Several rezoning petitions were heard by the Henry County Zoning Advisory Board at its July 8 regular meeting, and all but one were recommended for approval. That final decision rests with the Board of Commissioners.
The ZAB recommended that a 42-acre site at 565 Elliott Road in McDonough be rezoned to allow a single-family residential subdivision on sewer, and also to grant a conditional use request for the same property to permit a conservation subdivision. That action came with a stipulation that the site be limited to 50 lots with a 15,000-square-foot minimum lot size and a 100-foot minimum lot width. The rezoning recommendation included a 2,400-square-foot minimum house size.
A 17-acre piece of property in the Fairview area, at 6152 Hearn Road, was recommended for rezoning. The site is just south of the intersection of Hearn Road and Austin Road. The recommendation came with eight conditions from county staff, two of which were amended by the board — a minimum house size of 2,300 square feet of heated space, and a requirement that all structures be brick on four sides.
A commercial site on Bridges Road west of Willow Lane in McDonough received a positive recommendation. The developer requested a change to RS (residential suburban) zoning for the 102-acre property to allow a proposed 483 dwelling units — 171 single-family homes and 312 townhomes. The designation on the county’s future land use map for this site was changed in 2019 by the Board of Commissioners to mixed use. A total of 21 conditions were given by the ZAB including specifications regarding a traffic study and required building materials.
A request for rezoning regarding a 36.83-acre site east of Stockbridge was recommended for denial. The property lies on Hwy. 138 just east of its intersection with Flat Rock Road, and a single-family subdivision is proposed with 49 lots. A conditional use with two conditions was granted to allow a conservation subdivision, but the requested R-3 rezoning was recommended for denial, with the ZAB instead passing a motion to recommend R-2 zoning. The board also denied a request for a variance to get relief from the county’s highway overlay district requirements.
A government dependent on tax revenue will allow the total destruction of our environment. It is not enough to pass fuel standards and environmental protections if the government keeps allowing trees to be bulldozed and streams to be silted. Not every inch of ground must be cleared !