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Resident urges county action on traffic, schools and home-rule as subdivisions multiply
Summary
During public comment, John Kelly Sr. told the commission that multiple new subdivisions will increase traffic and strain roads, schools and emergency services; he asked whether the county can require turn lanes, described developer cost-sharing, and raised the possibility of a referendum for zoning or limited home rule.
John Kelly Sr., a Mobile County resident who spoke during public comment at the Feb. 25 Mobile County Commission meeting, urged county officials to address traffic, school capacity and infrastructure stress tied to a surge of proposed subdivisions.
Kelly said the Labrador Chase/Labrador Run and nearby Belmont Park developments will add "400-plus" homes in one subdivision and additional projects of roughly 94 and 145 homes, and he asked whether a turn lane on McDonald Road (near Ben Hamilton Road and Belmont Park) would be constructed to handle the added traffic. He stated that developer Jeremy Hunt indicated willingness to pay 50% of the turn-lane cost.
County staff (Tim) responded that traffic studies are required when subdivisions are submitted and that such studies can trigger requirements for improvements, including turn lanes. Kelly again pressed for broader authority to manage growth and asked whether the county could obtain more control through new laws. A commissioner answered that altering the county’s authority would generally require state action or a referendum to allow zoning or limited home rule, noting that past efforts to secure home-rule referendums had been placed before voters and were defeated in the past (speaker referenced votes in the 1970s and 1980s).
Kelly expressed worries about public-safety and school capacity, citing local examples: "Coy Middle School is the largest enrolled middle school in the state of Alabama," and Baker High School ranks among the state’s largest high schools. He described fire district growth in his area and said some districts have moved from serving about 4,000 residents to roughly 14,000 within a decade, which he said supports upcoming referendum measures for fire dues.
Kelly also said, "That's your property. You can sell it to who you want," describing the tension between private property rights and neighbors’ concerns about new subdivisions. Commissioners and staff acknowledged the strain of rapid growth and the limits of county authority absent legislative change or a voter-approved referendum.
The commission did not take action in response to the public-comment remarks; the statements were recorded as part of the public-comment period.
