Coweta commissioners approve rezoning for Waffle House in Sharpsburg with 25% traffic-cost condition, 24-hour operation allowed

The Coweta County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously March 19 to approve REZ24-18, rezoning Tract B at the northeast corner of Poplar Road and State Route 16 in Sharpsburg to permit a 2,000-square-foot Waffle House and associated site work.

The rezoning lifts a prior condition that had limited commercial hours and adds infrastructure conditions including roadwork, a 50-foot buffer on the northern property line, a six-foot opaque decorative fence, full-cutoff lighting, and stormwater requirements. Commissioners modified the draft transportation condition so the developer must pay 25% of the actual cost of a channelized right-turn lane on State Route 16 at Marion Beavers Road; other required turn-lane work and road improvements remain the developer’s responsibility under county and Georgia Department of Transportation standards.

Zoning manager Lisa Eschman described the site and staff recommendations, noting the site lies in the county’s priority development area and listing the proposed conditions, including turn-lane and stormwater requirements. "The applicant shall construct a left turn lane, 230 feet of full-width storage along State Route 16 at the proposed driveway," Eschman told the board while walking through the staff report.

Neil Spradlin, representing Waffle House and the property owner Angler Investments, said the company asked to remove the prior hours restriction so the restaurant could operate 24 hours and offered a cost-sharing approach tied to the traffic study. Citing the applicant’s traffic report, Spradlin recited the study’s finding that "the development adds on average 8 seconds (a 16% increase) to the no-build delays" at the Marion Beavers/State Route 16 intersection, and proposed that the development cover 16% of a $150,000 estimated channelized right-turn cost (about $24,000) with a one-third/ two-thirds internal split between Waffle House and the retail building. He said Waffle House "has no objection to any of those conditions, including number 10, which requires us to get a permit within 18 months."

Commissioners, however, expressed concern that a 16% allocation was low given long-term uncertainty and the county’s responsibility for the remainder of a potentially large infrastructure bill. Commissioner Jeff Fisher moved to approve the rezoning with the applicant’s requested 24-hour operation and to set the developer contribution at 25% of the actual cost of the required channelized right-turn lane; the motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

Opponents during public comment raised safety and crime concerns about a 24-hour restaurant. April Yarbrough, a nearby resident, told the board she had consulted local law enforcement and said 24-hour eateries "are often sought after by criminals for armed robberies" and that the location’s proximity to highways and rural back roads made the site a concern. Waffle House representatives responded that the company partners with local law enforcement, designs lighting and security measures to deter crime and can add features such as a walk-up window if conditions require.

The approved site conditions include: compliance with Coweta County ordinances; construction of left- and right-turn lanes at the State Route 16 driveway; participation in the Marion Beavers/State Route 16 channelized right-turn improvement at 25% of the actual cost; adherence to AASHTO and GDOT standards for work in the right-of-way; meeting Quality Development Corridor District and Chapter 30 stormwater rules (including runoff reduction practices); maintenance of a 50-foot buffer and additional plantings as necessary; installation and upkeep of a six-foot decorative opaque fence along the northern property line; full-cutoff exterior lighting to prevent glare; and a requirement that the business work in good faith with the county on objective complaints about odor, glare or noise.

The board also required the applicant to obtain a land-disturbance permit within 18 months of approval or face potential initiation of rezoning by the county. The motion to approve set the developer’s share of the channelized right-turn cost on the actual invoiced amount (25% of the final cost) rather than on the earlier $150,000 estimate.

The commission’s approval follows a staff presentation that traced the property’s zoning history, including a 2021 rezoning with 10 conditions (petition 19-21) and a 2022 approved buffer reduction variance (variance 22-11). The proposal will proceed under the conditions adopted by the board; the applicant indicated plans to submit permits and begin design work immediately.

For nearby residents, the board clarified that the decorative fence must be opaque and maintained by the property owner, and that the county’s stormwater and landscape-review processes will verify final buffer plantings and pond design.

Commissioners voted unanimously to approve REZ24-18 as amended. No implementation date for construction was provided in the record.