A senior adult housing development that would have been the largest of its kind in Locust Grove is on hold for the foreseeable future.

  The Beverly J. Searles Foundation submitted an official request October 1 via email to have its rezoning and conditional use requests withdrawn in advance of the Locust Grove City Council’s October 5 regular meeting. Had that request been accepted, the applicant could have come back before the council in the near future. But the council rejected that idea and instead voted at the meeting to deny both requests, meaning they cannot be considered again for at least a year.

  The foundation sought to rezone 21.9 acres at 162 Indian Creek Road, about three blocks directly west of downtown and bordered on its west side by an existing residential multifamily townhome development. A separate request was for a conditional use to allow a senior housing development at that location. Both votes to deny were unanimous.

  A separate agenda item which would have amended the city code to provide for conditional uses for senior adult housing as well as age-targeted and continuum of care developments, was also denied by unanimous vote.

  The developers in this particular case had proposed a four-story, 238-unit senior housing complex under one roof with a variety of amenities, both interior and exterior. The site in question lies within Locust Grove’s Livable Centers Initiate (LCI) district and is not a highly populated area, surrounded mostly by large residential lots.

  Since the requests were denied, city officials have received no indication of what the developers’ future plans might be, city manager Tim Young said the day after the council meeting.

  “Whatever they bring back would likely be in a different form,” he said. “They’re trying to find whatever mix works best for the neighbors and the emerging land-use pattern. That may take some time to work out anyway.”

  The plan that was initially proposed received some opposition from neighboring property owners, with more than 15 signing a petition in that regard, according to Young.

  In other city business, the council approved a resolution to accept an agreement with Blue Line Solutions that will result in the implementation of a photo speed enforcement program in the vicinity of Locust Grove Elementary School. This automated program is permitted under a new Georgia law within school zones, and county officials have already approved similar measures at other schools in the district. Locust Grove Elementary is the only such school within the city limits.

  Final installation of the system will occur after approval is received from both the Henry County Board of Education and the Georgia Department of Transportation. The resolution approved by the council allows city officials to continue that process and also address any issues related to city codes that should be updated or added. The exact timetable is uncertain, but Young said it will likely be completed within a few months.

  The council approved a resolution extending the city’s current maintenance agreement regarding its three water tanks. According to a city staff report, the work by American Tank Maintenance over the past three years under the existing agreement has been good enough that extending the deal for another three years is recommended.

  The company performs maintenance on the 250,000-gallon Highway 42 Tank, the 500,000-gallon Horsetown Tank, and a 750,000-gallon tank on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. The extension of the agreement includes an expected 8.9 percent increase over what the city paid during the past three years.

  The council also approved a new sanitation contract with Advanced Disposal.