the planning commission's decision to grant a rural business license on Henry Smith Road in North Hall. At a separate meeting, Tyler Crawford, the owner of Pro-Series Fabrication, recently succeeded in appealing a denial from the planning director for a business license. The appeal to reverse the planning commission's decision was denied Thursday with Commissioners Poole and Higgins voting in support of the appeal and Commissioners Cooper, Powell and Stowe voting against the appeal.
The board voted unanimously in approval of a Highway Business rezoning and conditional use permit for a 9.06-acre tract of land on McEver Road. The proposed use for the area is an RV and boat storage facility owned by Anchor Inn RV & Boat Storage. The land is located at 5871 McEver Road.
The board voted unanimously in approval of a use subject to county commission approval application on a 15.83-acre tract of land on the north side of Memorial Park Drive near Centennial Drive. Applicant David Sutherland plans to expand business operations at his egg processing facility in the future.
The board voted unanimously in approval of a Highway Business rezoning at 5937 Union Church Road. Applicant Rochester DCCM plans to construct an 8,000-square-foot building on 1.33 acres of land for unspecified uses. Although there is currently no end user in mind for the property, conditions state that potential use must fall in line with the Highway Business classification.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2023/2/1170233/board-of-commissioners-approves-industrial-rezoning-near-lula