Commissioners approve rezoning, variance for 7 Crouch Road despite 5‑acre PDD rule

The Spalding County Board of Commissioners voted 4–1 on July 14 to rezone 2.36 acres at 7 Crouch Road from AR‑1 (agricultural‑residential) to PDD (planned development district) and to grant a variance from the PDD minimum‑acreage requirement, allowing a proposed restaurant, fuel canopy and sundry/retail uses on the parcel.

County planning staff had recommended approval. Planning staff member Mr. Allen told commissioners the parcel is unusual — small and surrounded by large industrial parcels — and that the revised application was intended to align the site with adjacent PDD parcels and to provide services for nearby industrial employers.

The vote followed extended discussion about ordinance consistency and access. Commissioner Gwen Flowers Taylor said she had “a problem with this application” because the county’s PDD ordinance requires a minimum of five acres and the parcel is 2.36 acres; she also raised the absence of an established access road and questioned whether the change should have included an amendment to the future land‑use map. “If we start picking and choosing where we’re going to not go with our own ordinance, that’s a problem,” she said.

Supporters, including applicant representatives Emil Dimelo and Kavitha Brohit, described the project as primarily a restaurant concept that would bring employment and new taxable development to the employment corridor near the industrial park. Dimelo told commissioners the development would include a 4,800‑square‑foot building split between a restaurant and sundry shop, with separate diesel and regular/premium canopies, and presented estimates that the development would create at least 19 full‑time jobs at opening and generate additional sales and payroll taxes.

Commissioner James Dutton and other commissioners who voted in favor emphasized the variance process as part of the zoning code that exists to address “unique” parcels. Commissioner Dutton said the parcel is adjacent to an employment area and argued the proposed uses would service the industrial park’s workforce. The board ultimately approved the rezoning with staff conditions and the variance; the record shows a 4–1 vote in favor and one dissent from Flowers Taylor.

The final motion adopted staff’s recommended conditions, including adherence to the county’s development standards. The motion and vote were recorded on the public record; the board will return the item as a rezoning ordinance with the recorded conditions at second reading.

Why it matters: The decision allows a small, mixed commercial development on a parcel that does not meet the county’s published PDD acreage minimum, setting a narrow precedent for variances on small, irregular parcels near employment uses. Commissioners flagged the future land‑use map and access as recurring concerns for similar cases.

What’s next: The rezoning ordinance and the specific variance conditions will return to the board for final adoption and inclusion in the county zoning records.