Henry County leaders are not happy with a particular piece of proposed state legislation.
The Board of Commissioners voted 5-0 to pass a resolution objecting to House Bill 189, which officials said would increase the authorized truck size or weight on Georgia’s public roads. County manager Cheri Hobson-Matthews, who presented the bill at the commissioners’ February 21 regular meeting, said that the Association County Commissioners of Georgia and the Georgia Municipal Association had also stated their opposition to the bill. She added that the heavier and longer truck loads which would be allowed if the bill passes will create safety issues for other motorists.
In other business, the board approved two rezoning requests for proposed residential subdivisions. One was a request for R-2 single-family residential zoning on just over 40 acres of land at 1500 Chambers Road, on the east side of the road between Jonesboro Road and Mt. Carmel Road. The other was a request for R-3 single-family residential zoning on a 93-acre site north of Walker Drive and east of Strickland Road. That petition was approved with conditions regarding landscaping regulations that will require county staff approval before final plat submittal.
A $381,382 architectural design services contract was approved for renovations of the former BB&T building at 12 North Zack Hinton Parkway, which the county purchased a few months ago. According to a county staff report, the three-story building and its approximately 21,600 square feet will be used as a judicial annex since there is a need for additional space for the Probate Court staff as well as the District Attorney’s office. American Rescue Plan Act funds will be used for these design services.
A vested rights claim by a developer was approved by the board, allowing for the continuation of a mixed use project amid the county’s new moratorium on multi-family developments. According to a county staff report, the property in question on East Lake Parkway and Oak Valley Road was rezoned last November for the purpose of a mixed townhome and commercial development, before the moratorium was enacted January 4.
The moratorium specifies that it shall have no effect on permits already approved or those under review, and that a property owner may make a claim for vesting and the granting of an exception. The applicant filed such a claim January 20 with the Planning and Zoning Department.
