Oconee Planning Commission delays private-road ordinance changes pending subdivision rewrite

At its May meeting, the Oconee County Planning Commission voted unanimously to delay sending proposed changes to Chapter 26-2 of the county code — the section that governs private roads and rights-of-way — to County Council until proposed changes to the subdivision ordinance in Chapter 32 are prepared and aligned.

The move followed more than two hours of public comment from homeowners, multiple petition reports, and a presentation from the South Carolina Department of Transportation. Proponents of pausing action argued the proposed changes could affect thousands of property owners countywide, raise constitutional takings questions and change who bears road and utility responsibilities.

Public commenters urged the commission to slow the process and seek wider input. Lucretia Morgan, a resident who said she reviewed several lake-area subdivisions, told the commission that many private drives on peninsulas have 30–40 foot rights-of-way and serve 10 homes or fewer; she said no data was presented to justify the changes and asked, “Where is the actual evidence that there's a problem that needs solving?”

Other residents described local examples of developers failing to secure utility access before selling…