The idea of community improvement districts (CIDs) in Henry County is still just an idea for now.
The Henry County Board of Commissioners discussed a specific CID plan at its June 18 regular meeting but did not give its approval, choosing to table the matter. The vote to table, after a motion from board chair June Wood, was 4-2 with Dee Clemmons and Bruce Holmes voting against.
Community development districts are seen by many as a way to promote economic growth and for property owners in a specific area to address their own needs by taxing themselves to develop the district. There are about two dozen such districts in Georgia, mostly in the metro Atlanta region.
As county attorney Patrick Jaugstetter pointed out, CIDs are allowed to “engage in government-type improvements.” They can build roads, address stormwater and infrastructure issues, engage in beautification processes and provide services for themselves, he said. The purposes of a specific CID are determined by the board that governs it.
The particular case under the commissioners’ review at the June 18 meeting was for a geographic area between McDonough and Locust Grove, on both sides of I-75 from Hwy. 155 to Hwy. 42, consisting of mostly industrial development. Owners of some tracts in the proposed district had not consented to be part of it, Jaugstetter said. If approved, it would be governed by a seven-member board consisting solely of property owners within the district. The BOC would appoint one member.
The sticking point for the commissioners on this plan was mainly centered on the limited revenue that could be derived from this CID and whether it would be enough to actually accomplish anything of significance. It was suggested that not enough information had been provided, which led to Wood’s decision to move to table.
In other business, the board approved a rezoning request from RA (residential agricultural) to R-2 (single-family residential) for an 18.36-acre site at the intersection of Bowen Road and Hwy. 138 east of Stockbridge. The applicant proposed 13 lots with a minimum of 30,000 square feet each.
County staff pointed out that because the property touches Hwy. 138, it must comply with the county’s Highway Corridor Overlay District, which brings with it such requirements as a 10-foot landscaping strip from the highway and a 10-foot sidewalk requirement as well as pedestrian lighting requirement and architectural standards in line with craftsman-style homes.
The Zoning Advisory Board previously recommended several conditions: all houses are to be built on site (no modular or manufactured); minimum two-car garages and side entry when feasible; all disturbed areas sodded except where landscaping is done; and preservation of a 60-foot right-of-way from the center of the highway. The applicant stated that the homes would be between 2,500 and 3,500 square feet with brick on four sides.
When moving to approve, Holmes, in whose district the tract is located, added some conditions of his own. The houses will be required to have three-car garages and a monument sign will be erected at the entrance to the neighborhood. His motion passed unanimously.
