The Walton County Planning and Zoning Commission recommended denial of Case Z250374, a rezoning request to change 4.7 acres at 4350 Jacks Creek Road from A-1 to A-4 for a commercial dog kennel with customer contact and relief from certain setbacks.

Applicant Raymond (identified in the record as Raymond Spinelli) told the commission he has operated a dog kennel for years, breeds French Mastiffs and other dogs, and said many puppies are placed with people who need service animals. He said his operation is not a large-scale breeder, estimated one litter a year, and disputed claims that his dogs have chased neighbors or caused noise problems at his home.

Neighbors who live adjacent to the property spoke in opposition. Chris Fogelman cited Walton County ordinance sections 6-1-470 and 6-1-480, saying the ordinances limit placement of commercial kennels within 200 feet of a property line and 500 feet of a residential district; he presented photographs showing the proposed kennel’s proximity to nearby homes and asked that the application be denied. Cheyenne Geary said dogs from the property had entered her yard and twice chased her while she was returning from her mailbox and said she had contacted animal control about local dog issues approximately 10 times in the previous three months.

Mark Lewis of Code Enforcement told the commission staff had received complaints of an unlicensed business at the location, found online references to a kennel business, and told the owner the activity needed to stop. Lewis said there are roughly 15 citations pending related to the location (exact charges were not specified on the record) and that animal control staff were not present at the meeting.

After testimony and questions, a board member (speaker identified in the transcript only as speaker 2; name not specified) moved to deny the rezoning request for Case Z250374; the motion was seconded and passed by voice vote (recorded as 4-0). The commission’s denial will be forwarded to the Walton County Board of Commissioners for final action on Feb. 10.

The transcript records the safety concerns of adjacent residents and pending code-enforcement actions as the primary reasons cited on the record for the board’s recommendation. The applicant acknowledged citations and an ongoing bench-trial process related to animal-control enforcement.