Stephens Co. Commission Grants Variance, Re-zoning For Planned Subdivision

A planned residential subdivision in the Lake Hartwell area can continue moving forward after getting the go-ahead from Stephens County Commissioners.

On Tuesday, commissioners considered rezoning and variance requests from developer Bradley Church for property on Ridgemore Drive in Stephens County.

Ridgemore Drive is located off of Holly Springs Road.

According to Church, he and a fellow developer are planning a 15-unit residential subdivision, but needed one of the properties re-zoned from Agricultural Residential to Residential Single Family District and also needed a variance for some of the property in order to have lots less than 1 acre, which is the county’s minimum lot size.

Church said he and his partner believe their plan will help the county and the residents along Ridgemore Drive.

He said the plans would not hurt home values in that area.

“The deed restrictions and way we are setting them up along the dockable frontage of the lake, we believe, brings more value, rather than less value,” said Church.

One Ridgemore Drive resident spoke to commissioners and expressed concern about that many driveways along the road and the traffic concerns it could create.

Meanwhile, another resident in that area said that the lots are not close enough to one acre and added that it seems a bad precedent to grant a variance to the land use plan with the very first development that comes up underneath it.

Stephens County Commissioner Michelle Ivester said she shares that concern and notes that the difference between getting a variance on lot size and not getting one is two lots.

“If we are going to have ordinances, we need to enforce them,” said Ivester. “If we are not going to enforce them, there is no need in having them.”

According to Ivester, without a variance, the developer could still put in a total of 13 lots, rather than 15.

“It is not really creating a hardship, I do not feel like,” said Ivester of not granting a variance.

Church said that if they did not get the variance, they would have to re-evaluate the project.

Also, he noted that many of the lots along that road, which were laid out before land use, are well under an acre and under his proposed lot sizes.

Commissioner Stanley London said he supports the re-zoning and the lot size variance because it will promote growth in the county and also protect the residents from possible future uses on an agricultural residential property.

“I feel like it would be economic growth for our tax base and possibly a better living situation for the current residents because of what could possibly happen with a 14-acre tract,” said London.

Stephens County Chief Appraiser Christen Collier said Church’s plans could more than triple the current value of that property.

Commission Chair Dennis Bell said that he has reservations about granting a variance, but notes that there is not enough opposition to the overall project.

Stephens County Commissioners approved the variance 3 to 1 with Ivester voting “no.” Commissioner Dean Scarborough was not at the meeting.

Under the variance granted by commissioners, the developers did agree to put a number of covenants and restrictions on the property, including that only on-site, stick-built homes could be put on the lots, so there would not be trailers or modular homes.

The re-zoning request was granted unanimously.