* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. YES, SIR. [00:00:04] CALL [1. CALL TO ORDER] THE MEETING ORDER. THIS IS THE TIME AND THE PLACE FOR THE PLANNING MEETING FOR JUNE 12TH, 2024. UH, LET'S STAND AND SAY A PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE AND HAVE A MOMENT OF SILENCE PLEASE. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS. ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVIDUAL WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. ROLL CALL PLEASE. MR. SIMMONS? YES. MR. HAYES? HERE. MR. LANGLEY? HERE. MR. TUCKER? HERE. MR. CUNNINGHAM. MR. HARVILLE HERE. AND MR. TITUS HERE. SIX MEMBERS ARE PRESENT. ALRIGHT. UH, [4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA] YOU HAVE THE AGENDA IN FRONT OF YOU. WE WILL NOT BE HEARING CASE P DASH 24 DASH TWO AND C DASH 24 DASH TWO. ARE THERE ANY OTHER CHANGES THAT NEED TO BE MADE TO THE AGENDA? NO. MR. CHAIR STAFF HAS NONE. ALRIGHT. I'D ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO APPROVE THE AGENDA WITH THOSE CHANGES. SO MOVED. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. ALL RIGHT. ROLL CALL. MR. LANGLEY? YES. MR. TUCKER? HERE. MR. SIMMONS? YES. MR. HAYES? YES. MR. HARVILLE? YES. AND MR. TUS? YES. SIX MEMBERS PRESENT VOTING AYE. ALRIGHT. WE ALSO [5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES] HAVE THE MINUTES OF THE MAY 8TH, 2024 REGULAR MEETING THAT WERE SENT OUT. ARE THERE ANY ADDITIONS OR CORRECTIONS THAT NEED TO BE MADE TO THOSE MINUTES? HEARING NONE. I'D ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO ACCEPT. MAKE A MOTION TO ACCEPT. SECOND. ALL RIGHT. ROLL CALL. MR. HAYES? YES. MR. SIMMONS? YES. MR. LANGLEY? YES. MR. TUCKER ABSTAIN. MR. HARLE? YES. AND MR. TUS? YES. FIVE MEMBERS VOTING. AYE. ONE. MEMBER. ABSTAINING. ALRIGHT, THIS IS [6. CITIZEN COMMENTS] THE TIME WHICH I'M GONNA EXPLAIN TO YOU WHAT HAS HAPPENED. THE APPLICANT WILL NOT BE HERE TONIGHT. THEY HAVE ASKED TO WITHDRAW UNTIL NEXT MONTH TO HOLD THIS CASE, BUT BECAUSE EVERYBODY HAS BEEN NICE ENOUGH TO COME, YOU SHOULD HAVE A CHANCE TO SPEAK NOW. INSTEAD OF DOING IT UNDER PUBLIC HEARING, WE'RE GONNA ALLOW YOU TO COME UP UNDER CITIZENS' COMMENT AND MAKE ANY COMMENT THAT YOU HAVE BASED ON THE CASE THAT WAS P DASH 24 DASH TWO, WHICH WAS SUPPOSED TO BE IN FRONT OF US TONIGHT. NOW NEXT MONTH YOU WILL ALSO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME BACK AND SPEAK DURING THE PUBLIC HEARING. SO THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO ACTUALLY SPEAK TWICE ON THIS MATTER AND HAVE YOUR VOICE HEARD. UH, I WOULD ASK THAT WHEN YOU COME UP TO THE MIC TO SPEAK FIRST YOU CAN GIVE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS FOR THE RECORD, THEN I WOULD ASK THAT YOU WOULD SPEAK WITH DECORUM TOWARDS US AND WE WILL TREAT YOU NICELY IN RETURN, WE ASK THAT YOU NOT USE VULGAR LANGUAGE, FOUL LANGUAGE, ANYTHING THAT WOULD INVOKE HOSTILITY. AND UH, LASTLY, JUST DIRECT ALL COMMENTS TOWARDS US. I APOLOGIZE THIS IS NOT A QUESTION AND ANSWER TIME. IT'S JUST AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO SAY WHAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SAY. MR. GUR, IS THERE ANYONE SIGNED UP? UH, MS. CINDY HARVILLE. MR. CHAIR? YES. NO, I'M SORRY. UM, BEFORE SHE SPEAKS, I'D JUST LIKE TO, UM, FOLLOW UP ON THE DEFERRAL REQUEST BY THE APPLICANT. OKAY. UM, JUST SO YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE BACKGROUND, UM, WE DID SEND OUT PROPERTY NOTIFICATION LETTERS AND DID ADVERTISE FOR PUBLIC HEARING, UH, TONIGHT AS WELL. UM, IN BETWEEN THAT TIME PERIOD WHEN WE MAILED THE LETTERS AND ADVERTISED FOR PUBLIC HEARING, UM, STAFF DID FIND, UM, THAT A PORTION OF ONE OF THE PROPERTIES, UM, THAT'S SUBJECT TO THE REZONING REQUEST AND THE CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT IS ACTUALLY NOT ZONED AGRICULTURAL GENERAL. IT'S ZONED, UM, M TWO INDUSTRIAL GENERAL AND IN THE ADVERTISEMENT AND IN THE LETTERS, UH, THE NOTIFICATION LETTERS TO THE ADJOINING PROPERTY OWNERS AND APPLICANT AS WELL. AND, UM, INDIVIDUALS THAT ARE ACTUALLY, UM, LISTED AS PART PROPERTY OWNERS, UH, FOR THE SUBJECT REQUEST. [00:05:01] UM, THAT, UM, THE M TWO ZONING WAS NOT LISTED, UM, FOR A PORTION OF ONE OF THE PROPERTIES. SO WE WANTED TO BE SURE THAT, UM, EVERYTHING WAS PROPERLY ADVERTISED AND EVERYBODY UNDERSTOOD EXACTLY, UM, WHAT WAS BEING REQUESTED FOR REZONING AND CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT. SO JUST WANTED TO CLARIFY THAT. UM, AND WE, UM, INDICATED THAT TO THE APPLICANT AND THEREFORE THE APPLICANT DID REQUEST THE DEFERRAL. ALRIGHT, FOR THIS EVENING. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT. ALRIGHT, YOU CAN COME FULL AGAIN. STATE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS FOR THE RECORD. CINDY HARVILLE, 2 1 1 0 7 WALKERS POND DRIVE. MR. CHAIRMAN, MR. VICE-CHAIRMAN COMMISSIONERS DIMWIT RESIDENCE AND GUEST, I'D LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY THAT YOU ARE PROVIDING FOR US TO SHARE OUR VOICE AND OUR THOUGHTS ON REZONING CASES P DASH 24 DASH TWO AND C DASH 24 DASH 2 34 YEARS AGO, MY HUSBAND AND I BOUGHT 9.85 ACRES OF LAND AT THE END OF WALKER'S POND DRIVE. WE BOUGHT THE, UM, WE BOUGHT THIS PROP PIECE OF PROPERTY AS A COMPROMISE. HE WANTED TO LIVE IN A RURAL SETTING AND I NEEDED TO BE CLOSE ENOUGH TO CIVILIZATION SO THAT I WOULDN'T HAVE TO DRIVE AN HOUR TO GET TO WHERE I WANTED TO GO. OUR LAND IS A BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF PROPERTY. THE LAND IS ACCESSED BY A THREE QUARTER MILE PRIVATE, NOT MAINTAINED BY THE COUNTY DIRT ROAD. WHEN TRAVELING DOWN THIS DIRT ROAD, YOU'RE GONNA FIND THAT IT'S INTERSECTED BY A CREEK THAT IS ONLY ACCESSIBLE OR THAT IS ONLY ABLE TO BE TRAVERSED BY THE CORRUGATED METAL DRIVEWAY PIPE SPANNING THE WATER, THE THIS CROSSING, THIS DRIVEWAY PIPE. IT'S NOT MAINTAINED BY THE STATE OR COUNTY AND IT'S NOT DESIGNED TO HANDLE THE WEAR AND TEAR AND PROLONGED USE OF HEAVY EQUIPMENT, THE KIND OF EQUIPMENT THAT IS NECESSARY TO ESTABLISHING A SOLAR FARM OPERATION. OH, AND DID I MENTION IT IS A PRIVATE ROAD NOT MAINTAINED BY THE COUNTY. IT'S MAINTAINED BY THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE DOWN THE ROAD. THE FEW PEOPLE THAT LIVE DOWN THE ROAD. AND I GUESS I DON'T REALLY FULLY UNDERSTAND WHY THE COUNTY WOULD EVER CONSIDER REZONING LAND TO WHICH THEY AREN'T MAINTAINING THE ACCESS. THE ROAD ACCESS IS JUST ONE ISSUE. CONSIDER THE IMPACT OF SOLAR FARM. OF A SOLAR FARM, THE, THE IMPACT THAT A SOLAR FARM IS GOING TO HAVE ON THE ECOSYSTEM, THE WATERSHED, THE WILDLIFE. THESE ARE JUST A FEW OF THE HERE AND NOW PROBLEMS THAT ARE CROPPING UP ALL AROUND THE STATE AND AROUND THE COUNTRY WITH SOLAR FARMS BEING ALLOWED TO BE BUILT WHEREVER PEOPLE THINK THEY SHOULD GO. BUT AS A PLANNING COMMISSION, YOU HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO CONSIDER THE FUTURE. AS I LOOK AT YOU, I CAN SEE THAT, THAT YOU'RE OLD ENOUGH TO HAVE SEEN MANY, MANY TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGES IN YOUR LIFETIME. TAKE A LOOK AT YOUR PHONE. THE POINT IS, TECHNOLOGIC TECHNOLOGY CHANGES LIKE THE WIND, SOLAR POWER MIGHT BE POPULAR TODAY, BUT WHAT ABOUT WHEN THE NEXT PANEL UPGRADE COMES ALONG? YOU KNOW HOW OFTEN YOU HAVE TO BUY A NEW CELL PHONE, , THEY DON'T LAST. WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO WITH ALL THE WASTE? THE LIFESPAN OF A SOLAR FARM IS APPROXIMATELY, APPROXIMATELY 25 TO 30 YEARS. DO YOU HAVE AN ESTABLISHED REGULATION ON DECOMMISSIONING THE SOLAR FARM? WHO'S GONNA BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CLEANUP AND THE RETURNING OF THE SOIL TO ITS ORIGINAL FERTILE STATE? , WHO? THE CONTRACTOR, THE LANDOWNER OWNER, THE COUNTY, THE TAXPAYERS. WHO RIGHT NOW THE COST [00:10:01] TO DO THAT IS IN ITS MILLIONS. WITH THE RATE OF INFLATION 20 TO 30 YEARS DOWN THE ROAD, IT COULD BE BILLIONS. YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO BUDGET FOR THAT AND FOR ANY LITIGATION THAT'S GONNA ENSUE BECAUSE THINGS DIDN'T GO AS PLANNED AS PROMISED. WE DON'T KNOW WHAT TOMORROW IS GONNA BRING. AND WE DON'T. WE ONLY KNOW WHAT WE HAVE TODAY AND IT'S NEVER A GOOD IDEA TO REZONE VIABLE FOOD PRODUCING LAND FROM AGRICULTURE TO ANYTHING BUT AGRICULTURE. I URGE YOU TO BE GOOD STEWARDS OF THIS COUNTY'S BEAUTIFUL RURAL LANDS BY VOTING AGAINST THE REZONING ORDINANCES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I DID FORGET TO TELL EVERYBODY CITIZENS' COMMENTS. GENERALLY A THREE MINUTE PERIOD OF TIME, A TIMER WILL BE UP. I'M NOT GONNA, IF YOU RUN OVER A LITTLE BIT, I'M NOT GONNA BE UGLY OR ANYTHING 'CAUSE THIS IS ALL WE GOT TONIGHT FOLKS. SO , UH, I WANT YOU TO BE HEARD. ALRIGHT, NEXT PERSON. BELINDA ENG. BELINDA ENG, 2 1 1 1 3 WALKER'S POND DRIVE. SUTHERLAND. UH, I ATTENDED SEVERAL OF MEETINGS FOR THE, UH, LILY'S POND SOLAR. AND I KNOW MR. TIP SAID HE WANTED SOMETHING NEW. THEY, Y'ALL HEARD THIS SO MANY TIMES THE SAME PROBLEMS. SO I'M NOT GONNA REHASH THESE SAME ISSUES LIKE THE WELL WATER AND ALL THOSE ISSUES Y'ALL HAVE HEARD, BUT I DO, I DO HAVE SAME CONCERNS WITH THAT. UM, LIKE MS. HARVILLE SAID, OUR DIRT ROAD, WE LIVE AT THE VERY END. THEY'RE OUR NEIGHBORS AND IT'S LIKE WE THE EIGHT TENTHS OF A MILE. WE HAVE MAINTAINED THAT ROAD FOR 35 YEARS. PUT ROCK ON IT, SCRAPED IT, SNOWED, WE'VE DONE ALL OF IT. AND I DON'T KNOW WHO OWNS IT. I THINK IT'S JUST RIGHT OF WAY, BUT THE COUNTY DOES NOT, UH, VDOT DOESN'T. UM, AND THEY WANT TO USE OUR ROAD TO ACCESS THE PROPERTY IN FRONT OF US THAT MR. FLOWERS OWNS. AND I DON'T THINK THAT WE CAN GET IN AND OUT ANY OTHER WAY. IF THEY BRING CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT IN ON WHO'S GONNA MAINTAIN IT OR THEY GO PAY TO KEEP THE TREES OUT, WE CUT THE TREES OR PUT THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS OF ROCK AT A TIME IN, UM, THOSE ISSUES. ALSO, I HAVE CONCERNS WITH LIKE OUR WILDLIFE. I LOVE WATCHING THE DEER AND THE ANIMALS COME UP AND CROSS BACK THROUGH THE BARN IN A BACKYARD. 'CAUSE WE HAVE A LITTLE OVER 20 ACRES AND I REALLY HATE TO LOSE ALL THAT. AND THE FARM LAND THAT MR. RAINEY USED TO FARM, I'M SURE WAS FARMED FOR GENERATIONS. IT'S BEEN FARMED SINCE I'VE LIVED THERE. UM, AND HATE TO LOSE, LOSE THAT ALSO. UM, BESIDES THE WELL CONTAMINATION, UH, WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN WITH THE PROPERTY VALUE, I'M GONNA HAVE THREE SIDES ALL AROUND MY HOUSE AND MY PROPERTY. THE COMPANY'S TOLD ME THAT OUR VALUE WILL GO UP. I CAN'T SEE THAT HAPPENING. WHO WOULD BUY MY HOUSE? I MEAN, IF YOU HAD IT SURROUNDING YOUR HOUSE, WHO WOULD BUY YOUR HOUSE? I JUST HAVE A BIG CONCERN WITH THAT AND I APPRECIATE Y'ALL REALLY CONSIDERING THIS TONIGHT AND NEXT, I GUESS NEXT MONTH WE'LL COME BACK AND SAY THE SAME THING. BUT ANYWAY, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME, UM, AND APPRECIATE IT. ALSO, THE CREEK THAT MS. HARVILLE WAS TALKING ABOUT, WE REPLACED THE PIPES UNDER THAT AND PROBABLY 10 YEARS AGO WE HAD TO BUY AND PAY FOR THE BACKHOE AND EVERYBODY TO COME IN AND DO THAT. NOBODY ELSE DID. SO I REALLY APPRECIATE Y'ALL CONSIDERING THAT AND ALL THE OTHER ISSUES THAT THE OTHER SOLAR FARM HAD THEIR CONCERNS. AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. KEVIN WALKER. KEVIN WALKER, 2 0 8 0 3 RIVER ROAD. UH, I REALLY CAME HERE TONIGHT FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSE. I AM A HEIR. UH, MY GRANDMOTHER OWNED A PIECE OF PROPERTY THAT, UH, I WAS SEEKING TO, UH, YOU KNOW, INTEREST IN SOLAR PANELS. UH, I HAVE COME TO THE BOARD A COUPLE, WELL NOT THE BOARD, BUT I'VE TRIED TO INQUIRE SEVERAL TIMES OF WHO OWNS THE ROAD. UH, I CAN'T GET AN ANSWER. [00:15:01] UM, BECAUSE WHEN I BECAME AIR TO THE PROPERTY, I DID WANT TO DO SOME OTHER THINGS WITH IT AND NOT GO THE ROUTE OF SOLAR PANEL. BUT I, DUE TO THE ORDINANCE OF THE COUNTY, I'M NOT ALLOWED TO CUT THE LAND UP, GIVE IT TO FAMILY 'CAUSE NOBODY OWNS THE ROAD. IT'S NOT A PUBLIC ROAD. THAT'S THE BIG BIGGER ISSUE THAT I HAVE, UH, WITH THAT PARTICULAR ROAD. UH, BUT I'M REALLY NOT PREPARED AS MUCH. 'CAUSE I THOUGHT, YOU KNOW, I WAS GOING TO GET MORE INFORMATION ON. I HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH, UH, GREEN VOTE, UH, I THINK WHEN WE STARTED THE PROJECT. UH, AND YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY ENSURES SOME THINGS, BUT YOU NEVER KNOW TILL IT COMES TO FRUITION. UH, SO I'LL JUST GO BACK AND, UH, CONTINUE TO, I HOPE THAT YOU ALL COLLECTIVELY. 'CAUSE I'M NOT A FARMER. I'M, UH, IT MIGHT'VE BEEN IN MY GENERATION, IN MY PAST GENERATIONS, BUT I'M A LITTLE YOUNGER GENERATION AND I DON'T HAVE THE RESOURCES TO FARM. ALL I CAN DO RIGHT NOW IS JUST PAY THE TAXES ON IT. I CAN'T DO ANYTHING WITH IT. I CAN'T, EVEN IF THIS SOLAR, I CAN'T DIVIDE IT. I CAN'T BUILD NO HOUSE. I CAN'T, YOU KNOW, I CAN'T DO. BUT I WISH, I JUST HOPE COLLECTIVELY THAT YOU ALL WILL CONSIDER EVEN AT SOME POINT, RIGHT? I WISH THE COUNTY WOULD MAINTAIN THE ROAD BEFORE THEY EVEN, I BELIEVE, I DON'T KNOW HOW LONG, BUT I KNOW MY GRANDMOTHER, THAT'S WHAT MY FAMILY THAT'S, THAT'S HOME. THAT'S WHERE MY FATHER GREW UP. WALKER'S POND AND YOU KNOW, UH, SO IT'S A LOT OF HISTORY THERE FOR ME AS WELL. UH, BUT I JUST WISH THAT YOU'LL TAKE COLLECTIVELY THE CONSIDERATION OF, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING AND NOT, YOU KNOW, JUST I KNOW THE BIG ON AGRICULTURE. I GET IT. I WORK AT VIRGINIA STATE. I'M THE MANAGER OF GRANTS AND CONTRACTS. I DEAL WITH USDA NFA EVERY DAY, YOU KNOW, AND WHAT THEY'RE DOING AND THINGS LIKE THAT. SO, UH, UH, BUT ONCE, LIKE YOU SAID, NEXT MONTH I'LL BE BACK AND WE'LL GO FROM THERE. THANK YOU. OKAY. MR. GURLEY? YES. ARE THE FULL PACKETS OVER THERE BY CHANCE? FOR THE STAFF REPORT IS MR. CHAIR, THE STAFF REPORT IS. OKAY. SO THERE IS SOME INFORMATION OVER HERE. OKAY. IF IT'LL HELP. DID YOU GET IT? YEAH, I GOT IT. OKAY. I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE YOU DON'T, IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR INFORMATION, WE'RE GIVING YOU EVERYTHING WE CAN GIVE YOU. RIGHT, RIGHT. ALRIGHT, NEXT, UH, MR. CHAIR, THERE'S NO ONE ELSE. AND TO YOUR POINT OF THE FULL PACKET, THE THE BOOK IS SO THICK. I FIGURED THAT. OH, OKAY. YEAH. I WILL HAVE IT SITTING OUT NEXT MONTH. RIGHT. YOU, YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO GO ONLINE AND LOOK AT THIS. EVERY ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE, ALL THE PDFS THAT WE HAVE ARE AVAILABLE ONLINE FOR YOU TO GO IN AND LOOK AT EVERYTHING INDIVIDUALLY. UM, UNDER BOTH THE REZONING CASE AND THE CONDITIONAL USE CASE, UH, FROM THE STAFF REPORT ALL THE WAY DOWN TO WHATEVER FINDINGS THEY HAVE DONE, YOU KNOW, RESEARCH THAT THE COMPANY HAS DONE TO SITE PLANS, TO ALL KINDS OF THINGS. SO, UH, THERE IS INFORMATION OUT THERE FOR YOU ON THE DENWOODY COUNTY WEBSITE AND I'M ASSUMING IT'S UNDER PLANNING COMMISSION, CORRECT? YES. YEAH. UNDER THE PLANNING COMMISSION SECTION ON THE ITY COUNTY SITE, IS THERE ANYBODY THAT WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK THAT HASN'T SIGNED UP FOR CITIZENS' COMMENT? YOU ARE MORE THAN WELCOME TO COME UP AND SPEAK AT THIS TIME IF YOU WOULD LIKE. ALRIGHT. SEEING NO ONE, I WILL CLOSE THE CITIZEN COMMENT PERIOD. WE WILL MOVE ON. UH, SINCE THERE IS NO CASE, WE WILL MOVE ON TO OLD BUSINESS. IS THERE ANY OLD BUSINESS? I HAVE NO BUSINESS MR. CHAIR. ALL RIGHT. IS THERE ANY NEW BUSINESS? NO NEW BUSINESS, MR. CHAIR. ALL RIGHT. COMMISSIONER [10. COMMISSIONERS' COMMENTS] COMMENTS? MR. MR. CHAIR? I ALVIN, I, I KNOW WE TALKED A FEW TIMES ABOUT WHEN SOLAR WAS COMING AND EVERYTHING AND WE TALKED ABOUT, UM, MAYBE HAVING SOME SORT OF ORDINANCE OR SOMETHING ON SOLAR WATER. HOW MANY ACRES OF FARMLAND WE WILLING TO GIVE UP? HOW MANY ACRES OF TIMBERLAND WE WILLING TO GIVE UP IN THIS COUNTY? I I I THINK IT'S TIME FOR US TO SIT DOWN AND START THAT PROCESS WITH ALL THE ONES THAT WE'RE SEEING POTENTIAL TO COME ABOARD. UM, HOW, HOW DO WE GO ABOUT DOING THAT? UM, JUST AS BACKGROUND INFORMATION? 'CAUSE YOU WERE NOT ON THE PLANNING COMMISSION. YES, MR. LANGLEY. UM, WHEN WE, UM, WHEN WE BEGAN CREATING THE SOLAR ENERGY DISTRICT ORDINANCE THAT WE HAVE INCLUDED IN OUR ZONING ORDINANCE MM-HMM . WE DID HAVE, UM, DISCUSSIONS WITH A, UH, CROSS SECTION OF PLANNING COMMISSIONERS AND BOARD [00:20:01] OF SUPERVISORS MEMBERS, UM, THAT MET AND DISCUSSED WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, UM, HOW TO, UM, PERHAPS IMPLEMENT A, A POLICY RELATED TO, UM, UTILITY SCALE MM-HMM. SOLAR ENERGY. UM, WE DID HAVE SEVERAL MEETINGS, UM, WITH THAT GROUP. AND ULTIMATELY, UM, IT WAS DETERMINED THAT WE WERE NOT GOING TO SET, UM, LIMITS EITHER BY ACREAGE. UM, OKAY. THOSE, THOSE TYPES OF THINGS. UM, RELATED TO, UH, WHERE SOLAR WOULD BE ALLOWED WITHIN THE COUNTY ULTIMATELY, UM, IT WAS DETERMINED THAT WE WOULDN'T HAVE A POLICY THAT, UM, OUR POLICY, UM, WOULD BE BASICALLY EACH CASE WOULD COME BEFORE, UM, THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND BOARD OF SUPERVISORS AND TREAT IT ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS AND SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS THAT WE HAVE WITHIN OUR SOLAR ENERGY DISTRICT WITHIN THE ZONING ORDINANCE, AS WELL AS, UH, INFORMATION SUPPLIED BY THE APPLICANT AND STAFF. AND OF COURSE, UM, PUBLIC INPUT AS WELL. UM, ALSO AT THE SAME TIME WE WERE UPDATING THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AND, UM, PLANNING COMMISSIONERS AND BOARD MEMBERS, UH, WITH THE INPUT, UM, THAT WE RECEIVED FROM THEM. UM, WE INCLUDED DIFFERENT, UH, PROVISIONS FOR SOLAR ENERGY, UM, WITHIN THE VARIOUS CHAPTERS OF OUR COMPREHENSIVE PLAN. YEAH. SO, UM, WE CAN CERTAINLY, UM, DISCUSS THAT, UM, FURTHER WITH THE PLANNING MISSION AS WELL AS THE BOARD AND SEE IF THAT'S SOMETHING THEY WANT TO REVISIT, UM, FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM, HAVE A, UM, SOLAR ENERGY POLICY FOR THE COUNTY. UM, BUT AT, AT THIS TIME, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T HAVE THAT, BUT I JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU THE BACKGROUND INFORMATION. NO, I APPRECIATE THAT HAS BEEN DISCUSSED, UM, THROUGH, UH, OUR, AS I MENTIONED, OUR, UM, ZONING ORDINANCE, AMENDMENT, PREPARATION FOR THAT, AS WELL AS, UM, PREPARATION OF THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN. THANK YOU, SIR. OKAY. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT, ANY OTHER COMMENTS? ALRIGHT, [11. PLANNING DIRECTOR'S COMMENTS] PLANNING DIRECTOR COMMENTS. THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. I DO HAVE A COUPLE ITEMS THAT I JUST WANTED TO UPDATE YOU ON. UM, LATE LAST WEEK. UM, WE DID RECEIVE THE, UM, INITIAL SITE PLAN, UH, DOCUMENTS FOR THE, WHAT'S BEING CALLED THE COX ROAD APARTMENTS. THOSE ARE THE APARTMENTS, UM, WHERE THE PROPERTY WAS REZONED ON COX ROAD, UM, FOR THE APARTMENT COMPLEX. SO WE DID RECEIVE THE FIRST SITE PLAN SUBMISSION FOR THAT. UM, IT HAS THE OVERALL SITE ON IT. UM, BUT, UM, BASICALLY HALF THE SITE AT THIS TIME IS PLANNED ON, UM, BEING DEVELOPED AND THEY'RE, OF COURSE THEY'RE REFERRING TO THAT AS SECTION ONE OF THE SITE. UM, SO WE DO HAVE THOSE, UH, PLANS THAT WERE RECEIVED IN OUR OFFICE. IF, IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO REVIEW THOSE PLANS. I SAW A CASE SIGN OUT BY THE ROAD. DID THEY ASK HIM FOR A VARIANCE OR SOMETHING? NO, UM, THE, UH, ZONING ORDINANCE JUST INDICATES THAT, UM, WE NOTIFY THE PUBLIC THAT WE'VE RECEIVED A SITE PLAN. SO IT SHOULD BE A SITE PLAN REVIEW SIGN, UM, FOR THAT PROPERTY. AND THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS RELATED? YEAH, JUST TO THAT, JUST TO CLARIFY, YOU'RE SAYING THAT, UH, I MEAN I KNOW THERE WAS A, THERE'S BEEN A DELAY IN TIME. I UNDERSTAND PROBABLY SOME OF THE ISSUES AROUND THAT, BUT YOU'RE SAYING THERE'S A, UM, NOW GONNA BE A PHASING THAT WAS NOT ORIGINALLY PLANNED. IS, AM I HEARING, AM I HEARING THAT RIGHT? UM, I DON'T KNOW IF IT WAS ORIGINALLY PLANNED TO HAVE PHASING OR NOT. OKAY. THAT, THAT'S CERTAINLY UP TO THE, THE INDIVIDUAL. UH, OKAY. OKAY. PROPERTY OWNER DEVELOPER. BUT IT'S CLEARLY NOW I'LL TELL YOU. IS IT? YES. YEAH, I GOT IT. YES. OKAY. IT, IT DEFINITELY IS. YES, THERE IS AN OVERALL, UM, PLAN AS PART OF THE, THE SUBMITTAL. UM, AND IT'S BASICALLY THE FRONT HALF OF THE PROPERTY IS WHAT'S BEING PROPOSED FOR DEVELOPMENT AT THIS TIME. SO I ONLY HAVE ONE QUESTION ABOUT THE SITE PLAN THEN, IN THAT RESPECT. IS THE, UM, I WAS PRETTY ADAMANT ABOUT THE LEFT AND RIGHT TURN LANES IN AND OUT. ARE THEY PROPOSED AS PART OF PHASE ONE? [00:25:01] UM, FROM WHAT I'VE, I, I'VE JUST GOT BACK INTO THE OFFICE TODAY SINCE THEY WERE SUBMITTED. FROM WHAT I'VE LOOKED AT TODAY, IT DOES APPEAR THAT YES, THE IMPROVEMENTS ON COX ROAD, I MEAN 2 26, UM, ARE SHOWN IN THE SITE PLAN. OKAY. ANY OTHER COMMENTS ABOUT THE APARTMENTS? ALRIGHT, GO AHEAD. AND, UH, WE ALSO RECEIVED, UH, A, ANOTHER NEW SITE PLAN SUBMITTAL, UM, ON SIMPSON ROAD. IT'S, UH, DENWOOD INDUSTRIAL PARK, UH, IS WHAT IT'S REFERRED TO. IT'S, UM, VERY LAST PARCELS IF YOU'RE GOING SIMPSON ROAD TOWARDS THE CITY OF PETERSBURG CITY LIMIT LINE. UM, THERE'S THREE PARCELS THERE, UM, BELOW THAT ARE JUST SOUTH OF WHERE THE, UM, CONCRETE PLANTS ARE. UM, AND WHERE GADE AU HAS A OFFICE BUILDING THERE AND, UM, SOME PROPERTY THAT THEY UTILIZE JUST SOUTH OF THAT. UM, THERE'S, UH, SIX BUILDINGS BEING PROPOSED, UM, FOR IT'S KIND OF LIGHT, LIGHT INDUSTRIAL OFFICE USE, UM, WITH SOME AREA FOR, UM, LAY DOWN YARD. BUT THAT WE'VE RECEIVED THAT SITE PLAN AS WELL FOR REVIEW, UH, THE DUNHAM DENTAL PROPERTY, UM, AP HILL DRIVE OFF OF ROUTE ONE. UM, WE DID RECEIVE, UH, PERMITS FOR CONSTRUCTION FOR THAT BUILDING. EVERY, THE SITE PLAN'S BEEN APPROVED. UM, ALSO OUR, UM, DESIGN REVIEW BOARD HAS ALSO APPROVED THE, UM, BUILDING AND SIGNAGE FOR THAT PROJECT AS WELL. SO THAT PROJECT IS, UM, UNDERWAY FOR CONSTRUCTION. SO IS THAT A NEW DENTAL CLINIC YOU SAID? YES, WE'VE GOT A VACANT ONE IN MCKINNEY. YOU GO OFFER ALL . IT'S THE, UH, THE SAME OWNERSHIP THAT ALREADY OPERATES THE DENTAL OFFICE ON, UM, DUNCAN. DUNCAN ROAD? YES. OKAY. AND, UM, CASES FOR JULY, UH, WE ARE GONNA HAVE, UM, IN ADDITION TO OUR, UH, CASE THAT WE TALKED ABOUT THIS EVENING, THE FLOWER SOLAR PROJECT, UM, WE'LL HAVE THAT FOR PUBLIC HEARING. UM, ALSO, UM, WE'RE GONNA HAVE, UH, CASE OFF OF RAINY CREEK ROAD. YOU ALL RE MAY REMEMBER A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO YOU RE REVIEWED A PLAT FOR THAT PROPERTY. UM, SINCE THAT TIME , IT'S ANOTHER, UM, PROPERTY WHERE WE FOUND PORTION OF THAT PROPERTY. A VERY SMALL PORTION IS OWNED R ONE RESIDENTIAL. IT'S ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE WHERE WE CANNOT FIND ANY CASE FILES RELATED TO THAT ZONING FOR THE PROPERTY. IT'S, UH, SOUTH OF ROUTE 40, UH, EAST OF I 85, ALL THE SURROUNDING PROPERTY, UM, FOR MILES IN THAT AREA IS OWNED A TWO AGRICULTURAL. UM, SO THE, UH, PROPERTY OWNER HAS SUBMITTED A REZONING APPLICATION TO HAVE THAT R ONE PORTION OF THE PROPERTY REZONED TO A TWO. UM, WE'RE CERTAINLY IN FAVOR OF THAT, UH, REZONING REQUEST, BUT WE'LL BE HEARING THAT AT, AT YOUR JULY MEETING. AND WHAT AND WHAT WAS THE PLAT WE REVIEWED? I DON'T HONESTLY, UH, TRYING TO REMEMBER THE NAME OF IT. IT, THERE WERE, UM, AGAIN, I CAN'T REMEMBER THE ACREAGE, BUT IT WAS, UM, A BUYRIGHT, UM, DIVISION OF THE PROPERTY WHERE THEY CREATED THREE LOTS. I DON'T THINK I REMEMBER THAT. THEY SOLD ONE OF THOSE AND THAT'S WHEN WE DISCOVERED THAT A PORTION OF THAT PROPERTY IS OWNED, A SMALL PORTION R ONE ALONG THE ROAD FRONTAGE. AND THEY WANTED TO, UM, I BELIEVE THEY WANTED TO PUT A DOUBLE WIDE ON THAT PROPERTY AND THE, THE BACK PORTION OF THE PROPERTY IS WET, SO THEY HAD TO HAVE IT ON THE FRONT PORTION WHERE IT'S OWNED R ONE. SO THEY CAN'T, THEY CAN'T PUT A MANUFACTURED HOME ON THAT R ONE PORTION. UM, SO THAT'S, THAT'S WHEN IT WAS DISCOVERED BY STAFF THAT THAT PORTION OF THE PROPERTY WAS ZONED R ONE RESIDENTIAL. SO BY RIGHT IN THE CONTEXT OF, UH, FIVE, THE CURRENT FORMULA FIVE FIVE, YES. YES. UM, ON FERNDALE ROAD, THE PROPERTY THAT, UH, WAS UP FOR REZONING, UM, A COUPLE YEARS AGO, UM, [00:30:01] FOR, UM, MULTIFAMILY REZONING, UH, THE PROPERTY OWNERS THERE, UM, HAVE MADE APPLICATION FOR, UH, B TWO COMMERCIAL ZONING AND ALSO A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT TO ALLOW SELF-SERVICE STORAGE FACILITY ON THAT PROPERTY WITH AN OFFICE AS PART OF THAT. SO IT'S, THERE'D BE AN OFFICE AND THEN SELF-SERVICE STORAGE, UH, FACILITY ON THE BACK, BACK PORTION OF THE PROPERTY. SO THEY'VE MADE APPLICATION FOR THAT. UM, AND THEN, UH, THE PROPERTY ON ROUTE ONE THAT ADJOINS, UM, RON'S MUFFLER SHOP RIGHT BEFORE YOU GET TO HOFHEIMER WAY, UM, THAT PROPERTY, UM, THEY'VE, UH, THE FRONT PORTION IS OWNED B TWO APPROXIMATELY 400 FEET BACK FROM ROUTE ONE. THAT'S WHERE, UM, HOT ROD MOTORSPORT RAY OR COREY WAS PLANNING ON PUTTING A, UM, DINER RESTAURANT ON THAT FRONT PORTION. THE BACK PORTION IS OWNED M1 LIGHT INDUSTRIAL. NOW, HE WAS PROPOSING TO DO A SELF-SERVICE STORAGE FACILITY ON THAT BACK PORTION THAT WOULD BE ALLOWED BY WRIGHT. NOW HE, UM, SAYS HE HAS INDIVIDUALS, UH, INTERESTED IN PUTTING A HOTEL ON THAT M1 PORTION OF THE PROPERTY. SO HE HAS APPLIED FOR COMMERCIAL REZONING WITH PROFFERS TO ALLOW HOTEL OFFICE USES ON THAT BACK PORTION. WE'LL BE HEARING THAT CASE IN JULY AS WELL. AND I, I'VE GOT A COMMENT THERE, I REMEMBER, YEAH, I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY YEARS AGO IT WAS, BUT THERE WAS FELLOW WANTING TO PUT AN APARTMENT COMPLEX THERE. REMEMBER THAT SOMEWHERE, NOT THAT EXACT PARCEL, BUT SOMEWHERE ALONG HEIMER REMEMBER? YES. ALONG HEIMER. YES. RIGHT. SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WAS FRUSTRATED WITH AT THE TIME WAS THAT WE, I LOOKED AT THE CASE BASED ON EVERYTHING THAT WAS BROUGHT BEFORE US AND THEN AT THE BOARD MEETING, A BUNCH OF PEOPLE CAME OUT OF THE WOODWORK. YES. DO YOU REMEMBER THAT? YES. SO TO, TO THE EXTENT POSSIBLE THAT YOU CAN INFLUENCE THAT, I WOULD APPRECIATE IT IF YOU COULD GET, I'M SURE THESE SAME FOLKS HAVE THE SIMILAR INTEREST AT THIS TIME. TO THE EXTENT THAT YOU CAN ENCOURAGE THEM TO COME BEFORE US, I THINK WE COULD DO A BETTER JOB THAN IF THEY JUST BLOW IT OFF AND THEN SHOW UP. DON'T SHOW UP TO THE BOARD MEETING. RIGHT. I KNOW THAT'S PART, I KNOW THAT'S HERDING CATS, BUT, RIGHT. I UNDERSTAND YOUR COMMENT THOUGH. UM, JUST TO BE SURE, UM, WE'RE ALL ON THE SAME PAGE AS FAR AS ACCESS TO THAT PROPERTY. THERE'S NO ACCESS, UH, TO AND FROM HOFHEIMER WAY. OH, OKAY. UM, THE PROPERTY THERE ON HOFHEIMER WAY THAT YOU'RE REFERRING TO, THAT WAS THE CASE THAT WE HEARD, UH, A FEW MONTHS AGO. UM, WHERE THEY ASKED TO REZONE TO THE INDUSTRIAL ZONING CLASSIFICATION THAT WAS THE, UM, WALKER FAMILY PROPERTY THERE. UM, THIS PROPERTY IS, UM, SOUTH OF RON'S MUFFLER SHOP AND THE ONLY ACCESS TO IT IS FROM ROUTE ONE. VERY GOOD POINT. OKAY. YEAH, GOOD POINT. YEAH. JUST, JUST TO BE CLEAR WHERE YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT THAT CASE BEFORE YOU GET THE INFORMATION ON IT, THAT'S THE HOTEL YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, RIGHT? YES, YES. SO IT'D BE, HE'S PROPOSING A WAY, A DINER RESTAURANT ON THE FRONT PORTION AND THEN HOTEL. HE'S SAYING HE HAS INTEREST FOR A HOTEL ON THE REAR PORTION OF THAT PROPERTY. IT USED TO BE OWNED BY THE LOWRY FAMILY. THAT'S KIND OF A LONG, SKINNY, POOR PIECE OF PROPERTY THAT RUNS FROM ROUTE ONE BACK, BACK INTO THE PROPERTY FURTHER EAST MARK. ALRIGHT. CAN I, MR. SHE, CAN I, CAN I TAKE YOU BACK TO THE FERNDALE PROPERTY AGAIN? YES. PUTTING A STORAGE FOR WANTING TO PUT A STORAGE FACILITY ON IT. YES. SO WE'RE GONNA HAVE THE SAME ISSUE ABOUT ENTRANCE AND EXIT. YES. ON DE FERNDALE. UM, THAT, THAT'S THE ONLY ACCESS TO THE PROPERTY YES. IS FROM FERNDALE. THEY HAVE DONE, UM, SOME TRANSPORTATION RELATED, UH, STUDIES, UM, ON THAT REGARDING THIS, THIS SPECIFIC USE THE SELF-SERVICE STORAGE FACILITY. SO THAT WILL BE, UM, PART OF THE INFORMATION THAT YOU RECEIVED FOR, FOR THIS CASE. FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH. I THOUGHT ABOUT THAT TOO. YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU HAVE A HOME LIKE YOURS OR MINE, STANDARD PRACTICE IS TO CONSIDER NINE TRIPS [00:35:01] A DAY INTO, YOU KNOW, EIGHT TIMES EACH ONE OF THE APARTMENT, UH, UNITS. THE SELF STORAGE IS FAR LESS THAN THAT. JUST COMPARISON MAY BE FAR LESS, BUT IF YOU GOT, DEPENDING WHAT TIME OF DAY IT IS, AND UNLESS Y'ALL GONNA PUT, UNLESS WE'RE GONNA GET THE BOARD TO PUT A TOW BOOTH THE HU TMA UH, HONORARY TO BOOTH THE BRIDGE ACROSS THE BRIDGE, YOU'RE NOT GONNA SLOW THAT TRAFFIC DOWN ACCORDING TO THERE. THAT'S, THAT, THAT WAS THE ONLY THING I, I WAS THINKING ABOUT TRAFFIC AGAIN. OH, THANK YOU. AND THEN I JUST WANTED YOU ALSO TO KNOW THAT, UM, WE HAVE HAVE TWO CASES, UM, ALREADY FOR YOUR AUGUST MEETING. UM, AND THOSE ARE BOTH IN WEST PETERSBURG WHERE INDIVIDUALS ARE WANTING TO REZONE PROPERTY. THEY OWN FROM THE R ONES LAST ZONING CLASSIFICATION TO THE RU, THE RESIDENTIAL URBAN CLASSIFICATION SO THAT HOMES CAN BE BUILT ON, ON THE LOTS THAT THEY'VE OWNED THERE. UM, SO IT'S A RECENT ONE WE'VE DONE ON THAT BOARD YET. YES. THAT'S THE BOARD WILL BE HEARING THAT NEXT WEEK. OKAY. AT THEIR MEETING NEXT WEEK. AND JUST WANDA, UM, FINAL INFORMATION ITEM, JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW TOMORROW WE'RE GONNA BE INTERVIEWING FOR THE, UH, ASSISTANT PLANNING DIRECTOR POSITION AND ALSO PLANNER ONE POSITION. JUST WANTED TO LET YOU ALL KNOW THAT. HOW MANY APPLICANTS DID YOU GET? UH, FOUR FOR THE ASSISTANT PLANNING DIRECTOR AND IT WAS EITHER FOUR OR FIVE FOR THE PLANNER. ONE POSITION. GOOD. HOPE YOU FIND SOMEBODY. YEAH. THANK YOU. . . IS THAT IT? THAT'S ALL I HAVE. MR. CHAIR. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER COMMENTS? WAIT A MINUTE, . THIS COULD BE DIRECTOR CHAIR, SO MOVE. IS THERE A SECOND? WE ARE ADJOURNED. NOT EVEN, THEY'RE NOT EVEN CLOSE TO OUR TIME. PLUS, PLUS MY RECORD WAS WITH A CASE. THAT'S RIGHT. , ARE WE A ARE WE ADJOURNED? MR. CHAIR? WE AJO. OH WE ARE. ALL RIGHT. MR. , THANK Y'ALL FOR COMING TONIGHT. . * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.