Charlotte County Planning Commission recommends changes to poultry zoning rules

The Charlotte County Planning Commission on Aug. 17, 2023, voted unanimously to recommend zoning amendments that would change how poultry confined animal feeding operations are regulated in the county. The motion to recommend the amendments was made by David Watkins and seconded by Cornell Goldman and carried with all members present voting yes.

Staff presented the proposed amendments to the commission during a public hearing. The proposal would reduce the animal-unit threshold for poultry CAFOs to 200 animal units (listed in the staff report as equivalent to 11,000 turkeys or 20,000 chickens). Acreage requirements would be the larger of the acreage required by a CAFO’s waste-management plan or a minimum of 15 acres for the first 200 animal units and 10 acres for each additional 200 animal units or fraction thereof. The draft would also remove the one-mile setback from the Residential Zoning District; staff noted that poultry CAFO setbacks measured from towns already provide a 1.75-mile buffer for the Residential District. The proposal would require the installation of at least one poultry house within 36 months of approval.

Commission member David Watkins made the motion to recommend the amendments; Cornell Goldman seconded. The motion record states the recommendation was carried with all members present voting yes.

There were no public comments or questions during the hearing on the proposed amendments. The transcript records that the public hearing was opened by Chairman Carwile and closed with no public remarks recorded for this item.

The transcript does not specify the next procedural step or the timeline for county consideration following the planning commission’s recommendation. Details such as the date of any Board of Supervisors consideration or final adoption were not specified in the meeting record.