Stephens Co. Commission Handles Planning, Zoning Requests

Stephens County Commissioners deny a request for a change in language in the county’s land use ordinance.

Tuesday, the county commission considered a request from United Renewable Energy of Alpharetta, the company that has placed solar panels on land owned by the Stephens County Development Authority.

According to Stephens County Administrator Phyllis Ayers, the proposed change would have made it easier to install solar farm distribution systems.

“Right now, the only place you can put a solar farm, the distribution system, to sell to Georgia Power or an EMC, is in Commercial-Industrial as a conditional use,” said Ayers. “The requestor would like it to be opened up to other districts and not have to come before the Planning Commission.”

Prior to the issue coming before the commission, Ayers said the Planning Board denied the request unanimously.

“The intent of the Land Use Ordinance was for conditional uses to come before the board so we know what is going where,” said Ayers.

County commissioners followed suit and denied the requested change by a unanimous vote.

The Stephens County Commission did approve two other unrelated requests, a rezoning request and a variance request, unanimously, after both had been approved unanimously by the Planning Board previously.