A plan to replace commercially-zoned property in Hampton with up to 250 townhomes was rejected by the Henry County Zoning Advisory Board, which voted to deny a modification to a master development plan for a site along Hwy. 20 on the south side of the city.

  The applicant, Jim Chapman Communities, Inc. of Atlanta, requested the modification that would have changed a commercial pod to a multi-family residential pod and a commercial pod. There are currently 65 acres zoned for commercial use and the applicant wanted to rezone 50 of those acres.

  The property in question is on the southern side of Hwy. 20 between South Hampton Road and East King Road, taking up an entire block along what one county official called the “Hampton bypass.” It is part of a planned development that was approved by the Hampton City Council in 2002.

  County staff recommended approval with 16 conditions, but many residents in the area voiced their opposition to the plan, citing traffic and infrastructure issues among other concerns.

  In other business, the board approved a conditional use request for an applicant at 1751 East Atlanta Road who wishes to turn the existing house on that 3.4-acre property into a personal care home. This is permitted by the Unified Land Development Code with a conditional use, according to county staff.

  The house would host up to six clients along with at least one staff member in the house around the clock, seven days a week, according to the applicant. All of the clients would be housed on the first floor and there are no plans to renovate the house. The applicant said he would be catering mostly to veterans who are 60 years of age or older.

  One of the conditions recommended by staff was that the operation be limited to five clients until a suitable septic system is installed. The applicant informed the board that the necessary septic work has already been taken care of. Another smaller structure exists on the property which is not suitable for use with the personal care home operation, and staff recommended prohibiting its use as another condition of the request.

  No one at the meeting spoke in opposition to the conditional use request.

  The board voted to recommend approval of a rezoning from R-3 to R-2 S (single-family residence with sewer) for a pair of lots totaling 1.7 acres on Monticello Lane at Jonesboro Road, part of the Monticello subdivision.

  Although the new zoning would allow sewer, the Henry County Water Authority submitted a letter stating that whoever develops the lots would not be required to connect them to the sewer line because it is more than 200 feet away and the subdivision is not a new development.

  The reason for the rezoning is that the lots cannot be developed under R-3, according to the applicant, because of the widening of Jonesboro Road that took place after the original 1988 rezoning that allowed the subdivision. However, they can comply with the R-2 S zoning as both lots are well over the 30,000-square-foot minimum and are considerably larger than the lots in the rest of the subdivision.

  One adjacent resident spoke in opposition to the request, saying that he purchased his home knowing the other lots were unbuildable and would stay wooded. The applicant replied that there is still a wooded area next to that property and the owners of the lots in question have the right to develop their property to its fair economic potential. The ZAB members agreed.

  Three agenda items were postponed until a later meeting: a rezoning and comprehensive plan amendment for a proposed concrete plant on an 11-acre site at 48 Franklin Rivers Drive in Hampton; and a rezoning of a 43-acre tract at 2080 Jonesboro Road for a mixed use development consisting of multifamily residences and office/commercial.