A majority of the Albany County Planning & Zoning Commission on Oct. 8 recommended the Board of County Commissioners deny a zoning district amendment by property owner Paula Paris that would have changed 1124 Highway 11 from ranchette to commercial.

The county planning department presented a staff report saying the proposal "does not generally follow" the Albany County comprehensive plan and noted an open enforcement case: inspectors found three separate dwellings on the 0.235-acre ranchette parcel, which exceeds the allowed density. Planning staff recommended denial.

Planning staff member Joe said the department had received an anonymous complaint earlier in the year and had discussed remedies with the owner, including this rezoning application. "We met with the applicant and their real estate agent to discuss the different methods for how to fix this issue," Joe told the commission.

Paris, the property owner, told the commission she had been operating rental units at the site for about 17 years and said she did not know her configuration was out of compliance. "When I pulled [the permit] it said detached garage," Paris said during the hearing. "I didn't know until recently that I was not compliant. I've been advertising for 17 years and until this came up, nobody said anything, including my neighbors." She asked the commission to allow commercial zoning so she could continue operating short-term rentals and other small-business activity.

Neighbors spoke at the public hearing, saying the site is within a largely residential area, raising concerns over septic placement, traffic and compatibility with nearby homes. Christie Palmer said parcel-level review of assessor data showed more than 95% of properties in the immediate area are residential. Neighbor Kenny Langford said the property has been advertised as a short-term rental and described property-management problems he attributed to renters.

Commissioners repeatedly raised practical issues about the lot's size and setbacks if rezoned to commercial. Commissioner Hinckley described the parcel as "too small" for commercial zoning, saying that commercial standards would allow a much larger envelope for future development and could be sold to another owner who would use that broader scope.

After public comment and commissioner discussion, a motion recommending denial carried. Commissioners recorded aye votes; the record shows multiple commissioners voting to deny the amendment.

Next steps: the planning commission's recommendation will go to the Board of County Commissioners, which will make the final decision on ZDA-0825. The staff report, public comments and the commission recommendation will be part of the record for that decision.