Henry County now has a megasite.
That is what county officials are calling a 6,000-acre tract west of Hampton, next to the county’s airport, for which the Board of Commissioners voted February 5 to authorize a master plan by a consulting firm.
The county is currently the second-fastest-growing in the state at 2.5 percent per year, with a population of 234,800 as of August 2018, according to a staff report. That growth includes an ever-increasing diversity, and officials want to capitalize on this strength, planning and zoning director Daunte Gibbs told the commissioners.
The land west of Hwy. 19/41 has been designated for long-term economic development, with the goal of becoming a major employment and mixed-use designation in the region, Gibbs added.
The consultants’ efforts will include “branding and marketing strategies, viability, and implementation,” according to the resolution the board approved. Commissioners approved $252,500 for the consultants, Tunnell-Spangler & Associates, and will use available funds from the county’s insurance premium tax revenue savings instead of the general fund.
Among the issues studied will be feasibility for potential tax allocation districts (TADs) along Hwy. 19/41, Henry 81, Hwy. 42 South, Fairview Road, Jodeco Road, and/or Hwy. 155 South. Consultants will also look at the feasibility for potential community improvement districts (CIDs) mainly along I-75 and Hwy. 19/41, as well as Hwy. 138.
There will be an infrastructure assessment specific to the site and a proposal for a fixed base operation at the airport.
In other business, the board approved a resolution authorized the Stormwater Department to solicit proposals for professional engineering studies for various dams, including Lake Cindy, Lake Dow Estates and Swan Lake. All of these are Category 1 dams, which if breached could lead to loss of life and catastrophic personal property damage.
Many such dams are owned by homeowners and/or HOAs which lack the resources or expertise to properly evaluate, maintain and repair them, according to county staff. The dams also serve drainage basins where they are located and the county as a whole, with failures possibly having a significant negative impact on water quality, health of upstream and downstream rivers and streams, and the environment in general. While there are more than 20 Category 1 dams in Henry County, these three have been deemed the most seriously damaged right now. If the process works with them, officials can then go back and look at the others. Any consultant retained for this project would put a package together to plan future action.
