Two major moves by the Locust Grove City Council last week affect how the city will move forward in the coming year.
The council voted unanimously at its December 6 regular meeting to approve its operating and capital improvements budget for the 2022 fiscal year. The new budget takes into consideration anticipated revenue from a new countywide special-purpose local option sales tax solely for transportation that was approved by voters in November, city officials stated.

The overall total from all of the various funds is more than $29 million, but the general fund portion of the budget is around three percent lower than it was for the 2021 fiscal year, according to a city staff report. Other parts of the total budget include enterprise and special projects funds. City officials are looking into new fees related to development (impact fees, fire review fees) and utilities (sewer and stormwater) to source future growth-related demands on the system.

Also approved at the December 6 meeting was the extension of a moratorium on any applications related to multifamily development. Interest in multifamily housing eclipses all other housing options in the city right now, according to officials who recommended the 180-day extension of the moratorium.

Staff sought the measure “to allow time to review and revise the city’s growth management strategy to ensure the city achieves a sustainable balance of housing options, especially in high-profile areas such as the Gateway Town Center surrounding the Bill Gardner interchange corridor,” according to a report.

The city is contemplating amendments to its Residential Growth Regulation Ordinance and RM Ordinance “to re-evaluate permissible densities and development standards to ensure multifamily residential development occurs in a manner consistent with sound planning principles and the accepted policies of the city contained in the comprehensive plan and the LCI study,” officials stated.

The council approved its 2022 meeting schedule which will be as in past years, convening on the first and third Monday of each month unless a federal and/or locally observed holiday necessitates a change.