Council schedules hearing on ordinance requiring utility capacity statements before permits

The Villa Rica Mayor and Council on May 6 directed staff to schedule a public hearing next Tuesday on an amendment to the city’s development regulations that would require developers to obtain a written statement from the utilities director verifying adequate water and sewer capacity before building permits are issued.

Teresa Campbell, the city clerk, and staff described the draft ordinance as a codified version of a policy discussed at a recent all‑day work session. The amendment inserts new language into the city’s development regulations to require a utilities capacity statement for permit approval; staff said new text (shown in blue in the draft) is additions and that existing code language remains in black.

Interim staff explained the draft clarifies that capacity letters will be valid for 12 months, an attempt to remove inconsistent references in the code and to encourage projects to move forward rather than reserve capacity indefinitely. Staff said the change would allow the existing moratorium on some development matters to expire once the regulatory language is in place.

Council asked no substantive technical questions at the work session. The item was placed on the consent agenda for the upcoming Tuesday meeting and will proceed to a public hearing where the council will take formal testimony.

At the work session staff emphasized the amendment is procedural and intended to help the city plan and track available water and sewer capacity; it does not itself authorize specific projects. The public hearing will give residents an opportunity to comment and allow the council to adopt or modify the language before the moratorium expires.