[0:12] Good evening. Today is April the 18th,
2020. I'm sorry, August. Yeah, August
[0:19] the 18th, 2026.
Um, it is 7 o'clock. We're going to go
[0:24] ahead and call this meeting to order
tonight.
[0:32] I'm going to ask um if Commissioner uh
Cooper would lead us in our prayer and
[0:39] Commissioner Long would lead us in our
pledge of allegiance to the flag.
[0:53] Let's bow head. Heavenly Father, we
thank you for the opportunity to gather
[0:57] here today in service to our community.
Grant us wisdom in our in our
[1:02] discussion, clarity in our decision, and
compassion in our heart. May we lead
[1:08] with integrity, work with unity, and
always seek the greater good for those
[1:13] we represent. Bless each and everyone
present, and may our effort today
[1:17] reflect the fairness, justice, and
respect of all.
[1:22] » Amen.
>> Amen.
[1:32] To the flag of the United States of
America and to the republic for it
[1:38] stands one nation under God indivisible
with liberty and justice for all.
[1:48] » Thank you guys for that.
Guys, I seek a motion that we adopt
[1:53] agenda. Please move.
>> There's been motion by Commissioner
[1:57] Mason and second by Commissioner
Edwards. Any discussion?
[2:02] Um, Commissioner Henderson.
[2:07] Thank you, Mr. Chair. Uh what what I
would like to ask the um county attorney
[2:14] in lie of of you know and I'm I'm not a
person like keep up stuff but in lie of
[2:20] what we have read in the papers
should our chairman chairman Bane chair
[2:27] this meeting
[2:32] » um my understanding is that the county
is proceeding
[2:36] um
with the understanding that chairman
[2:40] Baines has been re reinstated and so um
I'm not going to give a public legal
[2:47] opinion on that but I that's my
understanding of how the county has been
[2:52] choosing to proceed.
>> Yes. And I just want to be sure that uh
[2:55] for uh the uh citizen of New County that
uh we are following legal advice
[3:04] of uh I guess J Roy and Davis.
Thank you. Any more discussion? All in
[3:10] favor?
It passes 5.
[3:15] Next is public comments. We allow our
citizens to make comments about agenda
[3:20] topics. Agenda agenda topics only. You
have three minutes to do so. You may
[3:24] come at this time. Please state your
name, your address for the record,
[3:27] please. Agenda topics only.
Agenda topics only.
[3:35] » Thank you. Um, there's nothing to report
today in the chairman's report. Um, Mr.
[3:41] Brown, there's nothing in your report.
Do you?
[3:44] » Good evening, Mr. Chair, board of
commissioners. I do not have anything to
[3:47] report.
>> Thank you, sir. Next is um the consent
[3:51] agenda. I seek a motion that we approve
the consent agenda, please.
[3:56] » It's been motioned by Commissioner um
Edwards and second by Commissioner
[4:01] Cooper. Any discussion?
All in favor?
[4:08] It passes. 5.
[4:12] Next is um new business consideration of
Cornish Creek Water Treatment Plant
[4:18] Upgrade. Mr. Brown.
>> Good evening again. This is the uh third
[4:25] agreement for the com upgrade to the
Cornish Creek Water Treatment Facility
[4:30] of 159,31,45.20.
[4:38] As you may remember, the board already
approved package number one, package
[4:41] number two. Package number three is a
combination of package one, two, and
[4:46] three for the total of the amount I just
read. um uh to seeking for approval from
[4:51] the board.
>> I seek a motion, please.
[4:58] » Is there a second?
>> It's been motioned by um Commissioner
[5:03] Edwards and second by Commissioner
Cooper. Um any discussion?
[5:08] All in favor?
It passes. 50.
[5:14] Next is item number nine, consideration
of environmental resource u analysis.
[5:22] Mr. Cooper,
[5:25] » I mean Mr. Mr. Brown.
>> Yeah, sorry. So, this is an annual
[5:30] contract uh for testing that the um the
Cornish Creek treatment plant does do
[5:36] from outside third party testing to make
sure that all of the contaminants are
[5:40] appropriately tested for and pass all uh
all EPD and EPA regulations.
[5:46] » Thank you, sir. I seek a motion, please.
>> Is there a second?
[5:52] » It's been motioned by Commissioner
Edwards and second by Commissioner Long.
[5:57] Any discussion?
All in favor?
[6:02] It passes. 5.
[6:06] Um,
want to go down? Go down.
[6:11] I'm going to ask that we go into a brief
recess for a few moments and um and
[6:17] we'll come back. Can I get a motion,
please?
[6:19] » So move.
>> Is there a second? It's been motioned by
[6:23] Commissioner uh Mason and second by
Commissioner uh Cooper that we go into a
[6:27] brief recess. Any discussion?
[6:32] » I'm sorry.
>> The purpose is we can't start zoning
[6:37] till 7:30. Uh good. Okay. Any more
discussion? All in favor? We standing in
[6:46] re
[30:37] Guys, I seek a motion that we move back
into our regular meeting. Please,
[30:42] is there a second?
>> It's been a motion by Commissioner
[30:46] Edwards and second by Commissioner Long
that we move back into our regular
[30:49] scheduled meeting. Uh, any discussion?
All in favor?
[30:54] Thank you. Passes 5. Going to ask Mr.
Apple White, if you would please come on
[30:59] up. It's actually 7:30 now. We're going
to move directly into our zoning.
[31:05] Miss Apple White. Thank you, chairman.
Good evening, chairman, members of the
[31:09] board of commissioners.
[31:12] Our first petitions is actually old
business.
[31:19] It is our EZ26-0000004.
[31:23] It is for a retail space located at
highway 81. Tax ID 0016030.
[31:30] And I should mention that this was
tabled um back in June for 60 days to be
[31:34] heard again tonight. Parcel site is 3.63
acres. Flume is commercial. The existing
[31:41] zoning is R2 single family residential.
The proposed zoning is general
[31:45] commercial. It is in the emerging
suburban character area which the flume
[31:50] would support. Watershed is South River.
This is district two, commissioner
[31:54] district two. The owner is Steve Astrin
and our petitioner is Haley Todd from
[32:00] PC. And applicants intent is to reszone
to general commercial in order to
[32:04] develop a multi-tenant retail building.
And just briefly go over the history
[32:10] because we just uh we presented this at
the last meeting, but on May 8th, there
[32:15] was a community meeting that uh was
actually rescheduled to 5:29.
[32:24] The planning commission
held the meeting on 5:26 and they tabled
[32:29] the petition and it was then held again
at a special called meeting on 6:15.
[32:35] On 529 2026 the community meeting was
held for this proposal and the applicant
[32:40] proposed the following. The proposal
they they gave the or they showed the
[32:45] proposal or the site plan. Um they spoke
about how long the project will bring
[32:48] local community how it would bring local
community uses. There was a possibility
[32:53] of a single tenant. Um the county
regulations required 72 parking spaces
[32:57] which they've met. There's ADA screening
and sidewalk requirements which will be
[33:01] met. Storm water pond will mitigate
flooding in the adjacent neighborhood.
[33:05] Storm water regulations have improved
over the years. G dot advised that an
[33:09] entrance or an exit wouldn't be located
on Highway 81. will be on Cowan Road
[33:14] instead which will also have a
deceleration lane and the distance in
[33:18] the building and the impervious
surface to nearby property length. They
[33:22] also addressed that to make sure it was
appropriate.
[33:25] Transitional buffer will only encroach
on the driveway but it would be
[33:29] appropriate for separation from the
residents next to it. The trip report
[33:33] concluded that the proposed development
will bring less than 100 vehicles onto
[33:37] Cowan Road daily and proposal
this this particular proposal doesn't
[33:42] meet the threshold criteria for us to
for staff to require a traffic study but
[33:48] the board does have that discretion. No
proposed end use for the building at
[33:52] this time.
So at the same community meeting the
[33:55] citizens also expressed their concerns.
So there were concerns about the types
[34:00] of uses, example, gas station or
restaurant that could potentially be
[34:03] developed at a later time. There was a
possibility of putting conditions in
[34:07] place to prevent certain uses. If any of
the land is left vacant, there was
[34:11] concern that that could also be
developed at a later time. The potential
[34:15] relation to the previous cell tower
project that was also proposed on that
[34:19] parcel. There are also concerns of
traffic and congestion that the cow road
[34:23] currently experiences and the dangerous
curve it has. There's a small distance
[34:27] from the entrance on Cowan Ridge Road or
the Cow Ridge subdivision to the
[34:31] developer proposed entrance on Cowan
Road. There are also concerns of
[34:35] drainage flooding issues that currently
affect the adjacent residential
[34:38] properties such as the Livingston
Elementary School underground pipe for
[34:42] their retention pond. There's potential
drainage issues that the proposal could
[34:46] cause um as well. Uh and these are again
some of the concerns that nearby
[34:50] residents expressed. Uh they also
expressed a possible need for a
[34:54] hydraology test and traffic study and
they needed to know that um who the
[34:58] potential developer would be. On 6:15
the planning commission recommended
[35:02] denial of the petition by a vote of 50.
Citizens also spoke in opposition at the
[35:07] planning commission meeting and they
reiterated some of the same concerns
[35:10] above.
Additional concerns also included safety
[35:15] and the facade of the building that
faces Highway 81. On 616, the board of
[35:19] commissioners tabled this petition for
60 days and this is where we are today.
[35:24] So these are just pictures from the
community meeting. [clears throat]
[35:30] Just a brief site plan analysis. So it's
3.36 acres um surrounding there includes
[35:36] a single family subdivisions, the Linton
Elementary School, Linton Academy,
[35:41] childc care learning center. The side
plan shows a 10,800 foot commercial
[35:46] building. Along the southeastern portion
of the property, there are 72 proposed
[35:50] parking spaces. The septic area is to
the west of the parking lot and the
[35:54] storm water facility will be to the west
of the building. The septic area, we do
[35:58] have concerns of its location and
proximity to the pvious um the
[36:02] impervious surfaces such as the parking
lot and any impact that it could have on
[36:07] the septic drain field.
one existing [clears throat] curb cut on
[36:11] Highway 81, but um that's not going to
be used. G do DOT has already decided
[36:15] that they'll have to use a Cowin road as
their ingress and egress.
[36:21] So the preliminary approval per the
county's transportation department was
[36:24] there as long as it lines up with the
adjacent street entrance at Cowen Ridge
[36:28] Road and incorporates a deceleration
lanes. Those were the conditions that
[36:32] transportation had.
There's a 75 foot transitional buffer
[36:37] along the back side of the property.
The only thing in the within the buffer
[36:42] is the entrance um into Cowan Road, but
there is going to be an opaque fence
[36:48] which will also be part of the buffer to
shield the residences in the adjacent
[36:53] subdivision.
The front of the building is proposed to
[36:57] face inward. However, we have
communicated with this developer that
[37:00] the building actually needs to be
oriented towards the road which would be
[37:04] consistent with all the other commercial
developments that are within proximity
[37:09] of this proposed development.
The side pan me exceeds um the minimum
[37:14] building setbacks as per development
regulations in the UDO and any signage
[37:20] must also meet the requirements of
division 525.
[37:24] And um of course this is the parcel
we're looking at here and this is the
[37:28] proposed layout which would probably
need to be revised at some point. So
[37:33] storm water facility, the septic area is
on this side here. We've got the parking
[37:36] and then the building over here, the
transitional buffer and of course the
[37:41] fence and we have our subdivisions on
this side here and across the road.
[37:48] So they have uh submitted proposed
elevations.
[37:53] It would be primarily of brick and these
are some of the uses that they're
[37:56] proposing that will go there and I do
have these uses included in your packet
[38:02] for review.
[38:07] So in conclusion, the applicant is
proposing to reszone to general
[38:11] commercial for a neighborhood retail
store with multiple tenants. The
[38:15] proposed use is along a state highway
which will serve travelers and residents
[38:19] surrounding in the surrounding area. The
resort will also be consistent with
[38:23] policies of the comp plan since the
flume is already commercial and supports
[38:27] the general commercial district.
However, there are some challenges that
[38:31] still need to be worked out on the lot
such as the septic location, building
[38:35] orientation and improvements to cow road
such as a del lane as well as improved
[38:40] traffic flow. It is also important to
note that many citizens expressed
[38:44] concerns about the project during a
community meeting on 529 2026, mainly in
[38:49] relation to the potential uses that
could go on the property. They also had
[38:53] concerns about the drainage or flooding
issues and traffic congestion that Cowan
[38:58] Road currently experiences.
Staff also received several opposition
[39:03] letters and one petition from the
adjacent Cowan Road subdivision, Coen
[39:06] Ridge. Um, and the concerns stated
included potential crime. There also
[39:12] concerns about finding another property
that is already zoned commercial for the
[39:15] proposed use. The concerns about the
traffic, noise, trash, litter, lighting,
[39:19] loitering, and extended hours of
operation. There were concerns about
[39:24] keeping the character of the residential
areas. There were school safety concerns
[39:28] and adverse neighborhood impacts.
Um, the so the applicant is seeking this
[39:35] reszoning. This is not a byite use which
is why they're seeking to reszone it to
[39:39] the appropriate zoning category. So
should the petition be approved by the
[39:43] board of commissioners, it should be
approved general commercial conditional
[39:47] and subject to the owner's agreement to
the following enumerated conditions.
[39:52] Where these conditions conflict with the
stipulations and offerings contained in
[39:56] the letter of intent, these conditions
shall supersede unless specifically
[40:02] stipulated by the board of
commissioners. So one to the owners
[40:05] agreement is the following. A all plans
and plat submitted must meet the
[40:09] requirements of the ordinance or
regulations and be approved by the
[40:13] department of development services,
public works, Newton County Fire
[40:16] Services, Environmental Health, the
water authority, Georgia soil and water
[40:21] conservation and the G dot as
applicable. B. Prior to any new uses,
[40:26] all permits shall be obtained as
applicable.
[40:29] C. You must obtain and maintain a
business license as needed. D. No
[40:33] outside storage allowed on the property.
No merchandise allowed to be displayed
[40:36] outside of the building. E. The entrance
and exit on Cowan Road is allowed to be
[40:40] within the transitional buffer as long
as an 8-ft opaque fence is installed
[40:45] along the west property boundary line.
F. The building shall be oriented to
[40:49] face highway 81 and have appropriate
fenistration.
[40:53] G. There shall be landscaping strips
along Highway 81 and Cowan Road. And H.
[40:57] The following uses shall not be allowed.
tattoo parlor, vape shop, pawn shop, gas
[41:02] station or convenience store with pumps.
This is a survey that was submitted
[41:09] by the applicant.
Uh we have these are street view
[41:14] pictures from Highway 81 and Cowan Road.
Our zoning is R2.
[41:22] The flume is commercial. There's a
future land use map.
[41:27] Watershed is South River.
This is in commissioner district 2
[41:34] cart areas as we said emerging suburban
and that is the end of staff's
[41:39] presentation and chairman applicant does
have a presentation of his own
[41:44] there any questions for staff at this
moment
[41:48] » thank you uh um missawite so I'm told
there's already been a public hearing on
[41:54] this is that correct
>> yes it would have been held on back in
[41:57] June
>> okay so I'm going to turn it over to um
[42:00] Commissioner Mason. What shall we hear?
[42:09] » Well, if y'all said they already did.
Yeah. So,
[42:15] » well, thank you, Mr. Chair. Um,
from my understanding, this particular
[42:20] site is still uh in litigation.
So, really, I cannot make a decision at
[42:26] this particular time. So, I'm going to
move that we table uh rec26-0000004
[42:36] uh for 30 days.
>> Could we do 60 to allow for to
[42:40] readvertise?
>> Yes, we can.
[42:43] » Thank you.
>> Is there a second?
[42:48] » It's been it's been motioned by
Commissioner Mason that we table this
[42:51] for 60 days and second by Commissioner
Edwards. Any discussion?
[42:55] All in favor?
Thank you. Stand table for 60 days. 50.
[43:01] Mr. Apple White.
>> Thank you, chairman.
[43:05] [clears throat]
>> Our next item under old business. It's
[43:08] resolution R061626D
for um consideration. It was tabled on
[43:14] June 16th and then tabled on July 21st.
It is a resolution of the Newton County
[43:18] Board of Commissioners terminating an
existing moratorum on the acceptance of
[43:23] applications, requests or submissions
that propose the development of
[43:27] convenience stores. Um we are still
working on this and as well as the UDO
[43:33] staff would propose to actually go ahead
and extend this to um term to the same
[43:40] time as the UDO will which would be like
November 4th.
[43:48] Thank you. Um, and so it's my
understanding again, we already had a
[43:52] public hearing. So, commissioners, I
seek a motion, please.
[43:56] » Is there a second?
>> Is there a second?
[43:59] » It's been motioned by Commissioner Long
and second by Commissioner um Cooper. Is
[44:04] there any discussion?
All in favor?
[44:09] Thank you.
Stand table.
[44:14] Extend extended. I'm sorry,
Miss Apple White.
[44:18] » Thank you, chairman.
[44:23] » So, our next item today is under new
business. This is an appeal case. Um,
[44:27] it's an appeal case for the Sherrod Farm
subdivision.
[44:30] The case number is A26-00003.
[44:34] The name of the appeal applicant is Mr.
Philip Johnson. He's the attorney
[44:38] representing the client. The original
case number is the PP26-000000003
[44:45] which was the preliminary plat and the
original applicant was also Mr. Philip
[44:49] Johnson. Property owner is Dina Pace
Holdings. The address of the property
[44:55] is off of Dina Pace Road and Brownbridge
Road. The tax ID parcels are 43-4A,
[45:01] 43-35,
43-35B,
[45:05] and 43-4D.
proposed use is a single family
[45:09] residential subdivision.
The existing zonings are R2 single
[45:14] family R2 which is single family
residential district as well and they're
[45:18] also applying the open space
conservation overlay. Watershed is
[45:22] yellow river character areas are the
live work corridors established suburban
[45:26] core and conservation and recreation
area density is 776 units per acre and
[45:32] parcel is 399.3
acres. They're proposing 310 lots and
[45:39] the proposed lot size is approximately
17,500 square feet. This is located in
[45:45] commission district 4.
So the request is the appeal to the
[45:50] planning commission's decision to deny
the preliminary plat for the Sherrod
[45:54] Farms residential subdivision. The
original request was the applicant was
[45:58] presenting for approval the plinary plat
for the Shroud Farm subdivision located
[46:02] along Dina Pace Road and Brownbridge
Road and of course 399.3 acres and 310
[46:09] single family lots and a brief history
on the June 23rd planning commission
[46:14] denied this plat
um this subdivision the preliminary plat
[46:22] as mentioned the character areas live
work corided established suburban C and
[46:27] of course a conservation recreation
area.
[46:31] Just a brief background, the single
family development um that they're
[46:35] proposing is located south of the access
road. There are separate two separate
[46:40] entrances off of Dina Pace Road to the
east as well as an entrance located off
[46:44] of Brownbridge Road to the southeast. So
the project consists of four parcels,
[46:49] zone R2. um they all fall within those
three character areas we mentioned
[46:54] previously.
When this first came in um there was a
[46:59] development of regional impact. It
initially came in as an annexation with
[47:04] um from the city of Porterdale that was
um dismissed by the city dismissed that
[47:09] or they dropped it. They didn't move
forward with it but the regional the
[47:13] development of regional impact study had
already been conducted. So just want to
[47:17] give you a little bit of background on
that. Um
[47:22] at the time it was for 649 single family
units and the feedback from the DRRI is
[47:30] that the live work corridor area um the
vision for that character area
[47:35] it emphasizes morely more so mixeduse
development for employment opportunities
[47:40] and multif family housing. The project
however is just single family use. So
[47:44] they didn't think that the proposal was
consistent with that particular
[47:47] character area. However, residential
uses in single family residential zones
[47:52] are listed in the comp plan is
appropriate for it and there are several
[47:56] commercial facilities near the site
along the access road which borders I20
[48:00] and intersects with Dina Pace Road. So
in their consideration
[48:05] and of course in the context of the
nearby parcels the proposal would
[48:08] somewhat contribute to mixeduse
intention by creating homes near
[48:12] existing employment and retail
opportunities. The requirement for
[48:16] sidewalks due to the availability of
sewer infrastructure indicates a
[48:19] walkable development which is attributed
to the character area.
[48:24] A traffic study was also conducted in
2023.
[48:30] Uh they met the threshold for that due
to the number of new single family
[48:34] proposed homes. Even at 310 they will
still meet the threshold for a traffic
[48:38] study. Um back then it showed that the
generated trip or the estimates
[48:45] which at the time was for the 649 homes,
but they showed a total of 5,639
[48:50] total two-way trips over a 24-h hour
period. An updated traffic study hasn't
[48:56] been submitted at this time to reflect
the new units as well as to reflect the
[49:01] other subdivisions within proximity that
have come online since then. And these
[49:05] are the orders on Brownidge Road as well
as on Cowan Road, which they'll all
[49:09] share at Cowan Road Archery to get on to
I20. and we'll go into that a little
[49:14] later. So this just shows the trip
generation um as provided.
[49:22] So the preliminary plan analysis um the
planning commission was a role to review
[49:26] for compliance with our UDO section
1415-030
[49:30] as well as division 430 for the open
space. The Sherrod Farms submission
[49:36] consists of 310 single family
residential lots on 399 acres on water
[49:41] and sewer. Minimum lot size um an open
space conservation overlay brought it
[49:46] down to 17,500 ft which is about4 acres
and the average lot size they're
[49:52] proposing is 20,000 square feet which is
about 46 acres. So more than a quarter
[49:57] of the lots are larger in size than the
average lot size. The smallest one is
[50:01] 17,572
square ft and the largest is 47,720
[50:07] ft. So development as has three
entrances, two on Dina Pace, one on
[50:11] Brownbridge Road in the deceleration
lane. Um there is concern for traffic
[50:15] congestion at Brownbridge Road entrance
since it is located within a quarter
[50:19] mile of two multif family residential
developments to the east um namely
[50:23] Benton Woods with 162 town homes,
Leafstone Apartments with 232 units.
[50:29] They're also in close proximity about a
mile to the other highdensity
[50:32] developments on Crowell Road um which is
will also exit onto Interstate 20. So
[50:39] these would include Harold Dobs or the
Dobs Landing 253 units, the town of the
[50:43] Yellow River 96 units, Point Grand 216
units, and of course the existing Silver
[50:49] Ridge at 211 units and Oakwood Manor at
322 units. So the proposed project
[50:55] offers multiple parks, male kiosks with
parking, mulch to walking trail along
[50:59] the river, um an existing pond,
sidewalks, storm water detention ponds,
[51:03] utilities and landscape areas. So other
concerns as noted in the DRI include
[51:09] potential impact of the density of the
Yellow River on the Yellow River as well
[51:14] as the sensitive flood plane and wetland
areas. So even though the developer
[51:17] reduced the number of homes from 649 to
310 units, the proposed subdivision is
[51:22] still in close proximity to the
repairarian buffers that protect the
[51:25] Yellow River Wershed.
Comments from staff. So the following
[51:29] county departments and external agencies
have reviewed and approved the
[51:32] preliminary plant ex um for the plinary
plan for Sherrod Farms. So Newton County
[51:37] Fire Department, they've reviewed for
the fire code and recommended approval.
[51:41] our transportation department reviewed
but they had um conditions as well. So
[51:47] additional improvements are required on
Dinapace road and they also had to
[51:50] coordinate with G dot for any additional
comments on the Dinapace road and the
[51:54] access road because access road is a G
dot corridor. Lithuan County Development
[52:00] Services was reviewed for compliance
with the UDO recommend for approvals.
[52:04] Also, our storm water management
division has also reviewed and approved.
[52:10] GIS have reviewed and approved as well
as the Newton County Water Authority.
[52:15] They've reviewed and recommended
approval and they're providing both
[52:18] water and sewer.
[52:22] So, comments from the planning
commission meeting on June 23rd, 2026.
[52:26] Several residents and attendees spoke in
opposition at the planning commission
[52:29] meeting. Those in opposition said that
they were concerned with the high
[52:32] residential density. the impact on
traffic congestion and that these homes
[52:37] may end up as rentals rather than owner
occupied. One member of the planning
[52:41] commission asked whether the developer
would be willing to name a street after
[52:44] Dinapace who originally resided in a
small cabin and I think she took like
[52:48] orphan children um as part of her life's
work. Members of the planning commission
[52:53] expressed concern for traffic congestion
and single family homes that may become
[52:56] rentals run and owner occupied and the
planning commission subsequently denied
[53:00] the preliminary plat.
So in conclusion, initially the project
[53:04] as stated was to be annexed into
Portoale. Um DRRI was completed
[53:10] um and they provided their results for
that. The project is also in close
[53:14] proximity to the Yellow River and other
sensitive environmental wetlands and
[53:17] flood plane areas which could negatively
impact be impacted due to the density
[53:22] that they're proposing. Further, it is
anticipated that a significant amount of
[53:26] traffic contributing to congestion will
be added to the existing Brownbridge
[53:29] Road and Crowell roads as the main Thor
affairs to Interstate 20. Recent and
[53:34] existing developments in close proximity
to those proposed developments that also
[53:38] utilize Crowell Road and Brownbridge
roads would include adopts landing point
[53:42] Grand River, Silver Ridge, Benton Woods,
Leafstone and Oakwood Manor which give
[53:47] approximately a total of 14 92 units. So
the current traffic study was completed
[53:53] in 2023
when they were um when the proposed uses
[53:57] were higher and those other subdivisions
hadn't come online. Um we don't have any
[54:01] updated traffic impact study since then
for um what they're proposing currently.
[54:06] So in addition there will be an
anticipated impact on the existing
[54:11] facilities and services particularly
with the other highdensity developments
[54:15] that have since been approved in the
vicinity. So should the board of
[54:18] commissioners approve this preliminary
plan, it should be with the following
[54:21] recommendations and it will be
conceptual only. It must meet or exceed
[54:26] all conditions of the unified
development ordinance prior to the
[54:29] issuance of a land disturbance permit.
So recommended conditions. So the
[54:34] proposed preliminary plant has been
reviewed by development services. It
[54:37] meets the minimum requirements for
sections 1415- 030 and section 430 of
[54:43] the UDU. Staff is of the opinion that
should the board of commissioners
[54:47] approve the plunary plant, it should be
subject to the following conditions. So,
[54:51] prior to obtaining a land disturbance
permit, all comments from the Newton
[54:54] County Fire Department, development
services department, and transportation
[54:58] department shall be addressed. Prior to
obtaining a land disturbance permit,
[55:02] comments from external agencies such as
the water authority, um, G dot and water
[55:08] conservation commission shall be
addressed as applicable. They need to
[55:12] provide an amended traffic study to
reflect new traffic patterns and
[55:15] densities of the subdivision and
neighboring subdivisions. Provide a
[55:20] wetland delineation study as part of the
land disturbance permit.
[55:24] This is an aerial view of the parcels.
So, it's all the parcels with um with
[55:28] the stars. Some of the parcels up here
and then this large one here and then
[55:32] these two at the bottom.
Zoning is R2. Everything in yellow.
[55:41] These are the Carter area maps. So,
conservation recreation follows the
[55:45] yellow river.
We have the live work
[55:50] in the green.
[55:54] This is our flood plane map. So again,
these are the parcels in place. So flood
[55:58] plane is significant on the parcels that
they're working with. So the areas that
[56:03] they're building on would just be the
areas that are not in the flood plane
[56:07] would be the brown area.
This is our wetlands map. There's no
[56:11] disturbance or building permitted in the
wetland areas.
[56:17] This is the proposed preliminary plat.
Um 310 units. So it extends all the way
[56:21] up to the access road. We have our ex um
ingress and egress points. We have two
[56:26] up here and then we have the third one
out on Brownbridge Road. Of course, the
[56:30] yellow rivers on this side here. Green
areas are the flood planes, flood plane
[56:35] and wetlands.
[56:40] Um, that's it for staff. Are there any
questions? If not, chairman, this is a
[56:44] public hearing and the applicant has his
presentation.
[56:47] » Thank you. So, it's my understanding
that you guys have already had a public
[56:50] hearing.
>> You haven't. You haven't. Okay. Thank
[56:54] you.
>> Public hearing.
[56:56] » Okay. It is 8. It is 7:57. So, at this
time, we're going to open it up for our
[57:01] public hearing tonight. the applicant
and those that like to speak in favor
[57:05] tonight. If you come at this time, you
have 10 minutes to do so. The applicant
[57:08] and those that would like to speak in
favor tonight.
[57:13] Before we start, um I know sometimes
it's hard to see the screens. We have
[57:17] some hard copies of the presentation. If
you guys would be okay receiving those.
[57:29] There's more. more just in case.
[57:49] » Awesome. Thank you so much, Kenneth
Wood, 350 Research Court. Thank you guys
[57:53] for letting us speak tonight.
commissioners. Um, I want to talk about
[57:57] the project, its location, and why after
all the changes that it's been through,
[58:01] it's the it's the right project for the
site and how we've kind of gotten to
[58:04] that point. Um, is there a clicker? Can
we Oh, I'm sorry. The side right here.
[58:12] So, this is the map of it. Obviously,
we're along the Yellow River that you
[58:16] can see there. We chose conservation.
I'll walk you guys exactly through why
[58:20] we chose the conservation on the R2 to
protect the lands, be able to have more
[58:24] common area for the development for all
the residents that would live in there.
[58:29] Um, and I'll kind of walk you through
the different type of zonings and what
[58:31] we're seeing in the surrounding area.
This is the map. You can kind of see the
[58:35] different surrounding areas, different
subdivisions. We've kind of analyzed
[58:38] those and looked at how we kind of
comport to those. This is our site plan.
[58:43] It's a little bit deceiving when you're
talking about a development that's
[58:46] almost 400 acres. It can be hard to see
on a scale, but the lots are almost half
[58:51] an acre and they go up over an over an
acre. Um, and so we have a big swath of
[58:56] different sizes that we have in this.
Um, when you're looking at the different
[58:59] plans, we tried to sit up on the
hillside. We still have a lot of area
[59:03] that is parks, recreational areas, uh,
basically areas going to be for parks.
[59:08] And you can see just how far pulled away
from the Yellow River it is. uh the way
[59:12] the topography works and the way we were
able to set it up and then have some
[59:15] different pocket parks throughout the
entire uh subdivision. Originally, this
[59:20] this started at the 6, you know, 43 that
we're originally at. That got pulled
[59:24] back. We started looking at the land. We
actually thought we had a plan. There
[59:28] was some bonus density. Um the staff did
a great job. They showed us in the code
[59:33] where that that was not applicable. And
so that's where we dropped down to the
[59:37] 310. So the second plan that we had was
390 lots. Um and then after that uh
[59:44] conversations with staff we resubmitted
and that's the plan in front of you. Um
[59:48] that you see there at 310 and that
density is 74 and I'm going to kind of
[59:54] walk you guys through a couple of things
with that. So on the traffic study, we
[59:58] we have updated a traffic study, but
we're even we're basically going to
[1:00:03] comply with all of the study that said
what we need to comply with, even with
[1:00:07] the larger number. And so turn lanes on
access road to get in, uh the turn lanes
[1:00:12] and additions we need to do to dine a
pace, also on Brown Bridge, uh left turn
[1:00:17] lanes, del lanes, basically the full uh
turning movements that we're going to be
[1:00:22] required to do. So we know we're going
to have to do that. So, we're prepared
[1:00:25] to be required to do all of those when
you look at it on here. One of the
[1:00:30] things I want to show because like I
said, it's a little deceiving. I want to
[1:00:33] misspel dispel any any confusion on
this. So, the density is 78 and I just
[1:00:38] kind of highlighted all of the densities
kind of, you know, throughout the county
[1:00:42] as well in some of the cities. Uh
there's a 1.4 just to our east of us and
[1:00:46] then a 2.1. Everything else is much
higher. And so we did an analysis and
[1:00:51] looked at even if we took out took out
all of the flood plane on the site,
[1:00:55] including all of the wetlands, all the
flood plane, and that's what is
[1:00:58] highlighted on here. And you can still
see a lot of the the additional extra
[1:01:03] green space the plan has. Um we're still
just at 1.4. And so we're still as low
[1:01:09] as the lowest density of any subdivision
around us. And that's why I was saying I
[1:01:13] just wanted to be able to kind of call
that out because it's sometimes tough to
[1:01:16] see the 399 and think 310 seems like a a
big number when you actually look at it
[1:01:22] in this large of a track. It's not. Um
this is also what's around us. Um we're
[1:01:27] either larger or directly equal to the
largest lots around us. And everything
[1:01:31] I've heard in terms of you know what the
county is looking for from uh talking
[1:01:35] with different people. single family
detached, a big backyard, almost half an
[1:01:40] acre going up to an acre. Um, we're
planning on hitting 400 to 500 sale
[1:01:45] prices in here and I've got some
pictures to show that. Uh, these are
[1:01:50] some areas basically right here to
basically look at this is distances from
[1:01:54] the wetlands uh that we have. We have
been able to go locate the wetlands and
[1:01:58] you can see some of places were 400
feet, some of them were over, you know,
[1:02:03] 145 feet. the closest place on that one
little ridge, we're still upwards of
[1:02:07] almost 100 feet. So, we're staying way
away from the environmentally sensitive
[1:02:11] areas and we're adding a lot of storm
water features to make sure we can take
[1:02:15] care of the trees and the storm water
and that that's the reason we're trying
[1:02:18] to do the conservation is we're trying
to protect the trees, have a lot of open
[1:02:22] space that's common to the development.
Um, we created another exhibit just to
[1:02:26] be able to show just how large the lots
are. And this is our minimum lot. And
[1:02:30] so, the lots are over 200 feet deep. And
you can see the backyards are almost 160
[1:02:36] ft deep. So the minimum width is 75. And
so that supports a really large house.
[1:02:41] All the houses will be at, you know, 15
to 20 feet apart. And so this is, you
[1:02:45] know, this is a larger lot, single
family detach, very, you know, high-end
[1:02:49] subdivision that we're trying to provide
and what we're looking to do uh for the
[1:02:53] way it sets up. So just wanted to have a
couple images. We're going to have a
[1:02:56] master amenity with a large clubhouse, a
pool, um big playground areas, uh bark
[1:03:02] parks, dog parks, and outside gathering
areas, um pavilions, walking trails. It
[1:03:08] the the development sets up so well. You
have different places you can access the
[1:03:13] traffic and distribution, but we also
have so much open space that we can
[1:03:17] really take advantage of that and make
it a special subdivision. Access to the
[1:03:21] river is huge. Um, you know, being able
to have something that where you can get
[1:03:25] down to the river kind of through some
of the lower areas is something that not
[1:03:29] a lot of subdivisions have, and this
could be a subdivision that can have
[1:03:32] that available uh to it. Uh, these are
some pictures of the homes. Uh, it's a
[1:03:37] mixture of one-story homes as well as uh
twostory homes, but as you can see, you
[1:03:41] know, we're targeting the larger homes.
That's what we're looking at doing for
[1:03:44] the single family detached. Um, and
having a mixture of different type of
[1:03:48] styles, substantial materials, uh, that
we'd be looking at through the
[1:03:52] development. And we just did some
additional analysis with some of the
[1:03:55] surrounding subdivisions that we have
and and what we're what we're looking at
[1:04:00] and and going toward. I wanted to touch
on a couple of things. So, we did had
[1:04:04] some comments at the at the preliminary
plat hearing. There's some confusion.
[1:04:08] originally a motion to defer and we
requested um a decision because we
[1:04:12] didn't think there could be a deferral.
So, there's some confusion there. But
[1:04:16] some of the comments that came out were
about Dina Pace and an orphanage that
[1:04:20] was on the property. We actually found
some deeds and a lot of items to
[1:04:24] support. It's just just to the east of
the property, not on this property, but
[1:04:28] we we said that we would do something uh
to um make acknowledgement and to
[1:04:33] respect all of the history in the area.
So, we're proposing to dedicate
[1:04:37] somewhere around a quarter to a half an
acre right at the main entrance. Um,
[1:04:42] that would be basically a green space.
We would build the trails that you see,
[1:04:45] the sitting areas, create plaques. Um,
and this be dedicated and whether that's
[1:04:50] dedicated to the county or dedicated to
um a a um you know, a conservation item
[1:04:56] that, you know, can can overlook the
park or whether our HOA uh takes care of
[1:05:00] the park. But we we wanted to be able to
do that in response to what we had
[1:05:04] heard. And we so we did a lot of diving
deep into this um into response for that
[1:05:09] and then making sure that we responded
to the traffic and that we are going to
[1:05:12] put in we are find conditioning we are
going to put in the turn lanes and the
[1:05:16] del lanes all of them that are necessary
to facilitate the traffic and make sure
[1:05:20] there's smooth flow uh throughout the
development uh that we have here. And uh
[1:05:25] I'd love to keep any remaining time just
in case there's questions um from
[1:05:28] citizens that come up that I can um
explain afterwards.
[1:05:32] » Thank you sir. Thank you so much.
>> Anyone else would like to speak in favor
[1:05:38] tonight?
Anyone else would like to speak in favor
[1:05:41] tonight?
>> Thank you. We also allow u 10 minutes
[1:05:45] for those that would like to oppose
tonight. If you'd like to oppose
[1:05:49] tonight, please come up and state your
name and address, please, for the
[1:05:51] record. You may come at this time. Have
10 minutes to do so.
[1:05:58] Good evening.
>> Good evening. Um, chairman,
[1:06:02] commissioners, county staff, members of
Newton County community, my name is Hale
[1:06:07] Lima Muhamd and I'm a concerned citizen
um, local elected official and advocate
[1:06:12] for um, the preservation of the legacy
of Donna Watts Pace. I'm here tonight
[1:06:17] because I believe a responsible
development requirements requires us to
[1:06:22] understand what we may be disturbing
before it is disturbed. Donna Watts Pace
[1:06:28] dedicated her life um to caring for and
educating children in Newton County. Her
[1:06:33] work and the history surrounding it
deserves more than assumptions about
[1:06:37] what may or may not remain. Um prior to
um the developers coming up, there was a
[1:06:44] comment made that it was a small cabinet
cabinet um that housed 700 um children.
[1:06:51] That is an assumption that it was small.
I asked the B board, has the county
[1:06:56] conducted an adequate historical review
of the property? Has the area been
[1:07:02] evaluated for unidentified burial sites
or rem human remains? Have historic
[1:07:08] maps, deeds, serial photographs, land
records, and other archival material
[1:07:14] been thoroughly reviewed? Have a
qualified archaeologist or historic
[1:07:19] preservation professional evaluated the
relevant portions of the property? Can
[1:07:25] the county confidently say that the
historic cleaf significant resources
[1:07:30] will not be destroyed? If we cannot
confidently answer those questions
[1:07:35] tonight, then we may not be ready to
vote yes tonight. I am asking the board
[1:07:41] not to vote yes tonight. take the time
necessary to do the research, consult
[1:07:46] the appropriate professionals, and
determine what is actually there before
[1:07:50] allowing irreversible disturbance of the
land. This is not an argument that
[1:07:55] development can never happen. I am team
development all day. Um, it is an
[1:08:00] argument that responsible government
should know what it is authorizing
[1:08:04] before the ground is disturbed. If the
research is done and nothing is found,
[1:08:09] then at least we will know we acted
responsibly. But if we approve this
[1:08:15] first and discover later that something
important was destroyed, there is no
[1:08:20] vote we can take afterwards to put it
back. We can always come back and vote.
[1:08:25] We cannot unearthed history twice. Her
legacy deserve to be preserved. Please
[1:08:30] do the research before you vote yes. And
I'm asking everyone who believe um that
[1:08:36] history deserves to be protected to
visit the donapaceleacy.org.
[1:08:40] Thank you.
>> Thank you.
[1:08:42] » Anyone else?
[1:08:51] » Good evening ladies and gentlemen. My
name is Summer Aul. This is my daughter
[1:08:56] Autumn Aul. We stay off Karen Ridge. And
um first of all I would like to say that
[1:09:02] that was a great presentation that the
gentleman came up here and gave every
[1:09:06] point that a real estate development
would want to come and give. However,
[1:09:11] the one thing missing from his
presentation was it represented humans.
[1:09:15] He talked about even the trees. He was
going to put a a half of acre of land
[1:09:21] and dedication uh to Mrs. Pace out of
400 acres. How generous. But just as he
[1:09:28] showed when he came up here and gave you
all these papers to look at so you can
[1:09:32] see it closely. The residents the
residents we live around here we would
[1:09:36] like to see it closely. We are never
considered when we come to these types
[1:09:40] of things. You want to bring 400 houses
into a area that's already congested.
[1:09:46] Right at the corner of our street there
was someone who just recently died as
[1:09:50] I'm sure you all know. He may know but
he will not say that. I am here to say
[1:09:55] that. But I'm here to speak for all the
people that live around here who we
[1:09:58] bought our homes. We bought our homes to
raise our children here. We did not
[1:10:02] bring our homes to have all of this
congestion. All of these businesses
[1:10:06] built in residential areas. All of these
homes built for profit. All of these
[1:10:11] homes without the even the consideration
of bringing rental properties into
[1:10:17] homeowners areas. We saved our money to
buy homes to raise our children to live
[1:10:23] in nature. We we came to Coington for
the trees that are being torn down for
[1:10:29] all these houses. With that being said,
for anyone here on the panel or in the
[1:10:33] audience who are who are parents or have
el elderly people in their family, I
[1:10:39] would like for you to hear what my
daughter has to say.
[1:10:43] » Okay. Um, when he said uh to help the
trees out or something like that, I feel
[1:10:50] like you would tear down the trees in
order to put the building right there
[1:10:55] because isn't that necessary to put it
where a forest is, but it's kind of
[1:11:01] unnecessary.
I don't know what else to say.
[1:11:04] » It's okay. What her point is
[1:11:09] [applause]
Her
[1:11:13] point is is that as I stated, we came
here to live in nature. We moved to
[1:11:17] Coington out of anywhere in the United
States because this is a rural area.
[1:11:21] This is an area that we want to raise
our children in, live in nature. And
[1:11:24] when you tear down all those trees for
these type of properties that are for
[1:11:28] financial gain, where do those animals
go? No one thinks about that. But again,
[1:11:32] as I said, I'm here for the human rights
and everyone who was neglected in this
[1:11:35] audience who didn't get to see that up
close piece of paper that was printed
[1:11:38] out so nicely for the board here. Thank
you.
[1:11:44] [applause]
>> Anyone else?
[1:11:48] » Good evening. I'll be very brief. You
said everything in the right way. Uh,
[1:11:52] nice presentation,
but you didn't consult with the
[1:11:56] community. You said you consulted with
the county. Nice presentation.
[1:12:01] Nice presentation there, Miss Apple
White. But nowhere I see where the
[1:12:06] office of sheriff or law enforcement is
going to be uh involved. G dot G dot is
[1:12:12] not going to address the issues on the
roads there on Donna Pace. Um good
[1:12:20] thinking. you had uh
mentioned that you was going to do 700
[1:12:26] houses or so and then you cut it down to
300, but yet it's still if you do that
[1:12:31] when you turn around and you look at the
math with the houses that we have
[1:12:35] currently up there, you're going to be
looking at about 700 vehicles trying to
[1:12:39] come out of there in the morning time,
trying to get back there in the
[1:12:42] afternoon. And I know there's other want
to speak, but I submit to you perhaps
[1:12:47] there's a place for these houses to be
built, but not on Donna Pace. Now,
[1:12:54] [applause]
[1:12:58] we continue we continue to put
everything on the western side of the
[1:13:02] county.
>> On the western side of the county, we
[1:13:05] continue to put everything over there,
but the services is not there. So before
[1:13:11] we move forward, I think we need to look
at where we are with the infrastructure,
[1:13:15] where we are with with services. And
that's the end of my presentation, but
[1:13:20] please listen at the female before
anyone else. [applause]
[1:13:32] » Good evening everybody. I'm Anderson
Bailey. I live at 1054 Diner Place Road.
[1:13:37] Also a representative of the school
board.
[1:13:40] Now we are impacting our schools
already. We're packing out and uh Mr.
[1:13:45] Edwards used once on the school board.
Now they bringing in more houses. What?
[1:13:49] That's going to bring more children.
So with more children, it's going to be
[1:13:53] more uh issues are impacting the
schools. And not only that, you know,
[1:13:59] they talk all the nice stuff. They did a
great presentation. They made their soup
[1:14:04] and they served it. But the thing is the
taste is not good. not for that area.
[1:14:09] And right now, everything is being
built, but our schools is tight. They're
[1:14:15] tight now. Every day we got something
going on. So, what are we going to do?
[1:14:20] Invite more and more traffic? We're
going to invite more and more headache?
[1:14:23] You talking about building uh turning
lanes? Where you going to get that
[1:14:28] property? You going to make everybody
give up something just to build
[1:14:30] something? Here we go again. We're going
to be back in front of you again. And so
[1:14:36] everybody think about where you live at.
Just think for sake where you live.
[1:14:43] Would you want all this in your area?
Everybody got their own private big
[1:14:47] yards, big houses, but we want our
little houses. We want our little area.
[1:14:52] We've been out there for years. We love
each other. We get along.
[1:14:57] So when you invite outsiders to come in,
if G dot then put turning lanes up there
[1:15:03] on D down Pace Road, look at how hard it
is now to get out.
[1:15:08] You playing jump rope trying to get in
and get in the traffic and get out. And
[1:15:11] when something happen on the expressway,
guess what? They on the side road going
[1:15:15] home or either coming to town and that
just going to be more traffic. They
[1:15:20] don't live here. They comfortable. They
making money.
[1:15:25] So they getting paid. So I just ask
y'all to look at it because it's a lot
[1:15:30] of houses around here in Coverington
right now. They move in, they move out,
[1:15:33] they abandon.
It's just an in out inout thing. But if
[1:15:38] y'all just really take consideration and
look at this night, table it, do
[1:15:43] whatever you got to do. Give us a chance
to be heard. I appreciate that. Thank
[1:15:48] you.
>> Thank you, sir. Anyone else? [applause]
[1:16:01] Good evening. My name is Janelle West.
I'll make it short and sweet because I'm
[1:16:05] a constituent, not any of the board
members. You should deny the um you
[1:16:09] should affirm the planning commission's
deni denial of the application because
[1:16:13] it will put a strain on the school
districts and on the resources allocated
[1:16:19] for this area where citizens already
complain about response time from uh
[1:16:25] ambulance police and in regards to
traffic everyone used up all the time.
[1:16:31] So I've truncated everything right there
but I'm a constituent. I'm not a part of
[1:16:35] the government. We don't want it.
>> Thank you, ma'am. [cheering]
[1:16:44] [applause]
[1:16:46] » Thank you. It's 3 seconds. 3 seconds.
Anyone else? You got three seconds.
[1:16:51] Three seconds. Three seconds.
[1:16:58] » Three seconds.
[1:17:01] » Good evening, commissioners. Good
evening.
[1:17:03] » My name is Gladstone Nicholson.
>> It's been a while since I've been here.
[1:17:07] I just want to say this.
>> Do the same standards for the east side
[1:17:11] as west side when you start building
along permits.
[1:17:13] » Thank you, sir.
>> Thanks.
[1:17:19] [applause]
[1:17:22] » So, I think they wanted to come back.
The applicant wanted to come back up. I
[1:17:25] think it had two minutes remaining.
How much was it? How much?
[1:17:30] » Yep. Two minutes and 17 seconds. Sir, we
got two two minutes and 17 seconds.
[1:17:36] » Sounds is Do I have the clicker still?
So, so I just want to respond, you know,
[1:17:41] with like um Am I able to?
So, we had found like we've we've done a
[1:17:46] lot of research and we're not trying to,
you know, we're not trying to argue at
[1:17:49] all. Um we had, you know, found a deed
that described it as being to the east
[1:17:54] of the site, you know, and it says it
very specifically. We can supply that
[1:17:58] coming in. So, we weren't doing that.
So, we're just trying to, you know, come
[1:18:01] up with a really a really nice, you
know, design if you're coming down so
[1:18:05] that everyone in the neighborhood could
could have something for the Dina Pace
[1:18:08] Legacy. So, we're we're just trying to
come up with an idea that, uh, seemed
[1:18:12] very fitting. Uh, I have no problem with
meeting with the neighborhood with this
[1:18:15] being already zoned. Not part of the,
you know, the typical process like a
[1:18:19] zoning. Um, but, you know, I don't have
a problem with meeting anybody running
[1:18:23] through the plan. I think it's, you
know, a great plan. We were looking at
[1:18:26] the conservation because you can, you
know, you can see on the plan where, you
[1:18:31] know, all the little green areas, those
are all common areas at the edge and
[1:18:35] then there's so much more common area in
the center of the site. Uh most of the
[1:18:39] trees are cleared on the areas where
we're building the homes uh that you see
[1:18:43] there. So, so much of the trees are down
in the kind of the lower areas and some
[1:18:47] of the fall areas. That's why we chose
the conservation and felt like it was
[1:18:51] definitely the most appropriate uh for
this, you know, here. Um, you know,
[1:18:56] being R2, being larger lot, single
family,
[1:18:59] we felt like that, you know, you know,
having nice homes in the area, having
[1:19:03] single family detached, a big yard, a
really powerful HOA that can take care
[1:19:08] of the land, take care of the grounds,
that that was that was the direction,
[1:19:13] you know, it being zoned R2, that that
was what is most appropriate for this.
[1:19:18] And like I said, we're not trying to,
you know, go against anybody or or or do
[1:19:22] anything at all. We're happy to um as
part of a permitting process, if
[1:19:27] approved, we're happy to get with RS
Webb, who's a historian, and let them
[1:19:32] come on the site and do the research and
provide the outcome of that. Um, you
[1:19:36] know, we're just we're just here to
listen. We're here to, you know, we
[1:19:39] think this is a great project. It's just
a large piece of land, but it does
[1:19:43] distribute property in a in a really
great way. Uh G do DOT I know is going
[1:19:47] to let us provide turn lanes and really
help with the traffic mitigation on both
[1:19:51] of the entrances and exits and we're
willing to do that in conditions as
[1:19:55] well. Thank you.
>> Thank you sir.
[1:19:59] » Thank you sir. Miss Apple White if you
would please come on back up.
[1:20:05] Commissioner Henderson. What shall we
hear?
[1:20:12] » Thank you [clears throat] Miss C. Um,
you know, one of the things that wasn't
[1:20:16] mentioned was the fact that we had been
fighting a data center just beyond that
[1:20:21] piece of property and the county had
nothing to do with it. It was being
[1:20:27] annexed by the town of Porterdale. And
everybody said, "Jason, you you just
[1:20:31] going to make sure they going to put a
data center on?" Nope. It was not going
[1:20:34] to be no data center that JC Henderson
approved uh in in that community or any
[1:20:40] community unless it was something that
way on back in the country that they
[1:20:44] wanted.
Then just up the road from that uh on
[1:20:49] Core Road, there's another big
subdivision in district 4 about 4 or 500
[1:20:53] houses, town houses and all that stuff
and with little to no infrastructure.
[1:20:59] And then in district three, uh
Commissioner Cooper had one just beyond
[1:21:03] it. If all those things are approved, it
ain't going to be so many people on the
[1:21:08] road and running down a pace and and all
the rest of them.
[1:21:13] We've got to do something for
infrastructure.
[1:21:17] And then, hey, what about uh protection?
Police are shared protection. Shared
[1:21:23] protection. Tell me something. With the
budget decreasing
[1:21:28] and the shared budget decreasing, how
you going to get an officer and all
[1:21:32] those folks get over there when you need
one? You tell me because I don't know.
[1:21:38] So it's a whole lot of stuff that going
on at at Dana Place and then they were
[1:21:44] talking about when we first started
talking about it. I listened
[1:21:48] and they said, "Well, we're going to
come in. We're going to fix the come
[1:21:51] into down Pace the rightand side, but
we're going to leave the other side just
[1:21:57] the way it is."
I could understand that. So only thing
[1:22:02] that I asked then I'm still asking
was a community meeting where you come
[1:22:08] and get let all the peoples who from
down a pace
[1:22:13] or anyone else who may want to come
attend the meeting and come up and just
[1:22:17] tell you about how beautiful their homes
are that little piece of land that they
[1:22:20] live on. But you you know and I think I
and you correct me if I'm wrong James
[1:22:26] because you know I'm just who I am. I
had asked you to get the number last
[1:22:31] week so I could call, we could set up a
meeting and I'm talking to our county
[1:22:35] manager and what did you relate back to
me?
[1:22:41] » That was staff was getting the number um
and the uh proponent at that time
[1:22:47] declined to have a public meeting.
So, hold.
[1:22:53] So, what I'm saying is
[1:22:58] I what I what I'm going to do is table
it to give them an opportunity
[1:23:02] to come to our public meeting
and so you can hear the people who homes
[1:23:09] that will be around that big old
subdivision that probably that's going
[1:23:13] to bring to right across down pay.
And there was two vineyards I was
[1:23:18] looking at either church in Dana Pace or
Bethlehem Baptist Church.
[1:23:24] And so what I would like to do my my
fellow commissioners for the down of
[1:23:29] pacing is to table it for 30 days to
give us a t a chance to have a public
[1:23:37] meeting with the developers so they can
tell you personally
[1:23:43] what they want to build in around our
community. Secondly, I'm going to have
[1:23:48] the sheriff I'm ask him or represent be
present to talk about the traffic that
[1:23:54] is going to bring to the community. Have
the fire chief there talk about possible
[1:23:59] fires and we know we have uh uh board
education member uh Anson Bay to be
[1:24:05] there too as well. So we just want to
have a big nice peaceable discussion
[1:24:11] with you as far as how how if we move
forward
[1:24:16] how we could all work together if we can
for something.
[1:24:22] And lastly,
it's standard watchpace.
[1:24:26] When I first became a commissioner, I
learned about that story. In fact, Mr.
[1:24:31] Fleman Pitts made sure I knew about that
story.
[1:24:36] Uh she had an orphanage and she was a
she was a slave, had an orphanage and
[1:24:41] she had about two kids that she brought
with her and started or orphanage here
[1:24:46] on down a pace. She had all the acres
that you heard about, what, 400, 500
[1:24:51] acres.
And she died in 1933.
[1:24:56] And when she died, two years, it lasted
only two years. And she died,
[1:25:01] the history was forgotten.
And I refused to let her history be
[1:25:06] forgotten because I cried because when I
read the story just like my grandmother
[1:25:11] or my mother
in the plaque they would let they put on
[1:25:15] the property where the old oak tree at
where there should be some uh some old
[1:25:20] slaves some slaves
uh head of the headstone there which
[1:25:24] rocks around the oak tree. We got into
the Dip Pace Park. is upon the sign
[1:25:30] talking about what she had did for Donna
Pace.
[1:25:34] I will not let history at least on my
watch be forgotten nowhere in New
[1:25:40] County. those people. The reason why I'm
here sitting here today, this day is
[1:25:44] because of those peoples because I'm
standing on their shoulders
[1:25:49] in order to be here. Cuz other than
that, we wouldn't had a reverend card
[1:25:55] and we wouldn't had others to sit in
this seat had it not been for them. And
[1:26:02] so, but I'm and I'm closing. I'm just
going to say this. I'm going to set up a
[1:26:06] meeting. I'm ask that another meeting be
set up
[1:26:10] and we all attend come in peacefully
talk about it and then the next meeting
[1:26:15] we have a we'll make a decision.
So having said that u Mr. Chairman I'd
[1:26:22] like to make a motion to table for 30
days.
[1:26:25] » Chairman if I may um could we do that
for 60 days to allow for readvertising?
[1:26:30] » I changed that motion for 60 days.
>> Thank you.
[1:26:33] » Thank you sir. Thank you ma'am. Um, is
there a second?
[1:26:39] » It's been motioned by Commissioner
Henderson that we table this for 60 days
[1:26:42] and second by um, Commissioner Cooper.
Any discussion? Uh, Commissioner Long.
[1:26:49] » Lots of discussion. Okay. Where is that
traffic report? How come you haven't
[1:26:54] received the updated traffic report that
they said they have?
[1:26:58] » And we don't have a copy of the amended
report at this time. They did not
[1:27:02] provide one before tonight, but they're
saying they have one.
[1:27:06] » It appear that they have done one, but I
don't believe we received it,
[1:27:08] » but we haven't seen it. And we have
1,500 other homes in this area that are
[1:27:13] coming online
>> that have come online and existing.
[1:27:18] » Okay. All right. That's so they they're
in just like we've been talking about
[1:27:21] with this UDO, everything that's in the
pipeline, you got to remember what's on
[1:27:24] down the road. And one of the things
that we've been talking about is I know
[1:27:28] everybody mentions the eastern end of
the county and yes I protect the heck
[1:27:31] out of the eastern end of the county but
that doesn't mean I'm not going to
[1:27:34] protect the western end of the county.
So I would like to make a substitute
[1:27:39] motion to deny the plat immediately
tonight.
[1:27:47] Um there's a substitute motion on the
floor um made by commissioner long that
[1:27:52] we deny this uh plaque tonight. Is there
Um a second.
[1:27:56] » Second.
>> It's been motioned by um Commissioner
[1:28:00] Long and second by Commissioner Mason.
Any discussion?
[1:28:04] » All in favor
and stand denied. Thank you. Five.
[1:28:10] » Thank you. [applause]
[1:28:16] » Next is citizen comments. this
opportunity, we allow citiz
[1:28:27] Oh, I'm sorry. We do have one more. Miss
Apple White, we have one more. Yep,
[1:28:32] guys. I apologize. We're We have one
more. We're still in um our public
[1:28:35] hearing. I have one more.
>> My apologies, chairman. Our final item
[1:28:43] this evening is for consideration a
resolution 081826.
[1:28:48] It's a resolution of the Newton County
Board of Commissioners extending through
[1:28:51] November 4th, 2026 an existing moratorum
on the acceptance or approval of new
[1:28:57] applications seeking one to resone
property to any zoning category that
[1:29:01] authorizes residential uses. Two,
preliminary plat approval for any
[1:29:06] development that includes any
residential use. three requests for
[1:29:10] temporary building permits for
residential uses under section 510640
[1:29:15] of the Newton County Unified Development
Ordinance. So basically our moratorium
[1:29:20] on residential subdivisions will expire
on August 19th which is tomorrow. So
[1:29:26] we're looking to extend that until
November 4th which would coincide with
[1:29:30] when we propose to wrap up and have the
UDO adopted the updated UDO.
[1:29:36] some go ahead.
>> I'm ready.
[1:29:40] » Okay. I think we got to open this up for
a public hearing. Apolog apologies.
[1:29:44] » This Yes, this is will be a public
hearing.
[1:29:45] » Yep. Thank you, ma'am. So, um the
applicant, which is um us,
[1:29:52] » we have 10 minutes. Anyone want to speak
in favor tonight? You have 10 minutes to
[1:29:55] do so. You may come at this time.
You have 10 minutes to do so.
[1:30:03] Thank you. That portion is closed. We
also allow 10 minutes for those that
[1:30:07] would like to oppose. You have 10
minutes to do so. You may come at this
[1:30:10] time. State your name, your address for
the record, please. Anyone want to
[1:30:13] oppose tonight?
Um, anyone want to oppose tonight? That
[1:30:18] portion is closed. Miss Apple White, if
you would
[1:30:23] commissioners, I seek a motion, please.
>> It's been motioned by Commissioner Long
[1:30:28] and second by Commissioner Cooper. Any
discussion? All in favor? Thank you.
[1:30:34] passes 5.
>> Thank you, chairman. That concludes the
[1:30:36] zoning items for this evening.
>> Thank you, ma'am. Now, we're citizen
[1:30:41] comments. You have three minutes to do
so. If you would please come and state
[1:30:43] your name, your address for the record,
please.
[1:30:49] You may come this time. You have three
minutes to do so. State your name, your
[1:30:52] address for the record, please.
[1:31:12] I'd like to thank the board of
commissioners for this time.
[1:31:16] I'm here about stray cats and how the
how areas
[1:31:21] » Can I get you to pull your mic down just
so they can hear you? There you go.
[1:31:23] » Oh, I'm sorry. And your name if you
don't mind.
[1:31:26] » Oh, my name's Claude Hartley.
>> Okay. Uh, and I'd like to thank the
[1:31:31] board again. I'm here about stray cats
and how areas in our county are overrun
[1:31:38] with cats.
Last year, I captured 16 or more cats
[1:31:45] and have taken them to animal control.
This year, I have captured 12 cats,
[1:31:51] making a total of 28 cats
in this period of time.
[1:31:57] Monday, I took a cat to animal control.
There was a notice posted on the front
[1:32:02] door stating
they are not taking any more cats.
[1:32:09] They're full.
This shows how bad the problem is in
[1:32:13] this county.
[1:32:21] Let me find my spot here. It's my
understanding that Newton County control
[1:32:27] does not capture feral cats. What's a
citizen to do?
[1:32:33] I know they are overwhelmed, but they
are the only resource we have to this
[1:32:38] ongoing problem.
I have a suggestion. It's called TNR.
[1:32:44] What this means is capture, spade,
neuter.
[1:32:51] that prevents the cat
from reproducing.
[1:32:56] Then you release the cat over a period
of time. I think this would help.
[1:33:02] I have a number of counties that
practice this and it seems to have some
[1:33:08] success.
[1:33:12] The counties that practice it,
[1:33:17] this is going to shock you.
An unspayed female cat can become
[1:33:22] pregnant within four months
[1:33:27] and bear three litters a year, assuming
at least one cat survives.
[1:33:35] This cycle can produce over 200 cats a
year.
[1:33:42] Uh
the thing is, now I'm going off script.
[1:33:46] The thing is that
animal control, when you take a cat to
[1:33:51] them,
their response is we're full. All this
[1:33:57] does is cause cats to reproduce in the
area. And I'd like to see other methods
[1:34:06] like an ENR method looked into to maybe
help with this. And thank you.
[1:34:13] » Thank you, sir.
>> Thank you. Anyone else?
[1:34:25] » No. So, we we'll get them we'll get in
front of you. All right. Thank you.
[1:34:30] » Newton County Omega Newton County
resident. The question is specifically
[1:34:36] aimed at you. Uh and the question is
concerning the
[1:34:42] parliamentary
procedures
[1:34:45] and what I need to get an understanding
of [clears throat] is
[1:34:50] what is the
uh overriding
[1:34:55] authority that rescended the governor's
suspension. In other words, I'm not here
[1:35:01] to challenge. I'm here to get
understanding or clarity because the
[1:35:06] back and forth was
from my understanding
[1:35:10] that although you had five charges
dismissed that you still have standing
[1:35:17] charges against you and and Governor
Kemp has been very vocal and coming out
[1:35:23] in news organizations and media saying
that the suspension and the executive
[1:35:28] order suspension and removal still
stands. So, help me and the rest of the
[1:35:33] Newton County residents understand. Is
there something that we missed or
[1:35:38] somebody that has more authority than
the presiding governor that you have the
[1:35:43] power to override the suspension?
[1:35:50] You got a minute and 40 seconds, sir.
>> Yeah. I'm asking you a question.
[1:35:54] » So, you can come up and speak. We don't
speak back to you now. you can come up
[1:35:58] and talk to us after the meeting is over
with, but you have a minute and 30
[1:36:01] seconds remaining.
>> All right.
[1:36:03] » Thank you, sir.
>> So, in in essence, what's what's going
[1:36:08] on is is that we need to understand that
according to the OCGA45-5-6.
[1:36:19] is very explicit in that it explains
pending the final disposition of their
[1:36:26] criminal cases or expiration of your
term of office which neither one is
[1:36:33] happening like the term is still ongoing
and there's no decision on part of the
[1:36:40] courts the judge the governor everybody
is saying nope you still have these
[1:36:47] things going don't. So, it disturbs me
because, you know, I don't really
[1:36:54] participate
like this. I'm behind the scenes kind of
[1:36:58] guy. And when I start seeing things
going sideways or going left, see, it
[1:37:05] puts me in the mind or it triggers me in
a way where I'm I'm being challenged if
[1:37:10] if I'm stepping up and actually
operating under my, you know,
[1:37:15] constitutional
um
[1:37:19] what we might call duty. So, I'm coming
straight up and saying that this would
[1:37:25] not be the end of this. So, I want to
talk to you, brother Baines, and I want
[1:37:29] to find out what we can find out.
>> Thank you, sir. Anyone else?
[1:37:37] » Please state your name, your address for
the record, please.
[1:37:45] Hello everybody. Good evening. I want to
ask the new county board of commission
[1:37:50] about the youth facility plan on 50
road. This project had been talked about
[1:37:55] for some time and the community deserve
to know what's taking them so long.
[1:38:01] So, I have something else to say. My
uncle had a seizure at 1:35
[1:38:08] p.m.
and the fire department arrived at
[1:38:15] around 1 something. And not only that,
the ambulance showed up at 2:05. That
[1:38:21] contract was signed on the EMT. That
don't look too well because my uncle
[1:38:26] almost died from that. So, y'all didn't
do a new contract cuz that don't look
[1:38:32] too good, y'all. Thank y'all. Thank you.
Anyone else?
[1:38:43] Please state your name, your address for
the record, please.
[1:38:50] Thank you once again. Thank you once
again, commissioners. My name is
[1:38:52] Gladstone Nicholson. Live on the west
side of town.
[1:38:57] And what couple things I have to say,
but I'll say something almost impromptu.
[1:39:01] That young man who just came up here,
if there are folks like him, I think we
[1:39:06] have a legacy already being built and we
should make as strong as we can as a
[1:39:11] community. I like what he said.
But why I came up here is to say thank
[1:39:17] you to the commissioner for district 5
who wanted who gave an emphatic answer
[1:39:23] to the question about that construction.
I thank you much
[1:39:28] and um I in my brief moments uh I said
we need to have a more balanced view of
[1:39:36] construction across the county. We have
the east side, west side. We probably
[1:39:41] have maybe they might be newer and older
Newton County, but I do believe there
[1:39:49] has been some
differences in how uh development is
[1:39:55] handled. Perhaps it's because the new
folks did not do not did not understand
[1:40:00] as well as older folks how this system
here works. Not that it works badly, but
[1:40:05] the idea here is if you don't know a
system, you're going to have some slack
[1:40:10] time where you might maybe come up on
short end because of your learning curve
[1:40:15] being not being as sharp as it probably
should be. So the idea here is for folks
[1:40:20] on west side in your side to understand
that they have as much at stake in this
[1:40:27] county as the folks who have quote
unquote all the land that's being
[1:40:31] hoarded for whatever is down the road.
And I just want to say thank you all for
[1:40:36] what you're doing. Thank you
commissioner. There are some new members
[1:40:41] on the board. Thank you all again. and
maybe the future will be brighter than
[1:40:46] it's been for the past I don't know
decade or so. Thank you all.
[1:40:50] » Thank you, sir. Anyone else?
Commissioner Edwards.
[1:40:56] » Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, I want to
start off by making sure everyone
[1:41:02] understands. Now, we we denied a project
tonight that and and I voted against it,
[1:41:07] don't get me wrong, so I voted against
it. But we've denied a project tonight
[1:41:11] that is allowed by right. And what I
mean by that is the zoning existed
[1:41:17] for some type of residential development
on that property. The time for us to
[1:41:21] yell and scream, include myself, is
during the zoning hearings when we were
[1:41:26] trying to change the zoning on
properties. That's the time to voice
[1:41:30] your opposition. Tonight we we heard the
opposition to a final plat.
[1:41:35] And a final plat is just hey we're
deciding on the configuration and we
[1:41:40] turn that down harder defending court.
Uh the other thing I want to touch on is
[1:41:47] um you know this this thing of east and
west has popped up again on the west on
[1:41:54] the east southeastern and the eastern
side of the county we have no sewer. So
[1:41:58] the density the zoning density is not
there not allowed. Um, I don't know why
[1:42:04] the sewers sewer started on the western
side of the county 40 years ago. I have
[1:42:08] no idea. I wasn't probably didn't care
then, but I mean I wasn't a commissioner
[1:42:13] for sure back then. So that's where the
sewer the density follows the sewer. And
[1:42:17] keep in mind, and I'm talking about
myself here, too. So we we we we voice
[1:42:23] our opinion in opposition, and I've
stood right there and done it. We voice
[1:42:26] our opinion in opposition to
developments when we all live in a
[1:42:30] development on one one way or the other.
We all most of us live in a subdivision.
[1:42:36] So I have I have some acorage where I
live and I remember people I zoned two
[1:42:41] acres of my of my my my acres. I zoned
two of my house and I had people stand
[1:42:47] up in opposition against it because they
just didn't want to see agricultural
[1:42:51] property go residential. So, I
understand it. But we all live on
[1:42:56] property that one time was probably
agricultural. And we and we uh we we we
[1:43:02] protest I do I do it as well. We protest
our developments. And I don't want to
[1:43:07] and you've heard me say it 16,000 times
sitting right here. If we never build
[1:43:11] another house in Newton County, it suits
me just fine. I don't care what what
[1:43:16] zone uh what uh district is in. So, but
that's not reality. But I just wanted to
[1:43:22] I just wanted to make that point that
that that we all live on property that
[1:43:26] some somebody probably protested when
they got ready to develop it sub
[1:43:30] especially subdivisions. So just want to
get that off. Mr. Chairman, thank you.
[1:43:35] » Thank you, sir. Um Commissioner Mason,
>> thank you, sir. Um Commissioner Cooper,
[1:43:42] » thank you, Chair. Um Commissioner, like
I said, I heard what you're saying on
[1:43:47] that. Um but also
uh I know you talked about the sewer
[1:43:51] accepted on that but maybe we need to
look at developers or something u doing
[1:43:56] on the upside but we don't still at the
same time we want to make sure that we
[1:44:01] um get
uh what we want and what we deserve on
[1:44:06] the west side. So, uh maybe we can talk
to developers and and and install the
[1:44:12] seal line or something, make it part of
their scope or something, but we can't
[1:44:16] uh continue to uh put everything on on
the west side.
[1:44:22] » Um Commissioner Henderson,
[1:44:27] » thank you. Thank you, Mr. C. I just want
just want to say this and and I I say
[1:44:32] Stan, you hit it the nail right on the
head.
[1:44:36] that that was somewhat a bad decision in
what we done. Whereas if you would have
[1:44:42] had meetings, you could have maybe
worked with the developer in order to
[1:44:48] get maybe possibly less density or
whatever you wanted to do. But by flat
[1:44:53] out denying it, knowing that you had
really had no real reason for denying
[1:44:57] it, they go to court, get it approved,
they build a subdivision.
[1:45:03] You have no say in at all. And so only
thing as the district 4 county
[1:45:08] commissioner what I was saying was that
I was trying to the best of my ability.
[1:45:13] So I'm sitting up here longer than
anyone up here. I understand kind of a
[1:45:18] little bit how it kind of works. But
that and it's fine. You learn by trial
[1:45:22] and error. And so we we'll see what the
end results will be uh as far as that
[1:45:30] subdivision on down a pace and in all
the other one over on Cal Road. It's
[1:45:35] also is a subdivision that the judge
rule against us and they wanted to build
[1:45:41] it. So, we're denied again and
eventually they'll probably build what
[1:45:45] they want to build. And you can have all
we have all those houses up there.
[1:45:51] And I learned a long time ago if you can
talk a little bit of sense into me like
[1:45:57] my mama did, then I probably act a
little bit better. I did when I was a
[1:46:00] younger man. Thank you. Thank you, sir.
Uh, Commissioner Long.
[1:46:04] » Well, I disagree with them.
>> I've been doing real estate for 30
[1:46:08] years, and I'm gonna tell you something.
We did not apply tonight. And I think
[1:46:12] sometimes government gets a little
brainwashed.
[1:46:15] And I think that there are things that
you can do and we've proved that several
[1:46:20] times since I've been on this board for
18 months that we have one against
[1:46:24] developers that take us to court. You
have to have that can do. We're not
[1:46:28] going to take it attitude. And you have
to say when we deny a plat, and I didn't
[1:46:32] give all the reasons why we deny this
plaque, but we can deny what they are
[1:46:36] presenting anytime we want to. Now, can
they come back? Yes. And we can sit down
[1:46:41] with them and have that discussion and
we can say and put all these conditions
[1:46:46] in there. Okay, we don't have to have
310 homes. We can put all the conditions
[1:46:51] in there. They are using what we have as
a loophole right now where they're using
[1:46:55] two types of zoning on top of each
other. Okay. So, we do have rights as
[1:47:00] citizens in this county. And I get so
tired of hearing, oh, we can't do
[1:47:03] anything. We're going to get sued. I
don't care.
[1:47:05] » Well, who's making money? So let's get
>> you making money guys.
[1:47:09] » I do not talk over you.
>> So we can Well, you know what? That's
[1:47:13] kind of contradictory then, you know,
>> but I want good developments in this
[1:47:17] county. I want to make sure that we take
our time because they can come in here
[1:47:21] and give us a dog and pony show every
time they want to. But do they ever turn
[1:47:25] out like these pictures?
>> No.
[1:47:28] » No, they do not. So I am willing to take
that chance and if they want to come
[1:47:32] meet with me, they come meet with me.
I'll tell them what we can do better
[1:47:35] because I realize that if there's a
will, there is a way and that's just how
[1:47:40] I do things and it's different. It's a
different mindset. I might be wrong, but
[1:47:45] I'm willing to take that chance. That's
all I want to say about that. And um you
[1:47:50] know, sometimes you just have to kick
the can down the road a little bit.
[1:47:54] Thank you.
>> Thank you. There is a need for executive
[1:47:57] session tonight. Um personnel and u
potential litigation. I seek a motion
[1:48:03] that we move into executive session.
It's been there a second. It's been
[1:48:08] motioned by Commissioner Henderson and
second by Commissioner Edwards. Any
[1:48:11] discussion? We
[2:29:22] We are now back in regular session. Do I
have a motion to
[2:29:29] » to adjourn?
All those all those in favor we are
[2:29:35] journed.