Requests to rezone an exceptionally large portion of county property for which the owners are seeking annexation were denied by the Hampton City Council at its February 11 regular meeting.

  The applicants requested rezoning from RA (residential-agricultural) in unincorporated Henry County to R-3 (single-family residential), along with an amendment to the city’s comprehensive plan from a Rural Residential to a Low Density Residential designation, for a 201-acre site on Floyd Road as well as two tracts on South Hampton Road totaling 43 acres. In each of these cases, the proposed ordinances failed to pass a first reading.

  The council approved the first reading of an ordinance allowing a conditional use permit for a 4.83-acre piece of property at the southeast corner of South Hampton Road and Hampton Locust Grove Road. The site is zoned RA and the request is for a church. The vote to approve with conditions was unanimous.

  Also approved was the modification of a master development plan for 65 acres located south of Hwy. 20 between West King Road and South Hampton Road, adding a general commercial pod to the site which already had commercial and multi-family residential uses.

  In other business, the council approved amending zoning regulations to reflect the city’s recent move to assume oversight of its own planning and zoning duties. Multiple references in five separate ordinances made mention of “Hampton Community Development Department” to differentiate from previous wording which referred to Henry County. The council made the decision a few months ago to no longer utilize the Henry County Zoning Advisory Board and county staff in making its zoning and development decisions.

  An amendment was made to the code regarding the practice of smoking in public in the city. The ordinance previously prohibited smoking in public places, but the amendment refines the definition of “public place” to specifically include “any area (enclosed or otherwise) of any public park owned or operated by the City of Hampton.” The previous wording, still in place, includes restaurants, educational facilities, recreational facilities, health care facilities, child care facilities, personal care homes, nursing homes, auditoriums, theaters, arenas, convention centers, meeting rooms and convention halls. A private residence is included if it is used as a child care, nursing home or health care facility.

  The council approved a resolution in opposition to House Bill 302 and Senate Bill 172, which would prohibit local governments from regulating development in areas such as building design, echoing a similar action that Henry County government took a few months ago and which the cities in the county are considering. The Hampton resolution stated that this proposed legislative action “would severely erode the ability of all Georgia cities and counties to address unique quality-of-life issues” and “also undermines the public and elected officials’ desire to establish community standards and make decisions about the aesthetics of their communities.”

  Also approved was a resolution authorizing the mayor to execute an updated contract for oversight of water services. The agreement is between the city and Clear Water Solutions for the services of a full-time project manager to oversee and manage the day-to-day operations of the water and wastewater systems, according to a city staff report. The city was paying $85 per hour for 6-40 hours per week under an agreement reached in late 2019, and that amount has been reduced to $67.50 per hour while the company gets current city employees trained and certified or hires new ones.

  The council voted to approve joint resolutions regarding a new service delivery strategy agreement and support of a new campaign related to the 2020 U.S. Census. Both resolutions are under consideration by Henry County as well as its other three cities. The council also approved a resolution addressing the selection of engineering firms to provide services for the city when necessary.

  A proposed resolution setting the fee structure for rental of city facilities was sent back to committee for additional research.  According to a city staff memo, the facilities in question are the Old Shop Property, McBrayer Park, Terry F. Jones Depot Park, Historic Train Depot, and Catherine S. Williams Community Center at the Fortson Building and Garden.