Developer seeks to change zoning condition to allow private gated streets on 73-acre site

Planning staff told the board that Doug Patton of Bridgetown Development Inc. requested a two-part action: modify the zoning stipulations that currently call for public streets in a conservation subdivision and, if permitted, approve the private-streets provisions in Article 5 that allow private or gated streets.

The parcel comprises several tracts totaling about 73 acres along Knoxbridge Highway, adjacent to Fieldstone and near Rivergreen. According to planning staff, the property was rezoned R30 in 2021 for a 104-lot conservation subdivision with conditions that included 24-foot public streets. The applicant says the original intent was private gated streets; the requested modification would retain the same road sections (24 feet, curb-to-curb, curb and gutter, sidewalk) but reclassify them as private.

Staff said county transportation engineering reviewed the request and had no objection, and the board discussed the long-term possibility that the county could be asked to take over private roads in the future — at which point the gates would be removed and the roads would be inspected to county standards. No formal vote was taken during the work session; the item is on the public hearing agenda for the evening.