Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Rv Boat Storage topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commission denies rezoning for Ridge Road RV and boat storage after resident safety, traffic and visual concerns
Summary
A rezoning request for a 7.86-acre portion of a Ridge Road property to allow RV and boat storage was denied by the Planning and Zoning Commission amid resident objections about safety, traffic and neighborhood character.
The Columbia County Planning and Zoning Commission voted to recommend disapproval of a rezoning (RZ25-0906) for a proposed RV and boat storage facility on a 7.86-acre portion of a parcel off Ridge Road. The motion on Sept. 4 ultimately carried as a recommendation of disapproval to the Board of Commissioners.
Will, presenting staff, said the revised plan reduced the project footprint and added a natural 2.76-acre R-4 buffer intended to remain undeveloped, but staff continued to recommend disapproval. Key staff concerns included the site’s location relative to existing residential roads, sight lines on Ridge Road and insufficient nearby development that would support a commercial crossroads pattern; engineering/traffic staff also noted the need for full access if approved and that Washington Road is under GDOT jurisdiction.
Applicant representative Matthew Padgett said the team revised the project in response to public concerns by shrinking the development and providing a larger natural buffer. “The Ridge Road entrance and the right-out system on the Washington Road was in direct response to concerns about traffic,” Padgett said, and he described the owners as long-time county residents who plan to invest to make the site visually attractive.
Neighbors and long-time residents strongly objected. John Bridal, who said his family owns property contiguous to most of the proposed plan, called the project an “irreversible eyesore” and emphasized safety on the single access road. Julie Harrison and other neighbors said Ridge Road is a narrow, two-lane residential road with limited sight lines and that emergency access could be impaired; Harrison also criticized the change from earlier concept art and said the proposed right-out onto Washington Road may not be approved by GDOT.
The commission voted to recommend disapproval (recorded as “Motion carries. 3–1”). The applicant said it had reduced the project scope and added a substantial natural buffer in response to earlier public input; the commission’s recommendation will go to the Board of Commissioners for final action.
