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Board advances first reading, enacts 60-day moratorium and schedules work session on land-development amendments
Summary
The board approved first reading of proposed changes to Chapter 6 (land development), enacted a 60-day moratorium, and scheduled a work session; proposed changes include raising Level 2 minimum lot size from 1 acre to 3 acres and denying building permits where county property taxes are unpaid.
The Hart County Board of Commissioners voted March 11 to take first reading of proposed amendments to Chapter 6 (land development standards), enact a 60-day moratorium and schedule a work session to refine the draft ordinance.
The board’s motion, made by Commissioner Dorsey and seconded, directed staff to proceed with first reading of several changes that were presented in the packet. The principal changes discussed on the record were: raising the Level 2 subdivision minimum lot size from one acre to three acres; adding a provision to deny a building permit if the applicant’s county property taxes are not current (the draft would require proof that all county ad valorem taxes accruing and payable have been paid, with the current-year taxes to be paid as well); and other clarifications to subdivision exemptions and road-right-of-way standards.
Commissioners and members of the public engaged in extended discussion about farmland protection, soil classifications, subdivision exemptions, deed restrictions, and the potential impacts on affordability and economic development. Multiple speakers urged a work session to examine options, data and trade-offs rather than adopting long-term limits immediately.
The board approved a motion that (1) takes the proposed amendment as a first reading, (2) enacts a 60-day moratorium to allow completion of the public-review process and staff drafting, (3) schedules a work session before the next regular meeting, and (4) grandfathered projects currently in process so applications already submitted would proceed under existing rules. The vote was recorded as 5-0.
The transcript records public comment from developers and residents urging careful balancing of farmland protection and housing affordability; it also records technical questions about how deed restrictions and covenants would affect subdivision approvals. The board did not adopt final ordinance language during the meeting; staff and counsel were asked to prepare a revised draft for discussion at a forthcoming work session and subsequent readings.
