Commission approves contested rezoning on CR 3280 for storage/warehouse project after neighbors raise flood and buffering concerns

The Walton County Board of County Commissioners approved a future‑land‑use change and rezoning Oct. 28 that will allow a mixed light industrial and storage development on about 5.93 acres fronting County Road 3280. The applicant, represented by Cliff Nauer, described a design that places warehouse buildings along Highway 3280, mini‑storage units and a gated entrance inside the parcel and a 25‑foot tree buffer adjacent to residential lots.

Neighbors who live directly across the road and behind the property raised several objections in public comment. Objections included concerns that the parcel floods during heavy rains, that historic drainage patterns affecting nearby ponds and downstream areas have been changed by development nearby, and that a fence or buffer placed 25 feet inside the applicant's property would be insufficient (some neighbors asked for a privacy fence on the property line and preservation of the mature tree canopy to provide sound and visual separation). One resident, Robert Stapleton, said the neighborhood has already seen water backing up onto County Road 3280 during heavy rain events and warned that other nearby development has reduced drainage capacity.

Developers said they have prepared geotechnical and wetland delineation work, showed plans that reserve space for on‑site stormwater detention and noted that light industrial uses in this location will generate fewer PM peak trips than some other allowable uses; planners flagged the irrigation/impervious and floor area ratio calculations as consistent with the LDC. The zoning action passed on a recorded vote (four in favor, one opposed). Commissioners attached standard development‑order review steps; staff noted that the applicant must still deliver a DO package (stormwater, landscaping, detailed elevations) that meets the county's development standards. If an unresolved code or buffer question remains, staff advised the board the DO process is the appropriate stage to require the additional fence or buffering measures.

Why this matters: The decision allows a light‑industrial/storage site next to residential lots and prompted community concern about stormwater/drainage and the permanence of buffers. The developer agreed to a 25‑foot buffer; neighbors asked that the privacy fence be placed on the property line and that the mature wooded buffer remain intact to protect neighbors' yards and property values.