Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning Text Amendment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commission approves zoning text amendment to allow planned residential developments in District 26 with limits; adds gyms to B1/B2 conditional uses
Summary
The commission approved a zoning text amendment that allows Planned Residential Developments (PRDs) in Planning District 26 subject to special provisions (minimum 250 contiguous acres, half preserved as outdoor open space such as golf courses or equestrian facilities); the amendment also adds fitness centers/gyms as conditional uses in B1 and B2.
Baldwin County commissioners approved a zoning text amendment that permits Planned Residential Developments (PRDs) in Planning District 26 under defined local provisions and made a housekeeping change to allow fitness centers and gyms as conditional uses in B1 and B2 business districts.
Planning staff said the change for District 26—long a locally governed area with its own provisions—requires PRDs to meet standards intended to preserve the district—s character: a minimum contiguous acreage (250 acres), and a requirement that half of the PRD consist of usable outdoor open space such as golf courses, equestrian facilities or country‑club amenities that fit the district—s character. Staff said the language was developed following a town‑hall meeting with Point Clear residents and a three‑week public comment period; staff and the planning commission recommended approval.
Staff also noted a prior omission in the use table and added fitness centers/gyms to B1 and B2 districts as conditional uses to correct that oversight. At the meeting, residents asked about density and environmental review; staff reiterated that the text amendment sets rules for when PRDs are allowed but that density, environmental studies and other project‑level reviews occur during individual development and subdivision reviews.
The commission approved the text amendment. Planning staff said this was the fifth public hearing on the District 26 language and that the community engagement process had been thorough.
The amendment does not itself approve any particular development; future projects proposing a PRD in District 26 will require project‑level applications that must meet the newly adopted criteria and undergo separate environmental, traffic and site‑plan reviews.
