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Neighbors urge commissioners to deny Chemukla-area rezoning, citing prime farmland and precedent
Summary
Multiple residents opposed a pending rezoning at Chemukla/Chemekah Highway and Wallace Lake Road that would change farmland to commercial and higher-density residential. Speakers said the parcel contains prime farmland soils and that approval would set a precedent for larger planned developments.
Residents and community advocates told the Santa Rosa County commission on Oct. 23 that a rezoning request for property at Chemukla (Chemekah) Highway and Wallace Lake Road should be denied to protect prime farmland and the surrounding rural character.
Several speakers from the PACE advocacy group and nearby farms described the parcel as actively farmed through the summer and noted that the county property appraiser’s mapping designates portions of the site as prime farmland or farmland of local importance. “If you want to protect farmland, you should deny this rezoning,” David Fowler of PACE said, urging commissioners not to convert agricultural soils into commercial or higher-density residential uses.
Rhein Fowler, whose remarks preceded others, said the parcel has been farmed for years and that the immediate neighbors learned about the rezoning through social media rather than direct notice. He said the proposal to change the property from agricultural zoning to HCD and R-2 — which allows up to 10 dwelling units per acre and duplexes with zero lot lines — mirrors zoning sought by the Jubilee planned development and could set a precedent.
Ellen Fowler told the commission that the rezoning is incompatible with the surrounding area and would encourage further farmland loss. She asked commissioners to consult the Santa Rosa County property appraiser’s soils maps and to consider the Farmland Protection Policy Act when evaluating impacts tied to prime soils.
Commissioners noted the rezoning is scheduled for a special meeting at 5 p.m. the same day and said they would hear the formal rezoning application and public input at that hearing. During the Oct. 23 regular meeting, commissioners took public comments and said they would consider the views expressed at the rezoning hearing before taking a final vote.
No rezoning decision was recorded at the Oct. 23 regular meeting; the formal hearing was scheduled for later in the day.
