Applicants ask to place mobile home on 15 acres; neighbor voices concern

Brandi and Phillip Spillers asked the commission at a May 27 public hearing for permission to place a mobile home on a 15-acre parcel at 410 Firetower Road and establish it as their primary residence. Planning and Zoning provided a letter recommending approval and officials said the parcel is zoned R‑R and met checklist requirements.

Phillip Lee Spillers told commissioners he currently lives in Columbus, that he and his wife want to move to the county because of the community, and that they cannot afford to build a house now. "it is cheaper to place a mobile home, but they want to put it on a concrete slab," he said, describing plans to set the unit on a permanent slab.

Neighbor Mark Henson of 455 Firetower Road spoke in opposition to mobile homes generally, saying he has seen many vacant or abandoned units and that such properties ‘‘make the county look ugly.’’(transcript paraphrase). The chair noted he had received a text from an adjoining landowner in CUVA expressing concerns but said the neighbor's property would not be developed.

Planning and Zoning's recommendation and the applicants' compliance with the checklist will be forwarded to the commission for a vote at a subsequent meeting; the public hearing closed without a decision during the May 27 session.