Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Lee County resident objects to Hardwood Hollows Phase 2 final plat; commission approves
Summary
An adjacent homeowner told the Lee County Commission she learned of the Hardwood Hollows Phase 2 development only after approvals were in place and urged an environmental assessment; county staff and the engineer said buffers and ADEM oversight apply, and the commission approved the final plat with one commissioner opposing.
An adjacent homeowner told the Lee County Commission she was kept "in the dark" about the Hardwood Hollows Phase 2 subdivision and asked the board for a three-month environmental assessment before construction moves forward. The commission approved the final plat after hearing from the resident, an engineer for the development and county staff.
The resident, who said her property is immediately adjacent to the proposed work, complained that the developer and county had already completed approvals before she received notice. "This whole thing was done in such a manner as to keep me, the property owner, in the dark until after it was already a done deal," she said, adding that the proposed clearing would remove forest and harm a creek used by wildlife.
County highway staff and the project's engineer responded that the final plat before the commission was for single-family lots and that environmental protections apply. The engineer, Mr. McBride, said, "So we've already done a soil test in the driveway... there's 2 homesites that we are talking really 2 lots that have been closed up to your property." He added that required creek buffers would need to be observed.
County staff clarified the enforcement roles: "Creek buffers and water quality are handled by ADEM," a highway department representative told the board, and the county's building inspections department focuses on structures rather than land-disturbance compliance. Staff said they could dispatch someone to the site to document any post-construction concerns and, with the resident's permission, go onto the property to take photographs and refer violations to ADEM.
During the public discussion, commissioners asked for clarifications about lot layout, distance of house sites from the private dirt drive and which agency enforces buffers. The engineer said the homes would be single-family sites and not apartments.
After discussion, a motion to approve the final plat passed. When the chair asked, "All those in favor?" the voice vote produced multiple "Aye" responses; one commissioner voiced opposition. County staff recorded that letters notifying adjacent property owners had been sent on March 16, 2026, and encouraged the resident to follow up with staff for on-site review and documentation.
The commission's approval allows the developer to proceed with platting the four lots noted in the final submission; staff said the smallest lot is one and a half acres. The county and state agencies retain authority over land-disturbance and water-quality matters; the resident was told she can contact county staff or ADEM if she observes muddying or other impacts to the creek.
