Walton County approves 62‑lot rezoning for Nicholsville Road tract amid traffic and buffer concerns

Walton County commissioners voted to rezone about 81 acres on Nicholsville Road to R‑1 OSC to allow a 62‑lot residential subdivision, approving the request with planning commission conditions and additional requirements after multiple residents urged traffic and safety safeguards.

The county approved the rezoning request for developer My Home Communities, represented by attorney Joshua Scoggins, following public comment that focused on traffic at Nicholsville Road and State Route 11, liability concerns for adjoining spring‑fed ponds, and the need for meaningful buffers between new lots and existing rural properties.

The applicant’s attorney, Joshua Scoggins, told the commission the proposal is for “62 residential lots, at a density, I believe, 0.77 units an acre.” Builder Logan Moss said the plan is a “conservation layout” that seeks to “condense the lots into a smaller area so that we can preserve more open space.”

Speakers for the Thompson family and the developer described the property’s agricultural history and said the plan fits the county’s comprehensive plan. Billy Mitchell, representing the owner Grady Thompson Enterprises, said the family sold the land for “highest and best use” and asked the commission to approve the request.

Neighbors and other residents raised concerns during public comment. Realtor Josh Parker urged the commission to consider lot sizes and long‑term community character and warned about traffic impacts at the Highway 11–Nicholsville Road intersections. Resident Michelle Forthover said her husband waited “more than 10 minutes” trying to cross Highway 11 from Nicholsville on a routine trip and asked for traffic study and turning‑lane consideration. Luke Curtis, speaking for the Marlow family, asked the commission to require a developer‑installed barrier along the shared property line to reduce potential liability from the family’s spring‑fed ponds: “We are asking that you require that a chain link fence be installed by the developer along the property line,” he said.

In response, applicant representatives said an 8‑foot chain‑link fence would be excessive; they suggested signage and screening as mitigation and noted standard permitting and stormwater review would govern drainage and construction impacts. Logan Moss told the board that proposed homes would be ranch plans around 2,000 square feet and two‑story plans around 2,400 square feet and estimated price points in the mid‑$400,000s to low‑$500,000s.

Commission action approved the rezoning with the planning commission’s recommended conditions (including a disclosure statement advising buyers that adjacent land may be used for agricultural purposes, and requirements for a decorative entrance and right‑of‑way screening) and added direction that the builder match the previously approved development on SR‑138 for garage sizes and square footage, work with adjoining landowners on screening/buffer details (rather than an immediate fence requirement), and coordinate required access/turning lane engineering and amenities such as the pond and walking trails during permitting. The board member who made the motion also specified that the county engineering and developer coordinate on any required access lanes during the permitting stage.

The motion passed; the transcript records the chair saying, “Motion carries,” with one commissioner recorded as opposed.

The county’s process now moves the project to final plat and permitting. Commissioners and staff said stormwater and right‑of‑way work will be reviewed in later engineering and permitting steps where GDOT or county road standards apply. The planning commission had recommended approval earlier with conditions to notify future homeowners of typical farm/forest activity and to address encroachments and landscaping along the right of way.

Questions raised during the hearing — including whether GDOT or county rules require a deceleration lane, how construction traffic damage will be managed, how school capacity will be affected and whether a long fence is required to limit liability at neighboring ponds — will be addressed through the county’s permitting and engineering review or through future conditions tied to the final plat and construction permits.

Commission staff indicated the county would require standard stormwater controls consistent with the Georgia Stormwater Management Manual during permitting, and the developer said they would secure required permits and work with county staff on access improvements and buffers.

The developer and residents were given direction to continue negotiations on screening and buffers and to return to the county’s permitting tracks for engineering——including any required turn‑lane or deceleration lane work—before construction begins.