A 546-acre piece of land on the west side of Hampton has been rezoned for a variety of uses, after being approved unanimously by the City Council at its April 13 regular meeting.

The tract is part of the so-called Speedway Megasite and is on the west side of Woolsey Road, adjacent to the Hwy. 20 interchange. It is undeveloped, as is the land bordering it on all four sides, and the proposed uses include multi-family residential, commercial and light industrial.

The project is designated as a development of regional impact and has been reviewed by the Atlanta Regional Commission as well as the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority.

In other business, the council granted final approval to three ordinance changes regarding the police department. The vote on each one was unanimous.

One change was requested to match current police officer qualification standards set by the Georgia Peace Officers Standards and Training Council (POST), namely that POST certification is required for employment as an entry-level officer. Another addressed some of the police chief’s duties, and the final one established rank within the department, with the order below the chief consisting of captain, lieutenants, sergeants, corporals and patrolmen, by order of seniority within each group.

The council voted unanimously to approve the first reading of an ordinance that officials believe could have a positive financial impact to the city with the potential for increased park rentals. The new ordinance section states that parks would be closed 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. each day unless an event is scheduled for which the city has issued a special event permit, in which case the event can last as long as the permit allows. The second reading and possible adoption of the ordinance will likely be scheduled for next month.

A rezoning request for a site in Hampton was rejected but an alternate zoning was approved. The applicant requested that the nine-acre tract at the southeast corner of Elm Street and Derrick Avenue be granted an R4 (single-family residential) instead of the current R2 designation. That was turned down, with officials saying that it is not compliant with the city’s comprehensive plan designation of low-density residential.

But the council approved a rezoning to PD (planned development) with more than a dozen conditions. In a separate action, the council denied a request that the same site be changed on the future land use map to medium-density residential to allow 7,000-square-foot lots.

Several events scheduled for the coming months received approval from the council. The Yellow Pollen Festival is happening May 8 while Taste of Hampton is set for June 5. Both are Saturday events sponsored by Main Street and the Hampton Business and Merchants Association. A local merchant has requested permission to host a “Saturday Night Live” outdoor event May 22, June 19 and July 31. Certain streets will be closed for all of these events and alcohol sales will be permitted.

Council member Stephanie Bodie’s appointment of Deborah Carter to the Ethics Committee for the remainder of 2021 was approved.