Ben Hill County tables special-exception request for 100-acre animal rescue after neighbors raise concerns

County Commissioners on July 2 tabled a special-exception request to establish an animal rescue and kennel on 100 acres at 160 Iris Road after adjacent landowners said the notice was vague and raised environmental and property-rights concerns.

County Manager Michael Dinnerman told the commission that applicants Ora Kendall and Tammy Adams applied for the special exception, that the property is largely isolated with no nearby houses, and that the Planning and Zoning Board had recommended approval. “Everything is complete,” Dinnerman said, and he recommended granting the request but urged a site survey to identify the kennel location and the spring.

During the public hearing, Jack Wilcox, the husband of joint owner Nancy Hough Wilcox, said the zoning notice did not specify which 100 acres would be used and asked that his wife’s adjacent land not be included. “The letter does not state where the 100 acres is and I don’t want the land to include my wife’s property,” Wilcox said, adding his concern that a historic spring on the land could be contaminated or that rights-of-way could be invaded.

Martin Hough echoed that the notice’s vague language left landowners unclear about the proposed facility’s exact location. After hearing staff recommendations and public comment, Commissioner John Mooney moved to table the item so the applicants could provide a survey showing the kennel footprint and the spring; Vice-Chair Hope Harmon seconded and the motion passed with Commissioners Hope Harmon, John Mooney, Bennie Calloway, and Daniel Cowan voting to table.

The tabling leaves the application unresolved; the county manager recommended the applicants survey the property before the commission takes further action.