Columbia County commissioners deny rezoning request for parcel at Autumn Trail and Lewiston Road

The Columbia County Board of Commissioners voted to deny a request to rezone parcels near the corner of Autumn Trail and Lewiston Road, keeping the properties’ current zoning in place.

The request would have changed zoning on parcels described in the meeting as fronting Lewiston Road and an adjoining residential lot at 5136 Autumn Trail to allow additional commercial development. Opponents said the change would increase noise, litter and stormwater problems; the applicants said the rezoning (and a companion downzoning of some frontage parcels) was intended to provide adequate depth for commercial development and to address grading and access concerns.

Resident Doug Thornton told the commission he represented “a significant portion” of his neighborhood and said roughly 185 petition signers opposed the rezoning. “If this rezoning is approved, the result will be increased pollution, increased stormwater issues, and increased traffic, not to mention dislocating a long time resident,” Thornton said, adding that runoff from a nearby Popeye’s restaurant already contributes to erosion and litter in Tudor Branch Creek.

Matthew Demyers, who said he was hired to represent the owners of 4426 Lewiston Road (Kyoto Inc.) and Susan Hayslip (owner of 5136 Autumn Trail), told the board the applicants sought a change to allow adequate depth for commercial lots, grading solutions and shared access at the rear of parcels. “Due to the topo concerns, to allow proper access, ADA compliance, and those other issues is the reason that we came in before the council for this,” Demyers said.

Planning staff member Faulkner described the proposal as a combination of a downgrade on front parcels (from C-2 to community commercial, CC) and an upgrade on a residential parcel (R-1 or R-2 to CC). Faulkner said the developer had proposed relocating a driveway to align with the entrance across from Popeye’s and that the packet included a condition requiring a full traffic study and any intersection improvements necessary to handle increased traffic.

Faulkner also noted recent state-level detention standards that require sites to retain the first inch of rain on a developed parcel to limit downstream impacts, but said larger storm events can still produce runoff.

After public comment and staff remarks, a commissioner moved to deny the rezoning request. The motion was seconded; commissioners voted in favor and “zoning remains as is.”

The denial preserves the current mix of commercial frontage and the single-family house at 5136 Autumn Trail, which opponents had urged the board to protect. The record shows four commissioners were present for the vote.