Carroll County board rezones 1 acre for Rootville convenience store; adds lighting restriction

The Carroll County Board of Commissioners voted 7-0 March 4 to rezone one acre at 2034 Rootville Road from Agriculture to Commercial to allow reopening and remodeling of a long‑standing convenience store.

The vote implements a request by property owner and applicant Perry Richardson to restore a one‑acre parcel that, Richardson and staff said, had been treated as a separate store parcel in earlier surveys but was later combined on the tax rolls. Ben Skipper, Carroll County community development director, told the board the request would reestablish the one‑acre footprint for the store and that the county planning commission had recommended approval 5‑0.

Skipper said county staff found survey records dating to 1995 showing a one‑acre parcel around the store. He told commissioners the building originally had been built in 1957 and operated as a store until around 2002; Richardson told the board he purchased the store in 1998 and the house later and said his intent was to rezone the one acre “so I can sell it.”

Commissioners discussed the scope of the rezoning and whether any future subdivision of the remaining property would require separate review. The rezoning approved by the board applies to the one acre containing the store; Skipper and other staff members noted the remainder of the property remains zoned Agriculture and any later division or change would have to follow county rules.

The motion to approve included a stipulation requested by a commissioner that exterior lighting be downward‑directed to avoid glare onto the roadway and neighboring properties. The board recorded the final tally as 7 in favor, 0 opposed.

The planning commission and staff recommended approval after the applicant supplied historic survey records and answered questions about the property history. The rezoning creates a single commercial parcel limited to the store footprint; other uses or expansions would require additional approvals.

The board did not take any separate action on the remainder of the parcel during the meeting. The decision and the condition on lighting are recorded in the board minutes.

Votes at a glance: Z25‑0201 — Rezoning one acre at 2034 Rootville Road from Agriculture to Commercial for a convenience store. Motion: approve rezoning with stipulation that exterior lighting be downward‑directed; mover/second not recorded on the transcript. Vote: 7 yes, 0 no. Outcome: approved.