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Planning commission reviews county’s 100‑day subdivision moratorium; staff to draft ordinances addressing flag lots and serial splits
Summary
The Upson County Planning Commission on April 14 reviewed a Board of Commissioners’ 100‑day moratorium on subdivision activity and asked staff to draft ordinance changes to address flag lots, repeated parcel splits and driveway access to county roads.
The Upson County Planning Commission on April 14 reviewed a Board of Commissioners resolution imposing a 100‑day moratorium on subdivision activity and related items. The commission discussed the moratorium’s purpose — described by staff as a temporary “stop‑gap” — and asked staff to draft ordinance language addressing subdivision rules, flag lots and serial parcel splits.
Staff said the moratorium aims to reduce situations in which multiple new driveways are created directly onto county roads rather than allowing internal subdivision roads, and to limit repeated small splits of parcels that currently bypass administrative or commission review. As staff explained, ‘‘this is at least the first step of stop gap to do that’’ and the moratorium covers items the county cited as problems under current practice.
The commission discussed flag lots, noting past liberal approvals, and the issue of ‘‘serial subdivisions or splits’’ in which parcels are repeatedly split in successive transactions to create buildable lots without full subdivision review. Staff said the county manager drafted the resolution and staff will take the moratorium language and prepare ordinance changes; commissioners asked to see proposed text and to be involved in drafting and scheduling.
No formal vote to amend local ordinances was taken at the planning commission meeting; the transcript records discussion and a direction that staff will draft ordinance language and return it to the commission. Staff estimated a draft ordinance could be presented in one to two months, contingent on workload and coordination with the county manager.
Commissioners also noted a related item heard at a recent Board of Commissioners workshop: a possible technology overlay zoning district that came through the IDA. Staff said they had limited information on that overlay and would provide details as they become available.
The discussion will continue when staff presents a draft ordinance; the moratorium itself was presented to the commission as already in effect as a temporary measure enacted by the Board of Commissioners.
