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Planning commission recommends denial of Griffin property rezoning after subdivision rule cited
Summary
Spalding County Planning Commission recommended denial of a rezoning and related variance request for 738 Mangum Road after commissioners concluded the lot remains part of Buck Creek Subdivision and cannot be rezoned to AR‑1 under subdivision rules.
The Spalding County Planning Commission on an evening meeting recommended denying a rezoning request for 738 Mangum Road in Griffin, concluding the lot remains part of the Buck Creek Subdivision and cannot be rezoned to AR‑1.
The commission’s recommendation will go to the Board of Commissioners for final action on May 22. The applicant, Tim Long, said he and his family keep “5 chickens, 2 pigs and 5 goats” (he later corrected the goat count) and sought rezoning from R‑5 single‑family residential to AR‑1 agricultural residential so the animals could remain and he could pursue small-scale agricultural activities and educational programs.
County staff told the commission the case had been heard previously and was tabled so the applicant could file a variance because the proposed AR‑1 parcel would fall below the three‑acre minimum for the zone. Staff and the commission also noted the lot is still recorded as a lot within Buck Creek Subdivision; under local practice a lot inside a subdivision ordinarily must remain the subdivision’s zoning. Commissioners said changing zoning inside a recorded subdivision would run against county guidelines and could create an unwanted precedent.
The commission closed the public hearing after the applicant confirmed he understood county limits that would allow only goats and chickens on the property if rezoned, and that pigs would not be permitted under the staff conditions being discussed. A motion to deny the rezoning passed unanimously among members present. Because the commission recommended denial of the rezoning, staff said the related variance application is moot.
The applicant was told the planning commission’s vote is only a recommendation; the Board of Commissioners will make the final decision at its May 22 meeting in the same room.
Details in the record show the property is 1.48 acres; the applicant described the animals as pets and for family use and educational visits to schools and libraries.
