Developers ask Morgan County Schools for access across school property to finish subdivision

Developers seeking to complete the fourth phase of Gin House Landing asked the Morgan County Schools board during a work session for cooperation to secure a second access road across land behind Christwell Adventure School.

At the meeting, Brandon Walling identified himself as representing the developer team and said the company “brought an offer to you guys just to present, for the land that's behind Christwell Adventure School” and that they are “currently in a contract to purchase June House Landing Phase 2 from Joseph right here.” Nathan McAnally, who spoke for the development team, said the fourth phase “adds more continuity to the subdivision and also . . . connects” to nearby roads, which would relieve traffic on Cave Springs Road and provide a second access for the community.

The developers said their parcel is effectively landlocked for further building without that second access. They showed maps dividing the parcel into three colors on their plan — red and blue as the portions they currently own and green as land that cannot be developed without a second access. Walling said he previously had a contract to sell the whole subdivision to a builder, Smith Douglas, but that sale was released when the parties could not secure secondary access. He described an effort to assemble adjacent parcels, including a parcel (referred to in the presentation as Skidmore) that the developers said became unavailable after the owner died and the estate sold the land.

Developers cited the local subdivision regulations that require a second access for developments of more than 99 lots and said their red and blue parcels already constitute the 99‑lot maximum; anything beyond that would trigger the second‑access requirement. Nathan McAnally said the project’s second access would connect to a road that ties to Sunset and would “allow for pretty much better flow of traffic and also allowing residential development towards the south of the school.”

Board staff told the presenters they had not been originally scheduled for the business meeting but were placed on the work session after contacting board staff. No motion or vote was recorded on the request during the portion of the transcript provided.

Why this matters: Subdivision rules requiring a second access for large developments are intended to reduce traffic congestion and address life‑safety concerns. Developers said the lack of secondary access has left a portion of their site undeveloped and creates a one‑in/one‑out condition they called a fire‑safety issue during school arrival and dismissal times. The transcript does not show the board taking formal action on the request, and no terms of sale or easement were provided.

The developers asked the board to consider partnership or cooperation to allow the needed access but did not provide a specific proposed legal instrument, timeline, or formal motion during the presentation. The board did not commit to a vote in the recorded exchange.