Planning commission recommends immediate rezone and 11‑lot tentative map for 307‑acre Banner Mountain property amid wildfire, evacuation concerns

The Nevada County Planning Commission on a 3‑0 vote recommended that the Board of Supervisors approve an immediate rezone of roughly 307 acres owned by Mark Pei from Timber Production Zone (TPZ) to RA‑10 and AG‑30 and a tentative parcel map to divide the property into 11 lots.

Staff presented the project as an “immediate rezone” of land the Board previously rezoned with a 10‑year rollout. David Nicholas, Associate Planner for Nevada County, told the commission the proposal would create 11 lots ranging from about 4 acres to roughly 127.4 acres, served by individual septic systems; seven lots would use public water from the Nevada Irrigation District and four would rely on private wells. Nicholas said the project totals approximately 307 acres and that “Lot 1 will be developed with a 10,000‑gallon water tank” intended to serve Lots 1, 2 and 11 because those parcels are more than 750 feet from existing hydrants.

The project includes several mitigation and design elements staff said would reduce wildfire and resource impacts: a…