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Planning board approves rezoning of two Younts Road parcels to allow proposed Encompass Health rehab hospital
Summary
The planning board unanimously approved rezoning two parcels at 2119 and 2209 Younts Road from low‑density residential to regional business district, clearing the way for by‑right commercial uses the applicant says could include a 50‑bed Encompass Health inpatient rehabilitation facility; neighbors raised concerns about views, traffic and farmland preservation.
The planning board voted unanimously to approve a zoning map amendment for two parcels at 2119 and 2209 Younts Road that staff said total 9.09 acres and are owned by Sherry Roldan and Bertha Younts. The change from SF‑1 (single‑family, low‑density) to RBD (regional business district) will allow the uses listed by right in the RBD district, staff said, including medical facilities and inpatient rehabilitation hospitals.
Planning staff presented the request as a conventional rezoning and noted the application’s letter of intent names Encompass Health Corporation as the applicant. The staff presentation said the property is identified as low‑density residential on the future land‑use map but sits adjacent to a mixed‑use corridor the comprehensive plan designates an “Activity Center Boulevard,” noting nearby commercial development including a Walmart Supercenter and other rezonings along Younts Road.
Edmund Ball, chief real estate officer for Encompass Health, told the board the company operates inpatient rehabilitation hospitals that provide physical, occupational and speech therapy and does not offer substance‑abuse or behavioral treatment at these facilities. He said the proposal under discussion is shown as a 50‑bed, single‑story facility, with plans to start at 50 beds and consider modest expansion later depending on market demand. "We are the largest provider of inpatient rehabilitation," Ball said, adding that average patient stays at Encompass facilities are measured in weeks and that patients are generally adults aged 18 and older.
Board members asked whether the two houses on the parcels were occupied (staff said they appear vacant), questioned the location of an adjacent 'for sale' lot visible on the aerials, and pressed staff and the applicant about preserving tree buffers and addressing stormwater at the site‑plan stage. Staff emphasized that the concept plan shown in the packet is not part of the rezoning decision; any development would still need to meet the Unified Development Ordinance and applicable site‑plan requirements, and a conditional rezoning would be required if code standards could not be met.
During public comment, Robert Ross, who said he lives across the street at 2208 Younts Road, urged the board to preserve farmland and the rural character along that side road. "We love horses. We love cows. And we'd like to keep our side road that way," Ross said, voicing concern about potential traffic, sightlines and the prospect of more intensive development.
After discussion, a board member moved to approve the rezoning (motion recorded as 'approve CM2026‑0065 as presented'); the motion was seconded and carried unanimously. The approval changes the parcels’ base zoning but does not approve a site plan or authorize construction; any future development will return to staff and the board as required by code for site‑plan review and permitting.
What happens next: with the RBD designation in place, the applicant may submit a site plan and building permits; those subsequent reviews will address layout, buffers, landscaping, stormwater control and other technical conditions identified by staff.
