Council approves rezoning at 5025 Old York Road with conditions tied to occupancy

The Rock Hill City Council approved second reading Monday to rezone a parcel at 5025 Old York Road from Industry Business (IB) to Local Commercial (LC), a change the applicant says is necessary to allow a retail tenant to occupy a 15,000-square-foot building on the site.

Shawna (staff member) told council the parcel lies in the Newport area and is surrounded by mixed uses including Impact Church, a mulch and lumber yard, a nearby Hardy Pond mixed-use development under construction, and a Walmart shopping center. Mark Mayfield, trustee, is the applicant listed in the record.

The rezoning ordinance includes a condition that it will not go into effect until the identified tenant obtains a certificate of occupancy; if that does not occur by Dec. 31 of this year the rezoning will revert, the staff report shows. Shawna said the applicant has used the time since the ordinance’s first reading to identify a retail tenant who needs the LC zoning.

Council members asked staff about access and future road connections. Shawna said South Carolina Department of Transportation traffic counts previously were required for a prior proposed use on the site and that a similar traffic analysis will likely be required for any new use; SCDOT may require turning-lane changes depending on traffic counts. Council members also asked whether a road shown on plans for the Hardy Pond development would be secured by easement; Shawna said the developer of the adjacent Hardy Pond outparcels has dedicated a 50-foot joint access easement intended to allow a future connection from Perthwood (shown as Perthwood/Perthwood Street in plans) through to Hampton Ridge Road in the event of redevelopment.

Council moved to adopt second reading and adoption. The motion carried on a voice vote with no recorded opposition.

The council also approved the minutes of the Jan. 27 special session earlier in the meeting.