NASHVILLE, N.C. — The Nash County Board of Commissioners voted Aug. 11 to deny a conditional rezoning request that would have allowed a developer to build 54 residential lots on 37.87 acres north of Strickland Road near Bailey.

Planning staff and multiple advisory bodies told the board the request would double the site’s potential density by reducing the minimum lot size from 40,000 square feet to 20,000 square feet. Planning Director Adam Tyson told commissioners the County’s updated 2022 Comprehensive Land Use Plan recommends that lots in that “residential‑agricultural” area be no smaller than 30,000 square feet, and the Technical Review Committee and Planning Board both recommended denial because the proposal conflicted with that recommendation.

“The key question is whether the fact that this would be an expansion of the RA‑20 zone across the road justifies deviating from the current plan,” Tyson said. The developer and supporters said the north‑side parcel would not be “spot zoning” because the RA‑20 area already exists across the road; opponents and planning staff said that prior rezoning occurred under the old land‑use plan and does not require the county to approve a similar increase in density under the current plan.

Four residents — including adjacent property owners who said they depend on historic farm access paths — spoke against the request at the public hearing. Speakers raised concerns about traffic safety on the narrow stretch of Strickland Road, impacts to working farmland, potential changes to private access paths and the use of septic systems rather than sewer. A resident said the project would take farmland from future agricultural production and noted longstanding use of the paths by farm vehicles.

Developer Lisa Williams told the board that soils on the site are suitable for septic systems and that the project’s sketch plan addresses access and mail‑kiosk placement. The applicant also offered minor plan revisions after the Planning Board review; staff said the developer moved a shared‑mail kiosk to reduce conflicts with an access easement.

Commissioner Leggett moved to deny the rezoning as inconsistent with the county’s 2022 Comprehensive Land Use Plan; the motion carried following a second and vote. “Approval would be a deviation from the plan’s specific minimum‑lot‑size recommendation,” Tyson told the board in his recommendation.

Why it matters: The denial reaffirms the county’s current land‑use guidance and signals that the board will look to the 2022 plan when evaluating density increases in rural agricultural lands. Developers and adjacent towns have previously argued for expanding RA‑20 density in other locations, and commissioners said consistency with the adopted plan is an important policy limit.

What’s next: The applicant may revise the proposal if it wishes to pursue a plan consistent with the 30,000‑square‑foot minimum recommendation, or seek a future text or plan amendment. The record shows the Planning Board and TRC evaluated the proposal and made recommendations prior to the commissioners’ vote.